I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 159. Metallurgy (1)

Yuri, who had participated in the 49th Quest, dismissed the experience as nothing special.

However, contrary to his nonchalant remarks, both the process of the quest and the aftermath were far from trivial.

“[Everyone, halt.]”

Right after the quest ended, Theresia drew her weapon—not a sword, but a spear—towards her peers.

“[I’m taking all the points awarded.]”

As if to say any complaints should be settled with fists, Theresia’s menacing aura surged.

Despite her threats, it was inevitable that voices of dissent emerged among the 49th batch.

Frustrated murmurs like “What right do you have to say that?” burst forth, and Theresia shot back with scathing criticism at those individuals.

“[It was Yuri Holland who defeated the Demon King, and I am his assistant and representative. I don’t know where you all were or what you were doing, but compared to you lot who just want to claim the quest rewards without contributing, I believe I have every right, don’t you think?]”

As Theresia pointed out, most of those who expressed displeasure at her claim had only appeared after the quest ended.

They were the ones who had been knocked out cold by Yuri.

In contrast, those who had directly witnessed Yuri’s defeat of the Demon King didn’t particularly object to Theresia’s stance.

They had seen firsthand the strength of the Demon King and how Yuri had defeated him.

Moreover, they had considered whether they themselves could have captured the Demon King if they had fought to the end.

It was this reflection that prevented them from strongly opposing Yuri and Theresia’s claim over the quest rewards.

And it was Yulia who put the final stamp on this line of thinking.

“[I acknowledge it. According to my calculations, our probability of capturing the Demon King was less than 1%. So, I’ll relinquish any claim to the quest rewards.]”

Yulia, who had made a significant contribution by using her Demon Art against the Demon King before Yuri and Theresia took charge.

In fact, the 49th batch’s ability to even face the Demon King was solely thanks to Yulia.

Had she declared, “We weakened the Demon King’s health before you fought him, so we deserve a share!” it might have been different.

But with Yulia stepping up and renouncing her claim, the others had no choice but to follow her lead.

However, that didn’t mean all dissatisfaction was entirely quelled.

The one who ultimately rooted out the lingering seeds of discontent was none other than Jerry.

“[Huh? Look at these punks. We fought the Demon King and even we’re giving up, but those who chickened out and betrayed us are claiming rights to the quest rewards? You want to fight, huh? Is that it?]”

Most of those knocked down by Yuri were the ones who, at the crossroads, chose the “path of disgrace.”

So even those grumbling in the current situation had to shut their mouths when they saw Jerry and the others who had become similarly defiant.

Thus, with the help of a few level-headed individuals from the 49th batch, the issue over the points was smoothly resolved.

However, the most critical problem still remained.

It was about Yuri’s act of swallowing the Essence of Power during the quest.

This matter led to an unprecedented meeting among the mid-level officers of the Black Sword Corps.

Yuri, who caused the incident, was naturally summoned.

And despite the initially serious atmosphere, the issue regarding the Essence of Power was surprisingly resolved easily.

Yuri’s foresight had proven accurate.

As he suspected, the power the Demon King displayed in this quest had exceeded its pre-set limits.

The Demon King’s assigned strength for this quest was officially at the end of the 5th level.

Up until the 49th batch confronted him, the Demon King indeed showed the skills matching the set level.

However, the problem arose when he awakened during his fight with Yuri.

‘What is this? The hero is supposed to awaken, not the Demon King, damn it.’

According to what Yuri had heard, the martial arts of the Black Sword Corps member who played the role of the Demon King were based on rage and killing intent.

So, the expectation that he might have lost his mind and gone berserk during the fight was spot on.

Yuri’s feeling that the Demon King’s prowess had surpassed the official 5th level and possibly reached the 6th level wasn’t wrong either.

It wasn’t just a hunch—during the fight, the Demon King’s prowess was indeed advancing.

And when the Demon King was hit by the Demon Art and was sent flying the first time,

The enraged Demon King had finally shattered the official 5th level barrier and reached the 6th level.

