Reborn as the Genius Son of the Richest Family

After the bandits were taken care of, Michael came out of the kitchen to assure the customers that this type of thing wouldn't happen again.

But surprisingly, instead of being angry that their dining experience was ruined by the bandits, the customers began approaching the Dragonborns and giving them praise. They were impressed by their swift removal of the bandits, even at the cost of some property destruction.

"Hehe, of course! That's just what I do on the regular," Zion boasted, scratching his nose.

Jaku hit his younger brother on the head with his sheath. "Idiot. You created a hole in the restaurant."

"Ow!" the red-scaled Dragonborn glared at his older brother. "What's the big deal? We'll rebuild it anyway."

"Tsk tsk. It's not the rebuilding that I'm worried about. What do you think will happen to this restaurant once it's under construction? You think they'll still sell chicken?"

The realization came to pass in Zion's mind like a truck. He held his heart in pain, probably in more pain than what the bandits could have done.

"Oh no…I've made a terrible mistake. Don't close down the store! Let's just leave it like this!"

Thankfully, Sheina wasn't here or else the two of them would have gotten the screaming of a lifetime.

"Who are these guys again?" one of the customers whispered as they looked at Zion and Jaku.

"They're the Dragonborns!" another answered.

"I thought they weren't real. The rumors were true then—that they could defeat people one star realm higher than their own."

"And did you see those centaurs outside? If they're protecting the Golden Road, then I'll feel safe traveling here."

As it turned out, this kind of hostage/robbery situation was normal in this world, especially in the middle of nowhere like this Truck Stop was located at.

Travelling out in the wilderness were usually accompanied with encounters with bandits and monsters. It was normal to fight off either one of them at least once every three days of travel time.

And in the entire time they used the Golden Road, this was the only instance where they felt any danger at all. That was the reason why they weren't at all fazed by the bandits, and continued to eat their chickens after everything was over.

"Chef! Another order of chicken!" one of the customers said, walking around one of the bandits unconscious on the floor as he approached the counter.

Michael tapped Tony's shoulder. "See that? They're asking for more chicken."

Tony absentmindedly nodded. He was still not over everything that happened tonight. He was the only one reacting normally while everyone was already too jaded.

"Don't worry. The bandits are all taken care of," Michael said just as the Centaurs picked up every bandit and gathered them into one big circle.

"But what if they come again?"

"That's why I asked the Centaurs to come here for support. You can count on them for security."

One of the Centaurs approached the kitchen area, ducking down the door as he entered.

"Boss. We have all the bandits captured."

"Good job," Michael praised them. "I was just talking to Tony about your new positions here. I want you to work with the Red HobMankeys to patrol the Golden Road and prevent something like this from happening again."

Michael also asked the leader of the HobMankeys to enter the conversation, formally introducing the two demi-humans who would one day become the highway patrols of the Golden Road.

"Your two groups will work in tandem. Centaurs don't have any problem with being ridden like a horse, right?"

The centaur bowed his head. "We will do anything to protect Reborn."

"Good. Since you'll be highway patrols, you'll need to be able to catch up to any high speed troublemakers. I'm expecting a lot from you."

The Red HobMankey leader faced the Centaur and even without exchanging any words, their eyes communicated a common sense of loyalty to Reborn.

The two shook hands, solidifying this symbiotic relationship.

"We shall work hard," the Red Mankey bowed to Michael.

"Your headquarters will be here in the Truck Stop, but I want regular trips around the Golden Road frequently. I know you're quite short on people right now, but we'll see if we can improve your numbers in the future."

There were currently only ten Red Mankeys in the Nation of Reborn, which was why Michael only asked for ten Centaurs to transfer over to the Queens region.

The highway patrol only consisted of twenty for now, but would certainly grow in the future, especially once they found the secret village of the Red Mankeys.

"Now, I think it's time to meet with the bandits. Tony, you'll be okay, right?"

Tony nodded his head. "I'm still a little rattled, but I'm a lot more at ease now that I know that these people will protect the restaurant."

The Centaur and the Mankey both tapped their chests in confidence.

"Don't worry papa! I'll protect you in the future!" Remy butted in. "I'll become like those Dragonborns!"

Tony looked through the window and saw the two Dragonborns almost strangling each other for the last piece of chicken on the plate. Even when the chicken had already fallen on the floor, they still treated it as brand new.

"I hope not…"

…

…

…

Once he settled everything in the restaurant, Michael walked outside and saw the pile of unconscious bandits laying down on the concrete floor.

An Orcanine Shadow Orc approached Michael. "Shall I send him in now, boss?"

"Sure," Michael nodded.

As the Orc used his [Shadow Transport] skill to summon a person from afar, Michael used a simple [Water Ball] spell to wake up all the sleeping bandits from their slumber.

"Urgh…my head…"

"Where…what happened?"

"Who?"

As the bandits slowly regained consciousness, their eyes opened to see a silhouette of a person approaching them.

They jerked their injured bodies, only to realize that their hands were cuffed behind them.

"Our boss just wants to ask you a few questions," a voice told them.

"We won't tell anything…" one of the bandits muttered. "You should have just killed me!"

"Everyone here would rather die than submit to another company!"

"Damn. We should have been like Sleazy and just left the group when Flarecorp approached us!"

The person chuckled. "I didn't leave. I was captured."

Sleazy walked closer to the bandits, letting them see his distinct face and sharp chin. They wouldn't mistake him for anyone else; he was the infamous Sleazy who didn't take no for an answer and took anything he wanted.

"You! You're here?!"

"We thought you were dead!"

"You…you're with them now?!"

Sleazy looked at the bandits with pity. "I am not. Yet. I haven't earned it."

"Why?!" the bandit hoarsely shouted. "You were the personification of a real bandit! Following no laws, no humans, and no morals…what happened to you?"

"I…was Reborn. I should have died and was given a second chance. A better life. And I realized that I had been doing things wrong my entire life. And now, I want all of you to realize that as well."

The other bandits looked at Sleazy with doubt, wondering if he was real or a clone.

"You'll find out soon enough," Sleazy said with a smile.