The New Vice Captain Of The Third Platoon Of The Thirteenth Flying Dragon Unit (1)

The next day, I gave the platoon members a casual farewell.

“I’m off!”

As expected, equally casual replies came back.

“Yeah, sure. See you at training later.”

“Jin, don’t be late for external-arts training.”

“Young Master Seonu, are you leaving now? You have to bring us presents when you come back!”

“…That might be difficult.”

I was about to move into the Third Platoon’s quarters.

Calling it a move was rather excessive, since all my luggage consisted of a single sword and one bundle containing a few changes of clothes. I looked more like I was casually going for a walk.

However, my feelings were not so light.

Throughout my previous two lives, my quarters at the front had always been with the Seventh Platoon.

Thus, for the first time in those two lives, I was moving somewhere else.

It left me feeling extremely unsettled.

Still, I was grateful that the platoon members treated it lightly, as though it were no great matter.

Thanks to them, my mood seemed to lighten somewhat.

It almost felt as though I were merely going on a brief journey before returning here again.

I chuckled at that thought and stepped outside, only to discover an unexpected person standing there.

“Lady Tang?”

Lady Tang Yeo-eun, captain of the Third Platoon, was standing outside the Seventh Platoon’s quarters.

It seemed she had been waiting for me.

I had sensed that someone was outside, but I had never imagined it would be Lady Tang.

When I looked at her in surprise, she smiled shyly and spoke.

“I came in case there was anything I could help you with. But…”

She looked embarrassed when she saw my luggage.

One small bundle and a single sword.

There was obviously nothing she could help with.

Seeing her embarrassed expression, I hurriedly spoke.

“Still, thank you for coming, Lady Tang.”

“Ah, no. It was only natural…”

After saying that much, we stood there for a moment, our eyes darting around as neither of us could think of anything else to say.

Eventually, I barely managed to speak.

“Th-Then shall we go?”

“Ah, s-shall we?”

Then we walked in silence once more.

It felt incredibly awkward.

I felt as though I ought to say something, yet my mind had gone blank and nothing came to me.

I swallowed and thought.

‘Strange. I can speak naturally even in front of Lady Na now, so why am I like this again?’

Then Lady Tang carefully spoke first.

“I’m sorry.”

“Pardon? For what?”

Had she done anything for which she needed to apologize to me?

When I looked at her questioningly, she lowered her head without even meeting my eyes and said.

“For requesting that you become the Third Platoon’s vice-captain without even asking what you wanted…”

“Ah.”

Only after hearing that did I understand what she meant.

Indeed, it had certainly happened far too suddenly.

When I nodded in understanding, she hurriedly continued.

“At the time, Captain Je Wonyeong suddenly revealed that both Young Master Seonu and Lady Hae Cheong-yeon had reached the Pinnacle Realm, so I had no choice but to make the request immediately. People began saying that if you were a Pinnacle expert, you could be sent to another Flying Dragon Unit as a captain… I intended to speak with you right afterward, but we immediately had to leave on the search, and when we returned, you were gone…”

After listening to her ramble without meeting my eyes, I fully understood what had happened at the time.

And that the situation had been unavoidable.

I suddenly thought that she looked cute, all hunched up and apologetic before me.

Everyone knew her only as a cold and aloof woman.

For some reason, it did not feel unpleasant that I alone knew this side of her.

I smiled and answered.

“Please don’t apologize. I already understand that you had no time to ask for my consent. And… when you think about it, you prevented me from being sent to another Flying Dragon Unit, didn’t you? It seems I should be thanking you instead.”

Only after I said that did her expression relax, and she gave me a bashful smile.

It seemed she had been carrying that concern in her heart all this time.

She truly was an adorable and beautiful person.

Once the tension eased, she brought up another subject.

“By the way, I heard you defeated Iron Fiends at Na Manor?”

“Ah, that? Yes, I encountered two of them.”

“What?! Two at once?! How did you…?”

“At the time, I…”

After that, we were able to walk comfortably to the Third Platoon while conversing.

When we arrived, we found all the Third Platoon members standing in front of their quarters, waiting for us.

There were seven men and two women, nine people in total. It seemed they had prepared some sort of welcoming ceremony.

I stepped before them beside Lady Tang while trying to maintain a calm expression.