This was clearly a configuration error with the Demon King.

‘Damn, what am I, a practice dummy for their swordsmanship? Why does everyone who fights me manage to break through their own limits?’

Not only was this the case with the Demon King in this incident, but also with Greta.

They were all stronger than him to begin with, and after beating him senseless, they would suddenly break through their barriers and advance.

At this point, you could practically call Yuri a “lucky bag that grants enlightenment when beaten up.”

The problem was, despite Yuri’s best efforts to survive while getting beaten senseless, enlightenment never once dawned on him.

This fact alone made Yuri incredibly frustrated.

Anyhow, thanks to this, Yuri’s argument that “the Demon King went berserk, so I had no choice but to swallow the Essence of Power to survive!” was readily accepted, and the matter was wrapped up.

Thus, in the 49th batch’s quest, the one who gained the most by far was Yuri of the 50th batch.

After the quest ended, Yuri and Theresia received a total of 51.75 million points.

Half of that, 25.875 million points, belonged to Yuri.

Moreover, Yuri had swallowed the Essence of Power, said to be nearly impossible to obtain even with money, and it was three times larger than the average size.

In terms of rewards, this was undoubtedly the greatest thing Yuri had gained in the Cradle so far.

He felt full even without eating, and an idle smile kept creeping onto his face.

He actually chuckled to himself.

Seeing him, Arin muttered softly.

“…A creepy smile.”

Despite her muttering, her voice was loud enough for Yuri to hear, and his eyes immediately narrowed at her. Arin quickly pretended to look away.

“Are you talking to me?”

“Nope.”

“Sure sounds like it.”

“…Not really?”

“You, no meat for you.”

At Yuri’s threat, Arin, who was grilling meat, jumped up in protest.

“Why not!”

“That meat came from my food storage.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! Even if it originally belonged to you, Senior Theresia bought it and shared it, so it’s hers now!”

Hearing this, Theresia, who was quietly lifting her head, smiled benevolently.

“Eat up, I bought it. Hehe.”

Though it was meant to be a kind smile, it appeared slightly off-kilter.

Yuri clicked his tongue at her.

‘She’s still like that.’

Theresia’s strange behavior was due to suddenly having over 25 million points deposited into her bank account.

She had never earned such a large sum at once in the Cradle.

Theresia, suddenly wealthy beyond belief, was grinning from ear to ear.

The meat party was also her way of celebrating, buying meat for Yuri and everyone.

With Theresia’s encouragement to eat plenty, Arin, emboldened, snorted triumphantly.

“See! Senior Theresia bought it, so it’s hers!”

Yuri turned to Theresia.

“Theresia.”

“Yes?”

“Whose help did you earn those points with?”

“Yuri’s help?”

“Then whose meat is this?”

“Yuri’s?”

Theresia’s response prompted Yuri to sneer at Arin.

His smile practically screamed, ‘Did you hear that?’

Flustered, Arin shook Theresia’s shoulders.

“S-Senior, snap out of it!”

“I have so many points, hehe.”

“Don’t sacrifice your dignity for mere points!”

“I like points, hehehehe.”

Seeing Theresia blushing and continuously giggling, Arin stepped back with a look of resignation.

While surveying her surroundings, she noticed Poppy crouched by the furnace, diligently grilling meat, seemingly engrossed in the task, and she directed a question at him.

“Poppy, tell us! Who does this meat belong to? It’s obviously Senior Theresia’s, right?”

“Hungry.”

Poppy tilted his head slightly.

Caught in the middle between Arin and Yuri, he glanced back and forth between them.

Then, with a little shuffle of his bottom, he inched slightly away from Arin.

Though he couldn’t speak, Poppy clearly knew which side the tide favored.

“Y-You…?!”

Arin froze in shock at the betrayal of her trusted friend.

Yuri mocked her with a laugh.

“If you want even a single bite of meat, you better shut up and grill as you’re told, slave.”

“…Yes, master.”

Ultimately, Arin, having surrendered to absolute authority, squatted next to Poppy, flipping the meat skewers.

