[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
Chapter 115
Kaboom!
The grand hall of Artemfel was filled with Draker knights. Each one was a prominent figure, holding the position of Knight Commander or Vice-Commander in their respective Draker Knight Order.
Just then,
Creak!
The doors of Artemfel opened, and twenty-four new knights, dressed in Draker uniforms, entered the hall for the initiation ceremony.
The official Draker knight initiation ceremony held a special meaning. It was the point where the new knights themselves chose the Knight Order they would belong to and began their knightly life.
Under the watchful eyes of the illustrious Draker Knight Commanders, the new knights walked with confident strides towards the podium where Arthur Draker, the lord, stood.
They paid attention to every step they took, hoping to leave a good impression.
And among those twenty-four new knights was Zeke.
'This is intense.'
The twenty-three knights besides Zeke were those who had passed the rigorous probationary period after receiving the official knight rank.
On the other hand, Zeke, considering his status as the winner of the Draker Martial Arts Tournament and his promotion to Blue Knight, was specially recruited and allowed to participate in the official initiation ceremony without a probationary period.
With the new knights' entrance, the vast hall was filled with the fervent gazes of the Knight Commanders eager to secure talent first and the aspirations of the new knights eager to join a good Knight Order.
The twenty-four knights who ascended the podium stood in their designated places.
Arthur Draker, the lord, looked at the new knights from the front of the podium.
Excluding Zeke, who received the official knight rank through special recruitment, the knight with the highest score among those who took the official exam stood as the representative before the lord and took the oath.
Arthur Draker personally attached the Dragon Slayer medals to the knights' chests.
Arthur approached Zeke, who stood at the very end due to being a special recruit.
As he attached the Dragon Slayer medal to Zeke's chest, he said,
"I look forward to seeing which Knight Order you choose."
Arthur immediately returned to his place.
From this point on was the most important part of the initiation ceremony.
The new knights themselves had to decide which Knight Order to join.
Since the maximum number of knights a Knight Order could accept from a single batch was limited to three, the Knight Orders had to strategize well to recruit the best three talents.
The representative who took the oath was given the first right to choose a Knight Order.
"I choose the Black Wolf Knights."
The Black Wolf Knights were the Draker clan’s direct Knight Order, led by Gareth Draker, the Scarred Knight and Guardian Knight.
Gareth nodded upon seeing the representative choose his Knight Order.
The representative was given the Black Wolf Knights' insignia.
Other new knights also chose their desired Knight Orders in order of their grades.
While the top-ranking knights joined their desired Knight Orders, those in the middle ranks began to face rejections.
If a new knight was rejected by all three of their chosen Knight Orders, they had to remain on standby until another Knight Order recruited them.
However, even those with lower ranks had exceptional skills, as the internal competition was fierce, and the differences in scores were minimal.
They were bound to find a place in other Knight Orders that needed manpower.
After the placement of all the new knights who went through the official exam was complete, it was finally Zeke's turn, the special recruit.
Zeke stepped forward.
The atmosphere in Artemfel instantly changed.
It was natural that all the Knight Orders coveted Zeke, a pure-blood Awakened, the youngest Blue Knight, and the youngest Valhalla graduate, even though he was a special recruit.
And among them was the Black Martial Squad, Draker's intelligence unit.
Baron Draker, the leader of the Black Martial Squad, was whispering something to Duke Draker.
'Why is Master acting like that over there?'
Zeke felt uncomfortable under the gaze of the Black Martial Squad leader.
Arthur, who was behind him, spoke.
"Zeke Draker, which Knight Order will you choose?"
Most expected Zeke to choose the White Silver Knights led by Cali Draker.
Rumors had already spread throughout Four Seasons Castle that she had recruited Zeke Draker.
However, the Knight Commanders still appealed to Zeke with hopeful gazes, just in case.
Then Zeke raised his head and said,
"I will not choose a Knight Order."
Silence fell upon the hall.
Everyone thought they had misheard something.
After a moment of silence, low murmurs filled the hall.
Arthur Draker, on the podium, broke the silence and spoke again.
"I'll ask again. Zeke Draker, which Knight Order will you choose?"
Then Zeke opened his mouth and said in a clear voice,
"My answer remains the same. I will not choose any."
The murmurs among the knights grew louder.
Thump!
Arthur Draker, who was on the podium, slammed his hand on the table.
Woooong!
The entire hall of Artemfel shook with the impact.
Silence fell once again.
Arthur Draker descended from the podium and stood before Zeke.
“What do you mean you won't choose a Knight Order?”
“It's exactly as I said. I intend to fulfill my duties as a knight alone, without choosing a Knight Order.”
The elders behind him grimaced at those words.
No one in Draker's history had ever made such a choice.
Arthur said to Zeke,
“Does that mean you intend to carry out your first mission alone?”
Draker's new knights were immediately assigned their first mission after the initiation ceremony.
They carried out missions selected by their Knight Commanders to evaluate them, and the knights' grades were determined based on what missions they performed and how well they performed them.
Moreover, if a new knight failed their first mission, they were stripped of their knighthood.
Therefore, the judgment of the Knight Commander in selecting the mission and the support of the Knight Order were crucial.
Zeke nodded at Arthur.
“That's correct.”
Arthur looked at Zeke with a strange expression.
Then he nodded.
“Alright.”
He turned around and said to the assembled knights,
“Zeke Draker has decided to remain independent.”
The elders behind him were startled by Arthur's decision.
“Lord, a pure-blood Awakened not choosing a Knight Order! This goes against tradition!”
Arthur ascended the podium and said to the elders,
“Nowhere in the clan rules does it state that a pure-blood Awakened must choose a Knight Order.”
“B-but… what if he fails his first mission…!”
Arthur sat down and said with a grin,
“That too is his choice.”
