Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: The Wounded Captain's Return
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“Claudia! What in the world...!”
Iris’s urgent voice rang out from outside. At the castle’s main gate, every member of the Silver Dawn Knights had gathered.
Well, “every member” just meant me, Iris, Lize, Erika, and now Claudia who had just returned—five people in total.
“It’s just what it looks like. Subjugation failed.”
Right in front of me stood not the number one ranked knight captain of the Silver Dawn Knights, the strongest by the game’s lore, but a woman flashing a wry smile while covered in severe wounds.
The bandages wrapped tightly around her entire body were so soaked with blood they’d overflowed and dried into a dark crimson crust. It was harder to find spots not covered by bandages.
There wasn’t a shred of strength in her limping gait on her left leg. She leaned obliquely against the wall, as if even standing was a struggle.
‘I was sure she’d be a woman, but...’
Claudia’s appearance was nothing like I’d imagined.
Her hair was a pale pink—cherry blossom pink suited it best—and styled in a bob that was nearly round, falling just short of her collarbone.
Beneath straight-cut bangs, pale pink eyes sparkled. Her face leaned toward androgynous overall.
There were distinctly feminine curves at her hips and waist, but she gave off more of a neutral male vibe than anything womanly.
Her already striking features were amplified by her absurd height. I was pretty tall myself, yet she was only a finger’s width shorter than me.
If she dressed like a man, no one would bat an eye calling her a pretty boy instead of a handsome woman.
At least her chest’s swell was visible even through the bandages. Small mercies.
‘If she’d dressed properly, I might’ve mistaken her for a guy.’
Her current outfit was dolphin pants like the other knight captains, so no risk of confusion there.
On the ground lay a greatsword matching her height in length and ridiculously broad, easily over 20kg by the looks of it.
Honestly, it was more blunt weapon than sword.
“Subjugation failed?”
“Haha... yeah, that’s how it went. Went out all cocky and came back a mess, huh?”
Claudia sheepishly wiggled her right hand, wrapped in bandages, only to shrink back after Erika, who was rewrapping her dressings, scolded her for it.
“You came back alive. That’s what matters. Not losing your life is more than enough. Surviving outweighs the failure by miles.”
“Claudia, was that monster that strong? Strong enough to make even you fail?”
Claudia shook her head at Lize’s question.
“Nah. I couldn’t even get near it. If I’d gone down to that thing, at least I wouldn’t feel so hard done by.”
“What’s that supposed to mean, Claudia? Couldn’t even get near it?”
Her silver eyes widened in shock.
“On the way to it, I ran into other monsters. A horse in steel armor and some headless knight-thing swinging a spear... or maybe not even monsters, I dunno. Anyway, it got me. No matter how much I beat on it, my attacks didn’t land at all. And this is the weapon I’ve got.”
Claudia nudged the greatsword at her feet with her toe.
It was as wide as a torso, as long as a person’s height, and two fingers thick—yet even smacking it with that did zero damage, she said.
Everyone but me froze, their faces stiffening.
‘Of course it wouldn’t.’
That boss wasn’t meant for brute-forcing head-on. You needed a specific item to strip its full-body iron plating first.
Unpeeled, even a maxed-out all-stats-99 character with top gear and full buffs could only scratch it for 10 damage tops.
Occasionally, masochists tried clearing it armored up to “test human limits,” but they usually just discovered the limits of their own patience.
“...I see. Got it for now.”
Iris nodded, chewing her lip. Claudia looked ashamed.
‘Time to get going.’
The event wrapped with that exchange. No quest window popped up ordering me to subjugate it, but the game never had those anyway.
Brutal 4 handled every quest—main, side, whatever—through dialogue and investigation alone, no matter where you were or what your character was doing. Players had to remember and track them manually.
Forget one? Storylines tangled, derailing progress or veering into the exact opposite of what you wanted.
It polarized players hard. Some loved ditching the clutter of quest logs like other open-world RPGs; others hated the inconvenience and unfriendliness.
No wonder mods popped up to compile active main stories and subquests into neat, RPG-style notifications.
Didn’t apply to me, though. I couldn’t recall every minor sidequest, but the main storyline and major subs? All up here.
“Hang on. Where do you think you’re going, newbie?”
I moved casually toward the gates, but Iris called me back. My brain stalled—this was uncharted territory, never seen in the game.
‘...Come to think of it, things won’t play out exactly like the game.’
In-game, joining the Silver Dawn Knights on this route just meant you were affiliated while their story rolled on. No real perks.
Protagonist did their own thing separately.
But now? I was officially a Silver Dawn Knight rookie. A promising one at that. Every move drew eyes.
From Iris’s perspective, stopping a loner heading out made perfect sense.
‘My bad.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly. No point hiding now—better to lay it out. I opened my mouth with the calmest face I could muster.
“To hunt the one riding that mount.”
My words hung in chilly silence.
Lize and Erika froze solid. Claudia’s face screamed “Did I hear that right?” Iris rarely frowned but did now, shaking her head like she’d misinterpreted.
“No, we don’t need to drag a newbie into the subjugation. This is our job. We report the failure and head out again—”
“Not asking to join the subjugation. I’m going alone.”
Iris’s face finally twisted. Claudia shot me a “you insane?” look. Erika wasn’t far off.
Lize sidled up, lightly grabbing my finger to tug me behind her. I tensed my arm to hold ground, signaling I was fine.
“Newbie. I know you’re talented. I know you’ve proven your skills to us plenty. But this isn’t training—it’s real combat. Enemies won’t hold back like in spars with Lize. No mercy. One slip, and you’re dead.”
“No worries there. I won’t die anyway.”
“...You’re not hearing a word I say.”
Iris sighed.
“If this is just blind confidence, I absolutely won’t allow it. I get where it comes from—you’ve shocked us plenty, me included. I don’t doubt your skill. That’s exactly why I’m against it. If I let you go and you come back dead... or not at all... I’d never forgive myself.”
Valid concern. Legitimate, even.
If I were knight captain and some hotshot rookie who joined yesterday announced they’d solo a monster that wrecked our top captain, I’d stop them too.
But that was that, and this was this. I had non-negotiable reasons to handle this subjugation now.
Beating it got me the tool I’d need later to kill the lord.
“Real combat isn’t like theory. Foes won’t dance to your tune. This is an unknown enemy—cautious approach is best. Can’t throw you in there. Again, I rate your talent and potential sky-high. I won’t let such promise shatter pointlessly or die meaninglessly. Won’t say it twice, newbie. Denied—”
“Knight Captain Claudia.”
“Huh? Me?”
Startled by her name out of nowhere, Claudia—who’d been glancing between me and Iris while propped up by Erika—jumped and answered.
“Yes. Could you help me with one thing?”