Becoming a knight is surprisingly easy.

Of course, whether one achieves great success and rises through the ranks after becoming a knight is an entirely different story.

The act of becoming a knight itself is simply a matter of applying.

So, becoming a knight was easy.

…Only for the nobles, that is.

The Empire as a nation operates this way.

It is an undisputed hegemonic power, unmatched in technology or military might.

Facilities like the Mana Train and various resources are provided.

One can enjoy a level of cultural life that almost makes you feel bad comparing it to other countries.

However, these benefits come with the condition: “if you are a noble.”

The same applies to this knight exam.

Some must work their fingers to the bone just to secure a place, while others merely benefit from being born into the right family.

What a maddening situation it is.

But what can one do? This is just the way the world is.

Derek was an ordinary citizen.

Finding the location of the exam was already a preliminary task.

He slept rough to gather information, faced attacks from monsters, navigated through mazes, and after all that, he finally stood at the starting line.

He felt a wave of despair and frustration at the thought that a noble could just sign up and become a knight without any hassle.

But there was nothing Derek could do about it.

He wasn’t foolish enough to openly criticize the nobles or society’s issues in the Empire.

Though he liked the Black Fangs, he definitely didn’t have the guts to join them for some secret rebellion activities.

So, even while thinking the unfairness of the knight exam freaking ridiculous, Derek made the ordinary choice to head to the examination site.

High mountains.

He keeps trudging up the painfully steep path. It’s tough, for sure, but fortifying his body with mana made it bearable.

Considering all the thresholds he had crossed so far, this didn’t even feel like a hardship.

If he kept climbing, he’d soon see the exam site. He should view this as an opportunity to save his energy instead.

Just then, while Derek was calming his racing heart with those thoughts, he heard rustling sounds.

Something was approaching through the bushes.

‘…Of course.’

Ascending this mountain had to be a trial in itself. They probably unleashed a monster.

Seriously, what is all this nonsense?

Even if he made it through the exam, he’d still be discriminated against for being a commoner—do they really have to go this far?

Those thoughts flooded his mind, but still, being a knight seemed to offer a far better life than mercenary work.

Living among cutthroats filled with betrayal was far worse for his mental health.

Once he earned the apprentice title, the pay wasn’t bad, and knights could also enjoy some nice side perks—very attractive options.

So giving up here was not an option.

With that resolve, Derek drew his sword and readied himself for a fight.

The rustling sounds grew louder, and from within the bushes emerged… a giant monster attacking him….

But that didn’t happen.

“……?”

What came out was a white-haired boy.

At first, Derek thought the boy was a monster mimicking a human, but he was too well-crafted for that.

“Did you take a wrong turn or something?”

It was an unavoidable question.

The boy was way too young to have come here to become a knight.

The absence of any scars on his body proved he had no battle experience at all.

“Isn’t this the exam site?”

The boy then responded just like that.

He didn’t seem lost at all. He knew exactly where he was.

Derek paused, suddenly realizing what was happening.

‘…He must have overheard someone randomly.’

There was no way the inexperienced boy, without a single scar, had made it here without some tired expression on his face.

He definitely picked up the info from another careless examinee.

Looking at the boy, Derek cautiously spoke.

“I’m saying this for your own good… you should turn back now, kid.”

While he had dabbled in some dirty work as a mercenary, Derek was inherently a kind-hearted guy.

He wasn’t naive enough to risk his life for someone, but he was also not the type to ignore someone he could save with a few words of advice.

“You shouldn’t die unless you have terrible luck, but what if you get hurt? You probably can’t even afford to visit a temple.”

Derek said that with a worried face, but there was no answer.

The boy who had been there vanished somewhere.

Whether he went back properly or ignored the advice and dashed to the exam site, he couldn’t be sure.

But he didn’t have the luxury to go searching the mountain to find out. So, he discarded those thoughts and moved on.

*

‘……As expected.’

Derek arrived at the exam site.

Seeing the white-haired boy again made him sigh.

He knew this would happen.

That kid is still just a child.

Being reckless and willing to grasp this lucky chance, it’d be stranger if he did listen to Derek’s advice.

‘Should I try to persuade him again now…?’

Derek approached the boy but quickly reconsidered and stopped.

There was no point in talking; he simply wouldn’t listen.

Plus, he didn’t have time to worry about someone else right now.

The exam would start soon.

Derek blockaded his thoughts about the boy and looked around.

Focusing mana into his eyes, he scanned the area to see elaborately made training dummies.

‘Just as I suspected.’

This was the most common type.

Of course, he had studied up for this.

Unlike the ordinary training dummies for sale, these were specialized, so they wouldn’t be an easy target.

But this seemed manageable enough.

With that thought in mind, Derek stood waiting for the exam to begin.

Before long, the examiner appeared.

And she opened her mouth to speak.

“This task is a bit special.”

However, her words sounded a bit strange.

What could possibly be special about a dummy?

People who came prepared had practiced for this kind of exercise that appeared frequently.

There was a weird feeling in the air.

It felt like something was off.

To prove that feeling right, the examiner continued speaking.

“Take down this prisoner. The method is up to you. We will observe the whole process and evaluate each individual’s abilities.”

