The two had already arrived at the eastern coast of the Southern Continent. They were just about to enter the Kingdom of Knights when Lu Qiuchen gave Phia a final reminder.
“When we get to the human world, you have to call me ‘Big Sister.’ Got it?”
“Mhm, mhm!”
“My new name is Alice, so don’t get it wrong.”
“You’ve said it so many times already! I’ve memorized it!”
Lu Qiuchen gave a helpless sigh and said one last thing, “As long as you remember, Phia. We’ve arrived.”
The black dragon landed on a deserted beach and disappeared. In its place, two girls of non-human origin stood on the sand.
One of them, tall and slender, had long silver hair tied high with a golden ribbon. The crown of her head was slightly fluffy, while the ends of her hair cascaded behind her in soft waves. Her crimson eyes, paired with her soft, fair skin, gave her an allure utterly distinct from that of ordinary human women.
She wore a belted long dress made of fine linen. Bathed in the warm light of early morning, her graceful figure took on a hazy beauty.
The other girl, slightly shorter, still had a hint of youthfulness on her face, though her figure was no less developed than the taller one beside her.
Her pale blue hair was parted in the middle and pulled back into two curly twin-tails that bounced with each step she took. She wore a linen-colored blouse on top and a short skirt on the bottom. Her cute, translucent toes peeked freely out from her sandals, making her outfit lively and adorable.
In other countries of the Southern Continent, it was still uncommon for women to wear short skirts, but the Kingdom of Knights lay in the continent’s southeast, where the climate was hot. Even though it was only March, the temperature was already approaching 30 degrees Celsius. Here, all kinds of short skirts could be seen and bought. As a result, the people here tended to have slightly darker skin than those from other nations.
The two walked toward a distant coastal town they had seen from the sky earlier.
When they entered the town, they found it surprisingly bustling. Most of the stalls lining the streets sold seafood, though there were a few selling other agricultural products as well.
Following alongside Lu Qiuchen, the ever-curious Phia gazed around in wonder. All along the way, she chattered nonstop, tugging on Lu Qiuchen’s arm, asking questions left and right.
Their outfits weren’t especially eye-catching in this place, but their outstanding looks still attracted plenty of attention from passersby.
Before leaving, both Lu Qiuchen and Phia had learned a special trick from the elder dragon: disguise magic.
Disguise magic—it sounded like a rather plain spell, and its effect truly wasn’t all that powerful. It could only alter a small portion of the caster’s appearance, and even then, the extent of the changes was limited. While it was easy enough to hide parts of the body, transforming a flat steel plate into majestic peaks was far beyond what the spell could do.
It was a pioneering magic, and also a spell invented solely by the elder dragon. Since the greatest challenge dragons faced when assuming human form was hiding their horns and tails, this spell was designed specifically to deal with that.
Lu Qiuchen had never heard of such a spell while in the Southern Continent. If she had known about it earlier, she wouldn’t have needed to disguise her identity back in the Kingdom of Tara.
Now, after applying this magic, the two dragon girls no longer looked quite as dazzling as before, but their elegance and charm remained.
It wasn’t so much that they were vain and couldn’t bear to make themselves ugly… Well, maybe a little. But the real reason was that after using most of the spell’s capacity to hide their horns and tails, the remaining room for modification could only allow for subtle tweaks to their facial features.
The two dragons ordered some local specialties at a tavern in town. Naturally, alcoholic drinks weren’t left out. The locally brewed coconut wine carried a light fragrance and a unique tropical sweetness, which quickly won Phia’s favor. But due to limitations in ingredients and brewing technique, it left a slightly bitter aftertaste. Lu Qiuchen still preferred the white wheat beer from the Kingdom of Tara.
After letting Fiya enjoy some local delicacies and satisfying her curiosity, the two dragons set off toward the outskirts of the town.
The Kingdom of Knights was originally named Putovich. It had once been a colony of the Letachino Empire in the southern continent and declared its independence two thousand years ago. During the war of resistance against the empire, the knights displayed extraordinary bravery in battle, and since they had long protected the common people from the empire’s oppression, they earned immense respect among the populace.
After the kingdom was liberated, the knightly orders effectively overthrew the monarchy. The king’s title remained in name only, while actual control of the kingdom fell into the hands of the newly formed Knight Council. To honor the knights who had fallen in the war—and in line with public sentiment—the council officially renamed the country The Kingdom of Knights.
As for the name Putovich, its origins go back 2,200 years.
The royal family of the Letachino Empire was the Faputovich family. After a successful conquest, the emperor at the time, for various reasons, slightly altered his family name and “granted” it to the new colony as its name.
This act has always been considered a humiliation by the Kingdom of Knights. Even after two thousand years, the hatred between them and the Letachino Empire still runs deep. Frequent clashes continue along the border, particularly between the empire’s Fortress of the Blazing Sun and the frontier cities of the Kingdom of Knights.
Anyone who dares to mention Putovich within the Kingdom of Knights is seen as insulting the local people—it’s considered a provocation. At the very least, such a person could expect to be “invited” by the knights to stay for a few days.
The two dragons had already been warned about this by the old gentleman, so naturally, they avoided provoking the locals—especially after they witnessed a sailor get tossed into the sea by angry fishermen for making a taunting remark while docked at the port for supplies.
