Ch.27Knight Order Competition

Upon waking, Seo-rin realized her physical condition had improved considerably.

‘A lot of time must have passed.’

The fact that her previously terrible condition had recovered this much meant quite some time had elapsed. Rising from her bed, Seo-rin pulled back the curtains by the window.

Gentle sunlight shone from the sky, and a soft breeze gently rustled the tree branches. Opening the window, refreshingly crisp air flowed in.

It was morning.

The competition had been in full swing at 3 PM. The cool morning breeze indicated that the competition date had already passed.

[Knock knock]

Just then, a knocking sound came from outside the door. Seo-rin turned and opened it, vaguely recalling how Flora had helped her back to her room.

Flora was waiting outside. Seo-rin immediately spoke.

“What happened with the competition?”

“Huh… that’s the first thing you ask?”

“I couldn’t contain my curiosity…”

“Well… you seem fine…”

Flora said as she entered Seo-rin’s room, despite not being invited. Sitting naturally on the bed, she continued.

“The junior members’ matches all finished yesterday evening. The seniors are competing now.”

“Then my remaining matches…?”

“Obviously forfeited.”

Seo-rin closed her eyes at Flora’s answer. She felt incredibly frustrated—not because she had lost, but because she couldn’t face her next opponent.

But what could she do? It was her own mistake. She had poured everything into one match without considering the next. It was proof that she was still lacking.

Seo-rin expelled all the negative emotions bubbling inside her with a single sigh. Then suddenly, she wondered about her friend’s performance.

Come to think of it, she had been so focused on her own fight that she hadn’t watched her peers’ matches.

“Flora. How did you do?”

“Hmm… not too bad. I didn’t get far, but…”

“What about Theo?”

“Theo had good luck with his matchups. He kept advancing until he was eliminated near the very end.”

“I see…”

Seo-rin nodded with a gloomy expression. It seemed that none of them would be receiving awards from this competition.

Just as Seo-rin was about to return to her bed, Flora spoke up.

“If you’re feeling up to it, change your clothes. Vice Commander Karnok is waiting downstairs.”

“For me…?”

“Yes.”

“Why would he be waiting for me?”

Seo-rin tilted her head in confusion. What reason would Vice Commander Karnok have to wait for someone who had been eliminated from the competition?

‘Is it because of my disappointing performance?’

Seo-rin shook her head. Vice Commander Karnok wasn’t the type to reprimand subordinates for lack of skill. There must be another reason.

“I’ll change right away.”

Seo-rin immediately threw off her nightclothes. As she changed into her uniform, she quickly assessed her physical condition. Judging by the muscle pain in her arms and legs, she would need to avoid strenuous exercise for two or three days at most.

Using mana was also problematic. Due to the backlash from pushing herself to the limit, she felt a sharp pain near her heart whenever she tried to use mana.

Seo-rin took a deep breath and checked herself in the mirror. The neatly worn knight’s uniform complemented her beautiful appearance, creating a cold atmosphere.

Seo-rin pulled up the corners of her mouth into a smile.

‘Better not to smile in front of men.’

Seo-rin left the room with Flora.

The two met Karnok in front of the dormitory. The dormitory was empty because of the ongoing competition. With no training sessions scheduled, there was no one else around.

The three faced each other.

“Hmm… are you feeling alright?”

He asked about her well-being as soon as their eyes met. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling. Seo-rin nodded and answered.

“I’m fine. But why did you…”

“Don’t you want to receive your competition reward?”

Competition reward? Seo-rin tilted her head. She hadn’t won the competition.

“Are you saying I can receive a reward even though I didn’t win the competition?”

“Of course. Didn’t I mention it? The condition for receiving a reward is achieving good results. You don’t necessarily have to win to get a reward.”

“Ah…”

Seo-rin nodded blankly. She had been so focused on the reward itself that she had mistakenly assumed only the winner could receive it.

Karnok began leading the two of them.

