WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

A KNIGHT WHO ETERNALLY REGRESSES

Chapter 334: What Is Inside Your Head?

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When he woke up in the morning, he practiced Audin and the Isolation Technique. After that, he trained by swinging his sword slowly while controlling every single muscle movement, then moved straight into sparring with Rem.

He ate proper meals in between, and sometimes snacked on things like herb pies.

His activity level was on another level, so even the way he ate and shat was on another level.

Eating a lot was a given.

Other than eating, shitting, and sleeping, Enkrid drove his body like a madman.

The first thing he did once his body had fully recovered was smash the barracks.

After that?

Enkrid knew how to observe himself, so he kept thinking and training over and over.

Maybe Kraiss had really pulled some strings, because no one else came looking for him.

He liked that very much.

He had even declared that he would stop taking tribute from Gielpin's guild altogether.

Then he was told to meet just one person, so he stepped out to the front of the barracks and saw an unexpected face.

"Did I get more handsome?"

He muttered it with a smile.

That smile and that face were familiar.

It was Leona Rockfreed.

She was the head of a trading company, and a friend he had once stayed up all night with.

Enkrid stared at her in silence, and Leona asked with a smile,

"You did not forget my name, right?"

"How could I?"

She had left a strong impression on him.

She had once asked what he thought about becoming friends.

Friends. The word had sounded fresh coming from a woman who had pushed aside the former head's son and taken the company for herself.

They had eaten herb pie together, drunk pumpkin soup, and wandered the market.

They had stayed up all night, joking and talking about this and that.

Just saying "let's be friends" did not make people close overnight.

Still, a fondness remained.

It was simple human fondness, nothing to do with romance.

Leona, now the head of the trading company, had shown up in clean leather pants, a white shirt, and a fur vest.

Even the shirt had an unusual thickness. To be honest, Enkrid had never seen that fabric before.

Looking at it, he found himself thinking it would be great if they wove it even thicker and used it as gambeson lining.

That was exactly like him, a man whose thoughts always circled back to fights, battles, and swords.

Anyway, the two met in front of the barracks, and Kraiss, watching from the side, muttered,

"Where exactly did you get 'more handsome' from?"

Enkrid had not shaved, had soaked himself in sweat, and had not even washed up.

His hair was overdue for a cut, so it was a mess, and it was half-dry after being drenched in sweat.

He looked filthy.

Kraiss twitched his nose.

He did not smell good, either.

As far as Kraiss was concerned, the best thing for seducing a woman was not a face.

Number one was atmosphere, no question.

A man could have strikingly large eyes, a high nose bridge, and full lips, and still lose to atmosphere.

Then what made atmosphere?

It was a mix of things.

"Scent, gaze, attitude, features, trained body."

Looks were obviously part of it, but they were not everything.

That was how Kraiss saw it.

So was Enkrid's atmosphere right now deadly to women?

Maybe to someone crazy about sparring swordsmen. Not to women.

Absolutely not.

It was enough to make the word "alluring" feel ashamed.

"I told you to go wash up first."

"Waste of time."

Enkrid answered without even turning his head toward Kraiss.

He was recalling the past and reviewing that experience.

More accurately, he had no room to turn his head.

"One night of rest."

There had been no romantic signal, and no physical contact either.

They had only talked.

He had rested.

At the end of that rest, what had Enkrid gained?

He could not forget it even if he wanted to.

It was a felt change.

After revisiting the arc of a sword swing, the step before it, and the movement of the shoulder, he realized how to quickly draw a line connecting point to point.

That was when he had absorbed part of the concept of speed.

What he had learned back then was not the important part.

The process was.

When he remembered that process, the sensation from that time came back.

It did not mean he would do anything right now.

This was closer to fine-tuning his direction.

He was already walking the right path, so this was only a small help.

So right now, Enkrid thought he should welcome an old friend he had not seen in a while.

"You really changed."

Leona said it while looking straight into Enkrid's eyes.

She was a trading company head.

A merchant.

Of course she had a sharp eye for people.

Saying his looks had changed for the better was half a joke and half true.

His face was not the point.

His presence was different from last time.

"Strange."

He had changed.

She could not pin down exactly how.

Leona only felt it by instinct.

A woman's instinct, and a trading head's instinct.

Then again, maybe that was why he had built such feats and spread his name everywhere.

There was nowhere in the capital or nearby cities where Enkrid's name was not heard.

"Did I get more wrinkles?"

Enkrid asked calmly.

"That was to tease me, right?"

Leona asked back.

They smiled with their eyes.

Should they go have tea somewhere?

The moment Enkrid thought that, Kraiss gestured, and a few soldiers brought over a table and chairs.

Why this level of preparation?

Enkrid noticed things quickly.

He felt there was a reason Kraiss had specifically called him here.

"You cannot stand and talk forever, and the captain is busy."

Kraiss spoke and pantomimed gripping a sword with both hands and swinging it.

Leona already knew very well that Enkrid was crazy about training.

