Chapter 47

Episode 47. I’m an Attention Seeker (1)

The knights of the Baydant family had all gathered.

Arbold, who had heard the full story of the incident from Jordic, whispered.

“This is our chance. If we kill them all, we won’t have to pay 30,000 gold, and we can keep the secret about the Beastmen.”

Jordic also nodded.

“I know. And he probably knows too. I can’t figure out his scheme.”

Even if Luke doesn’t know, Keter is no fool.

A scammer among scammers. Even if the archery he showed was lacking, his silver tongue alone made him dangerous.

“Whatever scheme he has, he’s still just an archer. He can’t beat us.”

“Hmm.”

Jordic had no objection to that.

A spear is stronger than a bow! No, even stronger than a sword. The strongest weapon in this world is undoubtedly the spear. Jordic believed that without a doubt.

But a nagging feeling in his chest made Jordic hesitate.

‘That lunatic seemed more skilled in hand-to-hand combat than archery.’

He didn’t deny that mastering hand-to-hand combat could be powerful.

But it didn’t feel like Keter had reached the pinnacle of hand-to-hand combat.

Keter’s hand-to-hand combat wasn’t as refined as a knight’s. It was rough and crude, like that of a rootless mercenary.

Could such hand-to-hand combat stand against the Baydant family’s spear techniques?

No.

Not only archery, but with such hand-to-hand combat, he could never defeat a Baydant knight. It was an obvious fact that didn’t require deep thought.

‘Did I underestimate you? Or have I lost my composure blinded by greed?’

Jordic looked at Keter.

Keter was chatting casually with Luke. Like a carefree noble out for a picnic on a sunny day.

“Even if it’s not just about money or secrets… I want to kill him.”

Jordic muttered without hiding his true feelings. It wasn’t meant for anyone to hear, but Arbold chimed in.

“You don’t need to step in, Captain. I’ll finish this quickly.”

Arbold wanted to show Jordic, who was disappointed in him, a good performance.

But Jordic pointed to another knight.

“You, take the vanguard.”

The knight Jordic pointed to was the newest junior knight of the Silver Leopard Knight Order.

The junior knight, though surprised, didn’t back down.

“Can I kill him?”

“Give it your all.”

It was an ambiguous answer, but the junior knight took it as permission to kill.

“Yes!”

The junior knight gripped his spear and strode out onto the field with dignity.

“Prince Keter! We are ready. Since you’re an archer, you may take the first move!”

Originally, a match proceeds with both sides facing each other.

But fighting that way puts the archer at a severe disadvantage. So, under the belief of fairness, the junior knight offered Keter distance and the first move.

Keter, who had been chatting with Luke, approached the junior knight holding only a bow and one arrow.

The junior knight thought Keter had something to say to him. If he intended to attack, he wouldn’t approach so defenselessly.

‘Hmm.’

The junior knight carefully observed Keter as he approached. He had seen him at the village hall, but even now, he looked like an unremarkable person.

‘He’s tall, but his build isn’t big.’

If he dressed well, he might look like a proper noble prince, but now he looked like a playboy charming rich noble girls.

Dull eyes with slightly upturned lips. He looked both thoughtless and cheerful.

The junior knight’s feelings toward Keter changed. A very subtle change he didn’t even notice himself.

His tension eased, and his wariness faded.

The grip on his spear loosened.

He was already convinced. Keter was coming to talk to him. Soon, Keter was right in front of him.

“What do you want to say…”

The moment the junior knight opened his mouth.

Jordic urgently shouted.

“Snap out of it!”

But it was too late.

Faster than his shout, the moment the junior knight tried to speak, Keter’s arrow had already deeply pierced his chest.

Thud.

An arrow is meant to be used with a bow.

Keter’s surprise attack shattered that stereotype. The junior knight only realized he had been attacked when he could no longer breathe.

“Ugh.”

Keter’s arrow had pierced the junior knight’s lung. It wasn’t a fatal wound, but he couldn’t continue the fight.

