Radiant Dragon’s Otherworldly Reincarnation

Chapter 6. Ah, I shouldn't have done that then (1)

At that moment….

“Ugh…. Uwaaaaah!”

“Aaaaaah!”

The soldiers charged at Patrick, screaming as if having a seizure.

And at the same time, for the first time, Patrick began to swing his wooden swords.

Until now, even when he struck the soldiers, he had only used his fists, kicks, and the pommel of his sword.

But now.

For the first time, Patrick began to wield the two wooden swords.

And they saw it.

The sight of the two wooden swords spreading out in all directions like a storm.

“Uh…. Uh uh uh?”

“Uwaaaaaah!”

“What is thiiiiis!”

It didn't take long for admiration to turn into astonishment, and astonishment into pain.

The wooden swords in Patrick's hands created countless sword forms and began to thrash the surrounding soldiers.

Tatatatatatatatatatata….

How many consecutive hits were landing per second?

It was impossible to even count the number of times the swords were swung.

It was just that countless sword forms were being drawn centered on Patrick, and those sword forms relentlessly beat down the soldiers.

Even the soldiers who had shown fighting spirit could only gape at the overwhelming sight.

The area around Patrick was like a small typhoon made of sword strikes.

“…To think I charged at a monster like that.”

Brian, watching the scene from a step away, realized just how insane his actions had been.

* * *

“Ughh… ughhh….”

“Keeeeuk….”

“Damn… it….”

They weren't corpses, but two hundred soldiers were stretched out almost like corpses, and a ten-year-old child was looking down on them with a bored expression.

It was a truly unrealistic scene, but it was a scene that had actually happened.

“Tsk tsk tsk, look at your tenacity. You're all grown adults, aren't you making too much of a fuss after being hit by a ten-year-old child?”

His words were correct.

If you went to someone who didn't know the full story and said those exact words, they would say, ‘That’s true. How much could it hurt to be hit by a ten-year-old? Why make such a fuss?’

That's why it was even more sorrowful.

‘What a monster.’

‘What a devil.’

‘He's worse than a monster….’

Just a few days ago, to the soldiers, Patrick was the Young Master, the heir to their respected lord.

But in an instant, that evaluation plummeted to monster, devil, a being worse than a monster.

Whether they thought that or not, Patrick spoke to the soldiers.

“Well, don't worry too much. I'll develop both your skills and your tenacity from now on.”

“Y-… Young Master, are you going to teach us?”

“I said so. Surely you're not going to tell me now that I'm too weak to train you? Is that it?”

“No, sir.”

“Right. It's not. Tsk.”

Why does he look disappointed?

The soldiers shuddered at his appearance, which seemed like he had failed to find a pretext.

And on the other hand, they thought.

How are we going to receive training from such a monstrous person from now on?

‘I feel like he's going to drill us like crazy.’

‘Should I quit being a soldier and just farm?’

‘Should I just leave for another fiefdom?’

While the soldiers were having these thoughts, Patrick spoke.

“Well, it can't be helped that your skills are lacking right now. The guy who trained you until now was a mess, after all.”

As he said that, he glanced at Brian, who hastily bowed his head.

Patrick clicked his tongue and continued.

“Tsk, but things will be different from now on. If you receive systematic training from me, all of you will become much stronger than that rookie over there.”

The rookie Patrick was referring to was Brian, who until recently had been strutting around the fiefdom as a 2-star knight.

The moment they heard those words, the eyes of the fiefdom's soldiers sparkled.

‘We can become stronger than a 2-star knight?’

‘Could that be true? If it is, then….’

‘It might be possible with that monstrous Young Master.’

‘Does that mean I can become a knight too?’

The moment he saw the desire in the soldiers' eyes, Patrick grinned and said.

“As you all know. Right now, our fiefdom has no knights.”

Everyone's heads naturally nodded.

And Patrick continued.

“Usually in this situation, it's common to invite a knight from outside or request the commission of a newly graduated knight from an academy, but I don't want to do that.”

‘Because it costs money.’

Patrick spoke while hiding his inner thoughts.

“Why would I recruit outsiders when we have so many hidden gems right here in our fiefdom?”

‘It’s a waste of money.’

It seemed best to keep his inner thoughts hidden to the end.

Patrick's appearance, promising a sweet reward after imprinting a clear difference in skill through brutal violence, was so adept it was hard to believe he was only ten.

It was actually effective.

After all, the eyes of the soldiers who heard Patrick's words began to fill with longing and emotion.

“Young Master, are you saying you will train us to become knights?”

“That's right. You have all worked hard and shed blood and sweat to protect this fiefdom. You are more than qualified to receive my teachings.”

These words were sincere.

Patrick had already experienced it once.

That when teaching people, what is more important than talent is ‘how much loyalty do they have to be able to dedicate themselves?’

‘Ah… thinking about it now, I was so naive and didn't know the ways of the world back then.’

The Twin Dragon Sect.

It was originally a terribly insignificant third-rate sect in the countryside.

That is, until the appearance of a peerless genius named Jin Cheon.

But after Jin Cheon appeared and began to make a name for himself, the status of the Twin Dragon Sect changed.

From all directions, people came seeking to learn martial arts from the Twin Dragon Sect.

Starting with martial prodigies of considerable talent, the children of influential families came with sacks of money.

It was a time when he truly felt, ‘So this is why you need a master to revive a sect.’

His good-natured Master was also greatly pleased, and Jin Cheon taught the newly arrived disciples quite diligently.

But did that bring good results?

Not at all.

The Righteous-Demonic War twisted the fate of the burgeoning Twin Dragon Sect.

When the Righteous-Demonic War broke out, a giant of the Unorthodox Alliance led his disciples and invaded the territory of the Twin Dragon Sect.

