WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

A KNIGHT WHO ETERNALLY REGRESSES

Chapter 262: Are You an Onion?

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"What you need to walk like a snake is a wider range of joint motion."

Enkrid learned Snake Step from Audin, layered Swallow Blade swordsmanship on top of it, then mixed in Flowing Sword Style from Ragna with everything he had seen, learned, practiced, felt, and experienced so far.

The concept was simple.

'Flowing Sword Style blocks, redirects, and scatters.'

It was a style that prioritized making the opponent wear themselves out.

Leonessis Oniac, the first to compile the five sword styles, defined it that way, and those who later mastered Flowing Sword Style kept the same approach.

'Does it have to be that way?'

He probably was not the first person to think that, but he might have been the first to give it shape, put intent into it, and turn it into a sword method.

That was what he created.

Open a gap through redirection, and strike at the same time.

Scatter the opponent's attack while driving his own blade forward.

The idea was simple, but to execute it, he needed sharp senses and years of sparring experience.

Enkrid had those.

Still, if he fought this way, redirecting and swinging at once, he could not put full force into his cuts and thrusts.

To be exact, even half power was hard.

Was that a problem? If strength was lacking, he could fill it with something else.

The weapon just had to be sharper.

He only needed a graze to cut flesh.

Enkrid put a whetstone to his sword. He honed the edge.

The blade that had been reborn from the Demon Sword Tutor into a famed blade was sharp enough to make up for lacking power.

So that was what he did. He used the weapon.

He rode along the opponent's blade as he redirected it aside, tapped in once, then withdrew.

This was the result.

"You've become one-eyed."

Enkrid said it as he stood there. Maelrun, who was covering one eye with his palm, blinked his remaining eye.

He was on the ground with his rear planted there after trying to dodge the sword and falling.

What kind of bastard is this?

What the hell is this guy?

No, wait, what was that just now?

Thoughts piled up one after another.

Instead of thinking it through, Maelrun kicked off the ground and charged.

It looked like he pushed off with his butt, but in truth, he used the spring of his knees and launched himself forward straight out of that fallen posture.

Losing sight in one eye did not matter.

Years of combat instinct guided the Frog's hand. It let him gauge where his opponent was.

'He redirected it.'

Even in that instant, he understood what trick the opponent's sword had used. Then he just had to slam down in a way that could not be redirected.

He only needed one step to rush in, and in that instant Maelrun's forearm looked like it had doubled in size.

At the same time, the forearm seemed to bend.

The thick Loop Sword in that arm blurred like a mirage and plunged down.

Enkrid felt the incoming blade. He opened his five senses. The eye of the newly gained sixth sense read the path of the strike.

He placed his own sword against it. To ordinary eyes it was too fast to even see, but to Enkrid it was only an exchange of strikes, vivid enough to grasp in his hand.

The force in the Loop Sword was weaker than before.

A feint.

So that was why he had pulled that crude muscle-bulking trick.

Just as Enkrid was about to lay his blade flat against it and redirect, the Loop Sword's trajectory changed.

Enkrid twisted his waist around his ankle pivot and applied what he had learned in Valaf-style martial arts to his sword.

It was split-second improvisation.

He added rotational force and smacked aside the Frog's blade flat.

Bang!

When metal met metal, noise always followed.

A thunderous blast broke out. Vibration and a formless shock pushed at both of them, but neither was affected.

Their trained bodies endured it.

Maelrun did not panic. He did not underestimate his opponent.

He used the force that bounced him away, spun half a turn, and swung horizontally. Enkrid moved as if dancing, drawing a curve in the air with his blade, then brought it in to meet the opponent's sword again.

Chiririririririririring!

A friction scream burst between them, sparks flying.

Pukak!

Then, mixed into that grinding noise, came the sound of flesh splitting.

Enkrid stepped back, swung his sword down, and shook blood off the edge.

"...You."

Maelrun, the Frog across from him, blinked.

What is this, really?

After his last fight with Enkrid, Maelrun had trained harder than ever to improve.

At one point he had nearly died after cutting down three or four cultists.

He cut down demon creatures and magic beasts, and wandered near the cursed lands.

All of it was for today.

To crush the human who dared interfere in his business and satisfy his desire.

A Frog's desire could be frighteningly obsessive at times.

