Chapter 728 - Intoxicated by Twilight
After sparring with the crowd that had rushed in, I ate well and rested well.
Even as I spent a few more days like that, many people kept coming to see me, and what they said was usually quite similar.
"It's really fun training together. Can't you stay here in Yohan?"
Some expressed their fondness without hesitation.
"Thank you. And I suppose I owe you an apology too."
Others spoke to me seriously.
The first kind of words mostly came from the younger ones, while the latter were usually spoken by those who were a bit older.
To add, both groups were completely genuine in both their words and actions.
The ones who wanted me to stay kept pleading and repeatedly asking why I had to leave.
Those who offered words of thanks and apology would bow their heads, and though they didn't go so far as to offer themselves as slaves, they did say I could call on them if I ever needed help.
A few even admitted they felt embarrassed.
"How about me instead of Riley?"
There were even a few who said this to me sincerely.
And I even received a more unusual proposal.
"Since Riley said he'd be your slave, I'm thinking maybe I should be your wife."
This was a woman of the Yohan family whose name I didn't even know.
According to Grida, she was a woman of remarkable talent, but more than that, her dream was to be a wise mother; Grida added that her lack—or perhaps her longing—was critical.
'Wasn't she said to have a bit of a temper?'
I'd met several people within Yohan, and I heard that, whenever things took a bad turn, she'd beat them up and always ended up parting ways with everyone.
She herself would say that her dream was to be a wise mother and a good wife, but during her pilgrimage across the continent, if she saw a man mistreat a woman, she would just lop off their heads, which earned her the nickname "Gallows" because she'd parade their severed heads around.
I also heard that a few promising hunters, who had come all the way to Yohan to try and catch this woman with a bounty on her head, ended up either dead or settling in Hunter's Village.
Wasn't it said that some of them died this time?
Enkrid mostly stayed quiet, but with people around him sharing all kinds of stories, he ended up learning far more than he expected.
"I'll pass."
"Tch."
At least, unlike some people, she didn't get clingy about it.
"In the Empire, there's gold."
"In the Empire, there are beauties."
"In the Empire, there are fine swords."
"In the Empire, there are dwarven blacksmiths."
"In the Empire, there are knights stronger than you can imagine."
"In the Empire…"
Was Schmidt always this talkative?
When we'd met at the Border Guard, hadn't he acted all stern and serious?
Enkrid wondered if he'd just remembered things with rose-tinted glasses because it had been so long.
Of course, that wasn't the case.
Schmidt was an excellent recruiting officer; he was simply doing his utmost to fulfill his duty.
"Does that guy come here every day?"
Judging by what Ragna was saying, it wasn't like Enkrid's memory was off after all.
"There's no way I can leave for the Empire right now. Look at this. Got hurt in the fight, ended up like this."
He'd seemed fine when he was talking about the Proverb Scroll, but once everything settled down, it turned out he'd suffered a deep stab wound above his thigh.
"If it had hit just a little higher—whew."
He wouldn't have been much of a man for the rest of his life.
Schmidt shook his head and said, "Well, compared to getting clawed a little higher by a monster, there's at least one good thing about how it turned out."
"What's that?" asked Ragna.
Enkrid stayed quiet—he already knew the answer.
"They'll see me as a wounded veteran and award me a medal. I'll become a national hero."
It's not like he'd even fought for the Empire, but he'd still end up that way.
If you asked why, he'd say it's because a recruiting officer's job is, by nature, for the good of the Empire.
Enkrid wondered if there was a book called "The Almighty Empire Story" that they memorized or something.
And there was someone who visited even more often than Schmidt.
He was the first face I'd see when I woke up at dawn.
"Are you awake?"
"…Why every day?"
"To thank you, of course. Thank you for saving Yohan."
He would bow.
The House Head came to see me every morning during dawn training, bowing his head and leaving.
Even though he still hadn't recovered and you could see how unsteady he was just walking, he did this every day.
And it didn't end with dawn.
When the sun was high in the sky, he'd come again.
Right after I finished a meal, the House Head would appear and ask,
"Have you eaten?"
"Didn't you lose sight in just one eye? You can obviously tell, so why bother asking?"
He had lost one of his eyes.
Still, he had the other, so it wasn't hard to see the evidence that I'd just finished eating.
"Thank you for saving Yohan."
And then he'd bow his head again.
If only it ended there, but no—I had to see him yet again before bed.
"Still awake?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"If it weren't for you, Yohan would have lost many people."
"Hescal played a big part as well."
"I haven't forgotten his contribution either. In any case, thank you for saving Yohan."
"At this point, I feel like I'll get calluses in my ears from hearing that."
For three days straight, the House Head came to see me every morning, noon, and night.
