I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 163: Ranking (2)

Ssshh—

Like a candle blown out by a sudden gust, a wisp of golden smoke pitifully rose and dissipated.

The magic sword once again failed to last more than five seconds, causing Yuri’s lips to pout in frustration.

“Ah, damn. What’s the deal with just four seconds? Only four seconds.”

He knew that it had actually lasted a bit more than three seconds, but his pride made him claim it was four.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

‘Can I really call this a complete magic sword or not?’

Johan’s assignment was clear: to complete the magic sword before a year had passed.

Yuri had created the sword accordingly, but the result left him feeling uneasy.

‘Would that old man with the rotten personality even acknowledge a magic sword that only lasts four seconds?’

The dilemma didn’t last long, and the answer was clear.

‘Acknowledge my ass! He’d just be delighted to have something new to mock me with!’

Even Poppy didn’t miss a chance to tease him, so there was no way that old man would let such a prime target slip by.

If he got caught, he would surely be ridiculed to no end.

Thus, Yuri made up his mind.

“For now, I’m hiding it. No exceptions!”

Not until he could sustain it for at least thirty seconds—no, make that a full minute—would he tell Johan about it.

To achieve that, Yuri knew exactly what he needed to do.

“Mana… I need to fill it with mana.”

He had to work even harder on growing his mana core.

He would need to gobble up any and all elixirs and potions that he could get his hands on.

However, the problem was that recently, no mana enhancement elixirs had been appearing in the special sales.

Because of that, Yuri’s bank account was accumulating more and more points.

Consequently, a dark desire slowly reared its head.

‘Should I try the luck box… one more time?’

Yuri’s eyes nearly glazed over, but he snapped out of it just in time.

To shake off the dark temptation, he looked up at the sky.

“Aah… I wish some tasty elixir or potion would just fall from the sky.”

The passing clouds looked like delicious elixirs to him.

If something did happen to drop from the sky, he was ready to snatch it up and gulp it down.

While he was lost in such idle thoughts, staring blankly at the sky—

From far away, Arin’s booming voice reached his ears.

“Yuri! 50th class, assemble!”

* * *

In the March end-of-month evaluation, ten cadets had been expelled from the cradle, reducing the 50th class to 160 members.

One month after the previous quest, they had gathered again.

It had only been about a month, but they showed a different side compared to before.

They looked more dignified, and they carried themselves with a certain ease.

And it was only natural.

No, it was necessary.

Already, it was mid-April.

Having spent over a third of the year in the cradle, even those with the worst adaptability should have adjusted by now.

Of course, those who couldn’t adapt at all had long been expelled from the cradle.

Thus, when the 50th class gathered again after a long time, they scanned their surroundings with sharp eyes, each lost in their own thoughts.

‘This is the first time we’ve been inside the circular arena since the Hundred Steps Ceremony.’

‘It’s been a while since our last full assembly; there’s definitely going to be a combined quest.’

‘A quest starting in the circular arena… what could it be about?’

As they pondered over the location and contents of the upcoming quest, who they should ally with, and who they should compete against, they began forming strategies in their minds—a positive change for the 50th class.

And just then—

“…They’ve arrived.”

At someone’s quiet murmur, everyone’s gaze turned in the same direction.

Three individuals were walking over, barely making it in time for the announcement.

One had blue hair, another was bald, and the last one had black hair.

They were Yuri and his friends, known among the 50th class as the ‘Clique.’

The 50th class called them ‘Clique’ for two reasons.

Yuri consistently held the top spot in all the monthly evaluations, with the other two members following closely in second and third places.

The top three sticking together—it was an obvious ‘Clique.’

Moreover, beyond being merely ‘distinct,’ they were so uniquely eccentric that it was almost absurd, leading to their label as the ‘Clique.’

To the 50th class, this ‘Clique’ was the top priority to watch out for.

Thus, when Yuri and his friends appeared, the chatter among the 50th class died down.

Everyone watched Yuri’s group’s every move.

Whether they were aware of the scrutiny or not, Yuri and his group were busy bickering among themselves.

