This Is It?
The stream kept pouring out in a steady shhhhhhh, completely oblivious to the mood.
“……Snort.”
“Ah.”
Just as I was relieving myself, the orc finally lost its patience and let out a deafening roar.
“GRAAAAH—!”
Swish—!
The orc that had bellowed immediately swung the axe gripped in its hand. Since standing still would have split my skull clean in half, I forgot about pulling up my pants and dropped into a crouch, dodging the blow.
Whoosh!
The wind pressure scraped across the top of my head. The moment I felt it pass, I sprang up and slammed my forehead into the orc’s jaw.
Crack—!
A satisfying crunch rang out. I hooked my leg around the staggering orc’s knee and swept it off its feet.
“Snort—!?”
I mounted the creature as it toppled backward. It tried to buck me off by thrusting its hips upward, but—unfortunately for it—I was far too heavy.
“Sorry, but.”
Aura — Thousand-Pound Anchor.
In that instant, my weight shot up to a full ton. No matter how many times stronger than a human the orc might be, it couldn’t simply shove off that kind of mass with raw power alone.
“Knights learn wrestling too, you know.”
Anyone who thinks knights only study swordsmanship is making a big mistake. They learn riding, archery, tactics, mercenary arts, and even close-quarters wrestling. Knights study nearly everything required to win a fight.
Boom—!
My descending fist caved in the orc’s face. The disgusting sensation traveled vividly up my arm, but I didn’t care. I kept hammering down.
Bang! Boom—! Bang—!
Only after the orc’s head had turned into a bloody pulp did I finally stop punching and let out a long breath.
“Hoo……”
That was close. Next time I take a piss, I’m bringing my sword.
I brushed the dust and gore off my clothes, then hoisted the orc’s corpse and headed back toward the knights.
The knights who had been breaking down the tents widened their eyes the moment they saw me dragging a blood-drenched orc behind me.
“Y-Young Master!?”
“Medic! Bring potions, now!”
They began panicking as if I were the one beaten to a pulp. After barking at the frantic knights, I tossed the orc’s body at their feet.
“It’s fine. I’m not hurt.”
“R-Really? Thank goodness.”
Once they heard I was unharmed, the knights sighed in relief—only for their expressions to change again when I told them the orc had been right nearby.
“……It seems the night watch failed to keep proper vigilance.”
“It’s not their fault. I wandered a bit far.”
“Even so—”
“Enough. Instead of scolding the men, have them look for tracks.”
Sir Moar listened and gave a careful nod. He was right. This wasn’t the time to punish the sentries for missing the orc’s approach. It was time to punish the monsters that had dared set foot on Meyer territory.
“—Please wait just a moment.”
With those words, Sir Moar set off with several knights to track the creature. They located the orc encampment before long.
“Thanks to the Young Master’s efforts, we have discovered an orc encampment. Everyone, make sure you exterminate them without fail.”
The knights gave silent nods, then mounted their horses and began riding toward the newly found orc settlement. Beyond the forest lay a wide stretch of grassland where the orcs had made their home. There were only a few dozen at most. Three Expert-level knights and several dozen cavalry were more than enough to wipe them out.
“Advance.”
At Sir Leon’s command, the knights spurred their horses into a charge. In the distance, the orcs finally noticed them and hurriedly prepared to counterattack.
Fweeeee—!
A sharp whistling sound cut through the air. As the shrill notes rang out, the knights raised the shields they had prepared.
“Archers! They have archers!”
“Shields up, everyone!”
After blocking the arrow shower that fell like rain, the knights quickly urged their mounts forward before the next volley could come. Naturally, I was riding in their formation—two or three rows back from the front, protected on all sides by the knights. I thought it was overkill, but they refused to leave my side no matter what.
“—Urrrrgh!”
After galloping for some time, the knights spotted orcs brandishing spears and blades ahead of them. The most common monster in the world. Creatures with strong reproductive rates and greater strength than trained soldiers. Unlike goblins, which even a farmer could hunt if prepared, orcs were monsters that only a properly trained army could face.
Yet the moment the knights’ lance charge reached them, the orcs were sent flying in every direction like bowling pins.
“GYAAAAH—!”
“Snort!”
“Krrrk—!”
Though the orcs possessed monstrous strength that easily surpassed humans, they were still creatures of flesh and blood. A lance charge backed by hundreds of kilograms of horse and rider, all that kinetic energy converted into pure impact—and delivered by knights who had awakened their Aura—could not be stopped halfway.
“All units! Formation B!”
Following Sir Leon’s order, the knight order split into two groups. They circled the orcs briefly before charging again, sweeping them away. The orcs tried to fight back with scavenged iron swords or crude wooden spears, but any cavalry that could be stopped by mere wooden poles would have driven the very concept of knighthood to extinction long ago.
