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Even before Encrid’s thoughts were finished.

Whoosh.

The sound of the wind reached his ears first.

The moment he heard it, the blade was above his head. Encrid moved as well.

Holding his sword horizontally, a sword made of a mix of Valyrian steel and Noir Mountain iron met a crude, rough-quality arming sword.

Clang.

The blades met. A noise burst forth. And as soon as they met, they parted.

Ragna took a step back, and Encrid did the same.

It was like a greeting exchanged through their swords.

Encrid felt as if he had seen something new in that simple greeting.

‘What should I call that move from a moment ago?’

An incredibly fast slash? Or a silent downward strike?

It was elegant. It was beautiful and outstanding.

Ragna’s sword was a clean, precise slash.

In contrast, his response was the opposite.

It wasn’t clean. It was rough, like an unpolished blade. Like untanned, rough leather.

Yet he saw it, and his body reacted.

“Again.”

Ragna said. With the same trajectory as before, the blade came flying with a slash that appeared no different.

A clean and beautiful slash.

Encrid blocked it in the same manner.

Clang!

The blades clashed, sparks flew.

Buzz.

The moment the blades collided again, Ragna’s blade disappeared.

‘He slashed through at the moment of impact.’

Ragna wielded his sword with complete control. The move he showed just now was the same.

It seemed like a smooth downward slash, but it was a powerful cut.

Encrid blocked it with his sword held horizontally, but his arms tingled from the impact.

In that moment, Ragna’s blade twisted like a snake and struck downward.

The target was his thigh.

With one sharp cut, his arms tingled. He was about to be caught off guard.

Should he force his numbed arms to move? No, that would be foolish. Encrid used his feet instead, jumping backward. He tried to gain a favorable position by stepping back.

Pulling his right foot back and twisting his body would place him at the opponent’s side.

Ragna didn’t stay still either. He naturally pulled back his downward strike and moved his foot to the side.

Swish.

At the end of a step that seemed to sweep the ground, they faced each other again.

If what was in Ragna’s eyes was passion,then what was in Encrid’s eyes?

‘Those eyes.’

Ragna’s desire surged. Enthusiasm welled up.

He wanted to swing his sword.

Not with words or gestures, but with hands and feet.

With a sword, with a weapon, with killing intent, with will.

He wanted to communicate with such things.

Encrid didn’t refuse that.

‘Good. Very good.’

Ragna marveled inwardly.

In the short exchange of moves, Encrid felt something irresistible welling up inside him.

After exchanging a greeting with their swords, followed by a slash and a positioning struggle,it all came together, stirring something inside him.

Then, something began to erupt from his entire being.

What should this be called?

Vitality? Energy?

He didn’t know what to call it. The only thing certain was that he was brimming with energy.

With the greetings and the slashing, he had confirmed the state of his wrists.

Despite the lingering impact, there was no pain.

‘I’m fine.’

Now, there was nothing left but to engage fully.

This time, Encrid moved first.

It was a thrust filled with wholehearted, deadly intent. He stepped forward with his left foot, performing the move all at once, sending his sword flying with a swift motion.

Like a hawk diving down, the tip of the sword sliced through the air.

Ragna twisted his body as he watched the incoming sword tip. Even without any flashy footwork, he avoided Encrid’s thrust.

Ragna dodged and smiled.

Encrid smiled too, satisfied with Ragna’s evasion.

From the side, it looked like a simple, continuous exchange.

Thrust, slash, dodge, reposition.

Smack.

Encrid’s attacks were often unconventional. He suddenly closed the distance, attempting to kick Ragna’s shin.

When Ragna avoided it, Encrid engaged in a half-swording fight, grabbing the ricasso and the blade.

Ragna blocked, deflected, and dodged everything, then swung his sword.

He swung his sword repeatedly, as if it was the only thing he knew how to do.

‘Damn it.’

Rem watched, stamping his feet.

‘That looks so damn fun.’

Encrid’s skills had grown again. Something had changed in the few days since he last saw him.

He wanted to fight him. He wanted to spar with Encrid, who had a healthy wrist.

Just watching filled him with desire.

‘Take it easy, take it easy.’

Rem grew anxious. He was worried that Encrid might exhaust all his strength while fighting Ragna.

Though that had never happened before, there was something different about this sparring.

There was a different energy flowing.

Unlike when they sparred after Encrid injured his wrist, which had surprised everyone but was done with some restraint and concession.

But now?

‘Isn’t that guy being a bit too serious?’

To Rem, Ragna’s swordsmanship seemed different. It wasn’t as lazy as it usually was, even if it wasn’t as intense as when he fought Rem.

If he had used half the effort he was using now when fighting enemy soldiers, the enemy commander would have remembered the name Ragna.

