“Now that I think about it, I feel like I’ve heard your name somewhere before in passing.”
“Is that so?”
Keldric, calmly steering Boreas, took Sir Henri’s words lightly.
Though the mention of rumors made him uneasy for a moment, there was no need to jump to conclusions.
“Recently, I’ve been sticking to these parts. Hunting down stragglers actually turns out to be quite profitable.”
“Stragglers? Do you mean from the Lovernst territory war?”
“Exactly. It’s a shame I couldn’t participate in the last Lovernst war, but… well, there’ll be plenty more opportunities, won’t there? We’re still young after all! Ha ha!”
Sir Henri was twenty-two years old, four years older than Keldric.
Having wandered the empire for three years now, it meant he must’ve left his family at least by the age of nineteen.
‘Younger than I expected.’
Keldric thought it was a little early, but considering he himself had left home at eighteen, it wasn’t so unusual.
Knights, after all, trained in martial arts and etiquette from a young age and were typically knighted or left home between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one.
“So I’ve been gathering as much information around here as I can. My retainers have been working hard for it.”
Keldric glanced at the four retainers following Sir Henri.
One in charge of tending the horses, one for setting up camp and managing supplies, and two for maintaining weapons and armor while carrying spare equipment.
Knights usually had anywhere from three to dozens of retainers. Apart from squires, retainers were the only ones who remained close to a knight.
Wealthy or distinguished knights could have over ten retainers, and at that point, the retainers were more like semi-combatants than mere helpers.
Knights roamed dangerous battlefields in pursuit of land and wealth, and naturally, their retainers had to learn how to fight as well.
Sir Henri traveled with four loyal retainers, but Keldric didn’t have a single one.
He realized, a bit late, what Hilmer’s intentions were when he’d tried to assign him a few servants.
It was fortunate that the knights Keldric had encountered so far were of decent character, or else he might’ve been mocked for his lack of attendants.
Of course, Keldric didn’t feel particularly lacking.
Retainers were something he might need someday, but not right now.
“Anyway, Sir Keldric. I heard something yesterday while drinking, but now I remember it clearly—the rumors about you.”
“What rumors?”
“That you defeated a rock troll with your bare hands!”
Keldric wondered if that was really such an impressive feat. But seeing how surprised Sir Henri was, he figured it must’ve been.
Sir Henri looked sturdy, with his large build and solid frame, but that was about it.
Even without having seen his full skills, Keldric could already estimate that Henri was similar to—or slightly below—Johannes, whom he’d fought back in Belam.
Johannes, after all, was an eight-time tournament champion, yet Keldric wasn’t entirely sure how he would fare if thrown into the situations Keldric had faced.
Henri fighting against three rock trolls?
In Keldric’s mind, it wasn’t likely that Henri would defeat them. At best, he might barely hold them off with Sir Werner’s help.
When Keldric thought about it this way, his own achievements suddenly seemed quite extraordinary. It made sense why rumors had spread.
“That’s not all. I also heard you defeated Sir Johannes in a duel yesterday!”
“Yes. Sir Johannes fought well, but I managed to win by a narrow margin.”
“You sure are modest! If someone like you fought me, I’d probably be folded in half!”
“Rather than being folded in half, it’d look more like a snail sprinkled with salt.”
Keldric held his tongue.
He wasn’t feigning modesty; it was simply better for such rumors to spread through others’ mouths rather than his own.
Now that Keldric had decided to care about his reputation, he preferred it that way.
After all, it wouldn’t look good for an eighteen-year-old novice knight to go around boasting about his own accomplishments.
“You not giving me any details makes me itch all over. A duel always stirs something hot in the chest, doesn’t it?”
“Ah, that’s true.”
The heat of the dueling ground—the cheers, the flower petals, and the roaring crowd calling his name!
That was the beauty of a duel, and although Keldric had only tasted it on a small scale, it was enough to drive him toward bigger tournaments in search of greater glory.
“I’ve seen Sir Johannes fight once before. That must’ve been… at the tournament held in Spitzenberg, I think?”
“Never heard of it.”
“Wahahah! That’s a good joke! Not knowing the city on the mountain!”
‘But I really don’t know.’
Keldric had only just memorized the names of the prominent noble families in the area.
Unless it was a truly famous place or where the emperor resided, he didn’t know much about moderately renowned regions.
“Well, since you’ve made such a fresh joke, I’ll gladly play along.”
Sir Henri seemed to think Keldric’s ignorance about Spitzenberg was a joke.
It made sense—after all, it would be strange for Keldric, a knight of the empire, not to know a place that even Sir Henri, a knight from the Frankish kingdom, was familiar with.
“Spitzenberg is located just to the left of Bogenberg. Though the empire’s northern borders have become blurrier over time, it’s still rare to find a territory that juts out from the blizzard’s reach like that.”
True to its name, Spitzen (pointed) and Berg (mountain), Spitzenberg was a city built in rugged terrain.
How rugged? It sat midway up the sheer cliffs of the mountain range that stretched across the empire from the distant south.
“They say it’s a place where needle-like peaks rise sharp and high, a truly breathtaking view. I haven’t been there myself, but I’d love to visit if I ever get the chance.”
“How did they even build a city on a mountainside?”
“Isn’t that the mystery of the dwarves? Though today’s dwarves have lost much of their knowledge, the ancient ones could carve mountains, or so they say.”
