A Knight Who Eternally Regresses - Chapter 298

Chapter 298: CHAPTER 296 Chapter 298: CHAPTER 296 ‘Heavenly Father, I ask of you.’ Audin knelt down and quietly began to pray.

From that position, he saw Encrid’s unbelievable head turn.

Afterward, he witnessed the impossible-an incredible sprint, a charge, a sword strike, a scroll, incantations, and explosions.

Kyaaak!

As soon as he saw that, Esther sprang forward, but Audin didn’t bother to stop her.

She wasn’t a panther that couldn’t even take care of herself.

He also saw Ragna step forward after that.

The dim-witted swordsman, who often lost his way, ran straight towards where Encrid was.

His footsteps seemed incredibly light.

‘Are you envious?’ Of that dim-witted blonde soldier running over there?

“Wanderer Teresa speaks.

When do we fight?” Like a sheep thirsting for battle.

And yet, Audin did not ignore his own heart.

“It is said that unripe fruit is sour and bitter, and the Father said, patience ripens the fruit and also matures the heart, so he wished to give you good things, and instructed you to endure and endure again.” “Patience, yes.” Teresa quietly knelt beside him.

Despite this, she was not smaller in stature compared to the surrounding soldiers.

The same was true for Audin.

It was like two bears quietly waiting for their time.

‘Learn patience, and move forward.’ Audin silently recited a short blessing towards Teresa and continued his prayer.

‘What is the shepherd and mad sheep leading the Mad Company doing right now?’ The holy texts said to help the young and weak.

As a shepherd leading the sheep, God commanded to protect and guide the flock.

It seemed that was what his Commander was doing now.

He saved a child and, somehow sensing it, cut away the ominous thing wrapped around him and let it explode.

‘Oh Father.’ As he quietly prayed, a horde of beasts suddenly began to appear in the distance, lifting their heads, and then started rushing forward.

Under the dim sky, yellowish dust began to rise.

“If we let the beasts break through, we’re all dead!

Hold the line!” At Graham’s command, the Heavy Infantry marched out.

Audin began a new prayer.

It was short and powerful.

‘Heavenly Father, I ask of you.

Do you not need a dog to guard your side?’ There was no answer.

But he thought it was necessary.

Sending them to the side of God was the greatest blessing that could be given to the beasts.

Audin stood up.

“I must personally deliver a blessing.” “Wanderer Teresa will join you.” Audin stepped forward, and Teresa followed behind him.

The two walked briskly toward the horde of beasts.

The allied soldiers waiting behind naturally parted to make way.

The two large figures walked along the open path.

* * * Awooo!

Grrr!

Woof!

Three or four wolves, whose bodies had grown larger due to the beast transformation, leaped at the soldiers as if to block their path.

“Hold firm!” Bang!

A wolf slammed its front paws down on the square shield that covered more than half of the soldier’s body.

The impact sent a sharp tremor through his forearm.

“Stab them!” Block and stab.

The most basic of basic tactics for the Heavy Infantry company.

Several beasts were skewered by the spears of the strong soldiers.

Thud-thud-their heads burst, or their chests were pierced with holes.

There were too many beasts.

It was dizzying.

It could be called a wave of beasts.

Paul, a soldier from a coastal village, knew well the terror of the sea.

He would often jest with his fellow comrades, saying that even if high waves crashed down on him, he had to withstand it to be called a man of the sea.

This was just like that.

This place was neither the sea nor the coast.

The monsters had become a wave, crashing down on their heads.

“Aaaaaaah!” Paul drew strength from deep within his gut.

He was so strong that in his village, he would be considered second to none.

If he hadn’t half-crippled the Village Chief’s son in a fit of rage, he wouldn’t have ended up here.

Now, the strength that half-crippled the Village Chief’s son was the very tool that would protect him, his bulwark.

With all his might, even the strength he used as a child, he swung the hunk of metal in his hands.

It was a flail with a round ball at the end.

Whung, thunk!

The head of the wolf at the crest of the wave collided with the flail and went flying.

Blood and brain matter splattered from the shattered skull, spraying across his face.

Paul blinked once, pulled back the flail, and swung it again.

“Take that!” With a battle cry, he brought the flail down from above.

Thud!

Crack!

The flail shattered the shoulder blade of the beast, then slid off to the side.

This time, he lifted the flail from below, bringing it upward.

Thwack!

This time, it shattered the jaw of another beast that had been lurking below, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Screech!

The beast with the broken jaw rolled to the side, only to be replaced by another.