They left the Blue Wing headquarters and walked through the streets. The streets were bustling with crowds due to the ongoing competition.

Seo-rin had to stick close to Flora to avoid getting swept away by the crowd.

The Karma Empire was an extremely wealthy country. Even on normal days, the area saw a constant flow of goods and people, and now a major event that happened only a few times a year was taking place.

The streets were so crowded there was barely room to step. Most conversations revolved around the competition.

Which knight order was the strongest, which newcomers were noteworthy this year—occasionally, Seo-rin’s name was mentioned a few times.

Seo-rin’s group arrived at a large imperial palace. Karnok approached the soldiers guarding the main gate and showed his knight identification.

“I’m here for the competition rewards. Call the manager to open the armory.”

The process of opening the palace gates was quite complicated. Seo-rin’s group had to wait in front of the gate for about ten minutes.

After the long wait, the door opened. Seo-rin’s group faced a stern-looking old man. His name was Jack Churchill, the manager responsible for the imperial armory.

Jack Churchill said:

“It’s been a while, Karnok… for you to come personally… these must be children you care about.”

Just before Jack Churchill’s gaze reached the two girls, Karnok stepped between them with a smile.

“Please just open the armory.”

“Hmm…”

Jack Churchill nodded and turned around.

Following him, they arrived at a massive building tucked away in a corner of the palace. It was surrounded by thick walls without a single window. Seo-rin glanced at the soldiers stationed at regular intervals.

Meanwhile, the armory door opened.

Clank-!

Seo-rin’s group followed Churchill into the armory.

The interior was illuminated by a soft light. Self-luminous stones—something Seo-rin had never heard of before.

Seo-rin could tell that even the lighting in the armory was no ordinary object.

The high ceiling and the numerous weapons and armor displayed below captured her attention. The weapons and armor, bathed in soft light, seemed to emit their own glow as if waiting for special owners.

Karnok said:

“Seo-rin, Flora. Choose what you want.”

It was unbelievable. The fact that she could have one of these magnificent weapons. And it was incredibly regrettable that she could only have one.

“Wow…”

Flora’s gaze darted around frantically. Her eyes didn’t just linger on swords. She carefully examined various items—bows, armor, shields, axes, and more.

Karnok stood at a distance, arms crossed, watching the two. The opening of the imperial armory was both a reward and a kind of test.

A true knight should be able to identify good weapons and armor at a glance. Among these, only a few had special stories or contained magic.

Of course, even the non-special items here weren’t inferior in performance. As a reward bearing the imperial name, one would never receive substandard equipment.

‘It’s just a bit unfortunate.’

Seizing opportunities was up to the individual. Karnok silently cheered for the two.

Seo-rin walked among the numerous swords. It was the first time in her life she had encountered so many swords at once. Perhaps due to her blessing, Seo-rin could naturally tell whether other hands had touched the displayed swords or not.

Swords that were merely flashy didn’t catch Seo-rin’s attention. No matter how tempting the gleaming blue light was, Seo-rin didn’t stop.

At that moment, Seo-rin halted in front of a particular sword.

The sword appeared to be an ordinary one without any special features. The blade didn’t emit light, and the scabbard was made of worn-out leather. The handle was also made of ordinary wood.

It looked completely unremarkable. It even seemed inferior to the standard-issue sword she had received when first joining the order.

Yet Seo-rin felt some kind of attraction.

It wasn’t in the form of a typical longsword. It resembled what was called a “blue steel sword” in her past life’s memories. Why such a sword was here didn’t matter.

Seo-rin reached out and grasped the sword. At that moment, the faint image of a white dragon briefly flashed across the short blade.

As if entranced, Seo-rin slowly moved the sword in her hand. It fit perfectly in her grip, with no imbalance in weight. The blade cutting through the air felt like an extension of her own body.

It felt as if her hand had been lengthened. An extension of her body. The sword, after a light rotation in Seo-rin’s hand, slid back into its worn scabbard.

Click-

“I’ll take this one.”