Episode 267
Chapter 85: The Knight Appointment Ceremony
The Knights’ Corridor.
That massive hallway, nestled beside the Garden of Swords, was the longest passageway in all of Runcandel.
Both walls lining the corridor were densely inscribed with the names of every Knight of Runcandel throughout history.
Those who had achieved exceptional feats among the Knights had their portraits hung alongside their names.
Jin walked slowly, reading the names on the walls.
A smile crept onto his face.
Amazingly, he could recall most of the list from the past thousand years by heart.
“How many books about the Knights must I have read in my previous life?”
At the very end of this seemingly endless list—like a river of stars—his own name would soon be engraved.
Step by step.
The closer he got to the corridor’s end, the more overwhelming the energy became.
The power naturally radiating from Sirron and Rosa, the eleven Knights standing before them, and the hundred or so knights gathered around.
At this moment, his heart fluttered like a child’s.
In Runcandel’s thousand-year history, Jin was the only pureblood who had never become a family Knight.
Not only that, but he had been utterly denied his place in the family, erased from all records, and even exiled.
And yet now, here he was, walking proudly through this corridor.
“It took a full forty-seven years…”
Twenty-eight in his previous life, nineteen in this one.
His nose tingled briefly.
Looking back on a single lifetime, he had finally found his rightful place—and his body trembled with the realization.
As he reached the corridor’s end, Jin composed his expression and breath.
Sirron and Rosa stood at the center, flanked by the eleven brothers clad in their armor.
Around them, about a hundred knights formed a circle, and the family’s chroniclers and painters observed the scene with solemn faces.
“Let the twelfth Knight, Jin Runcandel, come forward.”
Rosa spoke first.
She wore a faint smile of pride, but Jin knew it wasn’t genuine.
“Mother is my greatest adversary,” he thought.
Standing directly before him was Joshua Runcandel, his eldest brother.
Joshua’s greatest source of power was Rosa herself.
A question suddenly crossed Jin’s mind.
“How much does Mother really know?”
Did she know about Joshua’s attempt to curse him? About the contract he tried to steal? About the mysterious prophet who created Joshua’s clones and wielded dark, unfathomable powers?
Could Rosa Runcandel be unaware of these things?
“Mother isn’t that naive. After I was exiled from the family in my previous life, she fasted for two days—perhaps out of guilt over the curse.”
Rosa might not have just known about Joshua’s actions—she may have even orchestrated some of it.
A surge of disgust and hatred welled up inside him.
But if Rosa was involved in the curse, it was because she believed it was the best path for Runcandel.
This ruthless family had always been like that.
Each member pursued what they thought was best for Runcandel, with no room for trivial emotions like familial love.
Even if it meant cursing a newborn to become disabled.
Even if it meant far worse.
As long as it was for the family’s sake and yielded fitting results, nothing else mattered.
“Thanks to Mother and Joshua’s judgment, I gritted my teeth and survived. So, Mother’s will was right.”
If he hadn’t seen with his own eyes the blade that fell on his cradle when he was one year old…
Jin might have been a weaker man.
Revenge and hatred often became the greatest driving forces in life.
Though Jin didn’t yet know it, Rosa had once even chosen him as the next family head after Joshua.
That decision, too, was made with Runcandel’s best interests in mind.
“Of course, now that I’ve returned, Mother and Joshua must take responsibility. Just as I’ve chosen to respect Mother’s repugnant judgment, it’s time for her to respect mine.”
Even if Rosa hadn’t directly participated in the curse, it no longer mattered much to Jin.
After all, Rosa would never give up on making Joshua the family head.
Jin smiled at Rosa.
Then, taking his place before Sirron and Rosa, the Knights drew their swords in unison.
Shing!
The Knights lined up on both sides, forming a path with their blades.
Luna, Joshua, Runtia, Dipus, Ran, Vigo, Merry, Mew, Ann, and Tona—the eleven brothers—all hid their true feelings as they looked at Jin.
“You will be the king of this ruthless family. I will make sure of it.”
“All will unfold according to the prophecy, Jin.”
The thoughts of Luna and Joshua.
“A magic swordsman… I never imagined this guy would shake the very foundation of Runcandel.”
“I was hoping he’d challenge me, but now it seems I’m the one who must challenge him!”
Dipus and Merry.
“Joshua’s caution toward him wasn’t unfounded.”
“Mew and Ann will be in a tough spot.”
Ran and Vigo.
“Damn it, to crush him now, I’ll need Joshua’s power.”
“We should have killed him back then!”
Mew and Ann.
