Chapter 171: A Starry Night (1)

Wright remained motionless, stiff as a statue.

The edge of the sword grazed his neck.

“Don’t move.”

“Y-yes.”

He swallowed hard. Even without the sword at his neck, he wouldn’t have been able to move. The presence behind him was so sharp and ominous that it was unbearable.

“Your name.”

The enemy’s voice was calm, like the night wind.

“My name is Wright.”

“If you give me useful information, I’ll let you live. If not… you’ll die. So tell me something.”

At that moment, Wright’s life flashed before his eyes like a magic lantern.

He thought of his family, who had celebrated joyfully when he became an imperial knight.

He thought of his childhood friend from his village, to whom he never managed to confess his feelings. He didn’t want his life to end like this.

“T-the name of the squad commander is Elpeso.”

“I already know that.”

“We’re from the Ninth Squadron. We were given a reconnaissance mission and set out before the main force.”

“I know that too.”

“I-I think they’re on the mountain…”

“That’s why they arranged the formation that way.”

“There’s a Black Knight in the main force…”

Wright began to recite everything he knew in desperation. It was pathetic, but he had no other choice.

He wanted to live.

But he was still a rookie. He didn’t have any valuable information. And it seemed like, no matter what he said, the enemy already knew everything.

The fact that he wasn’t the only one who had spilled the beans brought him some comfort, though it wouldn’t help him survive.

“Uh, then…”

Wright, now pale, began rambling nonsense.

“T-the best restaurant in the imperial palace, in my opinion…”

“Enough.”

“No, I can say more! Please…”

“Look at the sky.”

“Huh?”

As he raised his head, the blade grazed his neck, drawing blood.

But he didn’t care. Obeying was more important if he wanted to stay alive.

“Well?”

“E-excuse me?”

“How’s the sky?”

“Oh…”

Wright licked his lips and answered.

“T-the moon is bright. And there are many stars.”

“How many?”

“A whole lot, sparkling.”

“……”

“B-but… the night sky always looks more or less the same, doesn’t it?”

“I see.”

The enemy nodded.

“You may go.”

“Huh?”

“Go.”

Wright blinked, then took a step forward. But the enemy didn’t react.
He took two steps, three… Then broke into a run.

As he fled frantically, he looked back. The enemy was still watching him silently.

For a moment, he thought he would be chased down and killed, but he never was.

Wright ran like mad.

***

Yuri remained silent, watching Wright’s back as he ran off.

“I didn’t expect to find you here.”

In his past life, he had encountered him. After the fall of Briol, when he lived as a mercenary, he met Wright.

He belonged to the Empire now, but his fate was to become a wandering mercenary.

He knew he was from the Empire, but not that he was a knight. He had helped him a few times.

“Hmm…”

On second thought, maybe he deserted because of him. Unable to return to the Empire, he’d end up a mercenary again.

Was it fate that brought them together once more? Yuri shrugged and looked up at the sky.

“Whatever will be, will be.”

Just as Wright had said, the moon and stars shone. But to Yuri, saying they were simply “sparkling” wasn’t enough.

The night sky rippled like the surface of a lake, and the moon was so large it seemed to fill the entire firmament.

Countless stars gleamed at the center of spirals, as if each were spinning on its own axis.

A strange and beautiful sight. The “Cut of the soul and the heart.” And the chaos.

Where was all this taking him?

Yuri gripped Guilty tightly.

Even if that path led him to the edge of a cliff, he wouldn’t stop. He could go as far as necessary to crush the Empire.

Sensing one by one the signs of life on the mountain, he smiled.

He was more lucid than ever. As if sniffing out the trail of his prey, he expanded his perception to find the right target.

Hunting the weak first was a natural instinct of a predator. He moved forward like a stalking beast.

And in an instant, he pushed off the ground and shot forward. He no longer cared if his steps made noise.

It was impossible to keep moving stealthily, so he planned to sow chaos and confuse the enemy.

When he approached the nearest enemy group, four knights already stood in formation with their swords ready.

“H-he’s coming!”

“Stay calm!”

Yuri didn’t slow down. The wind grazed his cheeks.

The intertwining air currents were clear and tangible.

He even used the slightest air resistance to calculate his sword’s trajectory.

The combat sequence unfolded in his mind as if he were watching it.

He would trade a few blows and win easily. But he wanted faster, cleaner results. So he rewrote the opening of the encounter.

And that gave him a new ending. A more destructive and brief one.

Yuri approved of that new ending. And he executed it to the letter.

Right before the clash, a spiral of energy exploded over Guilty. A storm of uncontrolled power distorted the swords of the four knights.

The four different mana methods were compressed under the force of the Cut of the soul and the heart, then shattered into pieces, absorbed by the chaos.

Boom!

The four fell to the ground at the same time.

The remnants of cutting energy even grazed Yuri’s skin. Drops of blood floated at the edges of his vision.

Yuri accelerated. He drove Guilty into the chest of the fallen knight in the center.

The two on the sides tried to rise, but the chaotic energy still lingering responded to Yuri’s will and struck them.

They staggered.

Immediately, Yuri slashed the knight on the left. He managed to lift his sword just in time to block.

Then Yuri spun and cut the one staggering behind. An unexpected turn.

The enemy’s armor split down the chest.

“Beltes!”

Yuri stepped over the fresh corpse and rushed at the knight just getting up.

With blurry eyes, the enemy raised his sword. Too slow.

Yuri kicked him in the chest. Taking advantage of the moment he was falling backward, he stabbed Guilty between the visor of the helmet.

He felt something being pierced. Then, he twisted the blade inside the skull.

The helmet’s interior shattered.

