Future Knight

Chapter 97

As Jaizen received their murderous gazes, he grumbled.

“Man, I can’t tell who’s the enemy here.”

“Enough complaining, everyone. Let’s focus on the upcoming mission. You’ve all secured your equipment, right?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Check your equipment, now!”

“Checking, sir!”

At Kang Chan’s order to verify their equipment, ten members of the Black Wyvern unit, clad in black armor with soot-covered faces, put their packs on the ground and began taking out their gear.

While they were checking their final equipment, Urkanta appeared at the wyvern’s nest, accompanied by hundreds of orc warriors.

Upon seeing him, the surrounding orcs trembled in fear and prostrated themselves before him.

“Shhh, your majesty…”

“Your majesty…”

Urkanta ignored the orcs and walked straight towards Kang Chan, speaking to his back.

“Grkr… Are you the one who came up with this brilliant plan? Kyarr.”

The voice of Urkanta from behind, a voice he could never forget, made Kang Chan unconsciously grip his hand tighter.

He remembered the day they first met, the day he was brutally defeated.

But now was different from back then.

Now, he too was a proud Sword Master, just like Urkanta.

“Krrk! For a human, it’s quite a bold plan. Grkr.”

When Kang Chan didn’t respond to Urkanta’s words and stood still, Urkanta flared up in anger.

“Kyarrk! How dare you ignore me, Urkanta, when I’m speaking! Show me your face at once!”

‘Ah… The last person I wanted to run into came here on his own. What bad luck.’

Sighing, Kang Chan reluctantly turned around slowly.

Urkanta’s already ugly face contorted even more.

Even though his face was blackened with soot, Urkanta recognized the provocative look in Kang Chan’s eyes.

“Grkr? You, you’re the human from that elf forest?”

“Long time no see, Urkanta.”

“Kyarrk! How did you get here?”

“Because this is the plan I devised.”

“Kyarrk? What? You planned this?”

“That’s right.”

Urkanta’s face twisted further upon hearing Kang Chan’s words.

He had been impressed by the courage and audacity of the warrior planning and leading this mission as reported by Sachsen.

So, despite the warrior being human, Urkanta had come out to personally see him off.

But to encounter an unexpected adversary like this, and one with such a bad history, was too much.

“Grkr! This mission is canceled!”

When Urkanta overturned his decision, Kang Chan frowned.

“What did you say?”

Kang Chan pressed his face close to Urkanta’s and asked.

“Why?”

“Grkr, don’t you remember? You killed my most cherished wyvern. I can’t entrust my wyverns to someone like you.”

“I didn’t kill it because I wanted to. It was an accident! And it was your subordinate who attacked us first.”

“Kyarrk! I don’t want to hear it! The important thing is that you killed my Cherry!”

As expected, it was impossible to communicate with the brutish and hot-tempered orc. However, Kang Chan was more shocked by the name of the enormous wyvern than by Urkanta’s uncouth behavior.

“Ch-Cherry?”

“Grkr! Yes, that was the name of the wyvern you killed!”

‘Really, naming such a huge wyvern Cherry, like a dog’s name? He’s completely out of his mind.’

Kang Chan wanted to say something about Urkanta’s terrible naming sense.

But instead, he suppressed his true feelings, calmed himself, and tried to persuade Urkanta.

Given the urgency of the situation, wasting time on past grievances was extremely inefficient.

“Alright… I sincerely apologize once again for what I did to Cherry. So, could you please grant us permission to take off? I hope you can distinguish between public and private matters.”

“Grkr… Public and private matters? Grr… I’d love to kill you right here and now, but I’ll hold back because of this public and private business. Take your subordinates and get out of my sight!”

The term “subordinates” made the team flinch.

“What, subordinates?”

“Do you think we’re just mere underlings?”

As the enraged members of the team prepared to draw their swords, the hundred or so orc warriors behind Urkanta simultaneously drew their weapons.

These orcs weren’t just any orcs but elite troops, akin to a royal guard for humans.

A faint sense of mana emanated from them.

“Are you really going to go through with this?”

However, as the Black Wyvern members also drew their swords, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.

“Hey, Urkanta. Do we really need to go this far?”

In response to Kang Chan’s words, Urkanta drew his Hurricane Blade with a cruel smile and said, “Grkr… I’ll count to ten. After that, don’t expect any more mercy. Cheyik!”

“Damn it!”

“Grkr, one, two, three…”

As Urkanta began counting, Kang Chan glared at him without saying a word, while the team members behind him, unsure of what to do, looked to Kang Chan for guidance.

Their indecision didn’t last long.

Kang Chan drew his dagger and soon unleashed the Aura Blade, the symbol of a Sword Master.

