How to Live as a Genius Knight in a Fantasy World

33.

The prolonged meeting had finally concluded.

“I can finally go home.”

Ironically, after witnessing the momentous decision-making of the kingdom, what the Viscount thought of was the opportunity to return to Isel and rest deeply.

No matter how luxurious the accommodations, they could never be as familiar as one’s own home after spending a long time there.

Operating a large military force, even the seasoned Viscount Isel was exhausted from the intense and prolonged discussions at the meeting.

Nevertheless, the exertion of mental energy paid off, as they were able to finalize the details for the subjugation.

Given that the matter had been deliberated on for a long time by nobles and had received the king’s approval, it was safe to assume that the subjugation would proceed as planned.

The conclusion reached at the end of the discussion did not deviate significantly from Viscount Isel’s expectations.

While it might be impossible to prevent the temples from gathering information independently and taking action, there would be no formal request for assistance.

The forces to be mobilized would consist of two hundred knights, two thousand soldiers, and fifty mages to be dispatched from the Tower.

It was an abnormal army structure with many knights and wizards, but considering the opponent, it could be seen as an appropriate composition.

Dealing with beings wielding evil powers was not something regular soldiers could often do.

Because there were many magic spells in the dark magic category that directly affected the mind, it was fortunate if allies under the influence of fear or confusion did not attack.

The two thousand troops were practically personnel for supply and construction, so it was understood that over 90% of the combat power came from knights and wizards.

With a considerable force gathering, the departure date was set for three weeks later.

It was the minimum time needed to gather knights and soldiers from each territory and prepare supplies.

Messengers were likely already prepared to spread the news to each territory.

“We should depart tomorrow.”

After bypassing the Talun Mountains and returning to Eizel to prepare the troops before moving back to Talun, time was tight.

The comfort was that the mobilized knights and soldiers were not abundant.

For each knight, twenty soldiers were the total mobilized force allocated to the Eizel territory.

Naturally, the supplies to be prepared were not substantial.

Considering the low population of the barony and the public recognition of being the first to discover and report the uprising.

Of course, sending more troops to gain recognition for the expedition was an option, but the Baron of Eizel did not want to take that route.

Knights were inherently valuable, and the soldiers were scarce but excellent human resources from rural territories.

It was both out of nobility to value them and for the smooth operation of the territories that it was deemed beneficial not to lose troops.

With the burden of the expedition lessened, there was one issue the Baron of Eizel had to ponder.

Among the knights, who to send for the expedition.

Including the Baron himself and the newly appointed Rohan, Eizel had a total of five knights.

Excluding the Baron himself, one of the remaining four knights had to be sent.

“Atum and Rowe are already veterans, Dennis lacks experience but is exceptionally skilled. Rohan… has outstanding potential, but he is still immature.”

It was a tough decision, but the Baron soon made up his mind.

“With such a substantial deployment of forces, it is an exceedingly appropriate opportunity to gain experience.”

Veterans found it hard to rise in status, and being too inexperienced meant they couldn’t properly digest the experience.

Still young and not lagging far behind the veterans in skill, selecting Dennis was not at all strange for the Baron of Eizel.

The day after the council meeting.

The group from Eizel Castle set out early in the morning, leaving Arden on their way back home.

Bypassing the Talun Mountains, it would take over ten days of steady movement to reach Eizel.

Whether it was because the foundation ceremony had ended or rumors about the Talun Mountains had spread, the well-maintained road was bustling with people, carriages, and even camels.

It was an unimaginable traffic flow in Eizel.

It took a total of twelve days for the group to arrive in Eizel after leaving Arden.

The distance was nearly doubled, but compared to crossing the mountains, the road had a gentler slope and significantly fewer monster encounters, so the fatigue was not as high as feared.

Of course, that didn’t mean there was no fatigue at all, so upon arriving in Eizel, all soldiers and knights hurriedly went home to rest.

“It’s been a while…”

Rohan, who had returned to the familiar Lord’s residence, looked around the room with a touched expression.

It felt like the room had been consistently cleaned, with traces of human touch felt throughout.

After tossing his belongings, changing into comfortable clothes, he threw himself onto the bed.

“I can rest deeply for a while now.”

Returning to Eizel, Rohan had heard from the Baron about the expedition.

The sudden appearance of a troll horde, the identity of the white beads, and the personnel mobilized for the subjugation, all of it.

It was understandable that Dennis, not himself, was assigned as the knight to participate in the subjugation.

No matter how many troops were mobilized, facing a dark wizard meant there would inevitably be a dangerous element, requiring the selection of a skilled knight.

“I can’t really call myself a proper knight yet.”

Fortunately, winning the tournament allowed him to become a knight, but even Rohan himself felt that without the blow of the Warrior King, he was the weakest among the knights.

“Well, it’s actually for the best. Since I’ve decided to focus solely on training for the time being.”

Although training did not increase his skills as quickly as real combat, there was no use for skills or mastery if one were to die.

Three days after arriving at Izell Castle.

Dennis and twenty soldiers quietly set off outside the castle gates.

Their destination was the Talun Territory.

Due to the small size of the troops, their goal was not to achieve great feats in the subjugation.

Their main objective was to return with as little troop loss as possible.

That was the order given by the Earl of Izell to Dennis.

Time flew by quickly, and a month had passed since Dennis had left the territory.

Now, the winter was approaching.

Rohan’s daily life could be perfectly described as monotonous.

Having become a knight and relieved of guard duty, Rohan’s only remaining duty was to receive instruction from the Earl of Izell.

Every moment, except for mealtime, sleep, and the time spent sleeping, was filled with training.

The Earl of Izell, perhaps influenced by Rohan’s growth, personally sparred with Rohan, holding a sword.

It was just a sparring match, but as Rohan grew, he found himself getting more and more wounded.