“Aaaaargh!” Paul, who had taken down three beasts with sheer strength, let out a roar.

“Damn it, Paul!” “You did great, country bumpkin!” “Hold the line!

Hold the line!” Paul was now fighting, having even thrown away his shield.

A few fellow soldiers beside him filled the gaps with their shields.

Catching his breath, Paul resolved to keep doing this damned thing as many times as it took.

“Mother!” A usually quiet and brave comrade screamed for his mother as he was flung into the air.

Half of his body had been torn apart.

Thud, thud, thud.

Blood and entrails mixed with sleet rained down from the sky.

What the hell is this?

Growl.

Amid the beasts, Paul saw something terrifying.

What the hell is that?

It’s at least twice the size of the other beasts.

No, there’s no comparison.

Even crouching, it’s taller than eye level.

You have to look up to see its face.

A giant beast?

No.

It wasn’t something like that.

Beasts are animals that have been corrupted by dark magic.

What he saw now was a monster.

A creature from ancient times imbued with dark magic, the natural enemy of humans.

A monster-a Dire Wolf.

The gray-furred creature with red eyes looked down at Paul.

One of the soldiers who had been blocking its path began trembling violently.

Just seeing it brought on overwhelming fear.

The urge to flee surged up within them.

Even so, they stood their ground and raised their shields.

They endured, thanks to years of grueling training that made them cough up blood.

That alone was worthy of praise.

Growl.

As the Dire Wolf let out a deep, resonant growl, the soldiers’ legs began to shake even more violently.

Even if they wanted to resist, they couldn’t overcome their innate fear, causing their entire bodies to tremble.

Paul was no exception.

His hand holding the flail shook.

His knees trembled.

Goosebumps rose on his skin.

Fear turned his vision black.

‘Am I going to die?’ Paul thought of the girl who wove cloth.

‘I loved her.’ He had planned to propose to her when he returned.

Even if she didn’t mind someone like him, he wanted to ask her to live together.

He wanted to settle down in this place after leaving his hometown and live a cozy life with her.

He wanted to show her the sea one day.

He wanted to have children.

He wanted to teach them how to fish.

There were so many things he wanted to do.

Paul felt certain of his impending death.

He was going to die.

That is, if it weren’t for the human figure resembling a bear that had approached him from behind.

The bear-like figure’s hand touched Paul’s shoulder.

“The Lord watches over you.” Amusingly, with just those words, the crushing pressure that had been weighing down Paul’s entire body disappeared.

“Huff, huff, huff.” As he gasped for breath, drenched in cold sweat, the bear-like figure spoke again.

“Even to the lowly creatures tainted by evil, I grant a blessing.” A blessing?

What kind of blessing?

The question lingered only for a moment.

The huge, crazed soldier Audin suddenly dashed forward.

It was a speed that didn’t match his massive frame.

To Paul’s eyes, Audin’s figure seemed to blur and vanish.

A dozen or so wolf-beasts stood between him and the Dire Wolf, but it was futile.

Thud!

Screech!

Growl!

Crack!

Snap!

Boom!

What on earth is that?

Paul’s eyes were filled with bewilderment.

And rightly so.

The vanished Audin was suddenly standing in the midst of the beasts.

Only then did Paul begin to register his movements.

Audin extended his fists and feet at the same speed he had been running.

It was like watching a battle wagon in action.

It was like a battering ram reinforced with iron plating.

The two flails extending from the wagon turned the pack of beasts into nothing more than stray dogs-or rather, like mongrel pups rolling around in the marketplace.

Their heads were like tomatoes-smashed, burst, and crushed.

Paul had used all his strength to kill three of them, but Audin took down five or six just by passing through them.

Some of the beasts were even sent flying through the air.

As Audin’s body rampaged, it once again blurred and disappeared.

It was as if he was accelerating just to show off.

As if to demonstrate what true speed was.

Wham, boom!

A footprint was left where he had stood.

The yellow earth was deeply dented, leaving a trace of the forceful charge and the absence of its former occupant.

It was a charge accompanied by overwhelming power.

The Dire Wolf’s eyes followed the vanished Audin.

With a swift motion, the beast’s forepaw struck.

The monster also moved with a speed that didn’t match its size.

The massive paw moved dynamically.

Soon, the bodies of the monster disguised as a human and the monster disguised as a wolf collided.

Crash!

A shockwave erupted from the collision of the two beasts.

Dust billowed outward in a circular pattern.

