Eternally Regressing Knight - Chapter 25: Tall Grass Field

“Let’s cut through the field and track the enemy scouts. What do you think?”

The scout squad leader’s eyes gleamed with excitement and confidence as he spoke.

A new day began.

In short, the retreat failed.

Encrid woke up, replaying the events of the day before, trying to understand what went wrong.

‘Where did I make a mistake?’

Perhaps heading east was a mistake.

‘No, that seemed fine.’

Reviewing his actions was a habit for Encrid.

He had run east, encountered the crossbow unit again, and had bolts piercing his body until one lodged in his head, ending his life.

The pain from that experience was something he never wanted to relive.

But without reflecting on it, he would continue to die. And he hated that more.

So he revisited each step, seeking the problem.

‘I heard it first and got the opportunity.’

He caught the unusual sound, thanks to Jaxson’s training.

Heart of the Beast had kept him calm and rational.

He had chosen a direction to break through.

He failed.

‘If I do it again.’

He felt he could succeed. It wasn’t that the pursuing unit caught him but rather that he ran into a waiting unit.

‘I need to choose a different path.’

Deep in thought, someone tapped his shoulder.

It was Enri.

Encrid realized he had been too absorbed in his thoughts.

“Just look around and bear with it,” Enri advised.

“What do you mean, bear with it?”

“You don’t look happy.”

Enri nodded towards the front.

Encrid looked ahead and met the eyes of the rough-faced soldier following the squad leader closely. Though it seemed like he was glaring, it wasn’t out of hostility.

‘He asked me to understand the squad leader, so he’s reasonable.’

The rough-faced soldier probably intended to talk to him, but the situation wasn’t right. He looked away first.

Acknowledging Enri, Encrid nodded and walked on, pushing aside the grass as he went.

Soon, the familiar sight of tall green grass obscured his vision.

Facing an ambush here would be bad. Entering this place was normally a reckless act.

‘What if we don’t enter at all?’

That wasn’t an option.

The purpose of their mission was to scout this tall grass field.

Ignoring that would defeat their purpose.

Claiming to have sensed an ambush before even entering?

Even if he tried to redirect the mission, the other nine soldiers wouldn’t agree.

There was no avoiding it. This new “today” was always like this.

But was it really a problem?

‘Not bad.’

He had fought only once properly.

Enri had questioned how he could be a bottom-tier soldier.

The squad leader had insulted himself.

‘Real combat.’

It had been a single battle, but the experience was invaluable.

Heart of the Beast kept him from panicking.

He had sliced and thrust his sword through the gaps.

He predicted the enemy’s moves and acted accordingly.

A thrill ran through him.

‘A good opportunity.’

Before the scouting mission, both Rem and Ragna had critiqued his swordsmanship.

He had learned from them.

He had made personal discoveries.

It was all coming together.

“See this? The grass is flattened here.”

“Animal tracks.”

Encrid was a man who knew how to use what he had learned.

He pretended to know.

Enri, noticing, rolled his eyes and asked, “You have hunting experience?”

“Just picked up a few things along the way.”

It was what Enri had taught him.

Encrid answered honestly and continued with small talk.

Meanwhile, he moved forward quickly.

Right behind the squad leader.

He was assessing the formation of the scouting unit.

He hadn’t paid much attention to this detail before.

The squad leader was at the front, with two soldiers on each side.

The rough-faced soldier was directly behind the squad leader.

The rest followed in the rear.

‘Not a complete fool.’

The formation was reasonable.

If they encountered the enemy, they were in a good position to respond.

A unit armed with crossbows would render formations useless.

During his last “today,” the scout squad leader had refrained from making foolish decisions.

He had followed Encrid’s lead.

His swordsmanship was decent, and the rough-faced soldier was highly skilled.

‘At least mid-level.’

By Naurilia’s standards, both the squad leader and the rough-faced soldier were competent.

Enri wasn’t bad either, carrying a shortbow and capable of rapid fire.

Not enough to survive dozens of bolts, though.

‘Avoid crossbow units at all costs.’

Encrid stuck close behind the squad leader on purpose.

Seeing this, the rough-faced soldier didn’t speak, likely due to his respect for the squad leader.

Rustle. Growl! Crackle.

He heard the same sounds again.

“Get down.”

He grabbed the squad leader’s collar and pulled him back.

Last time, only four had escaped.

This time, he aimed to save more.

“Ugh!”

The squad leader fell back with a yelp.

“Enemies!”

An enemy shouted. Bolts flew towards them.

In the meantime, Encrid kicked the knees of two allied soldiers, making them fall.

Bolts whizzed overhead.

Encrid spread his legs apart, lowering his body.

A startled grasshopper jumped away.

Using the elasticity of his thigh muscles and spinal erectors, he stood up, throwing a knife as he did.

Ping—the knife cut through the air.

It missed but made the enemy flinch.

That brief moment was enough.

Whack.

He lightly struck the squad leader’s forehead with his elbow.

“Get a grip.”

He dashed forward.

Stomping on grass and dirt, he drew his sword, preparing for a one-handed thrust.

‘With all my strength.’

Determined to pierce, but not to waste energy. How to put full force into a thrust and still have strength left?

“It’s about feeling. You get the feel by doing it repeatedly.”

That’s what Rem had told him during practice.

Encrid absorbed this lesson now.

Thunk.

