Eternally Regressing Knight-Chapter 561 - Dream to Erase the Troubles of the World

Chapter 561 - Dream to Erase the Troubles of the World

"Where is this coming from all of a sudden?"

"I'm curious now."

Enkrid still didn't know who his opponent was.

But he had a sense of why they were here.

It was something felt in the realm of instinct and intuition.

The old man was sizing him up.

So, Enkrid let it be.

He had nothing to hide or conceal.

There was nothing to gain by hiding anything.

Everyone knew the truth.

Krais, Jaxen, and Rem all knew.

So, Enkrid left things as they were.

There was no smell of blood coming from the old man, nor any signs of preparing to kill.

Would he push him away now?

The old man might become an enemy, but it wasn't about prophecy or foresight—it was just a feeling.

So why not send him away?

'If the opponent sees me, I can see the opponent as well.'

That's what Luagarne had taught him.

While observing, Enkrid sensed that the old man, too, harbored something deep within his heart.

It was likely similar to Enkrid's own, and perhaps to Krang's as well.

A great, hard-to-achieve goal.

People sometimes called that a dream.

The cynical ones called it delusion, but whatever it was, if it was part of the process to achieve it, it could not be dismissed as mere delusion.

"When I was young, I wanted to change the world."

The old man spoke first, but it sounded like a lie.

The desire to change the world was true, but the statement about his youth was not.

It was a lie to speak as if that was his mindset from the past.

He still wanted the same thing now.

The direction and shape might be unclear, but the will was definite.

It wasn't the faint will of the past; it was a clear and determined will rising up.

Behind the old man, something seemed to push away the moonlight.

In the land of night, watched over by the moon and stars, he expressed his intent.

Enkrid knew better than anyone that this was his true feeling, and so, he stopped walking.

"Can you tell me what you're trying to do?"

If his vow was to protect whatever was behind him, then the dream of becoming a knight was something else entirely.

Since there was nothing to hide, Enkrid disregarded the old man's lie and spoke plainly.

"I plan to erase war from the continent."

Enkrid said it in his usual calm manner.

It wasn't a speech, nor a resolve.

He simply believed that he would do it, and that was all.

He didn't raise his will to add force to his words, nor did he respond to the sincerity the old man showed.

His tone wasn't just calm; his attitude and heart were the same.

Enkrid spoke plainly, as if saying he would eat bread and soup the next morning.

It seemed so natural, like something that was already decided.

"That's something I hear all the time."

No one was ready to sleep yet.

Though it wasn't particularly cold, Rem had already thrown a heat leather cloak around his shoulders like a cape and opened the door to the shelter.

The old man ignored Rem's words.

He also ignored Jaxen, who subtly showed hostility.

Instead, he raised his cloudy eyes to look at Enkrid and continued speaking.

"Do you really think that's possible? Do you truly believe it can be done?"

The old man asked again, and Enkrid stared at him silently.

Even though he was curious about the old man's identity, he didn't ask.

Even if he did, the old man probably wouldn't answer.

There was much about the old man that was secretive, but Enkrid had learned things by observing and watching.

The old man was very skilled at handling will.

Enkrid had observed him for days, sparred with him, and learned many tricks.

The old man was quite good at answering questions, too.

From Enkrid's perspective, it didn't matter who the opponent was or where they came from.

Starting with the techniques of will he had learned from the counterbalance position, he had gained much from various skills.

The old man had also been observing Enkrid, and seemed to have many questions to ask now.

Or perhaps he had many things to share.

"You must be stronger than both the well-known monsters or disasters, as well as the unnamed monsters lurking in the Demon Territory. Do you think you can do that? Truly?"

This time, Enkrid silently looked at the old man without answering.

The old man, as if spitting out his words in fervor, continued speaking.

"You must be cautious yet bold, intelligent yet perfect in power. A hero like something out of a storybook. Can such a person even exist?"

Would such a person exist?

Enkrid didn't know.

But he could give an answer: such a person wasn't needed.

