Chapter 236
Encrid’s [Will] was neither complete nor perfect.
It was a fragment. A piece, just a part.
Even so, it was still [Will].
That was why Markus was shocked, and why the Elf Company Commander returned immediately after her business trip or vacation.
Since she was already in the bath, the Elf Company Commander didn’t deny that she’d come for the pleasant view.
“Not bad.”
Her words were acknowledgment.
“Did you have something to say?”
“No.”
She just wanted to confirm whether he truly overcame the pressure.
What a strange thing, Encrid thought.
He knew what he’d accomplished was impressive, but was it really worth making such a fuss?
Even Encrid himself was aware.
It was only a part, just a piece.
Of course, that alone gave him both ecstasy and joy.
Nothing else could give him such fulfillment.
As he felt satisfied, he longed for more.
‘If this is just the beginning.’
The thought that he could go even further.
It felt as if a faded, torn dream had been stitched together and become something magical.
‘No, that’s exactly what happened.’
He scratched his cheek as he thought.
The curse of repeating today had sewn together the fabric of his torn dream.
Encrid didn’t deny it.
“Well then.”
The Elf Company Commander turned around. She walked through the pouring rain without looking back.
Encrid, watching her, ran a hand through his hair.
He thought, what a strange personality that Elf had.
—
No matter how swift an Elf was, there was no escaping the rain, so getting drenched was inevitable.
As she walked, Sinar checked the wound on her side.
‘It hurts.’
A day or two of rest with medicine would fix it. It wasn’t nothing, but it was manageable.
As the Elf walked, she thought of Encrid.
Those blue eyes staring straight at her in the bath.
She’d liked his face from the start.
So what? Did she have her eye on him from the beginning? No, he was just a target of jokes.
But somehow, he’d become a man she couldn’t help but salivate over.
‘It would be nice to pull him in.’
But it wasn’t as easy as she wished.
She’d just finished a job for the guild that was created to reclaim the language of the kingdom.
The Elf decided it would help her future and the things she wanted.
If not, there’d be no reason to remain here.
She’d just finished a rough, tough job, but upon returning, she heard that Encrid had fainted.
Or rather, he’d fainted before, but this time, he endured.
Those who didn’t know wouldn’t understand, but those who did would.
‘Pressure.’
[Will] could only be resisted with [Will]. If it wasn’t power of that level, it was impossible to resist.
If he not only resisted but endured—
[Will].
That man, who used to be just a joke? [Will]?
Sinar was so shocked she forgot about her own wound.
It made sense.
She wasn’t particularly good at recognizing talent, but she could tell what state Encrid was in.
Even if struck by a bolt of luck again and again, it would have been impossible.
And yet, whether it was hardship or crisis, he always overcame whatever stood in his way and got back up. How could it not be enjoyable to watch?
‘He’s a man I’d like to show to the fools back home.’
Half of her words about taking him to her parents were sincere.
Elven jokes always hid their true meaning.
“It really is interesting.”
Sinar moved her red lips and muttered to herself.
The rain poured without end.
Crash!
Thunder rumbled too.
The Elf smiled without realizing it.
It was rare to laugh while doing something tiresome, painful, and hopeless.
But now, because of one man, she found herself smiling.
It was absurd, and yet the Elf was content.
Maybe that’s why she still hadn’t left this place, even though she should have.
‘Making excuses to stay?’
Maybe so.
The Elf, Sinar, continued walking.
Neither the pain nor her goals could hold her back now.
She just quietly celebrated inside.
Something Encrid had accomplished.
That was enough for now.
—
‘She seems hurt.’
Encrid had eyes, too. His sharpened sense of smell picked up the scent of blood mixed with the bath’s steam.
He could tell just by looking.
If he noticed, others must have, too.
“Seems like you’re totally smitten.”
Rem spoke.
“What?”
“With the commander. If you have something like that, you should have a demonic stamina.”
