Chapter 10
Chapter 10
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Forming My Squad
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The first person that popped into my head upon hearing I could form my own squad.
‘No need to even think about it—Isaac, without a doubt.’
If I hadn’t known anything, I never would have picked Isaac.
My actions might change his future, after all.
But Rian knew exactly how Isaac grew strong and racked up incredible achievements.
‘Right now, Isaac has two major flaws.’
One was using a weapon that didn’t suit him, and the other was his weak personality that couldn’t kill.
The Isaac I met at the training grounds was energetic and hardworking, always pushing himself.
His stamina was far better than mine at the time, and he handled the spear well.
His spearmanship was on par with a typical platoon leader or better—if a bit exaggerated—and his stamina was an undeniable A-grade.
But the problem was that was it.
‘That hesitation when he has to kill the enemy—it’s arguably his biggest weakness.’
I didn’t know how Isaac overcame that flaw. But it didn’t matter if I knew or not.
I already had experience from my past life as a platoon leader, transforming plenty of guys like him.
‘1st Platoon, 1st Squad, right?’
So all I had to do was talk to the 1st Platoon Leader.
The news about Rian had already spread throughout the company, so it wasn’t anything new.
Rian went to find Brian, the 1st Platoon Leader.
“Oh, Rian!”
Brian greeted him warmly upon seeing him.
It was only natural.
Rian had made a huge contribution to capturing Karouldin.
From Brian’s perspective, it was as good as owing him his life.
Rian greeted Brian politely and respectfully.
‘Is it the company commander’s good influence? The Eagle Company has a lot of rare soldiers like this.’
No matter how much he helped capture the enemy leader, Rian was still just a regular soldier.
A rookie who hadn’t even been enlisted long.
Normally, people would look at him with displeasure rather than approval.
“Congratulations. I heard you got promoted to squad leader?”
“Yes, sir. I only lent a hand to your achievement, so this reward feels excessive. Thank you.”
“Haha, your words are appreciated, but feel free to take pride in it. Your arrow was a huge help back then.”
Who could have imagined an arrow piercing Karouldin’s chest?
The moment Rian’s arrow struck Karouldin’s chest, Brian was so shocked he doubted his own eyes.
‘He’s no ordinary guy.’
“So, what brings you here?”
“I’m here to recruit squad members and wanted to ask permission to take someone from 1st Platoon.”
“1st Platoon has plenty of talent. Haha, who do you want to take?”
“Isaac.”
“Isaac? You mean the Isaac from 1st Squad?”
“Yes!”
“Hmm…….”
Brian’s expression turned a bit puzzled at Rian’s words.
Other platoons might not know, but Isaac was a soldier with some issues.
“You sure? There are plenty of better soldiers in 1st Platoon than Isaac. I could recommend someone if you’d like.”
“No, sir. I want Isaac in my squad. May I have your permission?”
Rian answered firmly.
Brian nodded helplessly.
“Fine, you have my permission.”
“Thank you!”
Isaac as my squad member.
In my past life, Isaac had been an object of envy, someone around my age who was truly admirable.
Rian felt like he’d received an unexpected gift and decided to look into the company members, just in case.
Maybe there was some hidden gem he didn’t know about.
‘Isaac is the only one who truly stands out.’
Truth be told, someone like Isaac was one of the top talents in the entire kingdom.
“Phew! Now I just need to talk to the 6th Platoon Leader…….”
He’d heard the man was quite pleased about getting replacements for the shortages.
‘I’ll request a few soldiers skilled in frontline combat and one or two fast ones.’
Anything more would be greedy.
With his thoughts sorted, Rian recalled the 6th Platoon Leader.
‘His name was Tyler, right?’
Picturing his face, Rian set off to meet him.
Luckily, it was personal maintenance time, so it wasn’t hard to find him.
“Squad Leader Rian, assigned to 6th Platoon!”
“Good to see you. We met at the awards ceremony, right?”
“Yes, sir!”
“What’s up? Your assignment is after leave, isn’t it?”
“I have something to discuss with you regarding my squad members.”
“Squad members?”
“Yes, sir. It’s about…….”
Rian was delegating the selection of his remaining squad members—excluding Isaac—to the platoon leader.
He just asked to include a few skilled in frontline combat and one or two fast soldiers.
Tyler looked surprised at that.
Regular soldiers promoted to squad leader usually maxed out their authority.
Selecting squad members was their first real power.
That often led to problems.
Incompetence was an issue, but rushing with emotions caused even more mistakes.
