WeTried Translations

Translator: Dawn

Editor: Dawn

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Genius Knight of a Fallen Race

Chapter 8

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Living as an Outsider

“Wow...”

Watching the knights’ cavalry charge, Shan finally grasped the true nature of the “Spirit” Roden had described. From that size and speed, an overwhelming, destructive force was erupting from the tips of their lances. This was something that should’ve been impossible.

It was a power belonging to a realm completely different from Shan’s own technique for controlling his body. His ability lay in using his muscles efficiently to push his physical capabilities to their limits, but this went beyond that. It was closer to outright distorting reality itself.

The shield wall the knights shattered soon collapsed completely as infantry forces pushed through. The sight of a battlefield with hundreds of soldiers being turned by the power of just four men was almost majestic. Shuddering at the realization, Shan’s eyes began darting rapidly, reading the shifting flow of battle. From their position, the view made it easy to grasp the changes.

“They’ve been surrounded.”

“What?”

“Those knights are in danger.”

Roden, who had been squinting nervously at the countless blades, only realized it a moment late after hearing Shan. The knights who had boldly broken through the shield wall were trying to return to their lines when an enemy unit wielding long spears blocked their path. From the opposite side, the enemy’s knights charged in with leveled lances.

There were five of them—one more than before. The knights who had charged earlier wore red plumes on their helmets, while these ones had blue plumes. While outnumbered, with their lances broken from the earlier charge and their speed gone, the outcome was obvious. Two of them managed to block and evade with their shields, but one was knocked from his horse, and another was pierced through the chest by a lance and collapsed.

One surviving knight shouted urgently,

“Dorian! Solem!”

“It’s too late! We have to retreat while we still can!”

“Damn it!”

The two surviving red knights split up, swinging swords and hammers in place of their broken lances, carving a path through enemy lines as they escaped. As the blue knights gave chase, the dismounted knight regained consciousness. However, he was already surrounded by infantry.

“Surrender!”

“You dare... You filthy commoners...!”

The last knight refused to be captured and drew the longsword at his waist. His skill was undeniably worthy of the title of knight. Each swing of his blade cut down soldiers along with their armor, and he angled his plate armor to deflect incoming attacks, minimizing damage.

Left alone, he seemed capable of defeating hundreds, perhaps even thousands. But only for a moment. As he began to tire, his movements slowed noticeably, and several nearby soldiers threw nets at him. He cut through a couple, but one he failed to notice tangled his legs, bringing him down.

“Gah!”

“Got him! Pull!”

As multiple layers of nets fell over him and he struggled, Roden, standing behind Shan, tapped him on the shoulder.

“Let’s get outta here.”

“Why?”

“It’s almost over. This battle’s been decided. Count Barlic’s side has won. If we stay and get spotted, they’ll make up excuses, such as deeming us the Duke’s spies, to abuse us. Victorious armies are always like that.”

Hearing that, Shan widened his view again and realized that the army of “Count Barlic” was the one with the blue-plumed knights. Having failed to catch the fleeing red knights, they turned back and struck the infantry that had pushed too far forward, isolating them. Sensing defeat, the soldiers began fleeing, ignoring their commanders’ shouts.

Shan and Roden immediately descended the hill and ran east. Fortunately, since they had been some distance away, they avoided encountering the pursuing forces. After sprinting for almost an hour, Roden finally stopped, breathing heavily.

“Huff...This should be far enough. I thought we might just be dealing with monsters or bandits, so I went to help... I didn’t expect an actual war.”

“You can’t fight if the enemy has blades, Roden!”

“Well, I’ve got you. If I were alone, I’d have been too scared to go.”

Shan didn’t understand why he would risk helping people attacked by bandits, but he simply tilted his head and let it go. What interested him more was what he had just witnessed.

“Knights... they’re both amazing and kind of weak.”

At first, when they shattered the shield wall with a cavalry charge, they seemed like the strongest beings in the world. The “Spirit” they displayed felt powerful enough to pierce even a dragon. But once they lost their speed and horses after getting surrounded, they weren’t as strong as expected. Shan even felt like he could defeat them in a one-on-one fight right now. Seeing his slightly disappointed expression, Roden smiled.

“The world is more finely balanced than you think. If knights could cut down hundreds of ordinary soldiers like straw, no one would bother raising armies. And knights wouldn’t need to obey kings or nobles either.”

“Ah.”

