The Immortal Genius Spearman

The carriage stopped at the Caion unit’s barracks in Valphate.

As Kiaran stepped down and looked around, he remarked,

“It feels quite desolate.”

“There are many wounded soldiers resting,” Edmund responded.

“The injuries were severe, weren’t they?”

“Yes.”

“…Tsk.”

Kiaran clicked his tongue softly in sympathy for the soldiers who had endured such hardships.

As they entered the barracks, Leonhark quickly approached and saluted.

“Glory to the Kingdom!”

“You’ve done well. By the way, where is the commander of the Caion unit?”

He should have been the first to rush out and salute.

Not seeing Damian, Kiaran asked the question.

Leonhark replied,

“The commander and deputy commander of the Caion unit have gone to a nearby city in Valphate.”

“A nearby city?”

“Yes, it’s…”

As Leonhark continued to explain, Kiaran nodded in understanding.

* * *

“Macdoel… has died?”

“…I’m sorry I couldn’t protect him. And this is what Macdoel wanted to be given to his family.”

Damian handed over something wrapped in a white cloth.

Each unit member had kept something in the barracks that they wished to be delivered to their family in the event of their death.

And if a comrade fell, the item kept in the barracks would be wrapped in this white cloth and delivered like this.

“This, this is…”

The woman in front of him accepted the cloth with trembling hands.

As if she couldn’t believe it.

As if she didn’t want to believe it, yet the resolve she had held crumbled the moment she unfolded the square piece of cloth.

“Sniff… hick… sniff… sob…”

Macdoel’s mother began to shake as she looked at the carved wooden figure.

Drool leaked from her tightly clenched lips as she struggled to hold back her sobs, and tears streamed down her face.

A small wooden carving of a baby held in the arms of a woman.

It was a carving Macdoel had made himself, remembering how his mother used to hold him often when he was young.

“I’m truly… sorry.”

Damian bowed his head in apology, and Dianal, who was beside him, bowed as well.

This was all they could offer for comfort.

Then Damian and Dianal turned away.

They stepped back to give Macdoel’s mother space to grieve in peace.

As Damian and Dianal turned away—

Thud.

Macdoel’s mother, still clutching the wooden carving, dropped to her knees, lowering her head.

The realization that she would never see her son again, and the image of him saying he would be back soon, flashed before her eyes.

And as Damian and Dianal walked away…

“Waaahhh! Aaahhhh!”

The heart-wrenching scream of a parent who had lost their child echoed through the air.

* * *

Several days passed.

Despite their injuries not being fully healed, Damian and Dianal traveled to nearby towns in Valphate, visiting the families of their fallen comrades and delivering the news of their deaths.

It was a sorrow so profound that it felt like spitting blood.

No words could truly capture their emotions.

Facing their overwhelming grief and agony, all Damian and Dianal could do was step aside and give them space.

“…Haa.”

Returning to the unit, Damian let out a deep sigh inside the carriage.

In just a short week,

So many things had happened.

They had fought the Rose knight Order, one of the continent’s most powerful knight orders, and held cremations for their fallen comrades.

Visiting the families of the fallen comrades and delivering their belongings was more exhausting than he had anticipated.

“You should get some rest. You’ll collapse at this rate.”

“Then… maybe just for a bit?”

At Dianal’s suggestion, Damian let out a small breath and closed his eyes.

He really did want to rest, even if just for a little while.

‘No matter how much time passes, I never get used to it.’

Or maybe he would never get used to it. Saying goodbye to precious comrades was something one could never get used to.

But this was something Damian had to endure.

For now, he would just rest for this moment.

As the carriage swayed, Damian allowed himself a brief respite from the burdens he had been carrying.

And then—

“The commander and deputy commander are returning!”

A soldier standing guard at the entrance to the unit shouted as he saw Damian and Dianal approaching from afar.

At his shout, Kyle and Jerka quickly ran out of the barracks to greet Damian and Dianal.

“You’ve returned?”

“Thank you for your hard work, Commander, Deputy Commander.”

Damian chuckled at their words.

“What’s with the big welcome?”

“Well… the legion commander came by a few days ago.”

“…The 6th Legion Commander?”

“Yes.”

Kyle began to recount the events of a few days ago.

Upon hearing that Damian had gone to meet the families of the fallen, the legion commander had said he would return.

“And he’s coming back today. You’ve arrived just in time.”

“The legion commander is coming today?”

“Yes, probably…”

Kyle trailed off. But then—

“…He’s here.”

A bit further from the entrance to the unit,

A carriage came into view, and Kyle muttered to himself as he watched it approach.

Damian, unable to hide his surprise, asked Kyle,

“What’s the current condition of the unit?”

“Most can move around. The critical cases are still in the infirmary.”

“Then gather everyone who can move and line them up. I don’t know why, but since we’ve made the legion commander come twice, we need to welcome him properly this time.”

“Yes, sir!”

Kyle quickly went back inside the barracks, and Damian turned to Dianal and spoke.

“Change into clean clothes. We can’t meet the legion commander looking like this.”

“Yes.”

Dianal answered immediately.

Both of them were in a disheveled state from the days of travel. But at that moment—

“I’ve already prepared your clothes. I knew you’d be back, so I made sure to have them nicely pressed,” Jerka said, smiling mischievously.

Damian looked at Jerka with a slightly surprised expression.

“This wasn’t your idea, was it? Did Terka put you up to it?”

