"Then you don't get in the way, stay obediently."

The wandering knight instructed Mary, and handed the reins of the horse to Latia.

"You can figure it out for yourself."

"Okay."

With the reins in her hand, Latia tried to climb on the horse, but the horse was not honest and struggled to keep her from going up.

Amused by her clumsiness, Mary grabbed the reins and climbed on her horse, and held out her hand to Latia.

"Haha, I knew you were going to need me. Come, Latia, I'll teach you, get on your horse. I have followed the merchants into the city many times. "

"Thank you, Mary."

Latia wondered if Mary, who taught her how to ride, was a bit like Luya when she was a child, and smiled and grabbed her hand.

Then, with the help of Mary, Latia finally got on the horse and began the difficult training in order to become a knight.

The wandering knight was unable to teach Latia riding in person, but fortunately Mary was there, and he finally saved himself a trouble.

During Mary's time teaching horsemanship, the wandering knights taught Latia about knighthood and how to use spears.

At the same time, she also told Latia what she was most curious about how to become a knight - to participate in a spear joust on horseback.

Horseback spear jousting was a celebration held in the cities of the kingdoms of Deshio and Kalren.

Only knights and recommended trainee knights are allowed to participate in the joust, and the fierce competition between these knights is a favorite celebration of the public.

If they can win the competition, the knights can also gain fame and fortune, and naturally there are many knights with superior strength to participate.

Trainee knights who have been recognized through martial arts competitions can also be appointed as knights, which can be regarded as a means for carp to leap over the dragon gate.

When she heard about the spear contest on horseback, Latia was eager to try her hand at it, feeling that she would soon become a knight, but she was stumped by her horsemanship.

"Latia! Tighten the reins! Oh! Oh!! No way!!! "

Babbling~

Not long after Latia got on her horse, the horse was frightened and threw Latia off her horse.

"Latia, are you alright?"

"Hmm...... It's okay, it's not once or twice that I've fallen off the horse. "

Although Latia had learned the basics of riding from Mary, she did not know the most important part of the story, which was how to communicate with the horse.

Latiya has been hunting for many years, and she has already had the temperament of a hunter, but whenever she gets close to half a step, the horse will be frightened and unwilling to let her get on the horse.

"Let's try to be gentle with the horses, Latia."

"Is that so?"

Seeing that Latia barely managed to squeeze out a smile, but the smile did not reach the bottom of her eyes, she just grinned, and Mary replied.

"No, you're more scary."

"Whew......"

Looking at the depressed Latia, Mary couldn't think of any other way, so she asked the wandering knight for help.

"Uncle, is there any way?"

"What can be done, she can't even learn to ride a horse, so she dispelled the idea of becoming a knight as soon as possible."

The wandering knight's reprimand made Latia even more depressed, and Mary looked at Latia and suddenly remembered an idea.

"Latia, I have a good idea, and I will scold it again...... No, it's to intimidate and intimidate the horses. "

"Huh? Intimidate? "

"That's right, if the horse runs away because it's afraid of you, then scare the horse so that it doesn't dare to run away at all."

Mary's idea was a nonsense, but at the moment Latia was so frustrated that she decided to listen to Mary first.

"When you get on the horse, restrain it so hard that it can't move."

"yes, got it."

As soon as Latia got on the horse, she released a strong murderous aura and fiercely grabbed the reins to restrain the horse.

The frightened horse stiffened and motionless after feeling the obvious suppression of the other party.

"Oh, Mary, it worked."

"Babble!"

"Ahh

Seeing that Latia had successfully mounted the horse, she smiled at Mary who had helped her, and said that the horse was not so frightened for a while, so she saw the opportunity to throw Latia down.

"Latia, are you alright?"

"Well, it's fine, but now I seem to see a way out."

After that, every time Latia rode a horse, she would first restrain the horse with her eyes, and when she was done riding the horse, she would use carrots and combing to calm the horse's fear, and try to establish a bond of communication with the horse.

As a result of her efforts, Latia and the horses break away from their partnership, forming a strange bond with the high-pressure relationship between the hunter and the prey.

"Haha, that's amazing, Latia! Looks like she's really getting better at riding now, isn't it? Uncle? "

"You don't think this trick really works, do you?"

"But she's still learned to ride a horse, isn't she?"

"Yes......"

Just as Mary showed off Latia's riding skills to the wandering knight, Latia fell off her horse again.

Babbling~

"Oops."

"Latia! Are you alright? "

"She looks like there's something wrong."

"Don't worry, uncle, she'll be fine soon."

As time passed, Latia's riding skills improved to a certain extent, and she began to train for spear competitions on horseback.

Although her riding skills were not good, she was fortunate to be able to use spears skillfully after years of hunting, and her training in spear on horseback went quite smoothly.

Time flies, the seasons change, and the wandering knight nods and agrees to let Latia participate in the tournament, and Latia and her party set off for the town where the horseback spear tournament was held.

The city was bustling with people who came to see the upcoming horseback spear tournament and the knights who came to participate.

