Chapter 742: A Man Bound by Gratitude Opens His Heart
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 742: A Man Bound by Gratitude Opens His Heart
Encrid wrapped his injured forearm tightly with bandages and took a step forward.
Viscous black blood clung to the soles of his boots, trailing behind him in sticky threads before finally dripping away. The tiger demonic beast’s blood was exceptionally thick and pungent.
The beast lay dead—ears shredded, a foreleg severed, skull split wide, and entrails spilled across the earth. As the carnage clearly showed, the battle had not been decided in a mere strike or two.
Even though he was a knight—and one of exceptional martial prowess at that—the beast had lunged at him without a shred of hesitation. Perhaps because of that, the struggle had been quite entertaining in its own way.
‘Not bad.’
The beast's movements had been dynamic, defying his predictions time and time again.
Encrid had defended by layering the Sword of Chance over his Wave-Blocking Sword. Then, he had thrust, slashed, and struck with Flash. Throughout the fight, he had focused on the creature's raw dynamism. There was much to learn from it.
‘How to channel power.’
The essence of Valaf-style Martial Arts lay in rotation. To be precise, it was about twisting the body to wring out every ounce of latent strength. Furthermore, to unleash such monstrous power, the vessel itself had to be sturdy.
That was why one had to train their physical body to its absolute limits. Sturdy bones, well-conditioned muscles, and a physical structure capable of translating thought into instant action. Within the dynamic movements of the tiger demonic beast, all the core principles Encrid had envisioned were present.
‘Every single strike from those forepaws was heavy.’
On top of that, it possessed techniques that defied expectation.
Whoosh.
It would spit fire, and even when it clawed from a distance, formless blades of wind would fly toward him.
Clang!
If he hadn't perceived it with a sixth sense that transcended mere intuition and swung Samcheol to deflect the formless blade, he would have been cut to the bone.
A demonic beast capable of using supernatural abilities and spells was by no means common. To make matters worse, it actually used its head.
‘Hit and run.’
It knew how to put weight behind its blows when close and how to utilize its supernatural abilities when backing away. It was both a combat method and a tactic. Watching it, he learned once more.
‘No matter how many swordsmanships one masters, it is the person who wields them that matters.’
This was the lesson he took from the tiger demonic beast, which utilized supernatural abilities alongside its physical dynamism. It was like seeing his prior knowledge organized and watching the theory manifest right before his eyes. It had been an excellent lesson.
"Phew."
Encrid exhaled slowly, plucked a broad leaf to wipe his sword, and roughly brushed the blood off his own body. He intended to leave just like this.
‘Whatever it is the village is hiding...’
That belonged to them. Besides, Encrid hadn't fought expecting any kind of reward.
To be precise, he had stepped forward because he felt as though he were facing his past regrets. It would be ridiculous to explain all of that just to say he wanted nothing and had simply helped.
If Rem had been by his side, he would have snorted and pointed out, 'You just want to act cool, but since doing so would cramp your style, you're just saying you're leaving, aren't you?' But what did that matter?
What mattered was that they would survive for the time being. And if Eirik and Brunhild grew up well, they would likely survive even longer. It wouldn't be bad if those two sought out the Border Guard in the future, but that wasn't something to be forced. He would give them the opportunity to choose, but he would not presumptuously dictate their futures.
"Do you feel a bit better now?"
A woman holding a small child's hand stepped out to the entrance of the village and spoke. She looked exactly as she had when they first met—worn but meticulously stitched clothes, and a child who, though thin, had clear, bright eyes.
She was one of the countless people he had kept behind his back but failed to protect in his past lives. Though the village was long gone and she was already dead, Encrid found comfort in her imagined words.
‘If you live in yesterday for your entire life, you won't even know that tomorrow's sun has risen.’
Though no one had taught him, such a thought came to mind. Even if today repeated itself, he would walk toward tomorrow. Therefore, he must not linger in yesterday.
‘And I shouldn't delay any further.’
He had already spent about a month in the village. He had used up a lot of time.
It was a mountain deep with lush greenery. The weather had turned warm enough that unless one dressed lightly, heat rash would break out in the joints. Encrid walked along the path of the sunlight. His shadow stretched long behind him, keeping pace with his steps.
He found a stream along the way to wash up, and it was before he had even walked for half a day that he sensed them. It was not yet time for the Border Guard to appear, but he sensed a massive presence of people.
‘Honed blades.’
Like steel forged by a master blacksmith over many days. That was how the presence of the gathered group felt. Well-trained, elite soldiers were surrounding the area and closing in. Compared to them, the pack of demonic beasts he had fought for days could practically be called children.
Encrid was standing on a steep slope, allowing him to look down from above, but the dense undergrowth below obscured his view of the approaching figures.