Back when trading company business had brought her to Border Guard, had he not suddenly dragged her into sparring too?

After that, Leona had personally watched Enkrid train as well.

Enkrid glanced at Kraiss.

That Big Eyes bastard was even making excuses for him.

There was definitely something going on.

Leona sat in the chair the soldier had prepared, as if she did not mind.

Her eyes still did not leave Enkrid.

Behind her stood Matthias, the escort warrior he had seen before.

There was one more man as well.

He was an exceptionally handsome blond with blue eyes.

By Kraiss's standards, he also knew how to carry atmosphere.

He lifted the corners of his mouth into a soft smile and stood behind Leona.

"What brought you here?"

"If I said I came to see a friend, would you believe me?"

"No way."

"It is true.

Trading company business.

Still, seeing a friend while I am here is a pleasure too."

Leona smiled as she said it.

Enkrid smiled back.

He thought it was a genuinely pleasant meeting.

Still, the tea tasted terrible.

It was the kind of tea used to drive visitors away.

The kind that meant, "Drink it and leave."

And they served that here?

"On purpose?"

Of course.

Kraiss's intent was obvious.

Even when their eyes met for a second, he pretended not to notice, and that fake innocence was annoyingly sly.

Enkrid focused on Leona.

They exchanged a few casual lines.

"It still amazes me.

Do you know how famous you have gotten?

I knew this would happen.

I should have dragged you into the company somehow back then."

"Does a trading company need swordsmen that often?"

"It does.

We are not a settled trading company."

It was miscellaneous knowledge.

Interesting to hear.

There were two forms of trading companies, roaming and settled.

Many mixed both, but Rockfreed's strength was far greater on the roaming side.

That caused many problems, but from the previous head to now, they had no one to rely on, so they had no choice except to focus on wandering work.

Enkrid was not stupid, so he understood the hidden meaning in Leona's words.

It was not that they had no one to rely on, but that they had no mutually beneficial ties.

Even if they had, the other side would probably have tried to swallow the company whole or stab them in the back.

All of that had made Rockfreed what it was now.

Having no settlement, no home base, meant it was harder to hold influence in any region.

In any place, they often had to connect with local companies to secure profit.

So to make money in that situation, Rockfreed had built the Rockfreed trade routes and opened trade with Glacier Rangers, Black Leather Guild, and Shepherds of the Wilderness.

Not many companies traded with those three groups.

That had been Rockfreed's path until now.

Then should it stay that way?

No.

They needed a home base too.

They had to secure stable profit.

Especially now, with an ominous air spreading across the continent.

Then where should they place that base?

"A place where things were changing fast."

A place good for profit.

Domestic politics were unstable, civil war might break out, and one city's value was rising quickly.

In other words, a place like Border Guard.

It was a perfect home base.

Enkrid understood the situation well enough.

Still, he said nothing about it.

Leona did the same.

If Kraiss had called him here to gain an edge in negotiation, it was a misread.

Because the two of them had met as friends.

"Are you married?"

"No."

"What about that elf?"

Leona whispered.

"She mostly jokes by calling herself my fiancée."

"Tch, boring."

"What about you, Leona?"

"I promised to marry my trading company."

"Really?"

"That was a lie.

I do have a fiancé, but I still do not know.

It is close to a political marriage, so if things work out elsewhere, it might not happen.

And I am not trying to wag my tail at you, Enki.

If I get rejected once, it is over for me.

So regret not falling for my charm back then."

"Yes, I will regret it sometimes."

"Regret should be constant and brutal."

"I am busy."

"Busy swinging your sword?"

"You know me well."

They traded jokes, and both of them giggled.

For a moment, Enkrid felt like he had gone back to childhood.

Leona was the kind of woman who knew how to make people feel comfortable.

Was that a merchant's talent, or simple consideration for the person in front of her?

It did not matter.

He was just enjoying the moment.

While they traded a few more lines, Kraiss suddenly cut in.

"Political marriage? Does that make any sense?"

Here?

Out of nowhere?

"Right?

I truly do not want it."

"Exactly.

Captain, do you agree?"

"...What?"

Kraiss nudged Enkrid's foot.

Then he acted like his throat was dry and took a sip of tea.

This was the same Kraiss who had said that tea tasted like shit and that he would never drink it.

Enkrid understood the situation well enough.

"A relationship that needed a deal."

That was what stood between Kraiss and Leona.

The bad tea had not been served for no reason.

It was a sign of what kind of meeting this was.

Rockfreed needed a settlement.

Border Guard needed a shield to block nearby nuisances.

Their needs matched.

Enkrid thought Kraiss was a ridiculous bastard.

He could now see why he had been called.

It was the classic handsome-man tactic, using personal ties to gain leverage.

Like, "Your friend is right here, are you still going to do this?"

A cheap move.

Kraiss only acted like this for one reason.

"How much are you getting?"

Enkrid asked.

There must have been a promise from the castle lord.

He had said it bluntly, seeing through everything, but Kraiss did not panic.

