Eternally Regressing Knight
Chapter 393 - 393 - With Fists Instead of Clubs
Chapter 393 - With Fists Instead of Clubs
The name of the man who became a Lykanos was Ronald.
Even when he was human, Ronald was a deviant who found pleasure in killing and dismembering others.
"It's fun, isn't it?"
He never denied the enjoyment he derived from his actions.
Thus, his fate was inevitable. Ronald was pursued by bounty hunters and cornered to the brink of death. That was when he met Count Molsan and received the power of the beast.
Ronald considered it a stroke of luck.
The power of the beast surged through his body, coursing into his arms and legs. His pounding heart pumped blood throughout his being.
Energy overflowed. It surged so much that he had to do something—anything. He wanted to rip apart limbs and feast on entrails immediately. He craved blood. He wanted to crush bones with his teeth.
His desires roared and bubbled, becoming visible in his eyes.
"Khuhuhuhuuuuu!"
His laughter mingled with a chilling howl.
Unable to hold it in, he let out a monstrous scream. He saw the line of soldiers standing firm in front of him, pretending not to be afraid.
Ahead of them stood a massive figure with an outstretched arm.
The figure looked tough, but it didn't matter. Ronald was confident his sharp fangs could tear through anything.
He would devour them indiscriminately.
And once inside the city, he would choose young girls hiding in terror to kill and savor their flesh.
"Kihehe!"
Swallowing his anticipation, he extended his claws and charged forward.
Whoosh.
A gust of wind struck his face before he could react. Despite his newfound strength, which had doubled his speed, Audin was far faster.
Crash!
It was as if two speeding carriages had collided head-on.
A thunderous boom erupted amidst the howls of the Lykanos pack. Ronald's shattered head scattered into pieces.
Audin froze in place, his left hand extended like a blade, while his right fist stayed outstretched from the strike.
Blood dripped from the spiked leather gauntlet on his right hand.
Audin had always used a club to avoid relying on his fists.
But the situation had changed.
"If we don't stop them, it's over."
Hadn't Krais said so?
Everyone in the city of Border Guard behind him would die if they failed.
He had no reason to show mercy.
The enemy was a depraved group of humans who had chosen the life of beasts.
The scripture said: If a human abandons their humanity, their place is solely beside the Lord.
Seek forgiveness beside the Lord.
Face judgment beside the Lord.
Such were the words written in the holy text.
"My left hand is a sword, and my right hand is a rock."
Audin murmured, continuing as he moved and recited.
"The Father told me to spare no mercy in these hands."
The Lykanos pack, drunk with bloodlust, charged recklessly, their human reason long lost.
Even though their leader had been blown apart, they failed to comprehend, trapped in their demonic frenzy.
Audin marched forward to meet them.
Each step he took was like a battering ram, crushing anything in its path.
He advanced with relentless determination.
"Once, they were human."
He prayed, slashing at a charging Lykanos with his left hand. His hand, sharp as a blade, cut diagonally, slicing the head of a one-eyed Lykanos along its trajectory.
Blood spurted like a fountain. Though it died, its momentum carried it forward, crashing into Audin.
Audin pivoted slightly on his left foot, letting the corpse slide past him and collapse to the ground.
Boom!
Before the fallen Lykanos could even stop skidding, another explosion rang out.
Audin's right hand struck the chest of the Lykanos behind it.
A mixture of organs, bones, flesh, and blood sprayed outward in a radial pattern.
A gaping hole, impossible to believe made by a human fist, was left in the creature's torso.
"Now, these beasts have ascended. Announce their sins and judge them."
Before finishing his prayer, Audin had already swung his left hand three times and his right hand four times.
Three Lykanos lost parts of their bodies, while four more were shattered.
His prayer concluded.
To Audin's left, a husky voice joined in.
"Forgiveness and judgment are the Lord's work."
It was Theresa, holding her shield horizontally as she continued the prayer.
She pulled her left hand back and thrust it forward.
With a
whoosh
, her shield cleaved the air, flying faster than an arrow. The large shield, which could cover half her body, sped forward with unbelievable velocity.
The shield's edge sliced a Lykanos in half at the waist.
Sharpened edges met Theresa's strength, making the shield akin to a legendary blade.
With a tug, the shield snapped back into her hand.
Another Lykanos charged her, but even as she retrieved the shield, Theresa struck its head with her sword's flat side.
Clang!
The hybrid giant's strength smashed into the Lykanos's skull, shattering it. Severed tongue, broken teeth, and shattered bone fragments sprayed out, staining the air crimson.
A few, including the newly appointed commander of the heavy infantry, witnessed this.
Even knowing their power, they were astonished.
Are they human?
It was the first time they had seen Audin fight with such determination.
Can human hands even do that?
The gauntlets on both of Audin's hands cracked and broke under the strain, but he paid no mind, swinging his fists relentlessly.
He resembled a pulverizer, reducing the Lykanos pack to mangled flesh. Beside him, Theresa moved with shield and sword in hand.
Fifty Lykanos would have overwhelmed most cities.
Yet this threat was torn apart, shattered, and broken before two individuals.
One of the standing army's commanders shook his head in disbelief and roared:
"Charge, everyone!"
Now was the time to press the advantage.
This was the order from above, emphasized repeatedly by the wide-eyed envoy until it rang in their ears.
"Whatever you see, don't be startled. Keep moving forward. Maintain the formation and push forward as is."
