Chapter 179

In the Kingdom of Naurilia, nobles always named their military units after themselves.

Thus, Viscount Vantra’s forces arrived at the frontier village.

A portion of the cavalry, having received an urgent dispatch, galloped ahead—only to witness an unexpected sight.

“I thought they were under attack?”

The cavalry captain, who had personally gone ahead for reconnaissance, muttered in confusion.

‘What are they doing?’

Why were they burying corpses instead of fighting?

The black blood of monsters and beasts, despite its appearance, could actually enrich the soil.

Even the poison from a ghoul’s claws would neutralize and vanish once buried in the ground.

For that reason, the villagers were putting all their effort into burying the monster corpses.

The wilderness had become uneven, and most of the villagers were drenched in sweat.

Shovels and pickaxes swung relentlessly.

Soldiers and civilians alike worked as one.

“…Yes, the dispatch was marked as urgent.”

The captain’s adjutant confirmed.

Urgent? That was an understatement.

– Large Colony, pack of Gnolls, immediate assistance required.

That was all the message had said.

It had been sent in such haste that no numbers had been given.

Indeed, Deutsch had been in such a rush when sending the call for help that he hadn’t included the enemy count.

All it had mentioned was that there were at least hundreds from a Large Colony, mixed with cultists.

That was enough to mobilize reinforcements.

“…Looks more like they’re farming monster fields.”

The cavalry captain remarked.

There didn’t seem to be any threat at all.

Aside from the monster corpses, the village scene was rather peaceful.

Most of the work had already been done, so there weren’t many beasts in sight.

“Whiiistle~! Boom! He cut down five hundred on his own!”

“We shall name the wall!”

“Enk-Enk-Encrid!”

What the hell was this ridiculous tune? And what kind of work song was that?

“…Find out what’s going on.”

The captain ordered, still covered in dust from their hard ride.

One of his men immediately spurred his horse forward.

Da-da-da-dak! Da-da-da-dak!

Riding swiftly, the soldier assessed the situation and soon returned.

“What? He cut down five hundred Gnolls alone?”

The villagers, being honest folk, answered readily.

“What is he, a legendary Free Knight? Or did the King of Mercenaries drop by?”

“No, just a former Border Guard squad leader.”

A mere squad leader had taken down five hundred Gnolls.

Of course, not all in one day.

Apparently, he had also killed a cultist.

Or rather, the cultist had dropped dead after being outplayed—holding his chest as his heart gave out.

Since when were cultists like common bandits lurking in the mountains? Or cowards with weak stomachs?

‘What a joke.’

The captain snorted. What kind of ordinary squad leader could pull that off?

“Alright. Let’s see this bastard’s face.”

With that, they entered the village.

“He already left.”

The village chief spoke on behalf of the townspeople.

“Already?”

“The Colony was his mission. He left as soon as it was resolved.”

He had just… vanished.

What kind of no-nonsense bastard was this?

The cavalry captain scoffed again.

The only witnesses were mercenaries and villagers.

It was unlikely that all of them were lying, but believing this entirely was even harder.

‘When people face crisis, they tend to exaggerate.’

He knew this well.

People on the brink of death often overestimated the threats around them.

Five hundred? More likely fifty, at most a hundred.

If that Border Guard had failed to handle even that, it would have been a disgrace to his reputation.

‘They must have exaggerated.’

The captain decided. He had no interest in digging up the corpses to confirm.

“…Whatever.”

As long as the village was intact, that was all that mattered.

Here and there, people muttered about “Encrid’s Wall”, but that wasn’t his concern.

‘Whether it was five hundred or five…’

That squad leader had saved this village.

Still, the way he had left behind such a boastful legend was irritating.

‘If we meet someday…’

He would humble the bastard.

Maybe even slice that boastful tongue in half.

With that thought, the captain turned his horse.

—

“You could stay a little longer.”

The village chief spoke wistfully.