The streets are full of festive atmosphere, with red ribbons and elaborate decorations on the trees on the streets, and street vendors can be seen everywhere to attract customers.

"Wow, it's been a long time since I've been in town. Latia, this is your first time in the city, right? "

"Well, here...... It's the city. ”

Mary seemed to have been in the city before, and was very familiar with her surroundings, and Latia only looked at the bustling streets she saw for the first time with a new look.

The wandering knight listened to the conversation between the two, as if he was not very interested in the city, and still said in his characteristic nonchalant tone.

"Let's leave after watching the excitement."

The wandering knight led the group into the venue where the horseback spear contest was held, and used his token to help Latia register as a trainee knight, and continued.

"Spear jousting on horseback is a great place to compete with the best knights. Take advantage of what you've learned, Latia, and try to win against those knights, and maybe you'll become the knight you want to be. "

"Okay, I got it."

Then Latiya began her first jousting match.

The horseback spear contest is simple, a simple duel in the form of a knockout match.

Knights who apply to participate will be lined up with trainee knights, and each game will be played three rounds before the round of 16, and five rounds will be played from the top eight onwards.

In each round, the knights charge at each other, and score points by hitting each other with their spears.

Depending on where the spear hits, the score will vary; The head is three points, the shoulders are two points, and the body is one point, if you can knock the opponent off the horse, you don't need to look at the score, and you don't need to play the remaining rounds of the competition, you can win directly.

In order to make it easier for riders on horseback to compete, the horseback jousting arena is designed in a narrow oval shape, and in addition to the jousting arena for the knights, there is also a circle of spectator seats around it to watch the game.

There are also areas on either side where the knights can prepare for jousts, and at this moment Latia and her knight opponents are ready to play.

After the host confirmed that both parties were ready, he walked to the center of the competition and shouted loudly, and the competition officially began.

"Please two knights forward!"

"This knight on the left! A chameleon who is a candidate for the championship and can skillfully learn the opponent's skills and disrupt the opponent's tactics! Aibastian! "

"Wow, Abstian!"

"This knight on the right! It's a disciple of the lame Raven Knight! Latia! "

"Woo~ The disciple of the crow knight in the eyes of the money get out!"

Hearing that the host introduced the knight's opponent, the crowd in the audience erupted in cheers and cheered for the knight's opponent; But after hearing the introduction to Latia, everyone continued to ridicule and blame the wandering knight.

Hearing everyone's strange accusations against the Wandering Knight, both Mary and Latia looked at the Wandering Knight in surprise, but he didn't care.

"Don't worry about the introduction, Ratiya, it's just a means to arouse the interest of the people."

"Okay."

When the competition is ready and the contestants are introduced, the much-anticipated first round finally begins.

In order to prove her strength over the years, Latia focused on controlling the Hunt's Breath.

Seeing that this nobody was wearing a warrior's uniform that was not suitable for martial arts, and his riding posture was also quite lame, the opponent scoffed at him and planned to take him off the horse directly.

Ratya, on the other hand, was going to dodge the opponent's attack and hit the opponent in the shoulder for the sake of prudence.

As the two charged, Latiya planned to successfully hit and then try to avoid the attack, but things didn't work out for him.

Instinctively, Latia hooked the object in the air with her spirit hook to dodge the attack, and flew to the ground with a leap and a flip.

The people watching this scene were also shocked by Latiya's skills, and no longer teased, but just watched quietly.

However, when the host announced the results, everyone burst into laughter.

"Trainee Knight Latia! Fall from a horse, fail! "

Latia thought she had managed to dodge the other party's attack, but when she realized why everyone was laughing, she began to be ashamed of herself when she landed confidently.

Looking at such a ridiculous scene, the wandering knight also shook his head again and again, but Mary stepped forward to comfort her.

"Latia, it's okay, just have a good match in the next game."

Since then, however, Latia has instinctively used the Hook to avoid attacks, and has repeatedly jumped off her horse.

There are two reasons why she keeps using the Spirit Hook, one is her high-pressure riding style, and the other is the habit she has developed over the years of hunting.

The high-pressure riding style stiffens the horse's body, greatly reducing her radius of movement, preventing her from having time to dodge.

When she was unable to dodge on horseback, she habitually used the skillful hook technique she had cultivated through hunting.

Just as Latia, who couldn't find a solution, was in a mess, Mary stopped her with an anxious expression.

"Latia, can we talk?"

"Huh? Can I help you? "

Mary led Latia to the city's blacksmith shop where he used to make horseback spear and jousting armor.

I saw that the wandering knight was also in the blacksmith shop, and there was also a beautiful set of black horseback armor on display in the shop.

Mary led Latia to the horseback jousting armor, as if to surprise her.

"Wow! What do you think? This is a special armor for horseback jousting for you! "

"Horseback jousting armor?"

"That's right, it's the armor worn by the other knights during the joust."

Latia looked at the new armor in a fog, and the wandering knight gave advice on the tournament with a serious face.

