[{"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-525":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},428282,689,"Chapter 522: No Regrets","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-525",525,"\u003Cp>The moment Enkrid emerged from the world Acker had created, he felt the breeze brush through his hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time-wise, the sun hadn’t even sunk behind the western mountains yet—so not much time had passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His finely tuned senses could feel it. His internal clock—that biological timekeeper—told him so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid understood from its rhythm that only a short time had truly elapsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘It felt like ages passed inside.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt that way—but reality said otherwise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it was a world where only consciousness wandered. Did that mean everything learned inside was meaningless?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Probably not. He would need time to adapt when putting it into motion with his body again—but still.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Opening his eyes, Enkrid observed his own state in the same stance as before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Standing with his sword awkwardly in hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘I’m not hungry.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t feel the need to eat more. He wasn’t sleepy. Even after such intense concentration, there was no dizziness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt fine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he’d remained standing and gripping a sword the whole time, his limbs weren’t crying out in fatigue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You do the weirdest things every time I see you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Rem, approaching with both hands relaxed at her sides and her axe slung at her waist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the help of sorcery, she now operated at the level of a knight, and had caught glimpses of the sword’s trickery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of all, she’d seen Enkrid suddenly grip his sword, close his eyes, and begin to twitch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She knew something was happening. She’d used her sorcery to assess his state.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s how Rem knew Enkrid’s consciousness had been yanked away. More precisely, that he had been drawn in—synchronized with the sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just Rem—others had also judged Enkrid’s condition in their own ways. And now all eyes were on him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a glance sweeping across those eyes, Enkrid spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Playing with Acker.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, that’s what it looked like to me too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm. Going back in now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Enkrid relaxed his grip on the sword, shook out his legs to loosen the muscles, and walked over to a stump chair in the corner of the training yard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Normally, to enter the world Acker had created, one had to sink their consciousness downward, like descending into water. But Enkrid—having met far too many Ferrymen—was already a pro at this kind of thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not by choice, of course. But how many times had he wandered the boundary between dreams and consciousness?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without even waiting for Acker’s invitation, he dove back into that world again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I guess this is the part where I should act surprised, but I won’t. Like you said, wasting time is pointless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker tossed the words out mid-fight, casually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Normally, questions should’ve come first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did I ever teach you how to enter this realm?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you know how much harder it is to control Will that never runs dry?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How did you come back so fast?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You’re not immune to mental fatigue, so how the hell is this even possible?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did you make some kind of pact with the goddess of fortune, after nearly dying hundreds of times?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Questions like that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Things that couldn’t be explained. Things that defied reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s the kind of person Enkrid was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Acker decided not to ask. He abandoned pointless questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because after fighting this guy... something inside him had begun to stir too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not going to go easy on you just because you’re tired.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker clenched his teeth as he said it. Even as a thought-form, he felt a fire rising within himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah. Thanks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid replied with complete calm—and that just got under Acker’s skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both the tone and the words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You little shit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker laughed. At least there was no need to teach this one about psychological warfare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A ghost, a being without a body—and yet Enkrid had lit a fire in the heart of such a wraith.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From that moment on, a full month passed in the real world. But in the consciousness-world created by the thought-form, uncountable time went by.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was a lot Acker had to teach. It was his lingering regret—so he gave it everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you get good in here, then what? Just get the basics down. Once you're back out, you’ll have to re-ingrain it into your body anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid never asked for rest—he just kept requesting duels. And Acker obliged, speaking as they fought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was around this time that Enkrid realized—he didn’t need to breathe here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren’t fighting with real bodies in this place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, just as Acker had said, mastering the feel of it was enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s exactly what he focused on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He aimed to pull out just the methods, the instincts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, it wasn’t easy. Each movement had to be repeated dozens of times—then explained—and then repeated again just to get the basics down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re kind of... slow, you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened to that knight training of yours? Why is your absorption rate so low?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker could have said those things. And Enkrid wouldn’t have minded—he’d heard worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Acker never did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One month wasn’t long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker was too busy pouring everything out, so that not a shred of regret remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He ignored unnecessary questions. Talent? Irrelevant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What would words change? Nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So he stuck to only what mattered. The thought-form remained focused on the goal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was how Acker taught.