How a Two-Life Scoundrel Lives - Chapter 30

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

【Chapter 30】

‘What’s with that shaggy hair?’

Wilson, a soldier with a mountain-like build, was the owner of extremely unnatural-looking shaggy hair.

His nickname was Barber, yet why did his own hairstyle look like that…?

‘He’s a barber but can’t cut his own hair? Well, there’s also the saying that monks can’t shave their own heads.’

While Carlisle was having such trivial thoughts, Wilson suddenly thrust his face forward.

“Listen up, rookie. I don’t give a damn whether you’re from House Sigmund or the Grand Duke’s second son. What matters is that you’re a green recruit. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“…”

Carlisle couldn’t think of anything particular to say, so he kept his mouth shut and waited for Wilson’s next words.

“What I’m saying is, if you’re a recruit, act like one. Don’t get cocky, and when you’re told to do something, move quickly and efficiently. Don’t even think about doing things you weren’t ordered to do.”

“That’s right.”

“Hm?”

“I’ll do as I’m told. And I won’t even think about doing things I wasn’t ordered to do.”

“Hmm.”

Wilson seemed somewhat flustered to see that Carlisle was more obedient than he had expected.

“Y-yeah, that’s how it should be. One mistake from a recruit like you could get the entire unit wiped out. If that happens, I’ll chase you to the ends of hell and kill you one more time. Got it?”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Carlisle answered while thinking to himself.

‘So that would make it three deaths?’

It was a thought only someone who had already died once could have.

“Hey, don’t scare him too much.”

Marder, the [Ball Crusher], snorted and spoke up.

“If he gets too intimidated, he might make mistakes he wouldn’t normally make.”

“Intimidated, my ass.”

Wilson scoffed.

“If he was going to get intimidated by this much, he shouldn’t have picked up a sword in the first place.”

“Well, that’s true too.”

Marder nodded in agreement with Wilson’s words.

“Everyone’s on edge because there’s a recruit with us, so don’t take it too personally. Veterans don’t like recruits.”

Russell whispered in Carlisle’s ear.

“Wasn’t it that they don’t like me specifically?”

“Well, that’s part of it too. Your reputation isn’t exactly good.”

Not just ‘not good.’

Carlisle was notorious as the Northern Region’s biggest scoundrel…

“But that’s not all of it. I got chewed out pretty badly for being clueless when I first joined the scout unit too.”

“Ah?”

“Since we mainly handle dangerous missions, we can’t afford to like recruits. Recruits can’t pull their own weight. At best, they’re worth about 0.3 of a person? And often they can’t even manage that. It’s only natural.”

Russell’s words made sense.

It would be impossible for a recruit fresh out of deployment to pull their own weight.

It was normal to need at least several months of learning, training, and adapting to the unit before being able to contribute properly.

This wasn’t an exception even for officers—that is, knights.

Unless you were a second-life recruit…

“Don’t worry about it for now. A proper evaluation of you will come after you’ve been through actual combat a few times. That’s when it really counts.”

“Ah.”

The conversation he’d had with Maranello flashed through his mind.

– Isn’t there any training to prepare for actual combat?

– Isn’t there any training to prepare for actual combat?

– Aren’t we doing that right now?

– Aren’t we doing that right now?

– Not this kind of thing. Um, how should I put it. For example…

– Not this kind of thing. Um, how should I put it. For example…

– Are you perhaps referring to freezing up or running away in fear during actual combat?

– Are you perhaps referring to freezing up or running away in fear during actual combat?

– Yeah, that.

– Yeah, that.

– Young Master, a warrior’s heart is something you’re born with, not something that can be made.

– Young Master, a warrior’s heart is something you’re born with, not something that can be made.

– What does that mean?

– What does that mean?

– No matter how rigorous training a knight has undergone, there are more cases than you’d think of them freezing up in actual combat. Of course, we Northerners have very few such cases…

– No matter how rigorous training a knight has undergone, there are more cases than you’d think of them freezing up in actual combat. Of course, we Northerners have very few such cases…

– Really?

– Really?

– Yes, Young Master. So please don’t worry about such things and focus on your training. You are someone who has no need for such concerns.

– Yes, Young Master. So please don’t worry about such things and focus on your training. You are someone who has no need for such concerns.

– Why? I could freeze up too.

– Why? I could freeze up too.

– You were born with a warrior’s bloodline, Young Master. How could someone with Sigmund blood flowing through their veins freeze up in front of the enemy? Hahaha!

– You were born with a warrior’s bloodline, Young Master. How could someone with Sigmund blood flowing through their veins freeze up in front of the enemy? Hahaha!

Not long ago, he had wondered if he could kill people in battle, but it seemed there was something else he should be worried about.

‘How will I act? I’m not really a Sigmund.’

Carlisle was suddenly curious.

Although what beat restlessly in his chest was a Sigmund’s heart, the soul was not.

“You don’t need to worry about nothing. You’re a Sigmund. What’s there to worry about?”

“That’s something we’ll have to see.”

Carlisle didn’t overestimate himself.

Though he was possessing Carlisle van Sigmund’s body, his soul was merely that of a gamer who had played the game [Overlord].

* * *

The scout unit set out on a simple search and reconnaissance mission under the leadership of Begman, the scout captain.

It was the most basic perimeter operation, closer to a simple patrol around the fortress.

However, even that wasn’t easy.

Since Kuberin, the Blood-Soaked Land, boasted such rugged terrain, it wouldn’t be strange for ordinary people to collapse from exhaustion halfway through.

However, Carlisle showed no signs of difficulty at all.

“Are you okay? Not tired?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Good stamina. I had a really hard time at first. Is it because you’re a Sigmund after all?”

