Encrid stood in the training ground, gripping Aker.
From the side, it would look like he was awkwardly standing in the corner of the training ground, gripping his sword and muttering to himself.
So, it was hard for this to be seen as normal behavior.
But it didn’t matter since no one but the Mad Company members ever came to the training ground.
And even if someone were watching, Encrid would have acted the same.
His eyes burned as fiercely as before.
“Speak. You’re not still here just to chatter, are you? Show me what you have. I’ll give you my review of what the Knight from the previous era left behind.”
Encrid spoke a little quickly. A suitable excitement had ignited his momentum.
The moment he felt there was something to gain from Aker, the ego sword, he couldn’t hold back.
He was determined to learn what was embedded in this sword, even if he had to break it.
His aura was the kind that made everyone in the barracks turn to look at him.
So much so that the concerns they had earlier seemed laughable compared to this.
Encrid was still there, with the same hunger and passion as the first time they saw him.
“Who was I even worrying about?”
Rem, sitting on a stump sharpening his axe, let out a small laugh as he said this.
“Has fortune favored the guide?”
Ragna, who had been dozing off in the shade opposite Rem, raised his head slightly and spoke.
The aura was strong enough to completely wake someone from sleep, but Ragna only blinked and closed his eyes again without even wiping away his eye crust.
Jaxon, leaning against a building pillar, simply watched with a steady gaze.
He would never say it out loud, but inwardly, Jaxon agreed with the barbarian’s words.
Worried that his desire had faded? About whom?
That man was still the same. He hadn’t changed from the time he was first assigned to the squad, or even when he learned sensory techniques from him.
‘The same.’
A man made of fervor and desire.
“You’ve returned, brother.”
Audin spoke with a smile. He was studying the scriptures with Teresa.
The scripture said that those who yearn shall be given opportunities.
Teresa mulled over those words several times.
The hope that never gives up.
She saw and learned that from Encrid, both before and now.
But is perseverance alone enough to not give up?
In her eyes, Encrid seemed even more exhilarated now than when he became a Knight.
He enjoyed the process of achieving more than the achievement itself. He desired learning more than completion.
So where does that desire come from?
Expectation.
The anticipation of joy, the thrill of diving into excitement.
That was Encrid now. Teresa had a small epiphany and quietly began to pray.
“I offer all my desires, my joy, my ecstasy to the Lord.”
Then a faint light flowed from her shoulders.
The light was in small particles, so tiny that one would not notice unless they were directly in front of her, and it quickly disappeared.
No one saw it.
Audin didn’t see it either, since his attention was on Encrid, but as someone blessed with divinity, Audin sensed Teresa’s change.
Audin turned his gaze back to Teresa. She was focused on her prayer.
He had just witnessed a miracle right before his eyes.
The Divine Spirit had left a mark on her, the half-blood Giant who had once been a heretic.
“The Lord is granting great mercy today.”
Audin said.
Teresa nodded.
She didn’t know exactly, but she understood she had received something.
She would figure it out slowly, so there was no need to urgently question what it was.
She had always been patient, but her perseverance deepened after she gained true faith.
“Have you seen the light? Then run toward it.”
Luagarne said, focusing intensely on her training.
The whip she held in her hand hung loosely to the ground.
She had been vigorously swinging her whip around, but had stopped due to the sweat pouring from her body.
She looked at Encrid and spoke, but it was also advice to herself.
She was one of the older Frogs, even considered middle-aged by human standards.
Of course, since Frogs were a different species, counting age the same way humans did was meaningless.
But there was one similarity.
Training at that age?
Aging comes for everyone the same way.
Luagarne was at the point where, as a Frog, age was catching up with her.
It wasn’t the time for training anymore.
One might even say, "Why would a Frog bother training when the end is so clearly in sight?"
Frogs are naturally a warrior race. Their strength is exceptional, and their skin renders most weapons useless. Average swordsmen wouldn’t even dare to face a Frog.
Most Frogs just repeated what they had learned through real combat.
That alone was enough. They also had a keen sense of talent evaluation and knew their own limits very well.
Limits that could not be surpassed. Frogs knew that all too well, as the sense of evaluating talent applied to them, too.
But what if there was someone who repeatedly, truly, surpassed that wall of limitation in front of them?
Luagarne was feeling something she had never felt in her entire life.
It wasn’t the desire to teach but the desire to grow.
And she was enjoying the moment.
Even if she couldn’t continue forward, she would be satisfied.
