Day 68, year 3000.
A strong tug on the uniform. Still, in a deep sleep, Gawain responded with a weak shoulder shrug.
"Wake up."
Rimu added some more strength and pulled the fresher off his chair. Hanging in the air, Gawain finally opened his eyes.
"Senior?"
The residue of the dried-up saliva had created a white line at the side of his mouth.
"You have classes to attend. Go freshen up."
Gently lowering him to the ground, Rimu allowed him to gain his footing.
Still dazed by the situation, Gawain couldn't help but ask,
"How long was I out for?"
Rimu started to collect all of the books from his table.
"Your first class is in 20 minutes. If I were you, I would focus on getting there on time."
'That long?'
14 hours. He had wasted his precious holiday.
"I'll be leaving then."
He looked at the book in his hand.
"The Ballad of Guardians" Written by Ctesias Strabo.
He memorized that name and left the library in a hurry.
'I don't have time to change, and the first lecture is on etiquette.'
He made his way to the washroom. After cleaning up his face and hair for 15 minutes, he put on his uniform, grabbed his bag, and went straight to the classroom.
3rd floor. He was rushing down the hallway. The classroom came into view.
"Made it."
Just as he said that Miss Gwen appeared at the opposite end of the hallway.
"Shit."
She looked at him and flashed out a smile.
"Gawain. Aren't you late for the class?"
'This can't be good.'
"I would like to apologize for being tardy, Miss Gwen. I overslept while researching something in the library."
He said it as it was.
"Overslept in the library?"
Gwen wasn't buying it.
"Rimu would never allow that."
Gawain bowed slightly.
"If you doubt my honesty, then I request that you ask Senior Rimu himself."
This was as sincere as he could be. Gwen closed her eyes and said,
"Come on. We don't have all day."
She walked towards the classroom. Gawain raised his head and followed suit.
It is not a good quality for a knight, regardless of their status, to bow before people. Be confident, look into their eyes, and answer with candor."
"Thank y-"
"No need to thank me. As your teacher, I must inform you of your mistakes, and it is your job to correct them."
She gave him some advice as they walked into the classroom. Ignoring the eyes of the students, they both went straight to their respective positions.
"Take out your textbooks, and open page 42. Today's topic will be,"
Gawain read the title of the chapter.
'Nobility of Knights.'
Everyone was hooked. Gwen looked at her class and asked,
"What do you understand by this title?"
One of the girls raised her hand.
"Yes?"
She stood up and said,
"The hierarchy in which knights are placed into the upper echelons of the nobility as assigned by the council."
Gwen nodded.
"Correct answer. As a proper knight, one is assigned a higher standing along with a rank that allows them to be associated with the upper class."
She took a piece of chalk from the table and started to scribble something on the board.
"Red Knights, Black Knights, and the Prime Knight."
In ascending order.
"As knights, we have to be available to fight against rebellions, clean up bandit hideouts, and most importantly of all, finish off the humanoid monsters that are created inside the Hell Gate."
A Hellgate, or a domain that appears from time to time throughout Euphemia, is an unknown phenomenon in which humanoid monsters appear out of trigger points and begin killing as many humans as possible.
"As a red knight, you are representing our academy, as well as the kingdom in general. A second-year can easily become a red knight. The overall success rate is 89 percent. They are considered to be on the level of lower-tier nobles, and one must still be wary of their attitude in front of higher tier nobles as a red knight."
She circled the first name.
"There are also sub-tiers of red knights. A tier one red knight is a warrior that is adept at the use of one proper weapon combination and has suitable education. A tier one red knight needs to defeat a tier two master of his weapon combination, or master another weapon combination and give an exam to climb up to tier two. And finally, tier three can only be achieved by defeating a tier three master in combat. No examinations, no additional weapon mastery."
Turning toward the board, she circled the second class.
"Red Knights are infinitely more worthy than normal foot soldiers but equally less worthy than black knights. The success rate of advancing from a red knight to a black knight is less than 1%.To be honest, I can't see anyone from this class making it that far, simply because of the requirement."
Everyone was paying attention. There was only one question on their mind.
'What is the requirement?'
She obliged their curiosity.
"Recognition by the council. If a three-tiered or second-tiered red knight is considered to be of high potential, the kingdom invites them to train under a specified black knight. After 3 years of service, it is in the hands of the black knight to say whether the proposed red knight is ready to be inducted into the kingdom and carry the mantle of a black knight."
Most of them gave up at the prospect of it. The potential was key, and as nobles, they were not sure whether their potential was good enough. That thought was enough to disqualify them from the race.
"There are no tiers for black knights. There are only 500 of them at the moment, and they are all assets to the kingdom. Plus, they are on par with the highest of nobles, but they are below the council. In some cases, their words are considered the law, and they make critical decisions on the battlefield. One must treat them with the utmost respect, and never test their patience in any manner."
She turned back towards the board.
"And finally, the prime knight."
She circled the last name.
At any given point in time, only one of them can exist in the kingdom. They are proper members of the council. The overlords of the knights in Euphemia, their influence has no equal when it comes to the hierarchy of knights. Our current Prime Knight is?"
This name was common knowledge in the kingdom.
"Bertrand IV."
The Phoenix of Athena
Everyone answered simultaneously.