Chapter 97. A Small Snowball (1)

A woman was running at an incredible speed.

Tap tap tap.

The speed was so astonishing that one might doubt if it was even human.

Moreover, a person was piggybacking on her back.

Not only ordinary roads but also tree branches and rooftops of buildings.

No obstacle could stop the woman.

Her sprint came to a halt as she entered a certain building.

"We're here."

At her words, Yurii, who had been riding on Greta's back, hopped down.

He took off the black hood on his head and shook his head.

"Phew, I thought I was going to suffocate."

While fixing his hair, Yurii's eyes widened at the scene that came into view.

"Oh...?"

The building's interior stretched up to five floors.

There were countless doors on each floor, and black sword soldiers were bustling about in the corridors.

'Is this the Black Sword Corps supply depot?'

As Yurii was busy looking around, Greta's voice came.

"Don't get distracted and follow me."

Leaving those words, Greta started climbing the stairs.

Yurii quickly followed, not wanting to lose sight of her.

They stopped in front of a door on the third floor, and Greta, with a slightly tense face, knocked on it.

Knock knock.

"Captain Greta Wigen of Squad 17, I've come with some business."

"Come in."

As the old man inside gave permission, Greta carefully opened the door and entered.

This was the most cautious attitude Yurii had ever seen from her.

Yurii also followed her in obediently.

Upon entering the room,

The first thing to greet Yurii was the scent of dried grass.

It was a familiar smell to him.

'...The smell of medicinal herbs?'

The hundreds of small drawers lining one wall of the room caught Yurii's attention.

Each drawer, the size of a palm, had an unknown symbol engraved on it.

And right in front of the giant drawer cabinet,

An old man with a stern expression sat at a long table.

His hair was stark white.

His attire was neat, reminiscent of a bartender.

And he wore a monocle.

Greta approached him and handed over a document.

It was the authorization for the use of the elixir she had received from above.

The old man casually scanned the document, crumpled it, and gestured to Yurii.

"Is it me?"

Tap tap.

Yurii stood there, blinking, at the old man's silent gesture.

After a moment's hesitation, he approached the old man.

Since this was Greta, who was particular about her actions, Yurii decided to be cautious.

Thud thud.

The two of them.

The old man, lifting his monocle, gave Yurii a deep, penetrating look.

After a heavy silence, he casually said,

"It's you, then."

Yurii's head tilted at the old man's tone, as if he knew him.

"Do you know me?"

But the old man did not answer Yurii's question.

Instead, he began to examine Yurii.

The state of his muscles and bones.

He checked his eyes, nose, and ears, and even had Yurii open his mouth to inspect his teeth.

His hands moved so quickly and smoothly that Yurii found himself submitting his body in no time.

After examining Yurii for quite a while, the old man stood up.

"Wait here."

He left, and Yurii, looking at his back, muttered in disbelief.

"...Who is that old man?"

"He is the Master Alchemist. All the elixirs supplied to the Black Sword Corps are created by him."

"Well, that's fine... but do you usually have to undergo a physical examination to receive an elixir?"

"Um, that... I'm not really sure."

Greta blinked.

From what she had heard, other captains simply received their elixirs without any such examination.

While Yurii and Greta were expressing their doubts, the old man returned.

Thud.

A bottle containing black liquid was placed on the long table.

"Take it over there and drink it."

The old man pointed to a door attached to the laboratory with a nod of his head.

Meanwhile, Yurii, looking at the bottle on the table, slightly frowned.

"Wow, what kind of medicine is this... Is it really safe to drink?"

Perhaps Yurii's comment had touched a nerve.

The old man's eyes twitched.

"Are you saying you don't trust my medicine now?"

"No, it's not that, but the color... it's just kind of creepy."

The liquid was as black as ink.

It was natural for someone unfamiliar with it to feel repulsed.

The old man snorted.

"If you have a complaint, take it up with the higher-ups. They're the ones who insisted on the black color. But I can assure you, there's not a speck of anything wrong with my medicine."

"..."

Yurii looked at the old man's face in silence.

Despite the wrinkles, his eyes held a youthful passion.

It was the gaze of a master who had dedicated his life to medicine.

With that, Yurii picked up the bottle without any further worry.

"I'll be right back!"

"Hm, okay. I'll be waiting here, so come back after you drink it."

"Okay."

With a cheerful face, Yurii disappeared into the room, and the old man finally relaxed his stern expression.

On the other hand, Greta seemed to be pondering something ever since Yurii left.

A moment of silence followed.

"Hmm..."

Finally, unable to resolve her thoughts alone, Greta cautiously spoke.

"Um... Sir?"

"What is it?"

The old man slightly raised his head at her call.

Greta, hesitantly, asked,

"About the medicine earlier..."

"What about it?"

"From what I've heard... the medicine supplied to captains is usually blue, right?"

The old man answered sarcastically to her hesitant voice.