She had learned that from Encrid.
Her Frog muscles trembled from overuse.
She enjoyed that tremble, puffing out her cheeks.
Normally, Encrid would listen to anyone who spoke, but once he got absorbed in the sword, he closed his ears like a madman.
He would indulge and crave it to the point of drooling while swinging his sword.
That image overlapped with how he looked now.
And so, Encrid stood there, paying no attention to anyone’s words, as he listened to Aker.
Woom.
The sword trembled and conveyed its will through sheer force of will.
- You’ve completed the fourth condition.
He liked that there were no excuses.
- Then shall we talk face to face now?
Before he could say anything, the sword continued to transmit its Will.
After uttering its first words, a second message followed right away.
Encrid didn’t blink, and from Aker’s blade, a mixed light of green and white began to flow out.
The light expanded, filling the surroundings and erasing everything.
Then, the wind blew.
Rustle, rustle, rustle.
The wind swept through the grass, reaching up to his ankles and making the blades sway.
It was a field. Endless.
The time was about noon. Shadows barely peeked out from beneath his feet, stretching slightly to the right.
Seeing that they weren’t long, the sun must have been directly overhead.
It was a bit bright, but not too hot nor too cold.
The sunlight was a little harsh, but the breeze brought just enough coolness.
“This is the first time we’ve met like this, right?”
And standing just five steps in front of Encrid was a man.
He held a sword identical to Aker, resting it diagonally on his shoulder without a sheath. His appearance was ordinary.
Light brown hair and brown eyes.
But just because he looked common didn’t mean he appeared plain.
The sword on his shoulder seemed ready to strike at any moment, and his two legs stood firmly planted on the ground.
There were no easy gaps to be seen in his stance.
“Who are you?”
“Aker.”
Aker narrowed his eyes.
Why ask my name now? You already know.
His eyes seemed to say this.
Encrid lowered his hand.
The same sword as his opponent appeared in his hand.
There were no other pieces of equipment. No armor, no throwing daggers.
And the same went for the specter who introduced himself as Aker.
Two swords, two people. No, one person, one specter. That was all.
“You have an unpleasant look in your eyes.”
“Not at all.”
“You must be. I’m in your conscious world, and I can share some of it.”
The specter Aker tapped his temple with his left hand and said.
“That feels like cheating.”
“Don’t worry. I can only sense a little bit of your emotions.”
The specter Aker said, pinching his thumb and forefinger close together and winking one eye.
“Worried about what?”
“Since we’re about to fight, I thought I’d mention it.”
Aker smiled faintly.
The wind blew. The grass swayed.
The specter sneezed.
But his posture didn’t waver. No gaps could be seen.
‘What would happen if I stabbed him right now? He would react.’
Encrid, briefly but clearly, saw what would happen next.
The opponent would dodge the thrust while wiping his nose, then immediately raise his sword to strike.
He’d slash upward and then try to predict Encrid’s movements.
Should he close the distance and thrust while calculating that?
Encrid couldn’t do that.
If he thrust, the opponent wouldn’t dodge but would swing his sword to knock his weapon down.
Two futures appeared simultaneously.
That wasn’t the end.
Instead of knocking the sword aside, the opponent might face the tip directly, seal the blade for a moment, and slap the flat of the sword with his fist.
That wouldn’t break the sword, but it would make his grip on the weapon unstable.
If his grip shook, he’d lose his rhythm right from the start.
‘Hmmm?’
Encrid saw the opponent showing three different responses at once.
Then he saw a fourth and a fifth.
More possibilities kept appearing.
The opponent’s posture didn’t change, but every moment, his responses did.
“Even if you want to talk face to face, you don’t seem like the talking type. How is it? Fun, right? Some people dismiss it as a mere trick, but I used it well when I was alive. If you can use Will, things like this are possible. It’s a way to block foresight.”
Will is intent. Intent creates an invisible force that can stir momentum.
For example, if you intend to hit someone’s head with all your might, you’ll unconsciously adjust your posture to make it easier.
Turn your shoulder, position your hand for an easy strike.
The opponent, unconsciously, will begin to prepare to block their head.
Foresight is the insight to read actions and momentum.
What Aker’s spectral form was doing was intertwining willpower in various ways to create complex momentum, confusing his opponent’s insight, and blocking their ability to foresee the future.
If Rem rendered foresight useless by swinging his axe unconsciously...
This side was splitting consciousness into dozens of threads, showing it to the opponent and affecting their senses.