They’d just left the bath, having washed off sweat and everything else.
Rem looked at Encrid’s crotch as he spoke.
“Crazy bastard.”
Encrid replied, and Rem shook his head.
“I lose. I can’t win this.”
Just not a normal guy.
Encrid kicked Rem in the side. Rem dodged, of course.
“Hurt or not, he comes to check. Truly demonic.”
Ragna chimed in.
“He’s got the face to run a salon with me, especially that.”
Krys also glanced at Encrid’s crotch.
“The company commander is right there.”
Encrid warned them to behave. Markus laughed nearby.
“I envy that, too.”
Envy what?
Everyone was heading back after washing up.
“Must’ve been a rough job, seeing the Elf wounded. But it doesn’t look too serious, so you can stop worrying about your fiancée.”
Jaxson spoke as they neared the lodgings.
Encrid corrected him.
“Not my fiancée.”
“Yes.”
Jaxson replied blandly, opening the door. Inside were Dunbakel and Esther, looking their way.
And Finn had somehow returned as well.
“Is it true?”
Finn asked. Encrid knew the question was for him.
Was it really [Will]? Did he really endure the pressure? She wanted to know the truth of the rumor.
“Just lucky.”
He didn’t have much else to say.
“Wow.”
Finn just opened her mouth in amazement.
“At this rate, you’ll really become a knight.”
She never thought he was normal from the start, but this—[Will], really.
Encrid didn’t reply.
Becoming a knight was his dream, his goal.
He never thought about achieving or not achieving it.
He just crawled forward.
Now, that effort was finally bearing fruit.
When everyone was settling down to sleep—
Petty jokes, Rem pestering Dunbakel, Encrid asking Finn where she’d been, Finn babbling about hanging out with language maniacs.
Finn refused to explain further, and no one really cared.
Encrid asked, but didn’t listen closely.
“Then why ask? Why don’t you care about me? Here’s a lovely woman in the same lodging as you!”
Finn said. Her hair was a little rough, but she wasn’t ugly.
Thanks to today’s repetition, Encrid could hardly remember faces now, but compared to the black-bladed woman thief, Finn was a beauty.
“Growl.”
Esther snorted beside them. Anyone could tell it was mockery.
“Even the panther is mocking you. Just wash up and go to bed.”
Rem snickered as he scolded Finn, who cursed and blamed the pouring rain.
“Fucking rain.”
With that, Finn was about to go wash up. She reached for the door, but Jaxson grabbed her wrist, and Esther, who’d stood up, was at her feet.
Rem, Ragna, and Audin also turned their heads.
Encrid blocked Finn’s way.
Even Dunbakel, perhaps sensing something with her animal instincts, flinched and bared her fangs.
“…What is it?”
Krys, the only one clueless, asked.
“Guest.”
Encrid replied.
This was the Border Guards’ barracks, not an inn. An uninvited guest shouldn’t be able to get in so easily.
Yet, a guest.
“Could I have a word?”
A voice called as everyone watched the door. Encrid stepped forward.
“My guest.”
He opened the door. Standing there was a middle-aged man, drenched and looking like a wet rat.
The rapier swordsman—once a guard for the Lockfreed merchant group. The man who, earlier today, had shown pressure to Encrid and, after being rejected, had been so shocked that all he could do was mutter “uh.”
“Looks like you’ve come to your senses.”
Rem jeered from behind. Must be a racial trait.
Still, the rapier swordsman ignored him.
“I risked rudeness because I wanted to see you once more.”
He got straight to the point. The earlier incident had been that shocking for him.
Even now, it was obvious just how shaken he was.
He was soaked from the rain, with dark circles under his eyes and his cheeks sunken in just half a day.
“As much as you want.”
Encrid didn’t refuse.
“You just washed up—aren’t you bothered?”
Krys asked practically. Encrid shook his head lightly.
“Not at all.”
If that bothered him, he’d have quit the sword long ago.
