Eternally Regressing Knight Chapter 819

819. Walking between fantasy and reality

Without equal relationships, trade is difficult. How can a fair deal be achieved when one side is wielding a knife and threatening their life? It’s
a simple truth, but one that humans, blinded by greed, sometimes miss.
The proud merchant of Lengadis, a man of chubby cheeks, realized this truth before he even turned twenty.
And now, past fifty, he’s forgotten it.
He’s pawned his soul in exchange for eternal life, youth, and a healthy body. That one-sided deal has cracked.

Swish-.

As soot rose, cracks appeared on his body. His skin cracked like stone, and black smoke rose from within.

“It’s terrible.”

Dunbakel finally clutched his nose. The smell was too much for the beastman, whose sense of smell was so incredibly developed.
Rem’s eyebrow twitched. An ominous feeling, enough to tickle even his intuition, flowed from the merchant.
He didn’t just watch. He pulled a small stone from his pocket and threw it. The movement of pulling his shoulder back and then thrusting forward was so swift that it left an afterimage. Rem’s arm whipped around like a whip, replacing the sling.
Of course, it was less powerful than the sling that made a whirring sound.
Still, it must have been quite a shock to the one who got hit right in front of him. It was a sling, thrown with the strength of a knight.

bang!

As Rem moved, soot piled up in three layers. A rock struck it, creating a deafening explosion. The impact was devastating, but it didn’t penetrate.

“Look at this kid.”

Rem’s mouth quirked upward. It must have been driven by a surge of competitive spirit. That elation soon gave way to excitement, and his hand reached for his axe, his weapon.
Despite this bizarre phenomenon, Encred remained unfazed. A ship rocked by waves like this should have been destroyed long ago. Storms
always loomed, and only by weathering them could he proceed, and that’s how he had always managed.
He didn’t need to feel particularly proud about this entire process. That was the kind of person Encred was.
It was surprising, but he could view all of this with a calm demeanor.

“Shouldn’t you do something about it?”

“That’s what Chrys said, having already retreated five steps. Nurat stood guard, his hand on his sword.
Meanwhile, Esther, who had been muttering about people and magic, reached out.
She was the only one in the room who knew what was happening.

‘Golden spell.’

The merchant’s body swelled and split, revealing pale skin within. Black soot, like the creature’s blood and flesh, clumped together, encasing his body like armor. His skin burst and tore, transforming into a black carapace.

‘Is it threatening?’

No. Esther asked and answered inwardly, folding her hands in front of her chest and making several gestures.

“In the name of Field de Frodo, I command you. It is natural for shadows to appear before light, and it is natural for hidden things to be revealed before this truth. I cannot hide my true self from this truth.”

It was a long spell. That meant a lot of effort had been put into it.
And Encred, too, had sensed something approaching him solely through intuition, so he had raised the Dawn Forge and was about to stand it forward.
The thing causing the soot in front of him was confusing his senses, but if he had any doubts, it was natural to sharpen his blade. He didn’t let his guard down.
While Esther chanted, something rippled in front of the Dawn Blade. It was an amorphous mass, unfixed in shape. It
resembled a demon, but even more vicious.
It was something that had taken advantage of the merchant’s trembling and tantrums. More precisely, it was something approaching Encred.
Even as Esther chanted, the thoughts from earlier continued to swirl in her mind.

Can you discuss life without knowing people?

Can one truly discuss the magic of seeking truth without knowing life?
Can one become a star by being locked away in the forest and studying alone?
Esther, through Encred, freed herself from the curse that had bound her. Through the enlightenment gained in the process, she rebuilt the concept of magic within herself, as if returning to her childhood.
The man she saw, Encred, lived each day, each day, each day without waste. He lived like piling up stones one by one. Esther witnessed this and naturally adopted his attitude.
The stones he had piled up now formed a tower, reaching for the sky.
The principles she knew in the past and the principles she now understood intertwined, opening up a world of magic.
In an instant, the boundary between the inner world that creates spells and reality collapsed. Fantasy and reality became indistinguishable.
Those who enter the world of magic are called “peepers.” If the peepers speak of what they see, they become “speakers.”
If they then manifest and possess their own world, they become “owners.”
It is often said that true magicians begin at this stage. This is how the nickname “Immoderantia” came about.
Beyond this stage, it’s Tacitus, acquiescence.
Esther also knows the magician’s system. But isn’t being trapped within that system itself creating limitations? If you draw a line and move forward, the moment you cross it, your steps will stop.
Esther never wanted that. That’s why she now forged a new path, forged it.
Even among those who wield magic, there’s a saying, almost legendary. It refers to the moment when illusions and boundaries collapse.

