Future Knight

Chapter 80

According to the original plan, they were supposed to pretend to attack and then retreat before the enemy’s main force arrived. However, retreat seemed nearly impossible at this point.

It was all because of the enemy Sword Master and Ogre clinging to them like demons from hell.

The Green Elves retreated, and the conscripted soldiers who managed to repel the attack panted heavily while looking around.

The surroundings were filled with the corpses of Green Elves.

“We, we won. We actually won…”

One of the conscripted soldiers muttered to himself, unable to believe it.

They had achieved a major victory, even though they had always been treated as mere expendables.

They had never achieved such a great victory on their own before.

Whenever they risked their lives to delay the enemy or lead them into chaos, the regular army would always arrive late to claim the final victory.

Because of this, the joy of defeating the enemy themselves felt truly special.

Although they received help from the mysterious Sword Master and Ogre, all the conscripted soldiers had fought their hardest to achieve this victory.

“Uwaaahhh!”

“Yeahhhh!”

“We won!”

“We did it!”

Shouts of victory echoed across the battlefield, and everyone was so overwhelmed with joy that they cried.

“We did it! We really did it!”

Even the wounded conscripted soldiers forgot their pain and shouted.

At that moment, the regular army, which had arrived late, was at a loss for words upon witnessing the inexplicable scene.

“What on earth is going on here?”

They had rushed out upon hearing reports of the enemy’s appearance, but when they arrived, the enemies were already cold corpses.

Even at a glance, the number was around 5,000, roughly the size of ten battalions.

The regular army commander, puzzled, was approached by the soldier who had been leading the conscripts, who quickly reported the situation.

“Reporting, sir. We pursued and annihilated the entire enemy force that launched the surprise attack, which was approximately ten battalions in size.”

“What? You pursued and annihilated that many Green Elves with just conscripted soldiers?”

“Y-yes, sir.”

“And you expect me to believe that?”

The regular army commander couldn’t hide his disbelief at the report that conscripted soldiers, who were little more than serfs, had annihilated a Green Elf force that wouldn’t even lose to the regular army.

The soldier then reported something even he couldn’t believe.

“Well, um, that is, uh…”

“Phew, this is a bit tiring.”

Kang Chan caught his breath and looked around.

Around him lay countless corpses of Green Elves.

“Are you alright?”

“It’s a bit stingy.”

Loki, who had transformed back into human form, had scratches on his arms and legs from the Green Elves’ axes and maces.

Although their attacks couldn’t penetrate Loki’s tough skin due to their inability to wield mana, Loki still had numerous scratches, making him look somewhat pitiful.

“When Zikyon arrives, she will heal you completely. Just hang in there a bit longer.”

“Yeah, alright…”

Seeing Loki’s slightly heavy steps as he headed back to the main camp, Kang Chan thought to himself.

‘It’s possible to be shocked when you kill someone for the first time. That’s something you have to overcome on your own.’

Kang Chan still couldn’t forget the mental shock of his first kill, so he silently hoped Loki would quickly get a grip.

However, the heaviness in Loki’s heart was not merely due to guilt.

He was worried about himself.

When he reverted to his Ogre form and beat the enemies to death with his bare hands, he felt an inexplicable thrill and excitement from the thick smell of the Green Elves’ blood.

The Ogre instincts he thought he had completely overcome were still deeply embedded in his heart and had started to awaken amidst the recent slaughter.

“……”

While Loki was brooding, suddenly, an enormous cheer rang out.

“Woohoo! Long live the Sword Master!”

“Long live the Ogre!”

The conscripted soldiers were expressing their gratitude with thunderous cheers to the Sword Master and Ogre who had led them to victory.

Loki, who had been anxiously worried, was startled by their cheers.

‘They don’t fear me…’

Seeing them lift their weapons high and shout the names of the Sword Master and Ogre made Loki so happy he could cry.

Kang Chan awkwardly raised his hand to them.

Then, the cheers of thousands of people echoed to the sky.

Amidst the cheers, Kang Chan, with his hand still raised, looked at Loki and said.

“See, I told you.”

Just as Kang Chan had said, they didn’t fear him, the Ogre.

“What are you doing, hero? Wave your hand.”

Kang Chan deliberately called him the hero he admired, and Loki, with a shy smile, raised his hand to respond to the conscripts’ cheers.

The conscripts cheered even more fervently.

Loki’s shy smile was so charming that it almost made one mistake him for a woman, and one bold conscript playfully shouted at him.

“Ogre sister! You’re so pretty! Give me a kiss!”