"So, are you asking if I gave you the wrong medicine?"

"Um, I was just wondering if you might have made a mistake with the color."

The old man's eyes turned cold.

"Of all things, suggesting I made a mistake in selecting medicine is an insult to me."

"I'm sorry."

As Greta hurriedly bowed, the old man, slightly calming down, snorted and said,

"It's not a mistake."

"Then... what about the medicine earlier?"

"A better one."

"Excuse me?"

"The one supplied to captains is grade 3, and the one earlier was grade 1."

"Really? But why...?"

At her questioning gaze, the old man answered indifferently.

"Because they told me to."

"From... above?"

"The order came directly from the commander."

"......?"

Greta, who had been staring blankly, unable to understand the old man's words, suddenly exclaimed in surprise.

"Y-You mean the commander ordered to give a better elixir to a mere recruit?"

"Specifically, the order was to give a grade 1 elixir that matches his constitution."

"Why...?"

Greta blinked repeatedly.

'The higher-ups...?'

The commander's direct order.

This was a command that was rarely issued unless in a very urgent situation.

'And it was issued just to change an elixir?'

If the matter had been handled so swiftly, it meant that someone even higher than the commander had intervened.

And someone higher than the Black Sword Corps commander...

Gulp.

Greta swallowed hard and looked at the room Yurii had entered.

* * *

A light brown tea was poured into a white cup.

Clack.

Gordon, holding the cup, quietly asked the person who had served him tea.

"What's on your mind?"

"Excuse me?"

At the commander's question, the adjutant blinked in surprise.

After all, he had only poured the tea and said nothing.

"Your face suggests there's something you don't understand."

"Ah..."

"Is it because of the recent order I issued?"

"..."

"It seems so."

As if reading his mind, the commander's insight made the adjutant look embarrassed.

Then, as if it was a good thing, he brought up what he had been holding back.

"Yes, to be honest, that's it. Giving an elixir to a mere recruit who just joined this year... I can't quite understand it."

At the adjutant's question, Gordon took a sip of tea and answered.

Sip.

"You must have seen the report Greta Wigen submitted."

"Yes, it was indeed impressive."

A few days ago, a report about the ongoing quest for the current 50th batch of recruits came in.

It stated that a mere recruit, and only a public 1st Dan, had defeated a public 6th Dan Black Sword soldier.

Although the fight was limited to ten rounds, it was still a remarkable feat.

However...

"Even so, using the commander's authority to give him an elixir... it seems..."

"Unfair compared to other recruits?"

"Of course not."

"Then, is it an abuse of power?"

"No, no! How could I think such a thing! I just thought you might be paying a bit too much attention to a mere recruit. After all, the issue of elixir distribution could have been handled without the commander's authority."

"Tsk, I was just joking, and you take it so seriously. You're such a stiff person."

"I'm sorry. But how could I possibly think you were abusing your authority! However, since you mention it..."

"Is that so?"

"Yes!"

"But what can I do, it is an abuse of power."

"Excuse me...?"

"This time, it wasn't the Sword Master's instruction. I just told them to give it to him."

"Really?!"

"Why? Do you think I don't have the authority to do that?"

"No, no!"

Gordon Crowden, the second-in-command of the Cradle.

As the administrative head managing the Cradle in place of the Sword Master, who was disinterested in practical matters, could he not handle the distribution of a mere elixir as he pleased?

He could even handle something far more significant than a grade 1 elixir without anyone questioning him.

Gordon's authority was that powerful.

However, Gordon had never used his authority for personal gain.

Thus, the adjutant, who naturally assumed there must have been some hint from the Sword Master, was taken aback.

'The commander used his authority for personal reasons?'

Since he had never seen such a situation under Gordon's leadership, the adjutant was stunned.

'That can't be... possible, right?'

The Gordon he knew would never act without reason.

This belief made the adjutant even more confused, unable to fathom Gordon's intentions.

Seeing this, Gordon picked up his teacup again.

"There's no need to overthink it. Just..."

Sip.

"Think of it as a senior giving a gift to a junior who has finally succeeded."

Gordon Crowden, the First Sword of the 12 Swords of the Cradle.

He was from the very first batch of the Cradle.

'A gift to a junior... that's not a wrong way to put it.'

Clack.

The senior's lips curved into a mysterious smile as he set down his teacup.

* * *

Tap tap tap.

Greta, with her arms crossed, kept tapping her forearm with her index finger.

She looked anxiously at the door Yurii had entered.

'He's taking too long.'

Yurii, who had disappeared to take the elixir, had not come out for hours.

It was already past midnight.

In a few hours, she would have to leave for her mission.

'If he could come out before it gets too late, that would be great.'

She needed to take Yurii to the Animal Forest and prepare herself.

Just as she was desperately waiting for Yurii to come out,

Click creak.

The door, which had been firmly closed since Yurii entered, finally opened.