‘Fantasia.’

It’s also a term for the moment when a wizard transcends a level. Compared to a knight, it’s a surge of omnipotence, akin to a surge of power.
Instead of a sense of being able to accomplish anything, Esther felt as if she were floating in a fantasy world.
At the same time, she glimpsed the demonic entity, a being that exists only between reality and fantasy.

‘Split ideology.’

That amorphous mass is the work of a companion of heat. Her intuition, born from her experience and knowledge, swirled through her mind, yielding the answer.

‘Parasite.’

What is the identity of the companion of heat?
That demonic entity lives by parasitizing others.
It seemed to have breathed life into the body of the greatsword-wielding creature, then pretended to disappear, attempting to burrow into Encred’s body.
Even if that wasn’t enough to take over the body, it wouldn’t be possible.

‘I must have been branded.’

If you’re branded with the devil’s mark, you’ll be prey to evil spirits, monsters, and beasts day and night.
Encred wouldn’t be affected by that, but there was no reason to endure such a hassle.
Ester, intoxicated by her fantasy, raised her left hand and projected her magic into the world where the boundaries had collapsed.
Tacitus, ignore the step of acquiescence. That’s superficial. Why cast magic without acquiescence, without the swear word?
There’s no need to go out of your way to appear to be violating providence. That’s because you’re conscious of others’ opinions.

“Wing-tooth, compass, Nexum.”

Connivance isn’t necessary, but abbreviation is. This isn’t bluffing, it’s efficiency.
The chains, nets, and shackles that began in the fantasy world bind the other person, becoming a contract that binds their existence.
The magic circles drawn here on this land were personally engraved, one by one. I meticulously crafted them to respond to my magic.
Therefore, my contracts take precedence in this land. Esther knows this.
The first spell reveals, the second binds.

Kiiiiiiii!

The amorphous object let out a strange scream. It was a final desperate attempt, a desperate attempt to tear open the eardrums and crush the opponent. It was a perfectly appropriate attempt for humans, who rely on their five senses.
However, it didn’t work here.

“Ophilatio, block it and get rid of it.”

Half-drunk with fantasy, yet without hesitation. No, perhaps it was because I was so intoxicated by fantasy.
Those who wield spells create their own world, and in that world, they become gods.
Now, a part of that world has been drawn out and revealed.

talent-.

The parasitic demon’s notion of being a companion to the heat vanished.
Some had already fled, but there was no need to pursue them. This all
happened while Rem had just drawn his axe, Dunbakel had clenched his fist, and Encred had set up the dawn forge.
Meanwhile, the generous merchant had vanished, his face and hands gone, and a being clad in a black shell, seemingly an exoskeleton, stared at me with its neck stiff.
Black vapor rose from its body. This was the residual heat generated immediately after its body and existence had been transformed.
Esther understood the nature of the spell. It was a type of golden-sounding spell.

‘The Black Soul’s Swordsman.’

In some ways, it is similar to a death warrior or death knight, but the structure and implementation are completely different.

‘Souls are consumed as a cost, and in return, the owner of the mortgaged soul becomes the owner of knight-level power.’

This is a spell that only a truly demonic individual could possibly imitate.
However, the execution time is so long that it can only be as long as twenty counts.
Even that would be disastrous if it were to fall on a common soldier. Its power is comparable to opening a passage in the sky and hurling a large boulder.
The execution itself is also much easier than summoning and dropping a boulder.

‘A golden spell that only the devil can use.’

