Chapter 11

The Genius Knight Who Devours Memories

Chapter 11

‘Crazy bastard!’

Creed, who was wearing the Number Five mask, could not help but be startled.

To think he would cut down Number Three without any warning whatsoever.

And the technique Rohan had used to cut down Number Three was...

‘Rainer’s Swift Sword...’

It had already surprised him when Rohan used the technique that afternoon.

Yet the technique Rohan had just displayed was far cleaner than what Creed had seen earlier.

It seemed Rohan had grown again in that short amount of time.

“You bastards! Number Four! We have to kill Numbers One and Five.”

Shing, shing! Numbers Two and Four drew their swords.

They were inside a cramped basement, with Rohan facing Numbers Two and Four across the round table.

Only one torch was lit, leaving the surroundings extremely dark.

Creed also drew the sword hanging at his waist.

‘He must have some plan, right? He killed him because he has one.’

Rohan had only told them there would be a secret meeting in the basement and had said nothing about what would happen afterward.

He was always slippery as an eel when it came to escaping trouble, so he must have prepared some sort of countermeasure...

‘What’s wrong with him?’

When Creed looked at Rohan, he saw him clutching his head and staggering.

Creed nudged him several times with his elbow, but Rohan did not react. Something was wrong.

‘Don’t tell me...’

He remembered when Rohan had killed Hans.

Back then, Rohan had also dropped his sword and stood blankly for a while.

When Creed’s thoughts reached that point, his brow furrowed deeply.

‘This son of a bitch.’

Did he become defenseless for a certain amount of time whenever he killed someone?

If so, then just as Creed expected, the bastard had prepared a countermeasure. And a very thorough one at that.

The problem was that the countermeasure was Creed.

“That bastard’s acting strange. Attack now!”

Having noticed Rohan’s condition, Number Two thrust his sword toward Rohan’s neck.

Number Two seemed stronger than Number Four and quicker to assess the situation.

Clang! Creed struck down the sword headed for Rohan.

Creed glared resentfully at Rohan, but only for a moment.

Numbers Two and Four rushed in simultaneously as though they had coordinated beforehand.

Number Two climbed onto the round table and brought his sword down, while Number Four went around the table and thrust straight ahead.

It was obvious they intended to take advantage of Rohan’s strange condition and finish things quickly.

Clang, clang!

Creed had only swung his sword once, yet sparks flew twice.

‘They’re not easy opponents.’

It had only been one exchange, but Creed could tell.

Both of them had clearly reached a considerable level.

The larger Number Four swung his sword diagonally.

Claaang-! The impact of the colliding blades sent a numb ache through Creed’s hand.

The force produced by that massive body was vicious.

While Creed was blocking one man’s sword, another blade shot in from his right.

This sword was extremely sharp.

Number Two was tall, slender, and agile.

Creed rolled aside, but a long cut opened across his flank.

“Ghk.”

Had he been even a little slower, his organs might have spilled out.

Ignoring the wound, Creed looked for an opening.

He thrust his sword straight toward Number Four, whose movements were relatively sluggish.

‘Got him.’

Just as he thought he had pierced Number Four’s heart, Number Two’s sword blocked his strike.

Clang-! Sparks scattered with the sound.

‘When did he...?’

Number Two had definitely been on the opposite side of Number Four.

Creed clicked his tongue at Number Two’s agility.

Number Four seemed startled and froze for a moment.

“Kill Number One!”

When Number Four remained flustered, Number Two shouted.

Only then did Number Four regain his senses and abruptly turn according to the order.

His massive body moved menacingly toward Rohan.

Rohan was still clutching his head in a daze.

“Rohan!”

Creed kicked the chair in front of him.

Crash-! The chair caught against Number Four’s feet, making him lose his balance and fall.

A blade flashed beside Creed.

Swish, crack! Creed tilted his head aside to dodge, and Number Two’s thrust struck the wall.

Glancing over, Creed saw a large crack running through the wall.

“What the hell are you doing, bastard? Kill him!”

