Today's princess is still cute

Everyone needs to live. If you want to live a better life, what does acting skills matter?

Old Pine noticed his little action, and looking at the pair of shoes, he felt a pang in his heart, and then he became furious.

"Why are these people now forcing something from three hundred years ago on a child!"

Cardinson was horrified.

I'm not pretending, I was really scared this time.

When Neil Pine was angry, it was as if a wild beast opened its eyes, and the pressure almost scared Cardinson, who was now no better than an ordinary person, away.

He is worthy of being the man who can easily defeat a powerful group in a one-on-one fight twenty years later.

Wait, that’s not right. Why is such a powerful Templar Knight so unknown?

Before Cardinson could figure it out, Old Pine suppressed his anger and said softly, "I'm sorry, Cardinson, I didn't mean to scare you. It must have been very hard for you to come this far. Do you want to find your family? I will help you, and you will definitely find them."

"Grandpa Pine, I don't know where my family is." Cardinson lowered his head and began to recount the original owner's tragic life story.

When he heard that he was raised by an old beggar, Old Pine nodded and said, "This is a poor but noble gentleman."

When he heard that he was bullied and beaten by those hooligans and shopkeepers, Old Pine gritted his teeth and said, "Scum, these guys should be sent to the coldest place to do hard labor!"

When he heard that he had no food to eat, lived by rummaging through garbage cans and living under bridges, and wandered around, old Pine finally let out a long sigh.

"Cardinson, stop talking, my poor child. If I had a grandson, he would be as old as you. I can't imagine how a child of your age could endure so much suffering. Stay here. I just happen to be in need of an apprentice."

"Apprentice?" Cardinson was surprised and delighted. This was an unexpected development, but he pretended to be puzzled on the surface. "Grandpa Payne, what can I learn?"

Old Pine touched his head and said, "My child, since your half-blood identity has taken away the future you deserve, then use your sword to take back the glory you deserve."

"Sword? Sorry, Grandpa Pine, I've never touched such a precious weapon, I'm afraid..."

Nell Pyne laughed.

"I will teach you how to read and write, how to practice swordplay and martial arts. It doesn't matter who I pass on my skills to. If I can change your life and make you live a better life, then that is the light and warmth I have shown in my last moments."

"why?"

Cardinson didn't expect things to go so smoothly. All the prepared methods and ways to increase favorability were not used. Old Pine just accepted him as his apprentice?

Is this the third branch of that quest?

He really didn't understand, and was even a little confused.

"Because I see light in your eyes. Children with beautiful hopes should not be let down."

On this summer afternoon, in an unremarkable courtyard, an upright old man said these words to a half-Darkmoon Elf street kid.

Chapter 4: Becoming stronger starts with swinging the sword a hundred times!

"Good morning, little Kaisen, are you out for a run again today?" (Kadinsen's nickname in the Blue Empire is Kaisen)

"Good morning to you too!"

"Come on, little Kaison!"

"Good morning! Thank you!"

Along the way, Cardinson, wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt and shorts, waved to the neighbors and continued running.

"what!"

Cardinson ran around the neighborhood three times and breathed a sigh of relief when he returned to Old Pine's house.

Today was already his fifth day as Neil Pine's apprentice.

The neighbors all knew that the stubborn old Pine had a new boy in his home. Because of the old Pine's reputation here over the years and Cardinson's pleasing way of speaking, they gradually accepted this half-Dark Moon Elf.

When he got home, old Pine was already waiting for him.

Handing over the kettle and towel, Old Pine said calmly: "Swing the sword a hundred times before having breakfast."

"Yes!"

Cardinson drank the water hastily and picked up the wooden sword that Old Pine had prepared for him to train with.

Even if his body was fed with good food and meat, it shouldn't be able to recover so quickly and undergo high-intensity training.

The reason was that old Pine took out a bottle of high-grade potion from the Vatican. The golden light was so intoxicating that before people could react, he directly fed it to Cardinson.

After a night of intense heat, Cardinson woke up in the morning to find that his body was covered in dirt, but his energy and spirit had become very full, and a feeling of strength began to surge from his body.

While taking a shower, Cardinson carefully searched his memories and found an answer that made him choke for a long time.

Merit potions are used by the Holy See to reward those Templar Knights who have performed outstandingly. If used on players, they can directly and permanently increase all attributes by 5%. For humans in this world, in layman's terms, it can cleanse the bones and marrow and prolong life without any side effects.

This kind of precious item, which is put up for auction with a minimum guarantee of 1 gold coins, was used by himself? You know, the purchasing power of gold coins in this world is quite strong in the mortal world. An ordinary family of three who eats meat every day only needs five gold coins a year. (The currency of the Blue Empire is 60 gold coin = 1800 silver coins = copper coins. There will be some fluctuations in the exchange rate in each county, but the difference is not big)

Cardinson didn't know how to deal with the old man's kindness.