After hammering the enemy relentlessly, Sir Leon—having judged that the orcs no longer posed any real threat—called out to me.
“Young Master, would you like to finish some yourself?”
“Myself?”
“Yes. With your own sword.”
At Sir Leon’s suggestion, I dismounted, drew my blade, and approached the remaining orcs. Those that had survived the cavalry charge had already lost their will to fight, yet they still raised their weapons, unwilling to die quietly. I stared at them for a moment, then swung my sword in a clean arc.
Squelch—
There was no tension of real battle. The things before me were nothing but frightened beasts, and the swordsmanship I had honed was far beyond what such creatures could ever hope to stop.
After I severed an orc’s head without the slightest resistance, Sir Moar—who had been watching my performance—clapped and approached.
Clap, clap, clap.
“As expected of the Young Master. Shall we hunt one more?”
“……No.”
At my answer, Sir Moar muttered “I thought so” and ordered his subordinates to finish off the remaining orcs. He probably assumed I had frozen up from the shock of taking my first life…… but that wasn’t it at all.
‘This…… is supposed to be real combat?’
I instinctively understood. There was no way I could grow from this kind of hunting. The real combat I wanted was the clash of sword against sword. A heart-pounding battle where either side could die. Not this one-sided slaughter.
“—Young Master, are you all right?”
When Sir Leon, sensing something was off, spoke to me, I quietly nodded and began thinking of ways to experience true battle. One thing was certain: as long as I stayed with the knights the Count had assigned me, I would never encounter it.
After finishing the outer patrol and returning to the territory, the knight order received a surprisingly warm welcome. They hadn’t really done anything noteworthy, yet everyone celebrated them. I gave the Count a bitter smile as he greeted me with open arms.
“Hahaha—! So, my son, how was your first real battle?”
“……It was whatever.”
“The first time always feels that way. Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it soon enough.”
“Yes. For now, I’d like to rest a little.”
“Of course. You must be tired, so go on inside.”
I bowed to the Count, then went to my room, unpacked my things, and immediately began rearming myself. I put on the armor and sword my attendants had polished to a mirror shine, then draped a cloak over it all for camouflage. I left a single letter in the room so the maids wouldn’t panic when they realized I was gone.
Father,
I’m sorry.
— Kyle
I believed that if he was truly a knight, the Count would understand.
After leaving the letter, I headed straight for the stables. I led out one of the horses that hadn’t gone on the expedition and was still full of energy. The stable hand came running at the sound of its neighing.
“Young Master? Why are you taking a horse at this hour of the night……”
“I feel like going for a ride.”
“Ah, I see. Understood. Then I’ll just note that……”
There was no way the stable hand could refuse the only son of the lord. He wisely lent me the horse without further question. Once mounted, I gripped the reins and galloped out of the territory.
The gatekeepers who should have blocked the entrance simply opened the gates when I casually told them I was going for a short ride. ‘The sentries here are the same as everywhere else.’
What ordinary soldier would dare stop the general’s son from taking a stroll—especially when that son wasn’t some ignorant brat but an Expert-level knight?
Having left the territory without issue, I turned my horse north.
‘If I go there…… I should be able to experience it.’
The most dangerous region in the empire. The frozen lands where barbarian tribes raided every single day. In the North, where only warriors who survived each day and those who didn’t lived on, I would finally find the real battles I wanted.
‘I’ll just think of it as visiting my in-laws after a long time.’
With only a compass, a cloak, and a single sword, I set off for the North. Until I reached the bitterly cold northern lands, no pursuers from the family came after me.
Early the next morning, the Count realized the household was unusually noisy. He quietly stepped out of his room and stood in the corridor, watching the maids scurrying about.
‘What’s going on?’
It wasn’t their usual behavior, so he stopped one of the passing maids. The moment he did, the maid’s face crumpled as if the world had ended, and she began trembling violently.
“What’s all this commotion so early in the morning?”
“M-My lord…… T-That is……”
“That is?”
“Y-Young Master Kyle……”
The instant his son’s name left her lips, the Count felt his vision spin. He grabbed the maid’s shoulder in a crushing grip and yanked her close. She let out a piercing scream of pain as she was dragged toward him.
“—What about Kyle?”
“H-He has run away.”
“……What?”
The Count thought he must have misheard. But the maid opened her mouth again, confirming he had not.
“He left a letter in his room and ran aw— My lord!? My lord!”
“Ugh—!”
At the news that his son had run away, the Count clutched the back of his neck and collapsed. The maid screamed as she tried to support the fallen lord.