1019. Do not come again
If the days spent in the Empire were a time of training, the nights were a time of nightmares.
Wander, and in the end, achieve nothing and die trapped.
How many times had I wandered through the same pitch-black night? Should I call it night when there are no moon or stars?
With not a single breeze, it felt less like night and more like being trapped somewhere.
But if I remain trapped in a day like this, wouldn’t it be of no benefit to the boatman inside me, who cries out for me to stop this peaceful day? It was a thought that struck me suddenly.
Encred had walked during the first and second nightmares, but from the third one onwards, he changed his mind. The catalyst was Saxony.
The world is wide and there are many crazy people.
It was a remark made out of the blue when they happened to run into each other. Saxon, too, had not simply been watching Rem grow up. He frequently met with the owner of an assassination guild called the Butterfly Circus. This
assassin, who was old enough to warrant retirement, was neither a member of the Imperial Knights nor held the grandiose title of one of the Four Great Knights; yet, as one of those guarding the Emperor, his skill level was on par with that of a Knight Commander among assassins.
Had Saxon been sitting around doing nothing? Saxon, too, was mingling with him and moving forward toward the next stage.
“If you can’t see anything, how do you find the way?”
Encred asked the day after the second nightmare. A knight’s senses far surpass those of an ordinary person. This is especially true of Saxon, and the same goes for Encred, who learned the art of senses from him. Among the Order of Mad Knights, the fairies do not possess the most acute senses. Although
Kahal and Torado, the Four Great Knights of the Empire, displayed a sensitivity of a different caliber. They were incomparable to
Saxon, hardened by training bordering on abuse and torture since childhood, or to a fellow who would repeat the same day every time he died. ”
How would you walk in a place where you see nothing, hear nothing, and feel nothing?”
was Encred’s question. Would the answer be the same as his own? He hadn’t exactly demanded a correct answer.
He had simply asked since he had seen it. For reference, when he had asked Rem…
“Among spells, there are several techniques specialized in finding one’s way.”
Well, the answer that came back was that they believed in themselves. It was the confidence to overcome any obstacle, no matter where they were, a confidence built up through all sorts of experiences since childhood.
For reference, Sinar displayed confidence based on his racial traits by asserting that he could walk for about three months without drinking a single sip of water, and Temares…
Yongin is by nature prone to getting lost, so all he has to do is curl up and sleep.
That was all he answered.
When asked the Knight Commander as well, a man named Bram Ritzer smiled.
I can’t tell you my secret.
And so it ended. He said he had his own way, but wouldn’t tell it. His deception permeated his daily life. Was Valen, who created the Mercenary Sword technique, similar? Apart from the nightmares, there was much to learn from his attitude.
Because he incorporated deception into his everyday life, Bram Ritzer, despite not being a born liar, had become someone well-versed in deceiving others.
He, too, does not live today carelessly, in his own way.
You don’t have to copy everything, though.
It would be good to learn the core mindset. That is Saxony’s answer once again.
“You can find it by instinct.”
“What if there are no stars, no moon, no wind, and no clouds?”
Whether it be intuition or a sixth sense, it is meant to be activated only when information from the surroundings flows in. Encred had been walking in his nightmares all this time, even while aware that something was wrong. It wasn’t because he had received any specific signal.
“My intuition reacts at any time. Even if it is a labyrinth without a single light.”
The common thread in all their answers was confidence, yet there was no need to seek his own within them.
He didn’t know. In the past, he might have followed the words of one of them.
He might have struggled desperately to escape his present somehow.
But not now.
When the third darkness, night, and prison arrived,
Encreed walked for half of the allotted time and moved his body for the other half as if checking his basic swordsmanship, even though he held nothing in his hands.
The fourth night was the same. From the fifth onwards, he walked when he wanted to, and stopped to swing his sword when he wanted to.
Encreed considered this entire process a form of meditation. In doing so, he delved deep into himself and focused. It was a time to reflect on himself more deeply than ever before.
I actually like it.
Without holding anything in my hands, I realized everything virtually. Lights appeared one by one in the darkness. One of those lights approached and spoke.
“You’re going to stop anyway, so is it really necessary to go this far?”
“It’s too late to regret it after you’re trapped in today.”
“No matter what you do, it’s the same, I tell you.”
The last words were clearly calm and composed, yet they sounded like a choked-up voice.
“That is your last chance. Letting you know this is my final act of consideration. Stop here. Before you are trapped in the darkness.”