He knew that even if he asked, Old Pine would only say, "You don't need this kind of thing now. I'll take it to the cemetery later. Don't worry about it. Just practice well."

"Ugh."

Cardinson put aside all distractions, began to hold the wooden sword, and got into position for his morning sword-swinging training.

He had to survive in this world. As a three-year veteran player, he knew the dangers of this game. It was still the first twenty years of the main storyline, and more things would happen later. Just the demon king who had risen up from the poorest fiefdom in the east, and had marched towards the imperial capital with overwhelming force, destroying millions of lives, was not something he could escape from.

There are no eggs under the covering nest.

If it weren't for the players' hard fight, I really don't know how we could have defeated the woman who had dedicated her soul to destruction.

Live well! No matter what!

The requirement that Old Pine set for him was that he must maintain the frequency of his breathing while swinging the sword and make full use of the strength he could mobilize. Only those who could control their breathing could be called masters. If the foundation was not laid well, no matter how advanced the swordsmanship you learn in the future would be useless.

"call!"

Cardinson's sword swing has three different parts, using 50% strength, 80% strength, and 100% strength, swinging the sword at different speeds, and so on.

Although this is a simple movement, it requires taking breathing, strength, and speed into consideration, and consumes a lot of mental and physical energy.

It's like asking a person who seldom exercises to do a hundred standard squats without stopping to rest. He won't be able to bear it.

very tired!

Cardinson felt exhausted after swinging the sword more than twenty times. He didn't know what the sword was made of, but it weighed nearly three pounds, which made his body, which had been strengthened by the merit potion, a little unbearable.

But when he felt that his physical strength had run out, waves of warmth would surge from his limbs and torso, bringing a sense of comfort with a slight tearing sensation, and he would be able to continue swinging.

This is why the Merit Potion can be sold for at least 20,000 gold coins.

If this kind of thing is thrown at a person, anyone who is willing to endure hardships can be trained into an elite knight. And Cardinson is not without talent. This body has an astonishing ability to accept things, like a piece of beautiful jade that has its skin gradually peeled off, exerting its outstanding talents.

Old Pine stood in front of the kitchen door, watching Cardinson swinging his sword in the yard with a calm expression.

To be honest, this child's physical fitness can only be considered below average according to the standards of the Vatican's knight apprentices, and he can only barely pass with the help of the merit potion.

But he seems to have a particularly high understanding of weapons like swords?

With just a few pointers, he would know the correct strength and posture. Sometimes, the questions he occasionally asked would surprise even this old Templar Knight.

For old Pine, he was definitely happy to see that his child was ambitious, willing to endure hardships, and down-to-earth, without the slightest hint of impetuousness that one would expect at his age. His son had died in the war to cover his retreat, so now he vaguely considered Cardinson as his heir for the rest of his life, but further observation was needed.

Don't think this idea is strange. In fact, most Templar Knights will choose an heir when they are old, but rarely their own children.

Keep working hard, it’s up to you to change your life.

Old Pine nodded, stopped watching Cardinson's sword training, and went back to the kitchen to make breakfast. At this stage, the energy provided by the merit potion alone was not enough for his growth.

"call!"

The ninetieth sword!

Cardinson had to admit that once he got used to this rhythm, exercise became a pleasure. The clear feeling of getting stronger was as reassuring as seeing the experience points increase while killing monsters.

It is true that he is the best Shadow Knight in the whole server, but the game is different from reality. The release of skills and normal attacks require the support of the system.

Many guys who play Fighter can’t be Sett in real life, right?

The experience is there, all Cardinson needs to do is to grasp the feeling of using the sword and connect it with the feeling in the game. In time, he will surely be able to once again perform smooth operations and use the least amount of skills to perform over 100 combos.

Fight! Become stronger! Try to get Old Pine's recognition as soon as possible and become a true knight!

That’s Cardinson’s goal right now.

Chapter 5 Visitors from the Vatican

"Breathe! Step!"

With a "pop", the wooden sword in Cardinson's hand was knocked away by old Pine again.

Rubbing his aching wrist, the boy picked up the sword again.

Old Pine's stern voice sounded again: "You still haven't remembered what is the most important thing about swinging a sword. You haven't even used one tenth of your own strength, so why are you pursuing speed?"

Cardinson gritted his teeth and shouted, "I understand!"

"Then continue." As soon as Old Pine finished his words, a similar wooden sword stabbed straight into Cardinson's chest.

Cardinson concentrated all his attention, held his breath, raised his sword to block, and swung old Pine's wooden sword from top to bottom, then took a deep breath and chopped down.

There was also some admiration in Old Pine's eyes.

