< Knight Descending from the Sky (3) >
Tiana felt something pour down from the sky. A silver meteor flashed for an instant through the dim dawn, arriving on the ground with a tremendous gust of wind. Maximilian's Knight's Descent. Descending from high altitude, he had precisely beheaded Dun Khan.
Pshhhhhhh!
Steam hissed from the headless body. Like air escaping a large balloon, the creature spewed out mana for a long moment before going limp.
"..."
An unusual silence settled over the battlefield.
From the distant skies, the knight had swooped down, swinging his sword. A targeted strike meant to cut down a single target, as if the full moon itself had struck the enemy's neck. Everyone stared in a daze at Maximilian, engulfed in the silver shockwave.
"Move!"
At Julian's command, Leon and Tiana finally snapped back to their senses. They charged toward their next target—Emullen.
Emullen's face was a mask of shock. He seemed utterly unable to believe the sight of Dun Khan's death before his very eyes.
An opponent who had lost focus on the battlefield was nothing more than prey. Leon and Tiana simultaneously struck him down from the left and right.
After that, they launched a counterattack with the mercenaries.
Zentra's grunts, having lost their focal point, either fled or died resisting. Before long, the entire situation was resolved.
"Ah... I'm tired."
As dawn slowly broke into morning, Tiana rubbed her bruised shoulder and surveyed the area.
The port was a complete mess. Countless containers were torn apart like taffy. The bodies of quite a few mercenaries were scattered among the cargo.
"..."
Tiana looked at the remaining Akarius mercenaries. With a bitter taste in her mouth, she turned her gaze back to Max. He was standing, leaning against a container.
"Knight Descent."
She muttered to herself. An overwhelming assault that combined the kinetic and potential energy of the sky with mana to literally slam down on the enemy. The words that described it as the 'most destructive application' for a knight now felt, no, quite persuasive.
This entire battle had been settled by that single variable.
Just then, the post-battle cleanup crew from the Eskal Corporation arrived. Julian blocked their path as they approached the bodies of Emullen and Dun Khan.
"We will be collecting and transferring these two bodies."
Julian quietly presented his knight's identification. The crew, seeming to grasp the situation, nodded.
It wasn't a bad deal for them, either. They would have lost all their cargo and died, but thanks to us, they at least saved the shipment.
Rumble, rumble, rumble—
Just then, a helicopter landed with a deafening roar. A single person disembarked.
Red hair tied high in a ponytail. A black cloak that fluttered in the wind. Her uniform was a neat Akarius design, seemingly benchmarked against the Knight Order's, yet the worn-out sneakers caked in dirt were what stood out the most.
She was the commander of the Akarius Mercenary Corps—'Ren.'
She stood before her fallen subordinate whose head had been obliterated. Taking out a small magic stone fragment shaped like a four-leaf clover from her pocket, she tossed it onto the body and snapped her fingers.
Fwoosh!
A blue flame erupted, incinerating the corpse to ash in an instant.
"...What is she doing?"
Max answered Tiana's whisper.
"It's the Akarius code."
The Akarius Mercenary Corps never permits the transport of a fallen member's body. Burial and autopsy are forbidden as well. It's a condition of their contract. Even the bodies of their members are, in the end, the property of Akarius.
Ren watched silently as her subordinate turned into a handful of ash, then turned and boarded the helicopter. Her face, as she departed, was obscured by her red hair.
"Move out. We're leaving too."
At Julian's words, everyone prepared to depart. They placed their precious spoils of war—Dun Khan's head and body, and the left and right halves of Emullen—into separate body preservation bags.
We were awarded medals. For the meritorious service of defeating Zentra's mid-level executive, Emullen, and the red-listed fugitive, Dun Khan.
Tiana and Leon received the 3rd Class Order of the Golden Lion for the first time, while my two previous medals were combined with this one and promoted to a 2nd Class medal.
Julian, as the operation commander, received a special cash bonus. Two 2nd Class Orders of the Golden Lion already shone on his chest.
"A shame you just missed the record for the youngest."
After the award ceremony, Julian said, looking at me.
"What youngest record, sir?"
"The 2nd Class medal."
"Ah. The youngest record holder is probably..."
