Bloodhound’s Regression Instinct

Chapter 9

After finishing the interview with the chief instructor, Yan followed the instructor who led him to the central first floor.

‘The first test as soon as I arrive.’

Yan shook his head as he followed the instructor.

The place he arrived at was where all the trainees were gathered.

When Yan went to the back of the line where the trainees with numbers in the 900s were, the chief instructor came up to the podium in front.

The chief instructor began to explain about the test site they would be heading to.

“You will be heading to the ‘Blade Mountain Range’ from now on.”

Blade Mountain Range.

A mountain where monsters of various colors live.

It is also a forbidden area where the empire prohibits civilians from entering.

From goblins to ogres.

There are also beast-type monsters and rare plant-type monsters, and if you go deeper…

‘There are ‘monsters’.’

‘It seems that no one knows yet.’

“And the content of the first test is to survive for a week in there, and bring back the magic stones that the monsters have. In other words, survival and plunder.”

It’s not a big deal, right? He added, and Yan spat out a smirk.

‘What do you mean it’s not a big deal?’

The first test is for 15-year-old kids to survive in the Blade Mountain Range without any weapons or supplies.

How many of the thousand trainees here have learned mana manipulation?

At most, about thirty.

That includes the third-rate manipulation methods that mercenaries and the like learn.

Besides that, who has experienced ‘survival training’ in the mountains where those monsters are swarming?

Would there be anyone else besides him?

By the way, the past first test casualties were.

500 people.

It’s not for nothing that the ecosystem that allows monsters to swarm in the Blade Mountain Range is maintained because of the Dragon Knight Project.

The chief instructor’s face was different from when he announced it before, it was an expression that seemed to expect something.

Of course, it was not an expectation for the trainees.

It must have been because of the weakness of the special commander that he would soon get.

‘At least I bought some time.’

The chief instructor would not trust him and rather be wary of him.

It was strange that he believed such a thing at once in the first place.

No matter how much he tried to verify it.

‘But he must have wanted to use it anyway, thinking it might be useful.’

It was obvious.

That’s why he asked for a ‘Mana Oath’ before telling the chief instructor the information.

If he breaks it, he will be hated by mana and unable to do even light manipulation, an absolute ‘contract’.

If he tells him the information he knows, he will not bother him in the future, that was the condition, and the chief instructor reluctantly agreed.

If the special commander’s daughter is there as he said.

The chief instructor would think that there is no chance that he is a spy for the special commander.

From there, the chief instructor had no need to bother him.

However, if the information is wrong, he would make Yan into a state where he ‘can’t die even if he wants to’.

That much.

The chief instructor desperately needed the special commander’s weakness.

So did he obediently spill the information?

‘Why would I? I’ll never give it up easily.’

The reason he proposed the deal was to find out the identity of the tattoo on the chief instructor’s chest and to build a relationship with him.

If he gives too much information at once, it would be meaningless.

He had to get the most out of it.

So he bought time by giving the address of another place where the special commander’s daughter had ‘moved’.

Now that he was going into the Blade Mountain Range, the chief instructor would start investigating that address.

‘Or maybe he’s already moving his cronies to investigate?’

The chief instructor was not an easy guy either.

Anyway.

‘What I have to think about now is not that.’

Since he came back to the training camp, he had to scrape up everything he could get here.

‘That way, the chief instructor will be more interested in me, and it will be easier to dig into the tattoo.’

Also, he would have more opportunities to learn about the family.

‘And it can also be insurance when the relationship with the chief instructor changes.’

No matter how crazy he is, he wouldn’t be able to mess with someone who shows overwhelming results in a project approved by the emperor, for no reason.

After thinking for a while, Yan suddenly sighed deeply.

‘But to do that… I have to do something about this damn body first.’

Even if he shows overwhelming results, he doesn’t want to show his full power.

To do that, he needed to grow to some extent.

The physical part was ‘Body Strengthening Technique’ to grow, but it was just the beginning.

That’s why the speed was not fast enough to satisfy him.

So he was thinking of supplementing it.

‘First of all, three things.’

They were all treasures that could change his body right now.

‘And they are also opportunities that no one knows about.’

One of them was something he could get after the first test was over.

Two of them were in the Blade Mountain Range.

