1044. The Child, the Farmer, and the Fisherman
Your Highness, this is a different matter!
The Council of Ten is centered around the King’s henchmen disguised as six Royalists and four Aristocrats.
However, that did not mean they actually acted like Krang’s hands and feet.
That is, with the exception of Marcus Vaisar and his close friend in the Border Guard.
Even the Duke of Octo doesn’t blindly believe and follow my words.
As Krang sat on the throne and gazed blankly at one of the Council of Ten nobles who had raised his voice, the noble suppressed his excitement and spoke again.
“Isn’t there a difference between fighting the devil and provoking the devil?”
Just because the tone had changed didn’t mean the content had changed. Krang didn’t particularly refute the remark. Nine of the Council of Ten were gathered there. Since
one had just returned from the Empire and was staying at the Border Guard, Encred was one of the Council of Ten. What would his close friend say here? Would he draw his sword right away?
That might be the case for Rem, but Encred would handle them with words as well.
“Do you really intend to wipe out the Demon Realm? Don’t you realize that this is a path that will lead to the death of the majority of the kingdom’s people?”
The civil war ended, and the war against the South was won as well.
The King, having returned from the Empire, came back with a promise of diplomatic relations and a non-aggression pact.
Up until now, Naurilia had been filled with nothing but good things. If things continued like this, was there really a need to fight the Demon Realm?
Those demons, too, had been quiet for a while. So, there was no need to stir up trouble unnecessarily.
Nor was there any need to commit the folly of waking a sleeping demon with a needle.
However, it was reported that the Border Guard had killed a demon.
The Legion had also made an announcement, and some citizens of the capital, possessed by the demon, shouted with eyes that were nothing but whites.
“This must be a declaration of war, right?”
There was someone who shouted like this.
“I ask you arrogant ones: Do you intend to fight us?”
Some also shouted out.
Anxiety grew, and an ominous fog enveloped the kingdom.
Although Audin had no intention of concealing the fact that he had killed a demon, the Demon Realm had effectively staged a protest first.
Near the Demon Realm, which had been quiet for a while, monstrous beasts swarmed in packs, and dangerous creatures of the Minotaur class occasionally revealed themselves.
Yet, there were no human deaths or mass slaughters of livestock. There were, however, instances where a few individuals who had killed people out of grudges seized the opportunity to frame the monsters for the crime, only to be caught by the security forces and imprisoned.
Krang simply listened quietly to everyone’s opinions. Andrew Gardner, too, was a member of the Council of Ten. He had remained silent for a moment before finally speaking. His tone was cautious.
As a member of the security force, he was on the verge of going insane due to the doomsday prophecies spreading rampantly within the capital. That must have been the reason.
“Everyone is worried that the army of demons might pour in like this. Your Majesty’s people cannot hide their concern.”
There is no right answer to what the right path is. For Andrew, fighting the Demon Realm for the sake of tomorrow was important, but his stable life now was also important. In fact
, if armies of monsters and beasts had swarmed in, he wouldn’t have worried about such things. If he were told to fight blindly, he would simply put on his armor, wield his sword, and charge forward.
However, the rulers of the Demon Realm did nothing. They merely conveyed a few words and made no threats.
No, they fostered anxiety by making threatening movements near the Demon Realm.
Sometimes, this is what makes things more difficult. In other words, rather than a direct threat, they stimulated the unprecedented anxiety of the enemy through imagined threats and dangers. They shook the minds of all those with intelligence.
A noble from the Council of Ten, who had recently made a name for himself in the administration with his exceptional shrewdness, spoke.
“Does it really have to be now? By killing the devil before we were even prepared, haven’t we effectively faced greater danger?”
It was a tone that seemed to put an end to the matter, containing a conclusion. Only then did Krang open his mouth.
Did you say to prepare?
Although it was only one word, they were people who knew what the king currently sitting on the throne had done and how he came to be in this position. Everyone fell silent.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The Count answered, and Krang asked in a flat tone.
“When will the preparations be finished?”
“Since you have decided to further build up our forces to fight the Demon Realm and secure aid from the Empire, once we combine our strengths, and after that…”
“Prepare!”
Krang interrupted the nobleman. Maintaining his seated position, he grabbed everyone’s ears with a single word.
