“Form up!”
The commander’s shout echoed.
Approaching were eight wolf beasts.
Beasts and monsters were formidable threats. Especially since the Border Guard was in a city frequented by caravans and merchants, they were quite proactive in clearing the surrounding monsters and beasts.
“Why are they so active in winter?”
One soldier grumbled as he readied his spear. To Encrid’s ears, it sounded like he was deliberately trying to ease his tension.
Twenty soldiers, following orders, formed a solid phalanx against the wolf beasts.
It was standard to face beasts one-on-many.
The platoon leader adhered strictly to the basics.
And Encrid found that uncomfortable.‘This is the first time for something like this.’
What he meant was the desire to rush out, yearning for real combat, which training couldn’t satisfy.
A fight that drew blood, the time to consolidate what was gained from it, the very moment of taking a step forward.
That’s what Encrid longed for.
Not poking at the approaching beasts with a spear.
This wasn’t helpful. It felt almost boring.
Normally, seeing a beast should make his legs tremble.
Rem, unusually quiet, laughed beside him.
“You look frustrated.”
Normally, he would tell him to stab the beast’s eyes instead of looking at faces, but the frustration made him speak.
“Can you see it?”
“Now the Squad Leader has become the odd one out.”
Rem laughed with an incomprehensible remark and added another comment.
“Didn’t you know there’s a fine line between extraordinary and crazy?”
He didn’t.
What would happen if he jumped into the midst of the eight beasts?
Assuming Rem had his back.
It seemed it would end much quicker than stabbing at them one by one with twenty spears.
How long would it take to clear all the surrounding monsters and beasts at this rate?
It would take a long time. It felt like wasting time.
Having never once neglected phalanx training until now, his body naturally fulfilled its duty as part of the formation.
But the frustration remained.
Rem kept laughing beside him, which felt like it was pushing him.
Why did he come along and do this?
Encrid thrust his spear forward. The forceful spear tip grazed the beast’s forepaw.
“Growl!”
The wolf beast, reacting to the pain, bared its fangs. The squad leader, seeing this, aimed for its head and thrust his spear, but the cunning beast evaded by backing away.
Up to that point, Encrid deliberately conjured idle thoughts. If not, he would find it hard to resist the urge to rush out and draw his sword to cut them down.
He thought of the panther he had once happened to raise.
‘Esther.’
After splitting the head of that insane sewer wizard, it wasn’t long before the Lake Panther returned, utterly exhausted. It reeked, as if it had eaten some of the rats roaming the sewers.
Too focused on hunting city rats, it lay on the ground, panting heavily.
Feeling sorry for it, Encrid soaked some jerky in water and fed it to him.
Esther eagerly accepted and ate it up.
‘What have you been up to?’
Roar!
Idle thoughts vanished. A wolf beast had approached within spear range.
Pushing aside thoughts of Esther, Encrid thrust his spear at the wolf’s head.
Thud.
The skin on its head tore, and blood splattered.
“Don’t lose your position!”
The platoon leader’s shout rang out.
The unit maintained distance by thrusting their spears at the approaching beasts, threatening them and keeping them at bay.
This fight won’t end quickly.
The pack of attacking beasts, after being stabbed several times, retreated.
This is the right approach.
This is the standard tactic.
Yet, it still felt stifling.
Encrid saw the platoon leader commanding the soldiers.
A well-built figure with a neat appearance.
Was he from the 2nd Company or the 3rd?
Harboring frustration and impatience, Encrid continued wielding his spear.
It’s not masterful. Just thrusting and pulling.
It felt like wearing clothes that didn’t fit.
The spear didn’t feel natural in his hands.
If he had used a spear as his main weapon, he might have been worse with it than a sword.
Ragna had once said,
“Swords or spears, what feels natural in your hands can differ.”
Typically, knights are encouraged to handle various weapons.
So, he learned the basics, but only the sword felt like it fit perfectly in his hand.
‘The sword.’
Only the sword.
It felt like meeting an old friend from the moment he first held it.
The thrill, joy, and anticipation of wielding a sword for the first time.
The pounding heart, the warmth of the sharpened steel.
‘Ah, I want to use the sword.’
He wanted to relive the experience he gained from the wizard’s lair.
He wanted to swing a sword, not a spear.
“Your wish is granted.”
Rem muttered beside him. As Encrid’s gaze turned to him, Rem was already rushing forward.
“Let’s finish this!”
Rem rushed out with a shout, a hint of cheerfulness in his voice. Dirt flew up with every step he took. It was dynamic. His running seemed wilder than the wolf beasts.
