“Stop sleeping… wake up! Wake up!”
Accompanied by the annoyed voice of the Witch Falia, the figure of a Holy Guard Cavalryman situated under the Holy Tree shuddered for a moment before quickly returning to normal.
“I’ve been calling you for so long!”
The slightly overbearing voice rang out in his head, and Lance finally regained full consciousness.
‘What was I doing?’
As he pondered this, countless related memories flooded into Lance’s mind.
‘I’m a Holy Guard Cavalryman! Right now, I’m on patrol at the Holy Tree!’
“Master! Where are we right now?”
Little Falia, who had finally received a response, gave a soft cough and said, “This is that little Elf girl’s dream.”
“A dream?”
Lance immediately scanned his surroundings, his composure slipping slightly.
To Lance’s east stood a towering giant tree emitting a golden light.
Massive branches spread out, covering an immeasurable amount of space.
Even Lance, who was standing quite a distance away, was blanketed by the giant tree’s shadow.
“The Golden Tree?!”
With such an iconic, colossal landmark present, how could Lance not know where he was?
This was the eternal home of the Elves—Punoies, the City of the Holy Tree!
“Master, is this Lady Astrid’s dream?”
“That is correct.”
Lance flexed his fingers; the sensations were incredibly realistic.
‘Is this actually a dream? It feels just like reality.’
“Then how should we break through this dreamscape? Should we find a way to make Lady Astrid realize that this is a false dream?”
“That’s right… but don’t be in such a hurry. Look at the Golden Tree to your east. Isn’t there a cathedral with a spire underneath it?”
A cathedral with a spire?
Lance searched in the direction Falia indicated and indeed found a similarly magnificent building.
The cathedral was towering, and the sunlight filtered through the canopy of the Golden Tree to spill over the spire.
An unparalleled sense of holiness welled up, causing Lance—a non-believer—to feel a tremor in his soul.
Seeing Lance looking so stunned, Falia let out a snicker and said, “Don’t be so quick to be impressed. I’ll have a task for you to do in a moment.”
Lance swallowed hard and slowly regained his focus, asking in confusion, “A task?”
“Yes. That cathedral is called the Hall of the Holy Tree. It’s one of the two great cathedrals of the Nature Church, and it contains many sealed artifacts.”
“I can feel my feet placed in the basement there. Opportunities like this are rare. In a little while, you will sneak inside and help me steal my feet back.”
Lance froze, his pupils dilating instantly.
He pointed a finger at his own head and said in disbelief, “Me? Sneaking into one of the two great cathedrals of the Nature Church?”
‘Was this how Ben Bo Ba felt before? What’s the difference between this and asking me to get rid of Tang Sanzang and his disciples?’
However, seeing Lance react this way, Falia immediately became dissatisfied.
She crossed her arms and asked coldly in a questioning tone, “Mr. Lance… have you forgotten the contents of our contract?”
The scene of being “forced” to sign the Master-Disciple Contract flashed through his mind, and Lance instantly remembered the Witch’s requirement.
To recover her body!
Feeling a chill slowly creeping through his body, Lance’s spirit jolted.
He immediately grew solemn and replied with righteous indignation, “You worry too much! How could I possibly forget?”
“It’s just… that… well… how am I supposed to successfully sneak into the cathedral without being discovered?”
After a couple of humphs, little Falia tilted her head, acting completely indifferent. “Lance, oh Lance, I don’t want to raise a bad student who only knows how to copy answers.”
“Think of this as a test for you. Just go for it! I’ll be there to back you up!”
‘Back me up?’
“Uh… Master… is your body sealed within the dream?”
Detecting Lance’s reluctance, the Witch’s brow furrowed, her displeasure deepening.
“It is precisely because it’s a dream that it’s easy for you to investigate! Do you want to sneak in there later without any preparation?”
“That is the Hall of the Holy Tree! The sacred ground of the Nature Church!”
‘You actually know that!’ Lance wanted to cry but had no tears.
‘I’m just an ordinary High Rank youth who hasn’t even touched the Elements yet. On what basis can I sneak into a sacred land!’
