Episode 503
Jonathan Solma bowed his head in apology to Zeke without a moment’s hesitation.
Pride was one thing, but practicality was another.
No matter how proud the Solma family was, they couldn’t afford to oppose the Dreiker family in the central continent.
Especially when the person in question was Zeke Dreiker, the most renowned figure on the continent.
Zeke watched Jonathan bow and apologize with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
“Impressive.”
For someone acting as the head of a family to apologize so readily was a remarkable skill.
Particularly for a representative of a prestigious family like the Solmas.
Zeke realized that Jonathan, despite his stubborn and single-minded nature, was a pragmatic man who knew when to bend.
He also remembered that in his past life, Jonathan had led the Western Resistance for a long time before dying honorably in battle.
Recalling this, Zeke decided to take a step back.
He bowed his head in return and said, “I apologize as well for my emotional and rude behavior. It’s a pleasure to formally meet you. I’m Zeke Dreiker.”
Thanks to Zeke’s gesture, Jonathan Solma found it much easier to accept the situation.
“I’m Jonathan Solma, acting head of the Solma family. It’s an honor to meet the esteemed Knight of Salvation.”
At that moment, Aslan, who had been watching the exchange, burst into hearty laughter.
“Haha! It’s refreshing to see young and promising knights being so candid. Why don’t you join us for a meal, young master?”
Jonathan seemed uncomfortable dining with Rick and Arin, but with Zeke present, he had no choice but to sit down.
To lighten the mood, Aslan ordered the servants to bring wine.
Once the wine arrived, he poured it generously and raised his glass for a toast.
“Let’s drink to the young knights who will illuminate our continent!”
Everyone raised their glasses, but the atmosphere remained tense.
It was then that Rick, who had been too nervous to speak, gathered his courage and addressed Jonathan.
“Brother.”
Jonathan’s expression hardened as he glared at Rick.
With determination in his eyes, Rick spoke.
“I want to challenge the family trial again.”
Jonathan’s hand, holding a knife, trembled at those words.
He glared at Rick with a murderous look in his eyes, trying to suppress his anger as he spoke in a controlled voice.
“Finish your meal and leave quietly. I don’t want to make a scene.”
At Jonathan’s words, Rick put down his knife and fork and stood up.
Then he knelt before Jonathan.
“Brother!”
He bowed his head and said, “I know I disappointed you by running away from the family trial. I understand if you never want to see me again! But I’ve changed. Sir Zeke has transformed me into a new person! Please, just give me one more chance!”
In truth, Zeke hadn’t done much. He had simply handed Rick over to Claire and Farrell, telling them to train him hard. Rick, who had potential, had grown remarkably as expected.
But Jonathan, who had been deeply disappointed in his brother, seemed even angrier at Rick’s words of repentance. He clenched his fists, trembling with rage, and finally couldn’t hold back his shout.
“Silence!”
Jonathan stood up, pointing a finger at Rick as he yelled.
“Jeffrick! You threw the Solma family’s honor to the ground and trampled on it! I could understand you leaving for Valhalla, but abandoning even that and wasting your time playing adventurer with a bunch of kids is unforgivable!”
Jonathan Solma was a prodigy who had become a Blue Knight before turning thirty.
Having responsibly managed the family’s affairs, Jonathan couldn’t comprehend Jeffrick’s deviation.
He spoke to Rick in a cold voice.
“You swore never to return to the family. You abandoned us. Don’t expect the Solma family to take you back.”
Jonathan turned to Zeke, bowing respectfully as he spoke.
“I apologize for involving you in family matters, Sir Zeke. The Solma family wishes to welcome you as an honored guest, so please feel free to stay. If there’s anything you need, just let us know.”
With that, he left the dining room without even glancing at Rick, who remained kneeling.
Zeke shook his head as he looked at Rick on the floor.
“The situation is more serious than I thought.”
He turned to Aslan and said, “Sir Aslan, could we have a word?”
“Phew! It feels good to be out in the training grounds. The smell of leather soaked in the sweat of knights! Ah, nothing suits a knight more than wielding a sword in armor outdoors.”
Standing beside Aslan, who was surveying the training grounds, Zeke spoke.
“It seems you’ve been staying in the castle since returning to the Solma family.”
Aslan nodded at Zeke’s words.
“Haha! After thirty years, there’s no place for me in the Royal Guard. Most of my friends have put down their swords and taken up positions as captains, wielding pens instead. My brother, the head of the family, took pity on me and offered me a small knight order to lead, but how can someone who’s only ever swung a sword lead a knight order?”
Aslan was the epitome of an old knight from stories.
In a positive light, he was pure; in a negative light, he lacked cunning.
Had he not been confined to the estate and continued to grow with the reputation of the Crossed Swords, he might have become the captain of the Thebea Royal Guard.
He was the most cherished subordinate of Flaubert Borges, the head of Valhalla and former captain of the Thebea Royal Guard.
Yet Aslan seemed to have no regrets about any of it.
He looked at Zeke and said, “I appreciate you taking in my nephew Jeffrick. Though I’m from the Solma family, there’s no real freedom here. Even after passing the grueling family trial, there are countless obligations to fulfill.”
