Chapter 439 - The City Built with a Thousand Bricks
The border city guarding the magical frontier was named "Thousand Stones."
A city built by stacking stones to form a wall.
It meant that Naurilia had built it with thousands of stones to prevent the invasion of the magical realm.
Despite being a border area, it didn't seem like what was happening right in front of them would be a common occurrence within the walls of the city.
"Block them!"
It was right in front of the city walls.
Soldiers were facing a fierce battle.
Above, harpies were flying, and below, the dark hunting dogs' claws were rampaging.
Enkrid saw the city gates of Thousand Stones were half-destroyed.
Even though this gate wasn't facing the magical frontier, it was still in chaos.
Among the people holding their ground, Enkrid recognized a familiar face.
It was Aishia.
She was striking the skull of a hunting dog that had charged toward her with the edge of her sword.
It looked like a light strike, but the force behind it was that of a mid-tier semi knight.
Thwack, clang!
The creature's skull shattered and it rolled away.
There were plenty of beastly creatures, but would that really be a problem?
Aishia was also a mid-tier semi knight.
Calmly, she continued to strike and stab the hunting dogs, occasionally glancing upwards.
Above her, five harpies were circling around.
It wasn't dangerous.
She was fighting with proper formation, and if they died that easily, they wouldn't be considered mid-tier knights.
However, it was almost laughable just watching.
Enkrid, unable to simply stand by, stepped forward.
It would only be a matter of time before the beasts were all dead, so why not speed things up a little?
"Rem, Dunbakel."
"Are we loosening up first?"
Before Enkrid even called for them, Rem darted forward, with Dunbakel following close behind.
Enkrid called for them and rushed ahead himself.
He dropped his pack to the ground, keeping only his spear for the battle.
With even pressure on the soles of his feet, he kicked off the ground and ran.
It was a step he had been practicing, learned from Luagarne.
It was about training the basics so that the center of gravity could shift at any time and in any direction.
Enkrid felt the air hit his face and looked up.
He saw a harpy above Aishia's head, its wings slashing forward in place of its arms.
His instincts warned him, even though he couldn't see it.
It was something he could feel.
A gust of wind poured down like a blade.
Aisia raised her shield to block it.
Clang!
Clang!
The wind's blade struck the shield, breaking apart with a sharp sound.
A magic-using harpy?
Enkrid thought as he continued running.
The harpy gained altitude.
The blade couldn't reach, and even a crossbow could barely hit it at that height.
Unless it was a master archer, targeting it would be difficult.
There were five harpies in total.
They used magic and knew how to take advantageous positions.
They also knew how to gauge their opponent's abilities.
Otherwise, five harpies would have already been skewered on Aishia's sword.
Enkrid took in the information with his eyes and organized it as he inhaled.
His senses, honed like blades, became sharp.
A perfect line, drawn only on the battlefield, appeared in his mind.
It was a skill he had gained from Abnaier, Aspen's genius strategist.
Enkrid acted on it immediately.
As he ran, he drew the gladius that was strapped horizontally behind his back and threw it.
The move was a quick throw, combined with a subtle shift to the left, opening his chest, then closing it and extending his arm.
It was a technique inspired by the "throwing sword" style.
Whoosh!
The gladius spun through the air, looking almost like a disc.
The harpy, which had been using wind magic to block crossbows, seemed to realize it couldn't block the gladius.
It changed the direction of its wings, altering the air resistance, and veered to the side.
The gladius grazed the spot where the harpy had been, embedding itself in the brick of the back wall.
Thud!
The harpy's head exploded with a sickening crack.
The creature plummeted, its head impaled by an axe that had been thrown by Rem.
"One more."
Enkrid said.
Rem silently complied and threw another axe.
This time, Rem threw first.
Enkrid, recalling the training he had undergone with Luagarne, took out a short spear.
He hadn't expected to use the spear he'd brought for training, but now seemed as good a time as any.
"We trained with all kinds of weapons, didn't we?
Think of this as another step in that process."
The training that started with Rem had been continued by Luagarne.
By learning to handle every weapon, they could internalize the experience and build their senses for combat.
Enkrid had diligently trained with throwing spears as well.
His sharpened senses allowed him to throw with a different speed than before.
Though geniuses might have found it lacking, Enkrid thought it was decent enough.
And now, he could prove it.
As a harpy dodged the flying axe, a spear, as long as his forearm, pierced its chest.
