CH 11

"Make advance preparations for him to participate in the welcoming ceremony." "Yes?"

While resting in his tent, Sunhyuk was suddenly called for by the Squadron Commander, and was made to listen to his story that seemed to have no end.

"Always, I have to say it twice. For tonight, there will be a welcoming dinner for the visiting and honorable Lee Eunse." "As for the other people…" "No. You're the only one that's participating."

He asked just in case, but it seems that he alone was the only Stranger to be participating in this welcoming ceremony. Before questioning the Squadron Commander again, he thought of that brief eye contact that he had exchanged with the Magician earlier in the day. That was not enough of a hint to him of the reason pertaining to why he was being called to the ceremony, so it bothered him.

"You will be dressed according to the official Rider uniform, and you shall arrive at the appropriate time in a timely and orderly fashion. Also, make sure to be cautious with your words…" "That ceremony…must I participate?"

As if Sunhyuk's attitude was alarming, Frederik soon closed his mouth. But quickly, his shock turned to anger as his face became beet red as he made a threatening glare.

"Are you attempting to disobey orders?"

Sunhyuk was momentarily troubled as he saw Frederik's rage reach the tips of his hair. His senses had been upgraded another notch after he started avoiding annoying or troublesome matters ever since he had spent time as a sergeant in his previous world. But he had no choice but to cast aside that strange foreboding.

He would dodge it if possible.

It was only for a brief moment, but that disgust which emanated from that magician's glare was enough for his answer to be decided.

"How dare you! For a Stranger to-!"

Seeing the Squadron Commander almost wanting to withdraw his sword this instant, Sunhyuk felt as if his heart had collapsed onto the floor, but he endured as he closed his eyes and stood firm.

"As you can see, with how I am now, I feel as if I will disturb the atmosphere."

Although he tried to make an excuse with the cast on his arm as the reason, it seems that the anger did not fade. Well, with how much he hated Strangers in the first place, to show such an attitude in front of him, it wouldn't be strange for him to be beaten to death for disobedience within this instant.

However, Sunhyuk also believed in something. That all Strangers existed as patrons of the Ardenburg Kingdom. That even the Strangers with the lowest-ranked classes were under the control of the Royal Family.

No matter the fact that Frederik was the Squadron Commander of this military base, he won't be able to lay a hand on him so recklessly. If that was possible, he would have been exposed to his aggression earlier on, and would have suffered miserably. Nevertheless, not only did the Squadron Commander not hit him, but he also did not deport him away to someplace else. That meant that the Strangers were existences that were exempt from the normal hierarchical command in the Ardenburg Kingdom.

"Hooooo."

As if his estimation was right, the burning inferno of the Squadron Commander's anger soon settled down, as he began to suppress his rage.

"How reckless. I can't find a single strand of a soldier's mentality from you."

His voice had lowered, with that emotional state disappearing somewhere. Despite that, Sunhyuk felt even more threatened than before. With that sharp, knife-like voice of his, that was how threatening the Squadron Commander's voice sounded.

Damn. Did I provoke the wrong beast?

He belatedly started to worry, however, he did not regret his actions. Since he couldn't maintain a good relationship with the Squadron Commander, what's wrong with having another thorn embedded between them? There was no reason for him not to be annoyed by this uncomfortable welcoming reception.

"And this is why I hate the Strangers."

After shaking his head, the Squadron Commander spoke once more.

"Anything else you want?"

"I heard that you were called for by the Squadron Commander?"

Why were there so many people bothering him today, was what Sunhyuk thought as he sighed, seeing Jungtae follow behind him like a dog.

"Yes, he told me to participate in the welcoming ceremony for tonight's dinner." "Is that so? Understandable. Since we were all comrades that trained together in the boot camp together back then, of course she wouldn't let this slide by."

Although he had not finished speaking yet, as if he was drinking a warm broth, Jungtae's face brightened suddenly.

"No. Not everyone is invited…" "Oh? Then who is?"

By roughly explaining the details of the ceremony, Jungtae replied back with a disappointed expression.

"Ah, so they're calling for you only."

But soon, he asked why they were only calling for him.

"But why? Do you know that woman by any chance?" "No. It's not that, I don't know why they're calling for just me either."

It's not like he had no slight clue as to why. It was possible that the wind attribute's aura that was encircling him and without dissipating was felt by that woman.

"So you're going? Your injury has not even fully recovered yet. We belong to the Royal Family, so if you don't like it, you can reject it."

He pretended to care about me, but it was more close to jealousy from the face of Jungtae. Despite trying to manage his expressions, the inclination of, 'why always him,' seemed to emanate from him. As time passed, his true nature was gradually being revealed, but he did not care.

Whether it was Jungtae or himself, they were both trying to survive in this remote place. As such, he had no intention to ridicule his frivolousness.

"Yeah. So I told him I didn't want to." "Right? What will there be if you go anyways? It's just high-ranking people loitering around." However, it was quite ridiculous seeing his attitude change like that.

"But I decided to just go."

Frederik, who seemed strict at first glance, was a lot more flexible than he had thought.

"I promised him so."

So when his order did not work, he immediately resorted to an appeasement measure.

'A well trained first-class horse, including all the armor and equipment to arm it, as well as all of the weapons, will be provided to you as a Rider. And if there is anything else you want, I will listen to it as long as it's not too excessive.'

