Eternally Regressing Knight
Chapter 436 - 436 - Can't Stand That
Chapter 436 - Can't Stand That
Rem watched Enkrid's struggle but didn't intervene.
He also didn't often engage in the fencing discussions between sessions.
"Rest if it hurts."
He didn't step in enough to be spoken to by Enkrid like that.
"Mind your own business."
Even then, Rem only drew the line so subtly that it wasn't overly noticeable.
After seeing Lagarne step in, Rem rarely focused on his sparring with Enkrid anymore.
Their interactions became sparse, only occasionally exchanging a few moves.
"Want to fight? Come on out."
It was during these rare occasions that he would still teach.
His lessons were still more about action than words.
From Rem's perspective, Enkrid was still the same—growing slowly to the point of being frustrating, but at least not regressing.
He was making progress.
Rem limited himself to watching from the sidelines.
There were plenty of others who could engage with Enkrid.
He didn't need to intervene just to spar.
He helped a little by guiding Enkrid in breath control, but once Enkrid found his rhythm, Rem withdrew.
Lately, his only activities had been swinging his axe by himself or occasionally bothering Dunbakel.
Or he would take walks near the Pen-Hanil Mountains, which felt more like a leisurely stroll unless his body was aching.
On one of those walks, the blood of the beasts living in the Pen-Hanil Mountains soaked into the earth.
"Since you're going, take care of the gnoll pack."
Krais approached Rem, who was walking casually, wearing a feathered hat that looked strangely fitting on him, unlike anyone else it would suit.
"Got it."
Watching Rem leave, Krais turned to his subordinate and lover, Nurat, who had just approached.
"Is something going on lately? Why's he so quiet? It's unsettling. I feel really uneasy."
"Isn't it good when he's quiet?"
Nurat, his dark-skinned lover, tilted her head. Wasn't it worse when Rem was loud?
"Hey, I'm bored. Let's fight."
Rem would often annoy the soldiers or commanders of his unit with such words.
"Is this what you call swordplay? Come here, I'll teach you everything from the start."
"It's an honor, right? I, the immortal Rem, will show you."
"Now, shout 'immortal with one sword, Rem-sama with two!' Ha ha ha!"
He'd raise the intensity of training to absurd levels.
"Is this cooking? The chicken isn't even cooked enough, and soon it'll lay eggs."
"Get out of my way, I'll show you how to cook."
He'd torment the soldiers' taste buds by making Western-style stews that were poorly made.
Enkrid said Rem usually made decent food, but it was all just mischief.
Of course, Enkrid still ate it happily.
"This is nutritious. It's healthy food."
Ragna, upon smelling it, immediately knocked the pot over.
Audin, muttering 'is this another trial?' said a prayer before taking a few bites and then went silent.
Jaxen would leave the moment Rem started acting like that, as would Krais.
Having seen it all, Nurat couldn't help but think this: At least it's better than before, right?
The saying 'quiet is good' didn't come out of nowhere.
She had asked that question with Rem's past behavior in mind.
Krais let out a short sigh and then spoke.
"That's true, but just watching, I can't shake the feeling that the next disaster might be a big one."
Recently, the gnoll pack had been growing in numbers, but Rem wouldn't have any problem with them. They weren't a threat.
Despite Krais' concerns, Rem simply did his job.
With the axe handle on his forehead, balancing it as a trick, he thought to himself.
Even when the gnolls of the Pen-Hanil Mountains grouped together to charge, the situation remained the same.
"Kwaaa!"
The leader of the gnoll colony, with a harsh, metallic sound, breathed fire from its mouth, as though it had swallowed a flintstone.
Rem read the direction of the flames and avoided them. It wasn't difficult.
This creature was merely a monster with no eye for the strength of its opponent.
"I miss the West."
Among the monsters and beasts there, many used their intelligence as a weapon.
This one was no different. It was a mere warm-up.
With that thought, Rem took a position to the side of the gnoll leader and swung his axe.
The blade fell, cutting through the gnoll's neck.
The steel axe, made of Rewis Mountain iron, sliced through its skin, muscles, and bone. Fwack!
Black blood splattered everywhere, and the severed head rolled down the slope. Kwaaa!
The remaining gnolls were easily taken down by a few more swings of Rem's axe. It wasn't hard.
Rem swung his axe a few times in frustration before heading back to the barracks.
Coincidentally, Enkrid, who had received a request letter, was in the process of selecting someone to go with him.
