Chapter 153
Rather than the Kang family’s Bloodline Skill, Jae-Hyeok had chosen to awaken with Noble Chivalry as his Initial Skill. The reason was simple: he prioritized power over pride in his family’s lineage. Ironically, it was a necessary choice if he hoped to one day revive his family.
Noble Chivalry was a Skill more advanced, more powerful than even the Bloodline Skill of the Kang family, which supported South Korea for hundreds of years.
[A fifth Code of Chivalry has been established.]
Oddly, the System’s voice was gentle in Jae-Hyeok’s mind, different from the usual robotic tone. It sounded familiar, too.
This voice...
Jae-Hyeok remembered this gentle and ethereal voice.
Iris.
It was the voice of the woman who claimed to be the princess of Reinhardt, whatever that meant. Jae-Hyeok had heard her voice when first awakening his Initial Skill.
-‘Noble one,I look forward to your chivalry.’
Jae-Hyeok wondered, Is she perhaps a goddess?... No, maybe she is a demon, not a goddess.
Just thinking about her made his heart flutter like he was falling in love for the first time... Jae-Hyeok suddenly thought of his mother and father, and his drooping eyes snapped open, alarmed. For a moment, he’d lost himself in Iris’s voice.
His fading consciousness had sharpened, but from beginning to end, Jae-Hyeok revealed no sign of his inner turmoil on the surface. He stared plainly at the white tiger beastman, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. But just then, his legs trembled, and he fell to the ground, coughing up red spit.
“Hey, don’t die on me,” the white tiger muttered.
Jae-Hyeok had pushed his broken body beyond its limits in a desperate bid to protect Do-Jin, and now he was paying the price. The last exchange had left him with serious internal injuries.
In fact, Krellon was impressed. It hadn’t expected Jae-Hyeok to still be breathing.
“You are truly a genius.”
Krellon took out a potion and poured it over Jae-Hyeok. It needed Jae-Hyeok in order to uncover the whereabouts of Elder Song and restore Iyarugt, which had suddenly turned back into an ordinary weapon.
However, Krellon’s potion only bubbled and slowly evaporated, doing nothing to heal Jae-Hyeok’s wounds.
Potion poisoning?
Krellon realized that the young human in front of him must have been fighting for longer than it had thought before its arrival. Interest lit in its eyes. He is tougher than he looks.Even his personality is just like the Yaksha’s.
Kang Jae-Hyeok is clearly a variable. Trying to subdue someone like that with force is useless.Krellon reached out to the unconscious Do-Jin. The relationship between the two boys seemed special, so it planned to persuade Jae-Hyeok and temper his ferocity by healing Do-Jin.
“Stop,” Jae-Hyeok said, his voice raw.
Were his vocal cords damaged, or was it his lungs? Krellon didn’t know.
“Don’t... touch... him... ”
Jae-Hyeok’s final words ended sounding more like a gurgle. So, lung damage it is. Krellon eyed Jae-Hyeok’s bloodied form, lying face down in a pool of his own blood. He looked like a wine barrel poked full of holes. Krellon chuckled. “I can’t believe you can talk in that condition. You’re really quite tough. You seem to have the heart of a tiger, no less than my tribesmen, so I am starting to like you. However...” Krellon fell silent. Its blue eyes glowed brighter, and an overwhelming aura shook the tunnel. “I have already revealed who I am. Yet you dare tell this king what he can and can’t do? Impertinent!” The black ‘King’ character on Krellon’s forehead became more vivid as its expression twisted. When exerting dominance over the weak, Krellon’s bestial instincts were revealed in full.
A terrible killing intent swept out from Krellon, and Jae-Hyeok saw flashes of his life as though through a kaleidoscope. His previous battles came to mind as he fell through time.
The sword demon who’d attacked the mansion, the assassins lurking within Lion’s Castle, the Troll Lord, and Death Knight Theodore—Jae-Hyeok thought of everyone who’d once tried to cut short his revenge and hope of rebuilding his family.
Every time, he fought against enemies stronger than himself. It was proof of his bravery; it was also proof of his efforts and great lineage... Indeed, he was powerful in his own right, and he believed in his future, but above all... Jae-Hyeok knew honor and justice from his father; when it came to these principles, he could die, but he must never fall, because unwavering sacrifice and service were aristocrats’ highest purpose—they were the pillars of righteousness, the guiding light for all.
This was how Jae-Hyeok had always lived his life.
And as the saying went, happiness follows hardship. After eight long years of training, Jae-Hyeok had awakened an Initial Skill that matched his principles perfectly.
[Noble Chivalry Level 1]
[Type: Passive
* Knights excel in all martial arts. The All Mastery passive is unlocked.
* A knight’s mind is as firm as iron. Resist most status conditions and heightened pain resistance.
* For every achievement that aligns with the virtues of bravery, devoutness, courtesy, honor, righteousness, and loyalty, you will unlock and develop a new Code of Chivalry.
* For every fifth Code of Chivalry, a beneficial event will occur.]
Thinking of the day of his awakening, Jae-Hyeok recalled the System’s words:
[One who fights to uphold benevolence and righteousness.]
[One who doesn’t break in order to defend your honor.]
[You are a knight.]
I am... a knight.
Jae-Hyeok opened his eyes to the sound of new notifications:
[The Fifth Code of Chivalry; Oneself, has been established.]
[Your compatibility with Noble Chivalry has increased even further.]
[All Skills obtained through the Code of Chivalry will have their level increased by 1.]
