Chapter 29: I’ve Become Stronger (5)
Chapter 29: I’ve Become Stronger (5)
“Aaaargh!”
“Move! Keep moving!”
“Never stand directly in front of it!”
“You son of a—! Kuaagh!”
The soldiers were, quite literally, fighting for their lives.
They were struggling desperately against monsters they normally wouldn't have been able to face one-on-one.
If they stopped moving for even a second, those brutal teeth or sharp claws might tear them apart. Under the bone-chilling pressure of real combat, the soldiers were pushing past their limits.
“Grrrr!”
However, no matter how much they armed themselves with mental fortitude, they couldn't overcome the wall of reality.
One soldier eventually failed to withstand an attack and fell backward, falling into a dire crisis.
“Aaaaah!”
Seeing the War Wolf’s maw hanging wide as it lunged at him, the soldier screamed and turned his head away. But at that moment…
Whack!
With a flash of movement, Petrick kicked the War Wolf’s head aside and spoke.
“You’re dead now, Soldier A.”
“It’s Oliver, sir.”
“Does that matter? Since you’re dead?”
“……”
Oliver lowered his head under Petrick’s pathetic gaze.
Petrick had been watching from behind, leaving the monsters to the soldiers until the very last second. He only stepped in to help when they were on the verge of death.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Even a neighborhood mutt would understand by now if I told them this much. So why can’t a human being get it through his head?”
“……”
“I told you to move in sync with the opponent’s attacks, didn’t I? Why are you getting scared and hopping around first? Are you a rabbit?”
“No, well, that’s…”
“Unnecessary movements lead to exhaustion, exhaustion leads to defeat, and defeat leads to death. Do you want to die? Should I just kill you myself? Huh?”
“I’m sorry.”
Though a lecture followed every rescue, no one had died yet—even though every single one of them felt like they had come face-to-face with death dozens of times.
The most irritating part was that everything Petrick said was right.
When they moved while keeping Petrick’s critiques in mind during the next fight, they could feel themselves improving. In other words, the stinging nagging that made their ears bleed was entirely accurate.
“But it’s a War Wolf! What am I supposed to do?”
“Fight it. Win.”
“……”
“What’s with that look? The one that says, ‘This little brat is talking big since it’s not his problem’?”
“N-no, sir. Not at all.”
“Hmm, I think I’m right. Really?”
“Really, sir.”
Petrick stared intently at the denying Oliver before nodding.
“Fine. Then keep going.”
“Pardon?”
“A few more are coming from over there. Don’t mess up this time; do it right.”
“I literally just almost died!”
“But you didn’t, so it’s fine.”
“……”
“Remember, you have to read the opponent’s breathing and timing. You aren’t fighting alone. Watch your enemy closely.”
“……”
“Good luck!”
Watching Petrick cheer with the bright, innocent smile typical of a ten-year-old, Oliver thought to himself:
I hate this kid more than the monsters.
* * *
There is no training better than real combat.
That had been Petrick’s philosophy since his previous life.
In reality, a single duel was more helpful than a hundred days of training, and a single life-or-death battle was more helpful than ten duels.
Ultimately, the truth Petrick had realized firsthand was that to become strong, one had to experience as much real combat as possible.
And as a result of harshly grinding the soldiers based on that truth…
“Hey. Do it right.”
“What are you doing? Dancing?”
“That’s not the step the Young Master taught us… Ah, for crying out loud! Why are you falling?!”
The soldiers who followed Petrick to face the monsters grew stronger quite rapidly.
During sparring sessions, they overwhelmed the other soldiers, and the gap in skill only widened as time passed.
“Hey, I am doing it right!”
“Stop wobbling and move properly.”
“I told you, I am!”
“Eyy, no you’re not. Opening here, opening there. Here too… Hey, I told you to do it right!”
“You Soldier A bastard!”
“It’s Oliver!”
Those who practiced the Five Elements Step in actual combat and realized its utility saw their proficiency rise at a startling rate. They easily handled other soldiers who had previously been their equals.
