The next morning, before the first light of dawn had even begun to color the sky, Clobber was already awake.
He'd slept deeply the night before—likely a result of several days of nonstop travel and lack of rest. The sleep had been so deep that, had it not been for his precisely-timed internal clock, he might have slept right through the morning.
At that moment, he was standing in the back courtyard of the tavern, holding his knight's longsword, performing basic warm-up drills.
His two young squire attendants, Will and Sam, had long since grown accustomed to Clobber's training schedule and methods. They'd seen it all by now.
"Will, how long do you think it'll take for me to break through and become a full knight, like Clobber?" Sam, the rounder of the two, said with a touch of envy, watching Clobber as he practiced his combat skills on the training ground.
Will, tall and lean, stood beside Sam with an expressionless face, though the eagerness in his eyes matched Sam's.
"You think everyone's got Clobber's natural talent?" Will replied, his tone a little sharp. "We're older than him, and yet he's already a full knight. Meanwhile, we're still just mid-level knight attendants. We're not even close to his level."
"If you ask me," Will continued, his gaze never leaving Clobber, "we should just stay loyal to our young master. Maybe one day, he'll remember our devotion and give us a potion to break through. We'd be way luckier than those guys who risk their lives on missions."
Sam frowned, clearly annoyed by Will's sermon.
"Come on, Will, I'm just admiring Clobber's talent. Why do you always make it sound like I'm being disloyal? If anyone hears you, they might think I'm plotting something!"
But Will didn't even acknowledge Sam's irritation. He simply watched Clobber's training, waiting for the moment when his master would finish. He'd be ready to offer him a towel and water as soon as the session ended, fulfilling his duties as a loyal servant.
Sam, feeling ignored, was determined to be the first one to present the towel to Clobber. He could never let Will steal the spotlight, not if he could help it.
Meanwhile, Clobber was completely oblivious to the silent rivalry between his two attendants. He was too focused on his own training.
The Glorious Blade, Clobber's longsword, had grown even more refined and powerful from constant use during their journey. Today, however, he was practicing a different technique—the Golden Halo Shield.
This technique was defensive, and only knights who had reached the full rank of a formal knight were allowed to practice it. The basic requirement was to channel one's battle qi and envelop the body—or at least a large part of it—with a protective shield. While Clobber hadn't yet reached the level where he could cover his entire body, his control over his battle qi far exceeded that of other full knights.
Now, he could focus his shield on the key areas of his body, like his heart and the joints of his limbs. This allowed him to defend against surprise attacks, prevent injuries that could incapacitate him in battle, and even avoid death. It was a highly practical skill for the battlefield.
His battle qi moved with his intent, and a golden membrane appeared over his right wrist.
Clobber swung his longsword, and the golden shield intercepted the blow. He then struck harder, testing the strength of the shield.
When he applied about 60% of his strength, he felt a slight tremor in the shield. By 80%, the shield began to crack.
"The Golden Halo Shield is still a bit unfamiliar," Clobber thought as he lowered his sword. "Once I get the hang of it, it should be able to withstand almost all of my current strength. But that's only for a newly-advanced knight like me. If I'm up against someone who's been practicing longer or has stronger physical abilities, they might break through this. Still, it's a good start. Once I can fully cover my body, the strength of the shield will increase."
He sheathed his sword and accepted the towel Will handed him, preparing to head into the tavern for a hearty breakfast to fuel him for the Dragon Breath Knight Order's initiation tests.
Since Will and Sam had been assigned to assist Clobber, Sir Foster had focused his attention on both Clobber's meals and his own training.
Clobber had spoken with Sir Foster before, and the older knight had mentioned that he had been stuck at the full knight stage for quite a while. Whether from emotional reasons or rational ones, Clobber was hoping that Sir Foster could make the jump to Great Knight soon. After all, there was only so much one could do as a knight. Great Knights were truly the powerhouses of any army, and having someone like that in his corner could be immensely helpful.
