“Think of it as stretching your muscles, brother.”
The core of Audin’s bare-handed training was to isolate, break down, and extend each and every muscle in the body.
“Ugh.”
A groan escaped Enkrid’s lips on its own. The muscle in the back of his thigh felt like it was past taut and about to snap, but Audin climbed right on top of Enkrid’s folded back, adding even more weight. Enkrid, who was sitting down with his hands stretched out to his toes, opened his mouth.
“I’m dying.”
“Is that a threat?”
“I’m telling you, I’m dying.”
His voice was as small as a mosquito’s buzz. It really felt like his muscles were about to tear. A few more breaths like this, and they really would!
Only when he was teetering on the edge of his limit did Audin finally take his hands off his back.
“This is the basics.”
Audin repeated the word ‘basics’ several times. He had him fold one leg inward to press down on his pelvic muscle. He had him grab a pillar with one hand, bend his waist halfway, and twist his body.
Twist, stretch, and wring out the body. Yes, wring out. No other word suited it better.
After wringing out his body like a wet towel, he was drenched in sweat. Isn't this actually a method of torture? If this was the basics, did the advanced course involve disassembling a person?
All sorts of thoughts crossed his mind, but to get to the point, the effects of the exercises Audin taught him were outstanding. It was excruciating while doing them, but afterward, his body felt significantly lighter. And it wasn’t just about feeling lighter.
Heat circulated through his body. With his heart pounding and warmth spreading throughout, the cold became much more bearable.
“Eating well, resting well, and moving well, that is how you endure the cold, Brother Squad Leader.”
Audin said with a smiling eyes.
Enkrid nodded.
Training his body was a familiar part of his daily life. And the body’s suffering made his mind work that much more sharply. A mind working sharply continued its train of thought.
It made him recall the assassin who came to kill him in the repeating today.
‘That skill.’
He couldn’t even see how the throwing knife was thrown. Enkrid was fairly confident in his own knife-throwing skills, but…
‘I can’t even compare.’
It was an exceptional skill. In any case, it was a problem he just needed to prepare for. The first pattern was to approach and stab.
If that failed, he threw the throwing knife.
‘Should I call it a thin and low wall?’
The Ferryman of the Black River had told him that walls would keep appearing before him.
‘If it’s just this much.’
It was easy. That’s what he thought. That’s why he was being so relaxed.
“Here, look. Is this hard? This?”
Rem, suddenly filled with excitement, jumped out of his bed and perfectly mimicked the pose Enkrid had been doing. It was smooth, without a single hitch. Seeing his body stretch out like that, it was clear at a glance that he was exceptionally flexible.
“Let’s work on your flexibility a bit, huh?”
This bastard was strangely annoying. No, he had always been an annoying fellow.
“This is hard? This?”
Rem kept jeering, but Enkrid breezily ignored him. Ragna, who had been watching Rem and Enkrid with half-closed eyes, began to move. He too was a man of exceptional talent when it came to using his body.
It was only natural that one had to know how to properly handle their body for their swordsmanship to surpass a certain level. Therefore, Ragna also replicated the movement perfectly. He pointedly chose the very move Enkrid had struggled with, the one where you do the splits and bend your waist forward.
Ragna was also the annoying type.
“Have you picked up a hobby of contorting your bodies?”
Jacksen said as he walked in, having returned from his leave. To him, it looked like a den of madmen. Enkrid was drenched in sweat, catching his breath.
In front of him, a crazy barbarian was folded at the waist, grabbing his toes with his hands, a wide grin on his face. And next to him, the lazybones was sitting in a split. Had they all gone collectively insane?
“We were learning a training method to overcome the cold, brother.”
Audin cleared up the situation. Jacksen, looking uninterested, moved past them toward his own spot. As his time for duty was approaching, Enkrid got up from his spot and spoke out of pure curiosity.
The dagger the assassin had thrown was a shape he had never seen before.
“Have you ever used a dagger shaped like this? It’s for throwing.”
“What’s that?”
“No.” “I have not, brother.”
He was describing a throwing blade that had no handle. Rem, Ragna, and Audin spoke up, while Big Eyes, who of course wouldn't know, kept his mouth shut. Jacksen, however, frowned and then his expression smoothed out.
“Where did you see that?”
“I didn’t see it.”
He was about to go see it.
“Did it perhaps have a round groove on the handle side?”
Jacksen asked without even sitting down. He was holding the coat he had taken off, about to hang it up.
“Yeah.”
He didn't need to search his memory. He had just come from being hit by that very blade in the repeated today. A round groove at the end, it was there.
“Why do you ask?”
Rem asked as he got back into bed.
“I just heard about it somewhere.”