The boatman whispered. Encred did not waver. The nightmare ended suddenly, just as it had begun.
“Look.”
It was right after the boatman’s voice was heard. The world had changed. Bright sunlight beat down overhead.
It was a moderately hot day. Not quite scorching sun yet, but a day in early summer.
“Zion.”
Someone called a name. It was Mother. Her eyes were filled with sorrow. There was no father.
To young Zion, that was natural. So he never once asked who his father was. Nor did he particularly miss him.
If asked why, I would answer that it was because the time spent with his mother was not long.
To this, I would add that it is because life is truly unfair, harsh, and the totality of depression.
“What is your name?”
“Zion Bant.”
Vant—even though his mother herself had no surname, she added the two-letter surname “Vant” to his own name.
By the time he could ask for the reason and demand an explanation, his mother was already gone.
He was stabbed by a blade inadvertently extended by the trembling robber. The only saving grace was that he died instantly. Had he continued to gasp for breath like that, he would have writhed in agony until he died.
“Ugh, spit.”
The guy who killed my mother spat in my face while trembling. Anyway, I had clumsily attacked him back then and broke my ribs; just when I thought I was going to die right then and there, a passing merchant saved me.
“Yes, Zion Vant, you look really good.”
From that day on, Zion became a male prostitute. How old was he then? What is certain is that he was still a child.
His dream ended there. After that, for the first time in a very long while, he met the rippling river, a ferryboat, and a ferryman holding a purple lamp.
The face hidden beneath the robe was that of a ferryman of outstanding beauty, with eyes that straddled the boundary between turquoise and sky blue, a sculpted jawline, and a nose bridge that were impressive, just like the one he had seen before.
“It would be better to look into me than to stay there.”
It was an act of kindness shown by the boatman, who had been pessimistic about everything in the world. After that, the nightmares ceased. Instead, I occasionally met him more often in my dreams. No, I became him and glimpsed his life.
Having become a male prostitute, he gritted his teeth to survive. I can’t remember when it was, but I had heard someone say that good days come if you just keep living, and I pinned my hope on those words. Then I grasped a sword. The blade was less than a handspan long, and the tang had loosened, causing the handle to rattle. It was
the kind of sword that would have been ruined in an instant with just the slightest mistake, and I wouldn’t have had a leg to stand on.
“Hey, do you know how to kill someone? You just stab them like this, here, here, and here. You know how guys who just pick up a knife swing it wildly? That’s something only a complete idiot does.”
How many decent guys would there be among those seeking him? He was one of them. He must have enjoyed the thrill of killing someone.
Anyway, the guy said that you don’t swing a knife, you stab.
He also thought of the clumsy swordsman who had killed his mother.
He stabbed, too. Not slash.
Zion stabbed the pot-bellied merchant owner who wouldn’t be satisfied until he had beaten him halfway.
He poked him once in the lower abdomen and slashed straight down.
“Uh, ugh, I, I cared for you so much, why?”
He was a crazy bastard. Is dressing up as a woman and beating him up what you call ‘caring’?
“Disgusting bastard.”
And so, Zion parted ways with his first past.
The dream was often interrupted. Encred didn’t particularly crave what followed.
After all, would he do it just because it looked good?
“Is the world still a good place to live after this? What, you want to write poetry? Just throw that bastard in the brothel where I used to be for ten days. See if the words coming out of his mouth are stars, the moon, the wind, wildflowers, and flowers, or just foul language that is unpleasant to hear. What do you think? Where are you going to hang yourself?”
Encreed inwardly judged that this one had the most twisted personality among the boatmen. At least, he was more twisted than the ones he had seen before.
“Damn it…….”
Afterward, he spat out a curse that would likely be better left unheard. Suddenly, a knife mark had appeared on his face. It was a cut across the bridge of his nose, the trace of a sharp blade. He knew because he had seen it in a dream. It hadn’t been caused by a fight.
You have a pretty face.
It is a line drawn on his face by himself in response to the provocation of a mercenary who picked a fight.
Do I still look pretty like this?
As Zion asked back, he held two short swords in his hands. The opponent brought down a long sword, but Zion dodged to the side and ended the fight by thrusting deeply into the nape of the neck.
* * *
I was training during the day and having nightmares at night.
“I saw it as a talent that would truly shake the entire empire.”
Encred heard the story of the blonde swordsman by chance or necessity.
The person who took him away when he first pierced a hole in his stomach was a recruiter from the Empire.