Everyone’s eyes were on the scene of the wolf-beast and the human-beast clashing.

What should they call the emotion that replaced their fear and terror in that moment?

There are certain figures who are difficult to approach in normal times, but when they stand beside you on the battlefield, they become the most reassuring presence.

Encrid’s Madmen Platoon was just that.

“Blessings!” Audin shouted again as he swung his fist.

The Dire Wolf, with surprising agility, dodged and immediately tried to bite him.

Crash.

Fist and claws missed each other, colliding.

The flail had long since been discarded.

But why did it sound like that when fist met the monster’s claws?

And what was the blessing?

The blessing Audin spoke of was, of course, something that would send the wolf to the heavens.

That is, the very thing in his hands.

Violence, grounded in overwhelming strength.

The greatest blessing for a monster was to die and reside by the side of the Gods.

Audin intended to personally deliver that blessing.

“Are you just going to watch?” The shout of the Commander leading the infantry rang out.

At that sound, Paul lifted the flail he had let hang down.

“Let’s wipe them all out!” “Are you out of your mind?

Form up!

Anyone who charges out on their own is dead meat!” “Paul, you country bumpkin!

If you want to go back and finish things with Desiang, shut up and hold the formation!” The Platoon leader burst out in anger.

Paul complied with the order.

A sudden surge of relief washed over him, realizing he was still alive.

Of course, it wasn’t time to celebrate just yet.

The battle was still ongoing, and he was in the thick of it.

But, Paul felt like he wasn’t going to die.

He had just survived a face-off with a Dire Wolf.

Was he really going to die to some mongrel-like beasts?

“Raise shields!” “Raise shields!” The Heavy Infantry, the pride of the Border Guard Reserve Unit, once again formed an impenetrable defensive wall.

Though they weren’t the main assault force, holding the line and maintaining formation was the best they could do at the moment.

Their efforts were soon rewarded.

“Use everything you’ve got.” That’s what Krais said during the third battle.

Graham followed that advice.

“Charge.” At his command, spears flew into the sides of the beasts.

“Did you think you were the only ones with a secret weapon?” Whinny!

It was a cavalry charge, something they hadn’t shown before.

A mercenary at the front let out a long whistle.

At that signal, the horses charged forward.

The ones who had been hiding inside the fortress now burst out in a line.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

As the cavalry galloped, the ground shook with the sound of hoofbeats.

It was a hastily assembled unit of mercenaries who were skilled on horseback.

Even though it was hastily formed, it hadn’t lost its mobility.

Lacking in training and skill, perhaps, but more than capable of charging and crashing into the enemy.

Above all- Neigh!

A wild horse, larger than the regular warhorses that had suddenly joined the fray, took the lead and did something crazy.

‘What the hell is that?’ The mercenary was shocked, but his hands and feet, seasoned from years of battle, did what they needed to do.

He swung his Greatsword in sync with the wild horse’s charge.

At the speed they were running, the blade sliced through a beast’s head as it passed.

Thwack!

The beast with the severed head flew to the side.

The wild horse, as if thrilled by the action, rammed into another beast with its forehead, then quickly pulled back, only to accelerate and charge again in a short distance.

It repeated this several times, and-how should one describe it?

It was the first time in his life he’d ever seen anything like it.

‘Is that a stunt?’ The mercenary was bewildered, but since that horse was on their side and was brought by Encrid, he let it go.

Trying to understand it would only give him a headache.

Amidst the chaos of battle, Teresa maneuvered past the horde of beasts, heading toward the rear.

A few beasts, underestimating her, attempted to attack.

Teresa dealt with them calmly.

She blocked with her shield, gripped her blade, and swung her sword like a club, roughly driving them away.

Screech!

A few of the struck beasts circled around her.

They were fearless creatures.

Should I kill them?

Teresa considered it for a moment but realized it was too late.

“You.” The Wolf Bishop stood before her.

When had he arrived?

Was he truly someone born and raised in the Demon Realm, as the rumors said?

The thought crossed her mind.

More importantly, he was the one who had sent her here.

“Traitorous wench.” The bishop spoke, and Teresa responded.

“I am Teresa The Wanderer.

I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She denied knowing him.

Teresa was more brazen than expected.

At least, she wasn’t the Teresa the Bishop once knew.

That Teresa was dead.

Therefore, she had every right to be brazen.

“What?” “I don’t know who you are, so I’m not sure why you’re speaking like that.” The Wolf Bishop was furious.

“You wretched bitch!”