Keter grabbed the falling junior knight’s hair. His gaze turned to Jordic. Still with clear eyes and a subtly smiling face.

Seeing this, Arbold thought he was being mocked and flared up.

“This bastard is being cowardly!”

Arbold tried to step forward, but Jordic stopped him with his arm.

“We were prepared and offered the first move. It’s his fault.”

“But, but!”

“He exploited a weakness. I thought he was a scammer, but to go this far risking his life. Impressive, Keter.”

With Jordic acknowledging Keter, Arbold couldn’t step forward anymore.

“But there won’t be a second time. Sir Garuda.”

Baydant’s next fighter stepped forward.

Keter reached out and said.

“Wait. I have something to sell you.”

“If it’s the Moon Beast Tribe’s emblem, I’ll just kill you and take it.”

“Huh? No? What I want to sell is…”

Keter said, slipping the junior knight’s neck into the bowstring.

“How much will you pay, customer?”

* * *

For those who live by the sword, death is inseparable. Especially for knights belonging to a family, they must never fear death.

“Are you going to kill a Baydant knight now?”

Arbold said with a strong will not to let it happen.

Keter knew too.

How much knights, or rather nobles, value honor.

And that honor can ultimately be bought and sold with money.

“3,000 gold.”

“……!”

You shouldn’t let the opponent ask how much to spare their life first. People who think they’re special live and die by their pride.

“If you kill our knight, you’ll definitely die too, Keter.”

“You were going to kill me anyway. Isn’t this better? This guy will die from excessive blood loss in two minutes.”

Jordic was troubled by Keter’s words. If Keter had cruelly killed the junior knight, it would have been easier to justify.

But leaving him ambiguously alive and asking for money to spare him. The amount wasn’t too excessive, nor too little.

For a knight, dying in battle is honorable-

‘Don’t look at me with those eyes.’

Everyone knows.

A knight can die at any time. Everyone became a knight prepared for that.

But does it have to be now?

If there’s a way to live, do you have to die! 3,000 gold isn’t an unmanageable amount!

Even though the junior knight was helpless against Keter, the Silver Leopard Knight Order operates in strict secrecy!

The junior knight was a comrade, a friendly younger brother, a fun friend to each of them. They desperately wished he wouldn’t die.

If Jordic ignored their desperation here, even with his charisma, he would lose their trust.

“I’ll give it, 3,000 gold. Hand him over now!”

“Hey, how many deals have you made? Pay in cash now or sign a contract.”

“I’ll sign. Bring out the contract.”

“Adding 1,000 gold for the contract.”

“Bastard!”

Contracts are magical items and expensive, but not over 10 gold. Charging a hundred times more, it was strange not to curse.

With the junior knight’s life and his own trust as captain at stake, Jordic wrote a contract to pay Keter 1,000 gold for the contract and 3,000 gold for the life, totaling 4,000 gold.

“Cool deal, thanks.”

Keter, having received the contract, released the junior knight and stepped back five steps.

Garuda, the knight who rushed to the junior knight, bit his lower lip upon seeing the wound.

“Captain. This arrow is hooked. Pulling it out will tear the flesh and cause more bleeding.”

Almost all knights learn field medicine.

But arrow removal, especially hooked arrows, is advanced medicine.

Even Jordic hadn’t learned it. He never thought he’d be hit by an arrow.

Struggling to maintain composure, Jordic couldn’t hold back his anger this time.

“You were going to kill him anyway, Keter!”

He sold a barely alive corpse.

At Jordic’s words, the Baydant knights’ eyes burned. Keter added fuel to the fire.

“He’s alive, why the fuss? It’s your problem if you can’t remove the arrow.”

“Now it’s settled. I can kill you with peace of mind.”

Jordic gestured to Garuda. Even without Jordic’s order, Garuda was about to charge at Keter.

“What are you doing now? There’s a doctor right in front of you. You should be begging for his life.”

“Don’t listen to that bastard’s nonsense anymore.”

“2,000 gold to save him. Don’t believe me if you don’t want to.”

