[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[Searching for suitable resources based on your actions so far.]
[You have awakened the new stat, Aura.]
[You have upheld your chivalry before a powerful foe.]
[A reward is granted for [Oath of Chivalry].]
[You have completed the quest: Repose.]
[Quest reward is being grant…….]
A whole festival of notification windows.
And then there was the lion, standing before me with its ruined axe raised.
It was slowly turning to ash.
When I pulled out the sword I had driven into it, a larger hole opened up, as though the packed ash had been scattered to the wind.
With a thud, the lion dropped to its knees, then was swallowed by ash and blown away.
"Knight."
Hm?
"Master…. Even now, I still cannot reach you…."
For the first and last time.
Muttering words I could not understand.
With a relieved look on its face, it entered its repose.
Me too.
Thud.
Yeah, I really do feel like I might die any second.
Had I ever fought this hard since falling into this world?
The strength drained from my legs and I pitched forward.
I barely managed to hold on to my fading consciousness.
If I hadn’t had [Dragon Strength], I had no idea what would have happened.
I could feel that my insides were a wreck and several bones were still broken, even if they were slowly regenerating.
If I hadn’t had [Dragon Strength], I’d probably already be dead.
Still, that story of the peerless knight.
It really was incredible.
I was completely out of mana and stamina, and yet I had brought down the lion with a single thrust.
Just what the hell were those things?
And why was the body of the knight’s star, something that had never appeared in the game’s setting, here?
I wanted answers to everything.
But for now, I decided not to think about any of that.
Because right now, it fucking hurt too much.
Anyway, there was no way this was going to pass quietly.
The night watch is definitely going to slap me with a perfect ten out of ten for this….
"Ian!"
Someone was running toward me.
A woman with silver hair streaming behind her.
Dolnesia.
Looking at her face, I could clearly see the bloodstain at the corner of her mouth.
And in her eyes were traces of tears, like she had been crying.
She came closer, slowly crouched down, and gently placed her hand against my cheek.
"…Are you actually insane?"
Instead of asking if I was okay, she just opened with an insult.
"I lived, didn’t I? That’s what matters."
"And you call that something to say right now?!"
Dolnesia shouted at the top of her lungs.
I mean, if I lived, wasn’t that enough…?
Apparently, she wasn’t willing to let that slide.
But really, shouldn’t surviving be enough?
Was there any reason to be this angry?
"But you’re different. There’s one more person who would cry for you."
Seeing her bite her lip, why was it that Haede’s words came back to me then?
The words Haede had said.
That if I died, there would be someone who would cry for me.
I couldn’t understand why she would be someone to cry for me.
Had she really been that close with the original Ian before I possessed this body? Close enough to cherish him?
Or was it because of five years ago….
Ha….
I let out a hollow laugh at the useless thought.
"What’s so funny?"
"No, it’s just…."
As if that could be true.
If she knew, she’d definitely be angry.
There was no way she’d treat me like this….
Forcing those thoughts aside.
Well, either way, it was true that I’d pushed myself too far this time.
So I decided to humbly accept her scolding.
#
I couldn’t do anything.
Even when Ian was covered in blood.
Even when Lady Dolnesia and Dante were coughing up blood.
Even when Haede suddenly jumped in.
Other than screaming, I couldn’t do anything at all.
No.
"Don’t come."
I would only have been in the way.
It hurt to watch them fight the enemy even while coughing up blood.
But what hurt even more was myself, the fact that all I could do was stand there and watch.
And because they didn’t blame me for that.
My chest hurt even more.
I came to the academy to become stronger.
But when it mattered, I couldn’t do anything for anyone.
Even Ede threw herself forward to protect Ian.
And I… all I could do was scream.
Why did I even come to the academy…?
I placed a hand near my chest and looked ahead.
Ian was sitting there, drenched in blood.
In front of him, Dolnesia was continuing to scold him.
Beside them, Dante was trying to calm Dolnesia down.
Watching them, I bit my lip lightly.
Did I…
really deserve to stand with those people?
I just smiled because other people smiled.
Pretended to be kind.
But when real danger came, I was a terrible person who did nothing.
I didn’t even want to see people die in front of me.
And yet when Ede nearly died, I stood there frozen.
I’m….
"Ris?"
"Ede…."
Ede came over to me, and I forced a smile so she wouldn’t worry.
"What are you doing over here?"
"Well, I…."
"Ah."
Ede clapped her hands as if she understood.
"You’re blaming yourself again, aren’t you?"
"N-no…."
"You totally are."
As expected.
I really can’t hide anything from you.