"Latiya, it's not just that you can dodge, when you can't dodge, you have to find a way to minimize the impact as much as possible, and focus on attacking mentally."

"Less impact?"

"That's right, anyway, the spears used in the tournament are easy to break, and they are all made of hollow wood, so you might as well hand yourself over to this armor and make the most of your best attacks."

"Okay, I'll try."

At the suggestion of the wandering knight, Latia seemed to regain a little self-confidence, and gradually faded the nervousness on her face.

Then she looked at the horseback armor that the two had prepared for herself, and found that it was also engraved with leopard prints similar to those on her warrior uniform.

"Huh? This pattern is ......"

"Well, uncle gave me money to prepare a set of special armor for horseback jousting for you, and I sold the fur you sold me before and decorated it a little, how about it? Do you like it? "

"Hmmm! I love it so much! Thank you, Mary. "

Rathia was grateful for the gift and sincerity of the two of them, and hugged Mary, who was also frightened by the sudden hug and was a little overwhelmed.

"Well, my uncle has put a lot of thought into it."

"Thank you, uncle. Next, I won't lose again. "

"Okay, then you can compare."

Latia put on the armor for horseback jousting and regained her self-confidence, and her eyes, which had been out of focus, flashed with a strong light again.

Wearing the armor dedicated to horseback jousting, Latia no longer panicked in the face of the opponent's attacks, but frequently scored high scores with accurate attacks along the way.

When faced with the lowest-scoring attack aimed at the body, she minimizes the impact as much as possible and focuses on the attack; Faced with attacks aimed at the head and shoulders that were easy to dodge, she focused on dodging and drove straight in.

After gradually becoming familiar with the horseback spear through the strategy and actual combat experience accumulated on the field, Latia gradually gained the upper hand in the field.

With her strength and self-confidence, she gradually swept the competitions in small and medium-sized cities, and even got the name of Black Panther Knight and became famous.

After years of traveling across the southern continent and proving her mettle, Latia finally had the perfect opportunity to become a knight.

"Latia, look!"

"Huh? What's wrong? Mary. "

"This is an invitation to a horseback spear tournament in the capital of the Kingdom of Dehio!"

"An invitation to compete in the capital?"

"Yes, His Majesty the King will also be present in this tournament, so will he be appointed as a knight? Right? Uncle. "

Mary handed the invitation from the herald to the wandering knight, who also looked at the invitation and said.

"Well, yes, it's absolutely possible to win as long as you can win."

Hearing what the wandering knight said, Latia felt that her dream was finally close at hand, and tried to calm her excitement.

"Come, then hurry up and get ready! Don't be late. "

Mary looked even more excited than Latia, and she urged the big guys, and the group headed for the capital of the kingdom of Dehio.

At Mary's urging, the group arrived safely on the eve of the tournament and were astonished to see the grand preparations in the capital.

"Wow...... It's my first time in the capital. Latia, how's it going? Isn't that cool? "

"……"

"Latya, I'm afraid you're going to drool."

The kingdom of Deshio is worthy of being a country of knights, and the capital has made grand preparations for the competition, mobilizing a lot of manpower and funds.

The tournament is also quite luxurious, which is incomparable to the tournament venue that has been participated in so far, and the venue is specially designed for the royal family and nobles to watch the game.

As one of the biggest celebrations in the kingdom, this tournament is so much watched that only knights who have been recognized for their prowess are invited to participate.

Naturally, there are apprentice knights who are just as famous as Latia, after all, these surprising stars will capture the hearts of the people and make the whole festival even more hot.

Although it is also a very difficult challenge for these apprentice knights to compete in the big city, as long as they can win, they will have the opportunity to get the knighthood granted by the king himself, and naturally no one will refuse this temptation.

Latiya and his entourage also thought that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, suppressed their excitement, and began to prepare for the competition in an orderly manner.

A few days later.

On the jousting field, Latia and the Knights' opponents are ready and waiting to play.

After confirming that both of them were ready, the host went to the center of the arena and introduced the two knights.

"This knight on the left!" I'll win this competition! 'Forever a candidate to win the championship!' Chameleon! Aibastian! "

"Wow, chameleon!"

Fate seemed to have played a joke on Latia, and today's opponent was the same knight who had fought against him for the first time.

Latia never forgot the first jousting that became a laughing stock, and after listening to the host's introduction, she was a little nervous, and seeing this, Mary on the side encouraged.

"Latia, don't take it personally, you're not the same person you used to be."

"Well, Mary. Don't worry, I'm just a little nervous. ”

While the two had a brief exchange, the host had already begun to introduce Latiya.

"This knight on the right! Never let go of each other's weaknesses! Subdue the opposing panther with a powerful blow! Latia! ”

After introducing the knights on both sides, the populace thought that the veteran knight Ebastian would win, and did not expect much from Latia.

After the introduction, the audience was silent, and the host waved the red flag and sent a signal to start the competition.

Seeing the host's order, Lathia and Abbastian rushed towards each other, carefully observing each other's condition.