“What are you talking about! It was all me, sir! Argh!”

Jerka jabbed his thumb at his own chest, only to wince in pain from the injury he’d received when an enemy knight’s shield had struck him there.

The idiot must have forgotten that he’d taken a hit to the chest during the fight.

Seeing this, Damian chuckled and turned to Dianal.

“You heard him, right? The clothes are ready, so get changed and come out.”

“Yes, sir!”

The entire time they had been meeting the families of the fallen, Damian had been weighed down with a sense of sadness and regret.

But now…

‘…It feels like I’ve come home.’

As soon as he entered the unit and saw the soldiers, he felt a strange sense of relief. And…

‘It seems… Everyone’s changed a little, too.’

Perhaps the fight with the Rose knight Order had not only enhanced the reputation of the Caion unit but had also solidified the unit itself.

With a smile at the changing atmosphere of the unit, Damian hurried to change into his uniform.

* * *

As Kiaran stepped down from the carriage, she couldn’t help but laugh at the situation in disbelief.

“Edmund, does this make any sense?”

“…But it’s what you wanted, ma’am.”

Knowing exactly what she meant, Edmund immediately responded.

She had wanted to come here herself the first time, and when she missed Damian during her visit, she had even suggested calling the Caion unit to the legion headquarters.

But even that, Kiaran had rejected, choosing instead to come to Valphate herself again.

“Still, I can’t ask all these injured soldiers to come out.”

The last time she visited, she had seen that the injuries of the Caion unit members were far more serious than expected.

Everyone had at least one or two deep sword wounds.

Even if one didn’t know this, she couldn’t just order them to appear before her, knowing what she knew.

In response, Edmund said,

“Then the current situation is entirely justified.”

“…We’ll talk about this later.”

Kiaran gave Edmund a scolding look before heading towards the barracks where the Caion unit was stationed.

“We’ve been expecting you.”

Leonhark approached her as she arrived.

Kiaran asked,

“And the soldiers?”

“They are waiting in the drill ground. Please follow me.”

Leonhark led Kiaran towards the drill ground where the soldiers were assembled.

As Kiaran stepped onto the drill ground—

“Compaaan-nny! Attention!”

Snap!

At Damian’s command, the soldiers stood at attention and looked at Kiaran with a sharp, disciplined stance.

As Kiaran stepped onto the platform, Damian shouted again,

“Salute to the legion commander!”

“Glory to the Kingdom!”

Their voices echoed loudly.

Damian turned and saluted Kiaran.

“Glory to the Kingdom!”

“Glory to the Kingdom.”

Kiaran replied in a soft voice as she looked at them.

“At ease!”

The soldiers relaxed slightly at her words, adopting a more comfortable stance, as Kiaran spoke to them.

“First of all…”

There were many things she wanted to say, but this seemed the most important.

“Thank you for coming back alive.”

They had fought against the Rose knight Order.

There had been casualties, but most of the unit had returned safely.

That alone showed how extraordinary their achievement was. Moreover…

“Destroying half of the Rose knight Order… Honestly, I wonder if anyone else will believe it.”

Although the report had already been submitted to the royal palace, the atmosphere was already buzzing with disbelief.

But now that it was confirmed to be true, she didn’t want to be swept up in that kind of speculation.

Kiaran looked at Edmund.

“Edmund.”

“The commander of the Caion unit, Damian, step forward!”

At Edmund’s command, Damian stepped onto the platform.

Edmund shouted,

“The Caion unit has resisted the military actions of the Empire that threaten all the kingdoms of the continent, and in doing so, achieved an unbelievable feat against the Rose knight Order, one of the Empire’s most elite forces!”

As Edmund’s words echoed, the soldiers standing in formation on the drill ground struggled to contain their smiles.

Hearing about their achievements from someone else’s mouth felt different from discussing them among themselves.

Edmund continued,

“Therefore, all members of the Caion unit will receive a one-rank promotion and a reward of 50 gold coins. In addition, each soldier may choose one piece of equipment from the legion’s armory as a reward!”

“W-What!?”

“Did he say a promotion and 50 gold!?”

“That’s exactly what the commander said!”

They all looked wide-eyed at the announcement, struggling to believe it.

Normally, no matter how great their achievement, it wasn’t the kind of reward a regular unit could expect.

And then—

“Haha, I’m finally a sergeant! Call me Sergeant, will ya?”

“I’m a sergeant too, you idiot. Hahaha.”

Seeing the soldiers laughing at their promotions,

“You idiots. Look at you, all excited about being sergeants. The commander has been promoted again and is now a staff sergeant.”

“…Huh?”

“Gasp!”

“…Idiots.”

A soldier shook his head at their shocked expressions, but they quickly focused on the platform again.

The awards ceremony wasn’t over yet.

And then—

“Commander of the Caion unit, Damian.”

“Yes!”

“For your actions during the battle against the Rose knight Order, where you fought against several knights and helped secure victory, thereby enhancing the reputation of the kingdom…”

Edmund glanced at Kiaran. She nodded, and he continued with a faint smile.

“You are hereby promoted one rank and appointed as a Centurion with the authority to expand the Caion unit to three hundred soldiers.”

When Edmund finished speaking,

“We look forward to your continued success.”

Kiaran stepped forward and extended her hand to Damian. Damian shook her hand and responded.

“Staff Sergeant Damian! I will do my best!”

At his words, the soldiers clapped and cheered.

They were already imagining an even stronger Caion unit in the future.