Zeke, seeing the regret in Aslan’s eyes, spoke.
“Is that why you entered the Mansion of Wraiths?”
Aslan grinned at Zeke’s question.
“Do you know what my dream was long ago, Sir Zeke? To be a wandering knight. Roaming without a destination, saving the weak, and defeating fearsome monsters that troubled villagers. Isn’t that splendid?”
“That’s a romantic notion one might only find in storybooks these days.”
“Haha, indeed. Though I’ve only just met him, perhaps Jeffrick and I are alike. He too must have dreamed of a freedom that doesn’t align with the Solma family’s ways.”
Freedom.
Zeke, who had long sought it himself, understood Aslan’s words.
He spoke slowly.
“Is there no way to persuade Jonathan Solma?”
Zeke hadn’t come to the Solma family merely for an invitation to the Thebea royal palace.
If all he needed was an invitation, going through the Solma family might have been more cumbersome. As a guardian knight of the Dreiker family, Zeke had other means at his disposal.
The reason he had come, even acting as a sponsor for Rick and Arin’s engagement, was because the Solma family had a crucial role to play in the upcoming war.
“Thebea is the heart of the central kingdoms. And it’s the Solma family that moves Thebea. For Rick, a member of the Black Sword Knights, to be recognized by the family is essential for close cooperation with the Solma family.”
In a strained relationship, true cooperation was impossible.
In his past life, Zeke had seen countless instances of this.
Even when unity was needed, stubbornness led to defeat, and the entire continent fell into the hands of the empire led by Abel.
Zeke was determined to lay a solid foundation to prevent such a disaster from happening again.
After pondering Zeke’s words, Aslan spoke slowly.
“There is one way.”
He looked at Zeke and said, “The Solma family is a knightly family that has upheld tradition for a very long time. The head of the family or the acting head, who values honor, cannot stray from that path.”
Hearing Aslan’s words, something clicked in Zeke’s mind.
“Cannot stray from honor and tradition…?”
Understanding dawned on him, and he looked at Aslan.
“Sir Aslan, please help us.”
The next day, the Solma family’s training grounds were abuzz with activity.
Rick had gone to the training grounds where the Solma knights practiced and challenged them to a duel.
Initially, they had been ordered by Jonathan, the acting head, to ignore Jeffrick, so they were reluctant to engage.
But Aslan, who had accompanied Rick, sternly addressed the knights.
“A member of the Dreiker family’s Black Sword Knights has challenged the Solma Knights to a duel. To back down now would disgrace the honor of a knight! Are you planning to throw the Solma family’s name into the dirt?”
Aslan’s reprimand made the Solma knights flinch.
While they might have ignored Jeffrick as an individual, the reputation of the knight order was at stake, directly tied to their honor as knights.
They couldn’t simply brush it off.
Reluctantly, the Solma Knights had no choice but to accept Rick’s challenge.
One of the senior knights of the Solma order turned to a fellow knight and said.
“Rof, go show that coward what the Solma Knights are made of,” the senior knight commanded, prompting a chorus of laughter from the others.
To them, Jephric was nothing more than a coward who had fled without even attempting his family’s trial of honor.
The knight called Rof grinned at the order, drawing his sword as he stepped forward. He eyed Rick, who looked tense, and spoke with a mocking tone.
“Greetings, Sir Jephric. Or should I even call you ‘sir’? I’ve heard plenty about you. Let’s see what you’re made of.”
Rick steadied his breath, meeting the arrogant knight’s gaze. “Seems I’ve forgotten my shield. Perhaps I should fetch it?”
Rof chuckled, shaking his head dismissively. “No need. This won’t take long anyway. Let’s get on with it.”
He swung his sword playfully, as if the duel were a mere game. Rick gripped his own sword with both hands, advancing slowly.
Rof clicked his tongue, watching Rick’s stiff movements. “Is that how they train in the Draker family?”
With a sneer, he charged forward, sword raised. “Hyaah!”
But as he lunged, Rick met him head-on, swinging his sword with unexpected force.
Slice—
In a shocking turn of events, Rof’s sword snapped in two against Rick’s blade.
“What?”
Rick swiftly tripped the bewildered Rof, sending him crashing to the ground.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
Rick pinned Rof’s chest with his knee, pressing down hard.
“Gah!”
The tip of Rick’s sword hovered at Rof’s throat. It all happened in an instant.
The Solma knights, who had been watching with smug amusement, fell silent.
Rick, his eyes cold, looked down at Rof. “Do you concede?”
“Ugh! Damn it, this doesn’t count! My sword just—”
Aslan, who had been observing from behind, interjected. “A knight’s sword is everything. If it breaks, it’s a disgrace. Even if the sword was faulty, it’s the knight’s responsibility to maintain it.”
Rof had no retort to Aslan’s calm, pointed critique.
As Rick’s pressure on his chest increased, Rof, panicking, nodded. “I concede! I concede!”
Only then did Rick remove his knee, allowing Rof to scramble back to his comrades, coughing. The senior knight glared at Rof in disapproval before turning his sharp gaze to Rick.
He addressed his subordinates. “Fetch my sword and shield.”
Rising from his seat, the senior knight spoke. “Young master, how about a match with me this time?”