Bab 82: Chapter 247 - Unstoppable Force
The more Enkrid learned about and delved into "Will," the more fun, fascinating, and enjoyable it became.
If a sword required a hundred swings to feel satisfying, just one touch of "Will" brought a noticeable change.
It was different from the sword.
'I think I'm losing.'
Outwardly calm, Enkrid was internally more exhilarated than ever before. It was almost maddening. Not even the time spent sleeping seemed worthwhile.
Even in sleep, he continued to research and indulge.
A person who had once enjoyed the arduous path of sword training would naturally find "Will" even more fulfilling.
Training in "Will" was pure bliss.
What if the rapier-wielding knight applied pressure again?
What if they saw Enkrid now?
They would be even more astonished than before. No, they would be horrified.
It was a known fact that it took years for someone to become accustomed to "Will" after realizing it, even if they understood it initially.
The desire for achievement spurred Enkrid onward. No, it gently pushed him forward, offering comforting words.
After learning and mastering it, the desire to test it out was inevitable.
Above all, he was curious.
'How far can this go?'
How far would his refusal hold?
He had heard that among the monsters of the Demon Territory, some leaders with killer intent could suffocate a human's body with their presence.
A leader like that stood before him now.
'Is this luck?'
Had the goddess somehow graced him, leaving a kiss on his cheek?
It was hard to believe it was just a peck.
"Ki-yo-o-o-oht!"
Killer intent brushed against Enkrid's body, and he rejected it. The process was effortless.
Enkrid drew his sword.
Cling.
The leader of the Centaurs had closed in to within ten paces.
Beasts under its command passed by, but Enkrid ignored them. One swung a wooden club at his head.
Enkrid naturally ducked and rose, the movement seamless, as though it was preordained. The club passed over his head.
Whoosh!
The rush of air pushed his hair, and the breeze brushed his cheek.
Ragna had vanished by now.
He would have held his own, not succumbing to this level of killing intent, so he was probably fighting elsewhere.
Enkrid focused solely on the leader of the monsters before him.
"What's wrong? Surprised?"
Enkrid asked softly, clearly enjoying himself.
The rejection of the monster's killing intent felt so natural, so easy that it was exhilarating.
The Centaur leader hesitated, as it was a creature of intelligence despite being a monster.
What was this human? Wasn't he just prey? How could he endure this killing intent?
He had fled from the Demon Territory and come here, only to meet others who couldn't withstand his aura.
But this human—this one was different.
Blue eyes locked with the monster's gaze.
"Let's go to heaven."
Enkrid thought of Audin and spoke, swinging his sword. With his left foot forward, he shifted his weight, his forearm muscles swelling.
The sword fell from above, a downward strike, an overhead cut.
The blade glowed like Ragna's, striking with radiant force.
"Ki-aht!"
The leader reflexively pushed away its glaive. Its reaction was impressive—recoiling and then thrusting its weapon forward.
The glaive intersected with the sword's trajectory.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing rang out like a burst of sparks, like thunder.
In that exchange, Enkrid realized that the leader didn't just carry killer intent.
'Strength.'
Raw power.
The impact sent a shockwave through Enkrid, but he staggered back only a step, absorbing the force with his knees.
The glaive, having been knocked away, soared into the sky.
Enkrid's senses sprang into action, honed by countless battles. He predicted the monster's next move.
His sharpened senses glimpsed the future.
The glaive swung back in a sharp diagonal, cutting a path toward him.
It was an unavoidable strike.
He had to block it.
For a monster, this one was particularly clever.
The glaive's trajectory forced Enkrid to act. It felt like a swordsmanship move.
Enkrid raised his sword, focusing as he did.
At the precise moment of impact, he relaxed his wrist and allowed the blade to slip, deflecting the blow.
It was a feint.
Ding! Tling!
Enkrid's sword blade deflected the glaive, and in the opening, Enkrid stepped forward.
His right hand held the sword for defense, but his left hand wasn't idle.
Enkrid had already drawn a guard sword with his left hand and threw it.
A counter-sword.
He deflected the glaive with a feint and twisted his body, redirecting the power into his left arm.
Then, with his elbow as a pivot, he unleashed a wide blade, a dagger with tremendous force.
