Chapter 9: A Test of Courage

(Chapter 2 arrives!) Thank you for the tips from the 'book awesome' book friends! Ask for collection, ask for recommendation tickets, ~~~~~~)

Rod's research on his translucent sphere suspected of being a golden finger ended in vain, because he didn't have any effective means to analyze the translucent sphere that was in his sea of consciousness.

However, after being nagged by his mother for a while at breakfast, Rhodes and the two knights of Terr and Tamon had a test of courage before adaptation and actual control of the battle - he had practiced for a long time, but in the battle with the old gnoll, there was almost no expression of swordsmanship and footwork, including Baron Ernst, Knight Tel, and Knight Tamon, all three of them unanimously said that they wanted to strengthen!

So in the next few days, Rod himself was constantly adapting in addition to resting, in order to be able to give full play to his strength in the battle.

It wasn't until the afternoon before Rod's Courage Trial was to start that Rod himself was able to take a good rest and wait for the Courage Challenge he was going to face the next day.

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On the morning of the fifth day after the end of the night test, some people in the town of Taaffe (the official name of the Barony of Ernst) who have a considerable position in the Barony of Ernst, or shop managers and pharmacists from special shops who buy Warcraft materials, various raw materials and sell some things urgently needed in the Barony of Ernst, are invited to the town's barracks to watch.

"Ozv, you're here too."

On the edge of one of the widest school yards in the barracks, a shop manager with a big belly and a Mediterranean hairstyle couldn't help but shout when he saw the figure of a familiar competitor beside him.

"Hey, old George, aren't you here too!"

The flaxen-haired man, who looked to be in his prime in his thirties, looked back and saw his acquaintance, and simply said hello to his former rival.

For those of us who shop in the small town of Barony Ernst, the competition has not yet reached the point where you die or I live. And in the town, these foreign shops are basically very tacitly divided into industries, except for a few areas that are intertwined, the main business of the other shops are staggered.

"The captain of the garrison and the main officers, two knights, and several chief stewards seem to have great confidence in his eldest son, and he intends to determine the status of the heir in front of everyone."

The shopkeeper known as Ozv whispered to Old George who was approaching him after checking the people who had arrived around the school yard and the soldiers of the garrison (Note 1) who were guarding the schoolyard.

"That's true! I don't know how Rod Ernst, who has the title of genius, will watch XiΓ n" Listening to his rival's words, old George said with some meaning after looking at the surroundings.

The two shopkeepers were well-informed and understood the purpose of Baron Ernst in bringing them and the important men of the realm together to watch his eldest son's test of courage.

The inheritance of the nobility, especially the inheritance of the territorial nobility, is generally cultivated from an early age. A situation like Baron Ernst's gathering of important people from the realm to watch during his son's test of courage basically confirmed Rod's appearance. As long as Rhodes did well in the Test of Valor, the important people in the realm would begin to agree that Rhodes really had the right to inherit, and began to respond to the Baron's words.

Of course, if the Trials of Courage messes up, the consequence is that Rod's future is bleak

However, as shop stewards, Ozf and old George, who were eating together in the Barony of Ernst, of course, did not say that Rod's test of courage would fail, but began to guess that Rod Ernst's cousin XiΓ n was coming.

As stewards of an out-of-town shop in the small town of Taaffe, Ozf and George Sr. had certainly heard of Rod Ernst, a genius with some fame in the territory. However, like most people, the two of them were only hearsay about Rod's situation, and they were indeed skeptical about how much Rhodes himself had the title of "genius".

Soon, when the Baron Ernst's family, the Knight of Tell, the Knight of Tamon and other figures arrived, several invited merchants and others from important out-of-town shops saw Rod Ernst and his opponent who was going to have a trial of courage today!

For Rod Ernst, Ozf, George Sr. and others couldn't help but nod in their hearts after looking at Rod's calm posture standing on the school field.

At least on the big scene, the twelve-year-old Rod's calm appearance was satisfying, and there was no need to worry about the equipment on the other party, which was obviously not inferior to the equipment of the lord's guardsβ€”after all, the nobles still had some privileges, not to mention that it was not magical equipment.

