1013. An ideal is a moth flying toward the sun
Each race possesses entirely different talents. Among them, there were two races that relied on brute strength.
One was the giants, whose skeletal structure was fundamentally different, and the other was the Frogs, who generate monstrous strength due to differences in muscle fiber bundles or body tissues.
Resembling frogs, their muscle density is tighter and denser than that of humans. A knight, for instance, can overhaul their body structure through training and supplement it with Will to catch up to the physical strength of those races whose innate strength differs.
What if progs did it just like humans?
The answer to the question Encred had asked himself was right before his eyes. A race with superior innate strength had become a knight.
The blade he had adopted as his imprinted weapon flew toward him. Its name was Abuse of Power. At first glance, its rough surface was made up of sharp protrusions.
Today was struck by that sword.
Bang!
Encred gripped the handle with both hands, absorbed the shock by bending his knees, and simultaneously countered by tensing his arms. For a moment, the two stopped with their blades locked. Encred’s eyes gleamed beyond the blades.
You’re a really funny bastard.
Kahal spoke while their swords clashed. He exerted his full force. Since Kahal was taller, it was as if he was pressing down from above.
Ddddddddd.
The floor of the training ground where the two stood trembled. Enkrid instantly rotated his entire body, starting from his shoulder and going through his waist, thighs, knees, and ankles. He
then pushed his opponent’s sword to one side and stopped rotating. He took a step forward to close the distance, gripping his sword only with his left hand, and delivered a short, upward strike with his right fist. Just before the fist struck his jaw, Kahal tucked his chin in tightly and used his neck muscles to block the punch with his forehead.
It was a case of blocking an attack that added an unconvention upon an unconvention with an equally unconventional one.
Bang!
His forehead was so hard that it made one suspect something had been implanted under his skin. Encreed felt a tingling shock that spread to his arm muscles and shoulders.
If you temper your iron armor, you can do anything like this.
Kahal would often speak whenever he had a chance. Until now, Encred had fought in silence, and…
“Shouldn’t it be named Chatterbox instead of Tongue Thorn?”
Then, at the remark blurted out, Frock rolled his eyes and replied.
“……So you know how to tease people?”
His tone is rough, but his heart is unwavering. Just looking at him, you can tell he has a steadfast and solid temperament. Well, actually, he feels more like a dull, heavy stone.
The feeling Will conveys.
To be precise, Will speaks on behalf of that will.
He does not hide his true self. He repeatedly stated that he enjoys pouring out everything he has and fighting head-on.
His desire is to ultimately transcend limits, regardless of talent or anything else, and pioneer Will’s own world.
In a way, he was an explorer and a pioneer. All he desired was to hone his skills in handling Will; thus, the Imperial Knights were the place he joined to fulfill his own needs and desires.
“Watch out, this one is going to be a bit tough.”
Kahal lifted his forehead and spoke. Encred assessed his opponent’s and his own abilities.
If you fight with your life on the line.
His win rate probably wouldn’t even reach 30%. In sparring, he would lose nine out of ten times. That was the extent of the gap.
While some might have spoken of despair and frustration at that moment, naturally, Encreed was happy. After all, he was still in the process of learning and mastering something new, so how could he not be happy?
“Ah, don’t worry. Even if I die by mistake, I’ll come back to life.”
It is a remark thrown at Kahal, who is leisurely keeping his distance.
“What? What are you? Do you have three lives or something?”
“I do.”
“You even have a secretive air about you? Fine, then go die.”
Kahal raised his arms, pointing the tip of his abusive words toward the sky. He raised his sword high above his head—a more aggressive variation of a simple ceiling stance.
He then swung the sword, and the process of bringing the raised blade down was incredibly fast.
Since his arm was raised so high, it was easy for an opening to form, and one might have expected him to thrust his weapon in a hurry, but there was no time for that.
It meant that every movement was calculated. That single strike, that downward slash, was one of his specialties.
Then, the abusive words split the world apart. Enkrid did not dare to think of deflecting it. A heavy guillotine, wielded by a hundred knights in unison, fell from above his head.
So he blocked it. Unable to brace himself with both legs, one knee slammed into the ground with a thud.
An ordinary soldier would have had their kneecap shattered, but Enkrid’s body was different from that of a common soldier, and his cloak cleverly flared out below his knee to cushion the impact.
The arm gripping the sword trembled slightly. No, my entire body is screaming in agony. Such a mindless sword strike—isn’t that enough to make Ragnar concede defeat?
I’ll only know for sure after a proper fight with Ragnar.
It was that shocking right now. His body was half-collapsed. Instead of a follow-up attack, Cahal ran his mouth. It was certainly a Proc who was better nicknamed a chatterbox rather than a tongue thorn.
