Being a knight is not easy

Chapter 243 Investigation
After the demon general's footsteps completely disappeared, the smile on Robin's face receded like a receding tide.

The Bauhinia Ring flickered slightly, and a line of small text appeared on the system screen: [Ghost General - Loyalty Monitoring in progress. The actual value will be visible after refining the fruit].

Robin's fingertips traced the light screen, a cold glint in his eyes. "I hope you won't disappoint me." He turned and walked towards the secret chamber, the sparks trailing from the Dragon Slayer Spear on the ground forming a brief gallows pattern.

The scroll of "Thunder Fury" unfurled on its own in the dark room, the electric light emanating from the mithril patterns illuminating the surroundings in a stark white light.

As Robin's pupils gradually adjusted to the bright light, she discovered that these lightning-shaped patterns bore a striking resemblance to the Breath of Storms.

But it is more complex and complete, like a large, leafy tree compared to a seedling.

"Strange." As soon as Robin's power of order was injected into the scroll, the power of the Storm Breath within her body suddenly surged.

Two forces of the same origin but different nature collided in his meridians, causing a trickle of blood to spill from the corner of his mouth. "Why is the Breath of Storms incomplete?"

That night, Viscount Wilke was urgently summoned.

The old lord stroked the anchor crest at the end of the scroll and sighed, "I was in too much of a hurry when I fled Middle-earth back then." His fingernails dug into the scorch marks on the edge of the scroll. "Those old bastards were only willing to give me two-thirds of the Breath of Storms, saying that once I reached the peak of the Legendary realm, I could naturally learn the rest."

Robin looked at his father's graying temples and suddenly understood why the old lord had always been alone at night wiping his tattered armor all these years.

That was not just a commemoration, but a silent disgrace.

“That’s enough.” Robin suddenly crushed the teacup, the shards forming a broken family crest under the control of the power of order. “I will personally retrieve the rest.”

Thunderclouds were gathering outside the window, and the occasional lightning bolts cast the shadows of the father and son onto the wall, vaguely forming a ferocious dragon.

Morning light pierced through the crystal window, illuminating the ghost general's brand-new bone armor with a purplish-gold hue.

When he knelt on one knee, the ground sank by three-tenths of an inch, a sign that he had just advanced to the legendary level and had not yet perfectly contained his power.

From Robin's perspective, a scarlet number pops up:

Loyalty: 70
“Not bad.” Robin’s fingertips tapped lightly on the gilded armrest, it was unclear whether he was evaluating the bone armor that flowed with the power of order, or the barely passing loyalty score.

His gaze swept over the Ghost General's chest, where his mother's last words, etched there, were much clearer than yesterday, as if the life force unleashed during his promotion had healed some deep-seated wounds.

A deep, resonant voice came from beneath the demon general's mask: "Your subordinate will never forget your lord's grace." As he bowed, a wisp of black mist uncontrollably dissipated from his shoulder armor, condensing into a blurry shape in the air.

This is a phenomenon unique to legendary knights called "external manifestation of life force".

Robin suddenly leaned forward, the tip of his Dragon-Slaying Spear lifting the Ghost General's chin.

As the cold metal pressed against the old scar, the air between the two men distorted slightly: "What I want is not gratitude," the gun tip slowly moved down, pressing against the place where the words were engraved on the other's heart, "but absolute loyalty here."

An explosion suddenly came from the training ground outside the window, which conveniently masked the sound of the demon general's teeth chattering.

Only by breaking through the legends can one truly know Robin's power.

As Robin sheathed his spear, a meaningful smile curved his lips: "Go and prepare; your dear uncle must be getting impatient."

After the demon general's footsteps faded into the distance, Robin stared at the two footprints left in the same spot. The left one was half an inch deeper than the right one, a trace of the unconscious shift in his center of gravity when he was lying.

He stroked the ring, and the numbers on the screen suddenly flickered:
Loyalty: 70 → 71
"Some people are just awful; they need to be disciplined every day!" Robin couldn't help but sigh.

...Mad was still racking his brains about how to save the last bit of merit he had when the ceramic cup in his hand suddenly shattered, and the scalding tea was vaporized into mist before it even touched the Ghost General's bone armor.

The old knight's pupils contracted sharply; the aura emanating from the man before him had already caused the life force within his body to tremble instinctively.

"grown ups!"

“No need to be surprised, I have broken through to the legendary level and my strength has greatly increased. How is the investigation I asked you to do?” The Ghost General waved his hand and asked, “The key question is, how many legendary knights did Horn bring?”

“Legendary figures?!” Mad’s voice sounded like it had been sanded. He trembled as he unfurled the parchment scroll. “Horn brought four legends, three of whom are from the three great families of the capital.”

The ink on the scroll suddenly twisted and deformed, transforming into lifelike portraits. It was a portrait scroll he had bought from a wizard, capable of recording portraits of ten people at once.

Of course, the price was very high, but Mad felt it was all worth it in order to restore the family's glory.

Wisps of black mist seeped from the gaps in the ghost general's bone armor.

With his eyes slightly narrowed, Horn Rhine stood in the center of the scroll, flanked by two legendary knights wearing different clan crests.

The most eye-catching figure is the man on the left wearing a golden griffin badge, with the very weapon used to massacre the Bauhinia miners hanging from his waist.

“Very well.” The voice beneath the visor echoed with a metallic vibration. “It seems the lords of Middle-earth have finally grown restless and are keeping a close eye on things, especially,” the crystal projected Horn’s daily patrol route map, “the movements of this second-tier knight.”

Mad suddenly knelt on one knee: "My lord, there is another piece of news." His Adam's apple bobbed, "They plan to assemble the allied forces in Emerald Valley in ten days."

The moonlight outside the window was suddenly obscured by dark clouds.

The ghost general's bone armor emitted a teeth-grinding grinding sound as he adjusted his killing mode.

Robin pressed his fingertips heavily against his temple, the Bauhinia ring leaving a deep indentation on his skin.

The shouts of battle from the training ground outside the window suddenly became shrill. The new knights had only just learned to wield swords, while the allied forces of Middle-earth were gathering again.

“Three months,” he stared at the calendar on the wall, which marked the intervals between each battle with red circles, the shortest being only twelve days.

The crystal ink bottle was suddenly knocked over by the maid, and the black liquid smeared on the parchment, covering the words "Iron Ore Production Increase Plan".

"Young master, I didn't mean to." The maid knelt on the ground in fear. Robin waved his hand impatiently, signaling her to leave.

Robin waved for someone to summon Ito, the chief knight.

Upon receiving the summons, the chief knight arrived quickly.

“My lord.” Ito gave a standard knightly salute, and as he rose, the legendary badge at his waist clashed with the scabbard, producing a clear, resonant sound. “My sword is thirsty.”

Clearly, he had guessed why Robin had summoned him; she probably wanted him to join the battle.

Robin's dragon-slaying spear suddenly flew up on its own, drawing a burning purple line between the three of them: "Then let's go to the Rhine Territory and take a look."

The gun tip flicked up the Allied intelligence report on the table; the parchment turned to ashes in the flames. "Remember, this is reconnaissance."

(End of this chapter)