After asking an elderly lady with a kindly face for directions to the capital, they prepared to head to the local carriage station to hire transport to the capital city, Violet.
Violet is the capital of the Kingdom of Knights and is also known as the Star of the Continent and City of Knights. Because the Royal Knight profession is directly managed by the Knight Council—and publicly promoted as the hallmark of the nation—advancing into this high-tier class is relatively easier compared to others. This has made it extremely popular among knights from across the continent.
As more and more foreign knights flocked to Violet, the Knight Council seized the opportunity to introduce the concept of the Knight’s Code, establishing stricter standards for both martial skills and moral conduct. Any knight who met these standards could apply to join the Royal Knights and receive generous rewards.
Nearly every knight on the continent now dreams of becoming a Royal Knight, accelerating the rise of the Kingdom of Knights. Over the span of two millennia, Violet earned its reputation as the City of Knights, and the kingdom grew into a continental power, rivaling even the Letachino Empire.
In this country, knights are a common sight. Knightly orders of all sizes are as numerous as the stars. Any officially recognized knight who has not made a pilgrimage to Violet is clearly considered lacking.
Lu Qiuchen and Fiya hired a carriage and slowly made their way to Violet. The rural scenery and farmers laboring diligently in the fields fascinated Fiya. Every time she saw something new, she couldn’t help but pepper Lu Qiuchen and the coachman with questions.
Along the way, they encountered several knights traveling as well—some fully armed on horseback, others sparsely equipped and clearly tight on funds. Fiya noticed that most knights moved at a slow pace, either resting by the roadside or walking their horses. Only a few, usually accompanied by attendants, galloped down the road at speed. Curious, she raised the question to the coachman.
The coachman, driving the carriage up ahead, chuckled and replied:
“Esteemed young lady, it’s because these knights can’t bear to wear out their beloved warhorses!
“To become an official knight costs a lot of money. A proper knight needs a proper warhorse. Even an ordinary horse costs two gold coins, and a knight’s steed is far more expensive—at least twenty gold coins.
“Most of the knights you see walking by the roadside are of common birth. Just gathering enough money for armor and a single warhorse is already a big deal. But horses have limited stamina and require huge amounts of feed and care. Many poor knights simply can’t afford the upkeep.
“And besides that, the Knight Council has a rule: to be recognized as an official knight, one must own two qualified warhorses. Most of the knights walking the roads only lack that second horse to earn their title—so naturally, they’ll do anything to avoid tiring out the one they have.”
Lu Qiuchen stood quietly to the side, listening, and felt both understanding and supportive of the Knight Council’s regulations. Although horses were fast, they lacked endurance. A knight, combined with their armor and weaponry, was heavy. If a knight had only one warhorse, there was no way to maintain constant combat readiness—let alone endure the long marches required on expeditions.
With a leisurely mindset, stopping frequently to enjoy the scenery, the two dragons arrived at the royal capital ten days later, just before sunset. After parting ways with the carriage driver, they stepped forward toward this shining jewel of the continent—the capital of knights.
Unlike the luxurious opulence of Druid in the Kingdom of Tara, Violet was grand and solemn. The city gates were tall and solid, and vibrant ribbons were strung across the towering, sturdy walls. Above the city gate hung the emblem of the Royal Knights. The emblem featured four triangles arranged in a cross pattern, evenly dividing the crest’s four corners—striking a perfect balance between aesthetics and grandeur.
The architectural style here was vastly different from the southern regions of the continent. Due to the warmer and more humid climate, most buildings had large and numerous windows, and it was common to see rooftops built from intertwined plants.
Lu Qiuchen noticed that most of the residents here wore light and breezy clothing. But when she looked around the streets and saw knights clad head to toe in full plate armor, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy. Even if high-level adventurers aren’t bothered by this heat, to have one’s skin sealed in metal like that all day… that can’t be comfortable. These poor tin cans.
After paying the entry toll, she entered the city. What met her eyes were orderly streets, lively shops, and a dense crowd of people. Among them, of course, were many more of the “tin can” variety.
Unlike most towns, the shops on the first street past the gates weren’t inns or taverns. Instead, it was a row of blacksmith forges, with finely crafted armor and all kinds of metal gear displayed in neat rows.
Suddenly, there was a commotion behind her. Accompanied by the sharp barks of a soldier’s command, a small, hooded figure sprinted hurriedly from the direction of the city gate, face obscured. A squad of soldiers gave chase from behind.
This was right by the entrance, and the area was bustling. Several knights were browsing the shops here, and before the soldiers even gave the order, the knights instinctively stepped forward to block the fleeing figure.
Lu Qiuchen found the scene rather amusing. As expected of the Kingdom of Knights. These knights really do have a strong sense of justice. At least from this, they live up to the righteous image I used to read about in those old fantasy novels.
P.S.: For reference, the Royal Knights’ emblem resembles the red eight-pointed cross used by real-world Hospitaller knights.
P.S.2: It seems most readers prefer romance and plot-centered game arcs. After some thought today, I’ve decided to speed things up. After the next chapter, we’ll skip ahead and return to the main storyline. The Knight Kingdom plot will be told through in-game content. The male lead will reappear in Volume 2.