-Ryan... Why don't you just look at the map we bought? I'm always the one who has to find the way...
Ryan grinned and turned around to his friend.
-My job is slaying. Yours is reading the maps.
-For a change...! - Hayden scratched his head and sighed with a sorrowful expression. - Hoy, let's ask that guy over there!
The two drew closer to the bystander, as Hayden waved to catch his attention.
-What do the two of you want? I'm busy. - The guy said.
-Excuse us, - Said Ryan. - Could you by any chance know where the Knight Guild is located?
The stranger grinned to them and placed a hand on Ryan's shoulder, placing himself by his side.
-Kid, see the building surrounded by the two armored statues down the street?
Hayden placed himself to the other side of the man to try and see where he was pointing to. Ryan nodded.
-Well, that's some place your wallet is not gonna make it to.
The stranger drew a knife from his belt and used it to threaten the two swordsmen.
-A Rogue...! - Hayden said, surprised. Both him and Ryan crossed sights and drew their swords right away, pointing them towards the man and falling one step back.
-Oh, so you two are adventurers... This is good, I haven't had some fun with brats like you for a looooong time!
"This guy seems awfully strong, I hope we can handle him...", Ryan thought.
The Rogue got ready to attack. He tried to strike Hayden first, but the swordsman dodged the attack fast enough for the blow to hit him only in one arm.
Ryan seized this opportunity to attack the robber from behind, but he quickly turned around and put a foot in his way to make him trip. He lost his balance for a second, leaving his defenses wide open for the Rogue to attack him wherever he wanted.
Before Hayden had the time to go rescue his friend, a rumbling sound approached them at a fast pace.
-S-Shoot! Those nosy guys... - Mumbled the Rogue.
A fighter in a plate armor with a helm covering the face and head, mounted on a large bird with strong legs and wide beak, carrying a large sword in one hand and a guard strapped to the other arm, ran from the direction of the building towards the three.
-Who's that? - Groaned Hayden, grabbing his wounded arm to slow the bleeding down and reaching for his own sword.
The Rogue let go of Ryan and rushed towards the mysterious person who had joined them.
-You Knights are such showoffs! Do you think you rule this city?
Without a word for an answer, the Knight jumped off the orange PecoPeco and with one single movement blocked his attack with the shield. Quickly recovering from the impact of the blow, the mysterious saviour launched a counterattack in the form of a strong blow that shove the thief a few meters back.
-Bowling Bash!! - Said a surprisingly high voice from inside the helmet. Hayden seized the moment the Rogue was driven away from his friend to check if he was wounded. Ryan was sitting on the ground, staring at the Knight with admiration.
Their enemy seemed to have felt the blow quite badly. When they looked at him, waiting for another attack, they noticed most of his arms and torso were covered in wounds that were starting to bleed.
-Tsch, they're not sending regulars anymore now? The Knight Guild must really be short on requests these days. - He said, wiping the blood from his face. - Hide!!
With a movement so fast their eyes could not even follow it, the Rogue vanished in the air like a magic worker.
-Hey, where'd he go?! - Ryan shouted.
-It's OK now, both of you. He won't be stupid as to attack you with me by your side... even those Rogues value their lifes.
The two friends turned their sights to the Knight, who was taking off the helmet. Their savior was actually a tall female, with black wavy hair tied back in a ponytail and serious, sapphire-colored eyes.
-A... a woman! - Said Ryan, overwhelmed.
-Such a strong person... So, that's a Knight... - Whispered Hayden to himself.
She kindly smiled towards both.
-You look like young Swordsmen, could you be here to apply for Knighthood?
Ryan quickly rose from the ground and cleaned the dirt from his pants.
-Yes, that's right. - He said, putting his sword back in the hilt and facing her.
-Thank you so much for saving us! - Hayden said, slightly ashamed for having done nothing to help in the fight.
-It's a Knight's job to ensure safety for all citizens, after all. I'm glad two youngsters like you are willing to join us.
With the female Knight by their side, they headed towards the building surrounded by two Sword Guardian statues.
