Enkrid was told that a healer had visited, who treated his various puncture and stab wounds.
“Luckily, there will be no permanent damage. Our Squad Leader is fortunate,” Big Eyes said with a grin.
"You sound like you were hoping I'd get hurt."
"No, I’m just worried. You should feel honored. You're the first man I've ever worried about."
"Alright then."
Enkrid had thought they would retreat soon, but the troops were still in a standoff with the Azpen Kingdom.
Would there be more battles?
Regardless, it wouldn’t involve Enkrid. Returning to the battlefield with his current injuries was out of the question. Maybe he'd just observe.
Big Eyes had left him an apple, which Enkrid was munching on when Rem entered. The rest of the squad had left the tent, so they were alone. Rem sat next to Enkrid, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin on his hands. He stared at Enkrid with his lips firmly closed.
“If you're going to confess, let me reject you first.”
“You know I like women, right? If you and a woman I'd never met before were both drowning, I'd save the woman. Of course, assuming she's pretty.”
“It’s okay. I swim well. Don’t bother saving me, I’ll manage on my own.”
“Then you can save me next time. Turns out, I’m not a great swimmer.”
What was he thinking, saying he’d save a drowning woman then?
Enkrid found it very typical of Rem.
"Sure, I'll throw you a rock."
Their usual banter continued until Rem fell silent and just stared at Enkrid. His gray eyes locked on Enkrid without a flicker, filled with an unprecedented seriousness.
"Do you have something to say?"
“How did you know it was sorcery?”
Huh? Enkrid hadn’t expected that question here.
"I saw it during a scouting mission."
“You figured it was sorcery just from that? You seemed to know the flagpole was the target.”
That was true. He had known. But he couldn't say he had learned it by repeating today. He needed a plausible excuse. He was about to fabricate a lie but felt uneasy under Rem's scrutinizing gray eyes. Even if he told the truth, Rem wouldn’t believe him. But should he lie outright?
A clumsy lie would be easily spotted. Enkrid didn't want to treat Rem that way. So, he mixed in some truth.
“I once lived with a pioneer.”
That was true since Rem himself was a pioneer.
“I learned a lot from that friend.”
That was also true since Rem had told him about sorcery.
“So, I thought about it and guessed.”
This wasn’t entirely true, but it was close enough. Instead of guessing, he had learned by repeating today and figuring it out physically. One could say he thought with his body instead of his mind. At least, that's what Enkrid believed as he spoke.
“It seemed like the flagpole was the medium for the sorcery. I saw the enemy's formation acting strangely before the fog appeared, and then I charged.”
“Hmm.”
People are easily deceived when a lie is mixed with truth. This is because the speaker genuinely believes what they’re saying. When sincerity is involved, even a sharp-witted person struggles to find the falsehood.
Enkrid spoke with sincerity, omitting only what couldn’t be said.
Rem believed him. Even if he didn’t fully believe, there was no room for doubt.
“That’s how it was? It’s impressive that you figured it out so quickly.”
“If it’s sorcery, so what?”
“I wanted to tell you not to mess with it recklessly.”
“Is that so?”
Rem nodded. Enkrid remembered that Rem had been absent during the battle. He had expected Rem to come to his location when they charged, but he hadn’t. He hadn’t seen him since. Then he had returned to the unit.
“I want to ask where you went during the battle.”
“It was nothing. I was curious who set up that flagpole, so I went to check it out.”
“...You checked it out?”
“Yeah, and had a chat with my axe.”
Rem grinned and left the tent. Enkrid recalled the moment he had toppled the flagpole. The sorcerer had been ringing bells but quickly disappeared. He hadn’t paid much attention as he was focused on destroying the flag. Apparently, the sorcerer had fled and ran into Rem’s axe. Enkrid decided it wasn’t a big deal.
Rem’s impulsive actions were nothing new. In a previous battle, he had charged into the enemy lines, claiming he was going to capture a "hawk’s talon" or something.