"What if the enemy retreats?"
"Keep the formation intact. That's the priority. Chasing them comes later!"
Krais, the madman, talked too much. Yet, the commander followed his orders without question.
Everything had received the approval of Lord Graham, after all.
Most importantly, this was all about protecting the city where they were born and raised.
Among the soldiers at the front, most were locals of Border Guard—a place that was both home and livelihood.
Krais had intentionally sent out only those people.
The troops advanced without significant disruption to their formation, a testament to their rigorous training.
Naturally, even the commander leading Count Molsan's army could see this.
What kind of battle starts with fists instead of arrows and ends with an orderly advance?
"What is this?"
It was a type of warfare entirely outside his understanding.
While not an extraordinary strategist, the man sent by the Count was competent enough.
He made the best choice under the circumstances.
"Retreat! Fall back!"
Their prepared tactics had failed, and they needed time to reorganize. He ordered the army to withdraw immediately.
This was precisely what Krais had hoped for.
That was it. Pursuing further to inflict critical damage? Out of the question.
After all, only a fraction of the forces prepared by Count Molsan was likely here.
The goal was simply to buy time.
Watching the enemy retreat, Krais thought to himself:
'I need to know what's going on here.'
Could the Count have already taken the palace?
Unlikely. If he had, there would be no need to target Border Guard. This was more like a sudden raid.
'If I were in his shoes, I'd demand loyalty first.'
Doing so while laying siege would make the demand even more persuasive.
But the Count hadn't done that.
'Which means this is retribution.'
Retribution against whom?
There was no need to overthink it.
Who in this city could be tied to the Count?
Lord Graham?
All Graham had done was grit his teeth and vow to defend the city.
Krais had his own instincts and suspicions.
'Could it be our commander?'
It was a small doubt but one he strongly believed in.
Nothing in this world is absolute, so he couldn't be certain, but the probability seemed high.
'This could get messy.'
It was clear as day—civil war, possibly full-blown war. And what had the Count deployed?
Fifty Lykanos.
Humans transforming into wolves. If you didn't feel like wetting yourself at the sight, you weren't human.
In Krais's eyes, people like Enkrid and a few others weren't exactly human.
They were monsters.
Seeing those creatures likely wouldn't faze them. Instead, they might eagerly charge into the fray—or lazily kill whoever dared approach.
The Count had revealed dangerous assets, but why? Because it wasn't his trump card.
In other words:
'This isn't the end of it.'
Krais recognized those who transformed into beasts—they were similar to the ones encountered when they fought the Black Blade Bandits.
The soldiers were practically a declaration that Count Molsan himself was behind this.
'And his domain's troops are highly trained.'
Marching alongside Lykanos without breaking ranks would unnerve most soldiers, yet these troops fell back in perfect order, as if prepared for moments like this.
Uncertain of what might be lurking behind them, Krais postponed any pursuit.
No, they shouldn't pursue.
His mind knew it, and his heart agreed.
Fortunately, the enemy retreated without incident.
"Giant Siblings!"
Someone shouted the nickname for Audin and Theresa.
Audin silently wiped the blood from his hands and removed his battered gauntlets.
Despite the carnage they'd caused, his fists bore only a few scratches.
More than forty-nine Lykanos corpses lay before the siblings.
The remaining dozen had bypassed them, only to be stopped by the newly-formed spear-shield unit.
The unit didn't falter.
They maintained distance with their spears and shielded themselves.
It was a well-coordinated tactic, a compact formation inspired by the renowned small-scale battle strategies of the Eastern Continent's Mercenary King—an idea brought in by a recently recruited mercenary commander.
Like a hedgehog, the unit methodically pierced and felled the werewolves one by one.
Though not at the level of Audin and Theresa, many of the soldiers could take down a single Lykanos on their own.
Victory was inevitable.
Krais anticipated that Border Guard's capabilities would soon be widely known.
'Aspen or elsewhere, they'll analyze our strength.'
With so many eyes and ears watching, it wouldn't take long for the word to spread about the formidable power of Border Guard.
Would that help in this situation?
'Of course, it would.'
Having strength is always better than lacking it—that much was obvious.
With a sigh of relief, Krais began preparing for the next step.
'The Count's goal is the palace.'
Though he might want to take Border Guard, they'd proven it wouldn't be easy. His next move would undoubtedly target the palace. Predicting that was as easy as taking candy from a child.
Preparations for that would have to begin here as well.
Krais relayed all of this to Graham, who nodded.
"I'll send a message to the palace with the swiftest bird available."
After a battle that ended almost as quickly as it began, Krais sensed a brutal civil war looming on the horizon.
He didn't know everything about Count Molsan, but if it were him:
'I wouldn't act unless I was confident of victory.'
The Count had stepped in because he believed he could win.
Testing Border Guard's defenses was little more than a game to him.
"Where is the commander, and what kind of trouble is he causing now?"
Krais muttered to himself, curious about what mischief his leader might be up to.
"What is this?"
Enkrid had fallen asleep and woken up to an unfamiliar sight—a set of tools laid out before him.
A table. Chairs.
The small rowboat seemed at least twice as large as before.
"I thought we'd have a little chat. You and I."
There were two chairs, and the ferryman seated opposite him spoke, pulling back his hood.
Beneath it was a gray, cracked complexion like a barren wasteland, and glowing violet eyes.
There was no lamp. Instead, the ferryman's eyes radiated light like lanterns.

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