What Encrid displayed was akin to an absolute defense, a perfect wall created through reaction speed, swordsmanship, and a perspective that seemed to survey the entire battlefield.
His ability to think was especially exceptional. He saw not just points but lines, not just lines but surfaces, and not just a single tree but the entire forest, absorbing his opponent’s entire body into his awareness and responding accordingly.
Even so, his split-second decision-making never fell behind his opponents.
In an actual fight where they exchanged real blows, the outcome could be different, but that wasn’t something they could know now.
‘He’s mixed everything together nicely.’
That was how it appeared to Rem.
Seeing Encrid master the techniques he had taught filled him with pride.
Making the best decisions in brief moments was one of Rem’s specialties.
However, that wasn’t a reason for him to lose on purpose.
To determine victory in a real fight, one of them would have to die or be seriously injured, and that kind of victory held no meaning.
‘Then I’ve already lost.’
He had to win within the bounds of a sparring session. Rem entered a state of intense deliberation, contemplating, devising, and striving for a solution.
‘Usque was already there.’
He already knew that Encrid’s Will was immense. On top of that, Encrid had significantly improved his skills since returning. That was why he seemed so arrogant now.
‘Why does he always come back stronger after leaving?’
Did he have a hidden treasure trove somewhere on the continent? Of course not.
Rem had traveled with him to the western regions and found no such thing.
‘He trains every day, living the same routine.’
Training to the point of boredom, Encrid did nothing else.
Rem had been doing the same, but recently, he had been training more ferociously.
Even when he found physical exertion enjoyable in the western regions, he had never worked this hard. His newfound goal fueled his passion.
‘I don’t want to lose.’
Pride was there, but the flames of competitiveness burned even brighter.
He didn’t want to kill Encrid, he just wanted to win.
‘Victory, nothing else.’
With that mindset, he spent half a month eating, sleeping, and searching for a way to win.
‘Whether with the axe or otherwise, victory is what matters.’
He practiced backward jumps to improve mobility. It was a technique he refined through sparring with Ragna.
If he had to name it, it would be something like "partial descent", but there was no need for a name.
He simply used what was necessary when it was needed.
That’s what Rem did.
He created distance and fired high-speed projectiles in rapid succession. This method didn’t consume much energy.
Though the bullets were imbued with sorcery, it wasn’t excessive.
He didn’t need to burn through all his strength. By using this strategy, Rem could employ a tactic similar to Encrid’s Usque without relying on defense.
In his case, it was an all-out offensive.
The projectiles were like waves. As long as the waves kept coming, Encrid would have no choice but to block them.
With this, Encrid’s movements were restricted.
Whizz! Bang! Whizz! Bang!
Two slings with different rhythms launched bullets along varied trajectories, tearing through the air, yet Encrid blocked them all.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each block produced a resounding explosion. Smoke billowed, and the deflected bullets smashed into the training grounds’ lodging area.
Even deflected, the bullets had enough force to crack the skulls of most skilled fighters.
Luckily, there was no one nearby who would die from such an impact, except for one person.
Ann, the healer and alchemist, had just arrived to retrieve leaves from the Druier.
The red-haired, freckled girl entered just as a bullet hurtled toward her chest.
Before it could hit her, someone blocked it.
Clang!
Ragna planted his greatsword into the ground and twisted its blade to deflect the bullet.
Because the bullet had already lost some of its force after being deflected once, the impact wasn’t as loud as when Encrid blocked it.
In a brief moment, Ragna had closed the distance, and Ann found her vision suddenly obscured by his broad back.
"Bad timing."
Ragna said indifferently.
Ann quickly assessed the situation and replied,
"…It does seem that way."
Her wide eyes reflected her surprise.
Other than Anne, the others—Luagarne, Teresa, Lawford, and Pel—easily dodged or blocked the projectiles.
Only the lodging area and various structures within the training grounds suffered damage.
A tall wall, reinforced with soil, stone, and plaster, collapsed after being struck by three bullets, sending up clouds of dust.
Amid the rising dust, Encrid’s blue eyes glimmered, focused and intent.
He condensed his Will, ready to close the distance as soon as he saw an opening.
For Encrid, victory lay in transforming mid-to-long-range combat into close-range sword and axe combat. That was how he could neutralize the sling.
Rem knew numerous techniques for firing or detonating projectiles at close range, but those required a willingness to kill.
There was a reason duels between Knights were forbidden, fighting often stirred emotions, and without a clear difference in skill, it was hard to stop without killing the opponent.
Even when skill differences were apparent, serious injuries often occurred.
Rem’s gray eyes shimmered faintly as energy surged through his body, partially imbuing the projectiles in his hand.
The wanderer was irritating him to no end, so he had prepared a technique meant to half-kill him if necessary.
There was no need to name the technique.
Simply applying the force of a giant’s strength through small wrist movements didn’t require a special name, it was a natural extension of existing techniques.
But what was happening now was different.
‘Stay.’
Magical energy coalesced within the projectile, with additional magic imbued into it.
This wasn’t like creating talismans or employing descent magic.
In the past, the Knight Aker had specialized in imbuing objects with energy.
Rem was doing something similar, but with sorcery.
And instead of imbuing a weapon in his hand, he was leaving the energy within projectiles after they left his grasp.
‘Residual.’
Stay and linger. Do not disperse.
‘Explode upon contact.’
He had created a projectile imbued with explosive magic.
Through his Sixth Sense, Encrid saw the ferocious beast within the projectile hurtling toward him.
The bullets he had blocked earlier resembled hailstones. But this one—it carried intent and life.
It felt like throwing a living beast condensed into a single attack.