Maelrun's desire was simple and clear.

Beat the opponent, then savor that sense of achievement.

The human before him was perfect for that.

Someone weaker than him, yet still struggling.

But all that effort to squeeze out the thickest, deepest fulfillment failed to pay off.

No, his effort had paid off. The opponent had changed.

'No way.'

Fighting someone vastly stronger than himself had nothing to do with Maelrun's desire, and that was exactly why he had come here.

With his Talent-Reading Eyes and all his experience, it made no sense that he would lose.

Even now his battle sense said the same thing.

Then what is this? What the hell is this?

His current skill was far beyond his old self.

Yet the guy who had barely matched him before took one eye in a single exchange.

And this time...

"Where did my arm go?"

The absurd words slipped out on their own.

Two sword exchanges, that was all, and in the first he became one-eyed, in the second he became one-armed.

His arm had been cut off. A chunk of flesh, severed below the elbow while still gripping the sword, lay on one side.

He could see the twitching hand clutching the Loop Sword, trailing blood.

A Frog's regeneration was incredible, and wriggling flesh was already growing at the severed surface, but for now he had lost both weapon and arm.

Absurdity and betrayal by his own desire made the Frog lose his reason.

His eyes spun, and a long tongue slipped out of his wide-open mouth and flopped.

"Still going?"

Enkrid saw that Kraiss was safe. He had already confirmed he was crouched in a corner of the hall, not even tied up.

So this Frog had killed no one.

There were things Enkrid wanted to ask too.

Who from where had ordered the collection racket, things like that.

Would another one like this come again, or did it end here? Was this a Black Blade trick, or had the count been running schemes in the territory from earlier?

Too many suspicious points.

The answer was simple. Ask that Frog.

As he watched him.

"Enki."

From behind, the Elf Company Commander called him by a pet name. Maybe that was better than fiance.

And by watching the Frog, he understood why the Elf Company Commander had called out.

The Frog named Maelrun slipped his hand inside his Heart Armor and pulled something out.

A small leather pouch. Flat, exactly the shape to tuck inside Heart Armor.

He lifted it over his mouth and dumped it one-handed. The pouch string loosened, and powdered medicine fell into his mouth.

"Be careful."

The elf warned him, and soon the Frog's eyes turned blood red.

Consumed by the achievement of victory, obsessed with one desire, the Frog made a choice he would regret once he came to his senses.

He took the drug, and its effects spread through his body right away.

"Grrrrrrraaaah!"

The Frog screamed and charged. He was much faster than before.

Enkrid had already set his stance with his right foot drawn back from the moment the Frog started pouring powder into his mouth.

Kraiss's eyes opened wide at the charging Frog. Behind him, the Elf Company Commander shifted her footing.

Gielpin, who had waited outside the door after guiding them, was so startled that he fell on his rear.

Enkrid's sixth sense had become sharper than ever, taking in everything around him.

Focus Point, Concentrate One, activated too, and everything nearby seemed to slow.

He felt as if heavy, solid air had wrapped around his body.

The powder Maelrun spilled reflected light as it scattered through the air.

In front of that, the Frog suddenly grew huge in view. He was already right in front of Enkrid.

Enkrid held his sword diagonally.

After closing in, the Frog shot his foot forward.

'Even if you cut.'

The body coming after that would still crash into him like a boulder.

It was the Frog's signature tactic, give flesh and take bone.

Boom! Thud!

An explosive sound burst out, and one of the two who collided flew into the wall.

"Captain!"

Only then did Kraiss shout. He had not seen the exchange at all, but even he could see the Frog suddenly drugging himself and going wild.

When the two crashed together, the mansion floorboards broke and dust rose, and Kraiss could not see ahead for a moment.

Beyond the dust, a blurry figure waved one hand side to side and spoke.

"Why are you shouting?"

'Ah, shit. I thought he got hit.'

Just as Kraiss let out a relieved breath,

the Elf Company Commander was so shocked she opened her mouth without thinking. Her posture was still half-shifted, and one hand was already on her sword.

"What was that just now?"

She replayed what she had seen.

A foot came flying in. Enkrid placed his blade flat against the opponent's shin and redirected it.

A Frog's skin was slippery.

He had used that trait itself for the redirect. Of course, it was never easy.