It just so happened to be when Jin Cheon was away.

If things continued as they were, it was obvious that the common people would suffer immense damage, and Jin Cheon's Master, the Sect Leader of the Twin Dragon Sect, did not stand by and watch.

[You will never make the common people shed blood before you step over my dead body!]

Shouting so, he firmly gripped his twin swords and led his disciples out to stop the giant of the Unorthodox Alliance.

But the result was disastrous.

‘Most of the guys who had newly joined as disciples ran away.’

Of the three hundred new disciples at the time, less than ten said they would follow their Master and fight to the end.

Realizing that the chances of victory were slim without Jin Cheon, they chose to save their own lives and flee rather than die a noble death with their Master.

Fortunately, Jin Cheon, who heard the news late, rushed over and lopped off the head of that Unorthodox Alliance giant.

That incident was a great shock to Jin Cheon as well.

All the new disciples ran away.

Then they brazenly crawled back later, rubbing salt in the wound by saying, ‘We were wrong. Please take us back.’

And Master was about to forgive them and take them back.

‘Ah, just thinking about it makes me mad again. In the midst of that, what was with the bastard who asked for a training fee refund?’

In any case, it was a total spectacle.

Of course, Jin Cheon personally smashed the thick-skinned bastards who came back until their thick skins shattered.

But the emotional wound his Master received from that was quite deep.

Afterward, Jin Cheon thought deeply.

Even though they were of the same righteous faction, the situation was different for the prestigious righteous sects with long histories.

When the sect leader said, "Let's go fight," most of the disciples would follow, no matter how reckless the fight seemed.

But in the Twin Dragon Sect, even though the sect leader gave the order, most of the disciples fled.

Why did such a difference occur?

To that question, Jaegal Hyeon, one of Jin Cheon's few friends, said.

[It's because they have no sense of belonging.]

A man with an ugly appearance, unsuited to his neatly worn scholar's robes, spoke cynically.

The Ugly Dragon Scholar, Jaegal Hyeon.

An outcast of the Jaegal Clan.

One of the Five Great Vicious Dragons, known as the troublemakers of the Five Great Clans.

But he got along well with Jin Cheon, so they would often drink together, and he would give advice.

At that time, he said….

[Keep in mind the grace you have received from the sect and do your best to repay that grace. This is the teaching of most prestigious righteous sects.]

[And we're not? We taught them martial arts, didn't we? Then haven't they also received grace from the Twin Dragon Sect? It's no different from what you guys do.]

[Well, in the grand scheme of things, that's true… but a sense of belonging isn't created just by learning a skill. The educational process of instilling a sense of 'us' and making them prioritize the group over the individual is important.]

[What kind of bullshit is that?]

[It's about teaching them consistently from a young age. Remember the grace of the family. Repay the grace of the family. Do not tarnish the honor of the family. They drill it into them as if brainwashing them before they can even toddle, you know?]

[Tsk tsk tsk, what a thing to do to kids.]

[That's what I'm saying.]

[But, my friend.]

[What?]

[Why aren't you like that?]

[Ah, I was only ever criticized for being ugly since I was a kid. Thanks to that, the brainwashing was somewhat mitigated.]

[…….]

Thinking back, he was a truly pitiful friend.

Jaegal Hyeon was one of the most talented individuals in the Jaegal Clan, especially when it came to formations, his ability was within the top five in the entire world.

But because of his unattractive appearance, he grew up being discriminated against in his family, and even after growing up, he was abandoned by his fiancée, which made him go astray.

Thanks to that, he became close with a few rebels of the righteous faction, including Jin Cheon, but for the Jaegal Clan, it was a case of losing a regrettable talent.

The fact that he even gave himself the alias Ugly Dragon after growing up must mean the wounds he received from his family were considerable.

‘My friend. No matter what, what kind of alias is Ugly Dragon? Ugly Dragon?’

While he himself was the Mad Dragon….

Anyway, he realized it then.

That in order to make true comrades who can eat from the same pot and share joys and sorrows together, one must look not only at their talent or background but also at their character and loyalty.

And when viewed in that sense….

‘Our soldiers pass with flying colors.’

Is serving as a soldier in this land teeming with monsters an ordinary job?

In a crisis where they could be killed by a monster anytime, anywhere, they received a meager salary, and even a part of that money was embezzled by Brian.

The reason they served to the best of their ability as soldiers in such a situation was because they had a sincere will to protect the fiefdom.

Ten years since being born in this world.

Patrick seemed to be just watching indifferently, but inwardly, he was observing and evaluating the people within the fiefdom.

Father = Pushover

Mother = Difficult

Brian = Son of a bitch

Butler Lawrence = Trustworthy

Soldiers = Loyalty is off the charts, skills are garbage

…and so on, were his evaluations.

That's why as soon as he dealt with Brian, he went to his father and said he would train the soldiers himself.

Patrick said with a serious expression.

“Trust me. Right now, before my eyes, you are two hundred soldiers. But if you trust and follow me, I will make you into two hundred knights.”

At those words, the soldiers also thought seriously, and Sanson was the first to kneel and say.

“I, Sanson, pledge my loyalty to Young Master Patrick Schneider, the heir of this fiefdom.”

When one person stepped forward, the others looked at each other and nodded.

And they too knelt and bowed their heads.

“I, Paulo, also pledge.”

“I am Kenes. I will follow you to the end.”

“I am Alex. I pledge my loyalty.”

All two hundred soldiers knelt and pledged their loyalty to Patrick.

Seeing that sight, Patrick smiled contentedly and said.

“I thank you for your loyalty. I promise to do my best to repay that loyalty.”

Later, the soldiers would say.

‘Ah, I shouldn't have done that then.’