Chapter 76
“Shylock… did you decide to betray us after all?”
“Betrayal? Your words are mistaken.
Since the Master took me in, I have always wielded my sword for myself.
I have never once wielded my sword for others.”
His words were sophistry, but they were also true.
He was a person who had never once felt a sense of belonging in Alcantara.
Even now, he hadn't brought anyone from the 2nd Knight Unit.
“After crossing swords with that man, Karl Meyer, recently, I hardened my resolve.
Just as he said that my Aura proves the path I have lived, I am one who wields the sword only for myself.
Therefore, my essence does not change; my path is here.”
His eyes did not waver.
Not a speck of hesitation existed.
Owen looked at the disciple he had taken in.
Behind him stood numerous traitor knights of Alcantara, gathered from various units, aiming their swords at him.
‘Where did it go wrong?’
Wanting to live a better life, wanting to achieve a higher state, wanting to obtain more wealth.
Wanting to possess greater power.
Was it wrong to seek fulfillment of the purest desires inherent in humans?
When he founded the Alcantara Knights, he had hoped that everyone around him who joined could achieve their desires.
And the convergence of such aspirations allowed Alcantara to grow stronger faster than any other knight order.
But what about now?
Shylock's eyes were clear, but Owen's eyes were clouded.
If his disciple had chosen his own path, declaring he would live solely for his own desires, he himself seemed lost, unsure where to go.
“Your eyes have rotted. Stop needlessly killing the people under you and just offer your neck.”
Shylock raised his rapier and took a step forward towards Owen.
A full 30 years.
That was the time it took from the founding of the Alcantara Knights until now.
But the efforts of those 30 years were collapsing overnight.
Due to the mere machinations perpetrated by those hiding behind spider masks, the roots and foundation they had sustained for 30 years were shaken to their core.
“What have I done?”
“What did you do? You lived diligently in your own way.”
Behind Owen, whose eyes had clouded over, a knight covered head-to-toe in blood slowly walked out.
The man with hair and eyes as black as jet radiated a fierce aura as he approached.
“Karl Meyer…!”
The Four-Legged Mask, unable even to stand alone due to his injuries, muttered Karl's name as if spitting it out.
However, Karl's gaze did not turn towards the Four-Legged Mask, who was already half-dead.
Instead, Shylock, who received Karl's gaze, spoke.
“If you withdraw at this point, I will not touch you either.”
In this place, Karl was not a welcome guest for Shylock.
With Maximov dead, if Owen fell now, the other side would have no remaining focal point.
Besides, Karl was an outsider anyway, and the injuries he currently bore all over his body were severe.
There was no reason to fight unnecessarily.
Shylock was confident that Karl would back down.
Sreung. (Sound of sword being drawn)
“Why? Is there any reason for you to fight me in that state? Don't tell me, for honor and justice! Is it something like that?”
Shylock scoffed.
But Karl simply raised his sword without answering.
Alongside him, the knights standing by Owen's side also gripped their weapons.
“Tsk, regret it when you're dead.”
Shylock's rapier moved without a shred of hesitation, targeting Karl's entire body.
Red Aura clung to his rapier, and its speed was so fast that the Aura left afterimages.
Due to the rapier's nature involving many linear movements, Karl stepped backward and swung his sword diagonally upward.
Karl's sword blocked the consecutive incoming thrusts.
‘Got you, you bastard!’
In the brief moment the longsword and rapier clashed, Shylock instantly retrieved his rapier and then stabbed again at Karl's neck.
Piit! (Sound of swift piercing)
There was no time to retrieve the longsword, and the thrust's speed was so fast that it was an attack fully capable of piercing the neck.
However, in that instant, Karl twisted his neck sideways, thwarting his attempt.
That was the beginning.
Paat. (Sound of clashing/impact)
Blood splattered from both sides in the exchange of offense and defense.
And the two simultaneously took several steps back to catch their breath.
“Just why are you doing this?”
“Because it's something that must be done.”
The more Shylock conversed with Karl, the more frustrated he felt.
What on earth was this man, why was he fighting here, risking his life?
Despite being clearly injured and exhausted, there was no retreat.
Rather, he was approaching first, as if he had rested enough.
‘What the hell is he?’
Somehow, those unreadable eyes became frightening.
They were eyes overly filled with conviction.
‘…Useless distracting thoughts!’
He was a Master who had reached the pinnacle of the sword.
And he had stepped into this realm long before this young whelp, expanding his domain.
‘I am superior!’
He forcibly suppressed his fear, readjusted his grip on the rapier, and thrust his sword towards the approaching Karl.
Seuk. (Sound of slicing/swift movement)
Into the series of incoming thrusts, Karl instead pushed his body forward.
He continuously advanced, ducking left and right.
He ignored the piercings all over his body, merely avoiding or blocking vital spots as he closed the distance.