Rustle, rustle, snap.
Only the faint, artificial noises echoed in his ears. Encrid waited with his hand resting on the hilt of Samcheol. It was a sword bound to his waist with woven vines; with just a bit of force, it would instantly do its job.
He had even concealed his presence through assimilation, but a minute trace of someone took position right behind his back.
‘Stealthy.’
In truth, it wasn't just stealthy. It was quieter than a multi-tailed fox. They hid their presence better than a beast turned demonic, radiating an aura far more dangerous than any monster he had encountered in Zaun.
Encrid shifted his stance. Being attacked from both front and back in this position would put him at a disadvantage. Naturally, he repositioned himself to gain even a slight upper hand, turning his body sideways from his downward-looking posture.
Now, the stealthy figure was to his left, and the army was climbing up from his bottom right. Just as he finished his preparations, one of the figures, possessing an exceptionally prominent aura among the refined mass, poked his head out from the bushes.
He had gray hair and dull gray eyes. An axe dangled at his waist as he stared at Encrid, the wildness in his eyes easily rivaling that of the tiger demonic beast king. He was like a fully drawn bow, ready to unleash havoc at any moment. Though his hair had been dyed brown when they first met, he now had no intention of hiding his true hair color.
"What are you doing here?"
When Encrid asked, Rem lifted his hand from his axe and scratched his chin.
"……Just taking a walk."
Taking a walk, yet he brought his direct unit right behind him? Not to mention, they're all heavily armed.
Beside Rem, a man large enough to be mistaken for a bear demonic beast stepped forward. How on earth did he manage to hide that massive body in the bushes on the way here?
Straightening his hunched posture, Audin smiled and spoke.
"I was merely walking in accordance with the teachings of God."
"……And those teachings just happen to involve dragging your entire direct unit along with you?"
Behind Audin, the members of the unit known within the Border Guard as the Fanatic Unit stared in this direction with quiet, intense eyes. Anyone could see they were fully prepared for battle.
"Your movements are based on the tactical sword, aren't they? You've improved again."
Luagarne was there as well. More than anything else, she focused on the changes in Encrid. What did it matter that they had met here by chance? It was far more important that this man had changed yet again.
Frok's bulging eyes gleamed, tinged with curiosity and desire. In reality, it was because oil had seeped out and gotten into his eyes.
Sachsen, who had initially suppressed his presence, also descended from above. Encrid looked at Sachsen and asked.
"And you?"
"More importantly, Captain, where have you been and what were you doing?"
"Accompanying an Imperial knight."
"Accompanying?"
For some reason, Krais was with them too. The last word had been spat by Krais from behind Luagarne. Meeting his eyes, Encrid continued speaking.
"I discovered a hidden village."
"Discovered, you say."
Krais's interjection was as sharp as Ragna's sword strikes.
What was he supposed to say here? That he had just saved them?
"There were a lot of demonic beasts, so I dealt with them for a bit before coming back."
These people were indeed one of the reasons Encrid had thought he shouldn't drag his feet any longer. He had figured that if he stayed still, they would mobilize to search for him. Still, he hadn't expected them to come so thoroughly prepared for a full-scale battle.
"Ragna did say nothing would happen, but why did you act alone and make everyone gather like this?" Krais scolded him.
In truth, the moment Encrid mentioned a village and demonic beasts, most of them probably understood. He got delayed saving people again.
Rem voiced that exact thought.
"Did you go off to help someone again, saying, 'I won't let those standing behind my back die,' and get held up?"
"……I didn't say that."
"You probably said something similar."
"I didn't."
The villagers' wariness had been so high that he hadn't really said anything of the sort. Krais shook his head and added.
"Anyway, if you had been even a little later, His Majesty the King looked ready to set off on a tour of the Empire, southern border be damned."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Rem, Audin, and Sachsen had all made excuses, but they had set out specifically to find Encrid. Had they really been prepared to risk war with the Empire? These three might actually have been. Though Encrid didn't know it, Sachsen had even been prepared to use the power of the Dagger of Geor.
He thought he understood why Krais had stepped forward.
‘Even if mediation isn't possible, we can't afford to fight a losing battle from the start.’
Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to negotiate from a position of strength. Or perhaps he had come to stop them one last time, even if they were about to fight right away? Still, it was surprising. The mere fact that that coward had stepped forward himself.
Encrid assumed as much, but the reality was quite different. Naturally, Krais had been deeply worried. He had been agonizing over what to do if this crazy bastard of a captain had started a mess in the Empire.
Ragna, who had returned before Encrid, had simply said he thought Encrid was lost and offered to go as a guide. But there wasn't a single person in the Border Guard who would allow that. Even Anne, who had clearly redefined her relationship with Ragna upon her return, had stopped him.