At his sudden shout, the conscripts stopped cheering and burst into laughter, while Loki blushed and angrily retorted.

“I’m a man!”

“Eek!”

“Ahahahaha!”

“Hehehehehe!”

How could Loki be at fault? If there was any fault, it lay with Zikyon’s twisted tastes.

As Kang Chan and Loki basked in the enthusiastic welcome of the conscripts, the regular army officers pushed through the conscripts and rushed towards them.

“Are you the Sword Master responsible for this victory?”

“Everyone here is responsible for the victory, but yes, I am the Sword Master.”

When Kang Chan said that everyone was responsible for the victory, the conscripts cheered once again.

“Uwaaah! Long live the Sword Master!”

“Hooray! Hooray!”

Taken aback by the sudden cheer from the conscripts, the officers spoke again.

“I am Raon Lanchester, Captain of the Hermes Knights of the Sorpen Federation. Which country are you affiliated with?”

As a commander of a knight order, he knew the personal details of the top Sword Masters across the continent by heart. Yet, the Sword Master standing before him was someone he had never heard of before.

He wondered which country had nurtured such a young Sword Master.

Kang Chan’s answer, however, was enough to astonish him.

“I don’t belong to any country.”

“What! You don’t have a country?”

“That’s right.”

“How, how can this be!”

Lanchester’s voice rose with excitement as he heard that Kang Chan had no affiliation.

If he truly was a Sword Master without a country, it would be a tremendous opportunity.

Of course, he couldn’t be absolutely certain that Kang Chan was a Sword Master since he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes.

However, considering the feat of leading conscripted soldiers—who were little better than serfs—to victory against 5,000 Green Elves, it was hard to see him as anything less than a Sword Expert.

Lanchester knew he had to bring him into the Sorpen Federation at any cost.

“Would you consider joining the Sorpen Federation? If you become a citizen of Sorpen and join our Hermes Knights, I would gladly give up my position to you.”

“What! Captain!”

“Captain!”

Lanchester’s subordinates and soldiers were shocked by his offer.

But behind their dismayed faces, Lanchester’s eyes were filled with unwavering conviction.

The Sorpen Federation was an alliance of small kingdoms nestled between powerful nations.

They acted as a buffer zone, and their commerce flourished. However, due to their small territory and the constraints imposed by neighboring countries, their military strength was always inferior.

Their only hope for survival was to maintain a powerful knight order, but this was not an easy task.

With a small population, there were few children with the potential to become Sword Experts, and even those who did often abandoned their homeland for better offers from other countries.

This was why Lanchester, who was not even a mid-level Sword Expert, was in command of the Hermes Knights.

Their long-standing aspiration was to have a Sword Master.

‘If only our country had a Sword Master…’

If they could possess a Sword Master, who were only held by the dominant nations that controlled the continent, the Hermes Knights would no longer be seen as the weak knights of a minor country.

If that happened, young knights would no longer feel disillusioned and leave for other nations, and their country would proudly join the ranks of the great powers.

A Sword Master was a strategic and tactical cornerstone of national power.

Lanchester’s subordinates and conscripted soldiers were astonished by his words.

The commander of a knight order was a crucial position in any nation.

To offer such a prestigious position to recruit someone… it truly highlighted the exalted status of a Sword Master in this world.

The conscripted soldiers who were eavesdropping on the conversation between Kang Chan and Lanchester were filled with a sense of loss.

They were certain Kang Chan would accept Lanchester’s offer.

To them, who were little more than slaves, Lanchester’s proposal was so thrilling it could make them wet themselves just hearing it.

The conscripted soldiers wore expressions of regret, knowing that once he left, they would never again feel the joy of victory like they did today.

However, Kang Chan’s response was unexpected.

“I refuse.”

Lanchester’s heart sank at Kang Chan’s answer.

“Why? Do you have another place in mind?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then, is it because you don’t like the Sorpen Federation?”

Of course, even he knew that a knight of the caliber of a Sword Master wouldn’t choose to serve in a small, weak nation like the Sorpen Federation.

With such skill, he could obtain a duke’s title in any country.

However, the Sword Master’s response to that question was ambiguous.

“No, it’s not that either.”

“What? So, it’s not because we’re a weak nation?”

“That’s right.”

Lanchester did not give up hope.

Kang Chan’s words indicated it wasn’t because their country was weak, nor did he have plans to go elsewhere.

“Then, may I ask why someone like you is in a place like this?”

Even if Kang Chan refused to join, Lanchester was determined to find out why he was here.