Chapter 153. Chaos (3)
It seemed that her brother’s claim of having prepared a variable capable of overturning the situation was not a lie.
“To overturn the board like this… The variable you prepared is quite extreme.”
Perhaps it was due to the shock of having a game that was almost won being upended.
Or maybe it was the belief that the recent turn of events was truly something Yulia had orchestrated.
Fritz spoke in a tone of utter disbelief.
But Yulia, too, was not much different from him.
‘…What’s this idiot on about?’
No, in fact, she was even more bewildered.
‘What on earth is going on?’
The pair that overturned the board and ran off.
Unless her eyes deceived her, it was clearly Yuri and Theresia.
As she pondered why those two had appeared here, steam almost seemed to rise from Yulia’s head.
But…
‘…I don’t know.’
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t figure it out.
Theresia’s return to this place, that could be somewhat understandable.
But Yuri Holland.
Why, and how on earth had he appeared here?
And so, Fritz was lost in his own thoughts, while Yulia was similarly deep in hers.
Then something happened that would plunge both of the young sages into further confusion.
“Waaah-!”
“There they go!”
“Hurry up, speed up!”
“We’ll lose them at this rate!”
A crowd of dozens came rushing in.
Thud thud thud thud—
Like a herd of cattle, the group charged forward, and Yulia’s pupils trembled as if an earthquake had struck when she recognized her own cadets among them.
‘W-Why are they here?!’
Why had the ones she’d painstakingly elevated now come running back down?
And it wasn’t just one or two—it was dozens of them.
Thud thud.
Ignoring Yulia and Fritz, the group continued running ahead.
At that moment—
“Yulia! Hurry, catch up! Come on!”
Jerry, having briefly stepped out of the running crowd, jumped in place and waved toward Yulia.
Fritz looked at Yulia with a face full of shock.
“Don’t tell me… Those guys too?!”
It was obvious what his expression was saying: ‘Is this also part of the variables you prepared?!’
There was also a deep sense of defeat mixed in his expression.
It was because he couldn’t predict what further chaos Yulia’s variables would cause.
And he was shocked by the realization that he was losing in this game of wits with his sister.
Seeing Fritz so frustrated was a first for Yulia, and sparks flew in her mind.
With a meaningful smile, she spoke.
“Think hard… about what’s going to happen next.”
“…?!”
This wasn’t her doing, and she herself didn’t know what was going on.
However.
‘There’s no need for me to let him know, is there?’
With that, Yulia decided to further fuel Fritz’s confusion and quickly ran towards where her cadets were heading.
With a cunning smile on her face.
Theresia, having been caught by Yuri without knowing why, began to run alongside him.
Yet, strangely, as they started running, her startled heart began to calm down quickly.
She furrowed her fine eyebrows and shouted.
“You… Why are you even here?!”
“Of course, I escaped.”
Hearing his casual voice, Theresia’s lips parted slightly.
“But I heard you were shackled with mana-suppressing cuffs and chains?”
“Oh, that? I took them off.”
“Took them off? How?”
“There’s this secret technique where you can pick any lock with just a strand of hair.”
“…You’re joking, right?”
“Nope, I’m serious. Though it was a bit tricky with my hair being shorter, but still, having mana helped me manage somehow.”
“……”
Lost for words, Theresia clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘What kind of life has this guy been living?’
She already knew he was good with his hands and multi-talented, but why would a mere sixteen-year-old know how to pick locks?
She decided to shelve that question for now.
Theresia, having so many questions, began to ask them one by one.
Starting with the most fundamental one.
“What did you do? What on earth did you do to make them chase after you like that?”
He shrugged his shoulders lightly.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Lies.”
“Aren’t you dismissing my sincerity too quickly?”
“You expect me to believe you? After everything that’s happened?”
Yuri pouted.
‘…This is so unfair.’
He was truly feeling wronged.
‘Why the hell did they show up there?’ ‘You, come here for a sec,’ and other similar reasons—the trouble started from the 49th batch.
Already busy as it was, these clueless idiots occasionally jumped out and blocked Yuri’s path, calling out to him.
Who wouldn’t get annoyed at that?
‘There are some things you just shouldn’t put up with, no matter how busy you are.’
So even amidst all his pressing tasks, Yuri took the time to teach those nuisances a lesson on knowing their place.
After parting ways with Jerry and getting into a spat with the second group of troublemakers.
Once again, just as he was about to leave those dimwits who blocked his way with a strong lesson imprinted on their foreheads… that’s when they appeared.
“We’ve caught up!”
“There they are!”
“Get them!”
The mob came rushing in with wild shouts.
Seeing Jerry at the forefront, Yuri realized that they were indeed the 49th batch whom he’d encountered earlier.
