Episode 9: Immortal Knight Reinhardt (1)
Episode 9: Immortal Knight Reinhardt (1)
Knight Commander Reinhardt of the Imperial Subjugation Force.
He, whose every piece of information is shrouded in mystery, is a loyal servant who obeys only the orders of the Emperor of the Empire.
Everyone harbored doubts and tried to learn more about him, but no one ever uncovered Reinhardt's secret.
He has served and assisted emperors for generations already, right by their side, and even after suffering injuries in battle that should have been fatal, he returns perfectly fine.
The people who first saw him when he was a child thought he was an old, sickly veteran.
But from the moment that child grew up and began to age, Reinhardt's appearance never changed.
People call him the Immortal Knight, Reinhardt.
Reinhardt's Subjugation Force formed up their ranks and before anyone knew it, they had surrounded Van and began pressing in.
And in their midst, Reinhardt, holding an axe and a massive shield, cautiously approached Van.
"My name is Reinhardt!! A knight of the Empire!! You have committed the crime of destroying a great gate of the Empire and slaughtering its soldiers, so surrender immediately!!"
Reinhardt raised his axe and shouted at Van.
"Do you know a witch named Priscilla, with silver-white hair and starlight-like eyes?"
Van asked quietly, without any change in his expression.
"That witch has surrendered to the Empire and is currently cooperating!! If you too are a servant of a witch, you should surrender and cooperate together for the Empire's future!!"
"Surrender... Calling forced captivity 'surrender.' Indeed, all Empire scum must die."
Van drew his massive Great Sword and prepared for battle.
"Hmm... This is usually how it goes... All units!! Maintain distance and press the enemy!!"
Lifting his shield, Reinhardt approached Van, signaling that battle was imminent.
Fishel stuck close to Van and whispered softly.
"Van... I'll break their formation and make a path. Let's lure them into a tight space and defeat them one by one."
"No, wait a bit. Hold off the soldiers while I do something."
"Wait, are you going to fight Reinhardt one-on-one? That guy's called the Immortal. I heard he doesn't die! Even for you, that's reckless!"
"We'll find out if I kill him."
As if having made up his mind, Van gave Fishel's shoulder a pat and stepped forward.
"No way... Is he not scared even facing the Immortal Knight...?"
Fishel watched Van's huge back for a moment, and soon her face flushed red again.
"This isn't the time for such imaginations. Should I go too."
Fishel also drew her sword and stepped forward.
-Kwaang!!
Even though I deflected and blocked his attack, my whole body shook and the shield felt like it would shatter at any moment.
-Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!!
What's more, he's swinging a greatsword as tall as I am at this speed.
He's strong.
Physical ability honed to its limit, and refined techniques as if he were a master of swordsmanship who has fought for decades.
He swings the giant sword, and if a blind spot appears, he covers it with his tough physical ability to fill the gap.
Every time I saw an opening and thrust in a punch, it didn't feel like a human fist but like being hit by a mace.
I've faced countless enemies over the long years, but I've never seen anyone surpass this person before me in sheer physical ability alone.
-Kwagang!!
There's no opening to attack.
On the contrary, the more I block, his attacks become more precise and faster, as if he's adapting to my defense.
Blocking the giant greatsword, I look around.
The subordinates who were supposed to surround and pressure the area were having their formation crumble due to the swordsmanship wielded by a single girl.
The attacks weren't powerful enough to kill the soldiers instantly, but they inflicted enough damage to restrict movement, allowing for efficient combat.
That girl is also an enemy not to be taken lightly.
If the battle continues like this, we'll lose.
I should start creating some variables.
-Kwang!!
Van's relentless attack struck Reinhardt's shield head-on.
After consistently being deflected, this direct hit finally caused cracks to slowly spread across the shield,
and Van, not missing this opportunity, continued to bring his attacks down toward the crack in the shield.
-Kwaga-ga-gang!!
Finally, Reinhardt's shield, which seemed unbreakable, shattered, revealing the old veteran who had been hiding behind it.
"This shield was a special-grade artifact bestowed upon me by the previous Emperor. To think you actually broke it... I acknowledge it. You are stronger than anyone I have ever seen."
Reinhardt gripped his axe with all his might and then charged at Van.
Van also responded to Reinhardt, striking directly with his Great Sword.
-Chwaaak!!
Reinhardt's axe only left a small scratch on Van's shoulder.
Van's Great Sword slashed diagonally through Reinhardt's shoulder, and the old veteran fell powerlessly.
"Unlike that assassin, you really are one of the Empire's elite, it seems..."