“…”

Carlisle didn’t bother to answer.

It wasn’t because he was a Sigmund, but thanks to the elixir that permanently improved his endurance.

“Well, you need stamina for drinking, women, and gambling too.”

“At least he won’t collapse from lack of stamina.”

The scout unit soldiers were clearly satisfied to see that Carlisle had better stamina than they had expected.

Tireless stamina was basic for serving in the scout unit.

‘It’s nice to get some fresh air.’

Carlisle had been feeling somewhat stifled after spending several days only inside the fortress, so patrolling the surroundings like this felt like going out for a walk.

“Listen carefully, rookie.”

Begman grabbed Carlisle and taught him various things.

“Just because you don’t see anything around you, never let your guard down. If you do, you never know when you might die. Do you understand what I mean?”

“You’re telling me to observe my surroundings carefully.”

“Exactly.”

“Hmm….”

“Speak with confidence. I won’t give you hell for it.”

“First, I need to carefully examine the surrounding grass and trees. Check the wind direction too. If enemies are hiding, the direction of grass or tree branches would be unnatural.”

“What else.”

“I should listen to the sounds of wild beasts and birds. Wild animals are very timid and wary, so if something is lurking nearby, they’ll either flee or hide.”

“Well learned. I guess even a scoundrel is still a Sigmund?”

Begman looked quite surprised at Carlisle’s fluent response.

‘This is something you can learn from games too.’

[Overlord] wasn’t just a game about managing territory.

Centered around narrative, the priority was growing your chosen character through combat and adventure.

So one-on-one duels or small-scale battles with a few companions had a very high proportion.

As a result, it was natural for Carlisle, who had played [Overlord] quite deeply, to know various strategies and tactics.

“But just knowing something and truly knowing it are different. Theory can be learned at a desk, but actually seeing, hearing, and feeling it is clearly a different story.”

“That’s true.”

“So what about you?”

“…?”

“Are you a bookworm who’s only sharp with theory like those clueless junior knights, or are you someone who knows how to use what you know in actual combat?”

“Hmm.”

Instead of answering, Carlisle picked up a stone from the ground and threw it straight toward the grass field.

Swiiish!

The stone flew so fast that the sound of it cutting through the air was truly threatening.

Thunk!

There was a sound of stone hitting metal, and someone quickly rose from the grass field.

“Ho.”

The person who emerged from the grass field was none other than [Slit-Eyes] Kudo.

He was called [Slit-Eyes] because he was always smiling.

“Whew, I would have died if this hit my head. Haha.”

Kudo showed his dented wrist guard and clicked his tongue.

‘He blocked that?’

Carlisle frowned.

The stone’s speed must have been at least that of a professional pitcher….

Moreover, the distance was only about 10 meters.

“Not bad.”

This time, Begman truly looked at Carlisle with new eyes.

He had intended to test the new recruit Carlisle once, but who would have thought he could accurately pinpoint Kudo’s location?

And what about the speed of that stone he threw earlier?

Begman wasn’t the only one surprised.

“So he really has some skill?”

“Wow. Finding where Kudo was hiding wouldn’t have been easy.”

The wide-eyed gazes of the scout unit soldiers focused on Carlisle.

Indeed, one demonstration seemed better than a thousand words.

However, Begman still couldn’t acknowledge Carlisle ‘yet’.

‘Can you really do well in actual combat too? A scoundrel like you?’

Begman only believed in actual combat.

Among the knights he had experienced, there were often cases where they were fine during training but made a mess when it came to actual combat.

* * *

Thus, Carlisle’s first mission seemed to be ending quite successfully.

Actually, it was more of a training exercise for a new recruit than a mission….

“How is it, manageable?”

“Yes.”

Carlisle answered Russell’s question briefly.

“As expected of a Sigmund. Good stamina too, and you found Senior Soldier Kudo in one try. I couldn’t find him once in two months and only got ambushed every time.”

“Ah?”

“Knights must learn and train all that stuff beforehand, right?”

“Something like that.”

“Still, you must have trained hard. I thought you just played around all the time and didn’t do any training at all.”

“Kuk!”

“Oh, did I offend you? If I did….”

Russell flinched slightly when Carlisle let out a small chuckle.

No matter how low-ranking a soldier he was, his opponent was still a noble and the son of Grand Duke Guntram.

“I’m not offended at all, so there’s no need to apologize. Private Russell.”

Carlisle deliberately called out his rank and name to remind Russell that he was a superior.

“And I really did just play around.”

The real Carlisle really had just played around.

His head was so empty that he had absolutely no knowledge useful for the battlefield.

“I, I see. Still, it’s impressive. Finding Senior Soldier Kudo in one try is really amazing….”

Carlisle couldn’t listen to Russell’s words to the end.

‘What’s this?’

The sword hanging at his waist… the jet-black sword Grimgand was vibrating slightly.

Though it was faint enough to be overlooked, Grimgand was definitely vibrating and making its presence known.

And the vibration was growing stronger.

‘Why is it suddenly doing this.’

Carlisle couldn’t even guess why Grimgand, which had been quiet until now, was acting this way.

Since Grimgand was an item that didn’t appear in the game [Overlord], even Carlisle didn’t know its information.

Ding!

A notification window appeared before his eyes.

[Alert: 【Grimgand】 has detected savage killing intent!]

[Alert: 【Grimgand】 has detected savage killing intent!]

[Alert: 【Grimgand】 has detected savage killing intent!]

[Alert: 【Grimgand】 has detected savage killing intent!]

[Alert: 【Grimgand】 has detected savage killing intent!]

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————