Abbastian seemed to remember Latia's fame and her extraordinary moves, showing a very different move than she had done in previous competitions.

He uses the strategy of copying the other person's posture and disrupting the other person's line of sight.

Seeing that Abastian was in a similar position as herself, Latia had no way of knowing where he was going to attack, but this time Latia was full of confidence.

The two of them got closer and closer, and flew a blow at each other, only to hear the click of the spear used for the tournament and shatter.

Then there was a plop, and the veteran knight Ebastian fell off his horse.

Seeing that Latiya had brought the veteran knight off his horse with just one blow, the onlookers felt that everything in front of them was unbelievable.

Although Abastian took a similar pose to Latia, making it impossible for Latia to guess his attack, Abastian's spear failed to stop Latia's lightning blow and fell off his horse.

The populace sensed that the new star that had set the festivities alive had appeared, and shouted Latiya's name one after another.

"Wow! Latia! ”

Mary and the Wandering Knight didn't seem to expect Latia to end the contest with just one blow, and they all showed surprised expressions.

"What a Latiya! I knew she could win! It's just that she didn't expect her to be able to make her opponent fall off...... But so what! ”

However, Latia's victory didn't stop at this one, and she won the next one.

"Beautiful! Latia! Uncle, you praise her too! ”

"Well played."

She won the next contest.

"Panther! Latia! Sure enough, one blow is enough! ”

Latia seems to have finally proved her mettle, making it to the final with only five rounds remaining.

"Latia, now it's the final round, as long as you win this round, you can become a real knight! You have to be calm! No, wouldn't it be better to be a little nervous? "

"Don't worry, Mary, I'm going to win."

Mary's encouragement allowed Latia to relax a little as she prepared for the final round, but the current score is seven points for Latia and eight points for the opponent, and she is at the bottom of the line.

If the score is the same, Latia will lose, and while there are people in the audience cheering for her possible surprise victory, most of them think she will lose.

In the midst of all the attention, the red flag that said the final round of the competition was waved, and Latia and her opponent rushed out with all their might, aiming at each other.

Latia guessed that the opponent would aim for her shoulder, intending to dodge the opponent's attack and turn defeat into victory, but since the opponent could reach the final, he was naturally a master among the masters, and no one could guess who would win this one in the end.

In the arena, everyone watched with bated breath, and Latiya entered a state of concentration that she had never been in before.

She felt as if time had slowed down, and the magic in her body that had been activated by the Hunt's Breath vibrated violently.

The concussive magic quickly traveled up her hand to the spear, infusing it with magic, and Latya, aware of the situation, fell into distress.

She intuitively realized that even if it was a spear made of hollow wood, once it was blessed with magical power, she was afraid that it would seriously injure the opponent.

At this moment, her mind was, "As long as it's not that fast, it should be fine, right?" and "I can't hurt someone else's life for the sake of my dreams." Thoughts collided violently.

Latia thought about it, and finally decided that her weapon could no longer be used for martial arts, so she raised her spear into the sky and gave up the competition.

The audience who had been following the situation of the competition could not understand Latia's actions, and everyone had great expectations for her, so naturally they were more and more disappointed. And in the competition, everyone's ridicule of the loser goes far beyond the cheer for the winner.

Latia drooped her shoulders in the midst of the teasing and walked back weakly, and Mary couldn't bear the absurdity of the result at last, and cried directly.

Only the wandering knight seemed to think of the spirit hook that Latiya had shown before, and he was already comforted by speculation.

"It's okay, there will be a chance next time."

"Hmmm......"

Latia knew she had made the right decision, but she was still very sad that her dream had come to naught.

The great loss left her speechless, and she wondered when she would encounter such an opportunity again, and gradually became restless.

But the people didn't seem to be curious about her thoughts, and even after the competition, they continued to accuse and ridicule her.

Eventually, before they could calm down, Latiya and her party were expelled by the angry crowd and had to leave the capital early.

None of them spoke, and decided to go to the kingdom of Kalren, where the next tournament was held.

If it were a normal day, Mary would have perked up a long time ago, but at this moment, even she couldn't get out of the depression, and Latia seemed to be in deep distress.

Although Latiya had reached the level that all the warriors in her clan wanted to practice, she complained that she had triggered this skill at such an important moment.

In order not to repeat the mistakes of the past, she carefully reflected on how she had done it.

Latia struggled to think about why she, who had been so peaceful, had suddenly completed her magical armament, and finally she came to a conclusion.

That is, she maintained the breath of hunting, and completed countless decisive battles without using the spirit hook.

Ratiya has been participating in martial arts competitions, and has been sealing the spirit hook for a long time in a state of hunting breath, and the magic power in her body has been continuously activated but has not been released.

Eventually, the magic that was constantly circulating in his body was stimulated by the continuous duel, and he released the magic with a pair of hands and infused it into the spear.

On this journey, Latiya wanted to become a knight, but coincidentally trained the realm of the legendary warrior Shuja, and Latia remembered Lu Ya, who had told the story of the legendary warrior for herself, and couldn't help laughing.