Then, among the two women, I noticed Lady Song Yeong-yeong, who had followed me around before, waving her hand cutely.

‘Hmm. At least one person welcomes me.’

Then I swept my gaze over the others and thought.

‘Though the rest certainly don’t seem to.’

Although they had all come out for the welcoming ceremony, the only person who genuinely looked pleased to see me was Lady Song Yeong-yeong.

The atmosphere surrounding everyone else, particularly the men, appeared extremely hostile.

They were all glaring at me with blazing eyes as though they wanted to devour me.

Lady Tang then introduced me with a cold expression that was entirely different from the one she had worn while speaking with me earlier.

“You have probably already heard, but starting today, Young Master Seonu Jin, formerly of the Seventh Platoon, will be joining our platoon as vice-captain. I hope you will all welcome him.”

At that, the members of the Third Platoon began applauding despite their blazing gazes.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

It was an extremely perfunctory applause.

However, rather than their stares or applause, I was more concerned with Lady Tang standing beside me.

At that moment, she was emanating coldness with an expression like a beautiful statue carved from ice.

Her expression had changed so dramatically that it was difficult to believe she was the same person as before. This was what truly deserved to be called a transformation.

It was fascinating.

Then Lady Tang looked at me and said.

“Vice-Captain Seonu Jin, please say a few words to the platoon members.”

I chuckled at her cold voice and spoke casually.

“I am Seonu Jin, and from now on, I will serve as the Third Platoon’s vice-captain. I am still lacking in many ways. Therefore, I ask all of you…”

At that moment, I heard someone mutter.

“At least he knows he’s lacking.”

It was the man standing at the far left.

He had spoken loudly enough that he clearly wanted me to hear. When I stopped speaking and looked at him, another man continued.

“What do you mean, at least? It’s just hypocrisy. If he truly believed he was lacking, would he have dared come here?”

I stared at them with an incredulous expression.

However, the problem was not limited to those two.

Only two had spoken, but the other men were snickering as though they found the remarks amusing.

“Ha.”

A hollow laugh escaped me.

I had not expected to be welcomed, but was this not an extraordinary amount of hazing?

Just as I could no longer hold back and was about to step forward, Lady Tang suddenly erupted with overwhelming pressure.

Whoosh!

With an expression and voice so cold that the entire area seemed ready to freeze over, she asked them.

“Young Master Gang, Young Master Mok. What exactly do you think you’re doing?”

At her powerful pressure, the Third Platoon members immediately stopped laughing and stood rigidly at attention.

The two who had mocked me first were no exception.

However, Lady Tang apparently had no intention of stopping there.

She shouted again in a frost-covered voice.

“Gang Socheol! Mok Gyeongjin! Did you not hear me?!”

At her sharp cry, the two men stiffened and hurriedly answered.

“Y-Yes!”

“Yes! W-We were only…!”

However, Lady Tang did not listen to their excuses and continued approaching as she raised her voice.

“Young Master Seonu was originally talented enough that he might have been sent as a captain to another Flying Dragon Unit! I personally requested him and barely managed to have him join our platoon as vice-captain! Yet you dare display such rudeness from your very first meeting! Do you intend to humiliate me in front of our newly appointed vice-captain?!”

The two men’s complexions turned white beneath her cold pressure and words.

They hurriedly shouted.

“N-No! That was not our intention!”

“That’s right! We absolutely did not mean that!”

She glared at them for a moment before asking again in a low voice.

“That was not your intention? Then what were you thinking? What thought led you to perform such shamefully idiotic behavior?”

Her lowered voice and renewed use of polite speech.

However, combined with her frigid pressure, it felt as biting as a winter wind.

Even I felt that way while watching from the side, so there was no need to mention how it must have felt for the two directly receiving her pressure.

The two men shuddered once before answering loudly.

“We apologize, Captain!”

“It will never happen again, Captain!”

However, Lady Tang shook her head and said.

“You should apologize not to me, but to the person you wronged. Is that not so?”

The two clenched their teeth once and immediately apologized to me.

“We apologize, Vice-Captain!”

“Please forgive our discourtesy!”

I whistled inwardly in admiration.

‘Whew! Impressive.’

Her presence and command were truly extraordinary.

The woman who had smiled bashfully at me earlier no longer even came to mind.

I suddenly thought.