“But… the youngest is one rank below us, so officially, he’s lower in hierarchy?”
“Please don’t let the youngest be as much of a pain as Mew and Ann. I guess I should try to get on his good side, like Emma said…”
Tona brothers.
Jin felt as if he could read all their thoughts—except for one person.
“Runtia… I have no idea what she’s thinking.”
Runtia was the only sibling Luna found difficult to read.
In truth, she was thinking just three words.
“…What a bother.”
Runtia was already weary of the bloodshed Jin’s return would bring to the family.
She also hoped the youngest would keep a low profile, just like her.
“I wonder how Yona is doing. She must have been frantic when I disappeared.”
The only sibling absent from this gathering.
Looking at the scene—like a den of wild beasts—Jin felt reassured knowing she was on his side.
At last, Sirron met Jin’s gaze.
“Pass through.”
Jin stepped into the path formed by the Knights’ swords.
Each time he passed, two swords dropped to the ground, closing like a door.
At the end, Luna was the last to lower her blade.
Once all the Knights had lowered their swords and held their stance, the hundred or so knights forming the circle raised their blades in unison.
“Jin Runcandel has finally earned the right to raise the family’s banner wherever he goes. From now on, as the twelfth Knight of the family, he shall bear the duties and authority that come with it. But remember, if he ever tarnishes the family’s honor, it may be revoked at any moment.”
“Understood, twelfth Knight Jin Runcandel.”
“Return the Knights’ and Guardian Knights’ swords to their places.”
This was the most important ritual of the appointment ceremony.
The Knights’ swords, which had been lowered to the ground, were raised again, while the Guardian Knights’ swords, which had been held high, were lowered.
The Knights’ swords were to be struck upward, and the Guardian Knights’ swords struck downward—with Jin’s sword.
Failing this wouldn’t mean he couldn’t become a Knight, but it would leave a stain on his reputation from the very start.
At this moment, it was customary for the brothers to accept the new Knight’s sword without resistance.
Jin turned and slowly drew Sigmund.
The first sword to be raised was Luna’s Krantel. The massive axe-sword hung low, but it seemed to brace itself firmly, as if resisting.
A sly smile spread across Luna’s face. She was teasing him.
Naturally, she expected Jin to be strong enough to forcefully raise the Krantel she was holding down.
Bang!
Jin struck Sigmund upward with a roar.
Luna barely suppressed her surprise and smoothly lifted her sword.
“Hey, no need to hit it that hard! My wrist hurts, you know!”
The Krantel was raised again, and Jin passed by Luna, returning her smile.
Seeing this, the other brothers who had planned to break tradition quietly gave up.
Mew and Ann had intended to cause trouble, and Merry wanted to test Jin’s strength by breaking the custom.
The other ten Knights’ swords rose quietly back to their places without any forceful strikes.
Next came the turn of the hundred or so Guardian Knights to lower their swords.
“They’re all senior Guardian Knights.”
There was no custom requiring the Guardian Knights to lower their swords when the new Knight’s blade touched theirs.
Instead, the number of Guardian Knights assigned corresponded to the new Knight’s achievements.
In Tona’s case, more than half were junior Guardian Knights, which was slightly below the average for Runcandel Knights.
The Guardian Knights gripped their swords tightly, standing firm.
All those hundred blades had to be lowered.
For Jin, who had already passed Garmund’s test when he first went to Lafrarosa, this was no challenge.
Clang, clang! Bang!
Each time Jin struck, the Guardian Knights’ swords dropped to the ground.
They showed no sign of surprise, silently accepting Jin’s blade.
“Surely this won’t shock you anymore.”
Contrary to Jin’s thoughts, the Guardian Knights were deeply shaken inside.
Some of the knights who had been pushing themselves to their limits found it hard to accept that Jin was still not even twenty years old.
The captain’s sword soared into the sky once more, and it took nearly ten minutes before all the guardian knights’ swords finally came down.
When Jin returned to consciousness, Rosa’s face broke into a satisfied smile.
“The captain’s appointment ceremony is complete. Jin Runkandel, you are to proceed through the Captain’s Hall and meet with the elders of the family council.”
The ceremony was over.
Jin had officially become the twelfth captain of Runkandel and had earned the right to meet the elders as a captain.
Meeting the elders as a captain was a world apart from being a cadet or a prospective captain.
It was the elders who passed down the family’s secret techniques and the ‘Clan Battle Arts’ to the captains.
“Mother and Joshua have probably already set something up with the elders, so this is going to be awkward. If only one of them would step forward willingly to teach me, I’d never forget it.”