“That crazy bastard!”
The platoon leader yelled as if he had been waiting for this. Facing beasts while maintaining the formation is fundamental. If the formation breaks, other soldiers’ lives are at risk.
Breaking formation was undoubtedly wrong. Encrid knew this well.
But
‘Why not just kill all the beasts?’
He couldn’t hold back.
The desire itself was unbearable. The urge to rush out, swing his sword, and relive his experiences.
Encrid inwardly closed his eyes. For a moment, he relied more on his instincts than rational judgment.
Following his instincts, Encrid threw aside his spear and sprinted forward.
“What the hell, you too?!”
The platoon leader’s shout faded into the background.
Rem’s sudden action was within the platoon leader’s expectations.
But Encrid’s was not.
So, it was only natural for him to be shocked.
“Having fun?”
Noticing Encrid following him, Rem spoke while swinging his two axes.
The two axe blades traced arcs in the air. The ends of those arcs inevitably led to slaughter.
The first axe split the head of a wolf that had just approached head-on, and the second axe, slashing sideways, split the jaw of a beast trying to bite his arm.
The two axes were like executioner’s blades.
“Just a bit.”
Acknowledging what needed to be acknowledged.
Encrid also drew his sword. He drew it and slashed horizontally. One beast, in the middle of its charge, had its front leg cut off.
“Yelp!”
Even a beast’s cry was similar to a dog’s.
Encrid pulled back his horizontally extended arm and slashed vertically.
The wolf beast’s head was split open.
Thud!
Pulling the sword out of the split head, he struck the head of another wolf charging from the side with his sword-wielding fist.
Thump!
The beast, hit in the head, rolled to the side.
Only eight beasts.
‘I don’t know since when eight beasts became ‘only’.’
In any case, right now, these were not a threat to Encrid.
Axes split heads, and swords cut and slashed wolves.
The arming sword in his hand didn’t slash as well as a longsword, but it wasn’t too bad.
Ragna had regretted not being able to join them.
One of the eight beasts had been killed by the spears of the phalanx.
Of the remaining seven, four fell to Rem’s axes.
Three were split by Encrid’s sword.
It was a remarkable display of skill.
It was proof that their rank as elite soldiers was well-earned.
“Wow, they fight damn well.” one of the soldiers in the unit muttered in awe.
The platoon leader should have yelled at them. He should have, but instead thought, ‘They leave me with nothing to say.’
They really did fight incredibly well. While forming a phalanx is the basic tactic for facing beasts, if one possesses exceptional strength, using it is also a commander’s skill.
Instead of getting angry, the platoon leader considered efficiency.
This was a good thing for Encrid and Rem.
By strict standards, they were disobeying orders.
More importantly, the platoon leader highly valued Encrid’s presence.
He had seen him a few times before, and back then, he hadn’t seemed very impressive. When had he developed such skill?
Had he suddenly improved as the rumors said?
He didn’t know. He couldn’t be certain about anything.
He could only judge the results.
‘They are above the elite.’
He would believe it if someone said they were one of the Slaughterers of the Frontier.
When they go on beast hunts, they often rely on individual skill rather than maintaining a formation.
“You two.”
Instead of reprimanding them, the platoon leader assigned them a new mission.
If they wanted to fight, let them.
“There is a place where troublesome beasts have appeared. Go there.”
“Understood.”
Among the dead beasts, Encrid the Spell Breaker nodded.
At his calm demeanor, some soldiers let out cheers.
After all, they had wiped out the beasts.
This meant their mission here was over, and the unit could go support another area, allowing them a brief rest.
No one enjoys fighting beasts and risking their lives.
You need to be either extraordinary or insane.
At least one of the two.
“We will return to the city to regroup.” the platoon leader decided, leading the unit back.
Encrid glanced at Rem. Rem, wiping the beast blood off his axes, grinned.
“Do I owe you?”
“Not at all.”
Though he said that, he felt relieved.
But the desire for more still burned within him.
‘This isn’t enough.’
The thirst that a few wolf beasts couldn’t quench.
Real combat, not training.
The fire ignited in Encrid’s chest burned fiercely.
“Let’s go. They told us to head elsewhere.”
Rem said.
A few soldiers who were returning to the unit approached and patted Encrid on the chest.
“Thanks to you, we got to go first.”
The smiling soldier’s face was familiar.
Encrid racked his memory.
It was the soldier from the dice gambling table on the first repeat of today.
He handed Encrid a piece of jerky wrapped in a clean cloth.
