The Mad Spearman of the Northern Front - Chapter 305

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Mad Spearman of the Northern Front (305)
A peculiar tension hung over Wolfheim.
The entrance examination for the Silent Spear Battalion.
News of it had already spread quite widely throughout the Northern Region and its neighboring territories.
Over two thousand applicants had flocked from across the realm, yet only slightly more than three hundred had passed the first trial.
Even that figure was inflated by additional acceptances—in reality, fewer than ten percent had succeeded.
Four days had elapsed since the first trial concluded.
From early morning, crowds began gathering at the vast Training Ground situated before Wolfheim Lord’s Castle.
Originally constructed for soldier drills and assembly, its scale rivaled that of an entire battlefield transplanted wholesale.
Stakes were driven into the compacted earth at intervals, while weapon racks and training shields lined the ground in neat rows.
On one side stood a wooden palisade, and on the other rose an earthen rampart built to considerable height.
As morning sunlight slowly ascended and illuminated the Training Ground, faint vapor rose alongside dust particles.
And then….
“Wait… aren’t those Silent Spear Battalion members?”
“Their aura is formidable, isn’t it?”
“They say that regular infantry unit is stronger than most Knight Orders.”
Upon seeing the Silent Spear Battalion members, the applicants—though they appeared ordinary—felt compelled to speak, sensing the extraordinary momentum radiating from them.
The Silent Spear Battalion members, in turn, observed the applicants.
Some stood with arms crossed, watching quietly, while others loosened their bodies with spears or swords in hand.
Yet everyone’s attention remained fixed on the same thing.
All eyes were on the applicants who had passed the first trial, now gathering toward the center of the Training Ground.
Those who had survived the first test.
However, they appeared somewhat different from the first day’s assessment—all stood in groups of five.
They had come prepared in advance for the second trial.
“When are they going to start?”
“Damn it… they’re just dragging things out instead of beginning.”
After more than an hour in the Training Ground without commencement, one or two applicants voiced their frustration.
But that was the moment.
“The Lord approaches!”
With someone’s loud proclamation, Arteon descended from within the castle.
His elongated cloak swayed gently in the breeze, and Iglis hung quietly at his waist.
Behind him came Isaac, Bartell, and several officers.
The moment they ascended the highest platform in the Training Ground, the entire arena naturally fell silent.
Arteon gazed down at the Training Ground without speaking for a moment.
Merely his gaze seemed capable of rendering one speechless—such overwhelming pressure emanated from him.
All the applicants swallowed hard as they beheld Arteon.
‘That person….’
The Monster of the Northern Front.
The Empire’s second 8th Star-ranked Warrior.
The mere fact that his gaze swept across them sent an inexplicable compression rising from the depths of their chests.
Some squared their shoulders wider, while others gripped their weapons with greater force.
Observing them, I gave Isaac a signal from my position beside him.
Isaac stepped forward and called out loudly.
“We will now commence the second entrance examination. Groups that are called, please ascend to the Training Ground!”
With the second test finally underway, the atmosphere of the Training Ground grew heated.
And the moment the first group was called.
“Well then… shall we begin?”
“This test is nothing. We just need to pass it.”
Groups of five candidates began ascending to the Training Ground, their spirits ablaze with confidence.
But moments later.
Thud!
Crash!
The test unfolded in a direction entirely different from what they had imagined.
* * *
Thud!
“Gasp!”
With a dull collision, one candidate tumbled onto the earthen floor of the Training Ground.
His body rolled a couple of times before coming to rest.
Though he gasped for breath and attempted to rise, the match was already decided.
A Silent Spear Unit member standing on the Training Ground looked down at him with an indifferent gaze.
Simultaneously, a voice rang out.
“Is it over already? Show me more fighting spirit.”
Already the sixth team.
I had wondered if they might differ slightly from the others, but they were all at a similar level.
“Lost again?”
“At this rate… we’ll fail.”
The faces of the candidates standing around the Training Ground grew increasingly rigid.
Even those who had vaguely believed in themselves fell silent, witnessing the spectacle unfolding before their eyes.
It was an overwhelming disparity.
Just one.
Five candidates formed a group, and they sparred against a single Silent Spear Unit member.
Yet…
“But… is that even right…?”
It made no sense.
Throughout the six teams’ matches, one or two of the Silent Spear members barely broke a sweat, the gap was so vast.
Strong, so strong.
I had heard the stories, but I never imagined the difference would be this great.
It was like watching a child fight an adult.
And on the Platform overlooking the Training Ground.
Isaac, who had been observing the test, slowly turned his head.
“….”
His gaze naturally drifted toward Arteon.
Arteon stood with his arms crossed, observing the Training Ground.
His eyes remained utterly unmoved.
Isaac said nothing in response to that sight.
He simply waited quietly for his reaction.
A moment passed.
Arteon shook his head with the slightest movement.
That brief gesture was enough.
Isaac stepped forward.
“That’s enough.”
His low voice resonated across the entire Training Ground.
“Call the next team.”
The Training Ground fell silent in an instant.
Five more candidates had been eliminated with such utter helplessness.
They rose unsteadily from their positions and turned away without a word.
