Chapter 14
Karl stepped into the training yard and quietly raised his sword, closing his eyes.
There were tis when the muddy, tangled mories of his past tornted him like a nightmare. And whenever that happened, Karl would always swing his sword.
Whoosh.
The trembling at the tip of the sword vanished.
One of the masters—now long dead—had once told him a story.
A "Sword Master" was not simply soone skilled at wielding a blade, but soone whose heart had reached a state where it could lift the sword.
Knights who obsessed solely over faster, stronger strikes ant only for killing could never reach that supre realm known as "Master."
Even the master who said this had never reached that level, so it might have been nothing more than empty words.
Thoughts about such a realm naturally led Karl to thoughts about identity. He rembered how he always introduced himself as a Free Knight.
Am I a knight?
‘What a joke.’
His vague idea of what it ant to be a knight ca from modern dia on Earth—a mix of historical facts and fiction.
Even by Earth’s historical standards, the definition of "knight" varied by region and era, and Karl only had a rough, incomplete understanding of it.
But here, those called knights seed to be sothing else entirely.
Things had gotten so bad that reputable rcenary groups were considered more trustworthy than half-baked Free Knights.
To make matters worse, any knight with real skill was busy forming factions under the na of knight orders, making the whole concept of a "knight" more confusing than ever.
And Baron Nopak truly didn’t know anything about that half-beast...
Thinking back on his dealings with Baron Nopak and the man's deanor, Karl didn’t think he had been lied to.
Just as he finished training and was heading back to his room, the sound of horse hooves echoed from the edge of the Dinston Domain.
***
Two horses galloped at full speed. Their riders raced along Dinston’s official road, looking for traces of those who had passed before.
“Captain, from here on, even if faint, this is considered Alcantara Knights’ territory. Won’t it be difficult to pursue them further?”
“Not the whole order’s on the move—just the two of us. They won’t see us as a threat. Maybe just be cautious.”
Then ca the murmur of voices, catching Godfrey’s attention.
“Hey, did you hear? A monster appeared in our domain or sothing like that?”
“A monster? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“They say Dalton from the Dalton Knights turned into so kind of hairy beast last night. A Free Knight charged in alone and slaughtered the entire Dalton Knights, and that guy turned into a monster and died.”
“What? What monster? And who charged a knight order alone?! What is this now?”
Godfrey listened closely to the townspeople’s chatter.
“I only heard bits about the monster story, but wasn’t there a brawl at Anne’s inn the day before? They say that Free Knight wrecked ten Dalton knights back then.”
“Well, yeah, I saw that with my own eyes.”
Godfrey was now convinced the person in the rumors was the one they had been tracking all this ti.
“Let’s head to that inn. We’re bound to find so clues there.”
“Yes, Captain.”
And so, Wooster and Godfrey stepped into the inn called The Traveler’s Forest.
“Welco to The Traveler’s Forest! You’re in luck—only one seat left!”
As soon as the door opened, a child, probably around seven or eight, cheerfully led them to the last remaining seat.
Once seated, a young woman ca to their table, prompting Godfrey to speak.
“Greetings. We’re looking for the owner of this place, soone nad Anne.”
“That’s .”
“We ca because we’re curious about sothing.”
“What are you curious about?”
“On our way here, we heard an interesting rumor—about a Free Knight who ventured into a monster den to help the innkeeper.”
A strange light flickered across Anne’s face but vanished just as quickly. It was so brief that Godfrey didn’t catch it.
“They say he helped you. We’re not here to harm that Free Knight… if anything, we’re more like allies. So there’s no need to be cautious. We just have a few questions.”
Anne was already prepared for the conversation.
“Let
hear a bit more first, and then I’ll decide.”
At her bold reply, Godfrey chuckled and continued. Having succeeded in getting Anne to talk, he soon set off toward Dinston’s lord’s castle.
***
Karl was enjoying a rare mont of rest.
Having spent two days in the guest room, wrapped more by the night sky than any blanket, he was finally taking ti to sort out his thoughts.
“You seem to like tea.”
Karl was sipping tea in the garden of the lord’s castle. He already knew the faces of all the servants assigned to him thanks to Baron Nopak’s hospitality. But the man standing before him now was soone he hadn’t seen before.
“Pleased to et you. I’m Godfrey of the Holy Knights.”
A composed voice, tall stature, a well-balanced physique, hands that showed years of sword training, and subtle but precise movents—Godfrey’s presence alone was proof enough of his skills.
“You don’t need to look at
like that, Sir Karl. I’m only here as part of an investigation.”
“You know my na.”
And the na Godfrey of the Holy Knights—Karl had heard of him, even in the East Continent. They had never t, but each had heard the other’s na before.
To Karl’s voice, Godfrey responded by calmly recounting the story of how he ca to be here.
He explained he had been dispatched not to interfere directly with a minor border war between two domains, but to observe and report on its progress and outco so the Order could stay inford—only to find so unusual traces that led him here.
“I thought you were in the East Continent.”
Karl gave no reaction.
Godfrey stared intensely into Karl’s eyes. Karl didn’t avoid the gaze, and the two stood there silently, locked in mutual observation.
“It’s been a while, Sir Godfrey. Forgive the interruption, but I have urgent matters to discuss with this knight.”
“It’s… Isabel?”
The silence was broken—not by either of the two n—but by a woman’s voice from sowhere nearby.
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