“Try it. It’ll be great.”
He said and turned away.
Not just him, but several others showed their approval with their eyes.
A well-fighting soldier is always welcomed by his comrades.
Encrid also had a pleasant personality, so his reputation wasn’t bad.
Unlike Rem.
Everyone kept a reasonable distance from Rem.
Partly because he was a barbarian, but mostly because his rough personality and tendency to pick fights with anyone when bored were well known.
“Seems like we fought together, but we get treated differently. Is this discrimination?”
“It’s karma.”
Encrid said, tearing the jerky in half and sharing it.
He took a bite.
‘It’s different.’
It was delicious. The soft piece of jerky swirled in his mouth before he swallowed it.
The seasoning was just right, and whatever marinade was used gave it a sweet taste.
“What is this? Why is it so good?”
“Right, I’ll have to ask for more later.”
He was curious about the secret recipe.
Encrid pulled on his gloves.
The thick leather gloves fit snugly, providing sturdy protection.
They were one of the items from the corpse-loving wizard who lived in the sewer.
Especially when striking wolves, the impact was much less than expected.
It was indeed a good item.
Although what the wizard did was unsettling, the items themselves were innocent.
The gloves were sturdy. Made from layers of leather, they offered excellent protection and were good for punching, serving well as gauntlets.
The leather armor worn under his gambeson was equally reliable.
After all, it was an item that had protected him against the wizard’s attacks.
When Krais had said it wasn’t just any ordinary item, Encrid had thought it was merely durable.
With his solid gear and newfound insights,Encrid spoke with determination.
“Let’s go.”
Following the platoon leader’s orders, Encrid and Rem moved to another area.
Half a day’s journey south of the city.
They headed to where their allied unit had gathered.
“This looks like the place.”
“Seems like it.”
They had only a simple map and directions to find it.
When they arrived, they found an established camp.
They wouldn’t set up a camp like this unless the beast or monster extermination was quite serious.
Moreover, it was currently in a state of uproar.
As they approached, they noticed something flying in the sky.
Encrid muttered as he joined the battlefield. Rem followed, hopping along behind him.
“Kiyaaah!”
A scream erupted above. A horrific monster announced its presence.
Below it, soldiers with gouged eyes, and limbs scratched and torn, were lying around.
“My eyes! My eyes!”
“Aaaah!”
“Shit! Kill it! Kill it!”
Several crossbowmen fired bolts into the sky.
Thud-thud-thud!
The bolts sliced through the air but didn’t hit a single target.
“Ka-aaah!”
The monster’s cry was an awful noise, making one want to cover their ears.
This was the battlefield.
The enemies were monsters and beasts.
Directly below the flying monsters, a unit of heavily armored soldiers formed a phalanx.
These were heavy infantrymen, all clad in chain mail. This was the 1st Company, composed entirely of heavy infantry.
“Everyone, hold your positions!”
The infantry company commander shouted.
The name of the flying monster was Harpy.
With the upper body of a woman, wings instead of arms, and the lower body of an eagle, it was a grotesque sight.
Red feathers fluttered in the air, and the harpy’s chest heaved. Despite its resemblance to a woman’s chest, it didn’t evoke any sexual feelings.
It was just unsettling.
Seeing the harpy, Encrid froze for a moment.
It reminded him of a time in the past when he had to turn away from a comrade’s death.
The appearance of the Harpy made any resistance by a few mercenaries meaningless.
Death, more death, and retreat.
It was a painful memory.
Though not friends, he had lost over a dozen comrades.
Screech!
The Harpy’ cries had a disorienting effect on people’s minds.
There were over five of them in the sky.
Five crossbowmen aimed at them, but as seen earlier, hitting and bringing them down seemed impossible.
Just as Encrid entered the battlefield.
“Looks like things are getting interesting. You okay?”
Rem asked beside him, and at that moment, one of the Harpy dived toward the newly arrived pair.
Swoosh!
It cut through the air. Its talons, as hard as steel, would gouge out eyes if one were lucky.
Otherwise, it would tear open skulls.
As the harpy approached, Encrid briefly relived the past, but only for a moment.
He never left regrets for past events.
Instead, he focused on moving forward. That was how Encrid lived.
Cling.
He drew his sword.
In that instant, everything seemed to slow down. He traced the trajectory from point to line, and his intuition screamed a warning.
The boldness from The Heart of the Beast gave Encrid strength throughout his body.
Aligning with the falling harpy’s trajectory, Encrid’s sword moved in the seemingly slowed time.
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