A mystical city where every building was made entirely of stone.
According to legend, the ancient dwarves carved the entire city out of rocky peaks.
Not ordinary stone buildings made from bricks, limestone, or mixed mortar, but entire houses carved from a single massive stone.
Dozens of such structures existed, and the castle at the city’s center rose to the very height of the peak, a grand sight to behold.
“Long ago, when barbarian armies from beyond the northern mountains swarmed down and covered the entire north, it was Steel Lord Emperor Sigerwald who held them back there.”
A fortress in every sense of the word—impregnable, a place that had never fallen.
“They say there are iron and coal mines nearby, which makes their steel production second to none. A few dwarves still remain there, too. Weapons and armor crafted in that place are said to be unbreakable.”
“Oh…”
Keldric felt a spark of curiosity at Sir Henri’s description.
The mace gifted to him by Sir Werner still served him well, but Keldric was beginning to feel the need to upgrade his sword and armor.
Chain mail had its limits in terms of protection. That was precisely why reinforcing armor with plate had become popular recently.
Adding partial plating would increase the weight, but for Keldric, that was hardly a concern.
Moreover, a sword crafted from high-quality steel would offer excellent durability.
The persistent issue Keldric faced while wielding his longsword was the blade dulling too quickly. If he could significantly improve its durability, it would be a game-changer.
‘Maybe I should visit if I get the chance.’
Keldric mentally filed the name Spitzenberg away.
He couldn’t go right away, but he definitely wanted to visit it someday.
To make that happen, he’d need more money. Armor reinforced with plate was notoriously expensive.
The same was true for a longsword forged from fine steel.
Though Keldric’s wealth had grown considerably during his travels, he knew it still wouldn’t be enough.
Fortunately, Keldric wasn’t a knight who wasted money on extravagance.
A frugal spirit was deeply ingrained in him, and he spent his money carefully.
As a result, the pouch tucked securely in his inner pocket continued to grow heavier with coins.
There were many opportunities to earn money, but the biggest one right now was the upcoming Bogenberg Tournament.
Tournaments often drew significant betting activity.
If Keldric bet his entire fortune on his victory, he could walk away with both honor and wealth.
A win-win. Keldric was counting on that opportunity.
Furthermore, although Keldric was qualified to participate, he was still a young, inexperienced knight in the eyes of others.
This meant the odds on him winning would be high. After all, no sane person would bet on a rookie knight.
Of course, there was always a chance a ridiculously skilled knight might enter the tournament, but if it was someone on Sir Johannes’s level, Keldric was confident he could handle them.
“Sir Henri, you’ll be watching the tournament, won’t you?”
“Well… I suppose so. Watching a large-scale tournament like this is always the most fun, don’t you think?”
“What would you do if an opportunity for a fortune came your way?”
“Are you seriously asking? Of course, I’d seize it!”
“I’m giving you that opportunity.”
Honor was good, but money was even better. Keldric’s lips curved into a slight smirk.
Seeing that expression, Sir Henri shuddered.
“When we arrive in Bogenberg, bet everything on me in the tournament.”
“Your confidence is impressive.”
“I’ll guarantee it. I’m planning to wager my entire fortune on my victory as well. Alisa, you should do the same.”
“Yes, I was planning to from the start.”
Sir Henri seemed doubtful of Keldric’s words, but Alisa didn’t question it for a second.
Based on what she had witnessed so far, this crazy knight before her had enough strength to utterly crush even seasoned warriors.
Since he was already participating, aiming for victory was the right choice.
It wasn’t arrogance—it was confidence with reason.
☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩
After leaving Belam and walking for four full days, Keldric began to feel the air rapidly grow warmer.
He had stepped into the region that drove back the cold, the clear boundary between the North and the Central regions.
“It’s gotten warm.”
“Ha… I feel like I’m melting. I’ve had more than enough of the North.”
After traveling for another two days, the weather had completely eased, and only the chill of late autumn remained.
Even the North, after the blizzards had stopped, wasn’t excessively cold, but this area marking the transition to the Central region was on a completely different level.
When they crossed the smaller mountain range that branched off from the great mountains, Keldric was finally greeted by a wide-open plain.
“Whoa…!”
A massive city rose up alongside the winding Ronauen River that cut through its center.
To the north, a small mountain range stood like city walls, blocking out the cold wind, while beneath it, the vast open plain provided a direct route into the Central Empire.
The city had double-layered walls, much like Belam, but its scale was on a completely different level.
Five massive roads stretched out like spiderwebs from the city, and even from a distance, Keldric could see merchants and wagons moving along them.
Far to the south lay the wheat fields that produced abundant food. Indeed, even the farmlands just outside Bogenberg’s walls were astonishingly vast.
Though it wasn’t yet harvest season and he couldn’t see golden wheat fields, Keldric felt content just looking at the enormous city before him.
“The city is lively. With the tournament coming up, it’s no wonder.”
Sir Henri, who had been riding alongside Keldric, commented.
As he said, the city seemed bustling. Outside the outer walls, the tournament arena was already lined with all sorts of stalls.
“Let’s hurry down.”
“Ahaha! Yes! Let’s go, so Sir Keldric can spread his fame far and wide!”
Just as Henri said, Keldric’s heart pounded with excitement at the thought of making his name known in such a grand city.
This was it—the tournament where honor and glory awaited.