Encrid didn’t ignore the instinct warning him.
He quickly lowered his posture, shifting his center of gravity.
Rather than advancing, he let the attack pass.
By directing the force downward and backward, he swung Penna diagonally upward.
The round, beast-like projectile collided with Penna.
Up to this point, the violence of a Knight had already been more than enough to be considered disastrous. But this surpassed even that.
A blinding flash erupted, followed by a thunderous explosion.
Boom!
The shockwave tore through the air.
Ragna, looking mildly irritated, grabbed Ann by the shoulder and placed her behind him.
With his free hand, he swung his greatsword three times from top to bottom.
Swish. Swish. Swish.
The shockwaves were cut cleanly by Ragna’s three slashes.
Even to a Knight, it was an impressive display, but no one was surprised.
With Rem acting so recklessly, he might have actually killed his captain. No one had time to be amazed by Ragna’s feat.
"Are you seriously insane?"
It was Jaxon’s voice. Rem sensed the presence of the wildcat creeping up behind him but let it be.
There was a hint of killing intent, but it was the usual kind, the kind that showed up when someone was in a bad mood.
Ragna just stared indifferently at the source of the explosion.
"Lord Father, is it time for our barbarian brother to come to your side?"
Audin murmured quietly, as if in prayer.
"Is he dead?"
Lawford muttered in shock, but Pel shook his head.
They had wandered through the fairy city and labyrinth together, seen demons killed, and witnessed cultists cut down on the way back.
Their mad captain wasn’t someone who would die so easily anymore.
Knowing how many times Encrid had died fighting the demon One-Killer, such a statement was reckless, but Pel’s prediction was correct.
"This is what you call sparring?"
Encrid’s nonchalant voice came through. His right arm dangled at his side, either broken or with torn muscles.
At some point, he had shifted Penna to his left hand.
At least Penna was intact, which was fortunate.
The fairy-made treasure radiated a faint light, countering the effects of the explosive magic.
Rem laughed and asked Encrid,
"Any complaints?"
Of course, Encrid was the same as ever.
Whether it was when he first became a Knight or when he temporarily surpassed them recently, he hadn’t changed.
"One more round?"
The mad captain smiled brightly, a smile so full of joy it could only come from someone completely unhinged.
"You’re all insane. Truly."
Ann muttered as she watched, but for Encrid, this was natural.
He was having too much fun. What would have happened if he had failed to deflect that bullet earlier? Would he have lost an arm?
But he had blocked it. Rem had believed he could block it, and Encrid had met that expectation.
‘This is exhilarating.’
The thrill surged from his toes to his head.
The more he replayed the moment in his mind, the more he enjoyed it.
‘What if I had adjusted the angle of the block? But that bullet wasn’t just a stone, was it? That means there weren’t many of them. Dodging something moving that fast would have been difficult. If I barely dodged it, the next attack would’ve hit me. Rem always launches follow-up attacks like that. I’d have to block and endure each one. But how?’
He didn’t have the answer yet, but he had noticed something about the bullets.
They were coated with something—something new that Rem had brought back from beyond Encrid’s reach.
How could he not be excited?
Would Krais have felt this happy when he stumbled upon a mountain of gold coins?
Encrid thought he was probably even happier than Krais had been back then.
This wasn’t a life-or-death fight; it was a sparring session.
He could take his time reviewing and training.
Truthfully, he didn’t have the answer right now.
But inspiration would come again. He knew how to wait for it now.
Of course, he would do everything possible in the meantime.
"Looks like tonight will be perfect for stargazing, brothers."
Audin’s comment interrupted Encrid’s automatic reflections.
Encrid took in the aftermath of the sparring session with Rem.
Crash, rumble.
A section of the lodging’s wall collapsed, turning into a pile of rubble on the ground.
It was the side of the building where Audin’s room had been. The room was now half-destroyed, providing an unobstructed view of the night sky.
"It sure is. Your room’s prime real estate now."
Encrid replied.
Audin smiled and muttered a quiet "Lord" under his breath. Those two syllables seemed to carry a mix of emotions.
Encrid tried to lift his right arm but gave up and said,
"Yeah, this arm’s out of commission. I need to rest."
His arm wasn’t responding. The brute force he had used to block the attack was to blame.
"Are you serious? If you want to die that badly, I’ll give you another hit."
Rem growled.
Encrid wasn’t the only one injured. Two of Rem’s fingers were broken as well.
Handling sorcery close to the level of divine descent with his bare hands—it was, in hindsight, an inevitable result.
The technique wasn’t perfect yet, but did it have to be?
Rem understood that it didn’t.
That’s why he had used it anyway.
The more he used it, the more familiar he would become, and the clearer the path for improvement would be.
‘Looks like I need more training too.’
That’s what Rem thought internally, but outwardly, he showed no sign of it.
He cleaned up his sling, aligned his axe handle properly, and then spoke with a newfound seriousness.
His voice was loud enough for everyone to hear.
"In the West, there’s a phrase called ‘Utkeiora’. In this language, it means ‘dark sky’, but it’s a metaphor for dawn before sunrise. We’re all just at dawn. So all we need to do is push a little harder. Don’t be discouraged. It’s fine. Effort is enough. Effoooooort. So what if you can’t beat Captain Enki? That just means you’ve hit your limit. The dark sky is dawn. Sure, there are times when dawn never comes, but that’s fine—I’m here, aren’t I?"
It was a sermon.
Rem’s eyes shone brighter than they had during the fight. His gray eyes radiated a life and energy they hadn’t shown before.
Naturally, the expressions of those listening were changing in the opposite direction.
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