Number Two shouted at Number Four again.

Number Four, who had been rolling on the floor, sprang up and charged Rohan once more.

Creed moved to stop him, but something flashed before his eyes, and fragments of brick scattered.

Number Two’s sword had embedded itself in the wall right in front of Creed’s nose.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Though hidden behind the mask, Creed could almost see the mocking smile underneath.

‘Damn it!’

After pulling his sword from the wall, Number Two immediately thrust it toward Creed.

At the same time, Number Four swung his sword toward Rohan’s neck.

It lasted only an instant, yet to Creed, that moment felt like eternity.

He could block Number Two’s sword, but if he did, Rohan would die.

On the other hand, if he blocked the sword heading toward Rohan, Creed himself would suffer a fatal wound.

After only a moment of thought, he decided to act purely on instinct.

“Ghk!”

He felt Number Two’s thrust cut diagonally across his shoulder.

Clang-! But the sword Creed barely managed to extend blocked Number Four’s strike headed for Rohan.

His relief lasted only an instant before a chilling blade appeared in front of Creed’s eyes.

Number Two had swung again at Creed while he was defenseless from protecting Rohan.

‘I’m dead.’

He could neither dodge nor block.

It felt as though his life were flashing before his eyes.

He could almost see Number Two smiling mockingly behind his mask.

In the end, Creed tightly shut his eyes.

CLANG-!!!

Yet his body remained intact.

When he opened his eyes, an old sword was protecting his throat.

Blue energy flickered along the blade.

Rohan, wearing the Number One mask, had blocked Number Two’s sword.

“I’m a little late, aren’t I?”

Creed’s anger surged at the shameless remark.

“Yeah, you son of a bitch! I almost died!”

___________

Rohan shook his head violently.

His head throbbed.

He had nearly died.

The backlash from killing a human was stronger than he had expected.

His skull had rung for so long that he had been unable to do anything.

The strength of the backlash also seemed to vary depending on the level of the person he killed.

If Creed had not protected him, he would unquestionably have died.

‘Looks like he had a pretty hard time.’

Rohan had been defenseless for roughly a minute.

The fight must have been intense during that time, because objects were broken all around them,

and blood was dripping from Creed’s flank and shoulder.

‘He threw himself in front of attacks to save me?’

Rohan’s mind filled with interest.

Rohan had never once sacrificed himself for someone else.

Naturally, he had also always assumed others would never sacrifice themselves for him.

Until now, the only person who had ever sacrificed herself for Rohan was his mother, who had gone hungry just to give him a little more food.

Creed probably did not even like him very much, yet human emotions truly were difficult to understand.

“What are you standing there spacing out for, idiot! Get your head straight.”

Clang! Creed blocked Number Four’s strike aimed at Rohan.

Creed found Rohan’s blankly standing there frustrating, but it was not that Rohan had failed to see Number Four’s sword.

Without even realizing it, Rohan had developed the belief that Creed would block Number Four’s sword for him...

“Urk?”

Before anyone knew it, Rohan’s sword had pierced Number Four’s stomach.

Creed, Number Four, Number Two... no one in the basement had expected the strike.

They had been so distracted by Rohan standing there blankly that they had not even noticed him raising his sword.

Number Four groaned.

“Number Four! Get a grip!”

Seeing this, Number Two grabbed Number Four by the back of the neck and pulled him away.

Shhk-! When the sword was pulled from Number Four’s stomach, blood began spraying like a fountain.

“Ghk, ghk, fuck!”

Number Four gasped as though he were about to stop breathing.

Number Two raised his sword and kept watch on Rohan and Creed while speaking again to Number Four behind him.

“Number Four, tear the scroll!”

Number Four seemed to understand. He rummaged through his clothes and pulled out a scroll.

His hands were drenched in blood, and the scroll quickly became soaked as soon as he took it out.

A scroll carried by Noxis spies in case of emergencies.

Tearing that scroll would teleport the user to somewhere near the outside of the barracks.

They were so expensive that each person only had one, but now was not the time to worry about such things.