-Welcome back, Lady Shayla. - The Chivalry Captain told the Knight with a smile. - Who are these two young people?
-My name is Ryan Thorvald, and I'm here to apply to become a Knight!! - The blonde one said with a grin, boldly stepping forward.
-And uh... I'm Bran Hayden, I want to apply to join the Knights as well... - The red-haired one said, slightly embarrassed.
-Oh, I see. - The Captain looked at both with an inquisitive gaze. - Very well then, I shall explain the rules for the Knight test to both of you.
Taking two sheets of paper from a drawer, he distributed both in front of the swordsmen.
-These are your application forms. Once you have proved yourself experienced enough, I will let you fill these in and start your test to become Knights.
-I thought proving ourselves strong would be enough for a test...? - Ryan asked, confused.
-I will allow your first examiner to explain this better. Sir Andrew, could you come here? We have two new applicants and I would appreciate it if you could clear out a few things for them before their first testing.
A blonde Knight wearing a long, blue tunic over a dark maroon suit of armor joined them from behind.-Oh, I'm glad to meet the two of you! My name is Andrew, and as a Chivalry member it is my duty to assist our Captain with the selection of our new applicants. Would you be kind as to follow me outside?
The two nodded, and after the tester grabbed some large package from a corner they left the building. Having reached the small grass field near the town wall, Sir Andrew unpacked something that looked like a training dummy and set it near a tree.
-Before we start, I will give you two a brief explanation on what this examination is like. - He told them. - First of all, we need to know if you are experienced enough as Swordsmen to apply for Knighthood. Only then, if you pass, you will be assigned a series of tests that aim to know how far does your strength go, and also if you are familiar with the Chivalry honour code. For this first assessment, I want you both to attack this training dummy using the skills you have learned as Swordsmen. I will then check how much damage you can deal to it and tell you if you pass. So, who's coming first?
Hayden hesitated for a few seconds, staring at his friend.
-Ryan, you can go first. - He said. - I want to see how you do in the test!
But the blonde swordsman was already fiercely running towards the training dummy, holding his sword with both hands.
-Bash!!
He striked on the metal plate that was covering it, bending it with a strong blow.
-Pretty impressive! - Sir Andrew said with a nod of approval. - Now, can I see your Magnum Break?
Ryan nodded, grinning with satisfaction.
-Magnum... Break!! - He shouted, hitting the ground near the dummy with his sword. From the tip of the blade, a red shockwave bursted in flames towards its target, causing the metal plate to bend even more and pushing the dummy back a little from the impact.
Sir Andrew went checking on the damage once more.
-You have dealt quite a good amount of damage to this dummy, I can tell you have trained enough to become one of us. You can go back inside and talk to my fellow, Sir Siracuse. He'll get you started with the rest of the tasks.
-Got it!! - Ryan said before starting to run back to the Guild. - Bran, I'll see you when we finish our tests!
-Don't call me that...! - Hayden yelled at him before he vanished through the door.
-Well, are you ready? It's your turn now. - Sir Andrew asked.
The boy drew his sword by the hilt hanging from his belt and nodded. He then ran towards the training dummy, trying to focus on his attack.
-Bash!!
He attacked the dummy with all his might, but the metal plate covering deflected the attack almost completely, taking only a scratch. Discouraged, Hayden looked at the damage he had dealt and knew the test result right away.
-I'm sorry, kid... - Said Sir Andrew. - I'm afraid you're not quite ready for this yet.
-I could see this coming, kinda... - The swordsman answered, embarrassedly scratching the back of his head and staring at the ground. - I've trained so much since I became a Swordsman, but it seems like I still haven't caught up to Ryan. Anyway, will it be OK for me to go back in and wait for him?
-Sure thing. - The Knight said, paternally patting Hayden on the head while passing by him back to the Guild building. - And don't worry, I'm sure sooner or later your time will come to become one of us. I can tell you gave your best here.
As he entered the Guild once again, another female Knight came towards him.
-Andrew told me you didn't pass the test... - She said. - I'm sorry to hear that. Your friend seems to be doing allright in his tests, though. By the way, I am Lady Amy. I'm in charge of one of the Knight tests.
