Chapter 179

In the Kingdom of Naurillia, nobles often named their troops after themselves.

Thus, the Viscount’s army of Bentra arrived in front of the frontier village.

A portion of the cavalry, having received urgent orders, arrived first, only to witness an unexpected sight.

“They said they were under attack?”

Asked the cavalry commander, who had gone out on scouting.

What are they doing? Why are they burying bodies in the ground?

The black blood of monsters and beasts could, contrary to its appearance, enrich the soil. The poison in a ghoul’s claws could be neutralized and disappear when buried in the earth.

For these reasons, the villagers were putting all their effort into burying the corpses of the monsters.

The land in the wilderness had become uneven. Most of the villagers were sweating profusely, wielding shovels and pickaxes. Soldiers and villagers worked together as if they were one body.

“Yes, the message we received was urgent.”

The lieutenant said.

It was more than just an urgent message.

– Large colony, knoll horde, immediate support requested.

That’s all it said.

It was so urgent that there was no mention of the scale or number of enemies.

Indeed, the urgency was evident, the message sender, Deutsche, didn’t specify the number of monsters, only hinting that there were at least several hundred in the large colony and mentioning cultists.

It was enough to mobilize those who sensed the danger.

“It looks like they’re farming with monster carcasses.” remarked the cavalry commander.

It really didn’t seem like there was any threat. If not for the monster corpses, the scene would have been quite pastoral.

Most of the work was nearly done, so the number of monsters didn’t seem that large.

“Hee hee hee, boom, cut five hundred all alone.”

“Name the wall.”

“Enk-Enk-Encrid.”

They were even singing a nonsensical work song.

“Find out more.”

The commander ordered.

Covered in dust, they had rushed over, only to find this.

At the commander’s order, one of the subordinates rode off to investigate.

After surveying the situation, the subordinate returned and reported.

“What? He single-handedly cut down five hundred knolls?”

The villagers were straightforward.

“What, is he a legendary free Knight? Or did the Mercenary King himself come?”

“No, they say he’s just a Platoon leader from the Border Guard.”

An ordinary Platoon leader had apparently cut down five hundred knolls.

Though, it wasn’t something done in a single day, they said.

They also mentioned that cultists had been killed—or rather, had died. They had tricked the cunning foe and struck him from behind, causing him to clutch his hearts and die? Ṙ𝓪₦ȱᛒЕꞩ

Are cultists like some petty thieves wandering the hills? Cowards with small guts?

“Ridiculous.”

The commander scoffed. What kind of ordinary Platoon leader could do such a thing?

“Really? Well then, let’s see the face of that bastard.”

The commander said as they entered the village.

“He’s already left.”

The village chief said, stepping forward to speak for the group.

“Already?”

“It was supposed to be a mission to deal with the colony.”

And then he just up and left like that.

The cavalry commander sneered for the second time.

With the current situation, the only witnesses were mercenaries and villagers. While it wasn’t likely they were all lying, it was also hard to believe everything they said was entirely true.

‘When people are cornered, they tend to exaggerate.’

The commander knew this well. People standing on the edge often feel like they’re going to fall even if they have a few steps of space left.

These people must be the same.

Five hundred? At most, it was probably fifty, maybe a hundred.

If a mercenary couldn’t deal with a monster colony of that size, it would reflect poorly on their abilities.

‘They must have exaggerated.’

The commander decided. He had no intention of digging up the buried bodies to check.

“Whatever.”

As long as the village was intact, that was enough.

Though he overheard nonsense about the ‘Encrid Wall’ and other such things, it wasn’t his concern.

‘Whether it’s fifty or five.’

It was a fact that this Platoon leader had saved the village.

However, leaving behind an inflated reputation wasn’t something he appreciated.

‘If we ever meet again.’

He thought, perhaps he’d knock the guy down a peg or two, maybe even cut that boastful tongue in half.

With that thought, the commander turned his horse around.

* * *

“It would have been nice if you stayed longer.”

The village chief quickly expressed regret upon hearing that they were leaving.

It was the morning two days after a night that resembled a festival.

As Encrid was washing off the sweat, a few women from the village came to see him.

“He’s got a good body.”

“He’s handsome.”

“He’s a good fighter.”

“He has a good character.”

“He’s solid, surely even down there…”

The last comment seemed to cross a line, but it was spoken with admiration, respect, and reverence.

It didn’t feel bad.

He simply enjoyed the attention.

When he mentioned he was leaving, Deutsche Pullman approached and offered him a glaive.

“Would you care to spar with me?”

Despite the abruptness of the request, the tone carried respect, and the attitude showed admiration.

It was a straightforward and upright request, more like a favor.

Most importantly,

‘Those eyes.’

Encrid liked eyes like those—burning and intense.

“Sure.”

It was a simple sparring match.

Encrid deflected the glaive twice, once vertically and once horizontally, then moved in and landed a left punch to where Deutsche’s lungs were.

With a grunt, Deutsche collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

After catching his breath, Deutsche spoke, “What strength…”

He then stood up and bowed his head, “Thank you.”

Encrid nodded nonchalantly.

Since there was no reason to delay, they decided to move on immediately.

“Let me come along.”

Finn said, who insisted on joining despite being advised to stay and recover in the village.

“I’m a Ranger.”

She said, which carried a lot of meaning.

As a member of a group whose motto was ‘Rangers go first’ she didn’t want to be left behind.

It wasn’t stubbornness. She wasn’t fatally wounded, and her treatment, handled by Krais, was excellent. Krais was a versatile friend, skilled at many things, though perhaps not as much in combat. Especially when it came to using his head.

Moreover, there wasn’t likely to be much danger in their journey now.

At most, they might encounter some monsters and beasts.

