When night came, I tried to listen for the sound of the approaching assassin. It was meaningless. Because I couldn't feel any sound or presence.
‘Let's do this for the time being.’
There were no worries. Once the training method was decided, all I had to do was follow it, like an ox plowing a field. Enkrid did just that.
Before the poison needle flies, the assassin will surely enter the tent. I must hear that presence. Every day, if I lay down and fell asleep, I would greet the same morning.
However, I didn't just foolishly repeat the night's training. If I can do it, it's best to do my best. During the day, I looked for Jacksen.
Today, the day right after learning the auditory training. Enkrid had to wait plainly in front of the tent. It was because he had come too early.
He didn't get any closer because he could hear whispering from inside. He didn't know what sweet nothings they were whispering, but there was no need to listen. After waiting, he met Jacksen.
"Let's walk together."
They spoke as they walked. The same questions, the same attitude. While hearing the same words every time, Enkrid unknowingly showed the attentive listening attitude that Krang had shown.
Listening well was deeply related to learning well. After all, one must first listen well and understand before there can be a next step. Even though he didn't realize it, he knew instinctively that listening was important, so Enkrid listened well.
In that respect, the attitude of attentive listening was an excellent tool. Jacksen repeated the same words every time. Enkrid sometimes had to pretend to be a genius.
"Having eyes on the back of your head, that means listening, right? That I should just listen with my ears?"
"... It seems a separate explanation isn't needed."
"So sound has direction. I should be able to distinguish front and back, left and right. Through the sound and its intensity, right?"
"Were you a genius?"
"What did you say?"
"Nothing. You are sharper than I thought."
"Why, did I look like an idiot to you?"
"That's not it."
And then I die again. Today, repeated once more. The day starts with Platoon Leader Benzens's complaint.
"Ah, no breakfast? Where did this bastard wander off to?"
"Yes, people tend to get irritated when they're hungry."
"What?"
"I'm going to find breakfast so our Platoon Leader can stop whining."
"... Are you crazy?"
It's not that. Since whatever I said didn't matter much, I tried starting the day by teasing him. I took in the people passing by.
Using some of the passing events as indicators, I spend each repeating day a little differently. Enkrid, half-jokingly, got through breakfast and repeated the day. Five times, ten times.
As I repeated this, I grew accustomed to getting Jacksen out of his tent. It was awkward at first, but after accidentally overhearing the sweet nothings they shared, I became bold. How this spot was good today.
How that spot was good last time. And talk of what positions they preferred. In the repeated today, Enkrid parted the tent flaps without hesitation.
"Jacksen, you have time?"
"... What is it?"
"If you're going to continue, I'll step aside."
"Even if I wanted to, you've killed the mood."
"Then come out."
The woman next to him shot him a look that said, 'What is this bastard?' It was baffling at first, but as I got used to it, I became shameless. I just ignored it.
More importantly, Jacksen didn't show any particular complaint even when I did this. He was just curious about why Enkrid was acting this way. I always resolved his curiosity in the same way.
"Are you curious about that?"
"No. It's fine."
The training was the same. Once I got somewhat used to hearing sounds, Jacksen expressed a doubt.
"... Have you ever learned something like this before?"
"A little from my grandfather when I was young."
Enkrid is a war orphan. He didn't even know his parents, let alone a grandfather.
"I see."
Jacksen let even such a lame excuse slide. Enkrid always spent his day fruitfully. If moving the body was the task when training the thrust, this time, sitting still was the task.
There were results. Enkrid's steps were slow, but steady.
‘Let's do as I've learned.’
If I can't go one step at a time, then half a step. If not even half a step, then a quarter of a step. If even that wasn't allowed, then starting from wiggling my toes.
Around the twentieth time I repeated the same day.
‘I can hear it.’
I heard the sound of the wind hitting the flag.
Kkii-ri-ri-rik.
I heard the grating sound from a wagon wheel. Like a broken mainspring with misaligned gears.