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Show me the sword techniques you’ve learned. You must’ve learned the ones Knight Acker left behind, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the thought-form, Acker referred to his original self in the third person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mind Duel. True Blade Form. Nameless Blade Form.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those were the names of the techniques. Enkrid showed how he had developed and altered them in his own way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He also demonstrated how to block foresight: overwhelming the opponent with dozens, even hundreds of layered intentions, creating chaos and ambiguity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You think I’m some greenhorn who just became a knight? That kind of trick only works on amateurs.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in Acker’s day, there had been more knights—and far more battles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a nation to be founded, chaos was more useful than peace, and the continent had been wilder than it was now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anyone who fell for such tricks back then was called a fledgling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knights back then didn’t hold back, eyeing each other carefully like they do now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Historians now call it the Age of Strife.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Demon Realm had been quieter back then, but humans, beastfolk, giants, fairies, and dwarves clashed nonstop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Acker spoke, he blocked Enkrid’s swing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clang! Clang! The metallic ring of blades echoed between them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid moved between the grass blades, striking with intent to pressure his opponent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? So that’s how you’re doing it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker muttered as he dodged, blocked, and countered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve made some progress. Still, you should probably learn the latter half of Nameless Blade Form. That’d help, yeah?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid didn’t have time to nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if breathing wasn’t necessary here, was it really right to not breathe?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe Acker’s thought-form didn’t need to—but Enkrid did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He needed to act as if he were using his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flash of insight sparked through his mind, and Enkrid listened as Acker continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The original name of this sword art is Acker’s Web. Acker liked spiders. He even kept them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While learning the latter half of True Blade Form and refining his control of Will, Enkrid constantly tried to handle that blunt, massive force with his senses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time, once loosed like an arrow, could never be retrieved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time passed could not be reclaimed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aside from eating, sleeping, and brief breaks—Enkrid spent the entire month with Acker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They say every meeting must end in parting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker knew his time was almost up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And every time Enkrid returned to reality, he noticed that the blade in his hand grew dull, and the once-sturdy hilt became soft.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, he could probably shatter the blade with just his fingers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The once-proud sword of legend, the brilliant blade Acker, was gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All that remained was a worn, brittle weapon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then, on one otherwise uneventful day...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within that grassy field of the mental realm...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker’s body began to fade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well, I’m off.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid nodded, eyes fixed on Acker’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His cheek had already begun to dissolve, scattering like grains of light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From his cheek to his hair, then his entire body—it all began to fragment into tiny particles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a way, it was a beautiful sight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In another, it was cruel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, this was the vanishing of a being, regardless of whether it was just a thought-form or not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Acker smiled gently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Regret? Sadness?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There wasn’t a trace of such emotions on his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His smile held no pain, no sorrow—just peace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acker said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They hadn’t had much time for deep conversation, so Acker hadn’t spoken much about himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, he had dropped a few stories in between.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there hadn’t been time to speak of his lingering regrets or his goals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, they had exchanged sword strikes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And through that alone, Enkrid had understood what Acker wanted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was nothing more to {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} be said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The human shape formed by the thought-form blurred, faded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grains of light scattered upward, as if spiraling into the sky in a tiny whirlwind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, the sky above the field—filled with sunlight and swaying grass—split open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From that split, light poured forth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flickering brilliance, like hundreds, thousands of shooting stars streaking past his eyes—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the sensation of drifting back from the border between consciousness and unconsciousness, back to reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Enkrid awoke, he lowered his head, eyes opening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fwoosh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sword in his hand—Acker—disintegrated like dust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he looked up, the sun overhead shone down through a thin veil of clouds, as if to say, What could possibly block me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Light poured freely from above.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a bright, clear day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A midday field... Acker’s favorite place. It was his homeland.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those were words spoken by the thought-form Acker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He acted like he didn’t speak much about himself—but in truth, he had said quite a bit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Claimed he didn’t know much because he was just a thought-form, but he turned out to be quite the chatterbox.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You learned Valen’s swordsmanship too?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Valen-style mercenary sword?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why do you call that man a mercenary?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wasn’t he?