A Knight Who Eternally Regresses
Chapter 447

"Enki, wave."

It was afternoon. The sun had not yet set.

At Aisia’s call, Enkrid relaxed his grip on the sword.

Just as Lua Garne was undoing the whip wrapped around her waist, telling him that Frokk's fight was starting, she spoke.

"Let’s go. It’s not something you see every day."

Lua Garne wrapped the whip back around her waist and spoke again.

Enkrid agreed, and everyone followed.

"We’re going to watch a hell of a show. Hell, hell, heeeelllll."

Rem hummed as he walked along, and Dunbakel reluctantly took a step and opened his mouth.

"Let’s go. It’s a magical realm, oh joy."

It wasn’t exactly a joyful tone.

Enkrid walked briskly toward the northwest of the city, recalling the days when he fought alongside junior knights in Azpen's battlefield.

How his heart had pounded at the sight of those junior knights charging with their red cloaks billowing.

This time, it was a knight’s charge.

Not training, but real combat.

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t excited.

They soon arrived in front of the western gate. The two massive gates were carved out of whole stones.

It was so impressive that Enkrid couldn’t help but wonder how they had done it.

About thirty soldiers had gathered, all armed with longbows and standing in a line atop the city walls.

"You made it? This is your first time seeing a gate like this, right?"

Oara greeted Enkrid with a smile in front of the closed gate.

"Did you carve this yourself?"

"No, my grandfather did."

It sounded like there was a story behind that answer. They wouldn’t hear it now, though.

"Hey! The man of Rowena, show us some courage!"

A shout came from outside the gate.

"Open it."

Oara spoke to the four soldiers with thick forearms standing in front of the gate and then tapped Enkrid’s forearm.

"Today, just watch from the wall. Wait and see, a man’s pure love will show a miracle!"

Oara spoke to Enkrid, then shouted toward the open gate.

Enkrid did as he was told. He placed his foot on the stone steps leading up to the city wall. The steps were made of stacked bricks. The handrails built on the opposite side of the wall reached up to chest height.

Enkrid grabbed the handrail and climbed up. There wasn’t a speck of dust on the handrail, a clear sign that it was regularly cleaned by people who passed by.

"Oh, looks like a public execution."

Rem said, following him. He seemed to think it was going to be an interesting spectacle.

"Is that fun?"

Dunbakel, unusually, showed some irritation. After getting beaten up badly by Rem and pretending to limp, it was rare for Dunbakel to express negative feelings.

Enkrid knew the sight ahead was likely stirring some old wounds for Dunbakel, but he let it go.

It was something Dunbakel would have to process himself.

"It’s fun."

Rem chuckled as he replied.

Dunbakel remained silent, pouting, his lips pushed out.

Lua Garne, without saying a word, ate a dried-up insect.

It seemed she enjoyed the delicacy, something she loved near magical realms.

It might have been worth paying the innkeeper a few more silver coins.

Gulp.

Chomp.

Lua Garne stuck out her tongue and quickly swallowed the insect.

The sight of her long tongue coiling around and swallowing the insect felt strangely endearing.

"Does it taste good?"

"Want one?" Lua Garne offered as she opened her palm.

A white, slimy insect was visible, a pupa.

Rem declined.

Enkrid’s gaze drifted right, following the city wall.

Aisia was also visible atop the opposite wall.

Their eyes met. Aisia gestured forward with her chin, as if telling him to watch.

Enkrid glanced at Aisia once, then turned his gaze away.

"Oara!"

The sound came from outside the gate. Someone shouted with a battle cry.

"Oara!"

The soldiers on both sides of the gate shouted in unison.

Boom!

A soldier equipped with a longbow on the city wall stomped his foot in sync with the shout.

"Damn it, I’ll do it! If I say I’ll do it, I’ll do it!"

The man of Rowena, standing alone, shouted.

The wave hadn’t even started yet, but Enkrid already felt an uneasy prickle of foreboding.

Beyond the city wall, the land of humans stretched out into a dark gray forest.

A place tainted by the energy of monsters; it was clearly a magical realm.

Right in front of the city wall, the soil was a yellowish-brown color, but as they approached the magical realm, the ground gradually darkened.

The trees in the gray forest looked black, the soil beneath them seemed almost black as well.

It looked like it would smell foul, and sure enough, there was a faint odor of decay in the air.

A mound of dirt, resembling a tomb, seemed to mark the entrance to the forest.

And from that mound, monsters began to crawl out.

Goooooo.

The cries of the monsters vibrated the ground and spread through the air, reaching the city walls.

In Enkrid’s mind, the sound of the monsters seemed to fly toward him like a spear, only to be blocked by the wall.

His senses had matured to the point where, instead of just feeling the energy, he could see it almost as clearly as if it were in front of him.

The time he spent fighting knights had not been in vain, and he realized this once again.