If he was off by even a little, that kick had enough force to catch his head and break it, or shatter bones even if it only hit his shoulder.

So redirecting it alone could already be called a stunt, but it did not end there.

After that, Enkrid drew the short sword in his left hand and used its blade flat as a blunt weapon to strike the Frog's Heart Armor.

He hit the heart area exactly, cracking the armor and driving shock inside.

Was that surprising? Extremely. Both the reaction speed and the response method.

"You've improved insanely."

Sinar judged that now she could no longer easily promise herself victory either.

If they fought all-out with everything exposed, that might be different, but in a simple spar she could no longer confidently say she would win easily.

'He might be tougher than the barbarian.'

Enkrid only shrugged at the stunned elf.

"You sounded like you knew what that was."

Then he asked. He had heard the Company Commander's warning when she saw the powdered medicine. Her tone had been one of recognition.

"Something I saw recently."

"Let's clean this up first."

Kraiss, finally back to himself, walked up and said it.

Enkrid nodded.

Then he looked at the Frog, who had smashed through the mansion wall and was wedged between bricks.

His heart had not burst, but he had passed out from the impact.

Drug frenzy or not, a Frog's weak point was the heart. Enkrid had aimed at exactly that.

So the gap in skill was obvious.

"But Captain, you're really strong."

Even knowing that, it was still shocking. Kraiss said it, and Gielpin, who had watched everything, had been standing there with his mouth open and still could not say a word.

He had not even stood up from where he fell on his rear.

Were those not monsters with nothing to do with him?

What he saw, no, even what he properly saw, was not much. But if he told this story around, would anyone believe him?

'Yeah, sure they will.'

Did this make any sense?

Was that guy actually some knight?

No, he was just a mere company commander, was he not?

Then why did he fight this absurdly well?

"We're heading back."

Enkrid captured the Frog alive. As long as he did not die, he would regenerate, so taking him alive was the correct call.

He also had a few questions and curiosities to settle.

Enkrid slung the Frog over his shoulder. At his side, the Elf Company Commander and Kraiss followed.

As they stepped out of the mansion, a cold wind brushed his cheeks.

It was not a long fight, but he had still sweated. The wind flowing over his face felt cool.

As sweat ran down his temple, the Elf Company Commander reached out from beside him and wiped it away.

Then she said,

"Are you an onion?"

Enkrid wondered what she was talking about.

"What do you mean by that?"

"You show a new charm every time, so I wondered if you're an onion. You peel and peel, and fresh inner flesh keeps appearing."

Enkrid became deeply curious.

What exactly counted as a joke in the elf world?

Was this what a normal elf was like?

Or was the Elf Company Commander an outcast even among elves? Had she been chased here for jokes like this?

He glanced at Kraiss to see if he had heard it, but Kraiss did not even pretend to react.

"Oh, he's got a lot of stuff."

He was walking while rummaging through the Frog's bag.

"You didn't hear that?"

Enkrid asked. Kraiss raised the head he had bent low enough to crawl into the bag.

"Hm?"

So he did not hear. Or he heard, and did not listen. Since Enkrid knew that was a technique Kraiss used, he copied it too.

"What is that powder drug?"

He heard, yet did not listen. He changed the subject.

"It exists. A troublesome thing. Onion fiance."

The Elf Company Commander did not care and gave Enkrid a fresh nickname.

Should he curse at her?

Enkrid thought for a moment and kept his mouth shut.

As for the drug, he could have Kraiss investigate it later.

"Onion fiance, your eyes just said something, did they not? Those are the eyes of someone looking at an apple grown in a swamp."

"...A swamp apple?"

"Apples grown in swamps are all rotten and diseased."

He took that as an insult.

The Elf Company Commander looked oddly excited.

Enkrid did not ask why.

He simply acted like Kraiss.

He heard, and did not listen.

"Hey, fiance. You clearly look like you do not want to answer me right now."

"Esther came to meet us."

Enkrid said it with clear relief when he spotted the panther in front of the barracks.

Just as he said, Esther was waiting in front like she had come out to greet him.

Enkrid's steps were light.

Before, he had barely endured against Frog Maelrun, but now things were too different.

It ended like a casual outing.

He had changed that much. Looking at Esther, Enkrid thought exactly that.

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