Saving the ruined Knights’ Order

Episode 10

“What the Heck?”

When I rushed back to the Frontier Knight Order’s quarters, the first thing I saw was Mook flying through the air.

Of course, it wasn’t because he had mastered some kind of aerial technique. No, he had just been sent flying by a powerful impact.

Still, he managed to regain his balance mid-air. Twisting his body, he performed a neat somersault before landing gracefully on the ground. His right hand was still gripping his sword hilt tightly, while his left hand touched the ground lightly. Then, like a cat, he stood up and grinned.

“Whoa, old man. You’re stronger than you look!”

Not bad for a mercenary.

The reply didn’t come from Mook but from the opposite side—Charlie. He, too, held a sword in his right hand.

“Hey, old man. Just to check, you’re not going easy on me, are you? I’d love to see your full strength.”

“I don’t have much choice. If I go all out, our leader’s gonna have a hard time.”

So, Mook had been sent flying because he had taken a direct hit from Charlie’s attack.

Yeah… not surprising. In the early game, there were hardly any characters who could match Charlie in pure strength. Mook was good, but it was too soon for him to fight Charlie head-on. If he kept this up, he’d just keep getting smacked away like a ragdoll.

But wait… why was a chaos event happening?

A chaos event occurs when knights with bad compatibility end up in the same order. And right now, the air between Charlie and Mook was crackling with hostility.

That’s what confused me.

I had recruited both of them at the same time before, but they had never fought like this. Sure, they argued a lot, but it was never this serious.

So why now?

…Oh.

It must be because of synergy effects.

I clenched my fists as I realized it.

When a character’s synergy effect activates, it completely changes their story. A one-handed sword user might suddenly start wielding a greatsword. A dagger user might gain poison damage. Things like that.

It could even change their personalities.

Still… this much tension right from the start?

I sighed, rubbing my temples.

Charlie and Mook, unaware of my frustration, were busy clashing swords.

As their leader, I should probably step in… but something else hit me.

There was another synergy character in my order.

Where was Karen?

I had expected Karen to act as a mediator. But judging from this mess, she clearly wasn’t doing her job.

No… come to think of it, she wasn’t even here.

Charlie, who was always a gentleman, was acting aggressive. So what was happening with Karen, who was already kind of… well, unpredictable?

And then—

Something happened.

“Leader! You’re Here!”

A familiar voice. It was Karen.

But the problem was… the voice was coming from a strange direction.

Above my head.

I looked up and saw Karen.

“What are you doing up there?”

“Oh, I was preparing for an ambush.”

Karen, as if it was nothing, was clinging to the top of a tree. Leaves and bits of bark were stuck all over her, but I didn’t even want to ask why.

Sigh.

It would just give me a bigger headache.

But the real question was—why were these guys wasting time like this when they should be on a mission?

As if reading my mind, Karen grinned and said,

“They’re fighting over the vice-captain position of the frontier Knights!”

I was speechless.

They were brawling over that?

Why would anyone even want to be vice-captain of this ruined knight order?

“Wait. If you were preparing an ambush… that means you wanted the position too, right?”

Alright. I give up.

I didn’t even have the energy to argue.

But I did know what I had to do now.

“These fools… I need to put an end to this first.”

If I let this chaos event continue, the knight order’s power would drop. They should be working together on missions, not wasting energy fighting each other.

So whenever a chaos event happened, it was best to end it fast.

I placed my hand on my sword hilt and took a deep breath.

“Violence… must be handled with greater violence.”

The best way to stop a chaos event?

The leader had to personally beat up the knights.

But wait—

How?

I looked down at my own hand gripping the sword and tilted my head.

I don’t know how to fight.

I wasn’t Isaac. I was just a gamer stuck in Isaac’s body.

I had never been in a fight before.

I didn’t even take basic taekwondo lessons!

So how was I supposed to defeat knights in combat?

And yet—despite my thoughts—my hand was already pulling the sword out.

At this point, I was just going with the flow.

—Huh?

But as the blade slid out halfway, I suddenly felt it.

My heart was pounding like crazy.

My grip on the sword was as steady as an ancient tree.

And from the hilt… a deep, familiar sensation spread through my palm.

“Wha—?”

My palm gripped the sword naturally, as if it had done so a thousand times before.

A deep, familiar sensation spread through my hand.

And then—

A flood of memories crashed into my mind.

I had no way to resist them.

When the storm passed, I could feel it—something inside me had changed.

***

Charlie frowned at the situation.

Isaac had been the only knight who ever accepted him. No one else had given him a place.

So seeing someone act so recklessly in Isaac’s knight order annoyed him.

I’m acting too emotional, he thought, taking a deep breath and looking at Mook.

Sure, Mook was charging in like a wild dog right now, but in the end, he was still a fellow knight.

Fighting like this on the first day was a mistake.

Charlie sighed, deciding to end the fight.

“Hey, let’s sto—”

But before he could finish, his breath caught in his throat.

Something overwhelming was pressing down on him.

Something huge was stirring nearby.

Mook felt it too.

Like a beast sensing danger, he froze in place, his body tense.

At almost the same time, both of them turned toward the source of the power.

And then—

“Waaaah!”

Karen’s scream cut through the air.

Like a flying squirrel, she leaped between tree branches, eyes wide with shock.

She landed between Mook and Charlie, yelling,

“Leader! What the heck?! You scared me!”

Behind her, the air was boiling with power.

It was a wave of force.

A surge that only appeared when a knight pushed their power beyond a certain limit.

Knights called this presence “Aura.”

Charlie swallowed hard, staring at Karen.

“Leader? Don’t tell me… that’s Isaac’s aura?”

For high-ranking knights, their aura was so powerful that it affected their surroundings.

More than that—it reflected their personality.

A knight with a cold heart had an aura that chilled the very air.

A knight with blazing passion had an aura that shook the ground.

But this aura…

This wasn’t like anything they had ever felt before.

It was dark.

Heavy.

Oozing with something strange.

Unlike any aura they had ever known.

A Dangerous Aura

This was different from any Aura they had ever felt before.

Charlie’s instincts screamed at him.

Run. Leave this place—now!

But he didn’t listen.

And soon, he would regret it.

***

BOOM!

A massive slash tore through the forest.

Charlie barely had time to raise his sword.

CLANG!

The impact shook the air.

His arms numbed.

The force sent him flying.

Charlie crashed to the ground, rolling through dirt and leaves.

What… kind of strength is this?!

He gasped, trying to steady his breath.

Charlie had always been strong. He had never lost a battle of strength.

But this was different.

This was on a whole new level.

He forced himself up, dusting off the dirt.

Then, he looked at the man who had taken his place.

A knight overflowing with raw danger.

Isaac Wood.

Isaac’s voice was low, irritated.

“Yeah, I get it. We need to settle rankings. But you don’t decide that.”

Silence fell.

Charlie, Mook, and Karen all stood frozen.

No one dared to move.

It should have been three against one.

But it didn’t feel that way.

Isaac was the one surrounding them.

His Aura loomed over them, heavy and suffocating.

And then, he smiled.

“Alright, how about we all calm dow—”

No one moved.

No one breathed.

Isaac sighed, as if he expected this.

Then, with a smirk, he spoke.

“Fine. If you won’t step down… I’ll make you.”

And then—

Isaac vanished.

The moment he disappeared, Charlie roared.

His sword swung toward empty air.