As he spoke and turned away, the blue-eyed black panther emerged from Enkrid’s bed. The panther that had snuggled into his arms to sleep last night had finally woken up. It was a creature that really loved beds and sleeping.
As soon as it woke up, it shivered from the cold and then stretched its body long from front to back. Seeing this, Enkrid stroked the panther’s back from head to tail, when Jacksen’s voice was heard.
“You should avoid it if you can. It’s called a whistling throwing knife.”
“Whistling throwing knife?”
It was a name he’d never heard before.
“It’s a nickname that comes from the sound it makes when thrown, and it’s a weapon favored for assassinations. It’s difficult to handle, but if you meet someone who can handle it properly, well, you should run.”
Jacksen’s tone was cold as always, but he was being kind. The problem was the content of his words.
Run?
He’s just some guy who knows how to throw a dagger, isn’t he?
Grrr.
The panther let out a pleased rumble, seeming to enjoy being petted. When Big Eyes saw this and tried to pet it, the panther instantly bared its fangs viciously.
“Whoa, okay, I get it.”
It looked like it would bite him if he got any closer. At first, Enkrid worried about what he would do if the panther harmed one of his squad members, but he quickly dismissed such concerns. No matter how fierce the panther was, it couldn’t do anything to Rem or the other squad members.
He only needed to be careful with Big Eyes, but the panther looked extremely intelligent. He’d had it for a few days now without any problems. Enkrid gently stroked the panther’s head and said, “Don’t hate him so much.
I’m off to my post.” Enkrid rose from his spot.
“Continue with the bare-handed training exercises. It will be helpful, brother.”
He didn’t specify what it would be helpful for, but it was easy to guess. What was it that Enkrid was always engrossed in?
The sword.
He meant it would be helpful for his swordsmanship.
“He’s not wrong.”
Rem nodded.
Ragna and Jacksen’s heads moved as well. They were all surprisingly responsive when it came to matters concerning Enkrid. It was a truly strange thing.
These were people who usually couldn’t be bothered with most things. Enkrid headed out of the barracks for his duty. He had thought it was a repetition of the same event and that it was relatively easy, but Jacksen’s words had twisted his thoughts a little.
His mind was a mess.
‘Avoid it? Run away?’
With my current skill level? Even if I fight him head-on? He should have asked about that.
No, he would find out starting now. The price was his life and this day. But there would be something to gain as well.
It would not be a waste. Despite having faced death countless times, Enkrid tried not to let a single today go to waste. Even if there was a today that had to be sacrificed for some need.
Even in such situations, he tried to gain at least one more thing before moving on. The instinct that these repeated todays had given him. That instinct whispered to him.
That the strange-looking half-elf assassin bastard was not to be underestimated.
“Well now, high-rank soldier Spellbreaker!”
Jack and Bon were the same as before. They praised Enkrid to the skies, making the atmosphere soft and relaxed. He might not have known if he hadn't seen it before.
But now that he knew, he could see their intent. They used excessive praise to fill his head with hot air and softened the mood to induce carelessness.
‘Looking at it this way, they’re very meticulous.’
The assassination target is just a mere soldier, and they go to these lengths? Is he a perfectionist? While he was trying to deduce the opponent's personality by recalling the half-elf’s face, they arrived at the market.
“There are so damn many people here.”
Jack sidled up next to him with a jest. From the other side, Bon closed the distance.
“You’re right.”
I replied, watching the man covered in rags approach from the front. Then, he suddenly spread his arms to the sides.
Thwack!
This time too, only Jack was hit; Bon avoided it. Enkrid decisively twisted his body to the side. The cold had stiffened his body, but Audin’s exercises had helped.
His body was less stiff than it had been on the first ‘today’. Without even time to draw his sword, he grabbed Bon by the collar. Bon reflexively threw a punch.
With the boldness granted by the Heart of the Beast, Enkrid watched the punch’s trajectory until the very end, predicted it, and ducked his head to avoid it.
Tick.
The fist grazed his earlobe. What followed was Enkrid’s time. He tightened his grip on the collar and twisted, choking Bon.
“Gack!”
The man let out a groan.
“Hup.”
Enkrid took a short breath, intending to use Bon as a shield, and swung him sideways. Even if he was lightly built, the weight of a grown man in armor was on his arm. He lifted him, twisted his waist, and swung him using centrifugal force.
As he turned his body halfway, pulling Bon towards him, the half-elf who had thrown off his rags came into Enkrid’s view. It was the moment their eyes met. It seemed like the elf was sneering at him.
Why, in a situation like this? He had just acquired a human shield, hadn’t he? He should have been flustered.
The assassination target had predicted and reacted to the assassin’s setup. The half-elf was nonchalant. With a sneer, he simply flicked his hand.
