Eternally Regressing Knight Chapter 868

868. Above the Sky

The griffon’s wings are a defensive shield.

“It can’t be pierced by just any arrow. It doesn’t even stop flapping its wings, so it’s impossible to find an opening.”

This is the testimony of a member of the Knights of the Red Cloak.

“The reason I set the minimum requirement as a javelin throw with at least the strength of a junior knight.”

At Cypress’s words, the Red Cloak Knights, instead of showing their emotions, went straight to work. They spoke what they needed to say. They faithfully answered Encred’s questions.

“No soldier has ever died from being lured by them. There have been those who have had their heads shattered by rocks thrown at them.”

This is the soldier’s answer.
He traces the trail of the dead soldiers and identifies the disadvantages they’ve faced so far. He envisions, imagines, and speculates about the battle’s course. This is not a replay, but a prediction.

“Excellent.”

Luagarne expressed satisfaction. “Think and act before you fight,” Luagarne emphasized.
Encred, aside from the time spent eating, sleeping, and training, constantly asked questions.
Sleep was enough for rest, so the rest of the time he spent running around the camp, sweating profusely.
It’s only natural that knowing even the smallest details is more advantageous than fighting without knowledge.
That’s why you gather and gather information before battle begins.

“Uh, I’ve never seen one just fly off with a whoosh. It flaps and circles overhead, though. Do they ever stop in place? Yeah, uh, they did. They kept circling overhead and throwing things.”

Even if he was a soldier with no eloquence, it was okay. Encred had meticulously grasped the teachings of the mad knights, including Rem.
Compared to then, the words of the soldier with somewhat less eloquence were like a well-written textbook.

“Something feels strangely unpleasant.”

Rem, who had been watching, muttered from the side, and Encred shook his head at Temares. Yongin, who was about to reveal his true feelings, closed his mouth.

‘It’s not very mobile.’

If that were the case, they would have already harassed us not only on this battlefield but also bypassed us and harassed us from the rear.

‘Even if we just cut off the supply route.’

From here, if we just periodically raided the supply routes, which were just a day’s ride away on horseback, the southern front would be over. Even
if you’re a knight, you can’t fight without eating.

‘They’re not long-distance runners.’

Why take the obvious, easy path? There’s only one reason. It’s because I can’t.
Many people have seen griffons soar upward when they’ve thrown arrows or javelins. They
gather information and visualize it. Adding lines and colors to the picture makes it even more vivid.
Ultimately, the Knights of the Red Cloak were a huge help. After hearing about the several griffon extermination attempts they’ve made, I understand.

“It’s adept at moving up and down, and its wings serve as a defensive mechanism in themselves. Neither side is free. If it faces downward, it must pierce the lion’s claws.”

Some of the Red-cloaked Knights, seeing their stomachs as a weak point, hurled javelins at them, and the griffon struck them with its claws.
They weren’t fools. Even if the mad knights hadn’t come, they would have somehow managed to break through.

“If the javelin didn’t work, I was thinking of airlifting a catapult and flying in to catch it myself.”

No, I was stupid.
As one of the knights said. It’s one thing to fly on a catapult, but what about falling?

“I was wondering what I could do with the law.”

You can’t know the outcome until you try. Encred loves that saying. But like burning your hand with hot iron, sometimes the outcome seems too obvious. Of course, if I had to hold a hot iron, no matter what, I would do it. But I didn’t think it applied to this situation.

“How many times have I told you that if you fall, you will die?”

This was Aurelia’s words. Naturally, she hadn’t received permission from the leaders of the Knights, including Aurelia.
As always, Encred did his best to not stop here.
Everything was part of that. This was the conclusion he reached based on the information he’d obtained. This wasn’t a fight to be fought for long.

‘The opponent will withdraw even at the slightest disadvantage.’

Then time will be wasted. With a single fight, Encred will demoralize the enemy and make them unwilling to even consider using griffons. This is Encred’s goal.
If the fight drags on,

“The guy right next to me got hit by a sledgehammer and died. Well, this is a battlefield, after all. Their scrolls aren’t just one kind.”

Our troops, our soldiers, our people will die far more than they have now. Soldiers on the battlefield die. It’s a given. Not everyone can survive. Yes, it’s so obvious, but if we can avoid that, isn’t it natural to strive for it?
The soldier’s eyes kept shaking as he spoke. Encred knew this too. He didn’t take the soldiers’ sacrifices for granted.
The day before Griffin rose, Cypress approached through the sunset.

“Do you know what our best strategy for winning was?”
“Use all our soldiers as bait and attack the enemy main force.”

