After spending a few days in the domain, we decided to return ho, following Leton’s lead.
I was starting to miss the cave. I had been away for far too long. I’m sure the monsters around the area must have increased in number by now.
Unlike when we left separately from the knights, this ti we were traveling back together. The previous ti, the starting locations were different, so it didn’t matter that we went our separate ways, but now it felt awkward to leave alone.
It almost felt like I was making it obvious that I didn’t want to go with them.
Of course, they had tried to kill before, so it was awkward, but... there’s a difference between just thinking it and showing it openly.
Anyway, since Odilia had sothing to say to , I decided to follow them quietly.
This ti, though, since we were traveling with the knights, there were no adventurers like the ones we t last ti trying to pick a fight.
“...”
Instead, the glances thrown our way were a bit uncomfortable.
Since we were traveling together, I kept running into the knights, and each ti, I felt their eyes subtly glancing at us.
There didn’t seem to be any hostility, but their looks held a lot of thoughts, as if there was sothing weighing on their minds.
I tried to et their gaze once, but it didn’t work. Every ti I looked at them, they quickly turned their eyes away.
‘Hmm.’
After enduring this for a while, my curiosity got the better of , and I asked Odilia about it. I wanted to know why they were looking at us like that.
“They’ve never seen you fight before, not like this... neither have I. So, it’s probably a bit fascinating for them. Knights revere strength, after all.”
In simpler terms, they were probably interested because they saw fighting Andras one-on-one.
Odilia assured that there was no ill-will in their stares, so there was no need to worry.
That was a relief. Honestly, I had expected there to be so talk because of my association with Leton, but thankfully, the situation was understood, and they let it go.
“And... just to add a minor detail, the knights are mostly won. There aren’t many n, so they don’t often get the chance to see one. They’re probably just curious.”
Afterward, she added this extra detail.
Hearing that, I briefly recalled.
‘Now that I think about it...’
I couldn’t rember seeing many male knights. Out of a hundred, ninety-nine were won. Apart from the fourth knight commander, the one I fought, the rest were all female.
Even knights tended to live together in groups, as they were often deployed or trained together.
Since they were frequently sent on assignnts and had many joint missions, they didn’t really have much ti to et n.
It made understand why the fourth knight commander was so popular. With such a limited supply, it’s no wonder he was highly sought after.
‘...Hmm.’
I found it rather interesting. I didn’t mind at all. In fact, I felt rather pleased.
It felt like I could indulge my rather sleazy male ego.
The knights, most of whom knew what manners were, were much more refined than the reckless adventurers who would just barge in. I didn’t have to worry much about them becoming a hassle.
From then on, I decided to interact a little more with the knights, wanting to fill my ego in that way.
“Umm... if it’s not too much trouble, would you spar with ? It’s nothing serious, I just want to learn a move or two.”
“Of course, anyti.”
I even entertained a knight who bravely asked for a spar.
“...?”
“Why... why are you looking at like that?”
“Just because.”
I would sotis stare at the knights for no particular reason.
“...! You, Yor! No matter how much you’ve been alone, you can’t just expose your skin like that!”
“Why? You all just do it comfortably. I’m hot!”
“It’s different for boys and girls!”
On particularly hot days, I would wear my usual sumr attire, such as a short-sleeve shirt or a tank top.
Though sumr was coming to an end, there were still many hot days.
I wanted to wear sothing comfortable too.
Of course, whenever that happened, the knights would make a huge fuss.
Since they were so used to being around other won, they didn’t have much immunity to dealing with n.
Simply put, most of them were awkward when it ca to interacting with the opposite sex.
Seeing that, I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself.
It had been a long ti since I felt this way. The way people fidgeted and couldn’t stay still with my every small action. This sense of superiority, of omnipotence...
Yeah... I can control people's emotions!
Of course, not everyone was happy about it.
Specifically, my companions.
“Hey... Yor. Aren’t you being a little too unguarded?”
“Nah, just relax. I’ll use magic to cover it all up.”
They’d sotis give disapproving looks when I pulled off these antics.
Even Haneul occasionally had a fit and would cast ‘illusion’ magic on ...
It seed they felt a strange sense of jealousy.
Watching them, I couldn’t help but smirk inwardly. I wasn’t in a bad mood at all.
‘Well, I have been neglecting them a bit...’
With everything going on with Leton and the knights, I hadn’t had much ti to spend with them.
Seeing their reactions, I decided to hold back a little and behave more cautiously.
Of course, that didn’t an I wouldn’t still interact with the knights.
In fact, sparring with them was beneficial to as well.
Clang- Clang-!
While quietly blocking the knights’ swords, I could feel sothing deep in their strikes.
Their attacks ca without hesitation, seamlessly following each other. Even while delivering a blow, their defense remained rock-solid.
There were tis when my usual physical abilities would almost let get caught by a knight’s strike.
