Arendt arrived at the training ground and drew his sword.

The sword was gently drawn out with a cold metallic sound.

“This… are you supposed to hold it with one hand? No? Do you use both hands?”

Arendt’s body, which had been moving the sword handle around in different grips, was soon able to find a posture that felt quite familiar.

Arendt held the sword in one hand and tipped it forward, then slightly pulled his body back to maintain his balance.

Up to that point it wasn’t that difficult, so he moved on to the next step right away.

If you were talking about movements that were usually made while holding a sword…

Arendt hesitated for a moment, then grabbed the sword with both hands. Then he swung the sword in a large slash from top to bottom.

Whoosh!

“Oh.”

It seemed like it was doable.

Following that, he held the sword in one hand and cut the air horizontally. Then he cut diagonally.

The moonlit blade drew a clean line in the air.

After completing the series of movements, Arendt slowly relaxed his posture.

“… It’s better than I thought?”

The body recognized the sword as if it were a part of itself.

Even when he just moved a little, his balance was maintained, and even when he held and swung this long, heavy object, there wasn’t any pain or discomfort in his wrist.

A smile appeared on his lips.

He picked up his sword again and repeated the basic movements. As he had repeated this countless times, his body found its way familiarly.

The more times it was repeated, the more stable the sword path became.

At some point, Arendt’s eyes stopped moving as they reached the tip of his sword. He followed the trajectory of the blade with his eyes, and gradually focused on his own and the sword’s movements.

At night, when everyone was asleep, there was no one to disturb him.

No, he didn’t think there was anyone.

“Why are you swinging your sword like that?”

“Wow. That surprised me!”

Arendt jumped up from his position at the sudden voice that came out without warning. He quickly turned his head and saw a person standing at the entrance of the training hall.

Arendt calmed his pounding heart and checked the other person’s appearance.

Well-tanned skin, a mischievous face, and light brown hair that grew freely.

By his outward appearance, Arendt could easily tell who he was.

Arthur Norbert.

He was the youngest knight in the order, having held the youngest position until Arendt came in as an apprentice.

He was someone with a friendly personality, who was friendly to everyone, free-spirited, and who eased the tense atmosphere within the Knights Templar… that’s what was said about him.

That’s probably why he was one of the subordinates that Laius cherished. He was actually a capable knight, too.

Arendt’s expression suddenly turned grim.

“What is it?”

“Heh….”

Arthur, who stiffened for a moment as if embarrassed, twisted his lips.

“I followed you because you snuck out at night; what are you doing here?”

“Why? Are you afraid I’ll draw my sword and go assassinate someone?”

Arendt crossed his arms and replied arrogantly. Arthur’s expression crumpled slightly.

“It looks like that snout won’t heal even if it comes back from the brink of death.”

“I’m sorry, but it’s not my time to die yet. They say people change only when they die.”

“Yeah… it looks like the lifeline is still long.”

Arthur let out a deflating sound at the sarcastic reply.

“That was a pity. I thought I’d finally get to see your neck fall to the floor this time.”

“It sounds like you’re extremely sorry that it didn’t turn out that way.”

“What? I don’t necessarily deny it.”

Arthur twitched the corners of his mouth as Arendt responded indifferently.

“Still. He values ​​a bastard like you so much as a subordinate, but wouldn’t it make him feel bad if you were to fall down like that?”

“…”

“So let’s do things well, okay? Before I personally cut off your head and offer it to the captain.”

The moon was clearly bright, but Arendt felt the darkness around here was unusually gloomy. He was not particularly pleased with being alone with Arthur.

There was a real sword in the scabbard hanging from Arthur’s waist, and that man had the ability to cut off Arendt’s head if he wanted to.

Moreover, it was true when saying that the entire Third Knights were a group that wanted Arendt’s head and body to be separated forever.

‘Still…’

Arendt rolled his eyes and withdrew the strength that had been in his body without him knowing it.

‘He won’t move carelessly.’

He was not one to express his hatred by force. Arendt’s understanding of Arthur Norbert was like that.

Arendt tilted his head.

“I can’t stand it, I’m so embarrassed that you have to worry about me, senior. But…”

Soon, Arendt’s beautiful eyebrows opened and a bitter smile appeared. On the other hand, Arthur’s expression began to gradually wrinkle.

Arendt smiled proudly and tapped his neck with his white finger.

“I’ll take care of my neck. Why don’t you protect your neck well too?”

“…Ha, this is really crazy.”

Arthur burst out laughing.

It wasn’t not a joke.

Arendt was sarcastic in his mind.

‘The first casualty was this guy.’

Before a full-scale fight broke out, Arthur, who went out to scout, was discovered and captured by enemies. He could have saved his life if he had betrayed the knights or escaped somehow, but Arthur did not do that.

Life and faith.

It was a situation where he had to choose between the two options.

What he chose then was an honorable death. He took his own life before others could do anything.

There was a slight annoyance in Arendt’s gaze at Arthur.

He liked the character quite a bit, so when he first read that scene, he grabbed his phone and was shocked. After that, he almost lost interest in Laius, who mourned Arthur’s death and said, “It was a noble sacrifice.”

Death is an eternal exit.

To live by honor and die by honor… that was cool on stage, but that kind of thinking was not Arendt’s style.

Arendt, who was standing leaning to one side, frowned and spat out angrily.

“And, if you’ve been following along since the dormitory, you probably saw everything. Why are you even asking?”

“That’s what I’m trying to ask you, you punk. You don’t usually come here, so what are you doing out at this hour of the night?”

Arthur trudged to the front of Arendt.