"Commander-in-Chief Jefastian."
Immediately upon his appointment as a knight, Jefastian participated in the Western War. He achieved monstrous feats of valor there, and though he was later embroiled in the succession conflict of the imperial family, he emerged victorious from that as well.
There was no such thing as defeat in his life. Jefastian was a noble who had never once failed.
"Max, your contribution to this mission was the greatest. I'll write as much in the report I submit to the higher-ups."
I nodded at Julian's words.
"Thank you."
"The Knight's Descent was also highly effective. I'll suggest to the Order that we officially create a program."
"Yes. I will sponsor all related expenses."
Julian stared at me intently.
"The command staff at the Order will likely review it favorably. There's no need for you to use your personal funds."
I gave a bitter smile.
Unlike what Julian thought, the Knight Order was a rigid organization. Moreover, within the Order, there were factions who feared any enhancement of military power, that is, any increase in the Empire's war-making capabilities.
Anton was one such person. They believe that war is a cruel waste that kills future generations.
It’s a truly righteous sentiment.
If only it weren't for 'Eisenheim.'
"No. The Order will only move if I do."
The higher-ups would surely find an excuse related to the budget to nitpick, and I had no intention of letting time be wasted.
"That could be true."
Julian didn't try to persuade me more than once. I don't know if he gave up or if he understood my intentions. Julian was always that kind of person.
"Good work."
"Yes, sir."
I went out to the parking lot. I got in my car and headed for the mansion.
By the time I arrived home, it was already night.
I took a light shower and lay down in bed.
"..."
Sleep wouldn't come. My eyes were wide awake.
For some reason, everything that happened yesterday felt like a dream.
I beheaded that man.
No, did I really?
The adrenaline rush at that moment was so intense that my memory of it seemed to have become jumbled.
But one thing was certain.
It wasn't Eisenheim.
Neither Dun Khan nor Emullen was Eisenheim.
Among the enemies I will face in the future, there will be more who are not Eisenheim than those who are.
To cleanse a single race, you have to turn the entire world upside down.
War.
Ultimately, a great war will break out, and the Knight's Descent is a knight's application designed solely for achieving victory in that war.
"...To survive."
In order not to be destroyed, the Empire must kill countless people.
One step, then another. We are moving toward that future.
When I beheaded Dun Khan, I didn't close my eyes.
Because now I knew a fear far greater than that.
Dieter procured an airborne training ground and a transport plane. The plane was quite a struggle even for Dieter to get, but a company I had invested in within the Canillan Dominion happened to be an aircraft developer, and I managed to acquire a state-of-the-art model on the condition of further investment.
I put up the poster I had prepared on the wall next to my office door.
[Knight Order Voluntary Workshop: Aerial Assault]
Even if the Knight Order accepted my proposal, it would take at least a few months for it to be organized into an official curriculum. So, I planned to give the knights a taste of skydiving beforehand.
Some senior knights might think of it as a hobby or the foolish splurge of a rich noble, but soon, rumors about our mission would spread quickly.
Knights are a breed driven by the desire for self-improvement. From the start, only such people become knights.
If I just wait a little, they will come to me, begging, 'Please, just let us on the plane.' From that point on, I'll start being selective.
My faction starts here.
"Nice."
I nodded in satisfaction, looking at the well-made workshop poster.
Lately, officials from the Empire's Knight Order have been summoned to the Imperial Palace daily.
It was a sign that the appointment of a new Knight Commander was imminent.
"They said they asked some light, personal questions. About Vice-Commander Anton, specifically."
Chiron had been gathering the opinions of the knights. He had contacted not only the Sentinels and knights from other affiliations but also retired knights who had set up their own offices.
"Most of them answered honestly. 'He is an excellent man, but he is not suited to be the Commander...'"
The noble knights pretended to respect Anton on the surface, but their pent-up dissatisfaction was palpable.
He was a fallen noble—no, even calling him a fallen noble was a luxury. His family had fallen not one, but two generations ago. How could the son of a commoner, whose own father held no title, be a fallen noble?
He was, for all intents and purposes, a commoner.
"And, this is what you mentioned last time."