The sword’s tip pierced the enemy’s chest.

He twisted and withdrew it.

The blade had split muscle, nerve, and heart.

Pretending to swing horizontally, he closed the distance and kicked another enemy’s shin.

The enemy had been aiming a crossbow.

“Ugh!”

The hit made the enemy bow his head, and Encrid smashed the back of his head with the pommel of his sword.

Crack!

It felt like splitting tough wood.

Having taken down two enemies, he saw a large enemy wearing thick cloth armor and holding a round shield charging at him.

Ping, ping, ping!

Enri fired three rapid arrows.

But they didn’t penetrate the armor.

Blood didn’t seep from the spots where arrows struck. One poorly placed arrow shook and fell to the ground.

In his haste, Enri hadn’t fully utilized the bow’s power.

Encrid switched the sword to his left hand and swung.

Clang!

The blade met the shield’s edge, sparking.

It dented the shield but left Encrid’s hand numb.

“Raagh!”

The enemy roared, attacking from above.

Thump.

A moment’s hesitation meant death.

Panic would lead to death.

That was the battlefield.

Heart of the Beast shone in such moments.

The courage to remain calm in the heart of battle.

Encrid could clearly see the shield’s trajectory.

“Watch carefully, dodge well.”

Rem’s lesson.

He watched and dodged.

“Every part of the sword has a purpose. From hilt to tip.”

Ragna’s lesson.

He stepped back just in time.

The shield whizzed past his nose, blowing his hair back.

“Huff, huff!”

The enemy tensed, lifting the shield again.

Rough breaths came from behind the shield.

His eyes above the shield watched Encrid intently.

Attacking the shield would prolong the fight.

Encrid switched his grip, holding the blade near the hilt, then rotated his waist and knees to swing with full force.

Before the shield-bearer could react, the blade struck.

Thunk.

The sword’s tip hit the enemy’s eye.

Blood and clear fluid poured out.

“Argh!”

The blinded enemy screamed.

Encrid, holding the bloody blade, drew a short sword.

He drove it into the enemy’s neck, then pulled it out.

Splash.

Blood spurted in sync with his movements.

The shield-bearer fell, gurgling blood.

“This way!”

The brutal scene left the remaining soldiers stunned, staring at Encrid.

How many had he killed in that brief time?

Encrid retrieved his sword, now covered in blood.

He cleaned it quickly and moved.

This time, six soldiers followed him.

He had saved two more.

“…Who are you?”

The scout squad leader asked, running alongside him.

“Is this the time to ask?”

They should be running.

Encrid led them east again.

They continued fighting and killing any enemies they encountered.

This time, they ventured deeper.

‘I chose the wrong direction.’

He was certain east wasn’t the right path.

This time, they faced fifty spearmen.

A well-trained unit of fifty spearmen was a platoon.

Three couldn’t face them.

They lost the rest, leaving only the scout squad leader and the rough-faced soldier.

“Unlucky,” the rough-faced soldier muttered.

“Damn it,” the squad leader glanced around in despair.

Encrid steeled himself.

“I’ll take five with me.”

From the enemy’s perspective, he must have seemed insane.

Charging at fifty spearmen?

To them, he was a madman.

His sword skills showed he could fight, but not at an extraordinary level.

He killed three spearmen before a spear pierced his abdomen, ending his life.

The pain was excruciating.

His last memory was seeing a long banner laid out behind the unit of spearmen.

“Let’s go this way. Killing the enemy scouts beyond this field will bring us honor. Or should we capture them instead?”

Listening to the squad leader, Encrid once again replayed the day’s events.

Reflection.

‘There’s no way out in the east.’

This time, he would try heading north.

Real combat was invaluable.

Even Rem and Ragna, despite their differences, agreed.

Even Jaxson had said that the best way to train one’s senses was to fight for your life.

In those moments, human focus could transcend its limits.

Encrid was proving that with his life.

‘I’ve improved.’

It wasn’t arrogance or overconfidence.

Objectively, he had become much stronger.

And he was still improving.

In this endless cycle, Encrid died nine more times in the north, six more times in the east, and twelve more times in the west.

The battles continued.

He couldn’t gain skills instantly, but he could progress step by step.

Each time he experienced that thrill.

Because he was growing.

Because today was better than yesterday.

“Raaah!”

Thud!

During one of his repeated days, a brave enemy soldier’s spear grazed his cheek.

Previously, Encrid wouldn’t have been able to dodge.

It was a strike similar to that of a seasoned spearman, but he evaded it.

He didn’t just dodge.

Endless real combat had ingrained good habits in Encrid.

He dodged and then brought his sword down vertically.

Thunk.

In that moment, he felt something strange.

He struck, but the sensation in his hand was faint.

It felt like cutting through rotten wood.

It was that easy.

The enemy’s arm was cleanly severed.

There was no sound.

A perfect strike.

A cut so clean it was as if there had been no resistance.

“Ah.”

He was so surprised he nearly lost focus.

It was the first time experiencing this in battle.

He felt the weight of the sword in his hand.

The thrilling sensation of a perfect cut.

“Ha, unbelievable.”

He was ecstatic.

Covered in blood, he laughed. He couldn’t contain his joy and satisfaction.

“Crazy bastard!”

From the enemy’s perspective, he was a madman.

But Encrid kept dying and repeating today.

In this repeated today, everything he had learned in training became ingrained in his body.