Chapter 14 - Knight

"You, come here!"

"Your voice is too loud. This is the Medical Barracks."

"So what, you punk."

Even though he was growling, no matter how wild a beast was, it posed no threat if it couldn't reach you.

"We must really be bound by fate. The first time we met was in the lower town, right?"

It was an ill-fated connection. An ill-fated connection that had them running into each other at the drop of a hat.

"Where does an insufferable bastard like you get off acting so friendly?"

The one who spoke first was Vengeance.

Encrid didn't bother pointing that out.

Because he wasn't petty enough to nitpick over such a thing.

"Sure."

Instead, he turned his body. The efficacy of the ointment Jaxon gave him was very good.

Even moving his body like this, he hardly felt any pain.

"What are you doing?"

"You told me not to act friendly, so I'm pretending not to know you."

"Is this bastard messing with me!"

Vengeance shouted in a fit of anger.

If he knew it was a joke, there would be no need to get so angry.

But how should he put it?

'Maybe it's because I'm usually surrounded by such bloodthirsty squad members.'

Seeing Vengeance after a long time, he was almost cute by comparison.

Because watching Rem, Jaxon, and the other squad members argue often made him feel like his lifespan was being shortened.

"Ah, you noticed. As expected of the Platoon Commander, the future of the Cyprus Division."

"You, you!"

With veins popping on his forehead, Vengeance picked up his boot and threw it.

Encrid quickly caught it.

"Is this a present?"

"I'll kill you, you bastard!"

Had Rem said it at some point?

That even though he was pretty good at getting under people's skin himself.

"I really don't want to argue with a Squad Leader who's determined to run his mouth."

He had said that.

Encrid, holding the boot with a nonchalant face.

Vengeance, snorting angrily as he watched him.

And.

"Puhahaha!"

A soldier who had been entirely focused on killing time by staring into space burst into vigorous laughter.

It was the kind of laugh that made it seem like he was going crazy with amusement.

At the sound of that laughter, Vengeance's murderous glare whipped backward.

The blonde man, having laughed heartily, hooked a finger outwards to wipe away a little tear that had squeezed out and said.

"No, 'Is this a present?' I couldn't hold it in. I was trying so hard to hold it back starting from the 'pretending not to know you' part. Phew."

GRIND.

Encrid thought Platoon Commander Vengeance's molars would break before he turned forty.

Constantly grinding one's molars was bad for the gums too.

He debated whether to point that out as well.

If he did it any more, he felt the man might be recorded as a soldier who died from blood rushing to his head unable to contain his anger.

"Your affiliation?"

Vengeance was calm.

Instead of cursing at the other man, he asked for his affiliation.

"Me? Hmm, just a passing soldier."

Oho?

Encrid inwardly admired the other party's audacity.

At least he was a Squad Leader.

But the other side really seemed to be just a common soldier.

Yet he had such an attitude.

However, saying it like that actually gave the impression he was hiding his affiliation and status.

Vengeance wasn't a total idiot either.

"Are you saying you cannot reveal your affiliation?"

"It's a bit like that. But me being a soldier is true. I forgot my affiliation, you see."

He was utterly carefree. Encrid saw the dignity of a noble in the blonde man.

If a moron who forgot his own affiliated unit wasn't a noble.

'He deserves to get beaten to death.'

Because he would have nothing to say even if he were literally beaten to death.

Therefore, the attitude he was displaying now was sheer dignity.

GRIND, GRIND.

While Vengeance was stuck unable to do this or that.

"But instead of looking at me right now. I think you should look behind you."

Encrid and Vengeance's gazes had been directed at the blonde man since earlier.

Therefore, both of them turned their heads backward.

There was a person behind them.

'Since when?'

He couldn't say his sensory perception was outstanding.

But he still had the experience of rolling around on the battlefield.

He had a Sixth Sense to some extent, yet just now he didn't even know someone was standing behind him.

He didn't hear a sound either.

"It's here? Where the Squad 444 Leader is?"

It was a woman. Moreover, she belonged to a race with body lines generally thinner than humans, clear eyes, and larger ears.

She was a Fairy.

She said while staring intently at the blonde man.

Seeing how natural her tone was, she was a superior.

Encrid made that judgment, raised his hand, and opened his mouth.

"Fourth Company, 4th Platoon, 4th Squad Leader Encrid, over here."

Only then did the Fairy woman's gaze drop from the blonde man.

And the tent entrance fluttered as the soldier guarding the Medical Barracks came in and added an explanation.

"Yes, that one is your subordinate Squad Leader."

"A Fairy?"

Quite surprised, Vengeance finally reacted.

Hearing that, the Fairy didn't move a single eyebrow, only turning her head.

"That one is the 2nd Company's 3rd Platoon Commander."

The soldier in charge of the Medical Barracks spoke even though no one asked him to.

The Fairy woman's subsequent tone was extremely dry.

Someone once said that Fairies were symbols of grass and trees, but her voice was truly like the sand of a desert.