[The level of your Initial Skill, Noble Chivalry, has increased, raising the level of All Mastery and increasing the power of your Skills.]
[Two Scythes Block a Cart Level 2]
[Type: Active
Deal a powerful attack. The higher the target’s level, the more powerful it is.
Mana Consumption: 90
Cooldown Time: 2 minutes.]
[All Mastery Level 2]
[Type: Passive
Attack power, accuracy, defense, and evasion are permanently increased by 12% for all weapon types.]
All Mastery’s greatest advantage was that the effects were a permanent boon: Jae-Hyeok immediately felt a refreshing wave of strength fill his every muscle.
There was more. The description of Noble Chivalry included the line: For every fifth Code of Chivalry, a beneficial event will occur.
-You have truly become a knight now.Well done.
-Perhaps it is time for you to broaden your horizons?I believe this letter of recommendation will be helpful to you.
[Iris, the third princess of Reinhardt, has handed you a Reinhardt Ticket.]
A letter sealed with wax appeared in Jae-Hyeok’s inventory.
A Reinhardt Ticket?
Just then, Krellon grabbed Jae-Hyeok’s throat.
“Impertinent kid. Don’t push your luck. Remember that your insolent attitude might provoke me and hurt your friend.”
“Listening you growl... it really suits a beast like you.” Focus finally returned to Jae-Hyeok’s eyes, and he smiled.
Reinhardt—Jae-Hyeok hadn’t been able to gain information about this place even on the player Community. He’d found only one chat room discussing how to avoid becoming a farmer in Reinhardt, and just the entry fee alone had cost a huge 500,000 points. Entry fees were meant to filter out those unqualified to participate in various chat rooms, but a price of 500,000 points would be burdensome even for a National Treasure. Clearly, most ordinary players wouldn’t learn about Reinhardt in their lifetime. Yet now, Jae-Hyeok had just gotten a ticket to enter it. He couldn’t help feeling excited. Even the pain of his broken body couldn’t dampen his soaring mood.
“What a shame,” Krellon said as it released Jae-Hyeok’s collar, turned back, and approached Do-Jin. “I won’t kill you. I will even treat your wounds. However, I will make you suffer severe pain.” Krellon dug its broken claws into Do-Jin’s collarbone.
“Ugh... groan...”
Do-Jin moaned even while unconscious.
Krellon said to Jae-Hyeok, “This is the price for your attitude. And, before you blame me, reflect on your own actions. Had you been good, your friend would have suffered less... hm?”
Krellon suddenly stopped talking and looked up.
“A stray dog dares to bite?” Lee So-Yeong questioned. Her tone and expression were equally furious. Dozens of magical hands condensed in the air and reached toward Krellon.
“Bah!”
Krellon snorted and swiped out, releasing a claw-like aura that rapidly expanded and collided with the hands.
The clashing forces caused everything to shake, and chunks of the tunnel began to fall.
Lee So-Yeong who was hovering close to the ceiling, cast a shield as she quickly descended to the ground.
Krellon took the chance to lunge at Jae-Hyeok. She was only an A-class player. He could easily beat Lee So-Yeong, but it didn’t want to waste more time. The armed forces couldn’t be far behind her.
“Come with me... What?”
Krellon was about to grab Jae-Hyeok’s wrist, only to move back.
Slash!
Alus’ dagger slammed into its chest.
“Just like a beast, you have quick reactions.”
Jae-Hyeok slowly rose to his full height and stepped forward. His previous posture, which had been hunched from the pain, was nowhere to be seen.
He’d secretly healed himself as soon as his symptoms of potion poisoning were over.
Krellon frowned at the sight of Jae-Hyeok and raised its claws. “Well, I can afford to waste around thirty more seconds.” Despite being the Yaksha’s offspring, a young kid was still just a young kid. Even if Lee So-Yeong interfered, Krellon was confident it could overpower Jae-Hyeok in no time.
Krellon launched forward like a cannonball and swung its paws in a double cross-slash. It didn’t hold back, having used enough power to seriously injure Jae-Hyeok even if he blocked it.
Jae-Hyeok blocked Krellon’s claws with his dagger.
Huh? To Krellon’s confusion, Jae-Hyeok’s arm bore the force. There was no sound of broken bones, and Jae-Hyeok didn’t step back.
Thanks to the increase in All Mastery’s level, Jae-Hyeok’s abnormally high stats were shining.
Krellon noticed things were going wrong. It let out King’s Roar to block Lee So-Yeong’s approach. Then the muscles of its arm swelled as it reared back for another swing, intending to shatter the little dagger that dared to compete with its claws.
“Are you really as dumb as a beast, too?” Jae-Hyeok sneered.
“Bloom.”
Jae-Hyeok had realized something after seeing Iyarugt get stolen by Krellon, revert to an ordinary hwando, and shatter.
Iyarugt wasn’t sealed in the hwando.
It dwelled in his mind or soul.
Alus’ Dagger grew long and smashed Krellon’s few remaining claws to pieces.
“What?”
How could a kid who had only lived for less than twenty years be so hard to handle? Krellon felt like it had been scammed.
This guy... Suddenly, it noticed the strength in Jae-Hyeok’s stance and the calluses on his hands.
Did he not waste a single day?
Krellon also had a time when it lived like that, but after its hometown had been engulfed in dragon flames, it had changed little by little.
Instead of training, Krellon preferred drinking. Only that way would its sense of loss lessen for a time.
Didn’t this kid also lose his family? Did it not affect his temperament?
“You... ”
Krellon became somewhat dazed. Just then, a red sword appeared and pierced its chest.