…What the hell?

Whenever did bad premonitions ever lead people astray?

The surroundings grew chaotic.

Everyone looked pale, talking about the man bound in chains.

Datrikh.

A knight slayer.

A monster that had slaughtered knights who wielded aura. Now that murderer was standing right in front of them.

‘…Why?’

While knight exams are tough, this isn’t some survival game.

Sure, injuries or accidents might cause some deaths, but the test content itself had always been normal.

But regardless of Derek’s distress, the examiner kept explaining.

The examinees would be teleported randomly across this mountain, after which they would disable Datrikh’s restraints.

Whether they used ambush, sneak attacks, or assassination.

They were free to choose any approach.

“Wait a minute. This is too much! I don’t want to participate anymore…”

A young man’s voice expressing displeasure suddenly cut off. A mana arrow shot by the examiner speared right through the center of his head.

Babbling some nonsense that cowards aren’t needed for the imperial knight order.

It was then that Derek realized.

Why all of this was happening.

The utterly abnormal circumstances.

They had definitely prepared dummies for use today, and then suddenly the exam content changed. Plus, the bizarre, random praises of the Empire by the examiner.

Something could only explain all of this.

Interference from someone high up.

Someone with a taste for the grotesque had altered the exam content to suit their pleasure, and was undoubtedly watching this unfold.

Moreover, seeing the examiner drenched in cold sweat, it was clear this was no small-time player.

…Or perhaps.

As ridiculous as it might sound, it could be one of the royals coming to watch the event.

Now that he thought about it, he had seen a blonde, muscle-bound guy passing by earlier—could it be…?

‘No, that’s not the important thing right now.’

He needed to run.

But right now wasn’t the time to flee.

If he took off now, he’d be just like that young man who got snuffed out.

If he was going to run, he had to do so when that high-up wasn’t watching, after they were teleported randomly to some spot on the mountain.

The magic circle was taking shape.

Derek was sweating bullets as he counted down.

3… 2… 1.

Now!!

His body shone and moved somewhere, and immediately, Derek dashed away to escape the mountain.

In doing so, Derek continued his mercenary life while living a life suited for his role.

…That was what should have happened.

Yet something felt off. The examiner was still there.

Cold sweat trickled down Derek’s back.

‘Please tell me I’m wrong.’

With that thought, he looked down at where he was.

The rock beneath him had moved slightly to the left.

In other words…

Derek had been teleported just 5cm sideways.

In this vast mountain.

Among that expansive place, the random teleportation landed him a mere 5cm from his previous spot.

Datrikh was still nearby, of course.

‘…Damn it.’

He was dead. There was no way to survive this.

Running wouldn’t help.

The injuries he had endured passing through a maze before weren’t anything to scoff at.

Datrikh was proficient in martial arts and blood techniques.

No matter how fast he was, Datrikh would be right on his tail.

Despair and fear froze Derek’s body.

And what he saw…

Was that white-haired boy again.

That tiny one must have had even worse luck—staying right where he was before. Anyone would think the teleport spell didn’t work at all.

This was the worst kind of bad luck.

He was even closer to Datrikh now, and as soon as those restraints were removed, he’d be cut clean in half.

Whether he felt the impending doom or not, the boy didn’t even try to run.

Not that it mattered to Derek.

As long as the boy could buy him some time, he might buy a few more seconds for himself, so he couldn’t focus on how that kid fared.

He knew he shouldn’t care.

“Are you crazy?! Run, now!”

Derek raced toward the boy.

His body moved of its own accord, cursing him.

But not seeming to realize those thoughts, the boy just kept locking eyes with Datrikh.

Datrikh was glaring at the boy with murderous eyes while he was acting provocatively.

“Have you never heard of the knight slayer? That guy is that infamous murderer!!”

Derek rattled the boy’s shoulders while shouting, but the boy seemed dazed, spouting incomprehensible nonsense instead.

“I know.”

“Then why are you just standing there?! Do you think you’re a master swordsman or something?!”

“I only learned some moves in a crash course yesterday with Lucy. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

“Fine?! What the heck is ‘fine?!’”

The sound of the restraints crashing to the floor echoed.

The chilling killing intent was palpable.

The guy was slowly walking towards Derek.

This was the end.

There was no hope left. Dying alongside that crazy little boy was the fate Derek was about to face.

Derek’s legs turned to jelly.

He fell helplessly to the ground.

But then…

Someone stepped in front of him.

The white-haired boy stood there, sword drawn.

“I might not be great with swords, but I can swing it horizontally with all my might.”

Strange words.

Yet before Derek could even question the meaning, something extraordinary happened. The ground shook.

All the mana in the vicinity concentrated onto that one boy.

And he… swung his sword.

Just as the boy described, it held no technique, no finesse, nor enlightenment.

But the trajectory made by the boy’s blade…

It drew an exquisite line in the world.

That line split everything before the boy in two. In other words…

The mountain was cleaved in half by the boy’s sword.

The surreal sight astonished Derek.

With wide eyes and dripping cold sweat, the boy turned around and smiled calmly at him.

“Told you, didn’t I? You didn’t have to worry.”