The person before him was valuable.
He could use pressure, and by all accounts, was quite skilled.
Encrid had been thinking of challenging him to another duel tomorrow anyway.
“I have to leave tonight for work. Sorry for coming like this—it’s not proper.”
He’d sneaked over the barracks wall in the middle of the night.
Naturally, he’d avoided the sentries’ eyes. Impressive.
Regardless, Encrid resolved to intensify training for his subordinates.
He couldn’t let people cross the wall so easily.
Even so, this moment was secretly pleasing.
“There he goes again.”
Whatever Rem said behind him, someone had come looking for him for a match.
Was it Ibarne?
No, not that weakling. That weakling left such an impact, Encrid forgot Edin Molsen’s name but remembered the three syllables of Ibarne.
This opponent wielded [Will]—in a sense, the real Junior Knight.
The rain still hadn’t stopped. It lightened for a moment, but getting wet was the same.
Encrid, though freshly washed, got soaked again. He didn’t care.
What’s a little wet?
Standing in front of the sparring ground, the ground was muddy.
Dirt ground helped prevent injuries even if you fell, but in the rain, your feet got stuck.
Of course, for these two, the ground wasn’t a problem.
—
“I’ll go alone.”
Encrid said.
Most agreed, but Jaxson didn’t trust people by nature.
‘If something goes wrong—’
He’d attack from behind. That’s why Jaxson disappeared from the lodging alone.
Rem noticed but didn’t move, nor did the others.
Esther sensed a strange change in Encrid’s presence.
‘What’s this?’
She could use weapons, but unless it was something related to magic, she wasn’t usually this sensitive.
Was the power that blurred her curse fading?
No.
Was his attitude different? No, he was the same crazy person as before.
Still, Esther felt a subtle change. But that wasn’t reason enough to stand in the rain and watch.
Esther closed her eyes. She was sleepy. Having transformed into a human several times lately, she’d been refining her world of spells.
She’d learned a lot from her experiences.
She was no longer a mage trapped in her own world, but a panther who’d rolled through battlefields.
What she’d realized was this:
You never know what’ll happen to people.
So you have to prepare in advance.
That’s the mage’s way.
Esther laid her head on her paws. Encrid wasn’t going to die, so she didn’t worry.
She immersed herself in her own world.
“The stray cat’s gone, so I’ll just sleep.”
Rem said.
“Huh, he really did disappear fast.”
Krys noticed belatedly.
Everyone spent their time as they wished in the lodging, and before they could even finish a cup of tea, Rem got up.
“Guess I’m bored.”
That’s what everyone felt.
Just looking for an excuse to go watch.
—
Facing off at the sparring ground, Encrid rejected the pressure again.
“It’s real.”
The rapier swordsman spoke, astonished again. Of course—who would expect someone to awaken to [Will] so quickly?
A trickle of blood ran from Encrid’s left nostril.
‘Easier than with a sword, but…’
He still couldn’t use it recklessly. But he felt something.
“The more you use it, the more it will strengthen.”
The rapier swordsman, seeing the faint nosebleed mixed with rain, spoke.
It was just as Encrid felt.
It would strengthen with use.
His body already knew it.
The two stood for a while, facing each other. The rain grew heavier, and the rapier swordsman stared into his blue eyes and spoke.
What came from his mouth was:
“I can’t reveal my affiliation, but I’m a member—a part of the Order of the Righteous Name. That’s all I can say now, but have you ever thought of following me?”
The downpour raged between them.
Crash! Boom!
Just when it seemed it would stop, the rain came down harder, thunder roaring.
A blue bolt split the sky, lighting up the world.
The rapier swordsman and Encrid locked eyes.
‘Not a duel—’
He hadn’t come to fight, but to judge and persuade.
Especially after revealing himself as a member of the Order of the Righteous Name.
In other words—
“Join the Order. I’ll illuminate your path.”
It was the path to becoming a knight.