‘Damn it, take it easy.’

Rem’s hands itched. If both of them weren’t smiling, he might have already grabbed his axe and jumped in.

And Rem wasn’t the only one feeling this way.

‘Why am I?’

Jaxon questioned himself. Had he ever enjoyed stepping into the front lines to fight?

No, he hadn’t. Not once.

He had diligently trained in swordsmanship, but was it because his heart was in it?

No, it wasn’t.

Training in swordsmanship and being driven by desire were different matters.

At least, they had been for Jaxon.

Twitch.

His hand kept wanting to move.

He reacted to Encrid’s steps, and to the sword wielded by the one he called the Platoon Leader.

‘It’s not even funny.’

Suddenly, a competitive spirit surged within him.

No matter how much Encrid’s skills had improved, Jaxon was confident he could still knock him down right now.

From Jaxon’s perspective, Ragna, that foolish slacker, wasn’t giving his best.

If he were more serious, the fight would have been over long ago.

So why was his body reacting to this fight?

Jaxon clenched his teeth, feeling strangely insulted in his pride.

He composed himself and remained silent, controlling his twitching body and standing still, just watching.

While Jaxon was steadying himself, Audin watched the fight with satisfaction. He was pleased.

‘It’s about time.’

He felt that he, too, could start using some of his strength.

He wasn’t in a hurry, nor did he deny the rising competitive spirit.

‘Because it’s a gift from the Lord.’

For Audin, the desire to fight was beneficial and good.

Without it, his place would not have been beside Encrid but at the side of the God he served.

Despite suffering two days of terrible headaches as a result of using divine power, Audin was secretly satisfied.

Look at that.

The movements of the Platoon leader, whose body was now fully recovered, were impressive.

The Fairy Company Commander did not miss any of the moves made by Encrid and Ragna.

And she thought:

‘Was he a genius?’

It was a natural question.

He hadn’t been that skilled before.

Recalling their first meeting at the infirmary.

She thought back to the moment she first encountered Encrid.

‘I thought it was just luck.’

Now, even his sword skills could not be ignored.

He stood out, like a single crane among many chickens, with such outstanding skills.

From what she observed, one could say he was a genius who had risen to this level in a short time.

‘No, it’s a bit different.’

Her keen eyes noticed some flaws in Encrid’s form. Habits that a true genius wouldn’t have.

The Fairy’s senses, at times, were sharper than even the talent-detecting abilities of the Frog.

Marks that only those who had swung their swords tirelessly and pondered endlessly over a long period could see, were visible on Encrid.

Did such marks appear on geniuses?

No.

Like Ragna now, there was no hesitation in the swing of a genius’s sword.

That was the mark of a genius.

So, what about Encrid?

“Ha!”

Just then, Encrid shouted as he attempted a downward slash with one hand.

It was a sword stroke filled with the deliberation from countless repetitions of the same move.

A slash born from knowing that the current trajectory was optimal after having tried every possible path, confident that this was the only way to reach the destination.

Clang!

Their swords met. Encrid’s blade slid along Ragna’s sword with a grinding sound.

Was it a feint?

The Fairy’s intuition was spot on.

Ragna used force to deflect Encrid’s sword.

He immediately thrust his sword forward, attempting a short diagonal slash.

In that instant, Encrid’s left hand emitted a glow. A bluish light, something starting from his waist, magic forged through practice, extending through the air.

It was a second sword.

Whoosh!

In the end, Encrid’s sword cut through empty air.

The second sword, drawn quickly, was fast, but in that brief moment, Ragna had already assessed everything.

He evaded the attack by stepping back.

It was a perfectly calculated retreat.

Encrid’s second sword merely swished past in front of Ragna.

Afterward, Ragna brought his sword down.

It was a strike meant to break Encrid’s timing and intentions.

It wasn’t just about winning a tactical exchange.

This was a matter of their differing abilities.

In combat, what was needed wasn’t just raw power.

Perception, senses, experience, and swordsmanship.

Ragna had sensed and seen Encrid’s left hand move. He then moved his feet and hands at a speed Encrid couldn’t match.

And thus the sparring match ended.

The Fairy Company Commander felt a bit anxious seeing the fight end.

‘I want to fight too.’

Did she lack competitive spirit?

Before, she had used her hands and feet, but now she wanted to cross swords.

To some extent, she wanted to mix in a bit of seriousness.

She had a sudden desire to show the mystical skills her Naidil heritage granted her.

How would Encrid change after seeing that?

Watching the spar from one side, Krais felt no such competitive spirit.

He could barely see the fight between the two, so what competition could there be?

‘He’s improved.’

