I Became a Righteous Knight in a Game

Chapter 97

“Has the identity of the attackers been determined?”

“We couldn’t determine it! The trainee who brought the news had lost so much blood that he fainted! They say he won’t wake up for a while!”

Reinhardt and Ethan exchanged words as they ran frantically.

“I’ll prepare a carriage!”

“I will ride a horse.”

“We don’t know what the situation is over there! We need to bring many things to treat the injured!”

“That is….”

For a moment, he thought of his [Inventory] and opened his mouth, but then Reinhardt nodded.

“I understand. I will accompany you in the carriage.”

“I’ve hired the best coachman in Serigel. It won’t be much different from riding a horse yourself.”

“…Yes.”

“I know you’re anxious, but please be patient for a little while. There are over ten knights stationed at the training ground. There are no knights like you, but it’s enough to evacuate the trainees.”

Even in a situation like this, Ethan was calm. He was clearly trying his best to maintain his composure as a commander.

And he wasn't wrong.

If ten knights were stationed there, they should be able to hold out against any threat that came their way.

‘With that many, holding out shouldn’t be a problem. Dirk’s skills are decent enough too.’

Reinhardt did a quick assessment in his head.

He estimated the combat power of the demonic beasts he had seen in the game and weighed the possibility that something might have happened to Dirk.

‘It’s fine. They can hold out.’

It was a rational and reasonable conclusion.

Reinhardt watched as the carriage was being prepared.

All sorts of supplies filled the luggage compartment in an instant, and a skilled coachman took the reins.

“For now, it’s just you and me. The support troops will follow right behind.”

“I understand.”

“And, Sir Reinhardt. I’m asking just in case.”

Then, the two of them boarded the carriage.

Only then did Ethan ask, revealing a concern he couldn't quite hide.

“Do you think this situation is related to the advice you gave me just a little while ago?”

“In my opinion, yes.”

“I thought so.”

The attackers were surely demonic beasts.

There was no group foolish enough to attack a group of knights within the Empire’s territory.

“…Ten knights should be enough, right?”

“There will be no problem holding out. As long as they weren’t ambushed.”

“That won’t be the case. I told them to never let their guard down. Yes, it will surely be so.”

Ethan muttered as if to reassure himself.

Then, under the skilled hands of the coachman, the carriage wheels began to roll at a high speed.

***

Boring and dull.

That was how Dirk evaluated the training process here.

“Hah, haah. Damn it. I’m gonna die.”

“You’re gonna die? From boredom?”

“What are you talking about? I’m saying I’m dying from exhaustion.”

“This is exhausting?”

“Yeah, you bastard. It’s exhausting. Can’t you see everyone else collapsed over there?”

Dirk couldn't understand his fellow trainee’s words.

How on earth could this be exhausting?

Hadn’t they just run a few dozen kilometers?

The pack on his back was only a few dozen kilograms.

And yet, it was exhausting.

“Why is this exhausting?”

“You monster.”

At Dirk’s innocent voice, his comrade burst out laughing as if it were absurd.

It had been like this since the first day he came here.

Even when all the other trainees were panting with their tongues hanging out, Dirk would breathe evenly and look at them as if to ask why they were all like that.

Naturally, the first impression Dirk gave was one of bewilderment.

Then jealousy arose, and jealousy turned into ill feelings.

But then.

The situation turned around in an instant.

“That must be why someone like Sir Reinhardt chose you.”

The man chosen by Knight Reinhardt.

That was Dirk.

When they heard that news, all the trainees put aside their jealousy and busily nodded their heads with expressions of understanding.

“He chose Irien, not me.”

“Irien, you mean your younger sister?”

“Yeah. Heh heh, Irien is a genius. Even the professors at the academy acknowledged it.”

“You said it was the Imperial Academy, right?”

“It’s the Floran Imperial Academy. A place you can’t get into unless you’re a genius like Irien.”

“I’d like to tell you to stop making such a fuss, but since it’s Floran, it really is a place like that, so I have nothing to say. You damn lucky bastard.”

His comrade chuckled.

They were already close enough that there was no awkwardness in exchanging such jokes.

“By the way, when the hell is this damn training going to end? We should have passed the final stage a long time ago.”

His comrade grumbled.

This training was a long-distance march.

Of course, since the record was important, it was a march in name only; in reality, it was no different from a long-distance run.

“This is the first time I’ve been this far from the training ground. If we go a little further from here, Lockfort should appear.”

“You said it was your hometown, right?”

“Not that I’ll ever go back, though. My family is all in Serigel now.”

“Really? Well, I guess that makes sense.”

Dirk was seized by a strange sentiment.

Because Lockfort was mentioned, old memories kept coming to mind.

“This training has to be the last one.”

“It definitely has to be. In a few days, you’ll be Sir Dirk, and I’ll be Sir Shalom. We’ll be proud knights of the Taton Knights.”

His comrade, Shalom, smiled broadly as if just imagining it was enjoyable.

“Me, Sir Dirk.”

“That’s right! Hah, to think I’d be able to join the prestigious Taton Knights.”

Prestigious Knight Order.

That was the position Taton had recently risen to.

The biggest reason was the fact that they had a knight named Reinhardt.

The rumor that he had single-handedly eliminated a warlock and even an incarnated demon was known by almost everyone.

