First Battle of Leopold

No one would have guessed that the shy, honest-looking Sangi had such a talent. Without making a sound, he had somehow won a girl's favor.

But for an ordinary person, that was probably the happiest thing in the world, wasn't it?

Evan, whose goals in life were different, was destined to drift further and further away from such an ordinary life. All he could do was silently wish Sangi happiness from the bottom of his heart.

As he walked down the street, Evan studied the note in his hand, his gaze distant.

Having already reached the peak of Apprentice Knight, unless he was willing to put in several times more effort than before, he could only erase the insignificant two digits after the decimal point and truly reach the limits of humanity. But that was hardly worth the cost.

No Extraordinary person who aspired to go far on the Knight's Path would deliberately pursue the limits of humanity.

Evan was now confident that as long as he obtained a bottle of Black Sea Magic Potion, he would have a very high chance of advancing into the extraordinary.

Even if he only had the Mutated Shark's Extraordinary Organ, that single Main ingredient, Evan could try collecting the supplementary ingredients according to his family's inherited recipe and brew a bottle himself.

But even though Black Sea Magic Potion was merely the lowest-tier potion on the Knight's Path, it still involved the extraordinary. The Extraordinary Organ used as its Main ingredient was not something an ordinary person like Evan could casually find.

Moreover, the choice of Main ingredient now concerned the direction his path would take after becoming extraordinary. It was a major matter that would affect a knight's entire life and absolutely could not be handled carelessly.

Thus, joining an organization and relying on its strength became Evan's only option.

At this time, as new sea routes had continued to be opened in recent years, the Kingdom Navy, desperately in need of recruits to fight pirates, protect shipping lanes, and compete in Arms Races with hostile nations, entered Evan's sights.

Only a rapidly expanding new force like the navy could promote talent without rigid conventions, allowing him to rise quickly and gain a measure of influence.

Only the navy would not fuss over Evan's status as the descendant of a fallen noble family from another country and would give him ample chances for promotion. After all, the navy had become so desperate that it was even accepting thieves and criminals. It certainly would not mind taking in one more Evan.

Furthermore, Evan was alone and had no connections whatsoever. If he went to somewhere like an army cavalry regiment, where pedigree mattered, he would remain an ordinary soldier until the day he died. So whether he wanted to find his Sister or avenge Iliya, the navy was clearly the best choice for now.

Lastly, Evan harbored one private desire of his own.

Having arrived in this magnificent era, with sea routes constantly being opened and the world's true face gradually unveiled while the Age of Discovery was in full swing, wouldn't it be a terrible pity if he could not take part in it himself?

After reading through the naval intelligence Sangi had compiled, Evan, now with a plan in mind, spent the following days settling various loose ends and saying goodbye to familiar friends.

Time always passed quickly when one was busy. Before he knew it, the night before departure had arrived. Perhaps it was the sadness of parting at work, but lying in his own bed, Evan could not fall asleep no matter how hard he tried.

He stared at the ceiling, his thoughts running wild.

Evan had been alone ever since his previous life. After living by himself for so long, he had even come to feel that this little coastal city was his hometown. Now that he was about to leave it, a faint melancholy naturally rose within him.

As he tossed and turned in sleeplessness, it gradually reached Early morning, the darkest hour of the night.

Dong—

Dong—

Suddenly, the shrill Alarm bell rang through the Night sky, followed by a continuous barrage of thunderous booms from the direction of the docks.

Then someone began shouting.

"Pirates are attacking the city!"

"Pirates are attacking the city!"

With a jolt, Evan instantly woke up. He leaped from his bed and pulled open the curtains, only to see flames soaring outside amid a chorus of shouts and battle cries. Only then did he realize that pirates had truly rushed ashore.

Pirates ran rampant throughout the Coastal Areas, and incidents of pirates landing to loot were not uncommon.

But no matter how small Leopold was, it was still a city with its walls intact. Furthermore, the coast was a key patrol area for naval warships. In the five years Evan had lived here, this was the first time he had encountered pirates attacking the city.

Evan hurriedly dressed, grabbed his longsword and hunting bow, and rushed outside.

He had thought it through clearly. Staying home at a time like this was not necessarily safe, especially in the Commercial District where he lived. If the city fell, it would certainly be among the first places the pirates looted. He might as well take the initiative and stop the pirates outside.

"Hey! Evan!"

"Grem!"

On the way, Evan unexpectedly ran into Grem, who had also heard the commotion and rushed out. After briefly greeting each other, they headed together toward the city gate by the docks, the direction from which the cannon fire had come.