Thud!
The spear, breaking the breastbone and piercing through, sent the harpy tumbling backward into the wall, where it bounced off and crashed to the ground.
"Enki?"
Aishia recognized Enkrid.
"Let's wrap things up."
Enkrid responded.
Dunbakel, ignoring the harpies, charged at the hunting dog beasts below.
She lowered her stance and drew two curved blades, swinging them out like whips, slicing through the beasts with deadly precision.
Seeing this, Enkrid understood why Aishia hadn't rushed in.
If she had really charged, five harpies would have been no problem, but she had been holding the line to protect some merchants she had noticed in the back.
If she left, the harpies would likely target them, so she had been waiting.
As the two magic-using harpies fled, the remaining three flew off into the distance.
The humid air and the sun, blocked by clouds, illuminated the spot where the harpies had been.
Enkrid had expected to discuss things slowly after the battle, but Aishia was not interested in that.
"You were the reinforcements?"
"And you?"
"I'm also here to support.
It's my original affiliation."
That was true.
She was from the Red Cloak Order.
"Let's go inside."
Aishia casually wiped her sword with a cloth and sheathed it, as if this kind of thing was nothing to her.
Several merchants, shaken and weak, collapsed as they tried to steady themselves.
"You didn't mention anything about magic-using harpies."
One of the merchants asked.
It was a tone that seemed more like a complaint, but it likely came from surprise.
No merchant would dare speak like that to a knight of the order.
The merchant seemed relieved that Aishia didn't take offense.
"I've never seen them either.
But anyway, since I'm here, you can get back to work, right?"
Enkrid realized again that Aishia was indeed a member of the order.
Those who could become mid-tier semi knights in the order didn't concern themselves with petty matters.
Her answer, stiff and direct, made it seem like the merchant was overreacting.
"Get a hold of yourselves.
If you stay there, the harpies will think you're lunch and come back for you."
Enkrid said softly, and the merchants quickly stood up, some being supported by others.
"Hey, don't threaten them."
Aishia said, turning and heading inside.
"When did I?"
Enkrid asked, and Rem laughed, patting his shoulder.
"You called then a harpy lunch.
That's a threat, isn't it?"
Rem chuckled and followed Aishia inside.
Enkrid thought the merchants didn't have much wit, since he'd only made a half-joke.
No mid-tier semi knight would lose to harpies even while protecting merchants.
"You should practice more with throwing while running."
Luagarne said, gathering the remaining packs and handing Enkrid the gladius.
Enkrid nodded, heading inside.
The gate was half-destroyed, but it didn't seem like such a big deal.
The people inside were calm.
The soldiers around Aishia chatted casually, as if there was nothing to whisper about, and walked along.
"The harpies really need to be wiped out."
"The monsters should be killed too."
This was Thousand Stones.
The gateway to the borderlands of the Demon Territory, blocked by a thousand stones.
It was so dangerous that most people didn't even want to live there.
Only those who hated monsters remained inside.
Thousand Stones was a far rougher place than the former Border Guard, which had once been called a fortress city.
Two soldiers, who looked neither like guards nor bandits, approached without helmets and passed by the merchants entering, glancing over at Enkrid.
One had a long scar above his right eyebrow, and the other looked like a mix of a guard and a bandit.
Clank, thud, clank, thud.
The soldier with the spear in his right hand tapped the ground with it as he walked toward Enkrid.
He ignored Frogs, Beastkin, and even Rem.
"Are you the Demon Slayer, General Enkrid?"
the soldier asked.
Enkrid nodded slightly, feeling a faint pressure.
The man moved the hand holding the spear to his opposite side.
Enkrid didn't respond.
The man switched the spear to his left hand, slightly bent his right arm, placed it on his waist, and said,
"It's an honor!"
It was a military salute.
The man's name was Millio, the one who had heard the rumors about Enkrid and had been eager to meet him.
"Nice to meet you," Enkrid greeted.
Millio's hands trembled in excitement.
"Could we have a duel sometime.
"Are you out of your mind?
Who do you think you are, asking for a duel?"
Another soldier standing nearby shouted angrily.
"The mood's a bit off, huh?
You'll need some time to get used to it," Aishia said, leaning against the city walls.
She looked extremely tired, and her eyes had dark circles beneath them.
It seemed she had been lacking sleep for a few days.
"Get used to it?
You're probably excited, aren't you?"
