[{"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-572":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},428379,689,"Chapter 569: A Born Hunter?","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-572",572,"\u003Cp>The Holy City-State was known for not wasting money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Haha, I offer my gratitude for your effort through a blessing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This kind of lip service was a favored method. A well-known tale.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether someone was a believer or not, they didn’t use krona. They saved it. If possible, they preferred to resolve things internally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you asked the Construction Guild which country they hated working with most, the Holy Nation would probably be number one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the continent’s merchant guilds, they were undoubtedly the most despised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leona had once said something similar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I respect priests, but I don’t work with religious nuts.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This went for all priests, corrupt or not—they were all the same.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Holy Nation used their own Holy Warrior Orders if mercenaries were needed, trained inquisitors if they needed guides, and even ran their own merchant companies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Isn’t it incredible? That all of this exists just to avoid spending krona?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was Leona’s take.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid agreed, but he also saw a deeper meaning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘They just don’t give outsiders the chance to interfere with Church matters from the beginning.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, it was also partly because they didn’t like the idea of krona flowing out externally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this was strange indeed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just how much were they paying to get involved in Church affairs like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those who hunted people—often called manhunters—wouldn’t move without a down payment. So it meant they’d already been paid a certain amount of krona.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that alone was a little surprising.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because Enkrid thought so, he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And while the krona was surprising enough, their bold movements were even more so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those sent from the Holy Nation must have scattered their words all over as they crossed the Naurillian border.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would’ve been nothing to request a contract via an information guild.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, it required a hefty fee, but if they were worried about that, they wouldn’t have hired anyone in the first place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, from the moment they left the Holy Nation, they spared no effort in chasing the Saintess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was far easier to understand their motives than to believe in some nonexistent kidnappers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Profit.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hiring a few hunters and using some krona would still be worth it if they could capture a girl who had become a Saintess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noble purpose? There was none. That’s how it felt, and that’s how the situation looked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who are you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three pursuers didn’t have the eyes to recognize their opponent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All three wore thin leather garments, seemingly made of a material that could serve as armor in emergencies. Their outfits were light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Any sign of the girl? You couldn’t find her, huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid spoke, recognizing that the first one picked was a dud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then they were of no use.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These bastards must’ve heard a rumor and tagged along, but this isn’t a job for riffraff.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman snapped harshly, glaring. She looked uneasy. After all, the three who suddenly appeared didn’t seem ordinary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even just looking at Audin’s build was unsettling. On top of that, there was a fairy, and a man whose looks pulled the eye even at a glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why the hell was he so good-looking?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even in shock and confusion, his face drew attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Black hair and blue eyes, like casting some kind of spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, she didn’t go slack-jawed and blurt out something like, “He’s hot.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just listening to the woman speak, Enkrid could tell the krona offered by the Holy Nation wasn’t small change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he ever seen a Church operation conducted this way? Never.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t particularly curious about the exact amount, so there was no need to ask.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Audin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid spoke and stepped forward toward the man on the right.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just a casual step. From the opponent’s perspective, Enkrid would’ve seemed to grow in size all at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without needing to stomp, he leaned forward and sparked strength and will, driving off the ground with firm legs, causing his opponent’s face to loom large.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His expression shifted by the second from caution and unease to outright horror.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid’s senses were now on a level completely removed from typical swordsmen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as the man was about to widen his eyes in shock and gasp, Enkrid’s palm chopped the back of his neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the front, stepping diagonally to the right, his arm swung like a whip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Smack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man let out a short groan and crumpled to the side. Enkrid caught him before he hit the ground and gently laid him down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right next to him, Audin had rushed in at nearly the same speed and subdued the other two.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One was hammered on the crown with a clenched fist like a mace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t die. His eyes rolled back, showing whites before he collapsed with a groan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other was lightly strangled to cut off his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ggh... ggh!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lifted into the air by the neck, the man kicked wildly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dirt and dry leaves flew around his feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His toes brushed Audin’s chest, but that was it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audin casually knocked him unconscious and laid him down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were no immediate signs of monsters or beasts nearby, and they wouldn’t stay unconscious long. They wouldn’t die from this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s move.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid immediately resumed tracking. From here, nothing was difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Footprints left behind, broken branches, smells, sounds, traces of slain monsters, the terrain—he moved according to all of these.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To an observer, he’d have looked like a madman charging through the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, he came across a familiar face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bastard who once offered seven-tenths of the contract fee if Enkrid fought first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A manhunter who dabbled in abduction. A scumbag. A degenerate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any of those would suffice to describe him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid had figured the bastard was long dead, but here he was, still alive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The offer of seven-tenths? Enkrid had known even then it was bullshit, so he lured monsters toward him and escaped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was their first meeting since then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t exactly a master tracker—more of a brute who solved things with force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Muscular limbs and a massive mace were his trademarks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drops of blood dotted the head of that mace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearby lay the bodies of two women, presumably from another hunter party.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Guess you got greedy for the krona and offed them first?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he got the picture, Enkrid asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bounty hunter with the mace didn’t recognize him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Neither did the two standing beside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rumors might’ve said something about the Ironclad Knight or whatever, but how many people could recognize someone just from that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audin’s build was abnormally large, but even that didn’t immediately bring to mind the bear beastkin from the Border Guard. They probably just thought he was some giant half-blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shinar spoke as she examined the sprawled bodies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They were ambushed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They must’ve been lured in with talk of working together, then bashed from behind with the mace—that explained the caved-in skulls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you want?