Bloodhound’s Regression Instinct

Chapter 28

The instructors of the training camp were at least at the level of 6th-grade beginner to 5th-grade complete.

But most of them stayed at the level of 6th grade complete.

In that situation, a trainee who reached the 5th grade appeared.

The faces of the instructors who had not reached that level turned pale.

“What, what did you say?”

“That’s impossible! Do it again!”

“Only the crown prince was the one who reached that level at the age of 17!”

“Besides, that trainee only started learning mana two years ago!”

The instructors demanded a re-examination in unison.

There were many who reached the 5th grade level, where they could emit sword energy.

But it was almost impossible to reach that level at the age of 17.

Even the crown prince, the only exception, had started learning mana since he was a baby.

The old examiner looked closely at what the young examiner had calculated and recorded, and nodded his head.

“…The result is correct. He barely passed the threshold, though.”

At that, the instructors protested even more for a re-examination.

It was understandable.

The guy they had been bossing around until yesterday suddenly rose to their level.

“What’s so high about that?”

Roman frowned.

He was from a foreign land, and the ‘knight grade’ was unfamiliar to him.

He didn’t know why the authoritative instructors were making such a fuss.

Casa answered Roman’s question.

“Among the instructors here, there are hardly any stronger than him right now.”

“Is, is that true?”

Roman was surprised.

He always dreamed of escaping, and he had memorized the instructors’ strengths during the two years of intensive training.

They were all strong, but he thought he could handle one or two of them by now.

‘He’s stronger than most of the instructors?’

He was sure that Yan hadn’t even started learning mana until he was dragged to this training camp.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had to knock him down with a stone.

Roman looked at Yan with his tongue out.

He didn’t like him, but…

He understood a little why he wanted to stay here.

He had only been in this training camp for two and a half years.

He had become so strong in such a short time, he would have wanted to stay if he were him.

‘It would be nice if he escaped with me.’

He felt regretful seeing Yan grow more.

Casa laughed bitterly.

“Ha, haha. He’s crazy… I should have joined hands with him back then.”

“Then you would have died by my hand too.”

Cruel grinded his teeth and burned with killing intent.

Casa ignored Cruel’s furious face and turned his head to look at the last remaining candidate for the top spot.

It was Lorena, who had always stayed in second place.

She didn’t make a fuss like Cruel or the instructors.

But she looked as shocked as the others, with her eyes wide open.

‘Is she pretending not to be surprised?’

Casa snickered and turned his head.

But contrary to his thoughts, Lorena had no intention of hiding her surprise.

She just.

‘…Are you sure the result is not wrong?’

She was speechless with astonishment.

She knew what it meant to reach the 5th grade at the age of 17.

She had also heard that she was the best talent in the history of Beowulf.

‘But my brother was better than me.’

Her brother, who was no longer in this world, was much better than her.

It was not a delusion of nostalgia and embellishment.

She could never forget the sight of her brother, who twisted his sword energy and boasted to her at the age of 18.

Only the Beowulf duke knew that fact, and he buried it rather than announcing it.

It was too dangerous a talent.

That’s how the best talent in Beowulf’s history was passed on from her brother to her.

And now, Yan in front of her.

‘He’s much better than my brother?’

It was a huge shock to Lorena.

‘I can’t believe it. Unless he’s playing some tricks…’

She clenched her small fist.

Then she remembered the times when Yan had come and gone from the training camp for two years.

Unlike Cruel, who never met him, she was lucky enough to challenge him to a duel every time she met him, but he ignored her.

‘Was he avoiding my challenges to hide this fact until now?’

Yan actually avoided her because he was annoyed, but Lorena had no choice but to think so.

It was such an absurd result.

* * *

Someone looked at Yan and gritted his teeth.

Paddeuk.

‘That kid is 5th grade?’

He was the instructor who had said that Yan should be punished for not coming out of the imperial prison a few years ago, and got scolded by the chief instructor.

‘My brother died here rolling around…, and you have a way out.’

He had been calling him a peer until now, but in fact, the instructor who died by Yan was his brother.

He remembered his brother’s face, who died with his tongue sticking out like he was executed.

He was angry.

That guy was already 5th grade, so he would be pushed up by the higher-ups from now on.

If his level reached the emperor’s ears, he might even be appointed as the next special commander.

‘I won’t let that happen.’

His brother died without even blooming, so it was only fair that he died before he could do anything.

The senior instructor, Jack, had a gloomy look in his eyes.

He clenched his fist.

Then his nails dug into his flesh and blood dripped.

* * *

The imperial knight exam ended smoothly.

Yan, who was first, was in 5th grade.

From second to fifth place, they were from complete 6th grade to beginner.

Below that, most of them were beginners in 7th grade or 8th grade.

[Snort, you’re good at hiding like a fox.]

Momon laughed in his head.

Yan cleaned his dusty room and threw himself on the bed.

Fluffy-

“Ah, finally I can rest a bit.”

He had worked hard for two years, even though he pretended not to.

Not just his body, but his mind was also tortured.

He learned magic from Momon, and changed the Dark Skill to suit the Dragon’s Breath.

And the new skills he created.

[You silly boy.]

“Why.”

[With your skills, you could live here with a lot of respect, why are you hiding them?

From that guy called the chief instructor, and from that ‘exam’ or whatever it was.