Van moved his injured shoulder once, then turned his back as if it were nothing.
"I should go help Fishel."
As Van tried to leave the spot, he felt something eerie from behind and stopped.
"Not yet... It's not yet over, Great Warrior...."
When Van turned to look, there, a grotesque stream of blood was reconnecting old veteran Reinhardt's body.
"I... do not die... For my family... and for the Empire..."
Soon, Reinhardt's split body stuck back together, returning to his original form.
"So this is why they said he was cursed with immortality."
Reinhardt picked up the axe that had fallen to the ground, took it again, and assumed a stance.
"Just as you have people you must protect, I too have reasons I cannot back down from."
For a brief moment, the two stared each other down, and soon they clashed again.
-Kwaaang!!
Reinhardt kept attacking.
Even when his arm was severed or his leg shattered, he clung tenaciously to Van without fear of death or pain.
For the first time, Van felt it.
The fighting spirit of the old veteran, unlike anything he had seen before, tenaciously advancing even while taking his attacks.
-Kwang!
Van's powerful kick sent Reinhardt tumbling and rolling across the ground.
"I have no more time to waste."
As if having resolved himself, Van gripped his Great Sword with all his might.
Reinhardt, panting heavily, his regeneration slowing down.
Both men sensed that this next exchange would be the last.
Reinhardt, as if staking everything he had, gripped his axe and steeled his resolve.
A brief moment of stillness passed, and the two clashed.
-Chwaaak!!
Before Reinhardt's axe could reach Van, the arm holding the axe was severed.
Immediately after, a relentless series of slashes was unleashed, overwhelmingly faster than the speed at which Reinhardt's body could regenerate.
Reinhardt, witnessing a speed unbelievable for a giant greatsword to achieve,
couldn't hide his astonished expression even as he was being slashed.
As if being minced, Reinhardt's body was torn to pieces in an instant, and he collapsed powerlessly to the ground, leaving only parts of him behind.
"You were the strongest among all I've faced so far. Reinhardt, was it? It was a good fight."
Reinhardt looked up at Van, who had only minor wounds remaining despite having poured everything into the fight.
"Strong... Too strong..."
Reinhardt's body regeneration slowed down even more.
It no longer came together as it did at first; each fragment merely struggled to connect.
Van looked down at such Reinhardt for a moment, and as he tried to leave, the old veteran's strained voice reached him.
"The witch named Priscilla is in the Papacy... safely imprisoned.... Our goal is her mana... so there shouldn't be any danger... But if all mana is absorbed, a person tends to die... Hurry."
Reinhardt's body gradually crumbled away.
"Thank you. But why are you telling me this? I'm an enemy, a threat to the Empire."
"Unlike... the previous Emperor... His Majesty the current Emperor has gone mad... I knew it too... but there was nothing I could do... Protect your family... Warrior."
With those final words, Reinhardt turned to dust as if returning to the earth and disappeared.
"I understand, Reinhardt. I will remember your name. Now, I must finish this situation."
"Haa... Haa...."
My legs are trembling and I have no strength in my hands.
Blood flows from the cuts and stab wounds covering my entire body.
'Damn it, no matter what, facing a thousand alone is impossible.'
Soldiers who have reformed their ranks are approaching me, exhausted.
Should I have just run away, even alone...?
No... What am I thinking, I've already decided.
I shake my head to focus and raise my sword once more.
"Hey, you Imperial lackeys!! Even if I die, I won't go alone!!"
Despite my taunt, the soldiers maintain their formation without faltering.
They're well-trained. Must be because they're Reinhardt's subordinates. Even if I struggle, I'm going to die, huh...
Since childhood, I worked tirelessly to become a knight, endured insane training, and became a knight of the Kingdom.
I cut my hair short, lived until now as if I were a man, solely for the Kingdom, living without even showing interest in romance, let alone the opposite sex.
And just when I finally meet someone who sparks a bit of interest... Life really sucks, just...
"I am!!!! A knight of the Rohim Kingdom!! Fishel!!! Come at me, every last one of you!"
Since it's come to this, for Van, for the Kingdom, I'll take as many as I can with me before I die.
At that moment, as I gripped my trembling hand and prepared to advance with the resolve to die.
-Kwaga-ga-ga-gang!!
From afar, a powerful explosion sound was heard, and I saw soldiers of the Subjugation Force being thrown down.
It was a sound I hadn't heard for long, yet it already felt familiar.
-Kwang!!! Kwang!!! Kwang!!!
The person who broke through the numerous soldiers and came before me,
was Van, who at this very moment had become my knight.