But this guy was different.
‘……Heard he’s a recent enlistee.’
What was it? He seemed so composed.
And detailed.
Frontline combat specialists—sturdy shield-bearers who could hold the line—and fast soldiers.
He already had a vision for his squad.
‘And the appropriate delegation of authority…….’
It felt like he knew exactly how to gain benefits while building a good image.
He smirked.
“Rian, was it? What was your father’s profession?”
“He was a soldier, sir. I enlisted to become a good soldier like my late father.”
“……I see. I look forward to your future exploits.”
That ended the conversation.
Now he just had to wait for his reward vacation.
‘As for Isaac…….’
Better to tell him as a surprise after leave.
Things seemed to go smoothly, but back at the barracks, Rian calmly organized his future tasks.
‘There’s…… so much to do.’
He didn’t know why he’d returned to the past or come back to life, but he decided not to overthink it.
He’d just treat it as a second chance. That made him even more cautious.
He couldn’t afford to waste this miraculous opportunity.
‘First things first: mana cultivation method.’
That’s why he’d secured a personal training room.
In his past life.
He’d risen from regular soldier to platoon leader, but Rian couldn’t handle mana.
It was natural.
Handling mana was for those on the elite track.
‘Or geniuses.’
For a commoner like Rian, mana was as mythical as something from a fairy tale.
But this time was different.
Rian sorted his thoughts calmly.
‘I really…… created an absurd cultivation method.’
The once-in-a-generation genius from the Child family.
He took two existing mana cultivation methods and created something utterly ridiculous.
Compressing 20-30 years of training into just 3-4 years.
Of course, there were conditions.
He’d never learned any mana cultivation method before, and all his body’s meridians had to be perfectly unblocked.
There were a few more conditions, but these two were the most crucial.
‘If you learn that method without meeting them, your body…… explodes.’
It was extremely dangerous, but for Rian, who already met them all, it was no threat.
“Looks like I’ll have a lot to do once I’m out.”
He’d gotten extra vacation as a reward, but he had to stay busy.
The night before leave, lying in bed, Rian suppressed his excitement and closed his eyes.
* * *
Bilcher was a fellow recruit with Rian.
“Wow…… To think you’re in such an insane battle just two months after enlisting. Rian! No, Squad Leader Rian. Where are you headed for your first leave?”
But the gap had widened in just two months.
Rian spread out a map at Bilcher’s question.
“First, to Belotra.”
“Belotra?”
Bilcher looked a bit surprised.
Belotra was a full three days away from their unit.
It meant spending half his leave just traveling.
“If you’re looking for a big city, Terpon’s great too. Their wine is top-notch. Sure, Belotra’s bigger, but……”
“I’ve always wanted to check it out. See you later.”
Rian grinned at him and turned away.
As the guy said, Belotra was far, so he had to hurry.
‘Still, I have to go.’
He had several reasons to go to Belotra, one being the Halitian Temple there.
‘They have a high-ranking priest there.’
The first condition for fully unblocking his meridians: receiving a holy blessing from a high-ranking priest.
The blessing purifies the body’s meridians, making it easier to unblock them.
Of course, this fact only became known after the Child mana method emerged and time passed.
It showed how intensely people researched it.
But there was an even more important reason.
‘Can I…… meet him?’
It might be the first step in his greatest plan.
Rian bit his lip.
“This is just the beginning.”
As he executed his plans one by one.
Rian headed to Belotra with anticipation and a touch of worry.
* * *
Naturally, getting a blessing from a high-ranking priest cost a pretty penny.
30 to 50 gold per blessing, at least.
Considering a commoner family of four lived on 2-3 gold a month, it was over a year’s worth.
He’d gotten 15 gold as a reward, but it was nowhere near enough.
“Phew, it’s still here.”
A blacksmith shop on the outskirts of Belotra.
[Shattered Fragments]
The name was faded, hinting at years of endurance—most letters barely legible.
“But it’s still visible now.”
In his past life, when he first came, he’d thought the name was just “Fragments.”
He’d come on a whim after reading the man’s autobiography.
It felt a bit more desolate than back then, but that didn’t matter.
Creak.
Rian cautiously pushed the door open. At that moment,
Bang!
“Argh!”
Someone burst out from inside, colliding with Rian and sending him tumbling to the ground.
“Ow…….”
His butt throbbed from the impact.
Rian frowned and looked at the person who’d flown out of the smithy.
“……Grandpa Walter?”
The reason Rian had come here.
He lay sprawled on the ground.