Chapter 9 : First battle (7)

The only person Roan loved in his life.

She was Glenn’s younger sister, Selin.

‘She came to find his corpse when he died by the hands of the goblins.’

A 17 years old girl.

The death of her one year older brother was a hard to endure one.

‘I was just consoling her because her crying appearance seemed to pitiable.’

They casually started to love each other.

‘Did we meet for 10 years?’

In his late twenties, he was planning to even marry her.

‘But in the end, we separated.’

The reason was Roan.

‘I couldn’t leave the battlefield.’

Late twenties was a climax age.

He was still too young to give up on his dream to become a great general.

On top of that, Pierce that got named as new general from a troop asked him to go and battle with him.

He thought that it would be the last chance.

‘Even at her words to not leave, that if I left it would be the end, I still left.’

It took exactly 3 years before he returned.

And when he returned, she was already a woman of another man.

‘Since then, I lived like a crazy bastard.’

He battled like a crazy person.

And because of that, the normal soldier that couldn’t be seen for 13 years, became squad commander in just 2 years.

But of course, that was the most he could achieve.

‘She longed for her death brother all her life.’

What a relief.

Glenn didn’t die.

She wouldn’t be sad anymore.

‘But if it turns out like this, would I be able to meet her…….?’

Somehow, a bitter flavor roamed in his mouth.

He thought that he had forgotten it all, but now that he had remembered it, it wasn’t easy for him to push away those thoughts.

‘Perhaps, it is better this way.’

Even if they met and loved each other again, he would only leave her alone again.

Because in this life, he would dream bigger than his past life.

“It seems like the battle ended.”

Glenn’s voice rang.

Roan pushed away those thoughts and looked at the battlefield.

There were still some goblins running away, but the battle had certainly ended.

“Squad line up! Squad line up!”

The adjutants yell with all of their strength.

The battle in the east ended, but the west still remained.

The goblins that come pouring from the other side of the mountain.

‘Well, now that their leader died, that side will also crumble.’

The rose troop was going to win without any difficulties.

After a while, the battle ended with the overwhelming victory of the rose troop just like Roan had predicted it.

The time of retrieving the corpses and healing the wounded.

“The newcomers this time are amazing!”

“Yeah! You were called Roan and Pierce? You killed it out there.”

The 13th squad was filled with an uproar.

Roan’s and Pierce’s outstanding merits were followed up with lines of compliments.

It was rough, but Pete, that evaluated skillful people highly hit Roan’s back.

Hit!

“You bastard! I completely saw you in a new light! Hahaha!”

“Kugh.”

Roan frowned and bent his back.

“Ahem. Did I hit you hard?”

Pete laughed awkwardly and scratched his cheek.

Roan raised his hand as if it was okay and nodded.

Then, Tane approached him.

“The skill you used to slay the leader of the goblins. Did you also learn that at the training camp?”

It was a skill he had never seen until now.

At Tane’s question, obviously the 13th squad and the 12th and 14th squad that were next to them raised their ears.

Roan slowly shook his head.

“No. Because of a certain coincidence, I got to learn it from a retired soldier.”

“Retired soldier? For the spearmanship of a retired soldier to be that much. And they said that the world was wide and there were as powerful people as sand grains.”

Tane just looked at him fixedly.

“Anyways, you rendered big merits in this battle and saved the lives of many people, so I will let it pass this time but……”

“Let it pass my ass.”

A cold voice intruded in.

Tane and Roan turned their head and looked at the owner of that voice.

“Adjutant Dosen.”

Tane bent his head.

Dosen said with a cold expression.

“Roan.”

“Yes.”

“Leaving your ranks in the middle of a battle is grave offense.”

A cold voice.

Actually, he was already in a bad mood because of what happened before the battle.

‘A newcomer dares to ignore the words of an adjutant?’

Because of Roan, only he became a stupid person for Gale.

“Even if you had the permission of Mason, leaving your ranks while marching is also a grave offense.”

“I’m sorry.”

Roan bent his head.

He knew the reason why Dosen was acting like this.

‘His pride must have gotten hurt.’

At times like this, it was better to stay low.

If he corrected what happened, only the adversary would feel worse.

Dosen continued speaking.

“Gale squad commander let it pass, but it’s something that I, that organize and command the soldiers can’t forgive.”

The soldiers of the 13th troop that were looking at the situation showed a nervous face.

“If it was like usual, you would have to get whipped 50 times, but taking into account that you discovered the goblins hiding in the gorge and as you have slain the enemy leader, I will deduct your salary for 5 months and add an extra month of training.”

“Yes. I will follow your orders.”

Roan bent down.

Dosen glared at him for a moment, and then rode his horse and returned to his original place.

Pete looked at Dosen getting farther and asked.

“What kind of accident did you make in the front for you to get punished instead of receiving a reward after having slain the enemy leader?”

Roan just smiled bitterly instead of replying back.

Tane looked at his expression and intruded to the conversation.

“Didn’t you hear adjutant Dosen’s words? He left the ranks in his own twice.”

At those words, Pete shook his head as if he didn’t understand.

“No, but even so, I don’t think that it’s enough of a reas…… Now that I look at it, were you also the one that discovered the hiding goblins?”

“Yes.”

Roan slowly nodded.

The soldiers of the 13th squad put again a surprised expression.

“You are really a thing. A thing.”

“Yeah. If it wasn’t for him, we would all have gotten annihilated.”

“He’s a benefactor in our lives!”

A noisy atmosphere.

The soldiers of the 13th squad tried to purposely raise up the mood for Roan, that got punished.

However, Roan didn’t care much about that.

‘I won’t be using money much, anyways.’

Actually, it wouldn’t be a thing to get big money if he decided to.

He remembered all of the big things that would happen for 20 years from now on.

And there were cases they discovered mana runes, mineral mines, ore mines, and lost treasures.

‘If I need them later, I have to make one stop before anyone else and make it mine.’

There was no need to gain money immediately.

The punishment to get an extra month of training was something Roan wanted to request for.

‘Stamina, muscles, skin of the palms of my hands and movements. All of these are a mess.’

Just like the words, the level of a newbie.

He needed training.

However, the individual training time was really scarce in group movements.

And it that situation, Dosen thankfully commanded him to get extra training.

‘He gave me time to train my body, so this isn’t a punishment, but a prize.’

A smile appeared in Roan’s face.

Then, the voices of the adjutants were heard again.

“Squad line up! Squad line up!”

The soldiers that were resting all over the place, started to stand up and lined up.

Roan too, wanted to line up in the back side of the 13th squad, but a familiar voice rang from behind him.

“Roan. You have to go and take your role.”

The owner of the voice was Mason.

Roan didn’t move in his own accord and looked at Tane.

“Go.”

Tane swiftly shook his hand.

Roan nodded, and then moved his steps.

As he stood in the front, he saw the adjutants such as Gale and Dosen.

‘Cold.’

Dosen’s eyes were still cold.

As the soldiers that were in charge of guiding gathered together, the rose troop started to march again.

Step. Step. Step.

Sound of footsteps that shake the earth.

Roan, Mason and the other guides, got in the Ale gorge first.

The gorge that was originally filled with forests, was now a barren hill.

‘This place was filled with corpses before.’

A miserable scene.

However, it was different in this life.

‘I have just made my first step.’

Roan bit his lower lip.

‘What comes next is more important.’

The moments of choice will keep coming.

And each time, he would need to pick the best and different option.

But the fortunate thing was that his first option wasn’t bad at all.

Behind Roan was following the rose troop that originally should have been annihilated.

< First battle > End

Translator’s note: Thanks for reading!

Translator : Subak