And that’s why he felt wronged.
“I didn’t even hit those guys!”
If he’d actually given them a beating, he wouldn’t feel so wronged!
Hearing Yuri’s sincere shout, Theresia’s eyes narrowed.
“The fact that you said ‘those guys’ means you did hit the others, didn’t you?”
“I sent them off respectfully.”
Who knows where he sent them off to, but Theresia decided to just accept it as it was.
Yuri shrugged his shoulders.
“Anyway, I didn’t do anything to those guys.”
“Then why are they like that?”
“I’m telling you, I don’t know.”
“What did you do?”
“…What have you been listening to everything I’ve said so far?”
To think there was such a lack of trust in him.
Yuri was dismayed by Theresia’s disbelief.
And then, Theresia, noticing something Yuri was carefully holding close, asked her next question.
“What’s that?”
“It’s mine. Don’t worry about it.”
Yuri cautiously glanced around and hugged the item in his arms even tighter.
Theresia’s instincts flared.
‘It’s that!’
She was sure that whatever had caused this mess was because of that thing.
She just knew.
“What’s that?”
“It’s mine, I said.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s mine.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s mine.”
“What’s that?”
“……”
As their back-and-forth continued with Yuri adamantly refusing to reveal the item and Theresia relentlessly pressing on, Yuri finally caved under her increasingly intense gaze.
“…It’s the Crystal of Power.”
“Uh… what?”
For a moment, Theresia thought she had misheard.
“What, what did you say?”
“The Core of Power.”
But apparently, she hadn’t.
Theresia’s hearing was perfectly fine.
She was so startled that she almost stopped right there on the spot.
If it weren’t for Yuri still holding her wrist and running, she might have actually come to a halt.
Theresia stuttered as she asked again.
“The C-Core of Power?”
“Yeah, not just any Core of Power, but my Core of Power.”
“You… where did you get that?”
“It was left all alone, abandoned and lonely, so I decided to bring it along to share my warmth. It didn’t seem to mind; in fact, it even agreed to be mine.”
“…Don’t try to dress up theft like that!”
The princess who escaped from the Demon King’s castle hadn’t come out empty-handed.
She had shrewdly secured her share, returning with both hands full.
She was a bit too resourceful, though….
Theresia let out a sigh.
“What are you planning to do now…?”
The mere fact that the princess had escaped from the Demon King’s castle was already far off the intended quest path.
And on top of that, she had stolen the Core of Power, leaving Theresia clueless on how to handle this mess.
Meanwhile, Yuri was unbothered.
“Don’t worry, I have a plan.”
“A plan?”
“It’s simple. You and I will enter the starting point together and complete the quest.”
“…Will that really fix everything?”
“Why wouldn’t it?”
“What?”
“Is there a rule in the quest that says the princess must not escape the Demon King’s castle? Does it specifically say the hero must rescue the princess?”
“……?”
“There are only two rules laid out by the Black Sword Corps: if you want to complete the quest, either rescue the princess and return to the starting point, or defeat the Demon King. As long as we follow those two rules, we can maneuver freely within the situation.”
“It’s not that simple to just say…! Sigh, fine, let’s assume that. But what are you going to do with the Core of Power?”
“There’s no rule that says you can only obtain the Core of Power by defeating the Demon King, is there? And isn’t any loot obtained during the quest supposed to belong to the one who acquired it?”
“…Is that even possible?”
He wasn’t exactly wrong, but it wasn’t entirely convincing either.
That was a reasonable reaction from Theresia, who had always completed quests strictly within the defined rules.
But Yuri was different.
When had he ever completed a quest the conventional way?
“Of course, it’s possible!”
Thus, he had no doubt that his idea was correct.
Seeing Yuri’s confidence, Theresia decided to trust him for now.
‘Anyway, Yulia’s proposal seems unlikely to materialize given the current situation.’
With the chaos already at hand, the prospect of all 49 members banding together to defeat the Demon King was now a distant dream.
So, she shifted her goal.
She decided to head to the quest’s starting point with Yuri.
To end the quest that way.
Thus, Theresia made a proposition.
“Seventy-thirty.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll forgo my share of the Core of Power, but I’ll take seventy percent of the quest points.”
“My share of the Core of Power? This was originally mine, you know?”
“In return, I’ll do my best to help you secure the Core of Power.”
“I told you, it’s already mine.”
“If I stop here, things might get tricky for you, too, don’t you think? For example, if one of us gets caught in trouble by the pursuing group, or if that causes us to fail the quest?”
“…But wouldn’t that also mean you wouldn’t get the quest reward if you fail?”