In the end, Ragna, having yielded, added: "Nothing will happen."
His words were filled with absolute certainty. It meant that mere Imperial knights could never do anything to Encrid.
In any case, Krais had stepped forward not to stop them, but because he believed that if they had resolved to fight, it was only right to strike decisively before the enemy could prepare. Furthermore, this wasn't even the end of it. Since Ropode and Pel would be following behind him with their units, they had essentially mobilized with full intent.
‘If something had happened to the Captain...’
If the Empire had done something, they would have had to pay the price. Krais inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. Having set out with a hot head, seeing Encrid cooled his temper, and reality came back into focus.
‘I'm going to die young at this rate.’
"By the way..."
Encrid opened his mouth to ask something, but Krais spoke faster.
"Esther said that mages naturally make their move from unexpected places and would join as reinforcements later. Sinar said she had plenty to show those who look down on the power of elves and went to the City of Kirhais. Naturally, she'll be joining us later as well."
If Encrid had dawdled just a little longer, a full-scale war would have broken out.
"Are you all insane?" Encrid asked in all seriousness.
"Is that really something that should be coming out of the Captain's mouth right now?" Rem snapped back.
Then came the rare sight of Audin smiling and nodding in agreement, while Sachsen chimed in, bobbing his chin up and down to back Rem up. To Encrid, the very fact that those three were acting with such single-minded unity was astonishing.
At any rate, since they had met here, there would be no more misfortune. Encrid scratched his head.
"Shall we head back?"
He didn't really have anything else to say.
"Yes," Krais answered on behalf of the group.
Upon returning to the Border Guard, they found that Ragna, who had claimed everything would be fine, had already finished preparing to set out with his ten-man direct unit. He also saw a host of elves gathered with a fierce momentum. Amidst the green wave of Dryas and the brown wave of Woodgard, Sinar drew her sword.
"Let us go to avenge my husband."
"Who is whose husband?" Encrid stood in front of the elven army, blocking their path.
"Instead of studying the stars, I almost ended up tearing through and exploring the largest nation built by humans." Esther had also returned upon hearing news of Encrid.
Within two days, a letter from Krang arrived as well.
-I was on my way to sightsee in the Empire.
The message was short, but it spoke volumes. Encrid found all of this absurd, but honestly, it didn't feel bad. Afterward, taking a brief moment, Encrid sought out Leona to ask a few favors and also left some words with Krais.
* * *
Harkvent waited for Encrid while cleaning up the aftermath of defeating the pack of demonic beasts. If he had to describe his current feelings, it would be half anxiety, half anticipation.
‘We can escape the clutches of the demonic beasts.’ This was the anticipation.
‘What does he want from us?’ This was the anxiety.
Yet, the source of his anxiety did not return even after four days. The attacks of the demonic beasts gradually ceased. Even as they rebuilt the village once more, he did not return.
‘Why?’
The question remained. That question was resolved during a conversation with an elderly midwife and healer.
"It seems he simply helped and left. It feels as though we were bewitched by a mountain spirit," the elder said, and Harkvent realized how foolishly he had behaved.
‘He didn't covet anything.’
Yet he didn't turn his back on them either. He felt ashamed. Embarrassed. He wanted to crawl into a hole and hide. Had he not failed to even properly say a single word of thanks?
He had received a long wound on his chest while fighting the demonic beasts, but the depth of the scar engraved inside him was even deeper. It surely bore the name of shame.
"Why?"
Why would he just leave after helping? Furthermore, his help did not even end there. Though the battle with the demonic beasts was over, reality remained. Even though it was summer, they had consumed all their stored food, leaving them with much to worry about.
"Greetings."
A traveling merchant arrived. He was a man with a much cleaner appearance than the one who used to visit.
"I am Malton, a traveling merchant belonging to the Lockfried Merchant Guild. Do you have anything to trade? For now, I've brought some food, clothing, and daily necessities."
The merchant named Malton set down his bundles. There were more than ten sturdy men and swordsmen accompanying him as guards. Seeing this, Harkvent looked up, and Malton delivered his prepared words.
"I have no intention of causing harm, and if you do not wish to trade, I will leave these behind and depart. But if I were you, I would trade with me. The ones who used to trade with this village were of very poor quality. I believe you know well why I have come all the way here—it is the will of the gentleman who stayed here before leaving."
Malton's words were true. The merchants who had previously visited this place to buy the village's herbs or sell certain goods had made far too much profit. They were truly bastards who sold their consciences for cheap. Malton, having done similar work many times before, knew their methods well.
"What do you say?" Malton asked, and Harkvent nodded.
Thus, the man who had received such one-sided grace finally opened his heart.
"There is a precious item in our village. You must deliver this to him."