Chapter 873 - The Provocation of the King and the Knight
At first, there were no more than five arrows flying at once.
Then the number of arrows gradually increased.
From five to seven, from seven to ten, from ten to twenty.
Tung-
"The bowstring snapped! Damn it, throw spears at least!"
The soldiers who had retreated passively raised their momentum.
That knight kept his word.
Then was this a time to just watch?
Probably not.
The Lihin-Stetten army struggled desperately.
"One, two, throw!"
They threw javelins in sync.
Still, the people did not cross the line.
The mad knight of Naurillia swung his black-bladed sword.
It drew two arcs simultaneously from bottom to top.
Five flying javelins were caught by the blade and cut.
The cut sections were sharp.
It was a fierce sword strike.
A couple of southern soldiers who saw it gulped.
If he changed his mind and attacked, that blade would be aimed at their necks.
It would be a lie to say they weren't afraid.
"Where do you think you're going!"
However, that knight seemed to have no intention of cutting the throats of those throwing spears and shooting arrows as long as they didn't cross the line.
Then could they throw more?
"Throw as much as you want."
Just in time, he told them to do so.
"…Bring the spears."
Several strong soldiers lined up in a row and took a few steps forward.
Up to five steps away from the line the enemy knight had drawn.
"Throw!"
There was no slogan.
When they threw simultaneously, the javelins fell in a heap with a single slash.
This time, they each grabbed a different timing and threw.
In between, they shot a few more arrows.
A mobile anti-personnel weapon, called a Trias Bow within the southern army.
A name mixing ancient and imperial languages, meaning a bow shot by three.
Its advantage was power; its disadvantage was durability.
Tung-! Ujik!
With continuous firing, the bowstring couldn't withstand the tension and snapped, or the support fixed to the ground broke.
The number of flying arrows was reduced to half of the beginning.
Sweat flowed from Fel's forehead.
Still, it didn't seem like he would be hit by a javelin or arrow.
"Come out."
One of the enemy soldiers pushed past an ally's shoulder and stepped further forward.
He came right up to the line Fel had drawn.
"I said I'd cut you if you cross."
Fel, seeing that, said.
Even while dodging and swatting arrows, he wasn't even breathing hard.
That made it eerie.
The soldier froze at those words, then calmly calculated the distance with his eyes and abruptly threw his shield.
Hu-ung!Teong!
It was intended to block his vision.
Fel struck the shield with his fist, deflecting it.
Through that gap, javelins, crossbow bolts, and the thick arrows of the Trias Bow flew in.
Fel's pupils narrowed.
In an instant, he captured every projectile flying towards him and moved.
Peong!
Fel's body drew an afterimage as he moved to the side.
Four arrows were caught by his sword and broken.
One broken arrow, with only half remaining, spun in the air before embedding itself in the ground.
"I said no."
Even if he were hit, would his flesh even be pierced?
Fel had also rolled and rolled again in The Madmen Knights all this time.
Had he just rolled?
For the first time in his life, he had clenched his teeth and struggled.
He did not tolerate falling behind.
In that process, he had learned and mastered the knightly art called Iron Skin.
The crude arrows they used would likely leave only scratches on his body.
It was possible to endure even if he took them head-on without deflecting.
Yet Fel dodged and deflected them all.
Not even a scratch appeared on him.
Enemy soldiers gathered in droves and threw arrows, javelins, and shields.
Among them, one commander threw the sword at his waist.
Fel caught it and threw it back, embedding it right in front of the line he had drawn.
If you don't cross, you won't die.
He was faithful to those words.
To the eyes of the Lihin-Stetten commander, it was terror.
A visualization of fear.
'He can kill us, yet he doesn't.'
Morale had plummeted with the death of the three knights, but their spirits had been broken before that.
It was because of the spirit shown by the madman named Fel.
It was a word he didn't necessarily have to keep.
It wasn't a vow, nor an oath.
Yet Fel kept it.
He was faithful to the words he had spat from his own mouth.
"Don't cross."
Leaving warnings intermittently in between.
'A knight is a disaster.'
The enemy commander's legs gave way.
He managed to stay standing, but it was no different from having knelt.
The flying weapons ceased.
Clop, clop, clop, clop.
Behind him, a dark brown horse with a beautifully grown mane approached slowly.