I'd heard he could never return to his former strength, so you'd expect he might feel bitter, yet even drenched in sweat, he never once skipped coming to see Enkrid.
"Ragna."
"Yes?"
"Why is your father doing this?"
Enkrid asked even though he half-knew the answer.
Still, sometimes you have to ask, just in case there's something you don't know.
Maybe Ragna knew something he didn't.
Ragna now remembers a habit of his father's he'd nearly forgotten.
Tempest Yohan had always acted and spoken with complete sincerity from the time Ragna was a child.
Because he couldn't put emotion in his words or actions, he expressed his sincerity by repeating them as often as he could.
"He's just grateful, that's all."
"Yeah, I figured as much myself."
But it did feel a bit excessive, that was all.
So Enkrid stayed in Yohan for a while.
"Just give me a week. There are still a few things I need to fix up."
Anne said this as well, and Enkrid found he was also perfectly content to linger a bit.
It was a fun and enjoyable time.
"They say you learn by teaching."
He'd had similar experiences before, but in Yohan, there were people overflowing with talent everywhere you looked.
They all enjoyed learning from Enkrid, too.
It was a perfect match, so both sides benefited.
"There's no one in Yohan who explains things the way Enki does."
Among them was a little kid who kept bumping his head on the ground and coming over, acting like they were old friends.
"You're really good at explaining. So, what do you think about tonight?"
And there was also a Giant who repeatedly tried to claim the spot next to Enkrid in bed.
He later heard Ana Hera enjoyed these sorts of jokes.
But for some reason, it sometimes sounded half-serious—maybe his instincts were just off.
"If Ana Hera said she wanted to come with you, would you take her along?"
Ragna even asked him this once, so perhaps his instincts weren't broken after all.
"Well, that's her choice to make."
There was really no reason to refuse.
"Shinar would be overjoyed. I wonder if Esther would be happy too."
There was some pointed meaning in Ragna's words.
"She can do whatever she wants."
Enkrid brushed off Ragna's joke and swung his sword half-heartedly.
In any case, after teaching so many people, he naturally began to reflect on the path he had walked.
'And that's where you find real benefit.'
The road he had taken, and those he hadn't taken but could now see.
The road seen by those overflowing with talent.
The road seen by those who had talent but lacked confidence.
He went over and over those paths in his mind.
If you keep your eyes fixed only ahead, you won't see what's behind you.
That's why you need the wisdom to stop and look back every once in a while.
Enkrid absorbed that wisdom.
That was another lesson learned.
While he stayed in Yohan, similar things kept happening, one after another.
It was true before, and it's true now.
One evening, as twilight fell, the slanting sunlight faded away, casting a mysterious glow all around.
Personally, this was my favorite time of day.
Isn't it sometimes called the "hour of the dog and the wolf"?
It comes from the idea that, from a distance, you can't tell a dog from a wolf as they approach.
The sky was neither completely dark nor fully bright, radiating both a bluish and a yellow glow at once, and the air was just the right kind of cool.
On days like this, things are bound to happen.
When a man and a woman are together, they might fall in love, or perhaps good fortune will come their way, or, unexpectedly, they might find peace in their hearts.
A child abandoned by their parents might break free from those shadows and learn to stand on their own.
A man who grew up unloved, spitting only thorny words, might come to understand what love means.
Once he realizes that there is more to love than simply receiving it—that it's something you can give as well—maybe then that man can begin a new life.
Everyone has a magical moment in life.
Just a single instant, but that moment could change everything.
And even if it doesn't turn the world upside down, it might be that gentle nudge encouraging you to pursue something that seems impossible or out of reach.
That twilight was such a magical time seeping into the world.
Where orange and blue met, dozens of colors flowed together.
Somewhere, insects chirped, and there were fewer visitors today, even since midday.
For the time being, no one else would come.
The House Head's greeting would be much later, and since Schmidt had stopped by earlier that day, he wouldn't be returning.
Ragna had gone with Anne to the cliffs behind the basin.
They said they were going to check on some place where certain herbs or poisonous plants were growing.
There was no one expected to visit, and, aside from the sound of insects, nothing disturbed the quiet.
Enkrid, lost in the mysterious glow, delved into his inner world.
Maybe it was because he'd so recently seen such an impressive sight.
Suddenly, Hescal dropped down from the large tree that stood off to the side.
"Look at things from multiple perspectives. People don't live as just one version of themselves. And if you really want to understand someone, find out what it is they truly want," he said.
Everything he had done was something you couldn't understand if you looked at it in a simple way.
'What Hescal wants is for Yohan to survive.'
When I asked him about his dream before all this began, he just laughed it off with a vague answer—probably for this very reason.
The seizure of divinity is just a means to an end.
Yes, I know that too.