Even as an outsider, he could tell that Encrid’s skills had greatly increased.

‘Is he a late-blooming genius?’

It was surprising, but that was all. Afterward, Krais turned his gaze away from the sparring and looked around.

It was an amusing situation to observe.

Rem stood up and sat down three times, then started stamping his feet.

He seemed impatient, like a child who had their favorite toy taken away.

Next to him, Jaxon shrugged his shoulders a few times before suddenly becoming as still as a heavy statue, not moving at all.

It was to the point where one might wonder if he was even breathing, as he didn’t move a muscle.

How could someone freeze like that, as if turned to ice?

Watching it gave a chilling feeling, like being alone in a cemetery at night.

‘Wow.’

Krais clicked his tongue, his gaze landing on Audin.

This large soldier, deeply immersed in his devotion to his God, was murmuring to himself with a contented smile.

Krais moved closer to Audin to hear what he was murmuring.

“Hmm, excellent. Now it’s worth fighting.”

“It’s okay if an arm or two gets broken.”

“Breaking a neck, ah, I almost sent someone to the Lord prematurely. That wouldn’t do. No, that wouldn’t do at all.”

This time, it was truly terrifying. It sent shivers down his spine.

What was he saying?

Even though he spoke those words, it didn’t seem like he would actually attack.

His mutterings were terrifying, but his demeanor was calm and composed.

Audin stood still in his place.

Lastly, there was the Fairy Company Commander.

The Fairy, who had been making odd jokes, never took her eyes off Encrid, holding her sword.

Like a calm forest, yet also like a storm that could break out at any moment.

That was Krais’s impression.

He thought these people were truly remarkable.

No crowd of spectators had gathered around. After the victory, the high spirits had subtly subsided as days passed.

Everyone was busy with their personal preparations, knowing that another battle could break out at any moment.

Some soldiers glanced over, but they weren’t particularly interested.

They had already seen the demonstration of skill once.

When Encrid returned from the rear, they had witnessed the sparring.

Those who had an eye for it were busy.

The rest had no interest in watching.

There were no noisy spectators.

For these people, it didn’t matter whether there were onlookers or the atmosphere of impending battle.

Even though they knew they would soon be heading into battle.

‘They all want to fight each other so badly.’

And the target of their focus was singular.

Encrid, who had just shaken off all his injuries and stood up, their Platoon leader.

‘Do they have any sense or not?’

But Krais didn’t reprimand them for it.

He was always careful not to provoke them, and now, even more so.

The intensity rising among them was significant.

‘Will it be okay?’

The sparring with Ragna had been intense, even from his perspective. He thought it might be better to rest after such a session.

But if Encrid decided to rest, Rem would surely throw a fit.

The others probably wouldn’t take it too kindly either.

Krais’s concerns were unfounded.

“Next.”

Encrid, dripping with sweat, smiled broadly.

Filled with a surge of energy, Encrid wanted to push his body to the limit.

At his words, Rem leapt up. He literally jumped off the ground and dashed forward.

“My turn! It’s my turn! If anyone interrupts, I’ll kill them! Company Commander or whoever!”

Rem was wild-eyed.

The Company Commander stepped back, choosing to display the virtue of yielding.

It was fine.

Looking at it now.

Encrid showed no intention of resting.

That day, Encrid sparred vigorously.

As he wished, he enthusiastically clashed swords, swung them, and even demonstrated dual-wielding techniques.

“Impressive.”

The Fairy Company Commander commented, making a brief evaluation of using two swords.

It didn’t end with just one round. Ragna went twice, Rem three times, Audin twice, and the Fairy Company Commander once. Excluding Jaxon, who didn’t step in, these were the number of times they sparred with Encrid.

Krais shook his head in disbelief.

The sparring finally ended around sunset.

It seemed as though Encrid never tired.

After the sparring, Encrid collapsed onto the ground, exhausted.

Esther, who had appeared at some point, glared fiercely at everyone, seemingly questioning what they had done to let it go this far.

However, no one paid much attention to her gaze.

Encrid, on the other hand, felt immensely satisfied.

‘That expression.’

When was it?

Perhaps it was after returning from scouting the tall grass field.

He remembered noticing that the expressions Rem and Ragna had while sparring were different from when they sparred with him.

He had wanted to bring out those expressions.

Today, he finally succeeded.

Of course, neither Rem, Ragna, nor anyone else had fully exerted their abilities.

He was well aware of that.

But he had seen it. The changed expressions.

Smiles, grins, satisfaction.

It felt like he had achieved a small goal.

Encrid felt exhilaration, joy.

A joy like a drug.

The fulfillment that came from growth filled his chest.

However, perhaps due to overexertion,that night, he had another terrible nightmare.

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