Pang! Thwack!
The thick blade sank deep into the side of the leader's body, with only the hilt visible.
The monstrous strength used in the throw almost pierced the heart.
That the blade didn't pierce was a miracle.
It only meant the monster's body was extraordinarily tough.
"Kiaaa!"
The leader's rage grew, and with it, its aura intensified.
Once again, the killing intent became thick and heavy.
'Die. Die, you're my prey.'
It almost felt like these words were echoing in his mind. Enkrid didn't need to speak. From deep within his core, a heat surged up, and that heat dispelled whatever the monster was throwing at him.
It was rejection.
"Hah!"
Taking a deep breath, Enkrid stepped forward, straightened his knees, and swung his sword with his elbow extended, pivoting his waist.
It was a horizontal cut.
Whoosh!
The monster stepped back instead of blocking.
It was intentional.
From there, Enkrid moved forward gracefully, as if dancing. His feet pushed against the ground while the sword sliced and thrust.
Whenever the monster dodged or blocked, Enkrid continued to attack.
He swung his sword above his head and brought it down, pulled it back, then thrust, only to pull back again and slash to the left, followed by a sweeping strike.
Thud! Thuck! Swoosh! Thud!
Some attacks were blocked, others landed.
The glaive's path was fully restricted.
The unnamed, ordinary sword in Enkrid's hands relentlessly battered the monster, forcing it back.
As a monster, it didn't even realize it had fallen into a trap.
The leader could barely use its strength.
Strength came from movement. Before it could apply its full power, Enkrid's sword restricted and blocked its actions.
The Centaur leader, whose muscles appeared to be solid and numerous times stronger than a human's, was forced to retreat despite its size.
The more it retreated, the more the tide turned against it.
Enkrid was overwhelming the monster.
"Ki-aaah! Ki-aaah!"
The leader struggled and let out another burst of killing intent.
Enkrid easily ignored it. His rejection instinctively repelled it.
When he first used "Will," it felt like a newly grown tail, but now it was as natural as his own body.
It felt like drawing from a deep, unending well.
A well that would never run dry.
From that well came the strength to reject the monster's aura.
This was nothing.
Enkrid's sword danced, thrusting, slashing, and pulling, eventually landing a deep cut on the monster's right foreleg.
The blade sliced through the Centaur's muscular leg. The blade went in about halfway, cutting through muscle and nerve, then came back out.
Whoosh.
Blood poured from the wound, the deep red gushing as if a major artery had been struck.
The monster's regeneration abilities were terrifying, especially for a leader like this one, who might be as tough as a troll.
'This is the end.'
Enkrid saw the conclusion, and the leader was filled with fear.
It had led the monster horde using its unique abilities, but once it faced a stronger predator, it realized why it had been chased to this point.
It had been another human before, too.
"Kii-yaah!"
The leader sent a signal and began retreating.
Despite the cut to its front leg, it slapped the ground with its forelegs, then twisted its body on its back legs with astonishing agility.
It was a remarkable display of physical ability.
But Enkrid was not about to stand idly by and watch.
He was ready to strike down the leader, but suddenly, an interruption occurred.
"Ki-yaaak!"
Two Harpies swooped down, their claws raised for an attack. If they made contact, the Gambeson and leather would be shredded.
Was this a surprise?
No. Even focused on the monster, Enkrid's senses were wide open.
He wasn't caught off guard.
Instead, he slashed diagonally from his left, cutting across their abdomen, then reversed the strike to the other diagonal.
Screech! Thud! Bang! Bang!
In two swift slashes, Enkrid took down two Harpies, turning them into a heap of mangled flesh.
As he cleared his way through the winged monsters, the leader was already running.
'If I let it escape, it'll be trouble.'
It would be. It was clear just from the group of monsters around.
If the leader retreated to the forest and regrouped, it would be a nightmare.
A monster like this could develop even further with time.
Enkrid kicked the ground.
He recalled the Squire from the battlefield.
The reckless charge still burned clearly in his mind.
'Like the Squire's charge?'
Could he do it? Could he apply "Will" to his legs, like that?
It wouldn't be easy.
After learning to use rejection, it became easy and enjoyable, but learning something entirely new was still a great challenge.