A subordinate handed Chiron the mission report that Julian had submitted to the higher-ups. Chiron skimmed through the contents.
[—During the operation, we encountered an unforeseen red-level fugitive, 'Dun Khan,' and faced a crisis, but the aerial assault operation proposed by Knight Maximilian proved effective, leading to the mission's success—]
"Dun Khan?"
Chiron recognized the name. Dun Khan. A key combatant of Zentra and a vicious criminal with a warrant out for his arrest across the entire Empire.
"Dun Khan was killed by Maximilian?"
"Yes, so it says. It's described in detail below."
Chiron read the report again.
[—Knight Maximilian executed a high-altitude descent, conducted a direct strike on the target 'Dun Khan,' and decapitated the target with a single assault—]
Chiron paused in thought for a moment.
A knight falling from the sky. To his noble sensibilities, it sounded like unacceptable nonsense. It was an act unbecoming of a knight's dignity and honor.
However, the one who had pulled off such a stunt was none other than one of the highest-ranking nobles in the Empire.
"There's a poster up in front of Maximilian's office right now. An aerial assault workshop, he says he'll give you a ride on a transport plane if you sign up-"
"Then go and sign up at once."
"Yes, sir."
Chiron's men didn't raise any objections to his words.
Or perhaps, deep down, they wanted to learn it too.
It must be that. After seeing Maximilian, whom they had looked down on since the Empire Point incident, suddenly lop off the head of a red-level fugitive, their ambition must have been stoked.
Tiana stared at the crude poster taped to the wall of Maximilian's office.
[Knight Order Voluntary Workshop: Aerial Assault]
The thought of falling from an altitude of several thousand meters was frightening, but the Max she had seen at the port that day was undeniably powerful.
It was worth learning, and more than anything, she didn't want to fall behind Max.
She picked up an application form from the table next to the poster.
"Oh? Tiana?"
Tiana turned around. It was Leon. In his hand, he already held a pen, ready to fill out the form.
"You too?"
It wasn't just Leon. Behind him, four or five other knights came rushing up, trying to grab application forms.
"Hey, hey! I was here first!"
With no time left to hesitate, Tiana claimed a spot right in front of Max's office door.
The Canillan Dominion.
Ren, the commander of Akarius, had been rewatching the procured CCTV footage from the port all night.
"Hmm..."
A silver flash, descending from the sky, was reflected in her blue eyes. She had seen this magical light before, a light that seemed to hold the color of the moon.
Jefastian.
But there was no way he would have been here.
Click.
She paused the CCTV at a certain moment. It was an angle where the face of the knight who fell from the sky and beheaded Dun Khan was faintly visible. His hair was black, but that would obviously be a disguise.
"...Ebenholz."
It was definitely Jefastian's son, Maximilian.
Knock, knock.
Ren turned off the CCTV footage. Outside the window, morning had already broken.
"Come in."
Vice-Commander Jesik entered. He was with some young kid.
"Commander. I've brought a pretty decent kid."
The vice-commander had high standards. Incredibly high. His eyes were practically on the top of his head.
"You say he's decent?"
"Yes. He's been scrubbing the mercenary barracks' toilets for a month now... I crossed swords with him once, and he's quite good."
"What's his name?"
The young man answered Ren's question.
"...They call me Sein."
Ren stared intently at the boy with blue hair and blue eyes.
The wavering of his pupils, the minute twitch of his skin. That alone was enough to distinguish truth from falsehood.
"Don't lie to me."
"Hey, get this guy out of here."
"It's Akard!"
Akard. He must have had a reason for concealing his name.
"Do you want to become a mercenary?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I heard this is the best mercenary corps. I want to build my skills here."
"And we're supposed to spend our money to train you?"
"Yes."
Akard answered brazenly. That brazenness, she rather liked.
"I will not take any payment for any missions I undertake."
The boy's gaze, which was surprisingly firm, pleased Ren.
"Alright, then tell me the absolute truth. Why do you want to build your skills?"
Akard seemed to contemplate for a moment, then took a deep breath.
"I am a noble of the Empire. My family was framed for treason. I will absolutely return there and restore the honor of my house and my family."
He then revealed the very honest root of his being.