Towards Karl, who had instantly come right up to him, Shylock thrust his rapier even faster while creating distance backward.
Despite his thrusts attempting to create distance somehow, Karl had already closed in right before him.
“Foolish bastard!”
Wearing a sneer, the main gauche in Shylock's left hand flew towards Karl's neck like a ray of light.
Seuk. (Sound of slicing/swift movement)
“What…!”
Karl dodged the main gauche once again by ducking his body, then appeared right in front again.
“That’s not the fighting distance for a longsword! Such foolishne- Keok…!”
Karl smashed his gauntlet-clad fist into the face of the man who was blabbering on.
Ppagak! (Sound of cracking bone)
Golden Aura clung to the gauntlet.
He hadn't expected that a Master-level knight would use hand-to-hand combat techniques, which even Experts rarely used anymore.
The last time Shylock had been hit by or thrown a bare fist was twenty-odd years ago.
Because of that, he ended up taking the unexpected blow squarely to the face.
Hit by Karl’s overhand hook, clad in an Aura-enhanced gauntlet, Shylock sprayed blood and bone fragments from his face in all directions and collapsed on the spot.
“This is also quite effective.”
Karl's calm voice, having produced such a gruesome result, created significant unrest within the opposing camp that stood facing him with swords drawn.
Both sides, who had been holding their breath, began to clash again.
However, the advantage and disadvantage were clear.
***
“How long do you intend to stay like that?”
The Four-Legged spider mask, unconscious from excessive blood loss, and Shylock, unconscious with a completely crushed face, were bound.
Most of the knights who had staged the rebellion were dead, and some were captured.
The battle was over.
While he was less preoccupied when frantically swinging his sword and fighting, Owen's mind became more complicated as the situation roughly settled.
“I… what have I been rushing towards all this time?”
“Did you not say it yourself? That it was a knight order created for individuals to realize their own desires.”
“I did… and this is the result….”
“I thought you were smart, but you’re spouting quite frustrating things.”
Owen raised his head and looked at Karl.
“I’m not saying the current situation is good. However, thanks to the Alcantara Knights you created, everyone here, including yourself, has lived enjoying many things. That applies not only to the Alcantara Knights but also to the people of this Humming City.”
“What about it?”
Karl let out a short sigh.
“The path you have walked was not in vain. However, there might be a need to change the banner you raised.”
“Not in vain? Just change… the banner?”
“Of course.”
“…”
Although the Alcantara Knights wasn't an order that explicitly spoke of justice or injustice, they hadn't made a habit of committing atrocities either.
And the members had lived relatively contentedly until now.
“However, the current justification of being faithful to individual desires has clear limitations, as I mentioned last time. So, take another good look at those standing beside you now.”
Owen’s gaze turned sideways.
There stood those who had risked their lives alongside Owen, including Maximov who had sacrificed himself and died.
“All humans pursue desire. However, that shouldn't be everything.”
Even in ancient Greece on the Earth where Karl lived, humans debated the themes of human desire and reason through concepts like ataraxia and apatheia.
Even after the world developed and humans gained freedom, humans always struggled between desire and the value of goodwill that only humans can possess.
Perhaps people instinctively felt that was the path to avoid self-destruction.
While there are various examples, humans have occasionally proven for themselves that there are values more important than personal desire.
And that didn't seem much different even though the world had changed.
Those standing beside Owen now were individuals who had proven such values themselves.
“Isn’t it enough to make a fresh start with them?”
“…”
Owen's dull eyes became clear and bright.
“…It’s more than enough.”
Watching Owen smile again, Karl chuckled.
[Quest: Snakes and Snakes Complete]
[Gloves of the Seeker are awarded as a reward.]
Simultaneously, the long-awaited quest completion window also popped up.
***
Even though a fierce battle involving blood and flesh had erupted in parts of the festival grounds, people returned to enjoying the festival just like before after only a few days.
The Alcantara Knights, with a third of their members dead and many injured, were still in disarray, but the strong bond flowing among the remaining members gave an intuition that they could become stronger than before in the future.
“Are you planning to leave now?”
“I should. I noticed today that your whiskey cellar is almost empty.”
“…”
Ignoring Owen's bitter expression, Karl turned his gaze towards the distant mountains.
“We drank together, didn't we? Don't make that regretful face.”
“Hoo….”
Owen, who had been clenching his fists and tightly closing his eyes, seemingly lost in thought, relaxed his shoulders and offered a brooch stamped with a seal from his pocket.
“Do you remember what I said last night? About the Mercenary King needing your help. If your next destination isn't decided, pay him a visit. He's someone worth knowing for future help. And… should you request it, the Alcantara cavalry will advance wherever your sword points, anytime. This is something all the knights of the order have agreed upon.”
[Pledge of Alcantara (Brooch): A symbol representing an absolute amicable relationship with the Alcantara Knights. Allows utilization of Alcantara forces.]