“Cajal of White Power, that was my previous nickname.”
Encred looked up while kneeling on one knee. Kahal simply changed the purity of the Will he possessed. It was a method solely of adding power. In a way, it was like Rem multiplying the monstrous strength of his heart several times to maintain it constantly.
Kahal’s round eyeballs rolled around, and his cheeks puffed out. Encred’s shoulder was not dislocated, nor was his arm broken.
His muscles trembled, and the grip of his left hand, which had absorbed most of the force, was only slightly torn.
It was because he had used his left palm as a support.
“By the way, you’re really strong.”
Kahal was impressed. It was understandable. Even within the Imperial Knights, there were few who could rival him in strength.
He actually got this.
It wasn’t a named technique; he was simply pounding Will and slashing with all his might.
Upon seeing this, the Captain remarked that it was the most crude swordsmanship in their order, but that was precisely why it was so annoying to deal with. There were various reasons for this. It was partly because he disliked using such a technique in sparring, and partly because, even when there was an opening and he tried to exploit it, since it was a proc, he would just swing his sword wildly, even if it meant injuring himself slightly.
If one were to take a closer look at Kahal’s stance just before the strike, he pulled his right arm inward, taking a position that subtly covered the area above his breastplate, near his heart. In any case, regardless of the process, Kahal was inwardly surprised.
You didn’t even dodge this and took it head-on?
I can tell by looking at the imprinted weapon here that withstood my verbal abuse. This bastard took my power without the slightest hesitation. No time to dodge or deflect?
No, I am a knight, too. Accelerated thinking does allow at least a moment to harbor such thoughts.
But just throw away such distracting thoughts.
I took it with the intention of pushing it away.
It’s not that I just blocked it.
I intended to brush away my verbal abuse and punch this bastard. Now that I had even noticed that, he looked like a real lunatic.
In the midst of this, Encred let out the breath he had been holding and spoke.
“Phew, one more time?”
The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, and his eyes sparkled brighter than ever.
“You’re a real lunatic, aren’t you?”
Cajal had done the same, puffing out his cheeks. Their admiration for each other was mixed.
“Hey, are you going to play all by yourself until the moon rises?”
Rem expressed his dissatisfaction. Sinar and Temares had no intention of fighting that Prok. Of course, Saxony was no exception.
If asked why the Dragons and Fairies weren’t interested, it was a matter of compatibility.
Unless they were determined to kill me.
A difficult opponent to have fun with in a sparring match.
That was how Sinar assessed his opponent, and Temares’ interest flared up for a moment before quickly fading.
The intention is pure, but.
He wasn’t interested. Temares didn’t bother to look for a reason why his heart wasn’t moving.
If he didn’t like it, he didn’t like it.
The human heart is fickle by nature. Yongin understood that principle.
That said, it wasn’t that he didn’t know why he wasn’t interested in Prok right now. Though he couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason.
The guy who likes playing alone the best.
Prok is a man who does not influence the world but delves solely into his own interests.
Temares suddenly found another reason to feel favor and affection for the man named Encred. No, it would be more accurate to say that he realized it more deeply.
Endless desire for improvement.
There is the absurd greed to try to brighten the world based on what one has achieved and possesses.
An ideal is like a moth drawn to the flame, heading toward the sun.
If Frog looks only at himself, the human Enkrid looks beyond himself to his surroundings.
It raises a question anew: Was the life of the Emperor, the fairy, like this at the beginning?
To live a long life, you must learn how to prepare for death.
Her death is in progress right now.
Temares shook off his distracting thoughts and watched Enkrid. Some things are helpful just by watching. Their sparring right now is one such thing.
Yongin recalled his forgotten past, one by one. He would need a process of readjusting and moving his body again, but that alone would be enough for him to catch up to the achievements of Enkrid and the others.
* * *
Three times to Encred, and once to Rem.
Kahal directed his abusive language at them a total of four times. In the meantime, Trimache, who had not even entered the Emperor’s room, came in place of a servant and spoke.
“Preparations for the banquet are nearing completion. Shouldn’t we get ready now? Unless you intend to go covered in dust and sweat?”
“Applying fine mud is the best adornment.”
Kahal speaks.
“Is that not allowed?”
Enkrid asked back.
Trimache’s official title was Knight of the Imperial Palace Guard. Simply put, it was a position similar yet different from the leader of the Royal Guard protecting Krang; she was not the type to be rigid, nor did she particularly prefer adhering to formalities.
However, even in her eyes, these guys were clearly crazy bastards.
“Are you serious?”
Armed with calmness and composure, Trimache asked back, and Encred answered nonchalantly.