“I told you to hurry! We almost ended up late!”

“We’re not late. My biological clock is extremely accurate. And do I really seem like the kind of person who’d be late from just around the corner?”

“I’m hungry.”

“…Poppy, you jerk, did you just mock me again?”

“Yep, he just called you a quick—”

“Ugh! This musclehead bald pig, always pushing it!”

Yuri leapt up and hung off Poppy’s back, slapping his bronzed, bald head repeatedly.

Seeing that, Arin, amused, also jumped on Poppy, clinging to him.

Poppy bucked like a mad bull, trying to shake them off.

“….”

“….”

“….”

The 50th class, witnessing Yuri’s group’s antics, reluctantly turned their heads.

They looked up at the sky, trying to calm their minds that were on the verge of drifting.

‘…Let’s not be fooled by those idiotic antics.’

‘That’s probably just their trick to make us drop our guard… yeah, that’s gotta be it.’

…This time, they firmly resolved not to lose to those insane fools.

While they were making such resolute vows, the assembly announcement time arrived, and right on the dot, the Black Sword Corps appeared.

The 50th class swiftly and orderly fell into formation.

Glancing around at them, a bespectacled man allowed a small smile.

“It’s been a while, everyone.”

Seeing him express his joy, the 50th class briefly showed surprised expressions before the man quickly reverted to his usual stern demeanor.

Returning to his cold, Black Sword Corps self, he spoke in his usual tone.

“From now on, I will brief you on the details of the 3rd Combined Quest. This quest is titled ‘Rank Arrangement.’”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the 50th class’s faces turned rigid.

Seeing this, the bespectacled man smirked.

“Judging by your expressions, it seems like you’ve roughly figured out what this quest will entail.”

Snap—

When the bespectacled man snapped his fingers, the Black Sword Corps members brought forth a large wooden bulletin board and a box.

“The quest details are simple. First, organize your ranks amongst yourselves in whichever way you choose. Whether you hold a tournament or a group brawl, it’s up to you. As long as the strongest stands at the top, the Black Sword Corps will not interfere with your chosen method.”

With that, the bespectacled man reached into the box.

From it, he pulled out a small wooden nameplate and a writing tool.

“Once you’ve arranged your ranks, write them down here…”

Thunk—

“…and hang them like this. I trust there aren’t any idiots here who can’t grasp such a simple concept.”

He hung the wooden nameplate next to the ‘1st place’ mark on the large board and dusted his hands off.

“Now, let’s talk about the most important part—the quest rewards. Those ranked 1st to 5th on the board will earn the right to participate in the Martial Dragon Tournament held at the end of every year. As for what the Martial Dragon Tournament entails, you can find out on your own.”

He waved his hand dismissively as if too lazy to explain.

“The second reward: the one ranked 1st will have the right to collect up to 5% of points from all lower ranks. In other words, those below the top rank must pay 5% of their monthly income points to the 1st rank. Every month.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a voice exclaimed from the other side, “Oh my god! Are they really allowing us to collect tributes?!”

The man with glasses smirked as he looked at the glittering golden eyes.

“Call it tribute, tax, or protection money. Name it however you like.”

“I have a question!”

It was none other than Yuri who raised his hand high.

“You said monthly, so does that mean…?”

“Well, those with sharp minds might have figured it out already. This quest isn’t a one-off.”

The man with glasses tapped on the ranking board.

“This ranking board will follow you from now until you complete the Cradle and leave. Fun, isn’t it?”

“…….”

The 50th class held their tongues.

The end-of-month evaluations were comprehensive assessments.

But this ‘ranking arrangement’ was different.

It focused solely on individual combat ability to determine superiority.

This ranking board might turn into a ‘grade sheet’ that openly displayed each individual’s capabilities.

Therefore, even if they weren’t ranked first, positioning oneself in the upper ranks would elevate their personal value.

Thus, the 50th class couldn’t help but feel tense.

As they stood with firm expressions, the man with glasses suddenly spoke up.