This child's comprehension is so good, especially in the art of swordsmanship. He is many times better than he was in the Vatican. He can always understand things in just a few times, which others need to learn dozens or even hundreds of times.

"Pay attention!" Old Pine dodged his slash, "When you attack the enemy without heavy armor, you must always guard your own middle gate."

Cardinson nodded, took a breath, and used his momentum to move forward, chopping several more times.

Old Pine suppressed his own strength to fight with him, but his reaction speed was not comparable to that of Cardinson now. This old man possessed a strength that was completely different from his old appearance, like a nimble and skinny tiger.

The afternoon sparring ended quickly, and it was definitely still one-sided.

"You lasted another thirty seconds today. Very good. Take a rest." Old Pine took the wooden sword from his hand, ruffled his silver hair, and smiled lovingly.

Neil Payne really liked this child more and more from the bottom of his heart. He was satisfactory in terms of how he treated people, how he wrote and practiced martial arts, how he was hardworking and down-to-earth, etc. If it weren't for his half-Dark Moon Elf blood, someone like Kaisen would shine everywhere.

Cardinson finally breathed a sigh of relief, wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand, and said to Old Pine, "Grandpa Pine, I'll go make a pot of tea."

Old Pine nodded and was about to say something when his expression suddenly became a little stiff.

He was silent for a while, took out a few silver coins from his pocket and handed them to Cardinson, saying, "Kaysen, I remember yesterday the kids from the neighborhood said they wanted to go eat sweet pies with you, so you can take them to play. Also, I've been busy training you lately and haven't really taught them how to write. You haven't finished your writing assignment today, so you can practice with them and give me the copybook when you come back. I'm a little tired and need to take a nap."

"Ah?" Cardinson was a little confused, but he still took the money and ran back to the house to get a pen and paper. He said obediently, "Okay, Grandpa Pine, I'll go then and will be back on time before dinner."

"It doesn't matter if you're late. Just remember to bring me a portion of sweet pie." Old Pine smiled and waved, watching Cardinson disappear out the door.

After a while, a steady male voice was heard next to him.

"Nell, is this your heir?"

Old Pine didn't even turn his head. He just stood there with his hands behind his back and said calmly, "I don't want him to enter the temple, so how can he be my successor?"

The uninvited guest walked into the yard on his own and stood face to face with old Pine.

If Cardinson were still alive, he would definitely scream at this guy.

Césaire Melo!

Defending the dignity of the Church for a hundred years, one of the five Morning Star Knights of the Church of the Blue Empire, known as the "Unfalling Aurora", Lv.80, is called Teacher Mei by the Templar Knights on the forum, because every knight player who changes his job in the Templar must receive tasks from him and pass his tests.

In his previous life, when Cardinson and a few friends reached the level cap of 80, they all challenged César Mello. In the end, only Cardinson cheated and used the Shadow Knight's skills and various potions to kill this Morning Star Knight with ridiculously high defense and attack power. The others were beaten into a trance.

They were really in a trance. In serious cases, they even muttered to themselves after logging off: "I hit him with 50 critical hits, but he didn't hit me with 500 critical hits. Why?"

How could a guy like this, whose strength is comparable to that of a medium-difficulty dungeon boss, come to find Old Pine?

Césaire Melo is not as gray-haired as he will be in twenty years. Now he is just a strong middle-aged man with a few strands of gray hair on his temples. His face is very tough, but he always has a smile on his lips. He is a handsome uncle.

"Why bother, Nell? It's been fifteen years since that happened. You're only sixty now, but you look eighty."

Old Pine looked at his former colleague expressionlessly: "If you come to me to reminisce about the past and have a cup of tea, I welcome it very much, but if you come to persuade me to return to the Vatican, there is no need for that."

Xizel was seen through, but he didn't feel embarrassed. Instead, he scratched his head and smiled: "The guy who made that battle plan went to the Kingdom of God a month ago. Now I am the leader of the Knights Templar. Come back, I need a deputy leader."

"The Holy See is full of talented people, and young people are also growing. An old man like me will not take up a position." Old Pine curled the corners of his mouth, looking like he didn't want to say anything more.

"Nell, we grew up in the Church since we were young. You are five years older than me. You have been leading me since then and have helped me a lot. I am very grateful to you and regard you as my brother." Xizel looked straight into old Pine's eyes and said word by word, "Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, he has suppressed the Church in various ways. In particular, the number of Templar Knights has been reduced again and again. Some time ago, several outstanding young men were executed for colluding with rebellious nobles. Heh, Your Majesty completely ignored those potential crises and blindly trusted the group of people in the Mage Tower. I don't believe that you, who were once known as the most virtuous knights, would watch the Templar Knights die not on the battlefield, but at the hands of your own people."

"It's no use playing the emotional card."

"The Second Templar Crusade was not wrong, the only mistake was..."