"Uh, Latia! You're still laughing! Seriously! You're just one foot away. "

"I'm sorry, Mary, but it won't happen again next time."

"Got it, why did you give up halfway?"

"That's because ......"

After listening to Latia's explanation, Mary seemed to understand, and only then did the gloom dissipate and she was refreshed again.

However, the two chatted as usual, as if they had long forgotten the previous contest and continued to move forward.

The wandering knight seemed to be quite worried before, and when he saw this scene, he showed a relieved expression and chased after him.

The group headed towards the city where the next tournament was held, and finally reached the vicinity of the borders of the kingdoms of Dexio and Karllen.

As usual, the wandering knights became more sensitive as they got closer to the border, urging everyone to hurry up.

"Don't bother, keep up."

But the two girls only looked around happily, wandering leisurely all the way, and did not take his words to heart at all.

"If you want me to say it a few times, the security near the border is not good, it is very dangerous, you should follow quickly."

The Wandering Knight is right, no matter what country you are in, there are some places near the border that are not subject to the control of the state.

In the past, Mary's village was also located near the border, so the Knights did not arrive in time, and it was only then that the tragic consequences were finally caused.

"Who would attack us in such a vast wilderness, what about you?"

"Mary."

"Got it, uncle."

Hearing Mary's ignorant words, the wandering knight called her name with a straight face, and she wilted and followed.

Just when the group arrived safely at the border under the leadership of the wandering knights, they found that the border village they intended to pass through was being attacked by the demon army.

"Cut ......"

Seeing this scene, the wandering knight was furious, he clenched his fists, but did not make a move, but calmly checked the way back.

When Kolatia saw this, she couldn't hide her anger, and the anxiety of not becoming a knight made her can't help but speak.

"We should help them."

"Latia, as long as the Knights don't come, there's nothing we can do to meddle."

"But ......"

"Latia, calm down, we still have Mary here who is not familiar with combat."

"yes, Latia, it's better to avoid it this time."

Mary, who had been traumatized by the attack on her village, also tried to persuade Latiya, but to no avail.

Latia was bent on saving the village, and she had a desire to prove herself because she had not become a knight, and for a moment she rode forward as if she had fallen into an evil spirit.

"I have to go."

"Latia!"

Mary and the wandering knight called out to Latia, who was riding towards the village, but she rode straight towards the village without looking back.

Moments later, Latia arrived at the village, which was ravaged by demons just as Mary's village had been.

In order to escape the attack of the demons, the villagers screamed and wanted to escape, but they were surrounded by countless demons, and there was no way to avoid it, and in the end they could only die tragically.

Seeing this scene, Latia did not dare to delay any longer, and rushed towards the demons to buy time for the villagers to escape.

Latiya unleashed a devastating blow and knocked down the demons, but in order to buy time to break into the enemy camp alone, she was surrounded by the demons and isolated.

In order to break free from the smaller and smaller encirclement, Latia turned the direction of the horse's head, but she was not able to escape because of her poor riding skills.

The demons blew their horns and summoned reinforcements, always staring at her to attack, and finally the demons' spears tripped over the horse, causing her to fall directly off the horse.

Latiyashang did not recover from the impact of the falling horse, and looked at the demons who surrounded him, and remembered his previous fear for a while, and he couldn't move.

At this moment, Latia was like tripped and fell to the ground after being chased by demons as a child, and just when she was desperate that she was still so fragile and powerless, and her knees were about to kneel, a familiar voice sounded in her ears.

The familiar voice made Latia look up, and as she looked in the direction of the sound, she saw a wandering knight in shabby armor and riding an old horse charging all the way.

Everyone said that the wandering knight was a loser who was hungry for money, but at this moment he was not at all as rumored to say, in the face of the murderous spirit of the demons, he was unwavering and resolutely rushed towards the demons.

Although the strength of the wandering knight is not yet devastating, each blow is fast and accurate, hitting the vital point of the demon race.

The demon clan intended to deal with Latia in the same way, and set up a formation to surround the wandering knight, but he was superb in riding, and he broke through the encirclement in minutes and subdued the demon race.

I thought that the wandering knight would solve all the demons in one go, but he gradually showed fatigue.

Maybe it was because the wandering knight's injured leg had lost its strength and seemed to be unable to support his body anymore.

His attacks were losing their sharpness and he could no longer nimble enough to dodge enemy attacks, but he remained undefeated and continued to fight to save Lathia.

It was only then that Latia came to her senses and saw the situation in front of her, and she was more surprised by the movement of the person in front of her than the appearance of the wandering knight.

Restrained by the injured leg, his movements looked somewhat awkward, but they were exactly the same as the Roland knight who had saved him as a child.

But at this time, the wandering knight was no longer able to dodge the attack as he was back then, but completely relied on his body to carry it, and his armor had long been worn out and lost its light.

Looking at the wandering knight who did not hesitate to fight for his life in order to save himself from danger, Latia burst into tears and shouted.

