Chapter 191 - White Lion
KHHUNG!
The stricken Manticore let out a monstrous shriek. After pulling back as if to retreat, it kicked off the ground again. Its massive body charged, cutting through the space like the wind.
WHOOSH!
Its claws tore through the air. Audin instantly shifted his footing, twisting his posture as he swung his hand. To be precise, he slapped the Manticore across the cheek with his palm. The foreleg cutting through the air and the slap to the cheek happened almost simultaneously. It was that fast of an exchange.
Audin's palm was a weapon in itself, but the Manticore was a high-level monster. Its head snapped to the side from the blow, but it held its ground and swung its other foreleg. Audin stepped back slightly, dodging the attack once more.
KHHHUUUURRR!
The Manticore's enraged roar ripped through the air.
"Grk."
The group of soldiers groaned again under the pressure unique to a high-level monster. And the monster, having let out a roar that overwhelmed its surroundings, was…
SMACK.
"…Where do you think you're going?"
…slapped across the cheek by Audin. This time, it was hit harder than before. Dark blue blood trickled from the corner of its mouth. A droplet of blood fell to the ground with a plip.
"Uh." "Hmph." "That's, um."
The soldiers spoke without thinking. It was that shocking of a sight. It was enough to momentarily break the paralysis in their bodies. What kind of madman slaps a monster across the face and makes it look like that?
Was its pride wounded? Ignoring the pain in its face, the Manticore lowered its body. It charged again, this time twice as fast as before. The attack was not simple. As it swung its foreleg, its tail whipped around from behind, striking down from above like a lightning bolt.
Audin's body also became fast enough to leave afterimages.
HWOONG!
The foreleg missed again. Then, the scorpion-like tail also stabbed into empty air with a thwip. In that gap, Audin concisely swung his hand again.
CRACK!
What in the world was that sound? Enkrid was inwardly speechless. He had seen the entire exchange, not missing a single detail. At first, it had resembled some form of martial arts, but now it had devolved into nothing more than face-slapping. This must have been the first time the Manticore had met an opponent that surpassed its own athletic ability and speed.
'If I were the Manticore, I'd be confused too.'
The beast seemed to feel the same, tilting its head. Its head must have been ringing from the blows. But then, a gleaming killing intent reappeared in its eyes.
"A monster must act as a monster should. The holy scriptures say that having a different faith is different from walking a wrongful path," Audin muttered, beckoning with his fingers. The bear-sized human played with the Manticore like a toy.
KHHUNG! The Manticore charged. SMACK! It got slapped.
A moderate hit would snap its head to the side. A stronger one would send its entire body flying.
Thud, Thud!
Seeing the monster tumble across the gallery like a failed skipping stone, who would call that a Manticore—a high-level monster, the terror of soldiers, a monster among monsters? As Audin swung his hands, memories of the old days came to him. The days when he went around beating down monsters, beasts, and cultists. He had plenty of experience like this, especially when it came to fighting high-level monsters.
The Manticore's face, which had continued to charge despite being repeatedly slapped, began to swell. A few knocked-out teeth rolled on the ground. It was about the time one started to feel sorry for it.
Enkrid sensed a small disturbance below. To be precise, he heard something like a faint groan, and he saw a shadow move.
"It seems we have guests below. I'll go down first," Enkrid said.
"As you wish, brother," Audin replied, even turning around to give a gentle smile.
Seeing that as an opening, the Manticore charged. This time it was a triple attack. Following the foreleg came the tail, and finally, a snake-like tongue shot out. Audin twisted his body to dodge the foreleg, knocked the tail off-course with the back of his hand, and as for the tongue that whipped towards his neck, he let it be.
"The Lord said there are sins that cannot be forgiven." Audin spoke, ignoring the tongue as he swung his hand.
In close-quarters combat, beasts and monsters always have the upper hand. That's what the soldiers watching had been taught. So what were they seeing now?
K-KRACK!
A clearer and more powerful sound than ever before rang out. One side of the Manticore's face caved in from the slap. A feat accomplished with nothing but a palm. The soldiers watching felt the urge to piss. Monsters were scary, and beasts were scary, but the scariest thing right now was that man smiling benevolently.
"Submit to God, and wash away the sins upon your body. I shall wash and lick clean your filth-stained soul. And so, you shall beg and plead for forgiveness for your sins."
His tone was benevolent. His smile was, too. But his hands?
"I think I just pissed myself," a fellow soldier muttered beside him. All the soldiers watching felt the same.