Of course, there must have been some exaggeration mixed in, but even so, no one dared to belittle it.

That wasn't all.

Knight Commander Ethan Taton did not spare any investment for his members and declared that he would make everyone a knight like Reinhardt.

He emphasized that he would provide the environment for that, so the members only needed to focus on their duties as knights.

“Me… a knight?”

“Ah, that’s right. You’ve become a knight. To be precise, you’re on the verge of becoming one.”

Dirk and Shalom exchanged idle jokes and looked at the horizon.

They could see their comrades who had not yet finished the race staggering and running towards them.

Glance.

Where he looked, an instructor was observing them with a cold gaze.

Seeing him writing something on the document in his hand, it seemed he was ranking them.

“Don’t tell me they’re planning to filter us out one more time here?”

“Filter us out?”

“They said we passed the final test for admission, but maybe they’re weeding out those whose discipline has slackened after hearing that….”

Shalom muttered with anxious eyes.

It wasn’t impossible. In fact, it was a trap that prestigious educational institutions sometimes prepared.

“If you’re slower than your previous record, you get demerits. I don’t know if there are special circumstances, but if not….”

“Hey, Shalom.”

“Yeah?”

“There’s something strange over there.”

Dirk said, pointing straight ahead.

He looked at the rising dust cloud with a frown.

“It’s not just one. I’ll correct that to strange things.”

“…Is it an army?”

“Why would an army come to a remote place like this? I don’t see any flags either.”

Squeeze-

Dirk strained his eyes.

As he focused all his senses, with a thud sound, his vision cleared.

He could now clearly see the expression of his comrade running in the distance.

“They’re running away.”

“What?”

“They’re running away. Instructor!”

Dirk hastily got up and ran to the instructor.

“What is it?”

“We have to save our comrades! They’re running away! From the things chasing them from behind!”

“This is the Empire’s territory, Dirk.”

The instructor replied with a bewildered laugh.

“Those who threaten the security of the Empire cannot form such a large force. They must be troops dispatched from a nearby territory. Though I don’t know why they’ve come all the way here.”

“It’s not like that! I’m telling you they’re running away!”

“Then it seems they are not qualified to be knights. I will take your advice into consideration.

To turn tail and run just because they encountered an unidentified force….”

Dirk’s face crumpled into a deep frown as he turned to look back.

He once again checked the expression of his comrade running towards them.

He was terrified. So much so that even though he was exhausted, he was running at full speed without slowing down.

Whip-

His vision shifted to another trainee.

This comrade was covered in blood. He was carrying a person on his back. The person on his back was also wearing the same trainee uniform as them.

“This is damn it. Instructor or not, should I just knock him out.”

“…What did you just say?”

Dirk clenched his teeth tightly.

“I’m telling you we have to save those guys! Wilson is being carried, covered in blood! Shannon is carrying the fallen Wilson on his back! Looking at his limp, Shannon will be caught soon too. And besides….”

“I asked what you just said, Trainee Dirk.”

“I’m telling you your disciple is about to get killed!”

Dirk shouted out in a surge of emotion.

They were comrades who had suffered together for a long time.

They had shared even when they had little, and they had willingly lent a shoulder when a comrade stumbled.

No matter how much talk there was of a knight’s honor or what not, wasn’t it the wise decision to just shut up and follow in a situation like this?

“Judge wisely, Trainee Dirk. Your comrades are dying? By what?”

“How the hell should I know before I see it with my own two eyes! Can’t you see that? The state he’s in, covered in blood?”

“I don’t see it. It’s not a distance where I can see. The trainee is exhausted. He is seeing hallucinations out of exhaustion. The hallucination is likely born from fear….”

“Hey! Everyone gather! We’re saving our comrades!”

“Trainee Dirk!”

“Just shut up and lie down, sir!”

Baaam!

Dirk finally threw a punch.

The instructor’s jaw was knocked askew, and he soon collapsed limply.

“Dirk! What are you talking about? Saving our comrades?”

“It’s a distance you guys can’t see. Anyway, those guys are running away right now.

Something is chasing them from behind.”

“Chasing them? What on earth? First, calm down a bit!”

“Alright. I’ll lay you down next to the instructor.”

“Damn it! I get it, so put your fist down! Let’s save them! We’ll just save them, right?!”

Shalom had a clueless expression, but he followed the instruction for now.

The other trainees who had already finished the race also gathered around Dirk.

“Oh my god. What on earth is this? Dirk, did you really just knock out the instructor?”

“I only hit him once. Shut up and everyone focus. We are saving our comrades. The ones who are running from something unknown. Put on your armor, grab your weapons.”

“Where are we going to get armor in the middle of this?”

Dirk thought for a moment, then nodded.

They had just completed a long-distance march.

Their only luggage was a backpack filled with heavy rocks instead of armor.

“Then at least grab a weapon.”

“We have weapons, but….”

Even in that situation, everyone was wearing their weapons.

It was because the principle that a knight should never be separated from their weapon under any circumstances was applied.

“I’ll do it since you’re telling me to, but if something goes wrong….”

“I’ll take responsibility. You guys were threatened by me. I pushed you, saying I’d beat you up if you didn’t cooperate.”

Dirk willingly shouldered the responsibility.

In addition to that.

“And I’ll really do it.”

He didn’t forget to add a heartfelt request for cooperation.