In Sanson’s case, he was able to lightly overwhelm five soldiers at once during a spar.
“Alright. That’s enough. Everyone, take a break!”
As soon as Petrick’s command fell, most of the soldiers collapsed on the spot.
However, Sanson and the other soldiers who had experienced real combat still seemed fresh, gathering together to stretch and warm down.
“Captain. Earlier, when you backed off, you thrust your sword forward to keep the enemy in check. Was that something you always did?”
“No, I asked the Young Master and learned it from him.”
“Ah… Then what if the enemy…”
Seeing them like that, the other soldiers couldn't help but feel the difference.
A gap had formed.
A clear difference in skill had emerged.
Sanson was one thing, but the other soldiers had been no different from them before. Now, a distinct divide in strength had opened up.
Why did this happen despite spending the same amount of time in the same place?
How seriously did they believe in and follow Petrick’s teachings?
That single factor had created this disparity.
In truth, they knew it too.
“It seems those steps the Young Master taught us aren't ordinary.”
“Should we try doing it properly?”
“Honestly, the Young Master isn't the type to teach us something useless.”
“True. He even replaced all our weapons and armor this time.”
“Mmm. I was a liiiittle bit grateful for that.”
“Yeah. Not a lot, just a tiny bit.”
“Like an ant’s eyelash.”
The soldiers spoke that way, but their loyalty toward Petrick had risen significantly.
He had removed Brian, who had been embezzling and acting tyrannically, for their sake. He had taught mere soldiers like them the Aura Blessing. And this time, after earning some money, he had completely replaced their old weapons and armor.
They wouldn't be human if they didn't recognize such grace.
However, they had been beaten far too much to express pure respect out loud.
“Let’s do this right. If we follow what the Young Master says without doubting him, we can become strong too.”
“Mmm. Yeah. We have to become knights. The Young Master said he’d make us knights.”
“Right. And while I can accept Captain Sanson or the others, I can’t stand that bastard Oliver acting all smug.”
“Oliver?”
“You mean Soldier A.”
“Ah, right. I forgot his real name for a second.”
“Anyway, when that guy starts acting cocky, something really boils up inside me.”
“Ah, I agree with that.”
“I can handle losing, but I can’t stand the snark coming out of that mouth.”
“Let’s kill him.”
Though Oliver had become the official most-hated man among the territorial soldiers, unfortunately, his actual skill was among the top tier of the group.
Regardless, the soldiers had finally begun to truly trust Petrick’s teachings.
Petrick, resting some distance away, could hear everything the soldiers were saying.
These brats are finally starting to listen.
In his past life, people would come from all over, carrying bags of money just to learn a single move from him.
Well, they all regretted it afterward, but that was beside the point.
In this world, even when he taught them for free, seeing these greenhorns doubt whether it was right or useful made him want to…
I almost wanted to separate their flesh from their bones. Ah, thinking about it makes me annoyed again.
It was enough to make Petrick sigh, but what could he do?
His teaching method was far too different from the common sense of this world. To them, it must have seemed incredibly alien. It was only natural for them to doubt him.
But Petrick had taught them silently, and now several soldiers, including Sanson and Oliver, were starting to show results.
Sanson could now hold his own against a Troll, and Oliver and the others were able to fight monsters they wouldn't have dared to face in the past.
Their progress served as a stimulus and motivation for the other soldiers. That mindset would further accelerate their training and lead to a genuine surge in skill.
The foundation is finally set. Finally…
There were many times along the way when he thought about firing them all and just doing everything himself, but he was glad he hadn't.
It would be great if a talented genius appeared right about now.
That part was a bit disappointing.
In an atmosphere like this, if there were just one person born with true genius talent or a heavenly physique, he could use that person as a focal point to pull the entire group up.
A genius, by their mere existence, serves as a milestone for those around them.
Petrick was too far ahead to be that milestone, and Sanson, frankly, wasn't at that level.
Well, Sanson isn't a genius, but he’s the best among them and a hardworking talent. If I raise him well, he’ll play his part.
