The Undying Knight

Thud-. Thud-.

Rian, after finishing a meal of roughly made stew with dried meat and vegetables, left the main camp.

He was heading to a nearby knoll.

No drafted soldiers followed; it was a solitary journey.

More of a free stroll than a forced march.

"Why bother when we've already won? I'd rather sleep at this hour."

"They all ran away looking only ahead, what ambush are you talking about! It's a waste of energy and time. Everyone's too tired to even stand guard..."

"We searched from the trees to the bushes while chasing them here, and there wasn't even a speck of the Empire's filth. Tell that to the Cursed One, not to waste his energy."

After sending Sion's disciple in pursuit, Mongclay gathered the company commanders to convey his intention to draft soldiers for rear guard duty.

In the process, he revealed that it was Rian Keide's suggestion to clarify responsibility.

Upon hearing this, the commanders strongly opposed and adamantly refused the drafting order.

Despite Mongclay's explanation that he had killed a Mage and turned the tide of the battle.

Rian was still unable to shake off the label of "the Cursed One" within the battalion.

Perhaps it was a natural outcome, and the commanders were well aware that Mongclay was simply trying to use Rian for his own benefit.

Thud-.

Thus, Rian left the camp alone and hid in the shade ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of a tree towering on the summit of the knoll.

It wasn't necessarily ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his intention to hide.

The fading starlight and the waning moonlight, as if having no more work to do, created a deep darkness.

The drifting clouds had swelled in size and covered the sky.

The deepening night's curtain enveloped the entire forest, concealing even Rian's presence.

Only the terrain of the main force, with bonfires lit for camping, pushed back the deep darkness.

Bonfires emitted a faint light from the tops of the four knolls.

Also, around the mid-slopes below.

And in the paths between the knolls.

Lights connected in a way that narrowed towards a small open space where all the paths converged.

The sight resembled a spiderweb filled with light.

'Hmm. Was I being too sensitive?'

With such an arrangement, it seemed that even if one side were ambushed, they could respond immediately.

If he had to find a flaw, it would be the distance between the units stationed on the knolls and the paths to the interior.

However, since everyone could hear a loud shout, it was hard to call it a flaw.

The problem was whether the sentries were properly on guard.

The enemy was the Empire's elite force.

Assuming that one individual could take on ten ordinary soldiers...

'It seems possible to take them down one by one, like a slow burn.'

Intoxicated by victory, vigilance had waned. Exhaustion from the long pursuit had reached its peak.

And having filled their bellies, they might meet their deaths without even knowing their necks were being sliced.

'I'd rather it end with me being overly sensitive.'

But the enemy was the Imperial Army. They had hidden elite troops in the plains battle to deceive them, and even used a Mage, making thorough preparations.

Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that they had devised a scheme to turn the situation around even in retreat.

Thinking that, the worst-case scenario suddenly flashed through his mind.

"Damn it."

Rian's gaze reached the clouds that covered the sky like a blanket.

If it rained, even the light that allowed for identification of friend or foe would be blocked.

In the deep darkness, a large number of troops would be at a disadvantage.

Rian felt a chill run down his spine.

The Shadow Unit, they were called. The current environment was the perfect place for them to hold a feast of slaughter.

Perhaps they were watching this place from somewhere, planning an ambush or assassination.

Or perhaps both.

'If they disguised themselves as allies and started a bloodbath in the dark... that's the worst.'

A slaughter where they kill and are killed, suspecting each other.

If they tried to take out Mongclay, the commander, in such an ambush, he would be helpless.

'What to do?'

As the near-total annihilation was painted in his mind, Rian felt dizzy from the explosively surging tension.

But he wasn't about to lose consciousness and collapse. Rather, his mind became clearer.

"What to do? Move, of course."

Rian decided not to sit still and wait for the worst-case scenario and hurried towards the camp.

Ta-hat-.

It might be wiser to leave the battlefield as it was.

These were the people who still confined him to the word "curse," who closed their eyes and ears to his suggestion to be wary of an ambush.

There was no reason for him to risk his life alone for them.

But there wasn't even a hint of wavering in Rian's eyes.

Only the will to do what he wanted to do was contained within.

It wasn't to save his allies. It was even less to save the battalion commander.

'I won't run away.'

He wouldn't run away from responsibility.

He wouldn't run away from his beliefs.

He wouldn't run away from the things he had decided to protect.

Even if they were the ones who slandered, criticized, and cursed him.

If he decided to protect, he would protect.

Rian steeled his heart and came down from the knoll, heading towards the brown horse tied near the camp.

"Sorry, but the rest is over."

Neigh!

As soon as the brown horse saw Rian, it neighed and shook its head.

No matter how widely the troops were deployed for pursuit.

Unless they had enough troops to cover the entire forest, there would inevitably be gaps.

Azrion's forces numbered roughly between sixteen and seventeen hundred.

To create a siege that encompassed the entire forest, they would need at least five thousand troops.

Therefore, it wasn't difficult for Gerard and the ten shadows to bypass the forest and lie in ambush.

There was no need to move to the edge of the forest in preparation for possible detection.

After all, that place would be dominated by Monsters that had flocked there to escape the war, so detouring that far would be a loss.

Gerard took his subordinates and dug into the ground near the end of the siege to ambush.

"Move out."

Taking advantage of the darkness, they rose and followed the Azrion soldiers.

Rustle-.

Everyone was among the top 30 in the unit, so their footsteps sounded like leaves rustling in the wind.