Enkrid’s eyes fixed on the group of monsters beyond the gray forest.

Some were crawling on the ground, some had long arms that touched the earth, others had their mouths split open and drooled, and a few had two heads.

All of them had long claws. Some had claws longer than their fingernails, and one even walked on its hands, only using its feet to touch the ground to maintain balance.

Between the torn skin, the muscle fibers were visible; these were ghouls.

Monsters that ate humans.

The ghouls they had fought before in the colony were unusual, but these ones were even more unique.

"The magical realm evolves monsters."

Didn’t Lua Garne say that?

The scene before him made that statement immediately understandable. And there were so many of them.

In the span of just a moment, over fifty of them emerged.

Behind the black curtain, the inside of the gray trees was obscured.

From there, more ghouls kept crawling out.

It wasn’t called a wave for nothing. It seemed small, like a gentle tide now, but once they started running, it would turn into a full-on wave.

And, of course, they weren’t just ordinary ghouls.

Even in a magical realm, there would be common ghouls, but these ones were from a colony. They were those that had become part of a colony within the magical realm.

Monsters that band together to claim the land, chew on flesh and bone, and drink blood.

"They’re different."

A squad of three or four normal soldiers could be considered enough to take down one ghoul.

Skilled soldiers could probably handle two ghouls without too much trouble.

But these ghouls?

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

If they were to fight, Enkrid figured they would need at least ten soldiers.

And those soldiers would need to be experienced.

"Anyone who charges in recklessly will be torn apart."

One of the ghouls grabbed a stone on the ground and crushed it into pieces.

It would be a mistake to underestimate these monsters.

The sunlight seemed to fade, like the magical realm itself rejected the light.

The gray trees and dark-brown earth gave the impression that the very land resisted the sun.

It was the time when fear would settle in.

Looking at the hundreds of ghouls crawling out of the magical realm could certainly bring fear.

Gooooo.

The ghouls’ cries were like soot rising from the abyss.

Low, thick, and leaving a mark on the land.

How could humans face the terror of those running on the ground?

Enkrid himself would unsheathe his sword.

"Damn it."

Rem sneered.

"Why do we even do public executions?"

Dunbakel avoided the reality.

"The ghouls from the magical realm and those fighting here, it’s the first time for all of you, so watch closely."

Lua Garne seemed intent on teaching Enkrid something, even at the risk of death.

She probably thought if she didn’t teach him, he wouldn’t properly learn anything.

It was right in front of the city wall.

From behind the man of Rowena, the response to the ghouls’ cries echoed.

"Oara!"

It was the same battle cry as before.

It was the countercry to the ghoul’s dark resonance.

"Smile!"

With the battle cry came the stomping of feet on the city wall, shaking the earth beneath.

The soldiers of Rowena shouted their resolve and conviction, facing the monsters, the magical realm, and the city.

"Let’s die smiling!"

These were the people of Oara, the knights who smiled as they fought.

And they would die smiling.

"I love you! Rowena!"

The soldier at the front, the one who lost the wager, shouted.

Oara kept her word, faithful even to the most casual of promises.

A knight always keeps their word.

It was a vow.

Will comes from resolve, and resolve comes from conviction.

A knight who does not keep their word cannot properly use the will they possess as a knight.

Gooooo!

The cry of the ghoul echoed across the ground.

The ghoul horde, armed with soot, began to charge.

Their black eyes tore through the light, and their greedy tongues searched for red blood and soft flesh.

Gooooo!

To Enkrid’s eyes, the soldier known as Rowena’s man would have been considered above average even among the Border Guard.

He would have quickly earned his place among Martai's frontier defense.

However, he was not enough to hold back a wave of monsters on his own.

Still, he did not retreat.

Though Enkrid could not see the soldier’s face from atop the city wall, he could imagine it.

"If I survive, let’s get married!"

The brave shout, presumably from Rowena, made Enkrid picture the soldier’s expression.

He was probably smiling.

Even if he died, he would die smiling.

"Are you going?"

Enkrid had already placed one hand on the city wall.

Rem, noticing, asked.

"Maybe?"

He would do whatever felt right. That’s how Enkrid lived.

And so, the soldier would not die today.

Enkrid tightened his grip on the hand he had placed on the wall. It was high, and with all the weight he carried, it wasn’t the easiest jump, but it wasn’t impossible either.

"You don’t need to go."

Rem spoke, nodding his head toward the scene below.

The one who had been shouting behind Rowena’s man had already leapt out.

It wasn’t a swift move, but rather a heavy step.

Thud, thud, he pounded the ground, building speed. Soon, his body passed the soldier, drawing a long line toward the ghoul ahead.

Despite the weight he seemed to carry, his steps were faster than the ghouls, who were moving on all fours.

It was just as Rowena’s man was about to meet the first ghoul.