Enjoying swordsmanship and wielding a blade to get what you want are two different things.
One thought that came to me anew: Yohan, and the people here, are not like me.
They don't swing their swords hoping to destroy the Demonic Domain or wishing for something in return.
So I won't force them.
Nothing has changed since the moment I first met Grida, Odincar, and Magrun.
Did they owe me their lives?
Does that mean I should force them to do something they never wanted in the first place?
'I don't want that.'
No sooner had he sorted out his thoughts than, from the shade between two sagging houses, Oara suddenly popped out.
The blue glow cast by twilight passed through her body.
Oara's steps were light, and her face was bright.
She came gently toward me and asked,
"Have you been well?"
Without waiting for an answer, she began to speak.
"You're planning to master all five of the Proper Techniques, aren't you? Even knights usually focus on just one as their specialty, but you're going to do them all, right? You won't abandon a single one."
Oara—she left a strong impression on me before she died.
She had emerged from that illusion with so much to say.
I couldn't disregard a single thing; every word was a clue for a new beginning.
But Enkrid ignored her.
'Enough with these illusions.'
The moment he made up his mind, Oara disappeared.
'I learned and moved forward.'
That's how he arrived at the present.
His mind was at peace, and his head was clear.
Rest and recovery had done their work.
Such a calm mind brings answers.
Go beyond simply learning and training.
My senses tell me—now is the time.
In other words, this is the moment to establish and build anew.
I've seen and felt so much up to now.
I pulled out one of those experiences and used it as my cornerstone.
'The Wave-breaker Sword is based on the True-sword Form.'
I learned the foundation of it from Ragna.
What comes instinctively to Ragna thanks to his innate talent, I achieve through calculation.
The True-sword Form is honed with the Wave-breaker Sword.
Right now, what Enkrid is doing is establishing a method of training for each sword technique.
His thoughts flowed on; twilight's magic was not yet finished, so Enkrid moved freely within it.
He flew, he ran, he swam.
The light of twilight became the sky, became the lake, became the ground.
'The Broadsword focuses on physical training.'
The technique he learned from Valaf-style Martial Arts is about closing the distance and channeling power into a single strike.
That's only natural.
There aren't many who would allow someone with fists as weapons to close the gap again and again.
To this, he also added the technique he saw—an explosive point strike, the skill of handling the House Head's Will.
He learned how to unleash Will from Alexandra, so all he needed to do was use that as the foundation to create his sword technique.
The broadsword is about explosive power.
There was no need to craft a full-fledged sword art right away.
As long as he had the cornerstone, there was no reason to dig deeper.
At least, not yet.
'Deception is built on Luagarne-style tactical thinking.'
To that, he would mix in the techniques of the Valen-style Mercenary Swordplay.
Tactics exist to seize advantageous positions, and Illusion Sword isn't about simply swinging a blade. It's closer to a tactical approach.
A swift blade comes from optimized thinking.
'I learned that from Rem in the first place.'
Rem is someone who can assess the shortest of openings and swing his axe without hesitation.
Of course, he acts on instinct.
Enkrid achieves something similar by optimizing his thoughts into flashes of intuition.
When it comes to sheer speed, Rem was the best.
Next is the Flowing Sword.
'The Sword of Chance makes use of every moment.'
To do that, one would need extraordinary sensory perception to capitalize on every situation.
A Flowing Sword should prioritize instinct and sensitivity from the start.
It's impossible to calculate every point of contact and let attacks flow around them. So you have to listen with your ears and sense even the subtle vibrations of the air on your skin.
'Gate of the Sixth Sense, sensory perception.'
No matter what you call it, it's the same thing.
You have to master the art of the senses.
It's impossible to do without a certain innate sensitivity.
And on top of that, you have to accumulate experience.
Go through it countless times until your body internalizes it.
Even a genius can't reach this realm with Flowing Sword if he's still young.
The Sword of Chance is the ultimate expression of that Flowing Sword.
Sharpen your senses and draw every moment toward your own fortune.
That's exactly the direction Flowing Sword pursues.
A solid theory forms the foundation and everything is built upon firm ground.
Before he knew it, twilight had passed.
In fact, night was already over.
"Did you sleep well?"
As always, the House Head approached and asked. Enkrid, who had stayed up all night on his feet, replied,
"Yes, I slept very well."
This is a path he walks on his own, not one led by instruction.
It would be a lie to say he wasn't happy.
"Thank you for saving Yohan."
The House Head offered the same greeting again, this time to sincerely express his gratitude.
Enkrid simply smiled.
In a way, this simple straightforwardness seemed to symbolize Yohan himself.
And that afternoon, a new guest arrived.
It was roughly the time Anne had mentioned.
In other words, it was just as they were about to leave—and also when Ragna had been missing for two days.
***
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