Rem said from beside her.
It was true.
Millio had asked for a duel, so it was simple to grant it.
"And you two.
Asking for a duel in a situation like this?
Are you full of yourselves?"
"No, ma'am!"
"We will correct ourselves!"
The two soldiers straightened up, responding to Aishia's words.
They must have received a solid reprimand before, as they quickly regained their composure.
"Let's go inside.
We should meet Sir Oara first," Enkrid said.
Sir Oara, the knight.
The reason Enkrid had come here.
As they entered, a few more soldiers had arrived, each of them with a fierce appearance.
"Rem, you seem to have a lot of friends here," Enkrid remarked.
Rem glanced around.
There were no Westerners in sight.
Upon realizing this, he smiled.
It was the kind of smile he usually had when killing someone or driving an axe into a monster's skull.
Rem realized that his commanding officer was teasing him for fun.
"Why are you so excited?"
Rem said, and Enkrid quickly understood why.
"Damn, you're excited because we're meeting a knight."
"Correct."
Enkrid said as they followed Aishia inside.
The city was large, but there weren't many people.
Most carried weapons, and there were no young women selling flowers.
There were some general stores and food shops, but they all looked deserted.
One shop had people working with long horns.
Other than that, there was almost nothing else.
There was a bakery selling arrow-shaped bread, called Arrow Bread.
Right next to it, the pub was quieter than expected—almost eerily silent.
Normally, people would be eating and drinking in the daytime, but everyone avoided the pub.
The pub's owner, a burly man, stood outside, shouting angrily.
"How am I supposed to live like this?
Just because you're a knight, you think you can act like this?"
Knights were respected.
Because they faced countless enemies alone.
Knights were revered.
Because their strength was unpredictable.
Knights were worshipped.
Because they showed their will for their beliefs.
"Oara!
Please!"
The man shouted several similar lines, but no one answered.
Aishia just shrugged it off.
"The situation's not great, so there's a ban on alcohol."
"Ban on alcohol?"
Enkrid asked.
But Aishia only replied with, "Talk to Sir Oara about it."
They passed through the poorly maintained dirt road and noticed a few women in the alley.
It seemed that business was good there.
One man, likely a soldier, could be heard talking.
"Give me a discount."
"Stop talking nonsense.
Do you want to save up kronas for gambling?"
"No, I really want to…"
The soldier seemed angry and raised his hand, as if to strike the woman.
Enkrid slowed his pace instinctively.
The woman was the weaker party.
He couldn't just stand by and watch.
His logic was simple—he wouldn't let it go, even if it meant using his fists to stop it.
But the soldier didn't touch her.
"If you want to die, go ahead," the woman said firmly.
The soldier hesitated, then lowered his hand.
"Sorry.
I've been in a bad mood since losing in cards this morning," he apologized.
The woman snorted in disdain, then grabbed the soldier's arm and pulled him into a small door.
They seemed to know each other.
"Interesting," Rem remarked.
Enkrid agreed.
What they had just witnessed was something unusual—certainly not an everyday occurrence.
"I'll take a look around the city," Rem said, clearly more interested in the city than meeting a knight.
He walked away excitedly.
At the center of the city was a house that, if you called it a mansion, would be embarrassing.
It was a log cabin.
Though it was called Thousand Stones, it wasn't possible to build everything out of stone.
How could they transport and layer all those stones?
Most things were probably made from wood cut from nearby forests.
It was such a house—made from logs.
Creak, creak.
Aishia opened the door without knocking, and a strange noise came from the rusty hinges.
"Are you going to fix the door?"
Enkrid asked.
"You do it if you want.
I'm better with a sword," Aishia replied.
Inside, the voices of a tired, lifeless woman and a rough man could be heard.
Dunbakel was waiting outside, and only Luagarne and Enkrid entered.
The dimly lit room was illuminated by candles and lamps.
At the center of the room was a round table with brown liquid-filled bottles, and three people sat around it.
"Did you bring the merchants?"
the woman with brown hair asked, her eyes blurry.
The candlelight made her hair appear reddish, though it would probably look brown in daylight.
The smell of alcohol was strong.
"We've brought reinforcements, the Demon Slayer," Aicia said.
The woman with the brown hair turned her blurred gaze toward Enkrid.
"…You," she said, pausing for a moment before speaking again.
"You're handsome."
The blurry-eyed knight's focus snapped into clarity.
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