How a Second Life Knight Lives

5. The extraordinary is not extraordinary.

Kaal knew he was extraordinary from the moment he first held a sword. He had knocked down the knight he served as a squire. If it weren’t for his family’s background, his career would have ended then.

But the incident was covered up, and he became a knight within a few years.

Among the knights, there was one particularly strong knight.

One or two knights were laughable. Three at once might be a bit tough. But he could still win. Four was definitely too much.

So Baron Patterson had made some arrangements to ensure his victory. The appearance of three knights here was the result of that.

Not four, but three.

Baron Patterson had done what he needed to do.

Now it was Karl’s turn to do what he had to do.

If he could crush those knights, it would be over.

He believed that even the most unreliable subordinates could hold off the mercenaries by relying on the palisade.

He had given them enough taste of money, so those simple fools would fight tooth and nail for it.

It was a simple plan, and therefore a feasible one.

But.

But!

Because of the brat who broke through the palisade and barged in, the entire plan was about to go up in smoke.

He could see the morale of his subordinates crumbling in real-time.

There were hardly any archers shooting at the enemies charging from the front. A few cunning ones, who were former swindlers, were already sneaking back, planning their escape.

At this rate, he would have to watch all the mercenaries flee the moment they reached the palisade.

There was no choice.

He had to trust his skills and fight.

And that brat, with his smooth face and young appearance, how much combat experience could he have? At most, he would have been trained by the knight he served.

Even if he was strong, an inexperienced brat could be taken down somehow.

How much blood had his sword drunk?

So Karl grabbed a pillar and jumped down from the palisade.

There was no time to leisurely climb down a ladder.

He had to deal with them before his subordinates fled. There wasn’t much time.

*

I shifted the battle hammer I had carried on my back to my right hand. One side was a hammerhead, the other a vicious spike as sharp as a spear tip.

A small shield was strapped to my left forearm with a leather handle, but it was so small that it didn’t hinder the use of my left arm.

As soon as I got into position, Karl charged in.

He started with a greatsword.

Karl, who had come down from the palisade, charged with a massive sword almost as tall as himself.

It was a weapon that exuded an overwhelming atmosphere, enough to make one think it would be a disaster just to block it.

There was no doubt that if it hit, it would split a person in two in an instant.

If it hit, that is.

The greatsword, as if ignoring defense itself, spun in large circles, aiming at me. It was an attack full of intent to chop me into pieces if I came within its radius.

I lightly stepped back to avoid the greatsword, then saw an opening and rushed forward.

Kang!

I deflected the descending greatsword with a small shield and struck the thigh with a war hammer. Blood spurted as a hole was punched through the plate armor.

“Ugh!”

A suppressed groan leaked from inside the helmet. There was a look of disbelief in those eyes.

It was natural.

Plate armor is what makes a knight invincible.

It deflects arrows. It doesn’t budge when struck with a sword. It only gets slightly dented when hammered. Would it be somewhat effective if struck with a pickaxe?

This is why one can charge at enemies without worry, even without holding a shield.

But a hole punched through by a mere war hammer?

Of course, it’s a fairly large war hammer that looks burdensome to hold with one hand, but still, this is plate armor.

I swung the war hammer again at Kaal, who was staggering with eyes full of disbelief. I struck his foot and then his helmet.

The pain in his foot seemed to fly away with the impact on his jaw.

Kaal fell forward.

*

“I have big dreams, Kaal.”

“Do you?”

“Think about it. It’s been ten years since the emperor’s throne has been without an owner. Ten whole years without an emperor. Ten years is a long time. People are getting used to not having an emperor.”

“I don’t know. Such matters are too big for me to even think about.”

“Isn’t Sir Kaal a bigger man than I am? A big man should do big things. That’s why I’m getting you new armor. I look forward to working with you.”

There was a middle-aged man with a broad face and big eyes, throwing dad jokes at Kaal, who answered bluntly. He smiled with a relaxed demeanor.

Yes. There was a time like that.

A time of innocence.

Baron Patterson was a good man, and I knew nothing but loyalty.

When I received the plate armor as a gift, I was at a loss as to how to repay such an excessive gift.

And now that plate armor is damaged. Fixing it won’t be easy.

When I struck, it was fine, but why did it make a hole when that guy hit it?

That guy?

Huh?

Kaal opened his eyes. It seemed he had been down for only a moment.

He could still see his subordinates on the palisade, looking bewildered and running around in confusion. Even the subordinates he had brought from the manor were standing there stupidly, not knowing what to do.

Is it all over?

The shouts of the mercenaries seemed very close, and the knights on horseback were the first to enter the palisade. Following them, the mercenaries poured in.

Only then did the subordinates on the palisade start to flee in a panic.

There was almost no resistance.