The person riding it wore a cream-colored cloak.
It was a cloak embroidered in red with three swords, a shield, and the pattern of the Sun Tree.
"Phew, what is it? Giving up?"
Fel caught his breath and spoke.
He had felt a presence from behind but hadn't thought much of it.
Most of the soldiers had pale faces.
Monstrous bastards.
A knight is a disaster or a monster.
To the soldiers now, the man standing in front of that line was a disaster and a monster.
The commander, who had mustered courage to create the current situation, saw black spots before his eyes.
'Should I have just let them attack?'
Even if he was a knight, he only had two hands.
Even if they rampaged, they would have inflicted at least a little damage.
Or should he say he hadn't expected them to go this far?
A chill settled in everyone's hearts due to the actions of that one light-brown-haired knight.
Wasn't he doing something truly amazing as if it were nothing?
The highest person in charge of this unit gauged how many could survive here.
'Surrender? Submission?'
The core of the southern army was not here.
If he surrendered here, he would die later anyway.
Because the Great Emperor, their king, would not forgive those who betrayed him even once.
The Great Emperor was not that soft.
That was the kind of existence their king was.
'Then do we have to attack knowing we'll die here?'
The commander sought God.
Naturally, God does not appear every time a human needs Him.
"Even in hell..."
Just as he was about to shout, Even in hell we fight, let's fight even if we all die here.
It was late, but there was no other way left anyway.
He had no choice.
"If you don't cross the line, I won't kill you!"
The commander couldn't finish his sentence.
Before his voice could even rise.
The owner of the cream-colored cloak shouted first.
Krang agreed with what Fel had done.
It seemed he had turned the momentum the knight had shown so far into words.
Everyone's gaze gathered on the declaration shouted from horseback.
The dark brown horse raised its forelegs and brought them down.
Heeigh, the horse's cry seemed to add strength to its master's words.
The opponent had stolen the moment just as the commander-in-chief of Lihin-Stetten was about to say something.
They say a great orator knows the moment to open his mouth.
Krang was like that.
He seized the gazes of not only his allies but all the enemy troops.
Outwardly, he didn't even take a deep breath.
With a calm attitude, he looked once at the enemy commander, appearing to appreciate the aftermath of what his allied knight had done.
Then came a single phrase.
"Impressive."
Yes, even among the enemy soldiers, there were those who had that impression.
Did a knight necessarily keep the words he said?
Leaving aside knights, such people were rare.
Even if one was confident they could do it, it was truly rare for someone to take such risks and endure discomfort to do such a thing.
That was why the word "impressive" fit so well.
"Knight Fel."
Krang called the madman.
"Speak, Your Highness."
Fel wondered why he was doing this here when Enkrid had told him to protect the king.
As he spoke, he finished preparing to block any arrows in case the enemy shot again.
Four Royal Guards were lined up quietly behind the king.
The king had been like this while approaching, full of composure.
There was no urgency.
He didn't look like a person facing a fight close to a massacre, who would soon order them all killed.
With just one word from him, the number of survivors among the enemy soldiers could soon be counted on less than ten fingers.
He was a person standing in a position to manipulate their lives and deaths at will.
"Is there anyone who has died at your hands?"
The king asked.
"There is not."
Fel answered.
"Why?"
"Because they didn't cross the line."
Because those were the words he said.
Because he said he would keep them.
Even as he spat out these words, there was not a bit of hesitation.
Should one say this is what a knight is?
Even a light word, once it leaves his mouth, is kept.
It was an attitude like a textbook.
His origin was as a shepherd of the wilderness, but right now, he was more knightly than anyone else here.
Enkrid's knightly order resembled him.
Krang swallowed a laugh.
Because he couldn't laugh here.
"I see."
Krang said, dismounting from his horse.
He stepped in front of Fel just like that.
Fel wondered if he should stop this.
'Is it okay to leave him be?'
If he stepped forward like that, it would be inconvenient to block arrows.
Because there was always a "what if."
Shouldn't the king not get hurt, even by mistake?
"Your Highness."
The leader of the Royal Guard followed closely.
The king stopped him with a single gesture.
It was a polite refusal.
"This is my stage. Do not interfere."
It was the moment the king, who had spoken as if reciting, stepped forward.
Flutter.
A winged horse descended behind him.