"I'll do it."

His tone remained calm.

"...Why do you think that?"

The old man tilted his head, pausing for a moment.

His cloudy eyes, reflecting the light of the lighthouse, glowed red.

The old man asked the reason, but the answer was simple.

Enkrid had never seen anyone else willing to do it.

"Because I'm the only one who will."

Enkrid responded.

It was a grand and foolish dream.

The old man thought so, but he also realized that he couldn't ignore what this man, Enkrid, was saying.

Having observed him for days, the old man knew—this man wouldn't stop.

If he was going to break his will, the only way was to kill him.

Though he didn't show any intention to kill, the thought briefly crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

In the end, Enkrid's dream was similar to his own.

Though the direction was different, the result was the same.

It amused the old man, who laughed softly for a moment.

"I was curious. I heard you've caused quite a stir, so I wanted to talk to you directly."

"Did you have fun?"

Rem cut in and asked.

"Ah, you kept bothering me all the time I was here."

The old man smoothly responded to Rem's words.

"You were giving off a strange smell, so that's why."

Rem answered, resting his axe on his shoulder.

He looked like he'd split the old man's head open if he tried anything funny.

Jaxen had sensed something odd in the old man's demeanor, but Rem had sensed it on a primal level—his foul scent.

Ragna, Luagarne, Shinar, and even Audin could sense the same.

But they let it slide because of Enkrid.

He hadn't intervened, and the old man hadn't harmed him.

Moreover, he had been teaching Enkrid something.

"This friend keeps watching me. They're an interesting bunch, really."

The friend in question was, of course, Jaxen. Jaxen kept silently observing, whether the old man called him or not.

The old man spoke and turned his back.

His steps were those of someone leaving.

"We'll meet again."

As the old man turned to leave, Jaxen thought about using his hand, but he didn't act on it.

"Leave it."

Enkrid sensed it instinctively.

The old man had never fully revealed what he had.

But there was much to learn.

Where did the old man belong?

He didn't know.

But he was certain the old man wasn't an ally.

"I must erase the troubles of the world. That's my dream."

In his youth, the old man had cried this out, and had done many things to achieve it.

And that journey was still ongoing.

"It's fun. It's truly fun."

Life is to be lived for a long time, to truly see.

The old man, one of the apostles of the Demonic Holy Church, thought this way.

Having lived so many years, now waiting only for death, he found joy and amusement in Enkrid's will.

When he saw Jaxen use his skills and react, he realized that Jaxen, too, was a technician of great skill.

The old man walked away from the Border Guard.

He left as the night turned to dawn.

Not everyone in the church was on the same path.

Though his journey differed from the church's teachings, the destination would likely be the same.

That was the difference between the church and the old man.

And that difference was simply the value the old man placed on his life.

'Dreams belong to those who dream them.'

It felt as though the words the old man had once shouted in his youth echoed back to him.

The old man walked through the night, spreading the resonance technique.

In front of him was nothing but darkness, making no difference whether it was day or night.

Eventually, he saw a cart coming from a distance, a group of hardworking merchants.

As he walked, the people around him gradually increased.

The old man rubbed his cloudy eyes with his hand, and white powder fell from them.

At the moment when he crossed paths with the merchants, the old man disappeared.

Whether he ascended to the sky or sank into the ground, he vanished in an instant.

***

"I missed him."

Among the assassins of Geogr's spear, there were a few skilled in tracking. Two guild members, acting on the orders of Jaxen, shook their heads.

There was no trace of him, and he did not appear within their sight.

Just like that, the old man had disappeared.

***

Flap.

"Why is he drinking this?"

Enkrid asked in disbelief. Weird-eyes just shook his head with a flap.

After the old man left, he and Weird-eyesplayed for the first time in a long while, but suddenly, this guy pounced on him.

He thought it was meant as a playful gesture, but to his surprise, Weird-eyes man pulled out a glass bottle filled with holy spring water from his robe, broke it, and drank it.

"...You shouldn't swallow glass shards."

