[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-a-knight-who-eternally-regresses":3,"chapter-a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-291":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","A Knight Who Eternally Regresses",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},428091,689,"Chapter 289","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-291",291,"\u003Cp>To Kraiss, this was the most obvious conclusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why throw your life away in a battle with no chance of victory?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why fight here, fully prepared to die?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe if reinforcements were coming, it’d be a different story.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But looking at the situation logically, the chances of that were slim.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slim, but not nonexistent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they wanted to see even the faintest glimmer of those reinforcements, they had to let go of certain things.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Green Pearl. The Border Guard Fortress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had watchtowers, freshly dug trenches, and other defenses. But if they got attacked from both sides, none of it would matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What we have now is meaningless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking toward the future was sometimes the wiser choice. Endurance alone wasn’t always the answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraiss had already worked through these thoughts and reached his conclusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So he said it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let’s run.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid looked at the wide-eyed man, considering him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes seem fine this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t look like he was paralyzed by fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then was he asking without knowing what would happen if they fled?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid expanded his vision, scanning the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone's eyes were on him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whatever decision he made, they would follow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s how it looked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even One-Eyed, who was lurking outside the tent, seemed ready to follow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Esther, of course, was beyond question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And if Rem, who was off somewhere sleeping like a log, returned to find him missing—he’d hunt him down no matter what.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragna? Even if they split up, got lost again and again, he’d find his way back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who was he to them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What had they seen in him to follow him like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't force his will on them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t impose his own convictions on them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid simply couldn’t do that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can go.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was his answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraiss’ face brightened, but he waited for what came next.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What about you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jaxon asked bluntly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That bastard always waited for the right moment to drop the honorifics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m not going.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why not? Haven’t we done enough?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Kraiss dropped formal speech. Enkrid didn’t mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, he spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you sell your sword for gold, you’re a mercenary.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The others stared at him, waiting for the rest. They looked like they wanted to question him, but they held back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That silence made Enkrid realize something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had learned from them, but they had also learned from him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were listening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their ears were open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if they had ignored him, he would have said what he needed to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if they were willing to listen—wasn’t that even better?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And I will be a knight.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He swallowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thoughts he had carried, the beliefs he had once only vaguely clung to, had been honed and sharpened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had become a pillar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid sat up slightly. Pain surged through his right arm and shin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn’t matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could endure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was far better than dying, at least.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Constant pain was merely a reminder that he was alive, that he hadn’t wasted another day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You say that a lot.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jaxon muttered, throwing in a comment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid pulled his legs in, shifting to a more comfortable position.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you don’t sell your sword for gold, then you must sell it for duty and responsibility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this is my duty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is my responsibility.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What is a knight?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A protector.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What must he protect?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The legends, the myths, the ideals of the past—the knights who shone like the sun once said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Protect the weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uphold justice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Keep your oath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which came first?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had already found his answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chivalry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dying for a lady—is that chivalry?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he had sworn an oath, then yes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that was his chivalry, he would acknowledge it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he would not sell his sword for mere gold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nor would he become a butcher who killed for the pleasure of it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An intangible value.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To protect what he believed in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To swear an oath and uphold it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People might call that foolish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that was Enkrid’s dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The path he had chosen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had died countless times, and yet he had never given up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why he hadn’t settled for mere survival.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he ran now, how many people in the Border Guard would die?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Children. Women. The elderly. The young.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A massacre of at least three digits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or maybe fewer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or maybe more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The enemy included cultists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A horde of lunatics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, even taking all that into account, retreating now would be the more efficient choice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Giving up now, only to take back what was lost later—maybe that was the better plan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he wasn’t going to do that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid’s emotions didn’t waver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasn’t about feelings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had decided.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would do as he had sworn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him stood the Border Guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he had sworn to protect them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t a knight yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But ever since the day he had sworn to live that way, he had kept his oath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had lived that way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was what it meant to be Enkrid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraiss’ face turned pale again. His shoulders slumped. He clearly didn’t like the answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is foolish.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Agreed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid answered him, recalling a day from the past.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shhhhhh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The rain’s coming down nasty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mercenary captain didn’t particularly hate rainy days, but slogging through this sticky swamp for a job was starting to piss him off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least they weren’t trekking straight through the swamp itself. Instead, they were cutting through a small forest running alongside it. That was something. But it didn’t make this any more pleasant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The damp forest near the swamp had a way of gifting long, wriggling bugs between the gaps of their armor, and the mosquitoes had no fear, biting at the mercenaries' exposed hands as they walked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fucking hell!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Smack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One of the mercenaries swatted at his hand, cursing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was pouring—where the hell were these mosquitoes even coming from?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How much farther?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rough-looking mercenary shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The guide pushed back his rain-soaked black hair and answered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Almost there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve been saying that for ages!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The captain approached. He was a hulking man with a brutal face, exuding raw intimidation. Yet, even as he stared him down, the guide’s blue eyes remained calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The rain’s slowing us down.