How to Live as a Genius Knight in a Fantasy World

32.

‘What a relief.’

After spending a pleasant time with Arghen, Rohan thought as he left the infirmary.

Although he was well aware of Arghen’s strong body, the wounds received in combat, even for a seasoned warrior, were not to be taken lightly.

He had heard that the injuries were not life-threatening, but knowing that a close friend had not suffered any disabilities brought great relief.

Back in his lodging, as Rohan sat on the edge of his bed, he carefully took out the document he had tucked away.

Having confirmed Arghen’s well-being, he could rejoice without any worries.

“hehehehe…”

Completely disregarding social status or dignity, a genuine laughter filled Rohan’s face.

Even though he was trying to suppress it by biting his lip, the laughter still escaped.

In Rohan’s mind, the years of suffering flashed before him.

The sudden plunge into a strange world, the unfortunate encounter with abusive and impoverished parents, the hardships akin to a dog’s life, the days of enduring intense training to the point of groaning in muscle pain every night, all unfolded like a panorama.

Overcoming such pain and attaining the status of a knight was a remarkable achievement.

Truly an accomplishment that couldn’t be underestimated.

‘Perhaps I have become a remarkable person now?’

Despite being someone who could fairly well detach himself, the thought briefly crossed Rohan’s mind.

In the midst of joy, Rohan, who tossed and turned in bed, could only regain his composure after quite some time had passed.

“No, I shouldn’t be content.”

Even Rohan himself was accompanied by a mysterious force that he hadn’t fully grasped the potential of.

Nothing had changed.

The endless path still lay ahead, and Rohan had to strive every day to make progress, just as he had always done since his past life.

“Yes, this time, I might really become something.”

A certificate with a gold-embossed border on luxurious parchment seemed to instill new courage in Rohan.

“I can’t stay like this forever. I should at least get ready to move.”

With determination, Rohan packed the remaining items in his bag that he had left yesterday.

Since he was supposed to depart early the next morning, there was no time to waste.

After packing up and finishing his wash, Rohan quickly made his bed and lay down.

This time, the journey to the Ezel Territory, bypassing the Talun Mountains, was expected to be much longer than when he came to Arden.

It was wise to rest and recover some strength while having a comfortable bed to sleep on.

Just as he was about to drift off to sleep, someone forcefully opened Rohan’s door.

“Hey, Rohan! It’s not the time to laze around!”

Despite committing a huge breach of Rohan’s tranquility, Chris had an unapologetic expression that was hard to match.

“What? What’s going on?”

Ignoring Rohan’s irritated response, Chris cheerfully replied in a bright voice, “Hey, our schedule got postponed.”

“What? What’s happening?”

With unexpected news, Rohan’s eyes widened significantly.

“Well? I don’t know what’s going on, but Lord Lough said we might stay a bit longer. Well, he didn’t specify how many days…”

“Really? What’s going on…?”

The news was truly abrupt.

Thinking about the items and food in his bag, Rohan furrowed his brow slightly.

Although they were food items that could be stored for a long time, they were far from the modern perfection of canned goods.

It was best to consume them as quickly as possible.

Furthermore, to live a few more days, he would have to unpack the bags he had packed, and it would be a lie to say it wasn’t troublesome.

Of course, Rohan had no choice but to accept it, even if it didn’t sit well with him.

“Yes, whether it’s in Ezel or here, it’s all the same.”

It was time to resume training that had been neglected due to injuries and a busy schedule.

“So, Rohan, let’s have a drink after a long time. Kenneth said he’s up for it too!”

“Sure…? Alright, just give me a moment.”

Although Rohan had resolved to resume training immediately from the next day, if there was suddenly some free time, it would be a lie to say there wasn’t enough time to have a drink with colleagues.

Easily succumbing to Chris’s temptation, Rohan quickly got out of bed and changed his clothes.

“But, where are we going?”

“It’s already late, let’s just drink downstairs. If we add a little extra, they might even give us some simple snacks, right?”

Considering alcohol every day seemed to put Chris in a good mood, Rohan teased the cheerful Chris as they descended the stairs.

Have they all heard the news? The first floor was already occupied by Isel’s soldiers.

“Ah, running a business here is tough.”

The innkeeper, who should have been resting after finishing business, was now frantically moving around due to an unexpected group order.

“But, why does the atmosphere feel strange?”

The soldiers were making a ruckus loud enough to be heard from the stairs, but as soon as Rohan came down with Chris, they suddenly fell silent.

“What’s going on? Are they avoiding me?”

Feeling uneasy under the gazes that seemed unfamiliar, Rohan scratched the back of his head.

“Oh, Rohan! No, Sir Rohan! Congratulations!”

At a moment when he felt slightly isolated, Knight Row, who noticed Rohan’s arrival, warmly greeted him.

“Did you know?”

“I heard from the Viscount not long ago. You were directly appointed by the King himself? Impressive, Sir Rohan!”

Although Rohan had just become a knight, Row, who had sparred with him several times and fully recognized him, was genuinely happy.