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He was a knight. Ranked among the top ten. You think those sword forms are just tricks? Sure, they are tricks—but dig deeper. You’ll taste something different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was swordsmanship built entirely on the premise of Will.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the kind of revelation that should’ve made Enkrid perk up his ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the moment, he hadn’t had the luxury to react.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too much to do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yes, Acker had taught him. But—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had also struggled on his own, striving to grasp what he knew he had yet to understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s why he’d charged forward, never resting, swinging his sword over and over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in the end, what Acker left behind was passed on wholly to Enkrid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were no regrets left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the fact that he had left without regret meant that Knight Acker’s lingering will had been fulfilled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, the royal treasure known as Acker had completed its purpose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No—he had done more than that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What does it mean to go beyond one’s purpose?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had realized just how crude his way of handling Will was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To overcome that, he had to hit his limit again and again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So he fought Acker—again and again—forcing his Will to burst forth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he was going to fight within the conscious world anyway, then he might as well use that time to swap out the old bricks he'd built up with something stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘I’m the one who should’ve said thank you.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid watched the falling sunlight and silently gave his thanks to Acker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was fully autumn now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Autumn—the perfect season for battles and war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the heat gone, food wouldn’t spoil as quickly, making it easier to store rations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And if forests or fields were nearby, provisions could be sourced on-site.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cool breeze was refreshing rather than cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And with it being the driest season of the year, most days saw thin clouds or clear skies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>High skies and broad visibility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The battlefield would be Greenperl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they were to fight on open plains, it would be a poor setting for tricks or surprises.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That meant it was a full-scale war. At least, that’s how it appeared on the surface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Enkrid spent a month with Acker and began embodying what he’d learned, Azpen declared war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you give us half of Greenperl, and two of the fortified cities you’ve built, we’ll let this pass without a fight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s what the envoy who arrived at the royal palace had said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I assume you didn’t speak those words thinking I’d accept them. Very well—let’s see what you place your faith in, Azpen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crang, seated upon the throne, didn’t rebuke or raise his voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He merely spoke calmly, and in doing so, showed his authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Azpen’s envoy was from the Ekkinz family, who symbolized administration and governance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He concluded that the king of Naurillia possessed great composure and withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Azpen moved with noisy fanfare—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so the whole continent was abuzz.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They took full advantage of rumors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, Azpen would win.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, it was the loose-lipped merchants.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then came the heads of major trading companies, all talking about the war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some of them openly bet on Azpen’s victory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had seen the grand army—a force that had sucked dry even the marrow of their kingdom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By contrast, Naurillia’s response seemed... passive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least, on the surface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They made it look like the border guard would hold first, and then the army would move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Naurillia wasn’t revealing its full strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Azpen wasn’t hiding theirs at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their stance: Try and stop us if you can.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amidst all this, Kraiss set his plan—a strategy in action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Deployment preparations complete.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man with large eyes and dreams of running dozens of salons in the future looked over the gathered warriors in the training yard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone was fully equipped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid, having lost the sword Acker, now carried a new blade—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A solid Valerisan-forged steel sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He still wore three swords at his waist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On his back, he strapped a throwing spear, tilted diagonally—making four large weapons in total.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under his blue gambeson embroidered with golden thread, he wore drake-scale armor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead of a gauntlet, his left forearm was wrapped tightly in leather bands—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fastened by hooks at each end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wrist guard had been made for him by Aitri, using leather she’d received from a giant merchant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At Enkrid’s sides, the Mad Platoon gathered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rem with her axe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragna with his greatsword slung over one shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jaxon, arms crossed, eyes lowered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Shinar, standing expressionless right behind Enkrid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Somehow... this is both nerve-wracking and reassuring,” Kraiss said, watching them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to his plan, Audin and Teresa would remain on this front.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rest of the forces would need to move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So we head out together, and then split up right after?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid asked for confirmation, and Kraiss nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was time to begin.\u003C\u002Fp>",2534,"2026-05-30T08:28:24.043Z","2026-06-01T04:30:45.896Z",1,"novelbin.me","4bfbe86f318b4c6ff5fb3a96e710244d7fdfb78ce4758ca2eb5702290d85601f","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-526","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-524",882,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-knight-who-eternally-regresses-cover.jpg"]