Yan turned his head and scanned the other trainees, finding familiar faces.

‘By the way, they all look fine… not really.’

Roman and his gang had bruises all over their faces, and their arms and legs were bandaged, as if they had a hard time.

‘As long as they survived, that’s enough.’

Yan’s gaze moved further to the right.

The line where the trainees with numbers in the 0s were, to the three people at the very front.

Lorena, Cruel, and Casa.

These three top-tier ones were listening carefully to the chief instructor’s announcement.

‘It’s best to avoid clashing with those guys.’

Of course, it wasn’t because he felt burdened by them.

The problem was that they attracted a lot of attention.

Not only the instructors who knew their backgrounds, but also the other trainees who participated in the Blade Mountain Range test.

As Yan, who had to move secretly, he had to avoid getting involved with them as much as possible.

Yan sorted out his thoughts a bit and looked back at the chief instructor.

“…so be careful and act accordingly. The instructors don’t like cleaning up corpses.”

It was the moment his words ended.

Suddenly, an instructor ran in from outside with a thoughtful look on his face.

The chief instructor frowned at the sight.

He was annoyed that he broke the mood without even asking for his permission.

But the instructor didn’t care about that at all and ran up to the podium and whispered something in the chief instructor’s ear.

For a moment, the chief instructor’s eyes widened, which were full of irritation.

“…What?”

Yan furrowed his brows as he watched.

It seemed that something was wrong.

Sure enough.

Soon, the chief instructor followed the instructor’s guidance and hurriedly came down from the podium.

There was a cold silence in the central first floor, and the trainees began to whisper to each other.

“Is something wrong?”

“I… I don’t want to do it.”

“…I’m scared.”

The trainees were divided into three categories.

The trainees who carefully analyzed the situation, the trainees who were still out of it and whining, and the trainees who were afraid of the content of the first test.

Yan was the first category.

“What the hell is going on?”

Was there ever such a thing?

He racked his brain, but there was no incident that came to mind.

While there was a lot of commotion, the large main gate that had always been locked opened wide.

Someone ran in front of it and shouted loudly.

“Enter the rightful ruler of the Cabalan Empire and the most noble emperor, the legitimate bloodline of His Majesty the Emperor, Leon Cabalan, the Crown Prince!”

“…!”

“What… what did he say!”

“…The, the crown prince?!”

The trainees swayed once.

Those who were originally nobles of the empire immediately knelt down and pressed their heads to the ground, and the commoners hesitated and followed the others under the gaze of the instructors.

Yan also bent his knees forcibly.

‘…The emperor.’

He didn’t know why the emperor, who had killed him in the past and was now the crown prince, had visited here.

He had never met the crown prince in the training camp in his previous life.

Yan looked up at the crown prince with cold eyes.

“I’m glad to see you all.”

As the crown prince opened his mouth, the chest that had been stabbed in the previous life throbbed.

* * *

Leon Cabalan.

The lord he had served for nearly 30 years, the emperor of the empire, and… the one who killed him.

‘I thought I had no more regrets.’

Yan’s eyes sank.

Contrary to what he thought, he seemed to be unconsciously angry.

The wounds he had suffered from him throbbed.

His teeth clenched.

Then.

‘By the way, why is he here?’

He wondered suddenly.

The crown prince had never visited the training camp in his previous life.

Did the chief instructor not go to the palace?

So he came out for inspection?

If so…

‘It’s because of me?’

There was nothing else.

Yan glanced up at the crown prince while kneeling.

The crown prince’s eyes were bright, unlike in the past, his waist was still straight, and…

His expression seemed furious for some reason.

“Why are you making that face?”

He had never seen the crown prince in person until he ascended to the throne.

Until then, his eyes were always indifferent, and his emotions were dry.

Yan had a doubt in his eyes.

‘Could it be, an impostor?’

Then Yan was startled by the words the crown prince uttered.

“Anyone who wants to leave this worthless place right now, or who was dragged here by force, raise your hand.

I swear by my name that I will guarantee your safety.”

“Your Highness, this is different from what you said…!”

As soon as he said that, the attendant next to him widened his eyes and called the crown prince.

But the crown prince didn’t stop there.