Yan smirked.

As Momon said, he hid his skills in the ‘imperial knight exam’ that was briefly done.

It wasn’t hard.

He hid his mana all over his body by using the ‘dark energy’ he got from the Dragon’s Breath for two years.

And for the cases where it was hard to hide, like the energy spinning around the mana heart.

[Hahaha! So that’s why you only used the energy gathered in the mana heart to fight that guy called the chief instructor!]

“Bingo.”

He used up most of it in the last duel with the chief instructor.

“But I’m still in 5th grade, right?”

[I don’t know the standard well, but I can tell that you’re hiding about 30% of your skills.

And you didn’t even reveal that you can use magic, did you?]

Yan chuckled at Momon’s words.

If he used the magic he was hiding, he could even compete with a complete 5th-grade knight.

There was a reason why the empire had a saying to hide 30% of your skills.

Anyway.

“Now I have to think about the next exam.”

The second exam that would start soon was an exam that took place outside.

Yan stroked his chin and was about to make a plan.

Knock knock.

Someone knocked on the door.

“…?”

Who is it at this time?

He looked out the window and it was a dark night.

Yan got up and opened the door.

The person in front of the door was the instructor who had guided him to this room before.

He said in a stiff voice.

“The chief instructor wants to talk to you about the future.”

The chief instructor?

Did he have something to discuss with him?

Yan tilted his head.

Then he obediently said he understood.

And then he followed the instructor.

‘He must be plotting something.’

But Yan hid that and followed the instructor naturally.

* * *

Jack looked at Yan, who followed him without any suspicion, and snickered.

‘This loser is in 5th grade? He must have pulled some tricks.’

He didn’t notice anything strange nor ask anything, he just followed him.

Jack went out through the side door that only the instructors could use.

He felt Yan tilt his head behind him.

“What are you dawdling for? Hurry up.”

“Did the chief instructor really call me?”

“Do you think I came out here with you to do some exercise under the moonlight?”

But he eventually shrugged his shoulders and followed him obediently.

After about 10 minutes of walking.

The instructor stopped in his tracks.

But there was no sign of the chief instructor around him.

Only.

Swoosh.

He felt the presence of other instructors.

Yan sighed deeply and looked at the bright moon quietly.

“Annoying.”

He had to think about the second exam that would start tomorrow.

And he had to deal with the instructors’ envy and jealousy.

‘But I have to get rid of them now, so I won’t have any trouble later.’

When he thought that, Jack, the instructor in front of him, laughed loudly.

“You came all the way here without a fuss. I don’t know if you’re stupid or naive.”

At Jack’s words, the other instructors revealed themselves.

There were five of them, including Jack.

“It looks like you have some complaints about me, can I ask one thing before we start?”

Their eyes were full of killing intent.

Squeak.

They drew their swords from their waists.

Regardless, Yan spoke.

“Can you tell me why you’re doing this to me?”

“Why do you want to know? Ha, this kid has such a loose mouth that he can’t even show respect to the instructors.”

“Respect?”

Yan lifted one corner of his mouth.

Respect my ass.

“Do I have to be nice to the people who are trying to kill me?”

At that, the instructors let out a sinister laugh.

“Heh, he seems to know what’s going on.”

“If he had just been caught quietly when he escaped, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Captain, do we have to listen to his last words? Let’s just finish him and return.”

As they chuckled among themselves, Yan’s eyes sparkled.

‘Captain?’

There was no position called ‘captain’ among the instructors in the special training camp.

That meant.

‘These guys are not ordinary instructors.’

As he was thinking that, Jack stepped forward.

He bent down and looked into Yan’s eyes.

“When you escaped, one of the instructors you killed was my brother.”

“Oh, I see.”

It made sense that he wanted to avenge his brother.

“So struggle as much as you can. That way, my brother’s grudge in the underworld will be eased a little…”

“One more thing.”

Yan cut off Jack’s words.

Jack was annoyed that his words were interrupted, but he couldn’t refuse the last words of a dying man.

“What is it?”

“Do you think the chief instructor knows about this?”

At that, Jack and the instructors laughed.

Yan’s eyes sank low.

‘He doesn’t know.’

Of course, if he knew, he wouldn’t have gone through all that trouble to raise him for two years.

“The chief instructor won’t let you go if he finds out later.”

“Don’t worry, 974. We’ll take care of that… Huh!”

Jack spat out a surprise and blocked the front with his sword.

Clang-!

With a strong impact, Jack was pushed back.

“Th, this bastard!”

Jack glared at Yan, grinding his teeth.

And his eyes began to tremble violently.

What Yan was holding in his hand was the Black Shadow Sword, which he had seen by chance before.

It was a vision created by the chief instructor himself.

“Ch, chief instructor, this bastard is really! Attack!”

Jack shouted, and the instructors around him rushed towards Yan.

Five sword energies came at Yan, piercing him.

For a moment, Yan hardened his expression.

It wasn’t because they were scary or overwhelming.

The sword energy that the instructors were emitting was blood-red.

There were many skills that used red sword energy, but there were hardly any places that used blood-like red sword energy.

As far as Yan knew, there was only one place that used that sword energy.

His eyes flashed.

“Rebels?”

The force that would cause a rebellion in the future.

They called themselves ‘revolutionaries’.

He encountered their traces in an unexpected place.