“An unnatural sound, different from the usual. That’s what you listen for.”
The reconnaissance team departed in the blue dawn before the sun had even risen. As Enkrid was packing his things alone, Jacksen, who had been on the last night watch, spoke up.
“Suddenly?”
Enkrid, unsure what he meant, asked back.
“You asked how not to get cut on the battlefield.”
Enkrid searched his memory. The medical tent, the assassin’s attack, the Elf Company Commander, Krang, the fire. After all that commotion, he had returned to find the troublemaker squad in the middle of a brawl.
It was understandable that his mind was scattered. He only remembered after being reminded. Before all that had happened, on the last day before his final dance with the assassin, he had asked in passing.
“I get how to listen well, but you can’t keep focusing like that to avoid getting cut on the battlefield, can you? How do you dodge without even looking back?”
Hearing training, yes, that was good. But it required a high level of concentration. Could he really listen so intently in the middle of a battlefield?
‘Difficult.’
He knew because he had tried. With enough practice, he might be able to display movements akin to acrobatics against multiple opponents. But one thing was certain: listening well alone was not enough.
Jacksen was diligent. He did not ignore a passing question and answered it faithfully. And Enkrid was even more diligent.
He did not miss an opportunity to learn.
“You mean to feel a sense of incongruity?”
“It would be good if you could awaken a sense different from the usual, but that’s not easily done. So, if you’re in a field of grass, you listen carefully to the sound of rustling blades and then find a sound of a different kind.”
The reconnaissance area was a grassland. A place full of grass that grew as short as one’s calf or as tall as eye level. It seemed he was saying this with that in mind.
Hearing the kind answer, Enkrid suddenly grew curious and asked.
“You’re explaining in quite some detail?”
At those words, Jacksen stared intently into Enkrid’s eyes. It was as if his eyes were saying, you already know, so why are you asking? When Enkrid tilted his head, Jacksen finally continued.
“Because the Squad Leader is relentless.”
“…What?”
Where did the conversation go wrong? Why the sudden talk of being relentless? Jacksen knew the Squad Leader’s tenacity.
He knew his passion for the sword. That was why he said it. But Enkrid had no clue.
He was about to ask more, but Enkrid shut his mouth. Did the reason matter? The whims of the troublemaker squad members were nothing new.
So the reason didn't matter. Right now, there was a person willing to learn and a person willing to teach. If the content was valuable, that was enough.
Since he was being dragged away for a reconnaissance team assembly right now, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to mull this over and train on the way. Thus, he ignored what there was no need to question or ask about.
“How do I distinguish between different kinds of sounds?”
Enkrid instantly erased his look of bewilderment and returned to the main subject. The look in Jacksen’s eyes as he watched was peculiar. It was as if he was looking at a three-headed dragon.
“Why?”
“It’s nothing.”
The explanation continued. What was an incongruous sound? How should one utilize their hearing?
It was excellent. It was the joy of learning. Enkrid set off feeling utterly content.
“I see, so that’s how it was.”
Jacksen still looked at Enkrid with those peculiar eyes. Enkrid, not sensing it, turned around.
“Well then, I’ll be back.”
He walked toward the outskirts of the barracks for his reconnaissance mission. Watching him, Jacksen thought.
‘This makes no sense.’
He had recently seen the Squad Leader listening intently to footsteps. He had reacted from quite a far distance. His hearing, his range of listening, was considerably wide.
He might be able to deceive others, but he couldn’t deceive his own eyes. It was just a little strange. He considered every training method he knew and every person who had undergone the same training.
To listen to sounds and train the ears meant to continuously listen and distinguish between different sounds. Through that process, one learns to identify the types of sounds. But what about the Squad Leader now?
‘His ability to hear is top-notch, but his ability to distinguish is at a beginner’s level.’
It was as if he was someone who had only trained the act of listening intensively over a short period. But could that even be done through training? If he had dozens of spare lives, training like that might be possible.
‘Peculiar.’
The Squad Leader was a truly peculiar person. In any case, it was because of him that he had shared one more thing he knew. And the Squad Leader would quickly absorb what he had just learned.
Training the ears to hear was the hard part. Distinguishing and categorizing sounds was just an extra. As he finished his night watch and entered the barracks, Rem was there, looking at him with drowsy eyes.
He was lying crookedly with his hand propping up his head, looking at him with a smiling face, which was deeply unpleasant.
“Your eyes look damn unlucky.”
Jacksen offered his morning greeting. Rem smiled gently before replying.
“Have you also fallen for the Squad Leader’s charm? When you look at him, you just want to teach him things, don’t you?”