When gold coins were on the line, he could become an excellent actor, a brilliant strategist, and a sharp joker all at once.

"Sorry?

What are you talking about?"

"She came to see a friend."

If you wanted to gain leverage through personal ties, you should also think about what came in return.

Enkrid was Leona's friend too.

"If you say things like that, people could misunderstand..."

"Ah, it is fine.

Deals should be clean and simple."

Leona took his side instead.

To Enkrid, it sounded like, "I will not fall for petty tricks, and I will not use petty tricks either."

"I am leaving."

Enkrid stood up.

From this point on, he thought this was not his place to step in.

"See you next time."

Leona smiled brightly and raised the back of her hand in greeting.

Enkrid took that hand, placed a light kiss on the back of it, and turned away.

Proper etiquette.

He had heard and learned it here and there, and long ago, even as a mercenary, he had learned it while earning gold by escorting noble ladies at parties.

"He really does belong in a salon."

Kraiss muttered when he saw it, and after Enkrid turned, someone else stopped him.

"Uh, you."

It was Matthias.

He tried to hide his expression, but his surprise was obvious.

He had heard the rumors and still could not believe them.

He had seen Enkrid before.

This guy was that famous now?

He had thought half of it was a lie, but seeing him now, Enkrid carried himself differently.

He really looked like a true expert.

If Matthias's eyes were not wrong.

"Can we spar?"

Matthias asked.

Enkrid had come out in the middle of training.

Three swords were still hanging at his waist.

A gladius, a silver-bladed longsword, and Spark.

"Anytime."

He did not refuse.

Leona did not stop it either.

She knew what kind of person Matthias was.

If he stepped up like this before she could say anything, something must have stirred him.

Ting.

Swords came out, and after both watched each other, neither moved first, yet both lightly set their blades against the other's.

Two swords met cleanly at center, as if by agreement.

Clack, clang.

Three times, they traded probing blades.

Since it was a spar, it was also consideration, giving the other side time to loosen up.

Right after those three exchanges, Matthias made up his mind and cut hard.

He was a city-class powerhouse who knew how to project force.

"City-class powerhouse?

Bullshit. If a blade hits you, everyone dies the same."

Rem mocked it like that, but Matthias was still a recognized strong fighter.

Even so.

Ting.

The instant metal met metal, Matthias realized his opponent's sword was not slower than his.

He tried to press down immediately.

It was a controlling sword form meant to dominate a mixed Soft and Flowing Sword and Heavy Sword approach.

Still, Enkrid's sword moved faster than Matthias could react.

His blade knocked Matthias's blade away and shot straight in.

A strike that blocked, redirected, and hit at the same time, Snake Sword.

The visual trick made it look as if the blade had truly curved in.

Matthias looked at the silver-shining edge that stopped right before his neck.

Like this, without even seeming to exert himself?

And the polish of Enkrid's swordsmanship looked higher than his own.

"Hah."

All that came over him was emptiness.

Compared to the Enkrid he had seen before, he could have believed this was a different person.

The skill gap was clear.

Even without carelessness, he would still lose.

It was a gap where enduring longer meant nothing.

"Then."

Enkrid did not know how to soothe the heart of someone who had lost.

He simply turned and walked away.

At the same time, he also thought Matthias would get back up somehow.

He was not a knight, but a trading company's warrior.

So once he remembered his duty, he would handle what needed doing on his own.

Behind him, Kraiss started the deal.

As he heard the words,

"That bastard."

Enkrid finally understood what Kraiss had been aiming for from the start.

"Then that settles what you need to do, and what Border Guard will provide."

From the beginning, Kraiss had no intention of dragging out negotiations with merchants.

By calling Enkrid over and having him stand on Leona's side, he forced both parties to lay all their cards on the table.

Otherwise neither side could face Enkrid, so they should keep faith with each other.

In other words, he had called Enkrid in to act as judge.

"That little brain of his."

It almost felt like the best on the continent.

Then again, that was probably why he could handle so many tasks without getting stuck.

After that, Rockfreed Trading Company opened a branch in Border Guard.

Naturally, nearby merchants pushed back, but they accepted what they should accept, pushed out what they should push out, and secured their place.

A month was enough for that.

During that time, Enkrid swung his sword.

For a full month, like repeating today every day.

He was the kind of man who could do that even without feeling himself advance.

But now, he could feel himself advancing too.

So that month had not been wasted.

"Fun?"

While sparring, Rem asked, and Enkrid smiled as he answered.

"That is obvious."

If he did not enjoy it, how could he keep doing this?

Rem admitted it.

His captain was definitely insane.

Had he not almost sent him to the next world with his axe just moments ago?

It felt like an unintended repeat of today could have happened.

The Boatman had practically peeked at Enkrid's death, yet he had not died.

It was absurd.

After watching all of it, the Boatman had no choice but to offer his third highest praise.

"What Is Inside Your Head?"

That was what he said.

What could be inside the head of a man who swung a sword for an entire month?

It was a question that already knew its own answer.

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