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah… fine, whatever. Let’s keep moving.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thwack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The captain gave the guide a light smack on the back of the head, shaking his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, he turned back to his men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shut your damn mouths before I throw you into the swamp, you whiny bastards.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a grunt, the captain swung his thick sword, slicing through a vine blocking their path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snap!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The severed vine fell away, clearing the way forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His words were crude, but they kept the men from complaining further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The guide—Enkrid—watched this and thought this was a decent mercenary company.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The captain looked like a brute, but he took care of his men. And the mercenaries, despite their rough edges, at least had a code.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren’t the kind to stab a comrade, a friend, or a client in the back during a job.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without a keen sense for spotting people like this, a guide wouldn’t last long. They’d end up as nothing more than insect feed, or worse—fertilizer for the trees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you didn’t want to die a dog’s death on the road, you had to pick your company wisely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seemed like he’d chosen well this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why are we using him instead of a proper Pathfinder?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did that guy know Enkrid could hear him? Or was he saying it on purpose?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One of the mercenaries had sidled up behind the captain, muttering his question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shhhhhh. Pitter-patter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even through the sound of the rain, their voices carried. The trees above kept the worst of the downpour off of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s cheap.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I said, he’s cheap. Not as skilled as a real Pathfinder, but he can fight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A half-guide, half-combatant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the price of a single guide, they got a soldier as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The captain had done the math and decided Enkrid was cost-effective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the idiot mercenary didn’t get it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Doesn’t seem cheap to me. I’ve met plenty of Pathfinders that cost less.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Any of them actually good at finding their way?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another mercenary sneered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Want me to kill you? You little shit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that, the conversation devolved into dumb banter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Joking about killing each other.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The kind of talk you’d expect from rough mercenaries.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their job was in a small village nestled in the forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There weren’t many monsters or beasts in the area, making it a relatively safe place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A village surrounded by swamps should have had lizard colonies nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But apparently, some wandering swordsman had wiped them all out over a decade ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since then, whenever the lizards started showing up again, the village hired mercenaries to deal with them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few gold coins a year kept them safe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shhhhhh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rain poured down, blurring his vision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His clothes and armor were soaked through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, the gambeson he was wearing was ruined—he’d have to toss it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good thing he’d worn a cheap one today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not that it mattered much. If the rain let up, the insects would swarm, and the humidity was unbearable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something about the trees here just trapped the damp air like a curse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a standard job—clearing out lizards, reinforcing the village defenses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had been stationed in this region for over half a year now, training while taking on odd jobs as a guide to survive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’ve arrived.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village finally came into view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Welcome.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A middle-aged village chief greeted them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that, they got to work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearing out lizards drawn by the scent of the swamp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hanging strips of bark soaked in repellent around the perimeter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Driving stakes into the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It all seemed pointless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is wisdom passed down from our ancestors.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The chief, however, believed in it with absolute certainty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was always plenty of work to go around.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if they’d driven the lizards away for now, a few stragglers would always creep back in. And when that happened, they’d need swords again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There weren’t many in the village capable of fighting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of them had never seen a real battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since he had nothing better to do after guiding them here, Enkrid spent his usual time practicing his swordplay in an empty clearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, mister.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A small voice called out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A kid—big, bright eyes, pale skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe twelve years old.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid didn’t underestimate people just because they were small—he’d once been beaten by someone about this size.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this one didn’t seem like a fighter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why do you train so hard?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A familiar conversation followed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few pointless words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A kid—specifically, a girl—who kept seeking him out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s how Enkrid found himself befriending a little brat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m leaving the village in three years.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What, to die a dog’s death on the road?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Calling that a dream? She had guts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where was a kid like her planning on going alone?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, you idiot! That’s not what I meant! You saw that herb that repels the lizards, right? You think this swamp is the only place with something like that? The plants that grow here are different.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village’s main source of income was herbs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So you are planning to get yourself killed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Argh, shut up!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What exactly did she think she was going to do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m going to find an amazing herb. And I won’t go alone! I’ll join up with a mercenary band when the time comes!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She called it a dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finding an unknown plant and making it into a miracle cure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid didn’t mock other people’s dreams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he did worry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So, what? You are planning to die for it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ugh, shut up!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren’t that close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was just a way to pass the time between training sessions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe she saw it the same way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among all the mercenaries passing through, most of them had rough faces. But there was one guy who just kept to himself, practicing in the corner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had talked to him, and it turned out he wasn’t the worst company.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mercenary job stretched on for over a month, and they kept having these meaningless little conversations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is being a guide your dream?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. A knight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A knight? Like the Nightmare of the Battlefield?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…You know, you could just collect herbs with me instead. No one would stop you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s not talk.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, really. I respect your dream. Totally. I mean it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look me in the eyes when you say that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Huh? What did you say?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you pretending not to hear me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was a ridiculous kid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And disaster always came without warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look, fighting here—what do either of us gain from that? I’ll be blunt. You got paid, right? Then leave. You weren’t hired for this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had thought the mercenary captain was a decent man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a mercenary captain, anyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then fifty bandits showed up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Talking nonsense about some hidden treasure buried in the swamp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The captain had a decision to make.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the villagers had no choice but to despair.\u003C\u002Fp>",2188,"2026-05-30T08:27:55.568Z","2026-06-01T04:30:45.896Z",1,"novelbin.me","31d6de512b2942ccced80e57a0ea4141dfe5aaf96c69c0b0953d408635fe233c","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-482","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-290",882,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-knight-who-eternally-regresses-cover.jpg"]