It was two days after the festival-like night.

Sweating from his morning wash, Encrid noticed a few village women sneaking glances at him.

“His body is incredible.”

“He’s handsome.”

“And he fights well.”

“His character is good too.”

“He’s solid, and surely, down below…”

The last comment crossed a line, but it was still a mix of admiration, respect, and near worship.

Not that it felt bad.

He simply enjoyed it in moderation.

As soon as he announced his departure, Deutsch Pullman arrived and thrust a glaive at him.

“Would you spar with me?”

Despite the direct challenge, his tone held respect.

His posture carried admiration.

It was a request, almost a plea.

But more than that—

‘Those eyes.’

Encrid liked those kinds of eyes. The ones that burned with fervor.

“…Alright.”

A simple duel followed.

Clang.

A vertical deflection.

Clang.

A horizontal parry.

Then, Encrid stepped inside his guard and delivered a clean left punch straight into Deutsch’s ribs.

Thud!

Deutsch collapsed, wheezing.

“Guhh—ghk… Haa…”

Struggling to breathe, he finally managed to sit up.

“What the hell is that strength?”

Then, he bowed deeply.

“…Thank you.”

Encrid simply nodded, unfazed.

There was no need to linger.

He was ready to move on.

“I’m coming too.”

Despite being told to rest, Finn insisted on tagging along.

“I’m a Ranger.”

That one sentence held many meanings.

A Ranger always goes ahead—that was their motto.

“I don’t like falling behind.”

It wasn’t exactly stubbornness.

Besides, her injuries weren’t life-threatening, and the treatment had been excellent.

It had been Krys’s handiwork—his skills were versatile, after all.

Everything was useful—except in a fight.

Especially when it came to using his head.

More importantly, there was no real danger in the upcoming journey.

At worst—

‘Just a few monsters and beasts.’

When a Colony forms, it tends to wipe out most of the surrounding monsters. That was expected.

A Colony meant a gathering of creatures.

All the nearby monsters had flocked together to form it, and now that it had been destroyed, large groups of monsters would be rare in the area.

‘It should be fine.’

“Treasure! Treasure!”

Krys chanted as if he were singing.

According to him, the treasure map’s destination was only a day’s journey away.

“This is nothing. Sure, back in the day, we’d have to disable traps and deal with complications, but now? If you’ve read Kristrown’s Dungeon Tactics, it’s child’s play.”

His confidence was evident.

And truthfully, it didn’t seem like a big deal.

After packing rations and a few bottles of apple wine, they set off.

“Come back again, promise.”

The village chief bowed deeply behind them.

Not just him, but all the villagers had come out to bow as well.

Encrid simply gave a small nod.

“If the chance arises.”

Blunt words, but genuine.

Thus, they departed, their journey nothing more than a quick detour to retrieve some treasure before heading back.

“Onward! To treasure!”

Krys chattered excitedly.

Encrid nodded, indifferent.

“I’ll go with you that far.”

Ruagarne hadn’t left immediately.

Was it because she didn’t need to return right away? Or was it because she didn’t want to?

Encrid didn’t bother asking.

Instead—

“Spar?”

He treated her the same as always.

She had said something about falling for him—but that was something time would tell.

To Encrid, what he could learn from her right now was more important than any distant future.

In terms of sheer combat power, if he had truly intended to kill, he was confident he could defeat Ruagarne.

However, her experience and skill were real.

When it came to pure battle ability, she was stronger than he had thought.

Just as one cannot see the landscape before reaching the peak, one only realizes things after climbing higher.

And now, he saw it.

His perspective had expanded.

The more he learned, the more he understood, and now—he saw a path to defeat Ruagarne.

‘Are all Frok like this?’

No, that couldn’t be.

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

“Not a bad offer. I am a bit rusty. I should train while I have the chance.”

Even she had learned something from fighting the cultists.

With a sharp clack, they crossed wooden swords and set off once more.