It meant that Rohan was becoming strong enough that even the Earl of Izell, as an adult, could not treat him like a child.

This dramatic growth was a result of Rohan gradually revealing things he had hidden.

Initially, Rohan only used the Izell family swordsmanship, but as he fully accepted the Earl as his master, he began to display various skills.

The Earl knew that Rohan had been learning unknown techniques since he was first accepted as a disciple, but he could not hide his surprise when Rohan brought out the ancient warrior’s swordsmanship, including the blow of the Warrior King.

“Now that I see it, it’s strange that you didn’t win the tournament.”

That was how impressive Rohan’s skills had become.

Of course, as a teacher of swordsmanship, it was not an entirely pleasant feeling.

The more paths that lay before one, the harder it was to focus on a single path.

But at the same time, there was a sense of relief.

While the techniques Rohan displayed all had their strengths, they did not surpass the level of Izell’s vision.

Once one stepped into the world of martial arts, it was natural to aim for higher levels.

Right now, Rohan might feel more comfortable with the martial arts he had originally learned, but it was clear that he would eventually concentrate on Izell family swordsmanship by his own choice.

Moreover, although the level might be lower, the unfamiliar techniques that occasionally emerged from Izell’s swordsmanship were threatening enough.

In the long run, even if they were discarded, they clearly had a positive impact on Rohan’s strength for now.

Furthermore, the Earl of Izell was aware of Sophia’s feelings.

If he were to become hostile towards Rohan, all the knowledge Rohan possessed would become Izell’s, so it was definitely not a loss.

In fact, after a month of teaching Rohan, the Earl had almost made up his mind.

“Rohan is undoubtedly a genius who will be remembered in history. Besides, his character is excellent, and there are no issues with women, so there is no reason to look elsewhere.”

Therefore, he could be more forgiving of Rohan using different techniques.

Thanks to the Earl’s generosity, Rohan was able to achieve explosive growth.

The SR-grade Izel Household Swordsmanship had only increased by about 10%, but the R-grade skills of the Barbarian Warrior’s Sword Defense and the Ancient Warrior’s Swordsmanship had both reached a proficiency of 100%.

Furthermore, the Izel Household Swordsmanship, also an R-grade skill, had reached a proficiency of 94%, with the day approaching when it would gain a new prefix.

The newly acquired additional effects were in the form of passive skills for both.

Though Rohan had hoped for an active skill, the significant increase in stats compared to SN-grade left him somewhat satisfied.

The sudden increase in strength of Rohan’s sword was so remarkable that the Viscount openly displayed a look of utter disbelief.

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In just a few days, the power imbued in the sword had increased by at least half, making it quite remarkable to anyone observing.

Yet, despite the Viscount’s remarkable power, Rohan still couldn’t overcome the immense barrier of being his mentor.

The power within Rohan’s sword had risen to a level where it was not significantly inferior to the Viscount’s, but it would still take more time to catch up to the refined skills honed over many years.

In his heart, Rohan wanted to combine the two skills that had reached 100% proficiency, but upon checking the number of feathers required, he couldn’t bring himself to proceed with the synthesis.

It took a whopping 4 feathers to combine two R-grade skills.

Even if he combined the two newly acquired feathers, Rohan only possessed 5 feathers, meaning that if he combined the two skills now, he would have to wait a long time for the next synthesis.

“Both the Ancient Warrior’s Swordsmanship and the Barbarian Warrior’s Sword Defense are good. But the best is the Warrior King’s Strike.”

Even with the considerable increase in skills, the only active skill Rohan possessed was the Warrior King’s Strike.

Despite the drawback of being unable to distribute stamina, it was a skill that had saved Rohan from numerous crises with power worth bearing that drawback.

“If I combine the Warrior King’s Strike with another skill, maybe an SR-grade active skill might emerge?”

Even if an active skill didn’t emerge, the Warrior King’s Strike was still an R-grade skill, so there would undoubtedly be no significant decrease in level compared to combining swordsmanship and sword defense.

“Just a little more, just a little longer.”

At the end of his training, Rohan deliberately used the Warrior King’s Strike to exhaust his remaining stamina.

Thanks to such efforts, his proficiency had already reached 82%.

With a little more time, he would be able to acquire a new SR-grade skill.

As Rohan gazed at the skill window with regret, Denis, who had set out to subdue the Black Mage, was enduring a tedious time.

“These darn goblins seem never-ending.”

It had already been a month since arriving at the Talun Barony.

Though he had heard the Izel Viscount’s request, Denis was still hoping to bolster his reputation by aiding in expelling demons.

While he wasn’t without fear in facing the wicked magic, upon seeing the gathered forces at the Talun Barony, even that concern vanished.

There were knights with numbers he had never seen before gathered.

“With this level of power, we could easily capture and kill black mages in no time!”

It was such a conviction of power.

However, reality was far from expectations.

The mountains that seemed like they would spew out enormous demons were filled only with measly creatures like goblins and trolls, and there was no trace of dark magic anywhere.

Despite swiftly cutting down insignificant trees as they advanced due to the abundant knights, the untouched mountains were like a vast maze in themselves.

Over a month, more than two thousand people searched the mountain without any significant gains apart from some animal skins.

Amidst the rugged terrain, injuries were constantly occurring.

“No matter how I think about it, this is strange.”

The Talun Mountains had long been known as the den of demons.

It wasn’t unusual that the areas where people frequently passed through had fewer demons due to frequent subjugation, but now, even at the heart of the mountains, it was not an exaggeration to say that it was deep.

To have come this deep without encountering large monsters like trolls or ogres even once was clearly abnormal.

And this thought wasn’t exclusive to Denis alone.

Even those who were knowledgeable about demons were feeling a deep sense of unease.