"I couldn’t do anything."
When Ian, Dante, and Lady Dolnesia were coughing up blood and fighting.
Even when you stepped forward, I couldn’t do anything.
That version of myself is just so….
"Here, take this."
Ede held something out to me.
It was…
a ring.
A plain silver ring with no decorations at all.
But.
It felt warm somehow.
And strangely familiar….
"A ring? Why this ring?"
"Ian told me to give it to you."
W-what?
Ian gave me a ring?
Why, why?
Why would he give me a ring?
At that moment, an old romance novel I had read came to mind.
There had been a scene in it a little like this….
When a grown man gives a grown woman a ring…
My face flared hot.
T-that… p-pr….
"Well, I don’t think he was trying to propose in the middle of a life-or-death situation…. Hmm, or was he? No, I don’t think that was the tone he used when he gave it to me…. Besides, it’s not even one of those rings with a gemstone or anything, is it?"
So it’s not that?
Then what is it?
Watching Ede stroke her chin in thought, my own thoughts sank deeper and deeper into confusion.
But it was too sudden.
For him to suddenly give me a ring.
"Hmm, still, maybe he gave it to you because it’s something you need."
Because I need it?
"Why?"
"Call it a woman’s intuition. Besides, you have the favor of Charles, Asdel, and even Ars, don’t you? Is there really any brave soul out there who’d dare hand you a proposal ring?"
"Haha."
They’re just kind to me, that’s all.
I’m not worthy of standing alongside people like them.
Then…
Why had Ian given me a ring?
Did he really think this would help me?
And if so, how would Ian know that?
I quietly looked at Ian’s face.
At Ian, flustered as he was being scolded by Lady Dolnesia.
I still didn’t understand him.
Ian was still full of mysteries.
He had been like that from the very first impression.
"Ah, yes. Hello."
When we first met, he had stared at me like he’d been startled out of his mind, and he looked so fierce that he seemed frightening.
"My name is Ian! Ian de Logres!"
But when he fought the terrorists, he was a strange man who fought like a knight straight out of a fairy tale.
"It’s fine. My reputation can’t fall any lower anyway."
Even though people would look down on him, he still granted my request, saying he didn’t care much about his reputation.
"Are you deaf? I asked what you’re affiliated with."
And when he got angry, he could be terrifying.
But somehow.
The way he saved Ede.
The way he ran toward that terrifying lion.
It made him seem like the kind of knight you’d only ever see in a storybook.
So.
Anyway, I think he’s a strange person.
And so.
I wondered if this, too, was just some strange ring he had given me because he himself was strange.
I carefully accepted the ring Ede handed me, clasped it tightly in both hands, and held it near my chest.
"It’s warm."
It was a strange ring.
Something familiar, and yet deeply warm.
#
【Ian de Logres】
◈ Level: 32
◈ Title: [Rival of the Sword Demon]
◈ Traits: [Dragon Strength], [Insight Eye], [Oath of Chivalry], [Flower of Chivalry]
◈ Stats
Physical: 261 | Mana: 125
Luck: 10 | Mental Strength: 30
Aura: 0
(Current SP: 45)
▶ [Skills]
Finally.
I’d hit level 30.
Just as expected, what I got was Aura.
It wasn’t one of those protagonist-exclusive stats.
But who cared? It was Aura.
That meant I could finally produce sword aura too.
I dumped every last point of SP I had into Aura.
As soon as I did, my lower abdomen grew hot, and I felt something spread through my entire body.
The same feeling as when I first raised my mana stat.
[You have entered the realm of ‘Sword User.’]
[The level of Logres Mana Cultivation Method has increased to MAX.]
[You have completed the achievement: ‘Take Your First Steps as a Knight.’]
[Part of the hidden ability of the trait [Oath of Chivalry] has been unlocked.]
The level of my mana cultivation method, which hadn’t been rising at all, got blown up from level 1 straight to max.
And compared to before, I could now move mana at an entirely incomparable level.
So this was what a Sword User was like.
And what was this about a hidden trait being unlocked?
[Oath of Chivalry]
You must advance toward a star beyond your reach.
The stars of knights will watch your words and deeds, and they will become judges who evaluate your chivalry.
◈ A penalty is given each time you act against chivalry.
◈ A reward is given each time you act in accordance with chivalry.
◈ The stars of knights are watching you.
◈ You may communicate with the stars of knights.
◈ new! You may appoint your squire.
At the very bottom, with that little glowing word ‘new,’ was a single sparkling sentence.
I could appoint a squire?
What was a squire?
The moment I asked that question inwardly.