The knights charge as spearheads instead of providing the army’s shield.
Fighting while watching their soldiers die at the hands of griffons.
It’s the lesser of two evils, avoiding the worst. The worst is enduring and facing the enemy exhausted.
Encred saw the enemy’s intentions.
Using griffons to drain their stamina, pouring in their soldiers to drain their strength again before fighting again. Using the soldiers’ blood to drain the knights’ stamina. A simple strategy, but effective.

“It’s a fighting style without romance.”

You said it so clearly.

“I think so too. They’re just little guys.”

Cyprus let out a hearty laugh.

* * *

The eagle’s eyes soared above. The wind tore through his cheeks. His cloak clung tightly to his back, reducing air resistance.

‘Blast it.’

Shake off the sword, pouring out everything you have.
Will’s will became a current, pushing Will back. Encred caught the sword just before it could swing, stopping it.

‘wait.’

Watching Edin Molsen taught me patience and condensation. It was more like revisiting what I already knew, but it was a lesson learned. I kept revisiting and relearning that skill all along the way. Now was the time.
A single eye fell from above, spinning his body halfway. He concentrated the power of his rotation and swung his sword. When? He had seized the moment when he met the enemy’s spear blade.
The strong wind obscured his vision, and beyond his narrowed eyes, he saw the blade suddenly rise.
Encred unleashed his condensed power. Will moved according to his will. The force of his fall and the weight of his blow struck the blade.

Bang!

With a loud noise, the spearhead was thrown to the side.
Time dragged on, and the opponent’s expression became visible. The emotion in his wide-open eyes, hidden beneath the helmet that framed his forehead and face, was one of bewilderment
. He let go of his spear. It was a split-second decision. If he held on, his grip would burst or his arm muscles would twist. He discarded one weapon. Instead, he stabbed with the sword in his other hand.
Encred swung the spearhead with Dawn, using the force to completely spin himself around.
Dawn’s blade leaped from his spinning body, radiating blue light. Imbued with the power of rotation, Dawn struck his opponent’s blade.

Bang!

A second roar. Simultaneously, Simlak’s sword split into nine pieces, whipping like a whip.
Naturally, his weapons were also engraved. His will was imbued into all three—spear, sword, and axe.
The spear was engraved with a spell that would return to its owner if thrown, and the axe was imbued with a flame that instantly healed wounds. Finally, the sword was called Segmentation.
At its owner’s behest, it would split its own body into pieces, like a snake, capable of slicing and tearing apart any object.

‘I won!’

He was astonished by the audacity of his leap from his horse, but ultimately, it was his victory. Simlac believed so.
Encred, just as the blade struck by dawn transformed and wrapped itself around his leg, pulled out Penna and bit him.
It was a blade that had been broken in half and then reassembled by the Elven blacksmith in flames.

“Ugh.”

The scene where the emotionless elven blacksmith sees the broken penna and spits out his flagship is vivid.
The impurities caught between the sagging thoughts are clinging. These are distracting thoughts. After shedding them and discarding them, the elven blacksmith uses his dedicated, forged blade to ward off the enemy’s attack.

Tagagagak!

Sparks flew fiercely. Though not a engraved weapon, the Penna was a treasure of the Elves. Once broken, it was difficult to break again. Encred’s foot touched the griffon’s back. Two sword strikes and one parry were the end.

“crazy!”

Simlak had both feet planted in the saddle, unable to rise. He turned to face Encred.

“Thank you for the compliment.”

Dawn, along with the words, split his helmet. As they spoke, their hands and feet remained motionless, so Simlak’s “mad” word, Encred’s reply, and the blade splitting his head seemed to occur simultaneously.

Boom, bang.

The dawn’s blue-white blade split his helmet and head. Simlak couldn’t even use his axe, one of his three weapons. Dead men couldn’t wield weapons.

Kkaaaak!

As the weight increased, the griffon roared. As Encred retrieved the sword that had split its head, the enraged griffon swayed from side to side.
Maintaining balance on the rocking ship proved more difficult than on the ship itself. Encred bent his knees, lowered his stance, and struggled to maintain his balance when another griffon rider rushed in from beside him.

“Thank you for coming.”

Encred, kneeling still, gathered his will into his feet and leaped, using the griffon’s spine as ground. He didn’t forget to retrieve his penna as he moved. The opponent’s sword was still entangled in the penna, making it look like some kind of iron mace wrapped in steel spikes. But for now, there was no need to swing the penna, which had become a mace.