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, and even now, the bastard was brimming with confidence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be fair, he did have the skills to back it up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, anyway. Not anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Enkrid, the past was the past. There was no grudge to discuss. He lived for tomorrow, not yesterday.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, even among bounty hunters who regularly backstabbed each other, this crossed the line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You went too far.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid didn’t bother introducing himself. He simply drew his sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drew and slashed. Each motion flowed like a line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the unbroken blade of Oara, the knight who defended the city of Oara.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soft, curving arc traced erratic trails in the air, then lengthened like a shooting star.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That shooting star—formed of light and motion—struck down on the man’s head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mace never had a chance to block. The result was inevitable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The steel helmet perched on his head was sliced clean through by the blade. Cutting through tempered steel, once something Enkrid had trained hard for, now came naturally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resistance felt in his hand was far less than before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The force, angle, and will to cut—all aligned perfectly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The helmet split, and with it, the man’s head, spilling brain matter and blood to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The slash had been so fast, little blood remained on the blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mace-wielding bastard lay down beside the two female hunters he’d killed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dark brown earth turned black as it soaked in the blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he fell, the two standing beside him bolted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They moved fast. In truth, it was more accurate to say they’d been ready to run at any moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was a bounty hunter’s rule: if things go south, flee. That was the code.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, they had terrible luck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A knight suddenly leaping out to strike them down? That was about as unlikely as a god descending to punish them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Granted, meeting a knight and dying was far more likely, but both were rare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid caught them in the range of his senses as they split left and right. The rest was simply enacting the future he'd already seen with insight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He spread his arms like wings, then drew and threw two daggers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a whistle, the blades flew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thunk!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One dagger, packed with brutal force, pierced through the back of a neck and embedded in a tree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other struck a skull, becoming a grisly ornament.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The one who took a blade to the head flailed, smacked into a tree, and slid down dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Blood soaked the ground once more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The god awaits you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audin gave a short prayer over the dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Should he have left out the part where the god in question was the god of war?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to doctrine, the war god brought the dead to beat them before starting anew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knowing that, these words were hardly a blessing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audin probably meant it sincerely, mourning them. If asked, he’d likely say:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If they deserved a beating, they should get one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fair point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even after clearing one party, the group kept moving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid continued deciding who lived and died by his own standard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Shinar, it was clear that Enkrid had a line. His criteria were precise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those doing only what was necessary were spared, but those who used excessive force or acted inhumanely out of greed died without exception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t punishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He just acted according to his own judgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching him, Shinar felt as though she could glimpse the true nature of Enkrid’s will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t hesitate to act on what he believed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right and wrong weren’t determined by anyone else’s eyes, but his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And to her, that sparkled. That was how Shinar saw it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They continued to encounter more hunters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some, unaware of who Enkrid’s group was, spoke readily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The tracks led into the woods. But a child entering the forest alone is suicide, so we figured we’d at least recover the body. We moved carefully, avoiding monsters or beasts. But, uh...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He trailed off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d probably heard there was a manticore in this forest, and then saw one diced into six neat pieces beneath the feet of a slender fairy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bones and muscle, cleaved in one strike. A sight that made you instinctively bow your head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of all, they themselves might’ve had to face that manticore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh, so... do you know where the holy warriors are?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They didn’t enter the forest. If we encountered them, we were supposed to signal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He waved an arrow with a pouch of # Nоvеlight # glimmering powder at the end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid glanced at the arrow and moved on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If things went well, they might find the girl before the Holy Nation’s pursuers did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘But isn’t this too clean?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, a skilled ranger could erase footprints.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this was excessive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was this right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With suspicion, Enkrid opened his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shinar. These tracks...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No need for lengthy words. The fairy replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah. I think it’s weird too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was strange. But that didn’t mean there was another path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strange or not, they said she went east, and there was nowhere else to hide but this forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid adjusted his approach. He decided to move even more boldly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Monsters and beasts weren’t a threat, so the moment he found a trace, he moved in a straight line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Circling the forest in an arc, they caught and interrogated fifteen hunter parties. None had found a trace of a lone runaway child.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Even if the god of hunters came down, this wouldn’t make sense.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that thought, Enkrid stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ha.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One key to tracking was to follow a line, not a point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, the best method was to predict the enemy’s mindset, guess their trajectory, and follow that line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s hard to guess where someone is, but if you guess the line they’re moving on, it becomes much easier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Enkrid remembered a question he’d asked as he left the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Is she a born hunter?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He scanned the forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were traces—faint ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other pursuers weren’t amateurs either. They’d come here because they saw tracks leading into the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A little girl had entered the forest alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They probably assumed she’d died, and if they could recover the body, they’d be lucky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If not, maybe they’d find some leftover bones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even that wouldn’t be easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Plenty of monsters and beasts could chew through bone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even that manticore Shinar had diced up enjoyed tracking by scent and gnawing bones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, that one had reacted because their group made noise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They’d also seen ghouls, and even a few spider-type monsters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how great a hunter she was—could a child survive this alone?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Looks like we’ve been had.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not by the holy warriors, but by their target.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, they’d been completely fooled by the Saintess’s trick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enkrid sorted his thoughts and began to backtrack the Saintess’s movements.\u003C\u002Fp>",2296,"2026-05-30T08:28:29.162Z","2026-06-01T04:30:45.896Z",1,"novelbin.me","bd7a68f57f1ced1aa56410ad0f8df1ad34b7ed46a5d664b3bf90dca43d8c2ed7","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-573","a-knight-who-eternally-regresses-chapter-571",882,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-knight-who-eternally-regresses-cover.jpg"]