The platoon leader, knowing this, had excluded the troublemaking squad from the main force. Only the remaining squad was counted as part of the platoon’s strength.
This time was no different.
However, there was something unusual. This time, Enkrid had left the formation first. That was unusual.
“Hey, you alright?”
The platoon leader entered the tent.
“Are you visiting the sick? When are we returning?”
This content is taken from fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm.
Enkrid asked abruptly. The platoon leader shrugged.
“There’s no order from above yet. We’re all on standby.”
Winter was approaching. It was a difficult season for continued fighting. While they wouldn’t leave this outpost entirely unmanned, their battalion had fought hard in this battle, so they would likely be relieved soon.
That there was no return order yet was strange. The platoon leader scratched his head as he looked at Enkrid.
“You.”
“Yes.”
The platoon leader hadn’t thought much of Enkrid’s departure at the time. He had only wondered if Enkrid had finally lost it. Later, he had survived by following the orders to get down and raise shields. When he thought he was done for in the fog, it suddenly cleared.
They had turned and fought the enemy. He later heard that the fog was sorcery, which wouldn’t dissipate unless the medium was destroyed or the sorcerer was killed. He had heard all this from the company commander.
“Who could have done it?”
The company commander had asked, staring at him with green eyes. The platoon leader had thought of Enkrid’s name then.
At the very least, he suspected that squad had done something. After all, Enkrid had charged out before the fog appeared. And the shouts had sounded like Enkrid’s voice.
The platoon leader, gathering his thoughts, spoke.
“They say that fog was sorcery.”
“Yes, I reported that.”
Right. Enkrid had reported it during a reconnaissance mission.
“Hmm. Right.”
The platoon leader looked at Enkrid for a moment, then told him to take care and left.
‘It makes no sense.’
He knew Enkrid’s skill level. He wasn’t the worst, but at best, he could lead a village militia. While there were formidable soldiers in his squad, Enkrid wasn’t one of them. The medium for sorcery would be deep within enemy lines, unless the enemy were fools. Someone would have had to infiltrate that deep.
‘Through that thick fog?’
Dodging bolts and arrows?
The troublemaker squad leader?
Impossible.
He had even asked Rem just in case, but Rem had denied it. Ragna was out of the question. He had been fighting beside them once the fog cleared. The remaining squad members had been fighting as part of the rear platoon formation.
‘Did reinforcements come from the main force?’
Thinking this, the platoon leader stepped outside. The temperature had dropped sharply, and the cold had set in.
“Are we really not retreating?”
He longed for the city’s air. He missed his home, his wife, and his daughter. He wanted to roast potatoes by the fire and sleep soundly.
After two days in bed, Enkrid was able to get up and move around.
“Don’t overdo it.”
Big Eyes was worried, but Enkrid’s condition was better than expected.
“Is that beast gone?”
Big Eyes asked. Enkrid, sitting up in bed, nodded and looked around.
“Seems so. It’s not here.”
“It seemed to like you a lot.”
“Weren’t you scared?”
“I’m scared. It’s a beast. A wild beast.”
“It looked like a cub, though.”
“You know the hunter, Enri, who scouts with us? He mentioned going out with you.”
Big Eyes asked suddenly. Enkrid nodded, thinking how well-connected Big Eyes was. How did he know Enri?
“He’s from the plains, right?”
Enkrid knew that well. He had learned a lot from Enri himself.
“Enri said there are many wild beasts on the Green Pearl Plains, and the most formidable among them is the Black Panther with Blue Eyes, called the Cheonganpyo. They also call it the Lake Panther.”
Big Eyes was excited, clearly intrigued by the story.
“They say its eyes look like lakes, hence the name Lake Panther. While they hunt gazelles and gnus, they usually draw energy from the earth. They’re considered spirit animals. One of their claws is worth over 10,000 Krona.”
Krona was the currency created by the Empire. One bronze coin was worth 1 Krona.
A hundred bronze coins equaled one silver coin, and a hundred silver coins equaled one gold coin.
So, 10,000 Krona equaled one gold coin.