Just as Petrick was thinking that…
“Young Master. You need to come with me for a moment.”
“What is it?”
“The doctor who visited the territory is saying that one of the children is cursed.”
“What?”
“The residents are terrified by what the doctor is saying. He says that if we don’t kick the child out, a calamity will strike…”
“What kind of fresh bullshit is this?!”
Petrick stood up with a roar.
* * *
Doctors were considered high-level professionals in this world.
While the healing of priests was the most effective for the sick, the temple’s "donations" were extremely expensive. They called it a donation, but since they wouldn't treat you if you didn't pay, it wasn't really a donation.
Thus, commoners without money couldn't even dream of the temple when they fell ill.
Their secondary option was a doctor.
In truth, they were closer to pharmacists, mostly relying on prescribing medicine, but even that was often too expensive for the poor.
Petrick had told Red to send several such doctors to the territory. He wanted to check the children’s health and give the residents a chance to be examined.
But one of those doctors had suddenly caused a scene.
* * *
“Therefore, this child is cursed. Not even a high priest, let alone a doctor like me, could save him.”
The doctor was speaking passionately while looking at a child lying on a bed, hovering near death.
The child was one of the orphans Petrick had brought, and he was particularly ill. He spent all day lying down, and with nothing but skin and bones left, he couldn't even feed himself unless someone helped.
Since his condition was the most critical, Lawrence had shown this child to the doctor first.
As soon as the doctor examined him, he had cried out in shock to the people around him that the child was cursed. Now, he was claiming that if the child wasn't exiled, disaster would befall everyone else.
Standing before the doctor, Lawrence the butler frowned and spoke.
“Stop spreading strange rumors based on mere speculation. A curse? How does that make sense when dark mages disappeared from the world ages ago?”
But the doctor was adamant.
“This is a curse. It is a famous one among us doctors.”
“Sigh… You’re impossible to talk to.”
“If left like this, his entire body will turn cold and he will die. Afterward, he will spray poison in all directions, harming even perfectly healthy people!”
“What absolute nonsense. Are you really a doctor?”
“And are you a doctor? Are you?!”
“……”
The doctor ranted at Lawrence.
“If you doubt me, touch the child’s body yourself. It will surely feel as cold as ice.”
Lawrence glared at the doctor and placed his hand on the child’s emaciated body. He was instantly startled.
How can a human body be this cold?
Even a corpse that had lost all its warmth wouldn't be this cold. It was a chill like touching ice frozen in the dead of winter.
The doctor spoke to Lawrence as if to say, 'See?'
“There, you see? Was I not right?”
“……”
“Would I, a doctor, tell you to kill a healthy person? A doctor is someone who must make the decision to sacrifice the few to save the many.”
“Mmm…”
“Listen to me and abandon that child. It is not too late.”
Lawrence groaned at the doctor’s words.
Honestly, he didn't believe in the talk of curses, but it was true that the child’s condition was not normal. And above all…
“A curse?”
“What do we do? He says it’s a curse.”
“If a calamity comes to our territory…”
Lawrence frowned as he watched the residents whispering in anxiety.
This is bad.
The residents were simple-minded, to put it kindly, and ignorant, to put it bluntly.
Only a dark mage or a demon could cast a curse. This was an official announcement from the temple, and it was strictly forbidden in the temple’s name to execute people by framing them as witches or servants of the devil. That was something from hundreds of years ago.
But the people of this innocent rural territory didn't know that; they only felt a vague fear at the word "curse."
What should I do? Should I kick the doctor out? But most of the villagers haven't been treated yet…
Seeing Lawrence hesitate, the doctor drove the point home.
“I am not saying this out of malice. As a doctor, I am doing the right thing to save people, even if it means being hated.”
“……”
“Please, exile that child. That is the only way for this territ—Gwaaaargh!”
THWACK!
The doctor, who had been speaking with a solemn expression, was sent flying by a powerful kick to his side.
There was only one person in this territory who would do such a thing.
“Was it you? The hack talking about curses?”
“Yo—Young Master.”
Petrick was standing there.