The Dawn of Evernode
Quenor realized that something was approaching from the forest. At the same time, the world in his vision bled into black and white, slowing to a crawl. Crawlers were lunging at him from three directions simultaneously. Unleashing a burst of aura in all directions by instantly channeling his mana would stop them, but his patrol members would likely be swept up in the aftermath.
He had only two choices left: throw himself toward the Hero's party, or block the Crawlers lunging from the front.
'If I leap backward, I cannot guarantee the safety of the northern knights with me. But if I leap forward, I will be abandoning the Hero's party behind me.'
In a split second, dozens of possibilities flashed through Quenor's mind. And as another fleeting instant passed, Quenor caught sight of the Hero's arm extending, the Holy Sword hanging low. Without even having time to be surprised, Quenor gripped his sword and swung it at the Crawler lunging from the front.
"Screeech!"
Quenor's sword sliced the torso of one Crawler clean in half. Rees barely managed to block the incoming Crawler's attack, but the impact threw him off his horse, sending him rolling across the ground. Quenor immediately blew away the Crawler that was dropping toward Rees's head.
"My Lord!"
"Get into stance, Rees. It is not over yet."
Leaving Rees behind, Quenor spurred his horse toward the remaining Crawlers. There were three left. Quenor channeled his aura. The charging Crawlers seemed to measure the distance between themselves and his aura, hesitating to rush in blindly.
"If you will not come, then I must go to you."
Quenor's sword descended from above. The Crawlers leaped in different directions, attempting to disperse Quenor's attack. One went wide to the side, one leaped high into the air, and one charged straight ahead. In an instant, they scattered with perfect coordination. This was why they were far more dangerous monsters when together than when hunting alone—but...
"Insignificant pests playing petty tricks."
Before Quenor, it was utterly useless.
Slash.
With a single strike, Quenor's sword traced three distinct trajectories. One sliced the neck of the Crawler leaping wide to the side; the momentum pulled the blade into an arching slash that cleaved the torso of the Crawler in the air; and the trajectory, twisting mid-air, plunged straight down to split the crown of the head of the Crawler charging forward.
As the strike concluded, two of them fell dead on the spot, but one barely survived at the cost of one of its arms. The Crawler, spewing blood from its severed limb, tensed its leg muscles to retreat—Squelch. Quenor's thrust pierced its skull clean through.
The Crawlers attacking from the front were dealt with. Since it hadn't taken long to kill them, the Hero's party should still be holding out. With that thought, Quenor turned his horse around.
"Is the Hero's party holding up well?"
At Quenor's question, Rees nodded blankly and pointed toward the direction of the sounds of battle. Quenor turned his gaze to where Rees was pointing, his eyes widening in sheer surprise.
"...It seems they do not need our help."
They weren't just holding out. The Hero's party was actively pushing the Crawlers back. Georg, the heavy warrior, held his shield at the front, drawing the Crawlers' attention and blocking their attacks. Meanwhile, the spear-warrior named Marianne exploited their openings with fluid, elegant techniques, and the mage, Daphne, finished off the weakened Crawlers one by one with a colorful array of magic. In this manner, five Crawlers were rapidly dispatched.
"...More importantly."
Quenor raised his head to look at the Hero standing at the very front of the party. Like Quenor, the Hero was dealing with three Crawlers at once.
"Screeech!"
A sharp, metallic screech rang out. The Holy Sword, the Hero's pride, shone brilliantly, scattering a light Quenor had never seen before.
The Hero raised the Holy Sword high and swung it toward the lunging Crawlers. The Crawlers shrieked, reacting with extreme sensitivity to the light of the Holy Sword. Quenor stared blankly, captivated by that radiance. Though it was broad daylight, the light of the Holy Sword shone brighter than anything else around them. That light, entirely different in nature from a knight's aura, was so noble and pure that it put even the summer sun to shame.
And the figure of the Hero wielding it was astonishingly upright and unwavering. That is the light. Just as dawn at the end of the night dispels the darkness and lifts the shroud of dusk, the sight of that radiant figure standing at the very front of the line was slowly erasing the fear cast by the Boundary Line from the minds of those watching. And deep within his heart, Quenor realized: perhaps a Hero who held that light could cross the Boundary Line and plunge a dagger into the heart of the Giant.
"Sharpen your senses even further."
The voice of the Holy Sword echoed in my mind. Following her words, I circulated my mana even more fiercely and gritted my teeth. The mana poured out by the first stage of the unleashed Holy Sword, combined with the mana pumped by my pounding heart, practically abused my veins as I moved my body.
"My light will strike fear into those monsters and disrupt their focus. Elroy, do not try to force control over your body; simply assimilate with the flow and move."
The Crawlers were monsters that looked like a cross between a praying mantis and a grasshopper. It was annoying enough that they leaped around on those hind legs, but their scythe-like forelegs were incredibly fast and sharp.
"Now, go."
My vision blurred. It felt as if time around me was slowing down. Following the surge of mana that tingled from my heart to the tips of my fingers, I thrust the Holy Sword forward. Crack! The body of the Crawler charging at me in a frenzy exploded.
The motion of my strike was too wide. Another one charged from my side, and yet another from behind. Perhaps they intended to use the first one as bait so the remaining two could take me down. Turning around would be too slow. Utilizing the recoil of my forward swing, I kicked off the ground and leaped into the air. The path of the sword must not stop. The Holy Sword sliced through the northern soil, continuing its trajectory.