This era was simply far too far removed from the word "peaceful," yet professional armies had only just begun to develop and found it difficult to meet the government's immense demand.

Therefore, it was extremely common for hunters to be temporarily recruited into the military as scouts and in other roles.

Grem, an excellent hunter who had also taken part in several military operations, led Evan, whose face was not entirely unfamiliar, through the genuine chaos of war. They reached the city gate without obstruction.

At This Moment, the bombardment from On the Sea had ended, but the situation atop the walls was extremely dire.

Two huge holes had been blasted through the gate. Part of the already low city wall had somehow collapsed, either from concentrated fire or a secondary gunpowder explosion, and it could no longer effectively keep out invaders.

On the wall, a middle-aged Captain Officer holding a saber roared loudly.

"Fire! Drive these damned pirates back into the sea!"

Bang—

Bang—

The soldiers formed three ranks and fired their Flintlock Muskets in rotation.

After only two volleys, before the gunsmoke from the Flintlock Muskets had even dispersed, a dense mass of pirates wielding curved blades rushed forward from outside the city, screaming wildly.

"Charge—"

"Ga ga ga...!"

"You scum of the sea, you trash! Let them taste the might of the Blood Anchor Pirates! Gold, wine, and women all belong to you! Hahaha..."

"Long live the Captain!"

"Kill them all!"

After the volley, the soldiers discarded their Flintlock Muskets and drew their sabers under their officers' command, preparing for battle. Though Flintlock Guns were already quite powerful, their reload speed was far too slow. Trying to fire again within ten paces was practically a joke with one's own life.

The next moment.

Boom—

The two torrents of blades and spears collided, and bloody close-quarters slaughter began. Screams and howls mixed with endless battle cries. Blood and severed limbs flew through the air. This was the horrific sight Evan and Grem saw when they reached the city gate.

Though he had trained for a long time, Evan was visiting a cold-weapons battlefield for the first time, and his body actually trembled slightly.

The splashing blood, the agonized screams before death, and the mutilated bodies all struck him deeply. Though his trembling did not come from fear, the scene was undoubtedly a trial for him.

Smack—

Grem suddenly shoved Evan. "Evan, don't stand there dazed. We're joining in too. Support them with arrows! Reinforcements will be here soon."

Taking a deep breath, Evan nodded hard. He removed the Purple Elm Longbow from his back, played to his strengths, and used the shattered wall as footholds several times before nimbly leaping onto the ramparts.

With only one glance, Data Vision marked every indistinct ally and enemy in the darkness, continuously updating and correcting for wind speed and Wind Direction.

He drew his bow and nocked an arrow.

"Whoosh!"

The feathered arrow tore through the air and entered through the mouth of a bearded pirate whose face was covered in blood as he laughed wildly, piercing through the back of his skull.

The young soldier fighting him froze briefly, then immediately reacted and hurried to help his other comrades.

By then, Evan had already turned his longbow and sent another arrow into the eye socket of the next pirate. His movements were fluid, his focus absolute. The battlefield gave him no time to savor what it felt like to kill someone for the first time.

In Evan's hands, the primitive bow became a killing weapon even more efficient than a gun!

Although the armies of This era had already equipped Flintlock Guns on a large scale, it was not because bows were weak, but because guns—or rather, musketeers—were more cost-effective.

A properly trained, qualified archer required years of training, while an ordinary musketeer needed only a few days to become proficient with a gun. The difference in efficiency was practically exponential.

Moreover, in an era of firing lines, the demand for precision was not actually very high.

A qualified archer was expected to fire ten arrows per minute, and that was not even on a battlefield in the middle of a melee. Yet with his Physical fitness and the assistance of Data Vision, Evan could fire one arrow every three to five seconds. Every shot found its mark, making him far more effective and terrifying than a gun.

By the time Grem climbed the stairs step by step, five pirates had already died beneath Evan's arrows, without a single case of friendly fire.

By comparison, although Grem also scored some kills after drawing his bow to provide support, neither his efficiency nor his killing power could compare to Evan's.

Physical fitness at the limits of humanity gave Evan terrifying stability. Maintaining a rate of one arrow every three seconds, less than a minute after reaching the wall to provide support, both sides realized that a marksman with terrifying dominance had Appeared on the battlefield.

The soldiers' morale was Morale Boosted. Though the pirates feared no death, they began to hesitate and were no longer as arrogantly reckless as before. The defensive line formed from the flesh and blood of Leopold's garrison miraculously stabilized.