Surviving as a Knight in a Trash Game

Chapter 200

Thud, thud.

The sound of well-dried firewood burning echoed around, and a man lying next to a campfire in the chilly wind was sleeping outdoors. Perhaps because of the morning dew, the man pulled the blanket he was covering himself with up to his head.

In the forest, where there seemed to be no sign of human presence, the man lay nonchalantly and slept.

And so, I don't know how much time had passed, but when the two moons in the sky tilted to the opposite side and the surroundings became dim, the man got up, staggering.

The man got up, put some dry firewood on the campfire, and then hung a canteen on it. He, who had put coffee powder in the steaming canteen, took a sip of coffee, feeling the deep aroma.

Chirp, chirp. Chirp, chirp.

Other than the sound of birds in the morning forest, there was nothing. The translucent system window that always appeared, and the tutorial window that came up every day, did not exist.

Only people, and nature, existed.

”Good.“

A single word quietly flowed from the mouth of the man with black hair, black eyes, and a face in his 30s that now showed a little age.

After riding for a long time and arriving at a village, a wooden palisade, a quaint inner castle church, and intricately laid out facilities spread out. The typical medieval manor had not changed much from the past.

Over his chainmail armor, he wore a surcoat with a black diagonal cross drawn on it, and with a few longswords hanging from his horse's saddle, he rode.

The filth that had littered the streets had disappeared as the world had changed a little. And just that made him think that the environment was much better than before.

”Was it here.“

Karl stopped in front of an inn with a dry voice. The place where he had taken his first step as a Free Knight in the West Continent. There was a sense of nostalgia.

Creeeeak.

Passing through the door that was still a little less oiled, as he walked into the inn, he saw people gathered in small groups in front of the worn-out tables, as is common in the inns of rural domains.

Swoosh.

He felt the unfamiliar gazes of those who were wary of new people, then and now.

”You seem to have come from far away?“

Karl, who had roughly accepted the still sullen greeting of the inn clerk, plopped down anywhere.

“Roasted chicken, and a cold… beer.”

“Roasted chicken and a beer.”

A moment later, Karl, who was looking at the beer placed in front of him, picked up the beer mug.

Gulp.

The taste of the lukewarm beer made him frown deeply.

“Still the same.”

It was when a small mumble flowed from his mouth.

Kwaaang!

The inn door opened violently, and a man with a deep diagonal scar on his eye, along with about 10 other large men, strode into the inn.

“Innkeeper… there should be a foreign knight bastard here?”

As the big man’s gaze swept through the inside of the inn, the innkeeper, who had lowered his eyes to the floor, secretly pointed at Karl with his finger.

“It’s the Johnson gang.”

“That knight fellow is in trouble today.”

After the great invasion of the monsters and Gray Demons, the position of knights had been greatly reduced compared to before.

Of course, the members of legendary knight orders like the Lighthouse Knights or the Somerset Knights, who were renowned throughout the continent, were different, but those who commonly called themselves Free Knights were treated much worse than before.

That was also because, due to the knights who had died in the great invasion, their martial arts and secret techniques had been leaked to the general public, and among those who were not knights, those who were stronger than knights began to appear, causing some confusion in maintaining their class.

On top of that, after the great invasion, strangely, many Master-grade knights and Transcendents also appeared, so the average military power level of the continent now had a severe gap with the past.

Recently, it had reached a point where even Master-grade could be seen among bandits and thief groups.

Thanks to that, the people living in the world had become much more tired. Although Emperor Ellenhower was putting a lot of effort into maintaining order on the continent, it was an unavoidable situation that public safety had worsened, as it hadn’t been long since he had taken power and each domain was in the process of recovering from the aftermath of the great invasion.

In the past, if the knight orders that held hegemony in each region after the emperor’s death had managed this public safety to some extent, now the number of knights to maintain local public safety was absolutely insufficient due to the knights who had died in the great invasion.

“Oh dear, I wonder what that knight fellow will do.”

“There’s that diagonal cross emblem again. These days, every Tom, Dick, and Harry is going around claiming to be a Lighthouse Knight. Still, that fellow didn’t engrave the lily emblem. There are a lot of fakes of that these days too.”

As there were so many forgeries of the Lily Knights’ emblem, which was given to the veterans of the great invasion and the monster wave, a ridiculous phenomenon of everyone and their mother on the continent engraving black hair, black eyes, and even a black diagonal cross emblem was continuing.

“The Lighthouse Knights again? Aren’t you sick of it yet? Do you know how many self-proclaimed Lighthouse Knights have died at my hands? Did you cut off all the hands and feet of our guys?”

“Didn’t they say you also cut off the lower parts?”

“…This crazy bastard.”

On the way to the village, he had taught a lesson to five scoundrels who were trying to molest a woman, and as a result, they had gotten involved.

The man with an axe on his shoulder slowly approached the front of Karl, who was seated at the table.

“Hey, buddy. If you’re not crazy, listen up. The guys here, including our guys, are all people who have beaten up a fair number of knights. We’re here to live quietly in retirement, you see. To live quietly without any disputes with other big knight orders. But, you came here and provoked us first.”

The level of the man with the axe seemed to be at least Superior-grade. A ruffian in a small village like this being Superior-grade.

Although the man moved the axe as if to threaten Karl, Karl just picked up the chicken and brought it to his mouth.

“So, leave all your equipment and money and get lost. Then we’ll spare your life-.”

“This tastes disgusting.”

The words of the ruffian with the axe were cut off coolly in the middle.

“This bastard. Right now, my-.”

“It’s so bad I don’t even want to put it in my mouth.”

At his words being cut off once again, the face of the axe man turned red, and he swung the two-handed axe straight at Karl.

