Four days had now passed after Yeowun was locked up. There was only a day left for Yeowun to come out and there had been a lot of changes within the academy.
When Yeowun was sent to the prison, the only ones who had yellow tags were Chun Muyeon of the Wise Clan and Chun Yuchan of the Blade Clan. However, four days were enough for talented cadets to learn about the Seven Demon Sword.
Ko Wanghur’s concern became a reality. Chun Yeowun was still in prison, but all the other yellow tags were taken by powerful cadets. However, there were only eleven cadets that became leaders. There was a total of seventeen tags, so why were there only eleven group leaders?
This was due to three particular leaders. There was no limit to how many tags one could take. Three people realized this and collected every tag they could get their hands on.
Chun Muyeon had one tag.
Chun Yuchan had four tags.
Chun Kungwun had two tags.
Sama Chak, the 700th cadet, had two tags.
And seven other cadets had one tag each. So with Yucan, Kungwun, and Chak hoarding more than one tag, they had taken five more tags that could have been used to create more leaders.
The only surprising thing was that Chun Muyeon didn’t go for other tags. Now, with sixteen tags in the cadets’ hands, the only tag left was the one that Hou Jinchang had. No one could take this tag from him as he was a grandmaster level warrior.
“This is problematic.”
Hu Bong shook his head. All cadets knew that the three leaders had more than one tag, but no one dared to raise complaints.
“They are that much more powerful,” Ko Wanghur answered as he nodded. These three cadets were famous for their prowess. Rumor had it that their martial arts skills were at the level of exceeding masters. Moreover, they all had their armies of cadets behind them.
“It could have been dangerous for us too.”
Ja Wumin smiled bitterly as he spoke. The reason he said this was because Yeowun’s group had taken a steep drop after Yeowun was taken to the cave. They were no longer a group, but rather, regular cadets.
“Maybe we’re lucky. We lost those who were going to lose anyway,” Ohjong said with an annoyed expression. The other cadets also became angry. A total of six cadets had gathered here.
“We just have different paths.”
Ko Wanghur shook his head.
“I don’t think their way of doing things will make other groups welcome them.”
Hu Bong mumbled in disappointment. On the day of Yeowun’s arrest, two of their team members left them. They were Wungchun and Ho Daming. They had been very anxious ever since they heard that Yeowun had destroyed Chun Jongsum’s internal energy. As soon as Yeowun’s punishment was decided, they left right away.
‘I’m sorry. I want to stay together, but I don’t see a future in this.’
Maybe this was the right tactic to safely pass the third test. But they didn’t only join Yeowun’s group for the test and the members became angry. Although two members had left, six cadets were still here. It was due to the 18th cadet, Bakgi. Hu Bong got up and said, “Oh well. Let’s not be too pessimistic. We lost two baddies, but we have Bakgi here with us. He’ll do quadruple the amount they ever could’ve done.”
“Don’t flatter me too much.”
Bakgi smiled. Ko Wanghur smiled also.
“No, we would have been in grave danger if it wasn’t for you.”
Ko Wanghur had a reason for this. It was because of the yellow tag that Bakgi had on his right chest. He had taken this tag three days ago by defeating an instructor.
“Yeah. If it wasn’t for him, we would have all been scattered. We are really grateful.”
Ohjong also nodded. If it wasn’t for Bakgi, Yeowun’s team members would have had to scatter and wait for Yeowun to come back. When the punishment was decided, Bakgi came over to them and offered to take the lead.
‘I owe a lot to the 7th cadet. I want to help him.’
Bakgi thought Yeowun had taken the punishment that should have been for him. If Yeowun did not tell him about the poison, he might have died. After thinking through the night, Bakgi made a serious decision.
‘I almost died. It will not be enough even if I pay it back for my entire life.’
Thus, Bakgi decided to follow Chun Yeowun. He wanted to tell Yeowun himself of his decision, but Yeowun was locked away.
“I’m not sure if he’ll want me in his group.”
“If Master didn’t like you, he would not have helped you.”
“Maybe.”
Ko Wanghur and the other cadets welcomed him after hearing what had happened. And with a powerful warrior like Bakgi joining them, they were going to become stronger. So Bakgi first took the yellow tag just in case. It was to prepare for Yeowun return who had to stay in prison for five days. Bakgi’s actions proved to be correct.
“Well, we welcome you to our group anyway. Don’t worry.”
“Yeah, we do!”
“Master will welcome you too. I’m sure of it.”
Bakgi smiled. And as the day came to an end, the five cadets who trained Seven Dragon Sword went to the cafeteria to eat dinner.
“Are you skipping dinner?”
“I only eat dinners usually, but I ate lunch with you guys today too.”
Bakgi usually skipped lunch to train in the private training room. But after joining the team and training with them, his solo training time was reduced.
“Hmm. Then I should skip dinner too.”
“You?”
Bakgi became confused at Ko Wanghur’s decision. Bakgi had spent a few days with them and Ko Wanghur ate a lot, which was fitting for his big body. It was shocking to hear Wanghur, who ate three times more than the other cadets, to decide to skip a meal.
“Well, you are our temporary leader, so you need protection.”
He didn’t want to miss a meal, but he also thought that he needed to protect Bakgi. There was no telling what might happen because of that yellow tag. Bakgi then shook his head.
“I’m going straight to the private training room, so don’t worry. Besides, we’ll all be together when we leave the training room.”
“Yes, but...”
“It’s okay. You go ahead and eat dinner.”
Bakgi assured Ko Wanghur and headed off to the private training room. Wanghur usually made rational choices, but his temptation for a meal was so strong that he couldn’t make up his mind. Ohjong shook his head.
“Hmph. Hu Bong and I will follow him, so you go ahead and eat.”
“Oh! Will you do that?”
Wanghur brightened up instantly.
“Yeah. As you said, he is our temporary leader.”
“Thank you! Please look after Bakgi.”
Ko Wanghur then gladly moved into the cafeteria. However, Hu Bong didn’t look so happy while following Ohjong.
‘...Do my thoughts not matter?’
Hu Bong wanted to eat too.