To a Knight, the aura of Power was a tangible presence—a supernatural phenomenon, like a personal field, that extended from their Knight Power.
It was like an endless wind blowing against one's face.
The more powerful the Knight, the more overwhelming the "wind pressure" from this field. When Vice Commander Erich used his full strength, one would feel immense pressure just by standing near him.
Reinhardt's aura was clearly much stronger than when he had first mounted the city walls. For a moment, Adrian didn't know whether he should be envious or congratulatory.
'To think it took me a full four years after joining the Steel Knight Order's training camp just to awaken my Knight Power. And reaching the Two-star Military Rank took another three years!'
In one week, Reinhardt, the boy who once had the worst physical talent in the follower training camp, had not only manifested his Power and awakened his Knight Power, but through the baptism of war and death, had also developed a second Special Ability and been promoted to the Two-star Military Rank!
A sudden burst of growth after long accumulation. Six years of preparation.
The sweat he had shed on the training grounds, the arduous training he endured day in and day out for three years—at this moment, it was finally paying off!
It was just as Reinhardt's deeply held, noble philosophy proclaimed!
Hard work and sweat will never betray a Knight's faith!
Adrian still didn't know what Reinhardt's second awakened Special Ability was, but the aura and intensity of this young Knight's Power had, in fact, already reached the Two-star Military Rank!
As night deepened, the light from the torches flickered in the wind.
The battle for the fortress paused as the Abyss Legion voluntarily retreated.
The soldiers who had been lucky enough to survive either pulled out their private stashes of strong liquor to calm their terrified and numb hearts, or silently carried the bodies from the walls.
The Knights inside the fortress had already begun mobilizing the boys from the training camp to join the firefighting teams.
Compared to the battle to defend the first wall a few days ago, the carnage this time was far beyond what they could have imagined. These once-impassioned youths witnessed piles of severed limbs being carried down from the walls and rows of wounded soldiers lying on the ground, wailing without end.
The smiles of the past were gone from their faces.
Under the heavy pressure of the Abyss Legion, the shadow of death and war had finally broken through the flesh and blood of the Fortress Defenders to envelop them.
After regaining some of his strength, Reinhardt got up and walked over to the old soldier. He bent down and picked up the dog tag hanging from his neck.
'Hearn Territory Second Infantry Legion, Private Third Class, Liam.'
The old soldier wasn't young. His full beard hadn't been groomed in a long time, and blood was still seeping from the large hole in his chest.
Just then, two soldiers came over. They lifted the old soldier's body, piled it onto a cart, and yanked off his dog tag, stuffing it into a pouch already full of tags from the fallen.
After the war, their families would receive a death benefit based on the personal information on the dog tags.
Adrian walked over to Reinhardt's side and placed a hand on his shoulder. Together, they watched the cart piled high with bodies gradually recede into the distance.
"Do you know him?"
Reinhardt shook his head.
"He tried to save me."
Adrian ruffled Reinhardt's hair, and the two walked down from the wall.
"He was a brave soldier, Reinhardt. And so are you."
「The next day.」
The light of dawn drove back the night.
Reinhardt was wrapped in thick bandages, his right arm in a splint and held in a sling across his chest.
Knight An Jie, the training camp instructor, was half-squatting on the ground, carefully applying medicinal salve to Reinhardt's wounds. In a low voice, she said, "I heard about what you did from Captain Karamor. Punching a Convicted Demon away with a single blow… many Knights in the Knight Order have that kind of power.
But can you guess why they don't do it?"
After a night's rest, the pain in Reinhardt's right arm hadn't eased. Instead, it had grown worse over time, his entire right hand swelling up like a purple-red pig's trotter.
The answer was obvious.
Without the protection of special Combat Techniques or a Special Ability, a Knight's mortal body, driven by Power, could easily harm itself.
It was just like the boys' first lesson at the training camp: Basic Swordsmanship.
What they had to learn wasn't how to fight an opponent, but how not to be cut by their own swords.
"The internal injuries in your right arm are very serious. I've already asked Erich to request leave for you. For now, you should rest and recover in the underground bunkers.
If you keep using your Power at high intensity, the next time you're here, the only thing I'll be able to do for you is amputation."
Although Knight An Jie's words were harsh, inwardly she greatly admired Reinhardt. He was the boy who had almost left the training camp, the one she had argued against everyone to keep.
Through his hard work and never-give-up attitude, he had not only manifested his Power but also grown rapidly under the baptism of war. His accomplishment could even be called the fastest promotion to the Two-star Military Rank—a legendary feat extremely rare in the Steel Knight Order, and even in the entire Seventh Group Army!
Meanwhile, Sedon's once-gleaming silver Armor was covered in scars, and his left Steel Boot bore the mark of having been melted and then cooled. Despite having gone through a major battle, his expression was the same as ever, filled with the arrogance of the Upper Ranks.
"A Two-star Military Rank Knight?"
The Knight reporting to him knelt on one knee, his tone firm.
"I saw it with my own eyes. There is no mistake."
Sedon waved his hand, dismissing the Knight.
He picked up a cup of freshly brewed black tea, his brow furrowing slightly. Reinhardt's promotion to the Two-star Military Rank was far faster than he had estimated.
'The courage to admit an error in judgment is an essential quality for a competent bureaucrat. Even though I look down on a mud-caked commoner like Reinhardt, I have to admit the boy's talent is not as insignificant as I claimed. Setting aside my conflict of interest with Erich... for such a promising young Knight to be branded with the mark of the Steel Knight Order and used as a sacrifice... even I would lament such a loss to the Empire. Erich and the Steel Knight Order are not worthy of having such a young Knight die with them on the Northern Icefield.'
Sedon hadn't reached his current position by being as narrow-minded as he appeared.
'The interests of the Empire are paramount!'
To ascend to the ranks of the great nobility in the Radiant Empire's Extraordinary Tier required more than just ambition and strength. A forward-looking vision and a capacity for long-term strategic thinking far beyond that of ordinary people—this was the foundation of his standing.
Sedon sat at his desk and set down his teacup. He considered for a moment before preparing to write a secret letter to be discreetly delivered to the high command of the Seventh Group Army.
'While I would never use someone like Reinhardt—I couldn't control him anyway—that truly great personage will definitely appreciate a young Knight like him. Even if this process requires me to be the villain, even if Reinhardt is a Direct Lineage Knight of Erich, a remnant of the Steel Knight Order… as long as I can win the favor of that great personage and demonstrate my loyalty and selflessness to the Empire…'
'…it would all be worth it.'