Only occasionally did someone swing a sword frantically at the mercenaries trying to stop them from fleeing, but even they were subdued by the swarming mercenaries and ended up tied with ropes, stabbed somewhere.

*

“This guy is completely out of his mind.”

“I expected more since he had quite a name, but it seems the rumors were exaggerated.”

“Sir Liam, this armor he’s wearing. It’s not ordinary.”

At Sven’s words, the commander of the punitive force brightened and gave orders.

“Is that so? Congratulations, William. The count will reward you generously. Everyone, strip this man’s armor and bind him. He’s a fierce one, so tie him up tightly.”

At the commander’s orders, several mercenaries rushed to strip Kaal of his armor. Until then, Kaal had been sitting helplessly, but the moment the mercenaries touched his armor, he fully regained his senses.

“You bastards!”

Kaal roared and stood up, grabbing the mercenary trying to strip his armor by the collar and throwing him away. He also crushed the heads of the other two mercenaries hanging around his waist.

Then he charged at the nearby knights.

The knights, who had let their guard down thinking it was all over, were startled and drew their swords to stab at Kaal, but their attacks were useless. The swords slid off the surface of his black armor.

Kaal body-slammed one knight away. Then he punched the face of another knight who was trying to tackle him. The knight, who had hastily removed his helmet, fell to the side, spitting blood and teeth.

*

Damn! These old men!

Even if he looks stupid and out of his mind now, he was the one who almost devoured you all.

You handled him so carelessly, no wonder you got wrecked back then.

I grumbled inwardly as I intervened.

Two knights had already been neutralized in an instant, but it seemed it wasn’t too late.

My war hammer swung towards Kaal again.

This time too, Kaal’s armor couldn’t withstand the war hammer.

*

Side, shoulder, helmet.

Kaal could feel his mind drifting away again.

Baron Patterson.

You’re in big trouble.

This time, Baron Patterson’s broad face did not come to mind.

*

Cleaning up the battlefield didn’t take long.

Because there was hardly any battle.

The men Kaal had gathered fled without looking back as soon as they saw Kaal fall.

They threw away their weapons and discarded their cumbersome armor, scattering into the forest and fields as if their only goal was to get away from the palisade.

Kaal’s remaining subordinates raised their hands as soon as the mercenaries pointed their weapons at them.

Except for a few who resisted because they didn’t want to be captured, no one fought properly.

The mercenaries of the punitive force tried to capture as many of the fleeing men as possible. Although they won, they couldn’t even have a proper fight, so they had little to report to their employer.

They needed some kind of achievement to present. In that sense, hanging a bandit in front of the castle gate was a decent achievement.

They captured those they could, and in the process, some died, and the battlefield cleanup was roughly completed.

Only then did the commander of the punitive force order some to search the checkpoint and others to demolish the well-built stone tower. They also planned to burn the palisade when they left.

It was something they had to do to ensure no one could settle here again.

“This damn stone is so heavy I can’t lift it alone.”

“Why are you trying to lift it? You should use a lever to topple it. Do you think you can do it with brute force?”

“People like us can’t, but Sir William might be able to, don’t you think?”

“Right. Seeing him topple the palisade, he’s no ordinary strongman.”

From the moment the battlefield cleanup turned into a demolition job, the mercenaries didn’t stop murmuring.

No matter how small the scale of the battle, a battle is a battle.

They knew they had superior forces, including three knights, but it was a battle against bandits resisting with a palisade.

Everyone expected that some unlucky person would die and there would be quite a few injuries.

But somehow, they won absurdly easily.

For the mercenaries, who completed their mission without significant damage and even received a success bonus, it was a joyous occasion.

“Looks like he wasn’t just an ordinary young master after all.”

“I heard he hasn’t been knighted yet?”

“I heard he participated with the guarantee of Martin the guest. He must be a person of a different class from us.”

“That aside, he seems incredibly strong. Did you see him knock over the palisade? It’s hard to believe someone could do that. Even seeing it, it’s unbelievable.”

*

Unlike the mercenaries with their bright atmosphere, the knights were in reflection.

One had fainted and then woken up, and another was so severely injured that he would have difficulty even eating porridge for a while. There was only one person who was unscathed.

If it weren’t for me, they would have been dead.

“Carelessness! It was unworthy behavior for a knight.”

“Still, it’s fortunate that Sir William was able to subdue him quickly.”

“Thank you. Thanks to Sir William, we were able to prevent a major incident.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“No, I must repay this favor.”

“Me too. I am not one to forget a kindness.”

“Uh, um…”

Even Sir Vengot, who couldn’t speak properly due to his injuries, showed signs of gratitude and embarrassment.

I stepped back, making some room for them to recover.

I needed that space too.

Because I needed time to think about the status window.