"Uncle! I'm fine! Run away! "

But no matter how much Latia begged him to flee, he did not stop this charge that was tantamount to death, and it was not until he almost completely lost his light that he came to Latia's side.

The wandering knight could no longer hold his wounded body, dismounted from his horse, struggled to hold on to his sword, and looked at Latia.

His body was covered in scars from the reckless charge, and Latiya looked at him with tears streaming down her face.

Looking at Latia, who was at a loss and crying, the wandering knight smiled lightly and said.

"You don't listen to me, then or now, Latia."

"Uncle, don't speak, I'll help you heal."

"I'm fine, so you have to listen to me now."

The wandering knight stopped Latia's outstretched hand and continued.

"Latia, do you still want to be a knight?"

"Yes, I want to be like you...... Become a handsome knight. ”

Seeing that Latiya answered so sincerely, the wandering knight's eyes were full of worry and distress.

"You don't have to be a knight, you don't have to stick to the form of a knight, you're already a good person who is handsome enough."

As soon as the voice fell, Mary, who was running far away at the entrance of the village, saw her injured uncle and screamed in shock.

"Uncle!!"

The wandering knight seemed to hear Mary's cry as well, and his breath was faint enough to leave one last word.

"It's time for you to keep your head up, Latia, and protect Mary. This...... That's my answer. ”

After saying this, the wandering knight handed his knightly token to Latiya and swallowed his last breath.

On his tattered armor, the leopard-print pendant that had been given to him by Latiya could be seen hanging around his neck.

The pendant seems to have been cherished by him, and even after many years, it still looks intact.

Seeing this scene, Latia realized what a precious person she had lost due to her actions, and hugged her uncle and began to cry.

Caught off guard by the Wandering Knight's sudden attack, the Demon Clan also regained their morale after seeing the Wandering Knight's death and began to attack Lathia and Mary.

But Latia, who came to her senses, used the spirit hook that had been sealed in her body to start hunting demons.

The spear blessed by the magic weapon was like an arrow from the string, and with one blow, it pierced the bodies of an entire row of demons, directly killing these demons on the spot.

Even if the demons launch a powerful attack, Latya, who has already practiced the stage of magical arming, can easily use the spirit hook to form a magic circle in the air and dodge the attack.

In the face of overwhelming attacks, Latiya can also take a slight breath and continue to attack on the premise of ensuring that the hunt's breath is not interrupted, like a fierce beast that goes all out in the face of tiny prey.

After attacking with the Spirit Hook, her movement pattern is no longer the straight line she has always had, but as varied and swift as a panther.

The demons were helpless in the face of this trick they had never seen before, and their morale was greatly frustrated, and they could only flee in the end.

But Kelatia didn't intend to let any of the demons flee, and she continued to chase after them until the last demon was taken down by herself.

Soon, all the demons fell, and Latiya walked over to the wandering knight who had died for her.

The wandering knight straightened up. Leaned on the sword to meet death, and did not fall until the last moment.

And beside him stood Mary, who was holding back tears and talking to him.

"Uncle...... Hurry up, you're kidding me, aren't you? "

Mary seemed to have a hard time accepting the death of the wandering knight, and she took the knight's cold hands and continued.

"Uncle, you're lying to me, aren't you? You're kidding me right now, aren't you? ”

But the wandering knight would not give any more answer, and Mary's tears finally broke the embankment, and she kept calling for the wandering knight.

Latya, who returned after dealing with those demons, also stood behind Mary with a sad face, never looking up.

It was her own recklessness that caused this bitter fruit, and she was more painful than ever at this moment.

Mary whimpered and looked at the wandering knight, no matter how much she shouted, no one answered, and when she saw Latia standing behind her without saying a word, Mary could no longer hold back her anger, and said while slapping Latia.

"It's all your fault! Latia! Uncle will die to blame you! There you go! I don't want to see you! "

Mary blames the death of the wandering knight on Latia's head.

In the face of Mary's accusations, Latia could not say anything, and she could only regret her choice again and again.

She began to think that if she had just listened to her uncle and bypassed the village, if she hadn't rashly imitated the knight, but calmly used the spirit hook from the beginning, no, if she hadn't wanted to be a knight, then her uncle would still be alive.

Seeing that Mary, who was slamming her chest, was gradually losing strength in her hands, and only cared about crying, Latia hugged her and said.

"I'm sorry, Mary, it's all my fault."

When Lathia sincerely apologized to Mary and mourned the death of the wandering knight, the Knights of the Frontier came to the village and learned about the village. The Knights protected the people who had escaped after being rescued by Latia, and cleared the village.

One of the knights walked towards Latia and Mary in the middle of the battlefield, as if he understood the situation, and spoke out in a reassuring voice.

"I'm sorry, we came too late, we'll collect the body for this one."

The knight, who had spoken of comfort, came forward to collect the corpse, and was shocked to see the wandering knight.

"Oh my God! Who is this person? ”

Seeing that the knight reacted so much, Mary, who was guarding Roland's side, asked the knight who collected the body.