"Does the 2nd Company teach you to blurt out a superior's race when you see them? I know better than anyone that I am a Fairy."

'Killer.'

Encrid saw innate dignity and charisma in the Fairy woman.

She crushed her opponent with a single word.

"N-N-N-No, ma'am! 2nd Company, 3rd Platoon Commander, Ven, Vengeance!"

"I have a request."

"Yes!"

"Platoon Commander Venvengeance, I ask that you please keep your mouth shut while I'm here. You don't have to answer my request right now. Because if you open your trap, I feel like I'll want to bury a knife or my fist in your face. Platoon Commander Venvengeance."

Encrid didn't bother pointing out that Platoon Commander Venvengeance's name was Vengeance.

Vengeance tried to open his mouth, then clamped both hands over it.

"Now then, I heard you are leading some interesting squad members well."

The Company Commander's gaze returned to Encrid.

"Yes, thank you."

There was nothing good about getting on the new Company Commander's bad side.

He answered politely.

In the conversation they shared afterward, Encrid got a strange feeling.

'Why did this woman come here?'

It was all completely useless talk.

Saying things like he had played an active part in the battle.

Looking at Encrid individually, it was indeed an active part.

He had killed the stabbing enemy soldier.

And in the midst of that, he had saved quite a few nearby allies within his reach.

But if asked whether that affected the battlefield as a whole.

'I'm not so sure.'

He didn't think it was on that level.

Apart from his own skills, Encrid's eye for the battlefield was quite good.

"You encountered a Frog and survived?"

"Yes, I was lucky."

"Luck is also a skill. It's not often that the Goddess of Fortune drops a coin."

"Yes, thank you."

She came all the way here just to have this kind of conversation?

Encrid simply couldn't understand the other party's intentions.

Anyway, the Fairy Company Commander woman spoke to him while looking at him with eyes glowing green.

And Encrid answered faithfully.

Before long, the Company Commander said, 'Then I look forward to your active performance in the future as well,' and turned around.

Just before leaving, she looked back again.

Towards the blonde man.

"What is your name over there?"

"Eh, hmm, it's Krang."

He rolled his eyes and frowned while saying his name. Anyone could see.

'He just made that up.'

It was that kind of name.

"I see."

The Company Commander answered calmly and left the barracks.

Vengeance, who couldn't even breathe properly let alone speak until then, finally let out a huge breath.

"Fuck."

"Oh, Company Commander."

As Encrid spoke upon hearing the curse, Vengeance was startled.

"Ah, guess not. It was a passing soldier."

"This motherfucker, really."

The Platoon Commander, who had gone from Vengeance to Venvengeance for today at least, got fiercely angry.

The blonde man who had introduced himself as Krang laughed heartily again.

The soldier guarding the Medical Barracks glanced at them, wondering what was wrong with these three people, before stepping outside.

Looking at Platoon Commander Vengeance, Encrid thought he wouldn't be bored while staying here.

* * *

The review of the fight.

The direction to move forward.

Encrid focused on these two things.

'Thrusting with full strength, but not putting all my heart into it.'

Finding a clue in less than a day made his body itch for action.

Even so, he couldn't roll his body out to train right now.

Since his side hurt, the only training he could do was grip strength training.

Encrid trained his fingers and forearms.

In a way, it looked like a foolish thing to do.

'The body is the foundation of all techniques.'

No matter how tiny a leaf was, it had weight, and even a drop of water could pierce a rock with the help of time.

Therefore, this seemingly insignificant effort right now would also be of help later.

Encrid believed so and had built his tower up to this point.

"You're working really hard."

It was Krang.

Two days after the Company Commander had left.

Encrid hadn't done anything except review the fight and train his grip strength.

He devoted himself to resting.

Because resting was also an important task.

If there was one thing that changed.

It was just that the half-crazy soldier who introduced himself as Krang and used the excuse of forgetting his affiliation was hovering around him.

"Why are you working so hard?"

Krang spoke informally to everyone.

Naturally to Encrid.

And likewise to Vengeance.

"I'm a Platoon Commander. I'm your superior!"

He even made fun of him.

Seeing that, it didn't seem like he came here because he was hurt somewhere.

And he seemed quite skilled too.

Seeing his footwork as he deliberately walked past Vengeance, dodging just barely out of reach, he was no ordinary guy.

"Working hard at what?"

Since the other party said he was a soldier.

Encrid also spoke informally.

"You just clench and open your hands every day. Other than that, you just zone out staring into space. Makes me wonder what you're thinking so hard about, and what makes you clench and open your hands so eagerly."

He wasn't an eight-year-old kid, yet he sure had a lot of questions.

Even so, it wasn't that annoying.

'Because I'm bored too.'

Teasing Platoon Commander Vengeance was only fun the first few times.

Having small talk and someone to chat with was a good tool for overcoming boredom.

"This is grip strength training, and sitting still isn't zoning out, it's reviewing the mistakes I made on the last battlefield."

"I mean, why do you do all that?"

Why does he do it?

"So I don't fucking die on the next battlefield."