Keter, pouring water on the burning oil. Jordic now wanted to kill Keter as quickly as possible, no matter what.

But Garuda wasn’t. He wanted the junior knight to survive much more than the other knights.

“Captain. Even if he stalls, it’s only about a minute.”

Under Garuda’s urging, Jordic was frustrated. If it weren’t his subordinate, he would have snapped at him to stop talking nonsense.

“Bring out the damn contract again.”

Thus, Jordic paid another 3,000 gold.

Only then did Keter approach the junior knight he had turned into a wreck. He immediately plunged his hand into the knight’s chest.

“……!?”

Instead of saving him, it looked like he was killing him, and the Baydant knights’ eyes couldn’t widen any further.

After plunging his hand into the chest, Keter pulled it out with the arrow and shook his hand.

“Surgery’s done. Wash the wound with water and bandage it.”

“You’ve made a bigger hole in his body and still act shameless.”

“Take a good look.”

“Do I need to……?!”

He needed to.

The arrow was removed, and the bleeding had stopped. Though the chest was caved in, there was no hole.

“What is this?”

“I clearly saw your hand go in……?”

Just who are you?

Under the intense gaze of the Baydant knights, Keter smirked.

“Call it the grace of Sephira.”

Even the great Keter couldn’t always fight without injury.

Preferring the strategy of giving flesh to take bone, the first thing Keter learned in Ruquer was medicine.

Moreover, Keter is a master of killing. He knows exactly where and how to attack to kill a human, and this knowledge and experience overlap with life-saving medicine.

Realizing that the difference between killing and saving lies in intent, not action, Keter could achieve magical results with pure medicine.

For example, he could spare a life but leave behind various disabilities or aftereffects. Like the Baydant junior knight he just treated.

Why would he spare an enemy family’s knight? Of course, he’d cripple him.

The Baydant family would expend much manpower and money to rehabilitate the disabled knight.

Unaware of this, Jordic opened his mouth, then closed it.

He wanted to recruit Keter. Jordic, who craved talent, could accept even an enemy as a subordinate if they were capable.

But he didn’t want to offer Keter. He was sure that taking Keter as a subordinate would endanger him.

“You’ve earned enough hell money, Keter. Now the stalling is over.”

The junior knight was helplessly caught off guard, but there won’t be a next time.

That was Jordic’s conviction, and Garuda, who would fight Keter, didn’t think he would lose.

But carelessness is forbidden. He wouldn’t offer the first move like the junior knight. He wouldn’t give time to create distance.

Garuda immediately charged, holding his spear long, and thrust at Keter.

This thrust, which instantly tripled the attack range, was unavoidable if you didn’t understand spear techniques.

Moreover, the Baydant family’s cross spear isn’t just specialized for thrusting. It has far superior variable creation and lethality compared to traditional spears.

This thrust isn’t the main attack. The follow-up is the real deal. The moment you dodge, the onslaught begins.

But something unbelievable happened.

Keter moved forward instead.

Like he wanted to be stabbed by the spear.

Luke, watching from the side, felt his heart would burst. From his angle, it looked like the spear had pierced Keter’s body.

‘No……!’

But it was a misunderstanding.

The spear did pass through Keter.

But it didn’t pierce his body.

Keter dodged the spear shaft through his side and clamped it under his armpit. The long spear shaft was tightly held by Keter.

If Garuda held the spear normally with both hands, he wouldn’t lose in a strength contest.

But now, Garuda held the spear’s end with one hand. Using an unconventional thrusting technique, he used a one-handed grip.

But Garuda was clearly different from the junior knight caught off guard. Calmly changing his grip, he held the spear with both hands and engaged in a strength contest.

All his nerves were focused on the strength contest over the spear.

Thus, he missed it.

Keter shooting an arrow.

The trajectory of the arrow flying toward him.

Usually, the head reacts first. Thinking to dodge the incoming arrow, then transmitting it to the body to move.

But sadly, the head’s command reached the feet faster.

Keter’s arrow, you see.