“It is a just exchange. Since I owe him, I will receive something of corresponding value later.”
Equivalent Exchange Jacksen. It was his nickname within the unit. But even as he said it, Jacksen knew.
Teaching the Squad Leader was not an act done to demand something in return. It was an impulsive decision. Was it because his remarkable performance on the recent battlefield had left an impression?
Jacksen did not think deeply about it. He knew that sometimes, it wasn’t bad to act as his heart desired. Therefore, he would just let this matter end here.
“Fuck off, you bastard. A man being all shy.”
Rem chuckled, then lay down again and closed his eyes. He pulled the blanket up to his chin and, as if intoxicated by the warmth, soon began to breathe evenly. Sometimes, Jacksen had such thoughts.
What does that crazy barbarian trust in to act so brazenly?
“Go lie down. If you attack me thinking I’m asleep, I’ll split your head open.”
Rem, who had been pretending to be asleep, said. Jacksen ignored Rem’s words and found his own spot. He was the type to get talkative if you bothered to argue back.
“Damn bastard, never answers when you talk to him.”
Just as expected, Rem grumbled to himself after speaking.
The reconnaissance team, which had set out at dawn, was creaking from the very beginning.
“If we meet any Azpen bastards, we’re splitting their skulls. Got it?”
These were the words of the reconnaissance squad leader in charge of the small group. For a moment, Enkrid almost asked without thinking, “what do you think reconnaissance is,” but the squad leader’s words were faster.
“Troublemaker Squad Leader, you’re just a regular soldier now. If you’re going to disobey orders, say so now, and we’ll settle it with skill. Well, unlike someone, I didn’t become a Squad Leader through my asshole, so I’m confident.”
His tone was exceptionally harsh. Enkrid wasn’t angry. Nor was he particularly offended.
How many times had he received such praise in his life? Simple insults from those who didn't know him were nothing. And he also thought it was better to quietly patrol, mulling over what he had learned, than to create unnecessary trouble.
“Even if it’s annoying, just bear with it. He seems to have a bit of a show-off personality.”
Another soldier standing close by said. He was a soldier with a gruff voice and a mature age.
“I don’t mind.”
“That’s a relief then.”
The soldier next to him smiled simply, avoiding the squad leader’s eyes. He had a decent impression.
“Let’s move out!”
A total of ten men, the departure of the reconnaissance and patrol team. Not all reconnaissance teams spied on enemy territory. This plain was a vast grassland called the Green Pearl on the continent.
To the east, there were a few gentle mountain ridges along low hills. But it was mostly wide and offered an unobstructed view. To the west flowed the Pen-Hanil River, which could be called the lifeline of Naurilia, and that river was a wide stream shared with the Azpen duchy, their current enemy.
Due to the geographical features, surprise attacks were almost impossible in battles on this plain. Then what was the job of the reconnaissance team? To survey enemy territory and patrol the surroundings.
To see if there were any groups moving under the cover of day or night. To see if there were any signs of enemy cavalry movement. Or to check if they were up to something else.
Confirming key areas was also part of the job. Of course, a reconnaissance team was dangerous. You never knew when you might encounter enemy forces.
There were many cases where a clash between reconnaissance teams immediately led to an all-out war. But such things did not happen often. Nor should they happen often.
“Let’s go, to show them the greatness of the Naurilia infantry.”
In Enkrid’s eyes, that young squad leader was an idiot drunk on his own skill. Was he some noble’s bastard? If not, he might have some backing in the unit’s command.
He must have just turned nineteen or twenty. For a Naurilia regular army squad leader, it was a rather fast promotion. Still, compared to a true genius, soldiers like him were a dime a dozen.
It seemed that the role of a reconnaissance team was no longer anywhere in that squad leader’s head. Some of the soldiers even agreed with his words.
“Of course. With the captain’s skill, a few of them will be no match.”
“Show them the prowess that beat down five mercenaries!”
‘That squad leader kid’s asshole is going to be worn out.’
Even if no one told him, it was all too obvious how this situation had come about. The reconnaissance team must have been short on men due to frequent injuries among its soldiers. And thanks to that, both he and those idiots had ended up here.
Even so.
Weren’t these bastards below standard? Still, it should be fine. The route for this reconnaissance team was already set anyway.
‘Patrol in a circle with our base at the center.’
The detailed route was up to the squad leader. Enkrid organized the information in his head and thought that as long as the reconnaissance squad leader didn’t do anything seriously idiotic, it would be fine.
“These are wildebeest tracks.”
