Saving the ruined Knights’ Order

Episode 7

Hmm.

The sleep was terrible.

Well, of course, it was. I had been sleeping in a cool, soft bed, but now, I was stuck with this lousy, creaky thing. The room wasn’t any better—it wasn’t just cold, it had holes everywhere.

But the worst part? Something else was keeping me from sleeping.

Flap, flap, flap.

Chirp, chirp, chirp.

“Ugh, shut up…”

Since this dorm was in the middle of the forest, birds had been making noise from early morning. But today, it sounded different.

Flap! Caw! Flap, flap!

I frowned and turned my head toward the window.

Just as I thought—crows, or maybe ravens, were perched all over the branches near my room, staring straight at me.

A chill ran from the soles of my feet to the top of my head. I mumbled under my breath.

“I’m not a corpse, you crazy birds.”

FLAP!

Startled, the birds took off in a frenzy.

Seriously? Did they think I was dead? If I had slept with my window open, those things might’ve pecked at me.

Feeling more and more disgusted, I got up and started getting ready. If I wanted to escape this miserable situation, I needed to become a knight as soon as possible.

Luckily, there was still one open spot left.

“Please, let me pass today…” I muttered a useless prayer and stepped outside.

If I got my first paycheck, I’d cut that stupid tree down.

Never underestimate an experienced player, you birdbrains.

***

Just as I was about to leave the dorm, I noticed an envelope in the mailbox.

Curious, I grabbed it and opened it quickly.

It was written in that fancy handwriting that only Hood could pull off.

> Isaac, congratulations. Someone has decided to sponsor your entry into the Volunteer Knights. A new recruit is waiting for you at Knight’s Forge.

Thinking about how I was almost bird food this morning, I let out a relieved sigh.

So, fate wasn’t out to kill me just yet.

At the bottom of the letter was the name of my squadmate—Charlie.

And below that, a new name had been added to the list.

Finally, our knight squad had two members.

0 and 1 are completely different numbers.

To any new recruits looking for a squad, a knight order with zero members and one with at least two would feel completely different.

And right now, I was holding proof of that difference.

A brand-new recruit! I wonder what kind of cute little newbie they are?

Humming a tune, I made my way toward Knight’s Forge.

Recruitment events like this happened from time to time in this game. Usually, I had to go out and personally find new knights, but if I was lucky, someone would see the recruitment notice and join on their own.

And when that happened, we called it getting a lucky roll.

“Guess the gods haven’t completely abandoned me after all.”

Honestly, my starting conditions were awful. No starter knight, unfair character selection—just pure bad luck.

But if I thought about it, maybe Isaac Wood was just a character with good luck in recruitment!

Hopefully, this new recruit would be someone strong.

By the time I finished that thought, my excited legs had already carried me to Knight’s Forge.

And sure enough, there was someone standing near the entrance—probably the new recruit.

But something felt… off.

Narrowing my eyes, I walked toward them.

“Wait… a girl?”

The figure was slender. And now that I looked closer, they had long, silky hair.

Definitely a girl.

“A female recruit? But who could it be?”

This game wasn’t sexist—gender didn’t affect abilities—but all the knights who got lucky rolls at this stage were… unusual.

“No, no. Don’t overthink it. Right now, I don’t care if she’s a little weird. If I don’t fill this spot soon, my father’s enemies will kill me.”

As long as she wasn’t that person, anyone would do.

Of course, getting someone like Sayrin or Boone would be amazing, but at this point, I wasn’t going to be picky.

Just as I reached the building, the recruit turned around at the perfect moment.

“Oh? Could you be the captain of the Volunteer Knights?”

Shiny hair. A bright smile. A cheerful voice.

And my mood, sinking like a stone.

A girl as radiant as a spring flower bowed politely.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Karen Ellera, the new recruit!”

Oh no.

The gods really had abandoned me.

“Sir Isaac Wood, please let me join the Volunteer Knights!”

This girl… she was that person.

***

Ellera.

The Ellera family was famous not just in this country but all over the world. Known for their legendary swordsmanship, their bloodline was said to carry the power of the goddess herself.

Their knights were prodigies. By the age of 15, they mastered the basics. By 20, they gained their sword name.

Graduating at the top of the academy? Normal for them. Most knights took five years to rank up, but Ellera knights did it in three.

Truly, they were blessed by the gods.

But even they had one major problem…

There are no female knights in the Ellera family.

Why?

Because, for some strange reason, the women of the Ellera bloodline never had any talent for knighthood.

But standing in front of me was the one exception. The first female knight of the Ellera family.

Karen Ellera.

A mutation in the bloodline.

A one-of-a-kind knight.

In the later parts of the game, she had S-rank stats and good synergy with other characters.

She had a cute face, a bright personality, and later in the story, she matured into a reliable warrior.

But… she was never that popular among players.

Why?

Because of that cursed last name—Ellera.

Sigh.

Karen herself wasn’t the problem.

But the moment she joined a knight order, the rest of the crazy Ellera family would come knocking.

And those guys were insane.

Let me give an example.

< “I may have lost today, but next time, I’ll defeat you for sure!”

“My will cannot be broken! I am a knight of the Ellera family!”

“The blood of Ellera burns like an eternal flame! I will defeat you!” >

These kinds of dramatic lines? Normal for them.

They weren’t just passionate—they were obsessive.

And now, the first-ever female Ellera knight has appeared.

Of course, her family went absolutely nuts.

They adored their bloodline, and Karen was their precious miracle.

Which meant that if I accepted her into my knight order…

< “Hey, Captain. How is Karen doing?”

“She’s following the training rules, right? If she collapses from exhaustion, you’d better be prepared—I will duel you.”

“You think you’re worthy of commanding Karen? I refuse to accept this. I challenge you to a duel.”

“Karen’s light has faded. She must be suffering under your leadership. I will not forgive you. Duel me.” >

These crazy bastards.

And that wasn’t even the worst part.

At first, it was just annoying. But after restarting again and again, it became unbearable.

These Ellera lunatics interfered so much that even progressing the story became difficult.

Karen wasn’t just an inconvenient recruit—she was a game-breaking disaster.

I had recruited her before, thinking it would help, and every single time, I regretted it.

> “Um, Captain? You’ll accept me, right?”

That walking catastrophe was now looking up at me with big, sparkling eyes.

So pure. So naive.

She had grown up in a perfect environment, never doubting that the world would accept her with open arms.

No. Absolutely not.

Karen was an S-rank talent, sure.

But if I took her in, I would never escape the Ellera family’s madness.

The smarter move?

Ditch her here and find someone else.

Because if I wasn’t careful, I wouldn’t just lose my position as Captain—I’d end up dead.

So my answer was obvious.

“No. I refuse.”

Karen’s response?

“Then I refuse too.”

A long silence.

I blinked.

“What… the hell are you talking about?”

“I refuse your refusal. I will join.”

What.

Was this girl out of her mind?

Did she really think the world worked however she wanted?

I wanted to smack some sense into her.

But Karen just frowned.

“Why are you rejecting me? Do you think I’m not strong enough?”

Not at all.

If she was weak, then every other knight was a literal newborn.

Right now, there was no one better than her.

But if I accepted her, the entire Ellera family would come after me.

I still had six days left to find another recruit.

There was no reason to bring this headache into my knight order.

Even without Karen, I could clear the game on my own.

So I shook my head firmly.

“I don’t get along with Ellera people.”

“Then I’ll make sure we get along, Captain!”

Persistent.

So very Ellera.

And then—

A glow surrounded Karen’s body.

That same strange light I had seen before.

The light that had appeared when I recruited Charlie Wayne.