"I love you! Rowena!"

The soldier shouted his confession in a manner almost like a joke, then stabbed his spear into the ghoul. He didn’t even have the chance to check if anyone was behind him.

He was focused on killing the ghoul.

The spearwork was excellent.

With a thud, the spear’s tip shot up from below, piercing the ghoul’s skull.

He pulled the spear out, but after a moment of struggle, he gave up and grabbed another spear, which had been planted at an angle on the ground.

Only then did he realize someone had come up behind him.

He shouted.

"Good start!"

From the city wall, Enkrid recognized the person who had arrived: it was Squire Oliver.

"The squire with the hexagonal mace!"

One of the soldiers shouted from the row of soldiers.

Oliver had a nickname, and he was now proving it.

There were six ghouls in total. One had already been killed by the soldier, leaving five.

Oliver was holding a long rod with a metal ball at the end.

The end of the metal ball was hexagonal.

He slowed down slightly, then pushed off the ground to leap between the ghouls.

By altering his speed, he made sure the ghouls couldn’t react in time.

It was a great move. Oliver swung the mace within the pack of ghouls.

Thud, crack!

The sound was like fireworks going off.

The mace smashed into the ghoul’s skull, and black blood and bone fragments exploded into the air.

But Oliver wasn’t alone.

"The bet is over. Fall back."

Oliver waved the soldier back.

There were four squires in Thousand Brick, each one more than capable of holding their own, if not knights themselves.

Starting with Oliver, the other three squires moved. Their weapons were similar.

One had a flail, with spiked iron balls attached to a chain.

Another wielded a morningstar, and the last carried a war hammer with a long handle.

The four squires formed a front line, swinging their weapons.

Bang, crack, snap, thud.

Bones broke, and blood sprayed. In the middle of the battlefield, the four squires shouted.

"Let’s die smiling!"

Enkrid recalled the junior knights he had seen on the battlefield in Azpen.

They, too, wore red cloaks.

The sight of their charge was as electrifying as the last time.

He couldn’t help but resent Oara’s earlier words to just watch.

Of course, Enkrid could have ignored her and gone ahead.

But there was no time, no opportunity.

"Let’s go."

Oara was the first to move.

The knight led her two junior knights.

"Excited, aren’t we?"

Rem murmured, his hands itching to join the fight.

Dunbakel stuffed his mouth and pressed up against the city wall.

The two junior knights moved. The man wielded a thick, sword-like club.

It could hardly be called a sword.

There was a handle, but no guard. Instead, it was a long, thick block of metal.

The surface was rounded, making it look like he was carrying a metal pillar.

He swung it like a practice sword, but it was no practice sword.

Thud!

With a single strike, three or four ghouls were torn apart and scattered.

The short-haired blonde junior knight fought in a completely different manner.

She threw thin daggers or pulled out a sharp, pointed sword to stab and retreat.

Her fighting style was quiet, not making a sound atop the city wall.

Her destructive power was different, but her lethality was comparable.

Gooooo!

The ghoul’s cry was like a scream.

From ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) its nostrils, without a nose, green smoke leaked out, soon followed by black blood.

It collapsed with a gulp.

Though its skull wasn’t shattered, it fell face-first to the ground.

"Hah?"

Rem reacted, looking like he knew what was going on.

And there was Oara.

From inside the wave of ghouls, a ghoul woman, with sagging breasts, emerged.

She was a female ghoul and the leader of the pack.

The ghoul stretched out her arm. Her limbs extended like a mollusk, stabbing toward Oara.

Her arm seemed to stretch on its own, faster than Enkrid could see, crossing over the battlefield and cutting through the soldiers behind her.

If Enkrid hadn’t seen it from a distance, he would have been too stunned to block it. It was that fast.

Just that single fact proved it—she was a monster that could take on even junior knights alone.

The four squires and the two junior knights had carved a path through hundreds of ghouls, killing them with their weapons.

As the ghoul's arm extended, Enkrid saw Oara’s back. The knight swung her sword.

It was a diagonal strike from below, aimed upward.

It wouldn’t have meant anything if done from where she stood.

But the meaning of Oara’s action came through in her movement.

As the sword rose, she moved forward.

Her sword cut across the ghoul’s extended arm.

But the strike didn’t end there.

Simple, yet the straightest line.

A line connecting one point to another.

Enkrid had done something similar, but never quite like this.

Oara, from where she stood, struck one point, then, in a series of steps, connected it to another point far off and cut a path between them.

That was the only way to describe it.

Swoosh, crack.

Oara’s image was blurred with afterimages.

First, she struck the ground, then cut through the ghoul’s arm, and finally, with a vertical slash, split the ghoul from chest to head before raising her sword to the heavens.

"Where are you going?"

Oara said.

The ghoul leader fell.

Enkrid shuddered.

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