After settling Arin, Yuri turned to Segyung, who had been standing around like a silent bystander.

“With all the preparations done… let’s finally start the wager. What should we begin with, old man?”

Hearing Yuri’s slightly excited tone, Segyung snorted.

“I don’t care when we start… but is your arm in that state going to be fine?”

“Ah, it’s fine. It’ll be perfectly healed in a few days.”

“Was it just a sprain?”

“Nope, it was broken.”

“…When?”

“Six days ago?”

“Then what’s ‘fine’ supposed to mean!”

“Geez, I said it’s really fine.”

Yuri wasn’t lying.

His arm had indeed been broken six days ago, but it had almost fully healed.

The Essence of Power he consumed hadn’t just boosted his strength; it had also dramatically increased his body’s healing abilities.

‘Grabbing the Essence of Power was definitely the right call.’

The Essence of Power was certainly worth risking everything to obtain.

Meanwhile, unaware of these details, Segyung looked utterly baffled.

He eventually snorted dismissively.

“Fine, then! If you mess up and cripple your arm, that’s on you.”

“Yessir.”

“I’ll be back in three days.”

“In three days?”

“I have preparations to make as well. You’ll see. Hehehe.”

Segyung cackled slyly, giving Yuri a mischievous grin before scampering off.

Yuri watched him as he walked away.

There was no trace of concern on Yuri’s face.

“Hey, damn it, save some meat for me!”

Yuri dashed towards those who had started stuffing their faces while he had been talking to Segyung.

Exactly three days after the meat party.

The day of the long-awaited showdown had finally arrived.

Segyung appeared, carrying a large leather bag over his shoulder.

Waiting for him was Yuri.

“You’re here.”

Finally, standing about two meters apart, Yuri and Segyung faced each other.

Arin, Poppy, and Theresia sat close by, snacking as they watched Yuri and Segyung’s staring contest.

“…….”

“…….”

The two men stood still, glaring at each other for quite some time.

Thunk—clank—.

When Segyung set down his bag, a heavy sound echoed.

With that, Segyung smirked at Yuri.

“Are you ready?”

“Of course.”

Yuri rotated his right arm.

In just a few days, the bone had mended and his arm had become even stronger.

He lightly flicked his wrist.

“Alright, let’s get started. What’s the first thing I need to learn in metallurgy?”

Seeing the confident Yuri, Segyung snorted.

“Hmph, let’s see how long that confidence lasts.”

“It’ll probably last until the end. So, what’s the first skill in metallurgy?”

At Yuri’s repeated question, Segyung wiped away his smirk and, now with a serious expression, began to speak.

“People often think that the renowned metallurgy of the Bone Clan is purely due to our inherent talents. But that’s only half true. Our reputation has been built not just on talent, but also on the rigorous training we undergo from childhood.”

Half a year spent mastering the use of various tools.

Another year focused exclusively on hammering techniques.

Then five years learning to stoke and control the fire.

The renowned Walker School of the Bone Clan.

Their reputation was the result of both their innate talent and their longstanding, systematic education.

And there was a fundamental aspect emphasized more than anything else in the Walker School.

“Some say that the most critical aspect of metallurgy is hammering, while others argue it’s fire control. But for us at the Walker School, the most crucial element is… the material!”

“Oh?”

“No matter how skilled a craftsman is, they cannot create a masterpiece with rotten materials! Only when a craftsman’s skills meet high-quality, valuable materials can a masterpiece be born!”

Segyung clenched his fist with conviction.

“Thus, the fundamental skill that we at the Walker School emphasize throughout our lives is ‘the eye for evaluating materials’!”

Announcing boldly, Segyung loosened the pouch on the bag and poured out its contents.

Clink—clang—.

Out fell a dozen chunks of metal.

Segyung pointed at them with a smirk.

“Now, try arranging these iron ingots in order of quality. If you get the correct answer, you win the first round.”

“……?”

No sooner had Segyung finished speaking than dozens of question marks popped up above Yuri’s head.