It was a joke.
While I was washing up and moving around, two attendants and two maids accompanied me.
You seem to be someone who enjoys choosing and dressing people up.
One of the ladies-in-waiting smiled and spoke. She was a young fairy, and she simply gave instructions to those around her, then selected and dressed Encred in his clothes.
If asked if it was a ordeal, it wasn’t quite that bad.
Back when I was a lady-in-waiting for a noblewoman, I had suffered even worse treatment. I had even been offered a whole pouch of gold coins to try cross-dressing.
Of course, I refused the offer. Why would I do something like that?
“great.”
One of the ladies-in-waiting took the lead and spoke.
It consisted of a pure white shirt, a black velvet vest over it, and trousers of a dark, bluish color that tightened around the ankles. On top of that, there were short-toed shoes with wooden soles wrapped in leather and woven with laces.
That’s excellent. Those guys who act all high and mighty at banquets are going to have their arrogance shattered.
The maid was impressed.
It seems the position of Emperor is a leisurely one.
Encred asked abruptly. The attendants and other maids nearby acted as if they hadn’t heard him. ”
They said you were bound to this castle; is it possible to transform into a different form like this?”
“Since I’ve been doing the same work for such a long time, yes, honestly, I’m quite idle. You know how they say that once you get used to something, you gain a sense of ease?”
The core is the Emperor, but the shell is not. The Emperor displayed a tone and attitude suited to his shell.
It was fascinating, even though it was the second time I was seeing it. He was clearly tied to a chair, so how is he getting out?
Are you curious how I can do this?
He said this after noticing Enkrid’s demeanor. The Emperor never lost his goodwill under any circumstances. Even when he was spewing malice and murderous intent, he treated Krang and himself relatively gently.
The quick-witted Emperor blurted out one of his secrets without needing to hide anything.
My body is this fortress, so the branches, leaves, roots, and stems within are all just like me. Therefore, if I adjust them slightly to mold fairies and cast a spell to change my form, voilà, it turns out like this.
As we spoke, the maid grew in appearance. She transformed into an adult fairy with striking physical beauty, and along with it, her manner of speech changed.
“What do you think of this appearance?”
Was it a temptation? It didn’t feel that way. It just seemed like a mischievous prank. Considering what Krang had said and the connection between the two, the reason the Emperor held a favorable view of him was also clear.
“Devil slayer, there has never been a sweeter word in my life.”
It is the words of the fairy and emperor whose specific body parts, from the neck down to the belly, have grown larger.
There are many waiting at the banquet.
She spoke and led the way. As I followed her, I saw Temares waiting outside the door, draped in a green coat. Next to him, Rem was dressed in a white shirt, a lemon-colored short coat, and light gray trousers; seeing him like this, his unique charm certainly stood out.
“If you fall for a noblewoman here, Ayul’s curse will wither you to death. Why did you go to such lengths?”
“G-Do you think I did this because I wanted to? You should worry about the Captain, who has already fallen for a fairy, rather than me.”
“Who could that fairy be? I was talking about the Emperor’s puppet.” No sooner had Rem finished speaking than Sinar’s indifferent gaze fell upon Enkrid and the Emperor’s puppet guiding him. Although
the Emperor’s will was carried upon it, its body was merely composed of trees, stems, and leaves, and it was nothing more than a puppet whose appearance was adorned by spells.
As a fairy with extraordinary skill in manipulating vital energy, these were things visible even to Sinar’s eyes.
“What bad taste, such an ugly body.”
The Emperor replied to the remark Sinar had spat out.
“Ugly? What kind of talk is that? If you think that way, you will lose to the witch. My fellow kin living far away.”
Sinar’s pupils trembled slightly. Lose? Her eyes turned to Encred.
“Enki, I have a very beautiful face.”
For some reason, it seemed like they were joining forces with the Emperor to tease him.
“Yes, I see.”
“And you’re really something today…”
Sinar stopped speaking. Even to a fairy, his appearance is truly striking.
So, is this the time to be talking about others?
Rem chimed in as well. Temares silently nodded. It didn’t look bad.
“Hey, are you going to a banquet massacre or something?”
With Kahal’s final words as his last encounter, Encreed entered the banquet hall.
By then, the Emperor’s effigy had withdrawn. It was customary for Krang to enter later, after being introduced separately. After all,
he was filling this seat as the King of a nation.
That was why Encreed had entered first. The banquet was already in full swing. It was customary for guests to arrive a little late at imperial banquets these days.
He opened the door and stepped inside. The sounds of chatter and musicians echoed through the hall.
With every step Encreed took, the surroundings fell a little quieter. It was because everyone had stopped chatting to watch the newcomers.