-Pleased to meet you, I'm Hayden. - The boy said. - So, Ryan is actually doing good... I wouldn't expect anything less from him. He's quite the natural sword user...
Lady Amy smiled to him.
-Come and have a seat. Oh, that's right, your hair is quite long but you're a young man, aren't you?
-Yes, indeed. - Hayden replied, embarrassed once again. - Thanks for noticing.
-Phew, I was finally let out... Those porings were starting to get on my nerves, one more second and I would have attacked them for good... - Ryan said, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his wrist. He then looked towards the Chivalry Captain, waiting for his next trial to be assigned.
-You can go see Sir Grey next. - He told him. - Don't worry, your trials are over. All you will have to do is answer a few, more personal questions.
Ryan was about to ask him if he could skip that step, but decided it would be faster if he did it when he was first told. Heading towards the corner near which Sir Grey, a large-built knight with golden hair and beard, was sitting on a bed, he saluted him and sat on the floor in front of him.
-Oh, so you are the kid who's been doing the test until now. - He said, looking at him with a sparkle of interest in his eyes. - Your name is Ryan Thorvald, am I right?
The boy nodded impatiently.
-I can tell by your eyes that you want this to be as quick as possible, so let us get started. First of all, I think the most natural thing to ask would be... Why do you want to become a Knight?
-Well... - He started answering. - Mostly because I want to become stronger. I want to be able to travel the world freely, fearing no creature. I also want to eventually become famous around the country.
-Heh, that's an interesting goal you got there. By the way, how do you and that other Swordsman friend of yours work in the battlefield? You two looked like you form a party, even though he is still weaker than you.
Ryan thought about this question for a few seconds before answering.
-Well, we usually join to train together sometimes... It's true that he has been a little behind me all this time, but that is why I always let him fight on his own to become more experient. Of course, there's no way I would leave him on his own during a pinch... We are friends since we were kids, so I want to help him grow stronger.
Sir Grey nodded.
-It's very important to encourage him, both as your friend and a fellow sword user and adventurer. Never forget that. You two are indeed interesting... I am looking forward to have your friend join us as a Knight as well, when he gets stronger.
-What do you mean, when he gets stronger? Wasn't he taking the tests as well...?
-Your friend wasn't able to pass the first test after you left. - Said Lady Amy, poking into the conversation. - He ended up getting impatient and asked me to warn you he was going to the fields to train a bit more. Maybe it would be better to go see him after you are invested as a Knight. I wouldn't worry much, though. He seemed to be expecting it already.
Ryan closed his fists, concerned.
-Why didn't he tell me in the first place, I would have helped him more before we came here... Lady Amy, thanks for telling me! - He said, hurrying towards the Chivalry Captain, saying goodbye to both Knights with a gesture.
-Haa... It seems like I'm finally able to kill most monsters around here easily...
Hayden stared at the clouds for a few seconds, holding the sword tightly in his hands, taking a break from his training. A purple insect suddenly passed by.
-Oh, another one of those hardies! You're not escaping me! Magnum Break!!
With a quick move, he hit the ground with his sword like if he wanted to split the field in two, and a wave of flames surrounded him with a shockwave. The Thief Bug ran towards him in rage, half-burnt, but a second blow from the Swordsman finished it.
-...Wow, that armor fits you all too well. - He told him with a smile. - Congratulations, Ryan.
The boy looked at his tired friend, trying to find something to say.
-It isn't all that special, you know... Focus on yourself now! Getting to where you already made it killing only Thief Bugs and Pupas... You could have asked me some better places to train, moron!
Hayden sighed, feeling a little nervous.
-I was afraid I couldn't fight alone in the same places you do...
-That's why we travel together, isn't it? Don't let yourself fall behind! Tomorrow I'll be leaving for my usual training spot, and I want you to come along. You'll see how fast you get the hang of it!
-A-are you sure? I don't want to slow you down!
-Moron. - Ryan answered, hitting Bran on the head. - No more complaints. Tomorrow, we're going to the Orc Village Dungeon!!
To be continued...
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