The elders clutched their heads at Arthur's nonchalant response.
While the knights gathered in the hall were shocked by Zeke's decision, the Knight Commanders quickly grasped the situation and were selecting the first missions to assign to the new knights.
Whoosh!
Long, enormous parchments listing missions descended from the hall's ceiling.
There were various missions, from difficult ones that were impossible to accomplish alone to simple ones that even non-knights could handle.
The Knight Commanders pondered as they looked at the missions listed on the parchments.
It was important to find missions that were within the capabilities of their Knight Order and befitting their status.
The Knight Commanders chose appropriate missions, considering the capabilities of their Knight Order and the new knights.
After all twenty-three knights had their missions selected, it was finally Zeke's turn.
The scribe said with a frown,
“Sir Zeke Draker, as you are independent, you must choose a mission and carry it out alone.”
Zeke nodded at the scribe's words and scanned the parchment.
He intended to finish any random mission quickly and focus on training for a while.
If he chose a Knight Order, he wouldn't know when or what kind of missions would be assigned, making it impossible to train freely, which was why he deliberately didn't choose any.
'I feel sorry for Sister Cali, but it might be easier for me to help if I'm outside the Knight Order. She'll understand.'
As Zeke scanned the missions on the parchment, he spotted something that caught his eye.
'Huh?'
Zeke looked at the mission again.
He wasn't mistaken.
<Search mission for Master Gorin, who went missing in the Barbarian territory_Guild Federation request. (Difficulty: A-rank)>
It was an official request from the Guild Federation, with a mission difficulty of A-rank.
'Gorin, I thought he was in Himonas, but I guess not.'
He hadn't expected to see news about Gorin here, whom he had intended to meet at least once because of the Ancient Hersion.
Zeke chose Gorin's search mission without hesitation.
The hall buzzed with commotion again.
The scribe in charge of assigning missions said to Zeke in a bewildered voice,
“Sir Zeke Draker, that mission is A-rank. Carrying out an A-rank mission alone without a Knight Order is…”
“It doesn't matter. Assign it to me.”
It was a mission that anyone could see was impossible for a new knight to accomplish alone.
The hall was filled with murmurs.
The scribe, with a troubled expression, reluctantly assigned the Gorin search mission to Zeke.
Once all the mission assignments were complete, Arthur Draker rose from his seat.
"The young Dragon Slayers who will usher in a new era have officially joined the clan Knight Orders! I bless your future! I hope you all successfully complete your first missions and return safely!"
With the lord's closing remarks, the initiation ceremony concluded, and the Draker knights gathered in Artemfel dispersed like an ebbing tide.
Both the new knights and the Knight Orders were to begin preparations for the successful execution of their missions.
Zeke also planned to return to his mansion, quickly finish his preparations, and move to Argos to travel to the Barbarian territory.
'Gorin has gone missing. Did something happen?'
He felt he should find out what happened, even roughly, through Kay before leaving.
As he was about to leave the hall, someone approached Zeke from behind.
"Zeke Draker."
Zeke turned his head.
He was surprised to see a familiar face after a long time.
"Instructor Aoul?"
It was Aoul Draker, the Wooden Flow Sword, whom he had formed a connection with at the academy.
The man, who had been like a wooden statue, appeared before Zeke, even more stoic than before.
Seeing Aoul Draker, Zeke realized that his level had risen.
'He broke through the barrier of Red Knight.'
Even when he saw him in his previous life, Aoul Draker was a Red Knight.
But this time, it seemed he had gained enlightenment faster through his spar with Zeke.
Aoul approached Zeke and said,
"Why didn't you choose a Knight Order? Any Knight Order would have welcomed you."
Zeke looked at Aoul, pondered, and then slowly opened his mouth.
"Somehow, I feel like Instructor Aoul would understand what I'm saying, so I'll be honest. I didn't choose one because I need time to train alone."
Aoul looked blank at Zeke's words.
‘Not choosing a Knight Order for the sake of training?’
In Draker's history, Zeke was the only one who had made such a choice.
Aoul was silent with a slightly stiff expression, then nodded.
"...Well, I suppose someone like you could make that choice."
The genius Aoul sensed in Zeke was not something he could dare to evaluate.
As Zeke said, he thought it might be more advantageous for Zeke to not join a Knight Order to fully utilize his genius.
Zeke asked Aoul,
"By the way, Instructor Aoul, which Knight Order do you belong to?"
"I belong to the Heavenly Sword Knights."
"I heard the Heavenly Sword Knights are a prestigious Knight Order with a long tradition of pursuing the ultimate swordsmanship. It suits you well, Instructor."
The famous Black Knight, Sword King Bernas, was from the Heavenly Sword Knights.
Aoul nodded and said to Zeke,
"If you're interested, join us. You're always welcome..."
"No, I'm fine."
Zeke managed to make Aoul Draker, a man more stoic than a statue, look dejected.
Aoul left the hall after saying he would visit Zeke's mansion for a spar when he returned from his mission.
As Zeke was about to leave the hall after their short conversation, he suddenly realized something.
'Come to think of it, I didn't see Abel at the initiation ceremony today.'
Abel was someone who never missed important family events.
Moreover, the fact that he, the Knight Commander of the Red Lion Knights, didn't show up meant something was wrong.
'He must be plotting something somewhere.'
Zeke shook his head, recalling the persistent Abel.
As he finally exited Artemfel, the hall was left empty.
Just then, someone emerged from the shadows of the hall.
It was none other than Abel.
Abel was clenching his fists and trembling.
Surprisingly, his eyes were in the state of crimson magic eyes, like the Warlock of the Abyss whom Zeke had killed before.
He gritted his teeth and muttered,
"Zeke… so it was you who was interfering with my plans all along."
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]