"Because I haven't seen a soldier go to such lengths just to not die."

"Then are there any among those soldiers who lived long?"

"Hmm, quite a few?"

What kind of life had this guy lived, seeing things like that?

Encrid had thought from the start that the other guy was playing at being a commoner.

Not that it changed anything.

If the other party wanted, he could play along with this kind of thing.

It wasn't like he was losing anything.

He wasn't jealous that the other party had something he didn't.

If he were to get jealous over things like this, he would normally already be half-crazy with envy over his lack of talent in swordsmanship.

Encrid wasn't like that.

Rather, he had a path to move forward on.

He felt more fulfillment in the joy of growing.

'The thrust just needs more practice.'

Putting his whole heart and strength into it required training.

The Heart of a Beast was still a pillar that protected Encrid.

One more step forward.

One step walked every day.

Even if today didn't repeat, nothing changed.

Of course, it wasn't that absolutely nothing changed.

"What do you want to become?"

Krang asked.

It was similar to when Rem had asked previously.

The memory of that time came to mind.

'Why does that feel like it was ages ago?'

It was a day that no longer existed.

A day that vanished because he had died.

So the ambition he had spat out like a joke had truly vanished like a joke.

If he were to open his mouth to speak of the future, of his dream.

'Is there any chance today will vanish?'

There shouldn't be.

Even if his dream was silenced, devoured, and torn to pieces by reality, the traces remained.

Traces, yes, he thought only traces were left near his heart.

There were times he thought like that.

But what about now?

'Are only traces left?'

Encrid looked at his palms.

He saw his palms, hideously distorted from calluses forming and bursting open over and over again.

The calluses embedded deeply in every joint of his fingers would probably never disappear for the rest of his life.

This was how much he had wished for it.

'Is that really so?'

Are only traces still left?

He asked himself.

And sought an answer.

It probably wasn't. He believed it wasn't.

Funnily enough, even during the days when only those traces remained, Encrid had never given up.

"A Knight."

A lowly soldier originating from a third-rate Mercenary Corps.

And barely a Squad Leader at that.

A mere Squad Leader.

It was a tiny position and an insignificant skill level.

For such a person, what he spoke of was the peak above all others.

Vengeance, listening from the side, was about to vigorously mock him.

But Krang's reply was faster.

"Right. A Knight."

It was strange. He should have mocked him.

He was supposed to.

Krang's attitude stopped him. He didn't force him, but his instinct told him he shouldn't do that.

It was just a calm tone, but it was heavy. It carried weight.

Krang accepted that laughable dream seriously. He listened with all his strength, with all his heart.

It was possible to perform the act of listening to this extent.

"Looking at you, I feel like I'm getting a sense of how I should live my life."

Krang said.

Encrid just shrugged his shoulders.

The strange atmosphere that had briefly enveloped the inside of the Medical Barracks disappeared just as suddenly as it had appeared.

"Pfft, a Knight? Don't make me laugh!"

So Vengeance mocked him to his heart's content.

But the sight of it was ridiculous.

Because neither Encrid nor Krang paid him any mind.

"I am your superior."

Vengeance attempted a timid rebellion.

Of course, it stood no chance of working.

* * *

Exactly one week.

Encrid's side didn't hurt anymore.

'Is it thanks to the ointment?'

He had healed quickly.

As it was nearing bedtime, Krang asked.

"You return tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah."

Today had been simple.

The Wandering Minstrel, returning after a week, sang the hymn of Cyprus right next to the Medical Barracks from the morning.

The soldier guarding the Medical Barracks overslept in the morning.

While taking a light walk around lunchtime, he even saw Krais.

Big-eyes didn't look well.

Before he could even ask anything, he briskly walked off somewhere.

After that, nothing happened.

Since patients in the Medical Barracks didn't have to stand night watch either, he could genuinely say he had rested well.

"Sleep well. Encrid."

"You too. Krang."

"Just wait until we go back, both of you."

Vengeance also offered his daily greeting.

And so, Encrid closed his eyes and fell asleep.

And.

"Cyprus! Cyprus!"

He woke up to the sound of the Wandering Minstrel's song.

'Today as well?'

He had heard that this guy, who tasted money and became a Wandering Minstrel on the battlefield, went around singing all over the barracks.

Meaning, he didn't stay in a place he had already visited for two days in a row.

Today, the sound of his singing should have been heard from further away.

So why was it from this side for two consecutive days?

"Are they slacking off, goddammit? Why aren't they bringing breakfast?"

Vengeance grumbled as he woke up.

Encrid's hair stood on end at those words.

Because he had heard those words yesterday too.

No, more accurately, he must have heard them in the repeated today.

"Was the soldier late in the morning yesterday too?"

Encrid asked.

Vengeance stared at Encrid, then let out a scoffing laugh and replied.

"What kind of bullshit is that? They brought it on time yesterday."

Encrid let out a dejected sigh.

Because this made it certain.

Today was repeating.

This meant.

'I died in my sleep without anyone knowing.'

That was what it meant.