From the beginning, the purpose of creating the Shadow Unit was to specialize in ambushes, assassinations, and sabotage.

The current situation was merely an extension of their daily training.

And what about the weather?

'Perhaps something beyond assassination is possible.'

The corners of Gerard's lips slightly turned up as he looked up at the sky.

The gleaming crimson light beneath his disheveled red hair was so eerie that it made one wonder if a demon had possessed him.

But Gerard was more sane than ever.

The clouds gathered and increased in weight.

Thanks to that, the moon and stars lost their light.

The darkness deepened and intensified, seizing the forest with the momentum to swallow even shapes.

If the forest lost all light as it was, they could break down the royal army one by one, create chaos.

Disguise themselves as them and infiltrate deep into the enemy camp, separating the enemy commander's head from his body would be a piece of cake.

Two things would make all of this possible.

The sky raining.

And the enemy commander doing something foolish by attempting to camp in the middle of the forest.

Gerard felt a strange excitement at the opportunity for a reversal that the crisis seemed to create.

He imagined himself buried in the deep darkness, massacring the Azrion soldiers.

He imagined the Azrion soldiers defining each other as enemies and engaging in a bloody battle.

He imagined the future of grabbing the enemy commander's head and returning home in triumph with his subordinates.

If things went as imagined, he could lightly dismiss the responsibility for failing to protect the Mage.

He could entirely transfer the defeat of the army to the commander, kill the insignificant nobles by branding them as traitors.

He could ferret out the weak subordinates who had run away to save their lives and create a Shadow Unit where only the truly strong survived.

'All power is under the knight?'

He wouldn't argue with that statement.

But.

Power can put the knight below it.

That's all he needed.

If he couldn't become a knight, he could have the power to wield that strength.

Right now.

He would offer the soldiers of Azrion as sacrifices to achieve that dream!

Pah!

Gerard unabashedly expressed his burning desire on his face, maintaining his distance from the Azrion soldiers.

Soon, he groaned as he watched the Azrion soldiers gathering in one place to set up camp.

"Ha!"

He didn't believe in gods, but it was as if the goddess of fortune was wishing for his victory.

Gerard's subordinates had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a hard time hiding their bewilderment at the expression he was making for the first time in his life.

'What is it? Why is he like that...'

'Damn it, should I have stayed? It's getting scary.'

'Did the madness that had been suppressed because he thought he was going to die explode?'

His cold, sharp eyes ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and the corners of his mouth smiling so wide that they almost reached his ears were an expression that would make anyone think of fear first.

Gerard didn't stop at just his expression.

"Listen. Perhaps the goddess of fortune will bestow honor and status upon us."

The unusual conviction and excited tone were also unfamiliar to his subordinates.

But it also made them expect that he would definitely make it happen.

The subordinates erased their distrust and waited for Gerard to continue.

Gerard continued, as if to meet their expectations.

"I am modifying the enemy commander assassination operation to the Azrion annihilation operation."

Assassination was already a top-level difficulty, but annihilation?

It was as if Gerard was pouring oil on the distrust that the subordinates were trying to erase.

"However, annihilation if it rains. Otherwise, the assassination operation will proceed as is. Understood?"

The future that Gerard had imagined when he pointed to the sky was vaguely drawn by the subordinates as well.

They decided to trust Gerard with conviction instead of distrust.

""Understood.""

Everyone pledged their loyalty in a low but united voice.

Gerard briefly explained the operation to his subordinates.

The operation would begin the moment the sentries at the target point fell asleep.

After confirming, they would quickly enter, eliminate the soldiers, and disguise themselves in their armor.

After that, they would take down the units one by one.

If it didn't rain, they would assassinate the commander in the center of the enemies and retreat.

If it rained, they would strike the center of the enemies and incite them to kill each other.

In the meantime, they would eliminate the enemy commander.

After that, they would complete the annihilation operation by eliminating any enemies they could get their hands on.

"Any objections?"

The subordinates answered with silence to Gerard's question after finishing his explanation.

Then, one of the subordinates spotted a soldier holding a torch and riding a horse below the knoll where they were hiding.

"It seems there is a scout."

Gerard and everyone else turned their gaze to the light below the knoll.

'They shouldn't have the strength to do that after chasing us without rest, but scouting. Such a speck of dust can ruin the operation.'

Gerard instructed the subordinate who had first spotted the torch.

"Get rid of him."

Clatter-. Clatter-.

Rian made full use of the horsemanship he had learned from his adoptive father, Ellen Cade, in his youth, holding a torch and riding around the winding roads.

The ability to coax and soothe a horse exhausted from fatigue, and to minimize the sound of hooves, was quite helpful.

Clatter-. Clatter-.

He wandered around the camp, thinking about possible attack routes.

In reality, it was impossible to predict the attack route since it was surrounded by forests on all sides.

He could only guess that they would ambush somewhere in the south, since the northwest was the road to the plains connected to the Empire, and run north.

Of course, there was another main purpose for wandering around like this.

'Hmm. I should have been noticed by now after wandering around this much.'

To become bait for the enemy lying in ambush until the operation was executed.

He didn't know how many enemies there would be, but he could at least identify their location and make the ambush a foregone conclusion.

That meant he could buy time for his allies to prepare for the ambush.

'The key is to catch the enemies before it rains.'

Thinking that, he was about to turn back on the winding road.

Whoosh!!

A Throwing Knife about a hand span long pierced through the darkness and flew towards Rian.