“Losing the Core of Power you already have in your grasp is worse than losing 500,000 points, isn’t it?”
Theresia’s cute threat implied that if Yuri didn’t want to lose the Core of Power, he should agree to adjust the ratio.
But given the current situation, it was clear that Yuri stood to lose more, so the threat wasn’t just cute.
“…Our Tessa has changed. You weren’t this much of a miser before.”
“Eighty-twenty. I take eighty.”
“…….”
After opening his mouth and losing one more point, Yuri sighed and nodded.
“Alright, eighty-twenty! But you better help properly!”
“Of course!”
Theresia nodded brightly, pulled her wrist free from Yuri’s grasp, and adjusted her posture to run properly.
Their speed increased even more.
With their improved pace, Yuri smiled in satisfaction.
“Where is the quest’s starting point? Is it far from the crossroad?”
“Not too far. From the crossroad where we parted ways, it’s a fifty-minute walk along the 49th route.”
At this speed, it wouldn’t even take them five minutes.
And just as they finished talking, the crossroad where Yuri and Theresia had separated came into view.
Yuri’s face brightened instantly.
‘Great, we’re almost there!’
Yuri and Theresia turned at the crossroad and headed onto the 49th route.
Running beside Jerry, Yulia heard the situation and her expression turned incredulous.
“So, you’re saying that Yuri Holland… is the Demon King?”
Seeing her skepticism, Jerry nodded firmly.
“Yeah, I’m sure of it!”
“…That can’t be.”
“I’m telling you, it’s true! I said Yuri Holland has the Core of Power!”
Yulia’s pupils trembled.
It didn’t make sense for Yuri Holland to be the Demon King.
If he were the Demon King, why would he take Theresia with him?
Yet, it was hard to refute, considering Yuri was there and had the Core of Power.
‘It can’t be that Yuri Holland, who participated as the princess, stole the Core of Power and escaped the Demon King’s castle.’
What on earth was going on?
Where was this quest heading?
Even Yulia Singjo, a descendant of the sage, couldn’t predict the quest’s course.
Meanwhile, the group of 49 who had been chasing Yuri turned at the crossroad and entered the [49th route].
At that moment, a monstrous roar echoed.
“Uwaaahhh-!”
At first, they thought it was just one of them making the noise.
But then they realized none of them had screamed.
The roar was coming from straight ahead.
And when they saw that the one making the roar was Yuri Holland, running with Theresia, all of the 49th froze in place.
“Uwaaahhh!”
They blinked at Yuri, who was sprinting towards them in a panic.
‘W-What?!’
‘What the hell is he doing all of a sudden?!’
‘Why is he running this way?’
Since they had only been chasing after Yuri’s back until now, his sudden change in direction was so confusing that they nearly forgot their original purpose of capturing the Demon King Yuri.
And the most baffling thing was that Yuri and Theresia had stopped right in the middle of the 49th group.
“…….”
Yuri and Theresia stood still in the center of the 49th, not running away.
The 49th members stared blankly at the pair, bewildered.
“…….”
Their silence quickly turned into a fiery intensity.
“Huh? Did you come here on your own?”
“Is this a reward for running until sweat trickled down your back? Well, thanks, I guess.”
“You must have lost your mind, but hey, if the prey goes this crazy for us, we should be grateful.”
“Are you underestimating us?”
“Hah! We’ll make you regret walking into this trap!”
The 49th’s eyes gleamed as they encircled Yuri, determined not to let him go lightly.
It was a tense, on-the-brink situation.
Step—.
As the 49th, exuding heavy energy, closed in on their prey.
Chill—.
All members of the 49th felt an ominous coldness and turned their heads.
At that moment, they saw it.
Ssssss— Hah.
White breath puffing into the air.
A red-haired, red-eyed figure with a murderous glare approaching.
“You’re in my way. Move aside.”
The figure, who had appeared from the direction Yuri and Theresia came from, muttered quietly as he swung a massive sword.
Bang—!
“Kuhh!”
One of the 49th on the outermost edge was struck and sent flying like a pebble.
Seeing the immense power, the 49th swallowed dryly.
Yulia’s voice trembled as she spoke.
“Jerry, I think… that might be the Demon King.”
Indeed, as someone who used their head a bit, she quickly deduced the truth.
And soon, she uncovered yet another truth.
“I think we’ve been… tossed out as meat shields, haven’t we?”
Just as she finished speaking, the second victim of the Demon King’s strike was sent soaring into the sky.
At that moment, as if waiting for this, a cheerful voice rang out.
“Good luck, heroes! That’s your role, after all!”
With the princess’s obnoxious cheer, the faces of the warriors—no, the meat shields—confronting the Demon King darkened considerably.