“Oh, one last absolute rule of this quest: the higher ranks cannot refuse challenges from the lower ranks. Especially if the first rank refuses a challenge from a lower rank, they will be immediately demoted. That’s all.”

With those words, the man with glasses disappeared with the Black Sword Corps.

After the Black Sword Corps left, silence enveloped the circular arena.

Among the 160 people, not a single conversation could be heard.

They all kept observing each other.

‘How should we determine the rankings?’

‘What would be most advantageous for me?’

As they each pondered the most favorable scenario for themselves, time passed.

Daniel Brühl was the first to voice his opinion loudly.

“Instead of wasting time, let’s just have a group battle. Those who are knocked out first go to the lower ranks, and the survivors take the higher positions. We can just outline the rankings that way and then have individual ranking battles later.”

A dissenting voice was heard.

It was Pana Taylor.

“If we fight in groups, some will definitely start teaming up with each other. Do you think that’s fair? We should stick with the traditional tournament style.”

Another opposing opinion followed.

This time, it was Ivan Baskin.

“Tournaments are too reliant on the luck of the draw. Let’s say you and I face off, and you lose in the round of 32, but someone weaker than you makes it to the top 8. Would you accept that?”

“Of course not. I’d immediately challenge that person to a ranking match and crush them. But why would I lose if it’s you and me?”

“Do you think you can beat me with your skills? Don’t make me laugh.”

“…Are you suggesting we do it right now? Is that it, huh?”

As Pana and Ivan glared at each other, Nellie stepped between them and said, “Calm down, both of you. How about we combine the two methods? Like martial arts tournaments do: group matches for the preliminaries and a tournament for the main rounds. It saves time, too.”

Some of the 50th class nodded approvingly at her suggestion.

Then, Clarice Van joined the conversation.

“Let’s go with a points system.”

“Points system?”

“One point for a win, minus one point for a loss. Accumulate points that way, and the highest scores move up.”

“For that to work, all 160 of us would need to fight each other, which means thousands of matches. When do you plan to finish that?”

“We have five years, don’t we? There’s plenty of time. A point system is more stable than rankings fluctuating solely based on wins and losses.”

“Well… even so, who’s going to manage all those points? You, Clarice?”

“…I hadn’t thought of that.”

Suddenly, as if they had never been quietly observing, voices from all sides poured out about the ranking method.

Among them, Nellie’s suggestion of the martial arts tournament style garnered the most support.

However, as they each fought for the method that benefited them most, disagreements remained unresolved.

Watching this unfold, Arin remarked, “Ugh, it’s so noisy. Hmm… Yuri, what do you think? Which method would be best—uh, huh?”

She turned her head to ask Yuri for his opinion, but he was already gone. She looked around and found Yuri standing in front of the ranking board, then called out loudly.

“When did he get over there? Yuri, what are you doing?”

At Arin’s shout—more precisely, at the mention of the name “Yuri”—the bustling chatter fell silent.

All eyes turned to Yuri in front of the ranking board.

Despite the piercing stares, Yuri quietly went about his task.

Rustle, rustle—

Yuri reached into the box where the man with glasses had placed the wooden nameplates and writing utensils.

He pulled out only the writing utensil, humming as he approached the ranking board.

Yuri stared at the empty wooden nameplate beside the ‘1st place’ spot, which the man with glasses had left behind.

“Hmm….”

Then, with a broad grin, he pulled out the empty nameplate and tossed it backward.

“……?”

The 50th class watched in a daze.

Meanwhile, Yuri, unconcerned with any reactions from behind, began writing his name on the spot beside ‘1st place’ where he had removed the wooden nameplate.

One letter at a time, carefully and with precision.

Finally, when he finished,

“All done!”

Admiring his neatly written name, Yuri stepped back from the board.

“Ah, a masterpiece!”

He gazed proudly at the words ‘1st Place Yuri Holland,’ then turned around.

Only then did Yuri notice the 159 pairs of eyes fixed on him and, with a sheepish grin, waved them off.

“Oh, keep doing what you were doing. Don’t mind me.”

“…….”

As soon as those words were spoken, a chilly silence descended over the arena.