Novel Full Chapter 288 : Chapter 288
Chapter 288. The Soup is Salty (3)
A short while later.
“Sob…. Sob sob…”
Luna crouched down, buried her face in her knees, and cried sorrowfully.
Well, it was probably sorrowful and embarrassing.
She had been scolded while being spanked on the butt like a child, after all.
Anyone would feel pity if such a beautiful woman were crying so pitifully….
“Tsk, what did you do right to be crying. Stop it.”
Demons are an exception.
Patrick rebuked the crying Luna and spoke to the remaining two.
“Anyone else still want to test me?”
At that, although not a person, the huge, golden-bodied Griffin stepped forward.
It was Storm Spear, the retainer of the Falling Despair.
He stepped forward, spread his wings, and said confidently to Patrick.
“I am an Elder Griffin. A warrior of the sky, blessed with the authority of the great one, a warrior among warriors who fears no one in the sky.”
“Hooo…. I see.”
Patrick drew his twin swords and smiled chillingly.
At that, Storm Spear hurriedly said….
“But this is not the sky, but the ground, so I will submit to you.”
“……”
Indeed, the wild beast was different.
Its survival instinct was excellent.
This time, Patrick turned his head to look at Dalg-i, who was covering her face with a fan, and said.
“Hey. Ma’am.”
“Ma… Ma’am…”
“Are you going to do it? Or not?”
“……”
The flustered Dalg-i fanned faster to cool the heat rising to her face.
And she said, trying her best to feign composure….
“My master, the Rushing Death, has already acknowledged you.”
“That spotted cat?”
“…Ahem, in any case, I never doubted you from the beginning and had no intention of testing you.”
“So, you’ll listen to me carefully?”
“Of course. Just give me any order, will you?”
“I like that it’s clean.”
Patrick nodded.
With this, the four of them became his convenient limbs.
And the first thing he said was….
“Those of you with divine power, raise your hands. Or wings.”
At that, all four (?) of them raised their hands.
All of them were retainers of the Four Calamities, the Apostles of Kalaron.
In a sense, they were also clergymen.
“Then is it possible to break through the Aegis Barrier? Not just you, but with other people too.”
At that, Dalg-i spoke as the representative.
“It is a little difficult to pass through the divine domain barrier created by the power of Yupinel. However, if you give us some time, it would be possible to make a small hole.”
“Right. So that’s how it is?”
The corners of Patrick’s mouth went up.
With this, all the cards needed to finally solve the problem had been gathered.
***
10 PM.
It was time to slowly wrap up the day’s work, rest, and prepare for bed.
It was probably the most relaxed and peaceful time for humans.
And….
Kwaaaang!
There was one person who didn’t like this peace.
A sudden roar and explosion.
At first, the Paladins were flustered, thinking there was an enemy attack.
But….
“Double Dragon?”
“What are you doing here?”
What they saw when they rushed to the scene was the figure of Patrick Schneider, with destruction and flames in the background, a murderous glint in his eyes.
And Patrick said.
“Hahaha…. What am I doing right now, you ask?”
Last night.
Patrick introduced the retainers of the Four Calamities to his comrades and informed them that they could break through the Aegis Barrier with their help.
However, there was still a problem.
Breaking through the Aegis Barrier required time, and in the process, they must not be discovered by anyone.
So someone had to step up and draw attention….
[Then you can do that, can’t you?]
[Me? Why?]
To the questioning Patrick, the 3rd Sage stroked his beard and said.
[Hahaha. In a feint operation like this, doesn’t the bait have to be appetizing for the other party not to suspect?]
[So you’re telling me to do it?]
[If the great Double Dragon himself steps up to draw attention, all the forces of this Promis will be concentrated there.]
[…….]
It was certainly true.
The outline of the operation established as such was this.
The retainers of the Four Calamities would create a hole in the Aegis Barrier, and the comrades would enter through it.
And the 3rd Sage would undo the Pontiff’s brainwashing and return him to normal.
During that time, Patrick had to step up and draw attention.
It was a kind of feint operation.
And now.
Patrick leisurely watched the ever-growing encirclement.
“Double Dragon! What in the world is the meaning of this?”
Someone who seemed to be a fairly high-ranking Paladin stepped forward and said angrily.
“What do I mean? Are you asking because you don’t know?”
When Patrick asked back, the opponent flinched.
Could it be that the Holy Theocracy had done something rude first without him knowing?
Yes. Come to think of it, that was plausible.
Wasn’t the Double Dragon an official envoy representing the Schneider Duchy?
For such a person to suddenly express anger like this, there must surely be a valid reason.
“Please explain what happened. If there was a mistake on our country’s part, I will strictly reprimand the person responsible.”
At the very sensible, polite, and even rational remark of the Paladin, Patrick turned his gaze to the side and muttered.
“…oup was…ty.”
“…Pardon? What did you say?”
To the questioning opponent, Patrick gave up and yelled.
“Ah! The soup that came out for dinner today was salty!”
“……”
“How could that happen!”
The greatest troublemaker of the era.
His name was Patrick Schneider.
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence.
“No…, wait, wait a moment.”
At first, he thought he had misheard.
But when he heard it again, he understood even less.
What? Am I dreaming right now?
So the reason this man, the Grand Young Master of the Schneider Duchy, is causing a disturbance in this Holy City of Promis is because the…
“The soup was salty… Keuk!”
“No questions asked!”
Jjeoong!
The Paladin hurriedly raised his shield to block the suddenly flying sword qi.
And Patrick, with aura blooming on his sword, declared proudly.
“This is no longer a matter that can be resolved with words. Come!”