Though the sounds of ice water seemed to drip down, he could not hide his desperate desire with his promotion just around the corner. It would be foolish to rebel any longer at this rate, as to rejecting him here basically meant making Frederik an enemy of his.

And not only that, he thought that he couldn't totally refuse the command in the first place. So this was the exact picture he wanted. As such, he accepted Frederik's proposal and was able to attain the expensive equipment. As well as the horse's essential equipment that could not have been bought with the current support earnings he received from the Royal Family in exchange for his salary.

It was a splendid reward that was compensated from Sunhyuk's sheer guts and mental fortitude.

"Can-can't you take me with you as well?"

With Jungtae pleading to take him, Sunhyuk shook his head with a difficult face. After pleading several more times, Jungtae eventually gave up and returned with a disappointed face after realizing that it was an impossible task.

After Jungtae had left, Sunhyuk was lost in thought.

If Eunse were to have recognized his hidden Dragon Rider's strength, what would happen. If his luck was good, his rank could be promoted that instant to an Intermediate. Then, he would be able to concentrate on training in a comfortable environment, unmatched compared to his current circumstances.

However, he did not want that. Everything that the Royal Family was providing was debt incurred, and it had to be repaid in some sort of fashion. As much abundance as his treatment and resources were, it was natural that the debt would increase exponentially, making it that much more difficult to pay it back in the end.

He knew this fact very well, so he did not have any intentions of increasing his debt.

As for the debt of a Basic class, he should be able to repay the debt without much difficulty later on. In addition, Frederik had ensured his autonomy of training through this deal, so there should be no further hindrances.

"It's good right now."

Looking up into the sky, he realized that he didn't have much time, and he quickly began to make preparations.

"To be able to meet the future Royal Court Magician like this, it seems that I have used up all of my luck in this life." "Just like you say. Isn't Lee Eunse an individual talented enough to be appointed to the seat of Royal Court Magician? Even the previous Royal Court Magician was not at her level at that age." "Seeing her alongside the Commander that is said to be called the; 'Shield of Ardenburg.' I can see that the Kingdom's future is bright."

How many more embarrassing words could they say, as they exchanged flattery in a face-to-face confrontation amongst one another - about each other. If rumors were to be circulated within the 24th Regiment. If he were not a Stranger in this situation, he would have already stood up and left with the pretext of an excuse.

"I have much to learn as a greenhorn. I am just glad that I have the opportunity to learn and listen to the advice of such experienced and competent people such as yourselves."

By receiving the comments of others appropriately, Lee Eunse was sitting down while wearing her formal uniform.

She had never imagined that the talkative Dragon Rider from that boot camp would be here. Of course, she did not concern herself with the Basic classes that were distributed throughout the military camps, but after recognizing that Dragon Rider with that unique and strange aura, she began to monitor this lad named Kim Sunhyuk.

However, unlike earlier in the day, she could not feel the strange aura from that young man anymore. No, she definitely had felt it earlier, but that aura was so faint that she had to request the Squadron Commander to have him participate in this welcoming dinner, but it seems that her decision seemed more silly by the second.

With that kind of aura, it wasn't uncommon to not find it at all, despite it's rarity. As such, Eunse lost interest quickly just like that.

"Since I am not feeling well, I will have to get up. I offer my condolences as I have to tend to my weak Magician's body."

"Since I am not feeling well, I will have to get up. I offer my condolences as I have to tend to my weak Magician's body." "It seems that we were thinking too much about ourselves, and not considering your situation. Since you have come a long way, you must be tired, so please go and rest."

As if things were getting too clamorous for her, he was able to see her rise from her seat. After adequately exchanging farewells, she turned around and, without looking back, disappeared with a displeased face.

Is she leaving just like that because she was invited to this welcoming dinner forcefully? After exchanging eye contact a few times, without talking to each other once, she disappeared just like that, causing him to be suprised by her behavior.

However, he wasn't angry. He was just fascinated. It was quite shocking to see how the Commander and his subordinates were doing their utmost to curry her favor. For them to be like that to a Stranger made it all very strange.

"Hmm."

However, his thoughts weren't long enough to reach a conclusion. The attribute's aura that he was forcefully suppressing returned in the form of an immense painful headache.

Ugh. It was several times more difficult to disperse the aura than gathering it.

He was trying to avoid attention through this means, but it was quite enjoyable. As he was attempting to disperse the gathered attribute's aura, the uncomfortable time quickly passed by.

"Ahem."

Turning around, he saw Frederik make a forceful cough as he called for him, waving him over. With Eunse leaving, it was saying that his role was finished.

I'm going. You cheap bastard.

Even though he was having a headache in this uncomfortable situation, he was able to avoid attention, and even had unexpected benefits. Thus it wasn't a bad time at all.

With a somewhat satisfied face, he grabbed a chicken leg that was on the table. Just then, he suddenly heard a hallucinatory-like voice.

[The new method of training was quite effective.] [Attribute Expertise has resumed its acceleration of growth as it has overcome its limit.]

TL Afterword: 

Why take one chicken leg when you can take all of them (mwahaha)

Comment: Well, this is the real chapter 11 that doesn't redirect to chapter 10.

Notice: Merry Christmas all! Hope you have a wonderful hearty meal and celebrate the holiday with bliss and joy.

PR Afterword:

Sai101: MC hustled some perks - can't wait for his riding escapades to continue..

Border: Wonder if message-noona is self-aware.

Translator: Calvis Proofreader: Sai101,Borderline Masochist