"Let's go together."
The destination of the request was near the West.
Rem had already decided to go, but he hadn't fully settled his mind to leave yet.
Now, he was sure. At this rate, he would continue to be outdone by Ragna.
"I can't stand that."
Krang sat in the great hall, lost in thought as he observed the ministers speaking fondly of krona and how much they cared for her.
"How often does this happen again?" He had heard it from Marcus, and he had seen it himself.
The magic domain residing at the borther of the kingdom was a dangerous place in many ways, and there were often too few hands to deal with it.
It was a place struggling with both a lack of talent and people, and it was dangerous on top of that. Who would actually want to go there?
"In a way, it feels like a bottomless pit that just eats up the budget."
It would be one thing if it were a simple pit, but this was a magical pit that would spew poison if you didn't keep filling it with water.
If it weren't stopped, the encroaching monsters and beasts would cause them to lose some of the land. It was also why they hadn't used the knight card in the civil war.
"Then there's the problem with the south, with Lihinstetten."
So, it wasn't just the magic field border region that lacked people—other areas had similar problems.
The situation in Naurilia was worse than Krang had expected.
If things went wrong, they'd have to worry about being swallowed by the south or an invasion from the magic field, and Aspen had still not completely given up, making it a constant nuisance.
"So?" He almost heard Enkrid's voice in his head. "Right, so what?"
He was already seated on the throne. Krang had work to do.
The knight Oara, who guarded the border, had sent the usual request.
There were too few hands, and they needed people who could fight.
"If possible, send over five hundred troops; if that's not possible, at least send three to four semi knights, preferably with a trained ranger unit," came the request.
"It's a difficult one. Considering the work going on in the capital, both would be impossible. It's best to just send ten soldiers to Aesia."
The Border Guard had been inspired by the security policy and had started roadwork, setting up posts along the way.
It was a simple task but labor-intensive.
While doing this, they had to clear out the surrounding monsters and beasts and keep an eye on the bandits that seemed to pop up out of nowhere.
There was no room to rotate troops. Was this it?
While the commoners recognized their efforts, there were always idiots starting to question if the royal family's youngest son should be the one to hold that position.
Of course, most of them were pawns of foreign dukes.
The real nobles and officials were all on Krang's side.
He pushed aside the complicated thoughts and focused on the immediate tasks at hand.
If he didn't take big strides, he wouldn't get far before dying.
'Who has the bigger dream, me or you?' It was something he wanted to ask Enkrid.
Krang gazed out the window made of colorful glass. The sky was overcast with dark clouds.
"Perhaps there's another way," said Duke Baisar.
"What's that?" Krais's gaze shifted to the Duke.
"The Border Guard has more than just mid-level knights, don't they?"
"Would they even go?"
"Surely, if the king commands, they must go, no?"
"But aren't we talking about the demon slayer?"
"Are you suggesting that he will defy the king's orders?" The nobles eagerly joined in, offering their opinions.
"Naurilia has a system of mercenary soldiers, Your Majesty," Marcus chimed in.
"They take requests and offer payment," the Duke added.
"The treasury is empty," he concluded. Before the Duke could finish, Krang spoke.
The three of them spoke in a synchronized manner, almost like a play.
"We secured the economy and have been bringing in Krona's profit, but it's still difficult to grow food or breed rare horses. It may look good on the surface, but there's still a lot of work to do."
The Duke spoke again. "Conveniently, there's someone here with expertise in that area..."
Marcus continued, and the Duke added a few more words. Krang thought that, in some ways, the two of them were quite alike.
They fit together perfectly. Of course, Krais himself had made it work.
One of the southern nobles, known for breeding fine horses, listened to the conversation and seemed ready to agree, but something felt off. 'So, we're the ones who will pay the price?'
While nobles worked for the good of the country, it was also a long-standing law to respect private property.
He had decided to share his expertise in breeding rare horses, while another noble would help with the land and irrigation.
But it wasn't something anyone had forced upon him. It just happened that way as the conversation progressed.
"Well then, I suppose we should send the request, Count Baisar?" "Yes, I'll send it."
With that, the meeting ended. Krang thought that the request from the border region, being more about a lack of hands than danger, might actually be a good opportunity for Enkrid.
'Doesn't he want to meet some knights?' He knew that Enkrid had already met the king of mercenaries, but knights in a knight order were a different story.
Krang was unaware that Enkrid had already been associating with Ragna and Shinar.

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