‘Even if I went around telling people that she is actually a shy woman with many emotional wounds, no one would ever believe me. She’s a completely different person, isn’t she?’

It was then.

Someone was rapidly flying toward us from the direction of the forest.

I sensed the presence first and looked that way. A moment later, a man running atop the tree branches entered my view.

Recognizing his face, I muttered.

“Captain Je Wonyeong?”

He was Je Wonyeong, the Sword Tiger of Diancang and the newly appointed captain of the Fourth Platoon.

He landed beside us with hearty laughter.

“Hahaha! What is this? Is this little brother Seonu Jin’s initiation ceremony as vice-captain?”

After clasping hands with me in greeting, he delivered a message to Lady Tang, whose expression remained cold.

“You look even colder than usual. I would rather not disturb the atmosphere, so I shall deliver this quickly. The vice division captain asked that Lady Tang come to headquarters. It seems an urgent letter arrived from your main family.”

A peculiar light appeared in Lady Tang’s eyes.

“From my family? What happened?”

Lady Tang’s main family was the Sichuan Tang Clan.

“I do not know the details either. I was merely asked to deliver the message. In any case, I have certainly conveyed it.”

With that, Je Wonyeong grinned at me, then launched himself away and disappeared once more.

He always appeared to be such a cheerful person.

I even found myself wondering whether he might become like the Sword Saint when he grew older.

When I glanced at Lady Tang, she had fallen into thought with a grave expression.

It seemed receiving contact from the Tang Clan was not a common occurrence.

I smiled and spoke to her.

“Lady Tang, please go. I believe this introduction has been sufficient.”

“But…”

“I will be fine. It sounds urgent, so please hurry.”

When I urged her again, Lady Tang finally sighed and spoke one last time to the platoon members.

“I will say this again. Anyone who insults the vice-captain has insulted me. I hope nothing like this happens again.”

“Yes! Understood, Captain!”

After saying that, Lady Tang launched herself toward the Thirteenth Unit’s headquarters.

Once she was sufficiently far away, I grinned at the platoon members and said.

“Now then, shall we have some real time among men?”

The male platoon members, who had been about to disperse, stared at me as though wondering what nonsense I was speaking.

“What did you say?”

I smiled brightly at them.

“We are martial artists, aren’t we? Would it not be boring to exchange greetings with words alone? I’m so bored I feel as though I might yawn. Do none of you feel the same? Or… are you too frightened to do anything else?”

At my provocation, the platoon members’ eyes gradually began gleaming viciously.

The one who had first mocked me ground his teeth and said.

“You’re saying something you’ll regret.”

I chuckled and retorted.

“Ah, will I regret it? True, it may be excessive to trample my platoon members from the very first day. Especially cowards who are too afraid to step forward and fight despite calling themselves martial artists.”

The male platoon members now approached me with completely enraged expressions.

“You bastard!”

“I’ll make you regret those words!”

“We’ll show you why you were in the Seventh Platoon and why we are in the Third!”

It was exactly the desirable reaction I had hoped for.

With a satisfied smile, I curled my finger at them.

“I look forward to it.”

In my previous life, Captain Seol Pung had tried his utmost to embrace every member of the Seventh Platoon.

That was why he had endured so much.

However, the captain had failed at the time.

That was because an inhuman bastard named Ju Taegyeong had been in our platoon.

People should be treated as human beings, but the captain had not understood then that doing so was useless with someone who did not behave like one.

Eventually, when Lady Na died, the captain stopped enduring and crushed Ju Taegyeong with force.

Then something astonishing happened.

After being beaten mercilessly by the captain, the man instantly became as docile as a lamb, and from then on, he fully cooperated with the captain.

It had been utterly absurd.

The sight of someone who had constantly picked fights and hindered the captain suddenly behaving like a completely different person after being crushed by force just once…

That incident had remained an incredibly hollow memory not only for the captain, but for me as well.

‘Had that bastard behaved that way from the beginning, Lady Na might have…’

In any case, that was the conclusion I had reached then.

Violence should, of course, be avoided, but one needs to remain flexible depending on the situation.

At times, firmly establishing the hierarchy could be more effective than conversation.

Especially against fools who had no idea how frightening the world could be.

I smiled fiercely at the members of the Third Platoon.

“Come at me. But be prepared for it to hurt.”