Enkrid, who had watched until the Manticore's face caved in, patted the soldier's shoulder just before heading down.
"You stink of piss," he said, and then descended from the gallery.
He went down the stairs with speed, almost kicking them, and saw a soldier loitering in front of the small postern gate built next to the main gate. He didn't recognize the face, but the uniform was that of the Border Guard's standing army. He saw the man place his hand on the gate's latch. He also saw another soldier collapsed on the ground next to the gate, leaning against the wall. A dark red liquid flowed from his half-crumpled body.
As he quickened his pace, the man who had his hand on the latch snapped his head around. Enkrid ignored his gaze and checked on the fallen soldier. He had gauged his opponent's skill at a glance, so it was fine even if the man behind him tried to attack him from behind. It was a confidence born from that assessment. He checked the soldier's wound.
'Not deep.'
Not fatal. If he had enough grit, he could probably even walk. Of course, that was because Enkrid's standards were high. The soldier felt like he was dying. It hurt too much. He had a hole in his stomach; it would be strange if he were okay.
"Looks like you can walk," Enkrid said, his body still crouched. His back was exposed. The soldier who had his hand on the latch hesitated. Should I open the gate? No, if I stab him now, I might be able to get him. It was an attitude that made one hesitate. He knew the opponent was the infamous demonic platoon leader, but…
In the meantime, Enkrid helped the soldier up.
"Argh, it hurts, it hurts! I've been stabbed in the stomach, it hurts!"
"Looks like you can walk it off."
"No, I can't walk. If I die, please tell my little sister there's a pouch under my bed…"
"You're not going to die," Enkrid cut him off. The man was being overly dramatic. Hadn't he died countless times? It wasn't a wound that could be healed by licking it, but it wasn't serious enough for death to cast its shadow. He ripped off a piece of the soldier's sleeve and wrapped it around the wound, which roughly stopped the bleeding.
"Ugh!" When he pressed on the wound, the soldier's eyes bulged in pain, so Enkrid gave him a push to lean him against the wall. "If you can't walk, you have a whistle, right? Yeah, that. Keep watch and blow it if things go south."
After saying that much, Enkrid turned around. The soldier, with one hand on the latch and the other on the hilt of a knife, hesitated. He was still deliberating. The rumors about the demonic platoon leader's deeds stayed his hand. Wasn't he on the level of a war hero? Even if he didn't know the details of the recent gnoll colony incident, his reputation alone made it clear that he was a dangerous man. But he couldn't possibly handle the ten Black Sword members waiting outside. One man can't fight ten, can he? What's more, the ones waiting outside were all men who were experts at killing people.
It was natural. The Black Sword had come at Vansento's request, and their purpose was clear. In this land, real battles were fought by a small elite. This was a threat, a pressure applied by that small elite. It wasn't just ten men; the fact that they had sent only ten men was a testament to their skill. Of course, they would make it so that no one knew this was the work of the Black Sword. They had to.
If they caused a disturbance and then argued that there weren't enough troops to defend? And if they added the intelligence that a rather threatening neighbor, Martai, was on the verge of starting a city war? The Border Guard would have no choice but to ask the Black Sword for help. The central kingdom would have no reinforcements to send, as they would be busy stopping the monsters in the south. The Black Sword was a bandit group, but Martai was the same. They were a city made up of eastern mercenaries. Mercenaries in general were treated as such, but eastern mercenaries were treated as particularly savage. It was a case of bringing in a tiger to chase away a wolf, but they would drive the situation to the point where there was no other choice.
They were in the process of carrying out such preparations. They had secretly won over a few internal personnel to their side. This was Vansento's plan. The beginning was to let in those waiting outside. This was the first button.
"What are you doing?"
The soldier, no, the spy disguised as a soldier, was sweating as he was lost in complex thoughts. At Enkrid's question, he swallowed. His mission was to open the door and let the Black Sword warriors waiting outside in. He had just stabbed a soldier in the stomach and was about to open the door when Enkrid came down. He had appeared out of nowhere, even though he shouldn't have been assigned to patrol duty. He had been working as a spy in the Border Guard for several months now. The spy knew Enkrid. He swallowed hard and couldn't move a muscle.
If things went wrong, he would be killed instantly. The spy knew he couldn't face this man with his own skills. It wasn't as if he was going to display some profound spirit of sacrifice just to open a door.
'I should have opened it and run earlier.'