The squad leader discovered some animal tracks while passing by. The wildebeest was one of the animals that roamed the plains in herds, resembling a cow. They moved in groups of fifty at most, twenty at least.
“If we follow these, we’ll feast today. Let’s all have a barbecue.” …He wants to chase twenty wildebeest?
What was even more absurd was that those tracks were not from a wildebeest. The tracks belonged to a gazelle, not a wildebeest.
“Right.”
The good-natured soldier who had been following behind muttered. He too seemed to find it absurd, snickering as he looked at the back of the squad leader’s head. On the first day, the reconnaissance team advanced, searching for the non-existent wildebeest.
Naturally, no animal was foolish enough to be caught by a group that was openly glaring with menacing eyes.
“Damn it.”
The squad leader threw a tantrum for no reason. If they had caught a wildebeest, would that bastard have really tried to start a fire? That would have been quite a sight.
A reconnaissance team that not only failed to move stealthily but also lit a bonfire. How was that any different from shouting, ‘I am a complete moron!’ Perhaps it was a relief that they hadn't caught any animals.
Before the sun set, they found a place with a hill and four tall trees and had just finished preparing to camp there.
“Troublemaker Squad Leader, where are you from?”
It was the soldier who had made a good first impression, and who, more importantly, had been looking at the idiotic recon squad leader with contempt.
“Border Guard.”
“A professional soldier?”
Enkrid nodded.
The Border Guard was a fortress city that protected the frontiers. It had farmland and merchants, but it was fundamentally a military city. A city where training facilities and professional soldiers were plentiful.
“I came from a mountain village and I’m confident in my hunting skills, so I was appalled when he saw those tracks earlier and called them wildebeest. They were gazelle tracks.”
Enkrid was just as appalled. A common ground formed between the two. The hunter-turned-soldier’s name was Enri.
He had a gentle personality, but he was currently very displeased with the squad leader.
“I’ll show you something interesting tomorrow. It might seem like there are no paths on the plains, but animals have their own separate trails.”
Enri, after chatting a bit more, quickly fell asleep. That night, while standing the third watch, Enkrid mulled over what Jacksen had taught him. He didn't actually hold a sword, but he swung his hand through the air, reviewing what he had learned.
The sparring session with Ragna and Rem before being dispatched for reconnaissance had been quite helpful.
‘He said to deliver a thrust from any posture.’
That’s what Rem had said. He himself was training for that. Rem had also told him how.
He had told him to train his lower body. The reconnaissance team walked a lot. As long as they weren't cavalry, it was unavoidable.
‘Walking is good too.’
It wasn’t bad for building leg strength. His stomach should have felt empty from filling it only with beef jerky. But Enkrid had no time to think of such things.
His mind was filled only with the training he had to do now, the training he had to do in the future, swordsmanship, the hearing technique Jacksen taught him, and the hunter’s tricks that Enri said he would teach. He purely enjoyed learning and mastering. Of course, he also enjoyed using what he had mastered.
‘Let’s spar again when I get back.’
Enkrid continued his thoughts throughout his night watch, along with the hearing training to sense incongruity. Soon, he woke the next watch and fell asleep. On the second day, the reconnaissance team set out again as dawn began to break.
In the morning, he roughly learned from Enri how to spot animal trails. And listened to the sound of his footsteps brushing against the calf-high grass.
‘There’s so much to learn.’
Enkrid sincerely thought so. The hunter’s common sense that Enri taught him was also quite interesting. He hadn’t had the luxury to accumulate knowledge in this area until now.
“This way.”
The reconnaissance squad leader takes the lead. The place he is heading to is a weed patch full of tall weeds.
‘This is fine.’
For someone who said he would split the skulls of any enemy soldiers they met, the route was without issue. It was also a designated point they had been assigned to check. Of course, the reconnaissance squad leader easily shattered Enkrid’s common sense.
“We’ll cut straight through this grass field and follow the recon team’s tracks. How about it?”
Is this bastard really insane? He barely managed to suppress the words that were about to come out of his mouth. What would they see to get their bearings in a field of tall weeds?
And what guarantee was there that they would meet an enemy reconnaissance team by going this way? It was a task that could be completed just by checking if there was an enemy ambush inside or if any unusual situations had occurred.
“Don’t butt in. Hey, not all squad leaders are the same.”
When he tried to soothe the situation by speaking indirectly, a subordinate soldier stepped forward and said this.
Well now.
Enkrid was still not angry. He just wondered if he should let this go on. The deliberation was short.
He decided to let it be. If things went south and he died. He would think about it again the next day.
If not.
‘We’ll just go back after a wild goose chase.’
Whatever happened, it wasn’t a loss for him.