Enkrid didn't think it was wasteful.

He didn't even know what use the spring water had.

But he was curious how Weird-eyes had known to drink it.

'It's nothing important.'

Though it was strange, Enkrid didn't think much of it.

After meeting Weird-eyes, he patted his back, feeling that his spine was slightly protruding.

He was worried it might hurt, but judging by how the he was running joyfully, it didn't seem to be a problem.

In fact, it seemed like he was running even better than usual, as if his feet were barely touching the ground, striking the earth faster and harder than before.

"Yee-haw!"

Weird-eyes drank the spring water as if it was his goal all along, smashing the bottle and gulping down the liquid.

After leaving only the broken shards of glass behind, he went on his way again.

"You didn't even come for water."

Well, it was just one of those things.

After training as usual, and meeting Weird-eyes, Enkrid returned to his quarters and found a letter waiting for him.

It had been left by the old man.

I am the Apostle.

The letter contained a confession from the old man. He openly proposed him to join The Holy Demonic Cult .

Would you consider joining me?

Seeing you reminded me of my youth, especially your face. So, I say this – I don't wish to be hostile toward you.

Thus, I ask you to join the Holy Demonic Cult.

"Such nonsense, carefully written."

Rem casually approached and glanced at the letter.

"An apostle?"

Luagarne showed a brief flash of anger. Jaxen muttered, "I'll kill him."

Enkrid didn't think much of it.

He hadn't expected an apostle to make such a proposal, nor did he think someone like him would get one.

But this was just the beginning.

With the change in reputation and the remarkable things Enkrid had done, guests started arriving to prove it.

"I'm Bianca Conti. You may call me Countess."

A matchmaker from the Empire arrived. The next day, a guest bearing a letter appeared discreetly.

"I've come to deliver the message and letter as instructed."

The merchant had a sharp, intelligent look. Whether he was of noble birth wasn't clear, but his clothes were luxurious, and his speech reflected high status. What he brought was a letter and message from the King of the Southern Kingdom. The merchant was from the south and seemed to have a purpose similar to that of a matchmaker. Additionally, invitations had come from trade cities. They mentioned a commemorative event in autumn, asking to come before winter. It seemed to follow the Border Guard Protection Day created by Krais.

And then Enkrid asked.

"A request?"

Normally, the Border Guard was a kingdom's direct territory, and its military was under direct control.

But practically speaking, it had become Enkrid's command.

The Madmen Order was even more so. Krang had never applied any force to the knightly order.

Instead, he left them to act on their own.

In return, when they needed something, mercenary soldiers were used.

This time was no different. Krang had made a request.

"A Saint?"

Enkrid asked again after hearing Krais.

It was a continent-wide commotion.

The saint had been kidnapped, and they were asking for her rescue.

The request had officially come from the Holy Kingdom, saying that the saint and the kidnappers had entered Naurilia. There were political implications involved, and technically, this wasn't something Enkrid had to involve himself in. Krais thought so.

But Krang had specifically requested the Border Guard.

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"I'll go."

Enkrid stepped forward, and Audin followed.

"I'll come with you, brother."

Whether it was curiosity about the saint or something else, Enkrid didn't stop Audin from coming along.

"Don't get beaten up while I'm not there."

Rem was busy with unit training, but he clearly found it amusing, so he quietly withdrew.

Next, Ragna tried to join, but it was impossible to take him along.

"Do you need a guide?"

"Rest."

That was one refusal.

"If you leave me behind, I'll be cutting you off."

Then, Shinar joked as she joined in.

She didn't specify what she was cutting.

And so, while the guests from the Empire and the southern kingdom were causing a commotion, Enkrid made his escape.

"Really? Just leaving? Hey, captain, you need to deal with those two before you leave."

Krais grumbled, but no one was around to hear his complaints.

The guests from the Empire and the south were not happy.

But what did that matter?

Enkrid didn't care.

"Excellent handling."

Hearing the situation, Shinar supported Enkrid's decision.

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