“Not easy.”
Encrid muttered softly.
“Were you planning to absorb it all in one go? You’re shameless.”
Despite the low mumble, the specter picked up on it and responded.
“Do you think you could explain it simply?”
“Do I have to explain it just because you asked?”
“You won’t?”
Why is this guy so brazen? In his eyes, there was only pure desire.
Was that the same look he had when he threw himself off a cliff?
It was hard to say.
It might have felt awkward to Aker, but Encrid would do far worse when it came to learning.
“I already hated having three conditions, but then someone comes along who clears the hidden fourth one? Of course, no one else ever did. So you’re the first. I have a lot to say, and you want me to skip the explanation and just give you the technique? Ugh, no way.”
Aker said with a forced grin.
Encrid was now ready to listen to Aker’s explanation.
The first preparation was to confirm if the blindfold that blocked foresight was still effective.
It was inevitable.
He had seen not one, but four pairs of blazing eyes.
The eyes of a Giant merchant, the eyes of the craftsman Eitri, the eyes of a Frog who crafted trinkets, the eyes of a child who wanted to become a healer.
The embers in Encrid’s heart hadn’t faded, but now it was as if someone had poured oil on them.
Encrid was burning brightly.
He wanted to learn anything, do anything, whether it was sparring or training.
‘Test my skill, see my sword. I can learn anything. Teach me.’
Encrid’s momentum was clearer and more intense than ever before, pressing against his opponent.
It was fresh Intimidation.
Not the kind that made you feel you’d die if you moved, nor a threat that he'd cut anything if you stepped forward.
It was the sheer desire to learn. That kind of momentum appeared as Intimidation.
It was more of an encouragement that fueled a desire to fight.
When Encrid thought that something was hidden within Aker, it was only natural that he would start hounding him.
“Seriously.”
Thud!
“I hate it.”
Encrid hid his breath and raised both arms in a flash. He pointed the sword tip to the sky, then pivoted on his left foot, stepping forward with his right, slashing diagonally downward.
A straightforward and heavy diagonal slash.
Aker chose one of the responses he had shown in foresight.
He raised his sword and parried, moving to the side.
As the two swords met, a loud scraping sound echoed.
And Aker, even while slashing, kept speaking.
The specter Aker’s shadow stretched long to the side.
Encrid’s gaze followed Aker’s feet and sword.
Encrid moved his feet and thrust.
His blue eyes cut through the air, leaving a lingering trail.
It was a speed only visible to Knights.
An ordinary person would have been sliced and pierced to death before they could even see the afterimage.
But even in this mental world, Aker wasn’t caught.
Even though he was just a thought-form, in the realm of consciousness, he was the same as a Knight.
Aker was originally a weapon imbued with such spells.
Foresight showed dozens of potential futures.
Encrid expected his opponent to choose one again, but Aker broke that expectation.
He grabbed the grip with his right hand and clutched the ricasso with his left, blocking Encrid’s sword with force.
Clang!
Two identical swords clashed, and a shockwave erupted.
The grass around them flattened in a circular pattern before standing back up.
Rustle, rustle, rustle.
The sound of the grass moving was annoyingly loud.
The powerful downward slash was halted by Aker’s defensive posture.
“Instead of relying on foresight, you’re fighting with quick wits? Not bad, but who are you imitating?”
Encrid had copied Rem’s technique the moment he saw the opponent’s skill, but it was blocked. Aker continued speaking.
“This is a consciousness world created by the sword, and if you want to leave, there’s only one way.”
Aker predicted that Encrid would ask what happens if he couldn’t leave.
After all, the instinct to preserve one's life is universal.
If you can’t escape, do you die? What happens then?
If he asked that, Aker was ready to mock him by asking what he thought would happen.
But if Aker had broken Encrid’s foresight, Encrid’s response would break Aker’s expectations too.
“Oh, okay.”
He answered carelessly, not even pretending to listen.
His eyes were already filled with madness.
“Hey, focus.”
“Oh, okay.”
Is this guy insane?
Aker was now experiencing what everyone else who had dealt with Encrid had gone through.
Since he had viewed everything through sleepy eyes back in the desert, this was his first time encountering Encrid’s madness.
If Rem had seen this, he would have laughed and said:
“Yup, next victim, step right up.”
Thanks for the Chapter Bro!!! :DD
Thanks for the Chapter.
Is it updated regularly? Also what is release schedule
Creo que he leído el manhwa, talvez lo esté confundiendo.. 🤔