‘It's the sound of something breaking.’
There are types of sounds. Some sounds convey information as if they were speaking. For example, the sound heard from a flag.
"It's easy to figure out it's a westerly wind. You just check which way I'm sitting, find north, and then follow the direction of the sound of the flag fluttering."
Easier said than done. There's probably no one who could do this in one go. Repetition after repetition.
Just as it had always been, an unchanging mindset even while living by splitting one day into many. Everything created a synergistic effect.
‘Following the sound of the flag shaking.’
Depending on where he sat. He could figure out the direction of the wind. It wasn't particularly useful in daily life or on the battlefield.
Since you could tell the direction of the wind just by sitting there anyway. However, there was significance in the fact that he figured it out by sound alone. Distinguishing the doctor's voice.
Gauging its volume to measure the distance.
‘If I master this properly, it'll be useful on the battlefield too.’
Come to think of it, Jacksen always stayed one step ahead and avoided dangerous battlefields. Did he listen beforehand, judge the situation, and then move? Can one even do that?
For now, there was no way to know. Distinguishing sounds was the first part of this training. The second was measuring distance by listening.
Enkrid had just finished these two things. The third stage was to distinguish and hear the tiniest of sounds. They say the best training is to listen for the presence of an assassin.
‘It's ridiculous, but.’
It was the perfect environment. Dying without even knowing what happened was truly, more unpleasant than I thought. The situation itself, dying in a flash without any resistance, is the worst.
Still.
‘Isn't this an opportunity?’
Such a thought came to mind on its own. I didn't get up from the cot. If I got involved with the freckled night watch for no reason, this friend died every time.
There was no need for that. I closed my eyes and concentrated while lying down. First, just listening.
The next step was something to think about later. During the day, I listened to the sound of rolling carts, the sound of a broken wooden peg rattling, and conversely, the sound of a normal cart. I distinguished the sounds of flags, tents, and people's voices swaying in the wind.
Repeating the same thing might have been arduous and painful for some.
‘It's fun.’
For Enkrid, it was different. To him, even small growth was a joy. It wasn't like I was rolling my body around like when I learned the Heart of the Beast.
The mental exhaustion was extreme. If I concentrated too hard, a headache that felt like my skull would crack would arise. But after repeating it about thirty times, that quickly became fine.
It's only a little, but I live a today that is different from yesterday. Enkrid liked it so much it sent shivers down his spine. And so, the fifty-sixth night.
Swish.
The sound of the torch burning on its sconce. The sound of a soldier on night duty, dozing off, getting startled and striking the floor with his spear shaft. The sound of the freckled night watch from the medical tent occasionally lifting the tent flap to peek inside.
Between those sounds, a tiny, tiny sound digs into my ear. A sound like air being let out with a hwik.
‘I heard it.’
It's clearly different from usual. Enkrid's ears distinguished the faint difference. The moment he heard it, Enkrid rolled to the side without hesitation.
‘I dodged it.’
The initial plan was to shout after dodging. Enkrid couldn't do that.
Hiyuk.
He heard the sound of something cutting through the air behind his back. There was no time to draw the dagger hidden in his clothes. He rolled forward again.
Shiik, su-euk, shwik. A small noise that couldn't be described with words continued to be heard. By distinguishing the direction through sound, Enkrid barely, just barely, dodged the attack.
The tip of the blade even grazed his thigh area.
‘That was lucky.’
If he had messed up, his thigh would have been sliced. This was an opponent where even a scratch was dangerous. Would a guy who uses poison needles not have coated his blade with anything?
He repeatedly rolled and threw his body to dodge. The Heart of the Beast shows its worth. Even as dangerous moments continued one after another.
His heart sinks coldly. There's no need to get excited. If it's just about listening to the sound and dodging.
‘It's fine. I can manage.’
If I give up on counterattacking, I can dodge. The blade aims for his back, drawing a long vertical line. The opponent's intention was clear.