People, seeing the axe flying with a whoosh, thought that another corpse would be made. But.

Whack!

Along with a heavy thud, the gruesome sound of a jaw being crushed echoed in the restaurant. And the big man with the giant axe fell forward on the spot.

“The smell is fishy….”

Karl, frowning deeply at the familiar gamey smell of the chicken rising up as before, sighed deeply as he looked at the beer on the table.

“I guess it’s time to go back….”

In this sudden situation, while everyone was dumbfounded, only Karl was moving among the frozen people.

Dududududududu.

Just as everyone was unable to come to their senses, the sound of a large number of cavalry suddenly echoed in front of the inn door.

The 10 ruffians, unable to come to their senses at the sound of hundreds of horse hooves that suddenly came, showed a foolish expression.

Creeeeak.

Rumble.

As the unoiled door of the inn opened, dozens of knights entered the inn, took their positions, and stood in formation.

Outside, at least 300 knights seemed to be standing at attention, motionless.

Nudge, nudge.

One of the ruffians poked the side of his comrade next to him.

“I think we’re in big trouble.”

Nod, nod.

Although they were foolish, they had some sense. Anyone could tell where the gazes of the people who had suddenly entered were directed.

A moment later, a man with blond hair and blue eyes walked in between the lined-up knights.

Even though they lived in the countryside, they couldn't not know who the blond man walking in the midst of hundreds of knights, all dressed in black diagonal cross emblems with a lily emblem, was.

“The Knight of Holy Light… Sir Kelvin Manov…?”

It was a name that one would only hear in the legends that floated around. Moreover, wasn't he a knight who had reached the legendary realm of a Grand Master?

Gulp.

And only then did their faces all turn towards the black-haired man.

Tremble, tremble, tremble.

And as they realized what this situation was, their legs trembled like a leaf in the wind.

“What. Heeba… wha happen! Wher’s tha blac-haird bastad…?”

Just then, their boss, whose jaw was dislocated and who couldn't even speak properly, got up, holding his jaw with both hands.

Thwaaaack!

One of the 10 ruffians, I don't know where he got it from, but he strongly struck their big brother with a rather sturdy-looking club.

“We’re sorry! We have committed a mortal sin!”

As a group, they dropped to their knees, and Karl, who was looking at the ones who had bowed their heads to the ground next to the fallen ruffian, gestured towards them with his chin.

“Have you returned?”

“It seems so.”

“It took you a long time.”

Nod.

“Lady Anne is holding a grudge. The others are the same. Dexter seemed to be on the verge of killing you, my lord.”

Kelvin grinned. Thɪs chapter is updated by NoveI★Fire.net

“That would be good too.”

The expressionless Karl also faced Kelvin and smiled brightly.

***

Anne, with a still beautiful face and eyes that looked more seriously angry than ever, was looking at Karl.

“Do you think it makes sense to leave just this one note and run away from home for over a year? A lord?”

[I'm going to live as a Free Knight for a while.]

Anne shook the small note.

“I’m sorry.”

“Is sorry enough? This is desertion of duty, both as a lord and as a husband-.”

Embrace.

A worldly wide and warm embrace enveloped Anne. She forgot what she was saying and for a moment felt Karl’s warmth.

“I was scared. I thought you would never come back.”

He was someone who always had a feeling that he would just leave somewhere. So she had always been anxious. Thinking he wouldn't come back.

“It was something I had to do. I had to believe it for myself for sure.”

That was the reason Karl had wandered again for a year.

“Now… you won’t leave, will you?”

“Of course. Now there’s no reason to.”

He never spoke empty words. So Anne could smile brightly with a relieved heart.

The next early morning, Karl stood on the top of the Lord’s castle and looked down at the domain.

The knights training diligently from the morning, the dwarves carrying things somewhere. The dragon soaring in the sky, and the elves jumping over the trees, and among them, the druids riding on animals.

The smell of baking bread and the smoke that signaled the beginning of the domain. The red-haired demon who, without fail, was lining up to eat the freshly baked bread first today.

And his lover, sleeping under the sunlight, everything was before him.

-You already know the answer. So it’s meaningless.

He remembered when he had cut down the one who had appeared in the form of a pale wizard.

[A reward will be given for achieving 100% progress. Please state your wish.]

The system window that had appeared before he had cut everything down with his sword. He had just wished to live in this world as Karl and had swung his sword at the space in front of him.

[Your wish will be granted.]

Even though he hadn't said any words, the system window had displayed such an answer. And since that day, the system window had disappeared from in front of Karl.

Karl once again looked down at the domain from the top of the Lord’s castle. He knew better than anyone that the him of now and all those things spread out before him were now his wish.

“Karl! It’s a festival for a week starting today! Shouldn’t we see the unfinished match from last time!”

From below the domain, the dwarf king Ultore waved his hand. Next to him, Bastien, as well as the Pope, Agnitus, and Amadeus, were also raising their hands.

Karl, who had jumped down from the top of the domain, was at some point mingling with the people and clinking glasses.

Karl, who had gotten drunk and laughed and chatted until the day broke, entered the Lord’s castle and settled down with Anne. The two moons in the night sky were brightly shining on the two of them.

“There was a time when I really hated the two moons.”

“Really?”

Nod.

Karl nodded his head. Every time he saw those maddeningly bright two moons, there was a moment when he hated it, as the fact that he was a stranger pierced him to the bone.

“And now?”

“It couldn’t be better.”

He thought that now, having only one moon might be more awkward. In the place with the bright two moons, the domain with endless laughter, and his lover, Karl wished for all of this to be eternal and closed his eyes with a heart more at ease than anyone in the world.

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COMPLETED