But after being scolded like that, Lance naturally didn’t dare say anything.
He could only agree wholeheartedly. The Witch gave a cold snort and ignored him.
It seemed she really intended to let Lance do as he pleased without giving any further hints.
Standing on the bridge, Lance sighed, feeling that the Witch’s temperament was truly eccentric.
‘She was clearly a gentle-type Master when we first entered the dream. Why does she feel like a spoiled little girl now…’
After mentally complaining about Falia, Lance could only honestly accept his tragic fate as a laborer.
He planned to find an excuse to visit the Hall of the Holy Tree after finishing his patrol duty.
‘It would be best if I could also ask for news about Astrid…’
While Lance was lost in thought, he suddenly heard someone calling him. Turning his head, he indeed saw a figure in the distance waving to him.
‘That silhouette looks familiar. Is it a colleague?’
“Whoa—”
Lance pulled the reins and brought his horse to a halt, waiting for the person waving in the distance to ride over.
Clop, clop, clop—
A heavy knight dressed in holy white armor approached on horseback, shouting from a distance, “Why are you still on patrol! Didn’t you sign up for the Knight Selection?”
‘Knight Selection?’
Lance quickly searched his newly acquired memories but found nothing.
Adhering to the idea that the more he said, the more mistakes he would make, Lance kept his mouth shut and chose not to give any response.
The knight rode up and, without a word, took hold of Lance’s warhorse and began leading it in another direction. Meanwhile, he kept nagging incessantly.
“If you don’t go now, that bastard Marcon really is going to get a bye into the next round!”
“I’ll take your shift for today! Hurry up and go!”
Lance hesitated for a moment and asked tentatively, “Is it still at the same venue?”
Hearing this, his colleague became even more impatient.
He pointed toward the Holy Tree and urged, “Yes! Still at the Great Arena! Move it!”
After offering a word of thanks, Lance pulled the reins and galloped off in the direction his colleague pointed.
The current situation felt both novel and strange to Lance, like he was playing a role-playing game.
‘Have I triggered some sort of plotline?’
Lost in thought, Lance tried to apply his experiences from his previous life to his current situation, and the effect was surprisingly good.
As Lance moved forward, the surrounding scenery gradually changed.
The number of buildings increased significantly, and various pedestrians bustled back and forth through the streets and alleys.
However, when these pedestrians saw Lance’s Holy Guard Cavalry attire, they all moved aside.
Consequently, Lance’s speed was not hindered at all.
“Whoa—”
According to his memory, he reined in the white warhorse and jumped down with a thud.
Lance hurriedly entered the building known as the “Great Arena.”
Seeing Lance arrive, the attendants waiting at the entrance immediately surrounded him, their expressions also urgent.
“Lord Lance, you’ve finally arrived!”
“Sir Bodog has already changed into his gear. Please hurry and put on your protective equipment. The match is about to begin!”
Lance didn’t speak. He simply maintained a facade of coldness as he followed the attendants into the back hall.
He changed into the gear provided by the servants and then entered the competition area of the Great Arena under the watchful eyes of the crowd.
Standing in the center of the arena was indeed a sinister-looking youth fully armed just like Lance.
When he saw Lance enter, he gave a cold laugh.
“I thought you’d lost your nerve and didn’t dare show up!”
“What? Still obsessed? Still want to take a shot at it?”
“Laughable! How could a commoner like you become the Princess’s Oathbound Knight? You’re dreaming!”
‘Oh…’
‘So this selection is for the Princess’s Oathbound Knight.’
Hearing the words of this Sir Bodog, Lance finally understood what this selection was for.
‘An Oathbound Knight…’
This was right up his alley.
When Lance was previously a High Rank, he had obtained his Holy Office by participating in the Oathbound Knight selection for the exiled princess of the Kingdom of Midgard.
Furthermore, the system used by human kingdoms to select Oathbound Knights for princesses was established by learning from Elven traditions.
Without a word, Lance gave no response. He simply drew his longsword and assumed the classic starting stance of the [White Crow Sword Art], waiting for his opponent to initiate the attack.
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