However, when the merchants, pharmacists, and those in the territory who did not know Rod's previous appearance were in an uproar when they saw the opponent of Rod's Ernst Courage Trial.

"Gnoll ?!! Or the kind of robust individual ?!!! that grows up."

"Oh my God! Is this something that little Rhodes can deal with?"

"At least it's a monster of gray iron! Is this an attempt to murder???"

When they saw the opponent who was carried to the school yard by several soldiers in a wooden cage, and looked at the prime-aged gnolls who were jumping around in the wooden cage, many of them whispered in shock and even began to mumble.

Most of the people present had either seen a gnoll or at least knew how powerful this monster was.

Gnolls are one of the tougher ones in the Grey Iron Rank, as this cunning beast with few brains but a little improvised weaponry is used against food (enemies?) is unusually ferocious, especially after tasting the taste of blood, it can be called a typical representative of fearlessness.

If you are a recruit who has not been in battle, you can easily be bitten by mistake when facing a gnolls of the same rank. As for Rod Ernst a twelve-year-old little bit? In the face of such a ferocious beast, it does look like murder!

But when they saw the calm attitude of the Baron Ernst's family, the two knights, and the soldiers of the garrison around him, and the calm expression of Rod Ernst himself, the voices of the chatter began to fall.

The people standing in this place now are basically not stupid, especially the shop owners who are in charge of presiding over the party are extremely shrewd, and feel that the matter in front of them will definitely not be as simple as they imagined.

There was no doubt that Baron Ernst would not watch his first heir die, and the other family members of Baron Ernst and those knights and soldiers also had quite calm expressions. Turning their heads to look at the calm expression of the young man Rod Ernst on the school field, a question couldn't help but arise in everyone's hearts.

Could it be that the 12-year-old Rod Ernst will be able to deal with a gray-iron subordinate jackal right now???

"Let's see"

Ozf and Old George, who looked at each other for a moment, obviously saw the same question in each other's eyes, and then Ozif said in a deep voice. And old George also nodded dryly, and then looked at the field.

The rest of the room had almost figured this out, and began to calm down and look at Rhodes and the cage on the field.

Anyone who knows some common sense about the melee profession knows the bright future of a teenager who can reach the Grey Iron rank at the age of 12 and face off against a gnoll of the same rank. If Rod Ernst can do this, then not to mention the official knight of the bronze rank in the future, the silver and gold of the higher stage are estimated to be able to look forward to it. And even the founder of the Baron Ernst family is just a great knight of the silver rank who has made great achievements!

So, under the expectant, curious, and interested gazes of all, Baron Ernst finally gave the order!

"In the name of the Ernst family, the trial of courage of Rod Ernst begins!"

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"In the name of the Ernst family, the trial of courage of Rod Ernst begins!"

When he heard his father's order, Rhodes, who was standing on the school ground, simply raised the round shield and one-handed long sword in his hand and aimed at the opponent who was opening the wooden cage less than fifty meters away from him.

Compared to the first battle a few days ago, Rhodes was still able to calm down and focus his attention directly on his opponent rather than the eyes around him that looked at him from time to time.

For Rod, the prime-aged jackal talent on the other side who is emerging from the wooden cage is the most important thing!

As for the other gazes? Well, Rhodes says he doesn't need to care at all now.

"It should be the lower position of gray iron"

Looking at the head that came out about one meter seven at a height, compared to the old jackal man a few days ago, the old jackal man who was much stronger and covered in blue and black fur, Rod assessed it in his heart.

In advance, Rhodes received a reminder from his father, and he also understood that his father would not come up with any gray iron medium or gray iron upper position to "test" himself - that was not a test of courage, but a real sword and a real life!

Especially after Rod saw the hungry and murderous eyes of the jackal who came out, he felt that the opponent he faced this time was much easier to deal with than the cunning old jackal before.

Because Rhodes could tell that the adult gnoll on the other side was an opponent who had just come of age and had been hungry for a while (of course, the Ernst territory would not give enough food to such a monster after capturing it)!

(Note 1: There are two types of nobles of the first rank of baron, the garrison is an armed force that can be requested to be deployed in an emergency recognized by the kingdom, and the private army is a storage zΓ i led only by the nobles themselves.) )