Even though I had the upper hand physically, I couldn’t surpass their technique.
“Your attack is quite interesting.”
It seed the knights were noticing this too.
Florence, a knight I had sparred with often recently, spoke up.
“The direction of your attack is obvious, and your posture isn’t perfect... but the energy you waste is minimal. It’s as if you’re just pouring pure strength into it without any flair.”
“I know. My attacks are rough.”
“No, no. It’s a complint. It’s very practical. You even managed to defeat demons with it.”
She explained that while my strikes were easy to predict, blocking them was a different matter altogether.
It wasn’t just a matter of power and speed. As one defended, they’d soon find themselves caught up in the rhythm, cornered by the pressure of the attack.
“Maybe it’s because of your instincts... but you know how to limit your opponent’s movents. So, even if the attack is obvious, it’s a hassle to deal with from the other side.”
After saying this, Florence sighed softly.
“That’s why I think it’s a sha. How about properly learning martial arts?”
“Hmm... Would it help?”
“Well... I can’t guarantee it will help, given that you’ve already ingrained many habits in your body. But it wouldn’t hurt to try. Martial arts are ant to develop both the mind and body, to channel more power than your physical limits.”
Hearing this, I nodded slightly.
‘Martial arts, huh...’
It was sothing I had thought about in the past. I wondered if I could live a more comfortable life if I had so fancy techniques to rely on.
But as I grew older, that need started to fade. After all, I had already proven myself in my own way many tis.
I couldn’t find a reason to fit sothing else into my life.
And honestly, I never really had the opportunity to learn it.
Still, after hearing her out... I thought it might be worth trying, if I ever got the chance.
“Well then, I’ll continue the sparring.”
Just as I was thinking this, Florence prepared to continue the spar.
Her sword rushed toward . Due to the difference in skill, her movents were much smoother than mine.
I tried to block with my spear, holding it horizontally.
But then...
Crack-!
“Eh.”
The unpleasant sound of my spear snapping in two.
It had been my weapon for years... since I fought the mountain bandit, fought the knight commander, and knocked out countless demons.
It couldn’t handle the pressure anymore and broke.
I had been thinking it was about ti to replace it, but I didn’t expect it to break like this, out of the blue.
“Damn!”
The knight I was sparring with hurriedly adjusted her sword, but couldn’t stop her montum in ti.
She crashed into , right through the broken spear.
I couldn’t avoid it either, falling to the ground.
Instead of panic or excitent, the first feeling that hit was...
‘...Pain.’
It was a blow from her solid armor, making contact with my body. I had just taken a full-force impact from a chunk of tal.
“Huff! Yor! Are you okay?!”
Florence panicked and stood up, looking flushed, as if she felt sothing was off.
I scratched my head and reassured her. I stopped her from apologizing.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Ah, how familiar this "lucky pervert" mont was...
“Huh? Why do you look so sad?”
“My spear broke...”
After losing my beloved weapon in such an anticlimactic way, I headed to Odilia’s tent at her call.
Unlike her usual playful deanor, she was sitting seriously this ti, signaling that the conversation would be a serious one.
I sat down, and she began the discussion.
“I plan to request the Emperor’s help and send a large team to locate the altar.”
I briefly noticed her skin, which still bore faint burns from the battle. I’d heard that the scars would heal without a trace if we went to the shrine, but it looked like it still stung a bit.
She continued.
“We’ll offer a huge reward to the guild to help locate the altar, and we’ll ask other nations to cooperate too.”
It seed the recent fight with Andras had given her a lot to think about.
Even without Leton’s intervention, two demons had appeared this ti.
“I’ve realized that simply preserving our strength and tracking Leton isn’t the best approach. We handled things well this ti, but if demons just show up randomly again, we might be in real trouble.”
She said she would locate and eliminate the altar first.
It was a sound decision. This ti, we had really been lucky.
But I was curious about why she was telling all this.
There’s usually sothing hidden behind such conversations.
Thankfully, she didn’t hesitate and continued imdiately.
“I need your help with this... Honestly, you played the biggest role in this fight. If you hadn’t been there, not only Andras but Polauros would have appeared, and the damage would have been enormous.”
Before I could speak up, she placed a tal item on the table. It was sothing dropped by Andras.
“I had it appraised, and it seems it will be effective if shared. Not all of it, but I’ll make sure you get a part of it. If there’s anything else you want, let know. I’ll make sure you’re taken care of.”
After taking a deep breath, she spoke again.
“So, please lend your strength again next ti.”
“...”
I was silent for a mont. I was a bit surprised by her humble approach.
But after a mont, I nodded.
It was a proposal where I couldn’t lose anything either.
‘I’ll get so holy water too. This is fine.’
A few days later, I arrived at my cave.
I felt like I had gotten a little closer to the knights.
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