When a colony forms, most monsters in the surrounding area are typically wiped out. It’s a natural occurrence because a colony means monsters have gathered to form a group, and since they had dealt with that group, encountering another large group of monsters would be unlikely.

“Should be fine.”

“It’s a treasure, a treasure.”

Krais murmured cheerfully, as if reciting a poem. According to him, the location indicated by the treasure map was just a day’s journey away.

“It’s nothing really. It might have been complicated in the past, needing to disarm traps, but now, if you’ve read the ‘Guide to Clearing the Dungeons of Cristrown’, it’s no big deal.”

He seemed confident.

And indeed, it wasn’t a big deal.

After packing some preserved food and a few bottles of apple cider, they set out.

“Come back, you must.”

The village chief said, bowing his head behind them. In fact, it wasn’t just the chief, all the villagers came out and bowed their heads.

Encrid nodded and said, “If I get the chance.”

It was a simple farewell, but the sincerity made it genuine.

Thus, they set off on a journey that would end with finding a treasure and returning.

“Let’s go find some treasure, treasure!”

Krais chatted away excitedly.

Encrid nodded in agreement, “Let’s go together up to that point.”

Luagarne didn’t leave right away. Whether it was because she didn’t need to return immediately or had some lingering attachment, he didn’t bother to ask.

Instead, she suggested, “A spar?”

He treated her the same as usual. She had mentioned being impressed by him, but that was something to observe over time.

For Encrid, learning from her was more important than any future prospects.

While he believed he could surpass Luagarne in sheer combat power if it came to killing, her experience and skills were genuine.

In terms of combat strength, she was more formidable than he initially thought.

Before reaching the peak, one can’t see the surrounding landscape, but once atop, the view and understanding change. Now, he could see the path to surpassing Luagarne.

‘Are all Frogs like this?’ he wondered.

It wasn’t the case.

As she had said many times, she was a scholar.

“Not a bad proposition. I’ve gotten a bit rusty myself. I should spend some time training again.”

She, too, seemed to have learned something from their encounters with the cultists.

With the sound of wooden swords clashing, they walked along the path.

They reflected on what they had gained, learned, and practiced.

“You’re really an extraordinary human.”

Luagarne remarked after a bout of wooden swordplay.

“No talent should be capable of this.” she continued.

“Is that so?” Encrid brushed it off casually.

His dream was to become a Knight, and there were still many mountains to climb and roads to walk.

One step forward was not enough for him, no matter how significant it might seem. Even if he reached his dream, would he be satisfied? That remained to be seen. Becoming a Knight wouldn’t be the end.

His dream remained, and the reasons for pursuing it had accumulated in his heart during his travels across the continent—some as regrets, others as lingering desires.

“The most extraordinary thing is your attitude right now.”

Luagarne continued, but Encrid remained unchanged.

He focused on learning and practicing. That quenched his inner thirst, and now he was simply quenching it and moving forward.

“Again?”

It was still the same.

After another round of sparring, they drank a mix of water and apple cider to quench their thirst.

They continued along the path that didn’t follow the stream.

Finn led the way, with Krais chattering beside him.

“According to the map, the terrain should be just like this. What do you think, Finn?”

“Seems about right.”

Finn replied.

Krais had a knack for shining when his life and that of Krona were on the line.

He could find his way by looking at just a part of the map, with Finn helping beside him.

‘Isn’t that more surprising?’

There were others like Big Eyes, Rem, Ragna, Audin, and Jaxon.

‘Hmm.’

The Madmen Platoon.

They fit the name well. Compared to them, maybe he was the normal one?

Being driven to work hard because of a big dream should be within acceptable limits.

Of course, this was only Encrid’s perspective.

Luagarne wasn’t the only one surprised by Encrid’s performance against the knolls.

Esther was astonished too.

‘A crazy human.’

She had seen people change overnight many times before, but this was different.

Cutting down hundreds of monsters without any magic spells?

Did he wield some sort of magical weapon?

Had he picked up a cursed sword?

No, everything was the same as usual—his sword and armor.

The only thing that had changed was the person.

This could almost be considered the strength of a quasi-Knight. Even if the raw strength was unknown, the results spoke for themselves.

Krais was surprised too, but he didn’t dwell on it.

‘He’s the Platoon leader, after all.’

He was already considered crazy, a man obsessed with swords.

It was plausible for someone like that.

It was pointless to ponder incomprehensible matters. Krais didn’t waste his energy on such thoughts and simply accepted it.

The most surprised was Finn.

‘How is this possible?’

When she first saw him, he didn’t seem this strong.

She was shocked then, seeing Encrid fight among werewolves and later kill a wizard.

Back then, it felt within the realm of understanding.

‘But now…’

It seemed like he was pushing the limits of human ability or even exceeding them.

Most astonishing was his recovery ability.

‘He puts Frogs to shame.’

He fought to the brink of death and then came back the next day, ready to fight again.

There wasn’t even a priest by his side pouring out divine power, how was this possible?

Finn tried to figure it out but eventually gave up.

Most who witnessed Encrid eventually gave up trying to understand him.

It was an inevitable conclusion.

“He’s a strange fellow.”

Luagarne murmured, echoing the thoughts of many.

“Is that so?”

Encrid remained indifferent.

On their short journey, they didn’t encounter any monsters or beasts.

They reached a place behind a rocky mountain after a day of travel, which could have been covered in half a day if they had hurried.

They had sparred, eaten, and rested sufficiently along the way.

It wasn’t urgent. As Krais said, it was just about picking up treasure along the way.

The area behind the rocky mountain had scattered stones, short grass, and a few trees poking through.

It wasn’t exactly a plain, nor a wilderness, nor a rocky field.

“Captain, did you know?”

“Know what?”

Krais suddenly spoke up in this setting.

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