Spinning once in mid-air, I saw the Crawlers dodging my strike and charging at me again.
"Counter them."
The Holy Sword's advice was simple, and I followed it faithfully. Pressing my back against a tree, I restricted the angles from which the Crawlers could attack. One of them swung its foreleg wide. I tilted my head slightly to let the attack slip past, then kicked the lunging beast toward the other one.
"Screeech!"
The Crawler dodged its flying comrade and swung its foreleg at me once more. It was a cunning strike, aimed precisely at the moment before I could prepare another swing. I raised the flat of my blade to block the attack. And the light of the Holy Sword literally incinerated the Crawler's foreleg.
"Screeech!"
The Crawler writhed in unexpected agony. Seizing the opportunity, I shook it off and adjusted my grip on the Holy Sword. Clang! The moment the two monsters collided and lost their balance, I instinctively brought down the blade of the Holy Sword, which I had raised high. The divine energy erupting from the unleashed Holy Sword struck the two Crawlers like lightning.
"Boom!"
The strike of the unleashed Holy Sword didn't just slice the Crawlers into pieces; it practically vaporized half of their bodies. "Crack!" The aftershock split the massive fir tree above them vertically in half. A shower of falling twigs and pine needles rained down, covering the Crawlers' remains.
"Done."
I let out a sigh of relief and returned the Holy Sword to its original state. By now, fighting while activating the first stage wasn't all that exhausting. Looking back, I saw the patrol members, including Grand Duke Quenor, and my party staring at me as if they had just watched a movie. Their gazes felt unnecessarily burdensome. Come to think of it, was this the first time my party had seen me fight with the Holy Sword unleashed?
"...Sorry for taking so long to clean them up."
I kicked the scattered remains of the Crawlers aside for no reason and walked back to my horse. As I approached, the beast snorted and lowered its head. I patted its head and climbed back into the saddle. However, the patrol showed no intention of moving, continuing to stare at me.
"Let's move. If we stay here, we don't know when we'll be ambushed again."
Unable to bear it any longer, I awkwardly turned my head away and urged them forward. As I turned my horse first, it suddenly looked as if I were leading the entire group. I slowed my horse down to let Grand Duke Quenor take the lead again.
Grand Duke Quenor rode up beside me. He stared at me for a long moment, seemingly filtering his words behind his firmly shut lips.
"Is that the power of you and the Holy Sword?"
At his hard-won question, I simply shrugged. Grand Duke Quenor let out a hearty laugh, nodding repeatedly.
"Indeed. A Hero is not called a Hero for nothing. It seems I was mistaken. Perhaps being cooped up in the North for so long has narrowed my view of the world."
"I didn't slay the monsters as elegantly as you did, Grand Duke."
"Possessing mere strength and possessing something special are two different things, Hero. It was a miscalculation, but a pleasant one."
The Grand Duke wore a bittersweet smile.
"I will see to it that the Hero's party is included in the regular patrol rotations from now on. If you perform as you did today, the soldiers of Evernode will become your most passionate supporters before you know it."
I felt a bit embarrassed. Well, I had only hoped they wouldn't be hostile; I hadn't expected them to become passionate supporters.
"It seems we'll be busy from now on."
"We must make full use of the volunteers who came to help, must we not?"
"Just a few hours ago, didn't you say you would ask the royal palace to reconsider my deployment?"
Grand Duke Quenor burst into a hearty laugh.
"No. I said I would do so only if you fell short of my standards. If you took my words to heart, I apologize. It was a slip of the tongue."
As the Grand Duke spoke teasingly, I grimaced.
"...I am not that petty. I know you did it to quiet the soldiers' discontent. You played the villain on purpose, didn't you?"
"It wasn't grand enough to be called playing the villain. It was more like taking out my spite on you using the soldiers as an excuse. Quite childish, really."
The Grand Duke spoke self-deprecatingly. Looking at him, I spoke in a deliberately solemn tone.
"Since we came to fight together in Evernode, it is only natural that we prove our qualifications."
At my words, Grand Duke Quenor raised an eyebrow. Then, his expression shifted into a fierce smile that matched his blue eyes, and he extended his hand to me.
"In that case, it seems you have fully demonstrated those qualifications to us just now."
I grasped the hand Grand Duke Quenor offered. It was incredibly tough and strong. A resilience akin to the roots of an ancient tree vibrated through the Grand Duke's grip. I felt that this was the steadfastness of those who had taken root in this land since long ago.
"Welcome to Evernode, Hero Elroy."
Well, I suppose I've passed the first test to stay in the North. I smiled back and shook the Grand Duke's hand. I deliberately ignored Georg, who was sending envious glances from behind my back.
That night, after our first patrol concluded. Though it was called night, the afternoon sunlight, which barely qualified as such, was still leaking through the blackout curtains. I had requested a quiet place for training from Grand Duke Quenor, and he had gladly cleaned out and lent me a warehouse outside the annex. Standing inside the tidy warehouse, I was probably making the most distorted grimace since my transmigration.
To my grimace, the Holy Sword spoke in a stern, admonishing voice.
"There are things one must do, Elroy, even if one dislikes them."
I've heard that phrase somewhere before.
"I know."
I let out a deep sigh and nodded. In my hand, I held a solemn-looking wooden box. I stared down at the box, hesitating several times, before finally letting out a short breath and opening the lid.
"...Alright."
Inside the wooden box, resting quietly on a velvet cushion, the Crown of Thorns awaited me.