When he pulled out the sword, blood and brain matter splattered at the same time.

“You damn son of…!”

The knight who had blocked Yuri’s first thrust lost his mind seeing his three comrades die one after another.

Instead of fleeing in fear, he chose that reaction. That way they wouldn’t have to chase him.

“Die!”

A sword charged with cutting energy came down toward Yuri’s back.

But Yuri’s body slid to the side. The knight’s sword cut through the air, and that single mistake led directly to his death.

Yuri slightly extended Guilty.

Crack!

As he looked at the blade that had pierced his chest, the knight muttered.

“I-I’ll curse you. You said your name was Jared, right? I’ll curse you to the end… in hell…”

Yuri withdrew Guilty as he answered.

“Yuri Briol.”

Blood gushed from his mouth, and the knight could say no more.

“I’m not Jared. It’s Yuri Briol.”

The light faded from the knight’s eyes. Yuri let out a brief laugh and turned around.

“If you’re going to curse me, at least get it right.”

He turned again. He sensed movement all around.

Lights flickered occasionally. The entire Ninth Squadron was moving frantically.

His position was probably completely exposed after this battle.

“There’s still many left…”

Of course. It was the Empire. Even after killing so many, there were still lots of knights.

And he had only faced part of the squadron. How much more blood would he have to shed?

He rummaged through a fallen backpack. Found a bunch of jerky. He brought it to his mouth and began chewing.

Then he slipped back into the darkness. Yuri’s skills were sharper than ever.

If he wanted, he could do anything. If he wished to vanish, his presence disappeared. If he wanted to cut, he could slice through steel.

If he wished to kill, he could close the distance in an instant.

The mana technique flowing through his channels was completely fused with chaos.

“Infinite.”

Yuri murmured. Because in chaos, there was the infinite.

Now he understood why Moyongchan feared the Heavenly Demon martial arts so much.

But he didn’t care.

“Elpeso.”

Among the multiple presences he sensed, there was a single point moving calmly and solemnly. It was coming toward him, accompanied by several knights.

As strong as Yuri was, he didn’t plan on facing all of them at once.

He looked up at the sky.

The stars were shining strangely, once again filling his field of vision. There was still a lot of night left.

He checked how many arrows he had left. Enough.

He took position in a tree at a safe distance. The group led by Elpeso was approaching.

Yuri had completely erased his presence, so Elpeso passed right beneath him without noticing anything.

He could hear their conversation.

“There was a noise near here.”

“From now on, we’re changing formation. Combined teams of eight men.”

“That’ll make us very slow.”

“We’ve already suffered enough.”

Elpeso’s voice was calm, but filled with anger.

“It’s the only way to maintain even the slightest chance. If he wanted to flee, he would’ve done it already.”

Elpeso was calculating wisely.

“Spread out.”

“Yes, sir!”

The knights dispersed. Only Elpeso and four knights remained at his side.

They were clearly stronger than the previous enemies. It wasn’t wise to face them head-on just yet.

Elpeso spoke.

“The enemy is still here. If we don’t eliminate him now, we’ll have problems later.”

One of the knights commented.

“Briol’s strength is impressive. I didn’t know they had someone so skilled besides Fiore.”

“This Jared guy… I’ve never heard that name.”

“Me neither.”

“No one knows him?”

The four shook their heads. Elpeso sighed.

“Jared, the so-called ‘beast of Briol’. If he has a nickname, it means he’s known within his kingdom. If he escapes today, we’ll need to report to the main force to gather information.”

“Maybe he was deliberately hidden. Like a secret weapon.”

“Possibly.”

“What about us? Should we have brought him?”

“No. He’s hard to control. He can only be used when the Black Knight is nearby.”

“What a hassle…”

Yuri picked up a new keyword. This person they were talking about had to be a hidden asset of the Empire.

They called him a secret weapon, so he had to be very powerful.

He searched his memories from his past life but couldn’t find anything that matched. The war had started much earlier than in his previous life.

That “guy” seemed to be a new character who had entered the conflict due to the change in history.

The knights kept talking.

“I saw him once. Gave me a really bad feeling.”

“Right? That gloomy stare…”

Elpeso interrupted them.

“Enough talk. We don’t know where the enemy is.”

“Yes, sir.”

“He could be watching us right now.”

“Huh…?”

“It’s not an exaggeration. How many have already died?”

“Forgive me.”

“We don’t look like knights. Right now, we’re the prey. He’s hunting us at his leisure.”

Yuri smiled silently. At this rate, the name Jared would become famous thanks to him.

Elpeso and his group moved forward slowly, watching carefully. Yuri drew his bow and notched an arrow.

He pulled the string taut.

The target appeared in his sights—Elpeso’s nape. He wanted to kill him with a single shot, but doubted it would work.

He could feel that Elpeso was fully alert. Several arrows had already wounded his men, so he was watching every angle.

He changed targets. Chose the most vulnerable one.

He held his breath.

Released.

The arrow flew silently. Yuri didn’t even stop to see the result.

Whether it hit or not, he had to flee immediately.

“Gate!”

Apparently, the shot hit its mark. Yuri retreated as fast as he could.

Elpeso’s shout echoed through the forest. Yuri smiled and picked up speed.

Then he ran into another group of knights.

Eight in total. He had to eliminate them before Elpeso arrived.

“Hmm…”

Seeing their tense and resolute expressions, he figured killing them all would be difficult.

“Four. I’ll kill just four.”

Yuri’s sword sliced through the night air. Time seemed to flow slower.

Drunk on euphoria, Yuri swung his sword. Blood splattered.

And above the heads of the falling knights, the stars poured their strange light, illuminating the night sky completely.