“And in the end, it was knights who decided the battle, right?”

Indeed, Count Barlic’s victory came from his knights attacking the enemy infantry from behind. In the end, the battle had been decided by which side used their knights more effectively.

“In the first place, as I said before, a knight’s duty is to fight monsters. That’s what we’ll be doing in Pendia, too.”

“Monster hunting, right?”

“Yeah. Against monsters, I can actually pull my weight. If we travel through the eastern regions together and defeat them, we’ll build a reputation. Then maybe we’ll even be knighted by a notable noble.”

Roden hesitated, then added,

“...Though I should say that it won’t be as easy as it sounds. Pendia may have less discrimination against Altos, but that doesn’t mean they’ll treat you like ordinary Westerners. You understand what I mean, right?”

“I do.”

“Still, you can do it. Don’t lose confidence.”

To Shan, that kind of discrimination meant nothing. If anyone picked a fight, he figured cutting off a wrist or two would quiet them. If Roden could read his thoughts, he would have sighed deeply.

After half a day of travel, they finally found a normal rural village. Hearing that armed men had arrived, farmers rushed over, only to immediately bow their heads upon seeing Roden’s imposing figure.

“So if we follow that road, we’ll get there?”

“Yes, sir knight. If you go now, you should reach the city before sunset.”

“I told you, no need to call me a knight. Here. Payment for the directions.”

Roden flicked half a silver coin with his thumb, and the farmer hurriedly picked it up from the ground.

As they walked past, Shan asked,

“You really emphasize that you’re not a knight.”

“It’d be troublesome if I got into a dispute. Pretending to be a knight is a serious crime. It challenges the authority of the king and nobles who appoint them.”

At the same time, denying it too strongly would make one seem lowly, so Roden’s strategy was to act like a knight who, for certain reasons, doesn’t claim to be one. Just as the farmer said, the city soon came into view. Seeing stone walls for the first time in his life, Shan let out a small gasp.

“Is it that amazing for you?”

“Very!”

The city they arrived at, Vito, was a fortress city surrounded by walls about four meters high, roughly the height of two or three grown men. But for some reason, the gates were tightly shut, and outside the walls were tents, wagons, and crude buildings. It seemed to be a gathering of people who had come to the city but couldn’t enter.

“The gate’s closed.”

“Probably because of the war. It’s happening not far from here... If we’re unlucky, we might have to stay outside too.”

Roden sounded disappointed, but Shan secretly felt relieved. If fighting broke out inside, it would be hard to escape. As Shan looked around curiously, his eyes landed on a strange man with half-black, half-blond hair.

“Come, come! Take a look! A special show for today only! A toad-man who breathes fire like a dragon, a dwarf with trees growing from his body, and a fairy maiden who flies! Come to the red tent! Admission is just two silver coins!”

It was a traveling troupe. They made a living by showcasing strange skills and exotic curiosities from distant lands. It seemed they were targeting people stuck outside the city. Back when Shan lived in Willow Village, such groups would pass by once every few months or years. Of course, he had never been able to enter the tent, but he remembered how fascinating it was just to watch the puppeteer casually playing with his dolls outside.

“Roden, can we go watch that?”

“Hm? I’d rather not... They usually have knife-throwing acts.”

“Ah.”

“Well, you’ll be fine on your own. Here—take this money, don’t lose it. I’ll look for a place to stay. Let’s meet in front of the gate when you’re done.”

“Okay!”

Taking a few silver coins, Shan excitedly headed toward the red tent. But he stopped when he saw the large doorman standing in front.

“Uh...”

The doorman looked like an ordinary young man with messy brown hair and a plain face. Yet what shocked Shan was that where his ears should have been, there were feathered horns.

Seeing Shan freeze, the doorman grinned and spoke cheerfully,

“It’s okay, young guest! Not all Altos are monsters that eat people! Did you come alone?”

Startled at meeting someone of his own kind for the first time, Shan calmed himself and carefully held out the silver coins. The doorman seemed to think Shan was just frightened by the unusual appearance of an Alto. Fortunately, the red tent had a large opening at the top, so there was no need to worry about his eyes glowing.

Though every time he brushed shoulders with someone, he felt the urge to draw his blade, Shan tried to calm himself with deep breaths. After a few minutes among the crowd, the performance began. The advertising man from earlier announced the show in a clear voice.