While Rohan expressed gratitude, he couldn’t help but feel a slight discomfort at his newfound status, seeing Row, who completely lacked envy or jealousy.

“Thank you. I was fortunate.”

“Fortunate? I watched the tournament too. Everyone heard the news. Oh, didn’t Chris go to fetch Sir Rohan? hahahaha.”

Upon hearing Row’s words, Rohan finally realized why the atmosphere was as it was.

Rohan was young and had become a soldier relatively late.

Although he was respected for his exceptional skills, it was natural that things were different now compared to when he was treated casually as a fellow soldier.

But the awkwardness only lasted for a moment.

Rather than negative emotions like envy or jealousy, the predominant feeling was one of celebration.

“Congratulations!”

“Congratulations!”

“Lead us well in the future!”

Without anyone prompting, soldiers rushed over to Rohan, offering him a drink.

Rohan, who usually didn’t enjoy alcohol much, felt like he could accept the drink happily today.

Unintentionally finding himself in a central role, after the other soldiers had all fallen, he could finally return to his bed.

After spending a fiery night, Rohan, waking up feeling hungover for the first time in a long while, held his head.

Due to the excessive drinking in the festive mood, he had consumed more alcohol than he thought.

“Ugh, my head hurts…”

Despite having trained to the limit, it seemed Rohan’s tolerance was still lacking to handle the copious amount of alcohol pouring into his body like a waterfall.

He went downstairs to the first floor and ordered a tomato juice sprinkled with sugar to quickly cure his hangover.

Initially, he had thought of craving bone broth stew or bean sprout soup for a severe hangover after drinking for the first time, but now, humans seemed to adapt, and such hangover foods felt more familiar.

With his uncertain schedule, the only productive activity Rohan could engage in was training.

As Rohan, holding a weapon for training after a long time, began to wield his sword, Viscount Isel was in the midst of meeting with high-ranking nobles rarely seen, including nobles from different factions and mid-level figures.

If the setting had been a tea table within the royal palace gardens, building relationships with nobles would have been a valuable opportunity, but the current situation unfolding before the Viscount was nothing short of chaos.

“Wait, after officially requesting help from the temple, we must join forces to subdue them?”

“Do you know the scale of the dark mages? If we seek help from the temple, we might not be able to prevent their influence from growing for a while!”

“But the sacred magic of the clerics is indeed helpful against dark powers.”

“Then what’s the plan? Those who lose their minds at the sight of dark magic or undead. Have you forgotten how they went as far as confiscating goods from nearby villages under the pretext of ‘subjugating’ when they found naturally occurring undead in the past?”

“Well, ultimately we did manage to subdue without much loss, didn’t we?”

“Indeed, in the end. Wasn’t it crystal clear that they had no respect for the kingdom’s laws?”

When the opponent was a dark mage, there was unanimous consent on the necessity of subjugation.

Beyond a single kingdom, it was a matter concerning all of humanity.

That was the social status held by dark mages.

However, when it came to deciding on cooperation with the temples, opinions were divided as usual.

Ironically, the animosity towards the temples was closely tied to dark magic.

Thirty years ago, there was a significant uprising of dark mages by historical standards.

They ravaged the entire kingdom with all sorts of monsters and undead, prompting all factions of the kingdom to unite and fight against the dark mages.

The dark mages were formidable.

Despite being a small group that had suffered persecution for ages, they displayed power beyond belief.

But even if they had forsaken the path of humanity, it didn’t mean there was no limit to their abilities.

Leading with divine magic, the temples joined forces with all factions, and in the end, the dark mages were defeated. Their amassed power and knowledge crumbled to pieces.

The joy of a glorious victory was short-lived.

The kingdom’s situation couldn’t easily escape the whirlpool of chaos.

The temple, which had shown remarkable prowess in the war against dark mages, began to interfere in politics, leveraging their influence.

The temple’s prestige soared to unprecedented heights, surpassing not only the expansion of the temples but also encroaching upon the rights of the king and nobility.

Naturally, the king and nobles did not sit idly by, but pressuring a temple that had the support of countless people without any justification was no easy task, even with the use of force.

The opposition was a coalition force led by the Arnesian sect, which gathered adherents from five surrounding countries, including Arden.

The Arnesian sect, with enough power to have its leader referred to as the Pope, was formidable, and the strength of each sect was not to be underestimated.

With numerous monks and holy knights under their command, together they possessed a military force that could easily overpower a single kingdom.

As memories of war faded and the secular politics were to be left to secular powers, the neighboring kingdoms sympathized, and the temples took a step back only fifteen years ago.

Since most nobles who vividly remembered the power struggle with the temples were still active, it was only natural for them to be wary of the temple’s interference.

The attendees of the meeting were all distinguished nobles with vast experience and exceptional abilities, yet, as expected by Viscount Isel, reaching a conclusion was not easy.

Apart from the temple issue, there were many matters to discuss, such as the scale of forces to be mobilized for subjugation, the cost of deploying troops, and the timing of the operation.

The day-long meeting went on for several days, and as the nobles’ faces darkened with mental fatigue, the meeting finally came to an end.

It was the fourth day since Rohan had drawn his sword.