They had felt firsthand just how vast the gap was between themselves and the Silent Spear Unit members they had faced.
As the eliminated candidate turned to leave, Isaac spoke to Arteon.
“At this rate, we won’t be able to recruit anyone at all.”
A hint of disappointment colored Isaac’s words.
To some extent, this had been anticipated. But he had not expected the disparity to be this severe.
Arteon gazed at the Training Ground for a moment before speaking calmly.
“If they lack even the fundamentals, it might be better not to recruit them at all.”
His voice was measured yet resolute.
“There’s far too much we’d have to teach them.”
Isaac fell silent for a moment.
Arteon’s words were not wrong.
The Silent Spear Unit members were no longer mere elite soldiers.
They were survivors of countless battlefields.
They had learned through fighting with their lives on the line, learning again and again.
The Silent Spear Unit existed precisely because they were those who had endured on battlefields where a single mistake meant death.
But the situation was somewhat different for those newly joining.
War was not breaking out at this very moment, and there was no opportunity to experience the extreme conditions the existing members had faced.
Naturally, it was difficult to expect them to grow at the same pace.
The time to learn through one’s body on the battlefield.
That was absent now.
And so they had no choice but to recruit those with at least the fundamentals in place.
Arteon’s gaze slowly swept across the Training Ground.
His eyes narrowed for a moment.
‘Besides….’
A thought flickered through Arteon’s mind.
From this point forward, the Unit’s character would gradually transform according to plan.
The promise he had made with Sedrian.
One year and six months.
There were certainly things that needed to be accomplished during that time.
What would happen after that remained uncertain, but Arteon already knew what he had to do.
After a moment lost in thought, Arteon spoke again.
“Next team.”
Isaac nodded.
“Yes.”
He turned his gaze toward Bartell, who stood beside him.
Bartell stepped forward and called out loudly.
“Next!”
With that cry, five candidates waiting below the Training Ground slowly walked forward.
At the same time, another Squad Member climbed onto the Training Ground.
And seeing the Squad Member who had climbed onto the Training Ground.
“Oh no….”
“Of all people, him as the opponent….”
“…Poor bastards.”
Even the Silent Spear Unit members clicked their tongues at the sight of him.
He belonged to the 1st Company under Bartell’s command.
Kamarkan of the Turak Tribe.
Kamarkan’s piercing gaze swept across the five candidates on the Training Ground, and the corners of his mouth lifted.
“Hehehehe, if you don’t come at me with the resolve to kill me, you might all end up with broken limbs when you leave. So….”
Kamarkan’s eyes gleamed like those of a beast as he studied them.
“Give it everything you have.”
With those words.
“Sparring Match begins!”
The test had started.
* * *
Gray clouds drifted slowly past the window.
The view of the Capital from atop the tall tower of the Royal Palace was as quiet as always, yet that quietness felt ominous somehow—like the world was holding its breath before a great storm arrived.
Inside the Office with its thick doors closed.
Several Documents and a Map lay spread across the desk, and the man seated before them slowly traced his finger across the northern Continent, calculating something.
“So… that Warrior became a Marquis of the Empire?”
His voice was low and measured.
“Yes, that is correct. And he has currently moved to the Northern Region territory he was granted.”
The Subordinate finished speaking and naturally lowered his head, yet he could feel the air in the room growing noticeably heavier.
The man’s eyes narrowed gradually.
Arteon.
Perhaps he was the warrior who left the most intense impression in the shortest span of time.
Of course, I did not overlook his movements and continued to track them closely.
Each step he took would carry enormous significance.
Upon hearing the Subordinate’s report, the Blacksmith leaned back slowly in his chair and murmured.
“…He went north.”
Those words carried a peculiar weight.
His gaze fell once more upon the Map.
The Northern Region.
A vast expanse blanketed in snow and Mountain Ranges.
And the Empire’s border.
The Blacksmith fell into thought for a moment.
If the Empire intended to draw its Sword toward the South or East immediately, there would be no reason to send that Warrior northward.
“This means the Empire has no intention of turning its Sword on us right now.”
The Subordinate nodded carefully.
“That is my assessment as well.”
“However….”
He rose slowly from his seat.
His footsteps then carried him toward the window.
Beyond the tall window pane, the Capital spread out before him in a single sweeping vista.
A peaceful landscape.
But that peace would not endure.
In the years ahead….
‘At most, two or three years.’
The moment Sedrian, the Imperial Prince currently holding power, ascended to the throne as Emperor, much would change.
The Blacksmith spoke in a low murmur.
“No one knows when or how that situation will shift.”
He turned slowly.
“The time to prepare and prevent the tragic circumstances that will unfold in the future… is precisely now.”
His voice was measured, yet it carried an unwavering resolve.
The Subordinate could say nothing.
The Blacksmith spoke again.
“Conduct a comprehensive inspection of the Army and prepare for what is to come.”
In the years ahead, a tremendous tempest would sweep across the entire Continent once more.
And when that time arrived….
“A moment will come when every Kingdom on the Continent must remain vigilant.”
As those words fell, the Room fell into complete silence.
The Subordinate simply stood in place, swallowing hard without uttering a word in response to the Blacksmith’s declaration.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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