“First up, a fire-eating man! This fellow can breathe enormous flames using Alto magic!”

“Wow!”

Some people gasped, while others scoffed, saying anyone could spit fire with strong alcohol. Soon, an Alto with red, shell-like growths on his cheeks swung a torch and inhaled deeply. His cheeks swelled several times their size, and a towering flame shot upward when he exhaled.

“Wow!”

“I’ve never seen fire go that far...”

“And without alcohol?”

“Maybe the priest was right! Altos really are monsters...”

The performances that followed were just as astonishing. There was a dwarf shorter than Shan who had three small trees growing from his back, and a woman with butterfly wings who seemed to fly as she moved along ropes. When a woman with sharp, beastly teeth roared at the audience, several children burst into tears. As the show ended amid shock and applause, the host bowed in an exaggerated manner.

“Thank you all for watching! We’ll perform again tomorrow, so if the gates open, please spread the word about our Alto Monster Troupe!”

Even as the audience dispersed, Shan stood there blankly, staring at the now-empty stage. The doorman with feathered horns came inside to clean up and noticed him.

“Hey, young guest? We need to tidy up now... Wait, are you...?”

Only then did Shan realize that the tent had grown darker as the sun set. Because of his night vision, he sometimes couldn’t tell whether it was bright or dark.

“Yes.”

“It’s been a while since we’ve met another Alto besides us. Are your parents nearby?”

“No... but there’s someone like that.”

“I see! That’s good. Hey, Uncle Roxy! Did you know this kid’s an Alto too?”

Uncle Roxy was the man with two-toned hair who had been promoting the troupe and acting as the host.

Looking at Shan with interest, he replied,

“Hm? Not at all.”

“Looks like he’s the type whose eyes glow at night. I didn’t notice earlier.”

“Some don’t show it outwardly. Like me.”

At that, Shan looked at him in surprise. Aside from his unusual hair color, Roxy looked completely like an ordinary Westerner.

“You’re an Alto too?”

“This hair color is natural. When I need to pass as human, I just say I dyed it,” Roxy grinned, running a hand through his hair.

Meanwhile, other members of the troupe came out, curious about the commotion. Before he knew it, Shan was surrounded, bombarded with questions.

“Where’d you get that sword? It looks really nice.”

“I just... happened to get it.”

“What brings you here? There’s a war nearby. Don’t tell me it’s because of that? You’re too young to be a mercenary.”

“Wow, your eyes are so pretty... can you look over here? Yeah, like that! Wow, they really look like emeralds.”

For every answer, two or three new questions came, leaving Shan overwhelmed. But strangely, he didn’t dislike the attention. Aside from Roden, talking with people who saw him as one of their own felt warm.

From their conversation, he learned that the troupe was essentially one family. The doorman Pen was Debi's older brother, the girl with butterfly wings. Their father, the dwarf Boldot, was Roxy's older brother, the troupe leader. The sharp-toothed Kete was their mother, and the fire-breather Hose was her younger brother.

“But you don’t really look alike, for a family.”

“That’s normal. Alto traits rarely pass directly from parent to child. It happens, but it’s rare.”

“I see...”

For the first time, Shan realized that his glowing green eyes might not have come from his parents. If that were the case, finding them would probably be impossible. Not that he particularly wanted to. When his goal came up in conversation, everyone’s eyes widened in shock.

“You’re going to become a knight?”

“No way!”

“Roden said I could. That I’d be able to become one in Pendia.”

“...I’ve never been to Pendia, but that’s hard to believe,” Roxy, the troupe leader, frowned and spoke carefully. “I don’t want to speak ill of your guardian, but it does sound suspicious. Supporting an Alto child that much, when you’re not even family... It’s hard to believe. If it were me, I’d suspect they were planning to sell you off in some distant land. Why not travel with us instead? We make decent money, and since we don’t take in ordinary humans, we’re always short on hands.”

Roxy’s offer didn’t sound bad. This was the first Alto community Shan had ever met—and they were kind. But Shan had already gained something else after meeting Roden. A dream. An ambition. And after seeing the knights earlier that day, it had only grown stronger. He believed he could surpass them. When Shan refused, they nodded, though with some regret.

“We hope it works out for you.”

“Hey, once you become a lord, will you take us in?”

“That won’t be hard.”

They laughed as if joking, but still sincerely encouraged him to become the knight he aspired to be. That alone made his heart feel warm.