"Do you know your uncle?"

"What? Recognize, he is...... Roland, who used to play for our Knights. ”

The knight seemed to recognize the wandering knight and explained Roland's identity.

"When I first joined the Knights of the Sun, Roland already had the title of Knight of the Shining Lights in the Knights, and he performed quite well. Every time he goes to the battlefield, he takes the lead, charging quickly and accurately, killing the enemy without leaving a piece of armor, it is really like a flash. ”

"Roland will never ignore those who are in deep danger, no matter what the situation encounters, he will practice the spirit of chivalry, and he was once the idol of the Knights; But he has always been a dangerous person, in order to save people, he can completely ignore the system of the Knights, charge into battle alone, and always rush to the most dangerous places on the battlefield. ”

"Then one day, that happened. That day, in order to eradicate the demons who attacked the villages near the border, the knights set off to the village, and Roland found that a child was being chased and killed by the demons, so he left the formation of the knights without permission and went alone to save the child. Roland's rash move caught the entire Order by surprise, and although Roland later seemed to succeed in saving the child, he fell into a trap on the way back. ”

The angry demon clan never let Roland go, and in the end, he finally dragged his seriously injured leg back alive. It's just that the injured leg was completely scrapped later. Roland lost his lustre. ”

"After that, Roland spent his days drinking to kill his sorrows, and he could be angry at the slightest triviality, and became a defeatist who only knew how to complain and hold grudges, and it was not long before he left the Knights."

"Roland was silent for a long time, and just when everyone was worried that he would die on the streets of another country, news came that someone had seen Roland in a horseback spear contest, saying that he had returned from the battlefield and had become a crow knight who was bent on prize money, but it was ......"

"Roland died here to protect everyone...... It seems that we misunderstood him. ”

After the knight finished telling Roland's story, he sincerely collected Roland's body.

As soon as Roland died, Mary and Lathia could no longer continue their journey, so they returned to Mary's village and dug a grave at the entrance to the village where Roland often sits.

The two stood quietly at Roland's grave for a long time, and in silence, Mary, who was silent, suddenly began to tell Roland's story.

"I met my uncle for the first time long after you saved me, and he sat here all day long when everyone was trying to rebuild the village, drinking and watching us."

I hate my uncle who knows all day long that I sit here drinking and watching the excitement, so I come to him every day to nag.

I said that since you have the strength to drink, you might as well come and help us, and he replied to me that he had already helped us, and now we should help him.

At that time, I didn't know what my uncle meant, and I knew every day that I was coming to bully him.

It wasn't long before my uncle began to take care of a fatherless child like me, and he sat and guarded the village ever since. One day he left suddenly, and when he returned, it was like a feast.

Uncle has always been Mune, and that day he didn't know where to earn silver taels, bought expensive meat, and a lot of gifts.

But now I realized that my uncle was dragging that inconvenient lame leg to participate in a spear contest on horseback to earn us silver taels, just for those of us who had no relatives with him.

Latia, if I hadn't nagged my uncle in the first place, would he still be comfortable sitting here drinking? ”

"……"

"Let's go, Latia, when I see you, I think of my uncle that day."

"Got it, Mary."

Mary's words deprived Latia of her only place in the outside world, and she let everything go to the jungle in a state of disappointment.

Latia walked towards the jungle and stood in the same meadow where she had met Roland when she first came to the outside world.

The meadow was dyed golden in the setting sun, and Latia stopped, as if hoping that this last warm ray of sunlight would melt her heart.

Latia stood quietly on the prairie, her eyes closed, and she thought back to how she had felt here so far, looking back on her past.

When she first came to the outside world, she felt free, and she was swept away by the fear of death, she met Roland, began to have expectations, excitedly wanted to be a knight, and now she stood at the beginning of all emotions again, and now she was only guilty and frustrated.

Latia even began to wonder why she wanted to be a knight, and she breathed in the cooler air and opened her eyes.

The steppe where the sun had completely set was so cold and dark that nothing could be seen, and Latia naturally looked up at the sky in order to discern her direction.

The night sky was filled with dazzling starlight, and when she saw it, Latia remembered a conversation she had with Roland, the knight who had saved her, and she couldn't help but shed tears.

"Knights? What is a knight? "

"Hmm...... A knight is a man who saves those who are in danger. "

"Ah, it's like Starlight that helps point you in the direction when you're lost?"

"Starlight?"

"Yes, Starlight will help people who are in danger because they get lost."

"Hmm...... It's a little similar......"

Latia always felt that Roland was using starlight to show her lost self the way.

If someone is in danger, help them, and if they get lost, be by their side.

Looking at Starlight, Latia finally understood why she longed for Roland, and she muttered as she looked at Starlight with tears in her eyes.

"I don't need to be a handsome knight at all, I just need to rescue those who are in danger, as long as I can be a starlight who shows the way for those who are lost."

Then she looked at the jungle in the distance and made up her mind again.