Though the intense battle earlier in the day made him slightly hesitant to face Urkanta, he had no choice.

“Grkr! An Aura Blade? Could it be… a Sword Master?”

Urkanta instinctively realized that the Kang Chan before him was no longer the same as before.

‘Grkr? A Sword Master in just a few months! What kind of guy is he?’

Though Kang Chan was already incredibly strong for his age before, he was now immeasurably stronger.

The comparison itself was laughable.

The tension Kang Chan exuded now was reminiscent of what he felt from Elradian back then.

While Urkanta briefly forgot to continue counting and stared at Kang Chan, Kang Chan spoke slowly to him.

“I’ve always been grateful to you.”

“Grkr? What, what did you say?”

Urkanta tilted his head in confusion at Kang Chan’s unexpected words.

“After our duel, I realized there’s always someone stronger and learned a lot from you, which made me who I am today. So, as a warrior, I have respected you, Urkanta.”

“Grkr, why the sudden praise?”

Though he didn’t show it, Urkanta felt quite pleased hearing such words, not from sycophantic flatterers but from another Sword Master of a different race.

Especially the part about ‘someone stronger’ and the respect made Urkanta very satisfied.

However, Kang Chan’s next words made Urkanta’s expression turn cold again.

“But today’s actions are deeply disappointing.”

“Grkr, why?”

“Knowing how important this mission is better than anyone, yet letting personal feelings get in the way of a greater cause… I can’t believe it. Aren’t you a king who should be wiser than anyone?”

“Kyarrk!”

Urkanta was irritated by Kang Chan’s words but couldn’t argue back.

Because what Kang Chan said was true.

Despite numerous discussions with Duke Sachsen and the Dark Elves about countering their terror tactics, no effective solution was found.

In the midst of this, Sachsen’s sudden proposal was the best response considered so far.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!

It was exactly what Urkanta wanted.

Retaliate in kind.

And now, because of Kang Chan’s unexpected appearance, he was about to abandon such a plan…

Even he found it pathetic.

“Grkr…”

As Urkanta pondered, Kang Chan began to gather all his energy. The immense murderous aura that emanated from him made the orcs surrounding the team step back in fear.

“I, Kang Chan, will not back down from here, even if you refuse to lend us your wyverns!”

Urkanta made a huge decision at Kang Chan’s declaration, which conveyed a willingness to fight to the death. The prideful Urkanta decided to compromise his pride and yield to Kang Chan.

“Grkr… No need for that. Go, human.”

“What?”

“Kyarrk! I will lend you the wyverns. So go. And fight.”

“Why the sudden change of heart?”

“Grkr, no particular reason. I’m just curious to see how your confident plan will turn out.”

“Is that the only reason?”

“Grkr, no, there’s another condition.”

“A condition?”

“Kyarrk! Yes, after the war is over, let’s have another duel!”

“That won’t be difficult.”

Kang Chan readily accepted Urkanta’s condition.

It was what he wanted more.

“Kyarrk! Good. Then go, human. I look forward to our next meeting. Cheyik!”

After sheathing his Hurricane Blade, Urkanta vanished like the wind, just as he had come. Confirming that much time had passed, Kang Chan hurried.

“Alright! Pack your equipment! We have no time! Everyone, board the prepared wyverns!”

After much difficulty, once they were granted permission to fly, the team members began packing up their equipment and, with the help of the orcs, started mounting the blackened wyverns.

“Why do you think our captain and that Urkanta have such a grudge against each other?” Hollis asked Anais, who shrugged.

“How would I know? Anyway, our captain is a man full of secrets.”

Anais’s comment about him being a man of secrets carried a mysterious nuance.

“Stop the chatter and hurry up! Get on quickly!”

“Ah! Yes, sir!”

Having only ever ridden wooden wyverns before, the team members were visibly tense as they mounted the real, living wyverns.

“Th-There, good wyvern… stay still…”

Kyarrrr!

The enormous wyvern, as large as a house, shook like an earthquake with every movement, and each breath it took felt like waves crashing.

“W-Whoa… stay still, please…”

Kyaooo!

The wyvern, seemingly displeased with having humans rather than orcs on its back, kept moving around.

As a result, the team members clung tightly to the wyverns, trying not to fall off.

After much difficulty, the five wyverns, fully prepared for departure, began taking off one by one with powerful wing flaps.

The night view under the soft moonlight was truly a magnificent sight.

‘I-I’m flying. I’m actually flying…’

‘Oh… We’re flying. We’re in the sky!’

The team members, experiencing flight for the first time, trembled with excitement, and some shut their eyes tightly after looking down.

‘Oh my God! Oh! Dear Lord!’

They would never forget today’s experience—their first time flying in the sky.