“And, I also advise the children of the noble families who want to gain power by achieving excellent results here to go back. I don’t want to be disappointed when I ascend to the throne.”

As soon as the crown prince’s words ended, the trainees began to buzz.

At that moment.

“Your Highness, you have gone too far.”

A man with gray hair appeared next to him, as if he had been there from the beginning.

No one noticed him until he got there.

Yan narrowed his eyes.

‘The special commander.’

He recognized the face.

He had never seen him in person in his previous life, but he had seen his portrait many times.

And.

Judging by the reaction of the chief instructor, who was grinning and grinding his teeth behind him, it seemed to be certain.

‘What’s going on?’

After returning.

The project was unfolding in a different direction from the past.

The special commander looked around the hall once, and then spread a barrier of qi to cover the crown prince and himself.

Even though they couldn’t hear the sound, there was no problem.

They could tell what they were saying just by looking at their mouth movements.

* * *

The Special Commander approached the enraged crown prince and spoke.

“I have received an order from His Majesty to bring you back.”

The crown prince glared at the special commander with an angry expression.

“What is the reason for this unethical project?”

“I have answered that countless times.”

“Ha! For the sake of the empire? For the sake of the imperial citizens? Don’t say such nonsense that doesn’t sound like it.”

Yan couldn’t understand the crown prince’s rage.

‘Is he really an impostor? Or did he take some drugs?’

The crown prince he knew was never like that.

If he had been like that… would he have done such a thing.

The situation was too sudden, and his mind couldn’t keep up.

“Anyway, this is something that His Majesty approved. If you really want to change it, you should plead to His Majesty.”

“…Ha!”

The special commander shrugged his shoulders and the crown prince spat out a smirk.

Then he hardened his face and said.

“Then I will watch everything from the beginning to the end of this test. You won’t say no to that.”

“What do you want to check? If you have any questions, I can tell you.”

“I want to see with my own eyes and judge. Whether this project that my ancestors created is really necessary for the empire.”

“His Majesty asked you to come back…”

“Special Commander.”

The crown prince called the special commander with a stiff face.

A golden glow rose around him.

“Right now, I. Said that I will watch everything here.”

“…”

“Don’t provoke me any more, I will go to His Majesty later and ask for punishment.”

The golden aura bubbled like a volcano about to erupt.

The barrier of qi that the special commander had made shook violently.

It seemed like it would break at any moment.

Yan licked his lips as he looked at the crown prince.

‘Whatever is going on, he was still a monster.’

He could tell at a glance that he was at least a third, or second-class knight.

He was still one of the strongest in the empire at this point.

He was the one who would soon be called the ‘reincarnation of the founding emperor’, so it was natural if it was natural.

The special commander had no choice but to raise both hands.

He eventually released the barrier, and persuaded him to go somewhere else, still angry.

“…”

“…”

The trainees stared blankly at what had just happened.

They couldn’t understand what was going on, either.

“Come on! Everyone, pay attention. There was a bit of a commotion, but the test will proceed as planned, so focus.”

Then, the chief instructor came up to the podium and said.

Unlike when he looked at the special commander, his eyes were somewhat emotional when he looked at the crown prince, but now he didn’t care about that at all.

Soon, some instructors came with a large door.

‘Warp Gate.’

It was a special artifact used for long-distance travel.

They placed the door between the chief instructor and the trainees in line. Then they infused mana into it.

Whoosh.

Light leaked from the geometric patterns engraved on the door.

Soon, as the light became clear, one of the instructors opened the door wide.

“Send the kids in on your own.”

The chief instructor left his seat and entrusted the management of the trainees to the instructors.

He seemed to have a lot on his mind.

“Okay, everyone, enter in order!”

The trainees started moving according to the instructors’ instructions.

The trainees lined up in order from the front number and entered the door.

Every time, a bunch of light flashed and the portal swallowed the trainees.

Then, Yan’s turn came.

He lit up his eyes and approached the door.

‘This is the start of the first test.’

He didn’t know what was going on between the crown prince and the special commander.

But that wasn’t something he had to worry about at this point.

‘Let’s think about what I have to get first.’

He would keep an eye on the crown prince and judge accordingly.

Soon.

A dark and gloomy mountain and forest appeared in front of him.

It was the Blade Mountain Range.