"Sister, I don't think I can go back to the jungle yet. When I can become everyone's starlight, I will definitely come back. "

Latia made up her mind again, her face firmly back to the jungle, and once again set out on her journey to the world.

A few months later.

A city in the north of the southern continent on a hot summer day.

In the square in the center of the city, a splendid fountain spews around a beautiful statue.

Passers-by were enjoying the shade of trees along the way, and they sighed and screamed in horror when they should have been looking at the beautiful fountains.

"Oh my God, what should I do?"

"I said, stop the robber."

"Oh, where do I have what I can do?"

The surrounding people looked at the robbers who were holding children hostage in the middle of the square, and they were anxious, after all, the children's lives were at stake, and no one dared to approach them easily.

The robbers were stealing from a crowded square, but when they were discovered by the soldiers, they immediately grabbed children and threatened the soldiers.

"Don't come here, if you dare to take a step forward, this kid will die!"

Faced with the intimidation of the robbers and the frightened expressions of the children, several soldiers did not dare to move.

At this time, a female warrior in a robe gradually approached the scene of this hostage farce, took off her robe and threw it out.

The female warrior carried a huge spear behind her back, wore armor engraved with leopard prints, and had exotic bronzed skin.

The sudden appearance of this exotic female warrior caused everyone gathered in the square to turn their attention from the hostage farce to her.

The female warrior seemed to think that she had attracted enough attention, and that if she got any closer, she would be afraid that the child would be in danger, so she stopped and looked around cautiously.

The female warrior stood about ten paces away from the child, as if waiting for something, and did not make any special move, just stared at the robber who had taken the child away.

Just as everyone looked at the female warrior, a middle-aged man seemed to recognize her identity and shouted loudly.

"Isn't this—this person should be...... Spear warrior Latiya, right? ”

Hearing the man's shout, everyone whispered as if they had heard the name.

"I mean, Latia is the mercenary who will help those in danger, right?"

"Ouch, if only she helped, she would have helped, but everything around her was ...... Ouch, it's scary just to talk about it. ”

While everyone was talking, a sharp horn sounded behind the robbers.

Beep babble!

The robber was startled by the sound of the horn, and looked in the direction where the sound came from, and saw that the female warrior quickly drew a magic circle with her left hand, triggering the magic hook to shoot towards the bandit.

Bang Bang!

The robber looked behind him in distraction, and when he looked straight ahead again, the weapon in his hand had been hit on the ground by the spear of the female warrior, and the female warrior snatched the child from the robber's hand, shot the spirit hook at the huge statue, and rescued the child.

As everyone watched as the female warrior who rescued the child shouted Latia's name, applause and cheers resounded in the square, the statue, one of the city's most famous monuments, cracked and collapsed.

Seeing the statue falling, the cheers of the people gradually became quieter, and everyone in the square was stunned, and the screams of shock were endless.

But even in such a situation, the female warrior still only cares about checking the condition of the child.

"Kid, are you alright?"

"It's fine."

The child was a little taken aback by the sudden change, but he quickly smiled and said to the female warrior.

"Sister, who are you?"

"Me? My name is Latia. "

"Latia, thank you for helping me, it's to thank you."

"Thank you for the little snack."

The child thanked Lathia for the candy, but the big guy was so confused that he didn't know whether to be angry or cheering.

"Ouch, what's going on?"

"Ouch, didn't I just say it, she'll help, but everything around her will be smashed."

The people who saw this scene lamented the shattering of the statue and whispered.

Latia seemed to realize the situation, and looked around to find the soldiers who were on duty nearby.

She strode towards the soldier and said as she handed her money bag in apology.

"I'm sorry about the statue, it's all my property, so I'll take my leave."

"Ah, okay."

The soldier took the money bag, and as if he could not accept the situation in front of him, he replied with a bewildered expression.

Hearing the other party's answer, Latiya showed a relieved expression and quickly used the spirit hook to leave the square.

The big guy couldn't cry or laugh for a moment when he looked at the big hero who saved the child and the culprit who destroyed the city statue, and could only look at her back in a daze.

After leaving the square, Latiya came to an inaccessible alley, and muttered to herself after covering her warrior uniform with her robes.

"The statue...... Isn't it expensive? But I finally gave them all the money in my hand, so I shouldn't be too angry. ”

As if chagrined by the misfortune she had once again, Latia felt guilty, and she looked at the candy in her hand and remembered the smiling child just now.

"But luckily the child is safe."

Blaming herself, Latia remembered the child's smile and regained her spirits as she walked towards the city gate in order to go to the next village.

Latia walked through the gates, staring at the signs on the side of the road, wondering where to go next.

Not knowing where she would need her help, she looked up at the sky.

There was no starlight in the sky that she had been looking for, but there was a fiery sun that scorched the earth.

Latia held out her hand to block the sun, looked at the sky, and then walked with her back to the sun.

As she walked, Latia hesitated to eat the candy the child had given her, and finally put it in her mouth and muttered.

"It's so sweet......"

"Rochester, the front line of the battle against the demons, there will be more people in need there!"