Number Four gasped.

“S-sorry.”

“Shut up and get to Noxis. Tell them what happened here. Hurry!”

Number Four nodded once and tore the scroll.

His body was immediately enveloped in light and disappeared.

The two idiots in front of him must have been seeing a scroll for the first time, because even though Number Four tore it openly, they merely stood there staring.

After confirming that Number Four was gone, Number Two casually threw his sword onto the floor.

Clatter. Abandoning the sword that fell uselessly, he lifted his robe and drew two crescent-shaped curved blades.

The moment Creed saw them, he immediately realized Number Two’s identity.

“Meiwa.”

“...Yeah.”

When Creed called his name, Number Two removed his mask.

A dark-skinned man was revealed.

Creed and Rohan also removed their masks.

Meiwa seemed surprised when he saw Rohan.

“I expected it, but it really was you, Rohan. The brat hasn’t even been here long, and already... You found yourself a useful junior, Creed.”

“He’s still far better than bastards like you who became dogs of an enemy nation.”

“Hehehe. Unfortunately, the two of you will have to die here today.”

Creed frowned.

“Meiwa. I know you’re from the Nakandiya Tribe. The Nakandiya Tribe is deep inside the Empire. So why are you a Noxis spy?”

“Only people born and raised in Noxis can become spies? Do I really have to tell you my entire miserable life story?”

Meiwa clenched his teeth.

“One thing is certain. The two of you will die here today... Ugh!”

Clang-!

Rohan swung his sword as though tired of listening.

Meiwa blocked the center of Rohan’s sword with his crescent-shaped blade, then pressed downward.

With a grinding sound, Rohan’s sword was forced down.

Keeping Rohan’s sword trapped, Meiwa rolled once and swung the blade in his opposite hand toward Rohan’s legs.

Creed swung his sword to block it, but as though he had expected that, Meiwa altered the path of his blade and slashed across Rohan’s thigh.

“Ghk.”

A short groan escaped Rohan’s lips.

Creed tried to kick Meiwa in the face from above, but Meiwa had already moved far away.

His agility was unbelievable.

“Creed. You mediocre bastard.”

Meiwa smirked and rushed in again.

His movements were agile and flexible like a leopard.

He repeatedly varied the paths of his blades, confusing the two of them.

Because Meiwa’s crescent-shaped swords were short, they were easy to maneuver and alter.

As time passed, more and more cuts of varying sizes appeared across Rohan and Creed’s bodies.

‘This won’t work.’

Rohan sensed it instinctively.

Meiwa’s swordsmanship was fundamentally different from ordinary swordsmanship.

Even Rohan, who had indirectly experienced countless sword styles, had never seen anything like it.

It was probably the swordsmanship of the Nakandiya Tribe.

‘I want it.’

At the same time, Rohan was blindly coveting Meiwa’s swordsmanship.

Rohan’s eyes flashed.

The number of wounds on his body continued increasing, but Rohan did not care.

Instead, he used mana to enhance his vision and followed Meiwa’s movements.

Meiwa’s movements began entering his sight in far greater detail.

“You bastard, what are you doing!”

Creed looked shocked.

Moving mana somewhere other than the sword during a chaotic melee filled with incoming strikes was practically suicide.

Not only would he lose strength, he would not even be able to block the opponent’s sword.

Swish, swish!

Indeed, Rohan thrust his sword repeatedly as though he had no interest whatsoever in blocking his opponent’s attacks.

He narrowly twisted his body to protect his vital points from Meiwa’s attacks, but his entire body was being sliced by the blades.

On top of that, because Rohan’s strikes contained no mana, Meiwa easily dodged them.

Blood was pouring from Rohan’s shredded skin.

‘What the hell is this lunatic doing!’

Creed wanted to stop him, but he could not.

More precisely, he did not even have time.

Meiwa attacked with the agility of a ferocious predator.

With swords in both hands, he was fighting Rohan and Creed simultaneously.

‘Those eyes.’

For an instant, Rohan’s eyes flashed.

