Future Knight

Chapter 89

‘That person is strong.’

The appearance of someone with an aura as powerful as Master Elradian made Kang Chan a bit wary.

Moreover, Zikyon, who had been playful just moments before, instantly reverted to G. Zikyon, the ruler of the Elven Forest, upon the appearance of Duke Sachsen.

“How dare someone draped in the bones of my kin walk so confidently before us?”

The ornate armor worn by the approaching man seemed to be made of dragon bones.

Kang Chan asked Zikyon, who had suddenly changed, with a tone of concern.

“Zikyon, why the sudden change?”

“Would you feel good if an orc wearing the bones and flesh of a human approached you?”

“That would be…”

Kang Chan thought he would definitely be enraged if he saw an orc wearing armor or wielding weapons made from the bones and flesh of fellow humans.

“Still, for my sake, hold back for a while, Zikyon.”

“Tch!”

At Kang Chan’s earnest request, Zikyon struggled to suppress her explosive anger.

‘No!’

Duke Sachsen was utterly shocked.

He could sense an extraordinary presence from the person watching him from afar.

The strong can recognize the strong.

‘It’s true. That person is a true Sword Master.’

Duke Sachsen no longer doubted that the man was a Sword Master, as he felt tense just by his presence.

“Ahem!”

Clearing his throat, Duke Sachsen spoke to him as courteously as possible.

“Hello? I am Duke Sachsen, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces.”

With a bold demeanor, Duke Sachsen extended his hand for a handshake, which Kang Chan accepted.

“Ah, yes, nice to meet you.”

“I’ve heard much about your reputation.”

“You flatter me…”

“It is an honor for us to have someone like you in our Allied Forces.”

“I’m just doing what I need to do.”

Kang Chan’s words were about fulfilling his personal revenge, but they could be interpreted differently, which made Duke Sachsen sincerely admire him.

“Indeed… You have the courage of a hero.”

“…?”

“In that case, would you join the Visman Empire in your noble cause?”

“That’s…”

“Currently, our Human-Orc Allied Forces are on the verge of launching a full-scale offensive. The war that will wipe out the enemies is imminent. In such times, we need someone with exceptional skills and heroic spirit like you. I earnestly ask you to join us.”

“But I am content here. I will fight from here.”

Duke Sachsen could not comprehend Kang Chan’s words.

It was like a lion saying it would fight alongside rabbits.

“Having someone like you fighting here is a tremendous loss for our Allied Forces. Do you truly not understand why we must take the risk and launch a full-scale offensive?”

“Now, that’s a good point!”

Zikyon, who had been suppressing her anger, asked Duke Sachsen sharply.

She still held a grudge for the relocation orders that forced her to abandon her carefully built wooden mansion.

Her expression was filled with rage, and Duke Sachsen was momentarily startled by it.

Focusing solely on Kang Chan, he had not noticed her until she suddenly joined the conversation, and her appearance made his heart race.

Zikyon’s beauty was striking enough to ruthlessly shake the heart of a man who had received countless advances from women in the royal palace.

“What? What’s the reason?”

However, despite her beautiful appearance, her words were quite harsh. She even acted extremely rudely toward him, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. But her demeanor only made her more charming in Sachsen’s eyes.

“It’s because of the Dark Elves, my lady.”

“Dark Elves?”

“Yes, my lady. Their involvement makes it extremely disadvantageous for us to prolong the war. That’s why we’re opting for an all-out war.”

“What makes them so frightening?”

Though Zikyon’s words were blatantly sarcastic, Sachsen flinched but calmly explained the truth.

He was genuinely fearful of them.

“They are masters of assassination and terrorism. If the war drags on, our scattered units will be at their mercy every night. This will threaten the very foundation of our forces. For instance, the support troops from the Eastern Kingdom lost 150,000 soldiers to them in just one month. Do you understand now?”

“A guerrilla warfare strategy involving hit-and-run tactics.”

That was Kang Chan’s primary daily routine during his time with the Red Mars special forces.

“They are not ordinary guerrillas… By the way, have you served in the military?”

“Ah? No, I haven’t.”

### Future Knight Chapter 89

Kang Chan, surprised by the words that had slipped out, mumbled an evasive reply.

His true identity was that of an explorer traveling through space.

“But you seem to know a lot about the military?”

“I just had some interest.”

“Now, it’s time for you to be more than just interested. Please lend us your strength.”

Kang Chan was troubled.

There was no reason for him to stay here now that the defensive formation had shifted to an all-out offensive.

Moreover, with the Dark Elves, known as the ghosts of guerrilla warfare, involved.

However, his mind was filled with guerrilla tactics just as formidable as theirs.

As he pondered, Zikyon’s voice reached him.

“Think carefully. Don’t just look at the immediate enemy, but look further ahead.”

“The noble lady is right.”