Foster, too, had taken Clobber's "command" to heart. Ever since that day, his training time had increased by several hours each day.
As they entered the tavern's main hall, Clobber ordered a roast swift falcon meal for Foster and a golden yak steak for himself. As for Will and Sam, they were fine with the regular fare. Only formal knights saw any real benefit from eating meat from magical beasts of the same attribute—boosting their physical strength and battle qi. For knight attendants like them, it was little more than extra nutrition, nothing special.
You might wonder, didn't Clobber, back when he was a knight attendant, eat magical beast meat too? That was different. Back then, the food provided by the Deepwater Duchy was barely enough to fill one's stomach, with very little nutritional value. It was a far cry from the high-quality meals available now.
After finishing breakfast, they saddled up their horses and set off toward the castle to report to the Dragon Breath Knight Order.
The path up to the castle was narrow, with only one road leading to it. Along the way, Clobber noticed several squads of knights in fine plate armor, riding majestic warhorses draped in elegant cloaks.
As Clobber spotted one such patrol, they, too, had already noticed his group.
"Stop right there!" The lead knight called out, his voice authoritative. "We are Dragon Breath Knights, in the service of the Duke. Stranger, state your name and purpose, or we'll consider this an act of war."
The knight in charge, exuding the presence of a Great Knight, drew his sword and pointed it at Clobber.
The group halted. Will, ever the dutiful squire, rode forward and planted the pennant on his shoulder in between the two parties. He raised his voice so both sides could hear.
"Before you stands a member of the Golden Rose family, Lilith's son, the grandson of Count Daniel, Clobber Golden Rose. We are here in response to the Duke's summons to join the Dragon Breath Knights. Here is our proof!"
With that, Will laid down the Duke's letter, along with another sealed letter bearing the Golden Rose family crest and the Fire Seal, then returned to Clobber's side, flag in hand.
A squire from the Dragon Breath patrol stepped forward, collecting the two letters and returning to the patrol's leader.
The Duke's letter had already been unsealed, and the leader knight quickly opened it, confirming the summons was genuine. The second letter, bearing the Golden Rose family crest, further reassured him, and the tension in his stance loosened.
He signaled to his men to lower their weapons and then rode forward to meet Clobber.
From a distance, they couldn't make out much, but up close, Clobber's youthful appearance was striking—handsome to the point that even in the Dragon Breath Knights, he would be considered among the best-looking.
Seeing his dazzling golden hair, the leader knight's last shred of caution vanished. After all, the Golden Rose family was famous for that radiant hair, so bright it almost seemed to blind the eye.
The knight dismounted and performed the noble greeting, a formal gesture between peers.
Clobber returned the greeting respectfully.
Once the pleasantries were over, the leader knight spoke.
"Praise your loyalty, Knight Clobber. I am Victor Sunflower, Fifth Knight Commander of the Dragon Breath Knights. Welcome to Saint Golden Fortress. I'll assign one of my knights to guide you through the initiation process. I hope we can work together in the Order. Unfortunately, I have other duties to attend to, so I can't chat for long. Please forgive me."
With that, Victor pointed to one of his knights, signaling him to take Clobber to the castle for the initiation tests.
"I hope you're satisfied with my arrangement, Clobber Golden Rose."
For some reason, Victor placed special emphasis on the Golden Rose part of Clobber's name. If Clobber hadn't sensed any malice in the knight's face, he might have wondered if there was some old grudge between the Sunflower family and the Golden Rose family.
With a final nod, Victor and his patrol continued their rounds, leaving Clobber and his group with the remaining knight and his two squires.
"Please don't mind Commander Victor," the remaining knight said with a slow, deliberate tone as he removed his helmet, revealing his own dazzling golden hair. "He's a man of... peculiar tastes, but he's not bad at heart."
"First time meeting you, my nephew," the knight continued, his voice warm with familiarity. "I'm Dylan Golden Rose. By family ties, you should call me Uncle or Brother-in-law."
Clobber stared at the knight, surprised by the unexpected familial connection.