Creed had definitely seen those eyes before.

At the same time, Creed saw Rohan’s mana instantly move into his right arm.

‘What is he planning?’

Creed did not know what Rohan intended, but it was obvious he was trying something, so Creed deliberately forced himself to make a reckless swing.

Meiwa’s gaze briefly shifted toward Creed because of the clumsy, exaggerated movement.

Clang, the attack was easily blocked.

‘This is my limit.’

Creed bit his lip.

He did not know what Rohan’s scheme was, but all he needed to do was keep Meiwa from noticing it.

Meiwa’s gaze returned to Rohan, and Rohan once again raised his sword directly forward.

‘Obvious. So obvious.’

Meiwa snorted leisurely and twisted his body to the right.

Rohan’s sword was thrusting straight ahead.

Only belatedly did Meiwa notice the mana densely wrapped around Rohan’s arm, but Meiwa was faster.

After easily avoiding the sword, Meiwa swung his right hand widely.

With this path, he could drive the blade precisely into Creed’s neck.

Creed had created a large opening with his reckless attack just moments earlier.

Meiwa did not miss that opportunity.

‘Got him!’

His arm swung, with Creed’s neck directly in its path.

‘...?’

Whoosh! His arm clearly passed through the line of Creed’s throat, yet Creed remained standing perfectly fine on both feet.

‘His neck should’ve been cut...?’

Slash-! Blood sprayed along the path Meiwa’s arm had traveled.

Unable to understand what had happened, Meiwa looked bewildered.

Thud... thump...

At that moment, something fell from the air.

Looking closely at the dark object, it was a human hand.

Meiwa raised his right arm.

The place where his hand should have been was empty.

Blood dripped from Rohan’s sword.

“You always dodged thrusts to the right.”

After saying that, Rohan smiled.

“What?”

The fight that had just taken place suddenly flashed through Meiwa’s mind.

Rohan’s sword had kept thrusting persistently and honestly even while his entire body was being cut apart.

Why had he failed to notice something was strange?

Splatter-!

Blood gushed like a fountain from the cleanly severed stump of his right wrist.

“Ah... Aah... Aaaaaagh!!”

Only then did Meiwa clutch his wrist and scream.

An overwhelming pain strong enough to make his vision spin surged through him.

He saw Rohan approaching with his sword.

‘I have to run!’

Meiwa hurriedly rummaged through his clothes with his remaining hand.

Fortunately, the scroll was still there.

Meiwa unfolded the scroll with his remaining hand and bit down on one corner with his mouth.

“You bastards. I’ll definitely get revenge. I’ll kill you!”

Riiip-! The scroll tore, and Meiwa vanished in a flash of light.

Rohan’s sword passed through the spot where Meiwa had been a moment too late.

Rohan clicked his tongue in disappointment.

Blood was streaming from his entire body.

That was when it happened.

Rohan felt something cold against the back of his neck.

Creed was pointing his sword at him.

_____________

After Meiwa tore the scroll, his vision was enveloped in light.

Soon, he felt his body floating, and his surroundings changed.

He was on a hill outside the knight order’s camp, the location designated as the teleportation point.

‘I have to run. I have to get to Noxis.’

The moment his identity had been exposed, it was over.

He would never be able to set foot inside the Empire again.

Meiwa tightly pressed down on his severed wrist to stop the bleeding and tried to move, when noise came from behind him.

“Another one came, just like Rohan said.”

“Where are you going in such a hurry?”

A woman’s and a man’s voices.

When Meiwa turned his head, he saw human silhouettes illuminated by moonlight.

“Kaisen, Johanna?”

They were members of Creed’s squad.

“What the hell. Platoon Leader Meiwa? You were a Noxis lackey too?”

“Shocking. You will be recorded as a disgrace to the Nakandiya Tribe.”

They leisurely approached.

Beyond them, Number Four could be seen collapsed on the ground, his entire body covered in bruises.

‘I’m fucked.’

That was the only thought left in Meiwa’s mind.