Enkrid dismounted from Weird Eyes and stood to the king's right rear.
Cypress had also followed the king.
He stood to the king's left rear.
"A luxurious escort."
Krang muttered.
What he said this time was heard by everyone.
It was truly strange; even though he hadn't spoken very loudly, his voice spread widely.
Should one say his vocalization was different?
"I speak to the southern army."
Enkrid and Cypress didn't show any momentum and just stood there, but naturally, an aura that overwhelmed the surroundings flowed out.
Even so, only the owner of the cream-colored cloak entered the gazes of all the enemy soldiers.
He raised his hand and pointed down.
Following his fingertip, one could see a long drawn line.
The line Fel had roughly drawn in the dirt.
Because no one had touched it even in the midst of fighting, it was still clearly visible.
"If you don't cross the line, I won't kill you. If that is this knight's will, then I, too, will respect this knight's will. My name is Kryanaht Angius Naurilius, and I stake my name on these words."
The shout rang out.
A silence flowed where not even the sound of swallowing could be heard, and soon a disturbance arose.
Whispers leaked from among the Lihin-Stetten troops.
"…He's letting us live?"
"If we just don't cross the line?"
"…Why?"
It was natural to have doubts.
But there would be no one among the enemy soldiers who understood Krang's intent.
Enkrid saw it that way.
Realistically, what crazy person would decide to send all enemy soldiers back alive when they had perfectly seized the victory?
What's more, the two countries were in the middle of an all-out war.
"If perchance you wish to end this battlefield at once, you just have to cross the line and take my head. It's an easy method."
Krang continued.
It was an unexpected boldness.
The enemy commander's pupils didn't even waver.
It wasn't something to consider.
'Nonsense.'
On one side was the Griffon Slayer with a fluttering dark green cloak, and on the other was Cypress of the Crimson Cloak Knights, the Guardian God protecting the South of Naurillia.
"Are you saying we can withdraw?"
The commander asked.
He didn't know why the King of Naurillia was here, and everything was surprising.
Suspicion arose naturally.
Was he doing this to give hope and then drive them into despair?
After saying that much, it wouldn't be easy to retract it.
Weren't all the knights watching?
Revering honor and chivalry was natural to them.
Mocking the enemy army in this way was unknightly.
Even if the king did it, he would gain antipathy.
Knights were such people.
The commander's head was very complicated.
"You may go. And."
Krang opened his mouth again.
He didn't finish his sentence and met the commander's eyes.
The commander of Lihin-Stetten looked at the enemy king.
Eyes like blue jewels.
The will within them truly shone.
'Those aren't eyes that would speak lies.'
The commander thought, waiting for the king's words to continue.
"Tell the Great Emperor that I am here. Tell him I expected to see that fellow's face if I came here, but tell him I am disappointed."
It was a high-level provocation.
A provocation containing the question: I, the king, came out to the battlefield myself, but where are you?
What's more, the South had a prevalent culture of revering the strong.
The Great Emperor was also one such person.
"Go and tell him. That I am waiting here."
Krang said, turning his body.
The cream-colored cloak fluttered in the wind.
"You have planned something interesting, Your Highness."
Cypress said from beside him.
Enkrid had long since read his close friend's intent.
So it wasn't surprising.
Instead, he met the eyes of the enemy commander.
The commander, who contained the question of whether he could really withdraw like this, felt Enkrid's gaze and turned his head.
"If by chance this is all of your knightly orders amount to..."
What is that bastard trying to say now?
"Tell him I am disappointed as well."
"…Hm?"
"There were only guys so frail I couldn't even warm up."
Enkrid was sincere.
If this was really all of them, he had no intention of hiding his disappointment.
Therefore, he clearly revealed that emotion on his face.
"Pfft."
Krang laughed at those words.
His dignified appearance was broken, but he didn't care about such things.
"Hahaha!"
Rather, he laughed loudly.
Cypress also burst into laughter.
"I didn't say it to make you laugh, but anyway, tell him to bring more knights."
Enkrid said with a calm attitude and turned around.
That day, the commander, after withdrawing, had to choose his words carefully while delivering the news to the main force.
The Great Emperor didn't jump up and down in rage at this, but handprints were left on the armrests of his chair.
Armrests crushed because he had gripped them with force.
***
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