Thud, thud.
Kkueek.

The griffon beneath his feet stopped flapping its wings and screamed. With its spine broken, all that remained was to fall. Encred then jumped onto another griffon rider.
It had mistakenly approached him, intending to peck him with its beak.

“What the heck!”

The soldier quickly twisted his waist, drew his shortsword, and stabbed. Encred was a knight. He could perform feats that would seem absurd to ordinary people.
He sheathed Dawn and gripped the shortsword with two fingers. His opponent was a soldier, not a knight, prepared to become a griffon’s emergency ration if he failed.

“This is a battlefield. Don’t hold grudges.”

Encred said this, pushed aside the sword he held in his fingers, and then grabbed the soldier’s neck with one hand and snapped it. It seemed like he was merely striking and passing, not grabbing and snapping.

Uduk.

His neck sagged, and pink foam flowed from his nose and mouth. Droplets of blood trickled through the foam, only to be blown away by the wind.
The third, following the second, wasn’t far behind.
On the ground, that would be the case. But up in the sky. Regardless of the distance, it would take a considerable amount of daring to leap. It was a height that aroused primal human fear.
Encred, possessing the skills he’d learned countless times, wasn’t afraid.

‘Heart of the Beast.’

The skill that had once made him blind to the sight of a flying blade now made him soar like a madman through the sky.
Encred jumped again, this time further than before.

Boom, boom!

Using the griffon’s back as support, he leaped with such force that this time his spine broke, not to mention his back skin tore open.
Encred, thanks to the griffon’s death at his feet, flew like an arrow and joined the third rider. His ability to spin and balance in midair before landing was almost inhuman. To the enemy, it must have seemed even more inhuman.
Knights are a disaster. The meaning of those words pierced his heart.

“Are there any seats? Even if there aren’t, there’s nothing I can do. I’ve already boarded.”
“What, what, huh? Huh?”

The soldier was so flustered he couldn’t even speak. Encred clenched his fist and struck him near the top of the head.

Thud!

The shock transmitted through the helmet sent a commotion through the soldier’s brain. His pupils swirled, and tears of blood streamed from within, but the wind snatched them away.
Encred looked for his next target. Then, a ball of flame flew before his eyes.

Hurruk.

The result is that it is better to throw the scroll bundle than to approach it.

‘Orders have a flow.’

The spells cast by the wizard themselves sometimes change in real time, but scrolls don’t.
Encred found it easier to cut through magic implemented in scrolls.
He grasped the Grip of Dawn, still in its scabbard, and filled his will. He drew the sword, drew a vertical line, and then sheathed it. Every movement was incredibly swift.

Huang!

A gust of wind followed the sword’s swing. The fireball split in two in front of Encred, then moved away to either side of him, exploding far behind.

Bang, bang.

Between the two noises, the blue-eyed Grim Reaper chases his next opponent.

“Chew, jump!”

Someone shouted. They weren’t knights. There was no way they could hear. Still, their hearts were connected.
They all seemed determined to flee, pulling hard on the reins attached to the griffon’s mouth.
A few failed to control the griffon. The griffon, perhaps annoyed by the rider on its back, flapped its wings and leaned to the side.

“Ahhhhh, no!”

One of the soldier’s feet slipped from the saddle. Dangling in the air, his face met the griffon’s beak.
Without hesitation, the griffon pecked at its head. CRACK! The wind swept away the brain, blood, flesh, and bone fragments. Some of the blood and flesh that escaped the wind found its way into the griffon’s mouth.
Encred gauged the distance and ran again.
This time, he aimed too far. It seemed impossible to reach. The soldier, pulling on the reins, sighed in relief.
That madman would fall to his death.
His hopes were not realized.

Pararararak!

Behind Encred, a dark green cloak stretched and caught the wind. He glided as if gliding, facing the next griffon rider.

“Nice to meet you. I won’t ask your name.”

A single word to them is a lament for the soldier dragged into battle. His knees struck the soldier’s face.

bang.

The crushed eyeballs sank in and then popped out. Encred struck the griffon’s neck with his clanking hammer, the penna. With a thud, the decapitated creature fell, a mess of torn, scraped, and broken flesh. Encred, his body tilting unsteadily, cried out.

“now!”

Paaak.

A winged horse, Pegasus, wafting blue vapor, had already descended beneath him.
Encrid leaped from the dead griffon’s body and landed on Odd-Eye. The crash was heavy, but Odd-Eye easily caught it. There were still griffons left. He wasn’t going to leave a single one behind. It was with that resolve that he ascended the sky.