Esther saw it that way.
She didn’t know it, but the Father of the Dead was a spell concocted by a demon and a follower of gold.
The follower of gold valued price and bargaining, while the Father of the Dead was a man obsessed with ghosts.
Esther’s eyes shone like blue stars.
Encred, feeling the intangible presence vanish, tried to swing his sword.
He knew it instinctively. The mass before him wasn’t intent on him. A carapace blade, similar in texture to the one covering his own skin, formed in its hand.

Splash, splash.

It was a blade that grew with the sound.
There were many in the Border Guard who could subdue him, but there were just as many who couldn’t stop him and would die.
Well, it was enough to cut him down before he became a problem. Encred’s judgment was this.
Dunbakel, intent only on clearing the stench, rushed out.
Rem’s thought process was similar to Encred’s, but he was also willing to resort to even more drastic measures.

“All that is evil and wicked is crushed.”

He summoned one of the western kidneys. He wanted the divine power that would influence his axe, his weapon, and some of his sorcery.
At the same time, he grasped a stone in his left hand, intending to restrain the movements of the creature that had transformed from a generous merchant into a large black mass.
In an instant, the three were ready for battle.
Fel and Lawford, who had defeated the man with the greatsword, were no different. The two braced themselves for the sudden appearance of what seemed to be a servant of the demon or something else, charging toward them.
Esther’s voice rang out in that moment.

“Detention, confinement, restriction, maintenance, preservation.”

Esther’s eyes shone like blue stars. Overflowing magic seemed to flow through her eyes.
A translucent blue wall enveloped the soot-spewing creature, crushing it and imprisoning it.
It happened in an instant. It happened as Esther murmured.

bang!

Undeterred, he swung what he had in his hand. The wall held. Cracks and fragments flew, but that was it.
Black veins surged across his pale, white hand. He tried to reach for his sword again, but the space was tight. Even if he could turn, there wasn’t enough room to swing.
Whether it was a golden incantation or something else, it was natural that space was needed to exert force when a physical entity appeared.

‘Just as humans are influenced by the five senses.’

The moment you acquire physical reality, you cannot escape the laws of space.
Esther accomplished all of this not through calculations, but through intuition.
While magicians are said to be repetitive in their calculations, fundamentally, without a unique sense, they cannot even begin to peek.
While she counted to twenty, the wall held.
The thing raged within. It rammed its head against the wall, stabbed with its hand, and even transformed its elbow into a blade to cut.
All of this was futile.
The wall trembled, buckled, and cracked, but it did not break.
As time passed, it vanished, leaving behind only black smoke and ash. The generous merchant was reduced to a mere handful of black dust.

“Uh, um, no, I didn’t know it would be like this. So just go.”

Rem repelled the divine power that had briefly entered her. Encred put away his sword and looked at Esther.
She didn’t blink, her pupils dilated as if staring into the distance.
The pitch-black circle in the center of her blue eyes grew larger, as if she were about to be sucked into it.

“Esther.”

Encred called her. Esther’s dilated pupils slowly narrowed. Esther, who had been lost in her fantasy, was just now returning to reality.
As soon as she shook off the illusion, she felt dizzy. It was a sign of exhaustion from excessive magical power. The world spun, and someone supported her as she fell.
She couldn’t even see who it was.

“I think I know one of them.”

The words of the man in the black hat were not ordinary. Encred recognized what the men had said, and after clearing them away, he blurted out the question he had been preparing to ask.

“A few wizards who have been incited by the bastard might come looking for us.”

Esther also answered calmly.

“I see.”

Esther felt her mouth moving on its own, contrary to her intentions or her heart. She’d never depended on anyone in her life, but now it was so instinctive that she couldn’t even fathom why she was saying these things.

“I’ll be behind you, right?”

This was no different from asking for protection.

“of course.”

Encred’s answer was like his sword. Straight and unwavering, with no hint of hesitation.
It was easy to imagine a flush creeping over Esther’s pale face at those words.

“Hey, who should protect whom?”

Rem intervened at the opportune moment.
Esther was briefly curious about how Rem’s young son had become married and had children, but brushed it off.

“I don’t have the strength to walk.”

Instead, he spoke, and Encred lifted her up. Compared to the magic she had displayed moments before, her body felt remarkably light.
And this news reached the ears of the fairies resting at the Fountain of Life, deep within the city of fairies.