One claw worth a gold coin. That was more than Enkrid’s pay.
“Do you think you could pull out a claw that could slit a man’s throat?”
“...I’m not greedy.”
Big Eyes waved his hand dismissively. As Enkrid moved around a bit, he started to sweat and felt a dull pain. Still, it was manageable. Having faced death so often, gauging his wounds by the pain was second nature to him.
“If you push yourself, it’ll get worse.”
Jaxon, who had been watching, spoke. Only Big Eyes and Jaxon were still there, the others having gone out.
“I’m pacing myself.”
As he answered, moving around, he recalled how he had deflected the Mustached Man’s strike. How had he done it?
Could he do it again if asked?
He wasn’t sure. Maybe not?
Then again, with a few more tries, he thought he could. As he pondered, Rem and Ragna returned.
“Walk further apart. Laziness is contagious.”
Rem teased.
“Why do you always seem eager to die?”
Ragna countered twice as hard. Before the argument could escalate, Enkrid spoke up.
“I have a question. About swordsmanship.”
Both looked at him.
“Go ahead.”
“If it’s about swordsmanship, I should answer.”
They started glaring at each other again, so Enkrid quickly continued. It wasn’t complicated. He had seen an enemy do something several times, and it had become ingrained in his body and emerged unconsciously. That was the gist of it. He explained his experience as plainly as possible.
“Well, that kind of thing happens with practice.”
Rem answered first.
“Interesting experience. I’ve always thought I was special since childhood, but in your case, it’s divine blessing. The Goddess of Fortune must have tripped and dropped a gold coin.”
Ragna followed. Neither comment was particularly helpful. They started bickering over Enkrid again, but then more detailed explanations emerged.
“When you fight enough, there are moments when your vision clears. Usually, that happens after countless real battles. If you’ve achieved a point of focus, the chances are higher.”
“Since you’ve somewhat adapted to the Beast’s Heart, you have the ability to watch your opponent’s moves without flinching. If you had a chance to closely observe your opponent’s sword techniques and the distribution of force, your body could respond instinctively. But that only happens if you’ve mastered the basics.”
“The basics are important, but you also need hundreds of rough real battles.”
Listening to them, Enkrid reached a conclusion.
‘Ah.’
What was just a single day for others. For Enkrid, it had been hundreds of fiercely contested days. Not days spent giving up.
Every moment, he had struggled and given his all. The countless hours he had endured and enjoyed had brought him fortune.
In reality, it wasn’t just luck. It was only natural.
The result of studying and persevering through being cut, stabbed, scratched, and killed. Underlying it all was the Beast’s Heart, which granted him courage, and the point of focus.
‘Grateful again.’
It was thanks to these two things. Moreover, Ragna had completely overhauled his basic swordsmanship. The battle with Mitch Hurrier, the pursuit by the mustached man, the day on the battlefield.
Complex thoughts filled his head, sparking a single desire. He wanted to hold a sword again. To swing it. To see how well the last deflection technique had been internalized.
“I want to spar.”
Enkrid mumbled, and both Rem and Ragna shook their heads. Rem added a comment.
“I’ve been called crazy and abnormal since I was a kid, but I think the Squad Leader is crazier than me.”
Of all people, hearing this from Rem was the last thing he wanted. Rem, who constantly harassed nearby soldiers. Rem, who once tried to decapitate a superior. To be called crazier than this lunatic, it was even more insane.
“Today, I must agree. What kind of sparring can be done in that condition?”
Was wanting to spar such a crime?
Enkrid felt deeply wronged.
“Sparring in that condition is impossible, Squad Leader.”
Rustle.
The tent flap opened, and a voice was heard. Looking up, it was the elf company commander.
When Enkrid tried to stand, she approached.
“Was it you?”
Before he could salute, she asked directly. Enkrid, looking at the sharp, cold beauty of the elf that resembled a sculpture made by an artist, wetted his dry lips before speaking. He had expected her to ask instead of Rem.
How did you break the sorcery?
That was a question from the command.