Duke Sachsen felt even more admiration for Zikyon, who supported his words.

“Then, please do one thing for me.”

Sachsen’s face brightened even more at Kang Chan’s positive response.

“What is it?”

“Please don’t force me to belong to any nation.”

‘Gasp!’

Duke Sachsen inwardly winced.

His true intention was to recruit Kang Chan into the Visman Empire.

“Is there perhaps another affiliation you belong to?”

“No, there isn’t.”

“Understood. If that’s your wish, I won’t force any affiliation upon you.”

He didn’t rush. He could take his time and persuade him gradually.

“Then I will make some personnel changes on our side. For now, I will assign you to our Helrainer Knights, but only for the duration of the war. Do you agree to this?”

“Very well.”

“Then let’s go together right away. Hey, you.”

“Yes, Supreme Commander!”

Duke Sachsen called Tollen, instructed him to make the personnel changes, and had someone fetch Kang Chan’s few belongings.

“Come, let’s head to the carriage.”

“Well…”

“Ah!”

As Kang Chan started to say something, Duke Sachsen cut him off.

“Of course, your companions will come along, right?”

“Yes, they will.”

Duke Sachsen approached Kang Chan with a meaningful look.

“Are all of them… your lovers?”

At the word ‘lovers,’ Kang Chan firmly denied it.

“We are all just friends.”

“Oh? Is that so? Hahaha!”

Duke Sachsen’s face brightened.

“There, the carriage is ready. Let’s go.”

“Thank you.”

As Kang Chan walked towards the carriage, Duke Sachsen slowly knelt in front of Zikyon.

“Beautiful lady, please come this way.”

Receiving the courtesy of a noble after a long time, Zikyon unhesitatingly took Duke Sachsen’s hand, and he kissed her beautiful hand.

“May I know the name of the noble and beautiful lady?”

To Sachsen, who asked for her name, Zikyon replied with a cruel smile.

“My name is G. Zikyon, ruler of the Elven Forest and former Dragon Lord. You who wear the corpse of my kin…”

“Gasp!”

As Zikyon slowly kissed Duke Sachsen’s forehead, who had turned to stone, she said,

“I will temporarily hold onto your life.”

With her words, Duke Sachsen’s armor disintegrated into a dazzling light and vanished.

Zikyon had returned it to the embrace of the Earth Goddess.

“Gasp!”

He was aghast as his armor turned to dust and disappeared.

The armor, handed down through generations to the captain of the Helrainer Knights of the Visman Empire, was invaluable.

For such armor to vanish into dust… He was momentarily speechless, staring blankly at the silver dust blown by the wind.

As she walked past him, Zikyon, as if she had forgotten something, turned back and put her arm around his shoulders.

“If you flaunt it around, you know you’ll die, right?”

Flinch!

“……”

“No response?”

“Y-Yes!”

Duke Sachsen, who had come to recruit, ended up feeling like the one being recruited.

Having skyrocketed from the lowest rank of conscripted soldier to a member of the Helrainer Knights, the strongest knights of the Allied Forces, in just one day, Kang Chan pondered deeply before seeking out Duke Sachsen.

“What brings you here to see me?”

“I came to ask you for a favor.”

“What kind of favor?”

“I need some troops.”

“Pardon?”

Duke Sachsen looked at Kang Chan with a shocked expression at the sudden request for troops.

“I don’t know why you need them, but if you do, I can certainly provide them.”

“I don’t need many.”

“How many do you need?”

“Ten.”

“What? For that number, you don’t need to ask me…”

“I don’t need ordinary soldiers.”

Duke Sachsen’s expression changed at Kang Chan’s statement that he didn’t need ordinary soldiers.

“Then, surely you don’t mean…”

“They must be Sword Experts.”

“……”

Duke Sachsen found Kang Chan’s request surprising and paused to think before responding.

“If it’s absolutely necessary, I will allocate them to you. But may I ask why you need them?”

As the Supreme Commander, he had the authority to grant Kang Chan’s request.

However, Sword Expert-level knights were highly valuable and could not be deployed frivolously.

Thus, he waited for Kang Chan’s explanation with a cautious attitude.

“I plan to create a special unit.”

“A special unit?”

Duke Sachsen looked puzzled at the unfamiliar term.

“A unit for special missions. I am currently devising a unique strategy to counter the Dark Elves’ guerrilla warfare.”

“A unique strategy?”

“Yes.”

“Rather than discussing it here, why don’t we talk over there?”

Though Kang Chan did not seem like an ordinary civilian, Duke Sachsen found his sudden proposal of a strategic operation to counter the Dark Elves intriguing.

After moving to a more comfortable place for the conversation, Duke Sachsen initiated the discussion.

“Well then, let’s hear your strategy, Kang Chan.”

“It’s not very complicated. Let me first explain the outline of the unit.”