Ding!
As if to answer me, a notification window popped up.
[A squire is an apprentice knight and attendant who follows you.]
An attendant?
An apprentice knight? Was that supposed to be a good thing?
[A squire is the shield that protects you and the sword that fights beside you.]
[You may issue three compulsory commands to your squire.]
So I could force them to obey three commands.
Other than that.
Were there any other benefits?
[You may pass your skills on to your squire.]
I could pass my skills on to them?
That meant I could teach things like [Orlando’s Muscle Cultivation Method] or [Mad Orlando] to someone else.
That was pretty good.
If I appointed someone like Haede, wouldn’t that mean I could turn Haede into something like an Ian prototype?
Or I could appoint Isabella and create some mutant hybrid who used both magic and muscles at the same time.
[Mutual consent is required in order to appoint a squire.]
[However, you cannot form a contract with someone in a hostile relationship, and if the relationship becomes hostile, the squire appointment contract will be terminated.]
So no contracts with enemies.
Then if they turned hostile later, did that mean I couldn’t take back the skills I’d already passed on?
[You cannot retrieve them.]
What the hell, why are there so many flaws in this thing?
If I messed up, I’d end up doing all the work just to hand the results to someone else.
So that meant I had to appoint someone who wouldn’t betray me as my squire….
[The number of people you may currently appoint as squires is 1.]
But hold on.
How exactly was I supposed to appoint one?
It said mutual consent was required, but I couldn’t exactly walk up to someone and say, ‘Would you like to be my squire?’
Besides, I’m the only one who even knows the system exists.
[You need only ask the other party whether they agree to be appointed as your squire and obtain their consent.]
So I just needed their agreement.
Hmm.
Who should I appoint as my squire?
Dolnesia?
Haede?
Or Iris?
Still.
The safest bet was probably appointing Haede as my squire.
The reason I picked Haede wasn’t because of that three compulsory commands nonsense, but because I could pass my skills on to someone else.
Haede wasn’t a male lead or a female lead, so she was positioned as Iris’s friend, and later on she wouldn’t become strong enough to keep up with the power inflation.
But if she inherited my skills?
Then catching up to the power inflation would be easy.
Then.
To Haede—
"Ian."
Just as I was about to head toward Haede, the wolf approached me.
"What?"
"It seems everything is over. Both the leopard and the lion have fallen by your hand."
"Well, yeah."
"If you had sacrificed me, it would have ended much more easily."
Well, about that.
Thinking about that insane lion’s monstrous tenacity, I couldn’t even imagine things ending just because you held it down.
Let’s not say that out loud.
"Ian."
While I was having that pointless thought, it called my name once more.
"So what am I supposed to do now?"
"What do you mean, what are you supposed to do?"
"I mean I failed to find the right timing to make my exit."
As it said that, the wolf slowly came closer.
Dante must have thought it was dangerous, because he stepped slightly in front of me.
"Ian needs to rest and recover—"
"It’s fine."
I stopped Dante.
"When you saved me the first time, I know you only spared me to use me as a guide. But the second time, there was no reason to leave me alive."
"I told you. If you died after I went to the trouble of saving you, I’d have bad dreams."
"I have no reason to live, Ian."
At the wolf’s words, everyone sucked in a breath.
Neither I nor anyone else could say a word.
Because the wolf’s voice sounded like a plea.
Grinding its teeth with emotions that seemed ready to spit blood, it forced the words out.
The first emotion that wolf, whose heart had been shattered and who had shown none of its feelings, finally revealed was this.
"That day, when I woke from that damned nightmare in the backlight… when I realized that I… that I had turned into a giant wolf in that laboratory… I…"
It was resentment.
Resentment that I had saved it at all.
I see.
"Ian. Kill me, please. I don’t know what meaning there is in going on living anymore. Then again, my life has been nothing but misery. So the one who saved me—you—should do it with your own hands…"
"You…!"
Whatever trigger that set off in Dolnesia, just as she was about to explode in anger—
"I told you already."
I cut in first.
"Unfortunately for you, you’re not dying today."
"But!"
"You said you don’t know what reason you have to live, right?"
Even that corpse from before, the one that could only imitate the memories of its body, fought with everything it had.
So there was no way you could truly have no reason to live.
You just don’t know it yet.
And if you don’t know.
"Then you learn."
I walked toward it.
My whole body still ached like it was being torn apart, but I limped my way in front of the wolf.
"If you don’t know where to go, then I’ll be your guide, wolf."
"What?"
I meant exactly what I said.
I flashed a grin and opened my mouth.
"You. Become my squire."
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