Thinking about it in the long run, this might be an opportunity. Death is an exit for the character, but in the overall story, the death of one person was also a big omen.

Now, it was necessary to read the flow closely, so it was also necessary to observe the person closest to their time of death. Additionally, it would be better if the death could be prevented, because it’s better to have at least one more person.

As he thought about that, a line came to mind that would keep that good guy Arthur Norbert in that position. It was something that ‘Arendt von Eckhart’ could do, and would also retain his brazenness and arrogance.

Arendt shrugged his shoulders and blurted out.

“It’s my choice. Anyway, since you’re here, please help me.”

Arthur made a dumb sound as the words came out of Arendt’s mouth.

“What?”

“If you don’t want to, then don’t say anything.”

Arendt drew his sword again and continued what he had been doing, seemingly not paying any attention to Arthur’s presence.

But his eyes scanned Arthur without missing a single moment.

As expected, Arthur was standing there, frozen in place, staring blankly in this direction.

‘It’s easy.’

Arendt hid the corners of his mouth that were about to turn up and returned to practicing his swordsmanship.

‘That guy is also a simple guy in a way.’

There were many stories that started with one small line and ended up saving the world. Therefore, it might also be possible to change perceptions with just a small word.

It was clear that if Arthur realized that the traitorous junior he was about to beat to death was surprisingly human-like, he would no longer show his bite.

Arthur looked at Arendt, his soul completely gone.

He needs help?

He never once imagined that such words would come out of that mouth.

Bringing Arendt to the training ground was something that not only Arthur, but all the knights belonging to the Third Knights had given up on.

The apprentice knight was originally supposed to be trained by knights, but Arendt seemed to hate that fact to death. That was especially because most of the knights who tried to teach him were commoners.

It was definitely like that…

‘Have you had a change of heart?’

Arthur frowned slightly.

It wasn’t surprising that he ended up changing, having come back from the brink of death.

‘No.’

A change of heart…that was only possible for someone who reflected. Arendt had constantly voiced from the trial stage until now the insistence that he was not at fault.

Laius and the other leaders seemed to believe him, but he and the other knights did not. Even if Arendt was not in a position to take any action right away, Arthur could not relax.

So he kept quiet and watched Arendt’s room alone even after bedtime.

Sure enough, Arendt was seen sneaking out of the dormitory in the middle of the night. Arthur, who thought he clearly had a plan, followed him without any delay.

But what he saw as he followed Arendt was something unexpected.

It was like he was wandering around the dormitory as if he was just looking around, and when he went outside, he thought he was just trudging along without a care in the world, but then he suddenly burst out in admiration when he saw the night sky.

Arendt, who had reached the training ground, drew his sword and moved his body here and there, absorbed in his training.

It was still the same now.

Arendt, who was able to move his sword well, frowned and was deep in thought, as if something did not please him.

Arendt von Eckhart.

The second son of the Eckhart family.

He was a boy who passed the knight exam as soon as he turned 18 and was called a genius with the sword.

In addition to his outstanding talent and beautiful appearance, everyone looked at him with goodwill when he first entered the imperial palace.

No one could have predicted that he would emerge as the biggest troublemaker in the Third Knights.

Compared to other knights, the Third Knights had more knights from commoner backgrounds. Arthur was like that, and the leader, Laius, was also from a fallen noble family.

Arendt, who grew up in an aristocratic family, always disapproved of that.

When he first joined, it seemed like there was some positive attention, but it only lasted for a moment. Arendt had accidents whenever they took their eyes off him, and became violent when he went out into the city. He often got into fistfights with his colleagues.

At a time when everyone in the knights was having a hard time dealing with one idiot, he was thrown into a dungeon on charges of betraying the knights and the emperor less than a year after joining.

After the stormy trial, Arendt became the only person to return from that prison alive.

In the end, the nobles of the court listened to Arendt, as they had done in the operation at the East Safe not long ago.

The knights were all shocked at the absurd order to hide in the vault and surprise the enemies. The moment they realized that the plan had come from Arendt’s mind, their anger could be ignited by a single spark.

But in the end, the operation wasn’t bad.

For some reason, the story went around that Manager Neumann, who allowed him to enter the safe, also showed great favor to him, and while dealing with such an armed force, there were not even minor injuries on the Knights’ side.

The team leaders’ decision to believe in Arendt was not wrong. It also meant that Arendt made them focus on what he said.

‘But is that possible? That Arendt?’

Arthur, who had such doubts for a moment, soon shook his head.

That question was meaningless, because the results already showed the answer.

Finally, Arthur took a deep breath.

“Okay… you said you wanted help?”

Leader Laius decided to trust that traitor, so regardless of personal likes or dislikes, Arthur had no right to judge or punish him.

Just in case there was something he didn’t know about Arendt, and if that part could further help Laius and this empire, Arthur had an obligation as a senior to respond to his request for help.

No matter what kind of whim that guy had.

“Tsk.”

Arthur clicked his tongue in annoyance and pulled out his sword. Arthur’s sword, exposed under the moonlight, had a cool glow.

“Focus not on the tip of the sword, but the front. No, to be exact, stare at the enemy. Put strength into it. At this level, you can only get a raw cut.”

“…”

At those words, Arendt lowered the sword that he had been swinging meaninglessly.

He grinned, a satisfied curve forming around his mouth.

“Well then, can you tell me a trick?”

“This shameless little bastard.”

As he said that, Arthur gripped the sword in his hand and swung it around.

Arendt’s eyes twinkled as if he would not miss a single movement Arthur made.