“You say you’ll fight after you’re fully prepared? That sounds like you’re saying you’re satisfied with this for our generation and will pass the fight on to the next. Don’t you think so? And help from the Empire? Are you planning to survive with their aid and live in fear of the Empire instead of the Demon Realm next time? It’s maddening. The Emperor of that very Empire actually wants us to wipe out the Demon Realm. Do you realize that?”
There was no way he would know. He had never been told.
As always, Krang’s speech captivated everyone. To the eyes of all watching, the demonic landscape situated behind him came into view.
It was a land filled with gray skies, purple trees, dreary black rocks, and black soil.
“I will not pass this fight on to my child. Nor will I pass it on to your future child. Octo, would you tell your grandchildren and children to live battling monsters and beasts in your place?”
“No, I will not do that.”
“Viscount Andrew Gardner, what about you?”
Andrew snapped back to reality at the King’s words. Come to think of it, he was right. The Royal Family’s military strength was at its peak, greater than ever. With
Encred and the Order of the Mad Knights present, they had crushed the South and even secured the support of the Empire.
What if I go over here?
Does it amount to telling one’s own child to fight? Indeed. The King pointed that out. Andrew, too, has married and taken a wife. A child will be born someday, and that child will inherit the Gardner family, the one he built by erecting the pillars and placing the roof upon. That is Andrew’s dream, his hope, and his deepest aspiration.
“This is a fight I will end on my own.”
If you have made a mistake, just admit it.
Please forgive my slip of the tongue a moment ago.
Krang nodded.
“What do you think? What kind of tomorrow do you wish to give to your children, grandchildren, and loved ones? At the very least, I hope for a tomorrow free from monsters, demons, and demonic realms. I will not scold you just because your wishes differ.”
Was Andrew the only one who came to his senses?
This, too, was a trick of the devil. To fuel people’s anxiety by making noise but taking no action.
It was a scheme intended to bring about their own destruction, or at the very least, to hurt their feelings through a clash of opinions.
“I want to see a child running and playing in a vast meadow. I also want to see a farmer sowing seeds in wide fields, unconfined by city walls. I want to see a fisherman building a village by the river and launching his fishing boat. If you were to ask me what my lifelong wish and dream are, I would say it is to see the child, the farmer, and the fisherman. What do you think? Will you join me?”
In a way, it was ridiculous. If the devil instilled fear and fostered division through his presence, Krang listened quietly and then steadied everyone’s hearts with a single speech.
“Go and tell the entire security force that there is no danger to the citizens. You may say that you will protect them. Arrest the criminals, and also apprehend those who take advantage of this opportunity to commit subversive acts. Duke Marcus, as Commander-in-Chief, reinforce the defenses around the capital. If the monster army uses this opportunity to come, let them know just how foolish they have been.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“I obey your command.”
Andrew and Marcus simultaneously knelt on one knee and bowed their heads.
Before they knew it, thousands of soldiers stood behind Krang, and behind them, those cheering for the army, the king, and the knights could be seen.
At the forefront of them would surely be a madman with black hair and blue eyes.
Then let us fight for our tomorrow.
Krang spoke and stood up. In this way, everyone was neither divided nor shaken.
* * *
The second time, however, it didn’t end with a single stroke. Encreed slashed six more times.
“end?”
Pell, who had fallen to one side after being struck in the shin, looked up at Enkrid’s words.
The eyes looking at him with his arms hanging down looked extremely arrogant.
“again!”
Pell shouted. The other three felt the same way. It was a time of learning far beyond winning and losing.
Should I say it was welcoming a new world rather than just conditioning and training?
During the third sparring match, Theresa held only her shield. She boldly thrust her greatsword into the ground and stepped forward.
There were plenty of opponents to attack. Since this was a sparring match, they were just trying things out this way and that.
Pell closed and opened his eyes, gripping a different sword instead of the Idol Slayer. He pulled out a hidden move.
Boil.
While some might burst, gather, and unleash Will like a storm, he boiled him. He changed his nature like boiling water.
When this happens, a single sword strike drains all the energy. His endurance is terrible, but whatever the case, he managed to bring out a change in Will. In terms of talent alone, Fel wasn’t lacking, but after joining the Order of the Mad Knights, he became someone whose effort was just as hard.
That is what brought about the current results.
Roford focused even more. He observed Encred more closely and racked his brain to anticipate his moves.