There was no way to force something to work if it wasn't meant to.
Enkrid remembered the Squire's charge as he harnessed his explosive strength.
The overwhelming power surged into his thighs.
He put his full weight into the ground, propelling himself forward.
Boom!
The sound of his foot slamming into the ground was as deafening as a battering ram striking the city gate.
Kiyah!
A subordinate monster came at him, swinging a club. Enkrid ran forward, drawing his sword.
Screeek!
The Centaur charging at him had its neck severed.
The club was dodged as Enkrid bent his body low, swinging his sword in the same motion. It was a fluid series of movements, ones he could never have imagined performing in the past.
His body, powered by the ground beneath him, surged forward like a straight line.
He pursued the retreating Centaur.
And there were those who were watching this unfold.
As most of the soldiers froze in place, gripped by the aura, it was a moment of doubt whether they would even be able to act.
"Die."
A muttered word sliced through the air. It was Ragna.
He swiftly moved through the frozen soldiers.
The charging Centaur didn't last even two strikes against Ragna's sword.
Ragna knocked aside the club and cleaved the Centaur's skull.
He sliced vertically through the torso of another charging horse-monster.
It all seemed so simple, so effortless.
It didn't feel dynamic.
It was like cutting dry hay with a sickle.
It was laborious, systematic swordplay.
'What is this?'
Everyone was surprised.
But what shocked them even more was Enkrid.
'Why is he moving like that?'
The killing intent before him had momentarily blurred his vision, but it cleared almost immediately.
Torres watched Enkrid fight in front of him.
'Why is he fighting so well?'
He had always been skilled, but this was different.
Even if someone didn't have the eye to recognize talent instantly, this was far beyond what they expected.
Enkrid swung his sword, easily ignoring the leader's killing intent. He struck, thrust, and launched a flurry of blows.
He overwhelmed the creature.
"Wow."
Torres' body, frozen by the aura, slowly began to move again.
Still, he didn't make a move.
The monster horde was being sliced apart one by one by Ragna.
Soon after, Jaxen joined in, dispatching each monster with swift precision.
Enkrid, seeing the leader flee, chased after it.
"Hey! Don't go that way!"
Torres shouted, but trailed off.
Chasing the leader into the forest was a risky move, but he knew they had no choice.
If they let it escape, things would only get worse.
"Rem! Your leader is heading into the forest!"
Torres opted for a different approach.
"Dammit!"
Rem responded, though it seemed directed at someone else. His actions followed as intended.
Rem swung his axes left and right, cleaving through several man-faced hounds in an instant. His axes sliced like beams of light, cutting through the monsters as if they were nothing. Then, he sprinted forward.
His body darted through the monsters as though it were his own backyard, leaving a trail of slain beasts and monsters behind him.
"Fight when you're ready."
Ragna muttered as he moved.
His sword danced in the air, cutting down anything in his path. After clearing his way, he pursued Enkrid, heading into the forest.
The two large figures slicing through the monster horde beside him also began running.
"Let's go!"
Audin, the religious zealot, shouted as he knocked the skull of a ghoul with his fist.
What had once been chaotic was now a battlefield where humans had the clear advantage.
The monsters were too busy taking blows to retaliate.
'Insane.'
Torres couldn't help but exhale in awe.
A ghoul's eyeball rolled in front of his feet.
Torres stomped on it.
Crunch!
The eyeball burst, splattering across the ground.
The battle was still ongoing, and there was no time to admire the carnage.
"Kill them all!"
Torres shouted, rallying his comrades to finish off the remaining monsters.
So fast?
Enkrid ran as hard as he could, but chasing a monster built for speed was difficult.
He was barely managing to stay close, trailing behind.
The forest wasn't ideal for running.
That was the only reason he hadn't lost the leader yet.
What if they hit open ground?
'I'm probably going to lose it.'
A cold evaluation.
Should he throw a dagger or something?
Even with its front leg wounded and a sword lodged in its abdomen, the monster wouldn't stop just because a few knives were stuck in its back.
Instead of stopping, Enkrid figured it would be better to keep running.
He knew he would eventually lose it, but that didn't mean he would give up.
Even if the outcome seemed inevitable, quitting in the middle of the chase was simply not who Enkrid was.
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