He just needed to graze him. Despite the commotion, Enkrid rolled towards the cot of Benzens, who showed no signs of waking from his dreamland. While rolling, he pushed the cot with his shoulder.
Thud.
A heavy impact reverberated through his shoulder muscles. Even though he endured the pain and rammed it with all his might, Platoon Leader Benzens didn't wake up.
‘Poison needle.’
He won't wake up. I thought it was a poison related to paralysis or sleep.
"Vicious bastard."
This time, the assassin must have been quite rushed, as I could even hear him mutter and kick the ground with a tuk. Enkrid's breath rose to his chin, and he panted heavily. The assassin, sensing his opponent panting, thrust the knife in his right hand and threw the poison needle from his left.
It was close to a finishing blow. Enkrid, despite his heavy breathing, responded swiftly. He dodged the knife and blocked the poison needle by lifting Platoon Leader Benzens's arm as a shield.
With a pik, the poison needle embedded itself in Benzens's forearm. Seeing it blocked, the assassin hesitated, and in that gap, Enkrid rolled his body towards the tent entrance. His seeming shortness of breath was a trick.
‘This is the Vallen-style mercenary swordsmanship, Feigned Breath.’
It was a ploy to give the opponent a chance to end the fight easily and aim for the opening when they reacted. A move that worked beautifully. The rolling Enkrid used his body's momentum to half-rise and act as if he was dashing out of the tent.
The assassin threw his body forward with a hook. That too was a trick. Enkrid headed for the wall instead of the entrance.
He took out a dagger from his clothes and tried to slice the tent wall. If I tear it and run out, I win the fight. That's what I thought, but.
Bu-uuuk.
Before he could, the tent wall was torn. Beyond the cut tent wall.
"I'm a bit late."
Along with the voice, I saw eyes shining green. It was the Elf Company Commander. The mastermind of the assassination.
I reflexively attempted a thrust. What I held was a dagger, but because it was a technique repeated countless times, my body was used to it. Using my left foot as a pivot, I twisted my body and thrust towards the opponent in one breath.
My right arm shot out like a javelin. The Elf Company Commander's eyes shone as she stepped inside, then she swung her right hand from the inside out.
Teok, hwik.
With that hand gesture, the trajectory of the thrust was deflected. At the same time, the company commander kicked Enkrid's pivot foot. The world spun, and Enkrid soon rolled on the ground.
After that, the Elf Company Commander showed an incomprehensible movement.
Tididik.
Ignoring Enkrid, the commander pulled her own cape and with a flap, blocked what was in front of her. With a tududuk, something embedded itself in the cape. It was a poison needle.
"Are you alright?"
As I was watching in a daze, I saw Krang prone outside the tent.
"You had an escort?"
A sign of agitation was evident in the assassin's voice.
"Assassination. It makes me want to vomit."
The Elf Company Commander said, letting her cape hang down. Enkrid's mind was busy trying to understand the situation.
‘Not the assassin?’
Was she on the protecting side? Then what I saw when I died, it wasn't the one who killed me, but just someone who arrived late?
"You don't seem hurt?"
"Just startled."
Enkrid answered Krang's question and turned his body. As soon as the assassin saw the Elf Company Commander, his center of gravity shifted backward as if he were planning to flee. The company commander didn't seem to have any intention of catching him.
Soon, the assassin stealthily backed away, then kicked off the tent entrance and fled. Even as he ran, his footsteps made almost no sound.
"My, my."
Krang laughed shyly and entered the tent. The company commander went to the front of the tent, grabbed the shoulder of the freckled soldier who seemed to have fainted, dragged him by his feet, and threw him inside the tent. He glanced at Platoon Leader Benzens and turned around.
Her green eyes looked at Enkrid. A short silence. After a moment, the company commander tilted her head and opened her mouth.
"You're alive?"
Surprise was mixed in that question.