Chapter 25 : Chapter 25

Chapter 25. Knight (3)

『Many boys dream of becoming the protagonist.』

『But not all boys can become one.』

『At least, I could not.』

When I put Fetel’s sword into my mouth, the first thing that rose up was his life. The figure of a boy, healthy and untainted by disease, flickered in my mind. The memories the blade carried began from his youth.

The first sword he received from his father.

A sword as big and sharp as the boy Fetel’s own body.

『I only realized that truth far too late.』

Fetel’s sword had never carried a name.

***

Two days was not a long time.

After I had ingested Fetel’s sword, Liam gave me no special training. The practice he prescribed was simple, almost absurdly familiar.

「From this moment until the duel of honor, you will swing your sword.」

「There will be no rest. You will continue until your body burns as if about to explode.」

This time, I neither doubted nor argued. I only nodded, gripped the weapon that resembled Fetel’s sword, and began swinging.

“Haa.”

Even as the muscles of my forearms tightened, my shoulders throbbed, and fatigue pressed down on me, I swung again and again. Then, Seol Yoon approached.

“…You mean to fight in Fetel’s place?”

“Yes.”

At my words, Seol Yoon hesitated briefly.

“If you need a sparring match, say the word.”

That, I hadn’t expected. I kept swinging and answered:

“Seol Yoon, you followed me here to climb higher in the path of the sword, did you not?”

“That’s right.”

“And yet, when I say I’ll fight a knight who has reached ‘Sword Runner,’ you don’t stop me?”

Whoosh—my sword cut the air.

“Moreover, since following me, you’ve had no breakthroughs, no remarkable experiences. If it were me, I’d be frustrated. But you remain silent. That makes me curious.”

A fair question. Seol Yoon answered:

“I believe watching your path is itself the answer to reaching a higher road.”

“……”

“Don’t worry. This is also my choice. I am satisfied, without complaint, Little Gladiator.”

She gazed at me with her usual detached eyes.

“And besides… I don’t think you’ll die fighting a Sword Runner.”

“…?”

“It’s just a feeling.”

Her cold voice spread through the air.

“Can you promise me one thing?”

“What is it?”

“If you survive, fight me for real. Not a sparring match, but like last time.”

She touched the hilt at her waist.

“That will be a priceless leap for me.”

It was not a hard promise. And sparring with Seol Yoon would benefit me as well. To have such a genius as a sparring partner was a blessing for a beginner like me.

Of course, the condition was survival.

“Yes. If I survive, I’ll fight you.”

Whoosh!

I swung again, full of force.

『A clumsy swordsmanship that could be found anywhere.』

『A plain face, a dull way of speaking.』

As sweat glittered and flew, memories of the sword’s former owner—my kind neighbor, now gone—flowed into me.

『I was a knight like any other.』

***

I was a knight like any other.

No one paid me any attention.

“Fetel? I think that was the name. Wasn’t it?”

In the city, knights like me were countless. Young men who had read romances, been born into decent families, trained with the sword, and graduated from the Academy.

“Yes.”

But among them, I was particularly dull and rigid.

“You lack flexibility.”

At knights’ drinking tables, I could never manage flattery. Back then, I thought that was admirable.

“You’re boring, Fetel. Dull.”

In romances, the protagonists never bend their convictions, always speaking their truth. In history, loyal retainers declared their fidelity, even at the cost of death.

I thought that was admirable.

“You don’t need to come to gatherings anymore.”

But the reason they could be remembered so gloriously was because they were heroes of their age, because they were protagonists.

“You always ruin the mood.”

I became a tiresome, humorless knight. A rigid old man in a young body.

At those times, I told myself true knights needed no friends. I would swing my sword alone, believing that someday, people would recognize my sincerity.

But then.

“Your unbending conviction is impressive!”

“Haha! Such spirit for a young man!”

The world was cruel.

“Of course you gained wings at such a young age. Sword Runners are on another level. You must join us again!”

A knight who acted no differently than I did was instantly celebrated. He wasn’t better spoken, nor more charming.

The only difference was this: I was a 「Sword Walker」, he was a 「Sword Runner」.

“……”

That was when I realized.

I could never be the protagonist.

And if you were not the protagonist, then to survive, you had to file down your convictions, flatter others, and fit yourself to the role of an extra in a chivalric romance.

“Yes, you are all impressive.”

That was the only way to remain on the stage.

“Give me any task. I will do it honorably.”

Thus was born “Fetel the Loyal.”

Even if they mocked me as a “loyal dog,” it didn’t matter.

That was the way I chose to survive.

Even when self-loathing crept in, I pressed forward.

Because the shining world I had dreamed of as a boy—the world of chivalric romance—was right there.

I wanted to remain, even as a small part of it.

“…Fetel! Fetel!”

Half in a daze, I lived on. Time sped up, and I became an awkwardly aged knight—not quite young, not yet old.

And then, the wheel turned.

“My father said from now on, you will protect me!”

The obedient dog. The reliable one.

That was how I became the escort of my lord’s youngest daughter. A little lady, still girlish, full of freshness and charm.

“I’ll trust you. Everyone said so—if it’s Fetel, we can trust him.”

The girl’s name was Daisy. Like the flower.

“Fetel the Loyal. That’s what they call you, right?”