That blonde swordsman later became a knight in the Empire and fought. No one knew why his mind had changed.
He just suddenly said he was leaving one day and targeted the Emperor.
I almost died trying to block it, too.
That is what Grand Master Bram Ritzer said. It is half an exaggeration, though.
“But you won?”
“Yeah, I did. I defeated him, and the guy with the large slash in his thigh ran away. I couldn’t chase him, so I let him get away. If I wanted to chase and kill him, I would have had to do it myself, but I couldn’t leave the Emperor’s side. To be honest, even if it were Kahal or another knight, it would have been difficult to defeat him in a one-on-one fight. He is the greatest genius I have ever seen.”
“But his personality was the worst?”
Encreed stopped resting during training and listened attentively to the commander’s story.
“Yeah, he’s not just a jerk with a bad personality, but a complete bastard with a weird mindset. Well, he was kind of like that even in his daily life. He frequently insisted that he was right and the other person was wrong, even over trivial matters. Plus, regardless of the facts, he had a knack for twisting his own words into the truth. Should I say he acted as if he knew exactly what was going to happen?”
Encred nodded. The blonde swordsman had grown into one of the Empire’s top fighters and left.
“If a few years had passed like that, he would have surpassed me in skill. After all, he was the type of guy who falls into the category of a ‘hard-working genius.’”
Bram was very perceptive. Encred knew far too much for a conversation that had come up by chance. Like a seasoned veteran, he sensed the bond connecting the two.
“So you’ve already met. Don’t meet him again. He’s someone I don’t want to run into either.”
Encreed did not nod. They would meet someday.
The reason? He didn’t know. It was just a hunch. After the commander had chattered on for a while, the Emperor also put a doll in front to give a warning.
If you leave the empire, watch out for their schemes.
The Emperor spoke several times about demons and the lords of the demon realm.
He said that their power was useless within the Empire. When asked why, this was the answer given.
“Could you enter the flames with your whole body drenched in oil? Could you swim while carrying a lump of iron?”
Since the Demon and the Emperor possess the same level of power, they cannot tamper with each other’s territories. That is why they send henchmen.
Or to keep generating new problems.
All of this was an effort and a desperate struggle to diminish the Emperor’s power.
So the reason the Devil settled in the South is because the Emperor is in the North.
Krang spoke about this part. It was after he had finished spending some time in the Empire.
In the end, Encreed did not get a chance to properly look around the capital. That is how it turned out because he was involved in this and that.
When everything is finished, then take a big circle around the system.
Balmung saw us off on the way back again.
“The Empire’s Four Great Knights may seem to be the best fighters, but you never know what will happen in an actual clash. So, no matter who you fight, do not let your guard down and get killed.”
It is a Balmung-style blessing.
“I tried my best to give gifts to everyone, but I am not sure if they were conveyed well. I have lived for a long time under the name of Emperor, yet there are things I will never know. The most representative of these is the human heart.”
It was a day when the sunlight had grown hotter in the past few days. The Emperor offered these words as his greeting. There was no one else to meet besides him. Seriana stood beside Balmung and waved her hand.
If a fairy or a witch abandons you, please come find it.
As she cracked a joke, Sinar and Esther looked at her simultaneously. Their eyes were indifferent, but they were not much different from glaring. The atmosphere was truly menacing.
“Do you want to see what I gained through the toil of having my shoulder torn and my foot stepped on by a dwarf? My fiancé?”
Sinar offered to spar with him in such an elegant manner. In a way, he is a fairy who truly knows Encred well. That is why he speaks like that.
It’s good, but not now. There are many people I need to go back to and show.
Encred was not naive enough to draw his sword at the elf’s joke. He added, thinking of Audin and Ragnar.
“I’ll go first. Absolutely not. I will definitely be the first to fight. No one step forward. You stray cat, stop messing around and just quietly watch from the corner. It won’t be bad for you, either.”
Rem was sincere. I could feel Will’s deep affection in his words. That consistently crazy bastard.
“then.”
Encred bowed his head toward the Emperor’s inner fortress, which was watching from afar, and met the eyes of the few who were seeing him off again.
Among them was a soldier who dreamed of becoming a poet; feeling great sadness at the parting, he shouted loud enough for everyone to hear.
Don’t ever come back.
To think he’s so moved just from a few days of hellish training.
Make sure you save that guy and bring him back. For the sake of his dream, you must save him. Because I want to supervise his training even more.
Encred held Balmung and spoke. Balmung laughed loudly.