His judgment was too slow. He had missed his chance while wondering if this Enkrid fellow was trying to make him let his guard down. His eyes darted around, looking for an escape route.
Enkrid gave the man a casual look and roughly grasped the situation. More than that, he could sense people outside. His sharp senses, combined with his intuition, told him.
'Open the gate. Let the enemy in.'
The purpose? A riot? Something else? He wouldn't know until he met them. And the stabbed soldier's wound didn't seem fatal.
Having roughly finished his calculations and thoughts, Enkrid's mouth opened.
"Open it."
At those words, the spy was visibly flustered. His eyes blinked, and his hands trembled. He seemed thoroughly surprised.
"...Huh?"
"I said, open it."
It was close to intuition, but it was a judgment made with the experience and senses he had accumulated over time. The men waiting outside would find another way in even if he left them. Chasing them down would be more of a hassle. The emergency bell would ring, and if they wanted a commotion, they might move that way. Right now, it was still quiet, and this was a situation that had occurred during a patrol, so it could be ended with an appropriate response. And if things went south, he could just blow the whistle, right? This was the Border Guard, and Enkrid had come with Audin. And if the whistle blew here?
'Wouldn't Rem come running out, all excited?'
He seemed particularly frustrated lately. Of course, more than anything, Enkrid had a certain degree of confidence. No matter who or what the opponent was, he was quite good at enduring. Was it baseless confidence? No. It was a confidence gained from dancing with hundreds of gnolls, along with his Instinct of Evasion.
"...Huh?"
A dazed sound repeated. The spy was deeply flustered. Enkrid took a bold stride forward, so boldly that his opponent couldn't react. The spy reflexively lifted the latch. He pushed the door open and threw himself to the other side. With a thump, the postern door swung open. The spy intended to make a run for it. He turned his body and was about to flee, but Enkrid's hand, which had been watching, sliced through the air. It looked like a meaningless gesture. That's how it appeared to the spy, but a throwing knife flew with a ping and embedded itself in the back of his thigh.
"Ack!"
A short scream. A scream like this would bring the other guards in the vicinity.
Through the slightly open door, he could see the waiting eyes. It wasn't a small number. But it wasn't what you would call a large army either. Enkrid walked up to the door, drew his sword, and pushed it through. As he thrust his sword forward with a shhk, the men in front of him backed away, and in that gap, he stepped outside.
Stepping outside, Enkrid counted the number with his eyes. There were ten of them.
"...What a crazy bastard."
A man clad entirely in black spoke. He examined the face in the moonlight. Well, it was a stranger. One of them raised the corner of his eye. In the back, there was a woman with uniquely white hair. Seeing as her ears resembled those of a beast, she seemed to be a beastkin.
"You came out knowing we were waiting here, didn't you?"
Enkrid shrugged his shoulders. It was his way of saying, think what you want.
"A crazy bastard," said the man who had spoken first.
Shing.
One of the men in black drew a shortsword and charged. It was an attack completely devoid of presence. The step and the drawn blade arrived in almost an instant. It was incredibly fast. A blade that cut through the previously peaceful night air with a ping. Fast, but full of killing intent. Fast, but with a simple trajectory.
Enkrid swung his drawn sword up from below.
CLANG.
He deflected the shortsword, then brought his own sword back down and took a diagonal upward slash stance. The opponent moved to the opposite side. Instead of following through with the upward slash, Enkrid casually swung his blade, drawing what looked like two intertwined circles in the air. After changing the position of his sword like this, he switched to a downward slash a tempo faster. To be precise, it was a sword technique called the Spiral Slash, one of the strikes from the new style he had learned.
"Wha-!"
The surprised man raised his shortsword to block, but there was a difference in the weight of their weapons from the start.
CLANG, CRACK!
Enkrid brought his sword down with force, crushing the man's blade.
"Grk!"
The other side of the man's shortsword dug into its owner's chest.
'One down.'
After reducing their numbers with a single simple movement, he raised the tip of his sword toward the moon and took a stance.
"All together. If you go one by one, you'll die in turn," said the beastkin woman who appeared to be the leader. A clear sense of tension was evident in her voice. He looked like a man of outstanding skill to anyone.
Enkrid sized up his opponents. Then, he had a sudden realization.
'I don't have to just endure.'
In the past, he wouldn't have stepped forward like this. He would have used his head and looked for a way to survive first. So, what about now? The spirit of the men before him was extraordinary. But was it an unwinnable fight? Not a single thought like that entered his mind, so Enkrid did not back down.