They walked, replaying what they had learned and gained from battle.

“You are truly a fascinating human.”

Ruagarne spoke after their latest sparring session.

“No amount of talent should work this way.”

“Is that so?”

Encrid brushed it off.

His goal was knighthood, and there were still many mountains to climb and paths to walk.

Just one step forward wasn’t satisfying.

It couldn’t be.

No matter how big that step was, it still wasn’t enough to reach his faded and tattered dream.

Even if he reached it, would he be satisfied?

Who knew?

Did becoming a knight mean the end of everything?

No.

His dream remained, and so did the reasons he had pursued it.

Wandering the continent, he had gathered memories, some of which had settled as lingering regrets.

“The strangest thing is your attitude.”

Ruagarne kept talking, but Encrid remained unchanged.

He learned and absorbed knowledge.

It quenched his thirst, and that was all that mattered.

“…Again?”

The same as always.

Another sparring session.

After sweating it out, he mixed water and apple wine to quench his thirst.

They continued down the road, following a path with no streams in sight.

At the front, Finn led the way.

Beside him, Krys chattered endlessly.

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

“Looks about right.”

Krys’s real talent—

It only shone when his life or his money was at stake.

He could find the correct path from just a fragment of a map.

Finn helped, but still—

‘Isn’t that the real mystery?’

Krys, Rem, Ragna, Audin, Jaxon—

‘Hah.’

A band of madmen.

Their squad name fit them perfectly.

Compared to them, wasn’t he the most normal one?

After all, wasn’t it reasonable to work hard for a great dream?

Of course, that was just his opinion.

Would Ruagarne be the only one surprised by Encrid’s fight against the Gnolls?

Even Esther had been shocked.

‘This man is insane.’

She had already seen him change overnight many times.

But this time was different.

Hundreds of monsters cut down—without any spells?

Had he found a magic weapon?

Had he picked up a cursed sword?

No.

His gear was the same. His armor was the same.

Only he had changed.

This was already the level of a junior knight.

The raw power alone wasn’t clear, but the results spoke for themselves.

Even Krys had been surprised—but he didn’t question it.

‘Because he’s the squad leader.’

He was already crazy, a man obsessed with the sword.

For him, this wasn’t strange at all.

There was no point in trying to understand something incomprehensible.

Krys didn’t waste mental energy on useless things. He simply accepted it.

The most shocked one was Finn.

‘How is this even possible?’

At first, he hadn’t been this extreme.

Back then, it had already been surprising—seeing him fight among werewolves, seeing him kill a sorcerer.

But back then, it had felt understandable.

‘Now…’

It felt like he had reached the limit of human capability—or at least placed one foot into that realm.

And above all—

That recovery speed.

‘He’s outpacing the Frok.’

He fought like he was going to die, then got up the next day and did it all over again.

And it wasn’t like there was some priest constantly healing him.

So how?

Finn tried to figure it out, but—

She soon gave up.

Most people who watched Encrid eventually gave up trying to understand him.

That was just how it was.

“A strange one, through and through.”

Ruagarne’s quiet murmur summed up everything they had been thinking.

“Is that so?”

Encrid, as always, remained unfazed.

Their short journey had been devoid of monsters or beasts.

After a steady pace, they arrived at their destination—the far side of a rocky mountain.

It had taken a full day since they had taken a long route, but if they had hurried, it would have been half a day’s trip at most.

They had dueled, eaten, and rested along the way.

There was no rush.

As Krys had said, they were just picking up a treasure along the way.

The landscape behind the rocky mountain was peculiar—

Scattered boulders, patches of short grass, and a few trees poking out here and there.

It wasn’t quite a plain, nor was it a wasteland—not even a stone field.

Somewhere in between.

“Captain, did you know?”

Krys suddenly broke the silence.

“Know what?”

Encrid glanced at him.

And with that, Krys grinned and continued.