It was the moment the assassin’s lowered hand reached his chest. It was a flash of light. It was lightning.
The dagger flew at a speed that was literally impossible to track with the eye. A flash of light that matched the speed of the assassin’s hand touching his chest and flicking forward. It was before he could even fully swing Bon around to block his front.
The dagger flew and lodged itself near his heart.
Wheee!
Only after did the whistling sound reach his ears. The pain that came with a thudding sound told him what the assassin had done and what had happened to him. He had thrown a dagger, and it had pierced his heart.
“Damn.”
His instinct was right. The opponent was not to be trifled with. Just seeing his skill in throwing the dagger moments ago, he was no ordinary foe.
What if he prevented him from throwing the dagger? Even though a dagger was stuck in his body, all the people around them perceived was the sight of Enkrid and two soldiers fighting.
“Let go of me!”
Bon, who was being held by the collar, shouted and kicked Enkrid in the stomach. The strength in his grip vanished. Enkrid was hit in the stomach and let go of the collar.
A dagger was lodged in his heart. It would be stranger if he were fine. Blood gushed from his mouth.
As he knelt on one knee, fighting off collapse, the half-elf, who had somehow gotten close, asked, “You expected it, didn't you? Was their acting that bad?” Screams erupted from the surroundings, but the half-elf paid them no mind.
It seemed that the only thing that mattered was right here, right now, just the two of them.
“... Why?”
He asked, conserving his last breath. Amidst the surrounding screams and commotion, the assassin heard Enkrid’s voice perfectly.
“Why am I asking? Because I’m curious. It was like you knew and reacted.”
Enkrid gave a slight nod and gathered his last strength, catching his breath to speak.
“Your acting was terrible. So bad a passing dog would laugh at it.”
The elf nodded, then flicked his hands to either side.
Thwack.
Two daggers flew from his hands at close range. Enkrid’s eyes saw the tips of the blades embedded in Jack and Bon’s foreheads. Two grooves, whistling throwing knives, Whistle Daggers.
“Th-that.”
“Why, why.”
The two couldn’t continue their words and fell backward with a thud. The half-elf stopped after that. Enkrid knew Rotten was behind him.
But Rotten didn’t charge in a situation like this. He was probably hiding somewhere. The half-elf didn’t kill Rotten.
Who knows, he might hunt him down after this was over. In any case, that had nothing to do with Enkrid.
“The Stubborn Lovers never let their prey go.”
At the assassin’s words, Enkrid nodded.
“I see.”
“You’re not surprised?”
“Should I be?”
“Hmm, most people are.”
Sorry, but this is already the third time. Instead of being surprised, Enkrid grabbed the dagger stuck in his chest and pulled it out.
Pluck.
As the dagger that had been in his heart was removed, extreme pain washed over him. Blood gushed out from the hole in his chest. As Enkrid’s vision quickly blurred, the assassin spoke.
“You’re an interesting one.”
Yeah.
You think so?
‘I’ll make it more interesting for you.’
Enkrid thought as he closed his eyes. Simultaneously with the darkness, he saw the ferryman.
“Kekekeke.”
He simply laughed at him without a word. He seemed quite amused. He couldn't see any eyes, nose, or mouth, not even his posture was clear, but the feeling the ferryman conveyed came through clearly.
The ferryman’s laughter was short. After the darkness, a new morning dawned again.
“Good morning.”
Enkrid shot up, grabbed Audin, briefly heard and learned about the exercises, and as soon as he saw the returned Jacksen, he grabbed him by the sleeve and went outside. The moment his sleeve was grabbed, Jacksen was about to shove the person away but stopped when he saw it was his Squad Leader.
“Huh? Where are you going?”
Rem asked from behind.
“I have something to ask.”
Equivalent Exchange Jacksen was surprisingly knowledgeable. Big Eyes knew a lot about common information, but information more important than that had to be obtained through Jacksen. He earned the nickname Equivalent Exchange Jacksen because he also served as such an information broker.
He would give what the other person wanted, but the other person had to give what he wanted in return.
“The Whistle Dagger, you know about it, right?”
Jacksen frowned.
“Where did you hear about that?”
Observing Jacksen’s reaction, Enkrid determined that the Whistle Dagger was no ordinary item.
“Tell me. About the Whistle Dagger.”
“... Is this a trade?”
Right now, he wasn’t a squad member, but Equivalent Exchange Jacksen.
“Yeah.”
The price didn’t matter. It was a conversation that would disappear once the day repeated. Even if he did face tomorrow, it was something he could just pay back.
However, having realized on just the fourth today that this was a wall he could not overcome, he had a premonition that this conversation would be forgotten. A wall is a wall. There is nothing that can be easily overcome.
It was as if the ferryman’s laughter had turned into words he could hear.