Her smile was like a puppy’s.

“You’re amazing. Like the protagonist of a romance! A knight who never betrays, who keeps his honor. I’m so happy you’re my escort.”

Innocent girls brighten all around them. Daisy was loved at parties, by the people, by everyone.

“Fetel.”

That was, until my lord was ruined in the bloody succession struggles of the Iron Kingdom, our estate seized, our mansion burned.

“Sir Fetel.”

The girl’s silks became rough cloth. She grew into a woman, stripped of title, unable to call my name freely.

“Why do you still protect us?”

I couldn’t answer.

Why did I remain, in this place that could not give me wealth or glory, far from any romance?

I looked at Daisy.

She was no longer a girl, nor particularly beautiful. But when I saw her, I remembered the past.

“Because I am Fetel the Loyal.”

Her words had remained with me.

“I will never betray. I will always keep my honor.”

Perhaps, I realized, even if I was nothing to her, I might be like a protagonist of a romance. That was why I could not leave her.

I felt like I had returned to my stubborn, humorless, rigid self.

“Like a protagonist of a romance.”

It wasn’t so bad.

“I too am glad to be your escort.”

Perhaps I had never stopped being a boy. Especially when Daisy smiled like a girl again.

“Thank you, Sir Fetel.”

And three days later, Daisy came to me in tears. At a party she had attended to reclaim her place in society, she had suffered unbearable humiliation. I saw her torn dress and the ugly wound across her chest.

I took up my sword.

“Don’t go, Sir Fetel. He’s a baron’s son. We are ruined now, powerless. His knights are Sword Walkers, veterans of countless battles. Please, you’re all I have left.”

Even so, I walked forward.

What courage had suddenly flared in me?

I stood proudly at the baron’s mansion, clad in worn armor, and without hesitation, said to the drunken baron’s son:

“I challenge you to a duel of honor.”

That was the first duel of honor in my life.

…

“Haa, haa—”

As I swung my sword again and again, evening fell. The sky was red, as always in Fetel’s eyes.

「If he is a careless Sword Runner, there may be a chance.」

「Perhaps his aim is to trample Fetel’s conviction, to gain his second pair of wings.」

My muscles trembled. I was reaching my limits.

“Does trampling another’s conviction truly strengthen you?”

「For those who reach as high as Sword Runner, yes. For once you climb high enough, the sword reflects your values.」

Liam continued:

「Those with destructive values grow by crushing others. Those with steadfast ones grow by refining themselves.」

“……”

「That knight has destructive values. And such men grow fast—but unstable. That is why the Karavans, who seek unyielding steel, have always been their nemesis.」

The night chill began to fall.

「If the swords you’ve ingested combine with Fetel’s, there will be a great synergy. All you’ve built will shine, your body forged sharper.」

“…I see.”

「But even with that, your chance of victory is slim.」

He warned:

「The wings of a Sword Runner defy the laws of the world. Fighting them will feel like fighting someone cheating. Even if incomplete, to you, they are monsters.」

Indeed, Sword Runners were like phantoms on the battlefield. Their fearsome name spread across the continent.

「Proof is always this difficult. You may die as your father did. Like Fetel, who couldn’t even last a week.」

“……”

「Reality is harsh. If you want the answer you seek, you must become harder steel than you ever imagined.」

My head spun. My body was about to burst. But I swung still.

Heat filled me, smoke seemed to rise. Muscles burned, my head boiled, the sky blazed red.

My breath came hot, but I was mesmerized by the sunset. I lowered my gaze to my sword.

The blade resembled Fetel’s. It still had no name.

A thought came to me.

“I want to name this sword.”

「What name?」

Without hesitation, I answered, gazing at the sunset Fetel loved.

「Twilight.」

***

Two days passed.

At the village gates, the knights had built a dueling ground for the duel of honor. On the left stood Meken, deputy commander of the Yellow Elephant, holding his sharp blade.

When the sun reached its zenith, a man appeared over the ridge in silver armor.

“…?”

Meken doubted his eyes. Through the dust came Fetel—healthy, eyes bright, like steel. Like the Fetel of old.

‘No, that’s wrong.’

He blinked. The truth was clear. It was the village boy.

Yet the boy radiated the dignity of a knight. His posture, exacting and rigid, seemed to hold Fetel's spirit.

And his body—sturdier than before, like one forged through years of training.

The boy entered the dueling ground. Meken asked:

“Where is Sir Fetel?”

“Fetel will not come.”

“So he finally gave up and fled?”

“He is dead. He succumbed to illness.”

The boy spoke with a noble’s tone.

“Then the duel of honor is mine.”

“No. Even in death, the duel of honor is not annulled.”

“What nonsense is this?”

The boy drew his sword.

“I will fight as his proxy.”

The blade was eerily like Fetel’s own. Meken frowned, then smirked.

With a snap, wings spread behind him.

“That might be amusing.”

And so the duel of honor began.

***

「Name: Twilight」

「The long, sharp sword once wielded by Sir Fetel.」

「A longsword typical of knights.」

…

「Ingestion Effect」

「Acquire Fetel’s swordsmanship.」

「Your body is reforged to match Sir Fetel’s swordsmanship.」

「The body with Steel Blood grows stronger the more it is hammered.」