In doing so, he regarded this moment as a split second on the battlefield.
If this were a real battle, what would you do? Would you quietly sacrifice three and kill one?
Lawford asked and answered himself.
No, all four of them are buying.
Dunbakel cast aside the last shred of reason he had left in his beast-transformed state. He completely surrendered to his instincts.
Kuhuhu!
The roar of the white lion tore through the air. It vibrated the atmosphere, radiating a ferocious aura.
The form of this intimidation was the face of a beast biting down with sharp fangs. Being bitten by this intimidation might not tear flesh like a real bite, but the body would surely freeze with a thud. It was an intimidation typical of Dunbakel.
Encred brushed past the intimidation as if it were nothing. A pure Will had no reason to show any intention of refusal. This was the first difference between those four and Encred.
Dunbakel kicked the ground with the same ferocious momentum. It was noticeably faster than their first sparring match, though.
If viewed from within the world of silence.
Slow.
Encreed knows how to handle pure Will. He has also become fairly accustomed to its impact on his body’s reaction speed and athleticism.
He twists his body to dodge the sword before Dunbakel can perceive it, then follows up with a short, sharp upward strike of his right fist.
He uses his hands because striking with the sword would clearly injure him.
There is no sound. Instead, he feels the recoil and impact from his fist lifting Dunbakel’s head.
He then pushes his feet firmly back from where he was standing.
Should I call him a tactical genius? The moment Dunbakel loses his reason and runs, instead of shouting for him to stop or panicking, he exploits even that moment.
Roford, who displayed such exceptional talent, seized the opportunity and thrust his blade.
What a delicate strike! The blade shoots up from beneath Dunbakel’s stomach. Even though a slight misstep would slash his comrade’s belly, he shows not the slightest hesitation. It struck the spot where Encreed had just been standing.
Encreed dodged and swung his sword widely to the side.
Following Lawford’s attack, Pell, who had naturally stepped forward in coordination with him, charged forward but was struck by the blade.
Once again, only the shock remained, without a sound. Encred struck Pell’s face with the blade and used the force against him to leap forward.
The final target was Theresa, who was running with her shield. As Encred placed his left palm on the shield and raised his right foot, Theresa reflexively changed the angle of the shield. It was an attempt to bend it upward from below to push and strike.
Encred feigned stepping onto it, then lowered his body to kick Theresa’s ankle, which was exposed beneath the shield.
It was a kick designed to shatter the strength and stamina of a Half-Titan. He had controlled the force to just push her over rather than break her ankle.
This was a feat more difficult to execute than shattering an ankle bone.
Bang, pak, tung.
Three sounds rang out simultaneously. To ordinary people, like Kreis, that is how it must have sounded.
Then, Dunbakel rolled his eyes and fainted, Fel spun wildly in the air before falling to the ground, and Roford withdrew the sword he had thrust futilely. Finally, Theresa lost her balance, slammed her shield into the ground with a thud, and knelt on one knee.
That’s all.
Encred spoke. He spoke as if making a declaration. He hadn’t started this to make the four feel defeated.
There were two purposes. One was to get used to using Will after the renewal, and the other was.
“At this rate, I’ll be killed by the devil?”
I intended to provoke them. I know they are the type
to handle things on their own even if I do nothing, but I still wanted to do it. Because I don’t want to lose any of them while fighting the Demon Realm. The experience of fighting the Demon Realm and facing demons tells us that the creatures coiled up inside it cannot be dealt with with an ordinary mindset.
“next.”
Moreover, it was not a task to be done only to these four.
“This is seriously boiling my blood. I’m asking you really seriously, were you serious about that?”
Rem asks.
I meant that the four who just fell should attack at once, Ragnar and Rem should coordinate, and Audin and Saxen should coordinate to attack.
“uh.”
Encred nodded. There wasn’t a trace of a smile, so it didn’t sound like a joke.
“You’re not joking?”
Rem asked again.
No.
As Encred answered again, Ragnar took a step forward.
“We look like easy targets.”
“Yeah, you do.”
It was a truly rare sight. For Ragnar and Rem to be of one mind and raise their spirits with such unity.
It was all thanks to Encred.
Now, two husks, come out.
Veins popped out on Rem and Ragnar’s foreheads at the characteristic provocation.
That mouth of his was the problem, anyway. He wouldn’t be satisfied unless he punched him.