“……”
“……”
Was the issue of the soup’s saltiness really that serious?
Just as the atmosphere turned cold, Patrick moved first.
At the sight of Patrick charging forward, the Paladin raised his shield and….
“Oh, Yupineeeel!”
He took a defensive stance, emitting his full divine power.
That dignified appearance and disciplined defensive stance were truly excellent.
So much so that he wanted to use it as a model for a heavy-armored knight.
But….
“Get lost!”
Peoong!
His opponent was Patrick Schneider.
Without even needing to strike with his sword, the moment he kicked the opponent’s shield, the opponent coughed up blood and flew backwards.
“Keoheok…”
He flew back several tens of meters and crashed into a wall, coughing up blood as he collapsed.
“Sir Gendaius!”
“How dare…”
“Double Dragooooon!”
It seemed the fallen Paladin was a man of virtue.
When he fell, the surrounding Paladins and Monks, who had been observing this absurd situation until now, all rushed at Patrick at once.
At that sight, the corners of Patrick’s mouth went up.
“You should have done that from the start. Come at me.”
Patrick began to single-handedly face the rushing Knightly Order of the Holy Theocracy.
***
Kwaaaaaaang!
At the sound of an explosion from afar, Riman Ciera spoke.
“Is this really okay?”
“What if it’s not?”
When Matthew answered bluntly, Riman Ciera spoke again.
“The power of the Holy Theocracy is by no means to be trifled with. Even for the Double Dragon, this is dangerous.”
“So?”
“This is frustrating. As a friend, it is logical to help…”
At that, Matthew yelled.
“If I could help, of course I would help too!”
“…Matthew?”
Riman wore a surprised expression.
For the several years he had known him, the man named Matthew, aside from being a friend of Patrick Schneider, was a man with few flaws.
His sword skills were on the verge of 5-stars, he was smart, and as the heir to the Elbador Merchant Guild, he handled the guild’s affairs well.
Above all, unlike Patrick, his character was good-natured and gentle, so he rarely got annoyed with those around him.
But now, he was glaring at him as if he would kill him.
Matthew looked Riman straight in the eye and said.
“My skills are of no help. When that guy Patrick is rampaging alone in a deadly situation, if I go, I’ll just be a burden.”
“……”
That was certainly true.
In fact, even Riman Ciera, who was considered the closest to the position of Guardian in the Tower of Truth, was not confident he could fight alongside Patrick.
A 5-star swordsman?
It wasn’t a business card to be dismissed, but what meaning would it have if it were to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Double Dragon?
And Matthew was more frustrated by this fact than anyone else.
‘Damn it, nothing has changed compared to back then.’
The battle with the Kaisar Kingdom.
At that time, Patrick had fought a life-and-death struggle with the enemy, but all he could do was flee with all his might.
Rather, to allow him and Isabella to retreat safely, April, the only one who could match Patrick’s pace, had to protect him.
Thinking rationally….
That was the right thing to do at the time.
If someone had been taken hostage, not only would there have been no chance of victory, but someone had to go to the Tower of Truth and bring back reinforcements.
In fact, thanks to that, no one died.
But Matthew remembered clearly.
He vividly remembered the memory of his body trembling with humiliation and shame as he saw Patrick, who was on the verge of death, being carried to the Tower of Truth.
‘Am I… am I really this guy’s friend?’
He couldn’t suppress his self-loathing.
Shouldn’t friends at least be able to acknowledge each other as equals?
But he couldn’t.
Since when was it?
His sense of purpose had become too low.
After taking the second-place position in his year at the Academy, he had been satisfied with his own level.
He had thought that for someone like him, who initially had no talent, this was more than enough.
But, if he was really Patrick Schneider’s friend?
To be with the Double Dragon, whose fame resounded throughout the continent, this level of skill was far from enough.
Realizing this, Matthew devoted himself to training more than anyone else.
He knew he had no talent.
The level that the once-in-a-generation genius Patrick had personally taught and dragged him up to by the scruff of his neck was 4-stars.
But after that, as a result of devoting himself to training while being beaten up daily by the knights of the Twin Dragon Knightly Order and the Orcs of the Red Rock Tribe, he was finally able to reach the 5-star level on his own.
But….
‘It’s still not enough. Still…’
When he reached the 5-star level, the Grand Duke Schneider himself said he would bestow upon him the title of knight.
A knight.
A position he so desperately wanted.
Originally, Matthew was a descendant of a knightly family, and his late grandfather, who used to sit him on his lap, had endlessly told him to reclaim the family’s surname and knighthood.
So he wanted to receive the title right away, but….
[No. I am still lacking.]
Matthew refused.
The 5-star level was more than enough skill to be appointed as a knight.
In an ordinary fiefdom, he could even aim for the position of knight commander.
But the knight Matthew aimed for was not such an ordinary knight.
He had to become a knight who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the strongest man on the continent as a friend.
To do that….
[I will receive the title only after I have at least pioneered the supreme realm.]
That was the minimum qualification Matthew thought of.
The Grand Duke Schneider respected Matthew’s wishes and decided not to bestow the knighthood for the time being.
Instead, he tried to give the title of Count to Matthew’s father, Aron, but he too refused, saying he respected his son’s wishes.
At his words that he wanted to leave the reclaiming of the family name in his son’s hands, the Grand Duke Schneider could only back down with a smile.
And now.
Kwaaaang! Kwaang!
The brilliant sound of explosions and screams.
Matthew stared blankly in that direction and clenched his fists.
‘It’s still not enough. Still…’
But one day, he would surely stand in that place as well.
Beside his friend….