The next day, all participants were called to the great assembly hall, the same place they were asked to wait in before the start of the tournament.
No matter whether they won or lost, all were invited to celebrate.
All 100 participating squires were seated in the front area, right in front of the three knight commanders and the seven envoys from each kingdom. Among the squires, Emery was seated in the best position.
However, marring this joyous occasion was one figure seated in the front. Everyone stared at him in mixed emotions, ranging from anger, bewilderment, or plain insulted look. Thanks to that person, the situation turned a little bit awkward.
It was Prince Edward of the Cantiaci Kingdom.
Though his deeds saw him stripped off the title of 'Silver Knight', he still shamelessly came to the ceremony under his title as the envoy of the Cantiaci Kingdom.
It appeared the three knight commanders agreed to let him take part, as long as he didn't create any problems for the participating squires.
The prince sat in his corner and spectated the event with a frown on his face.
After making sure everyone was accounted for, Knight Commander Agrival the Wise stood up and declared the start of the ceremony. He opened with a story about the history of Knights of the Divine Order.
"Our order was created and bound with a sacred duty. We are bound by oath to protect this realm of men from invaders or outside forces that threaten our existence."
Emery had heard this story before, usually right before he was asked to do a little sparring against his father. Since he was a child, he had kept the words close to his heart, and now it was a reminder of better times in his childhood.
But, when he heard the story from the knight commander, a different feeling stirred his heart.
Thanks to his journey in the Magus Academy, Emery had learned that there were much bigger worlds out there in the universe. Now, a seemingly-noble cause like defending the island from the northerners became a tiny blip in comparison to all he had witnessed.
Even Briton with its seven kingdoms was tiny compared to the rest of the Earth.
Being a student of the prestigious Magus Academy did really give him a lot of new perspective about the world.
Either way, there was no way to explain what he knew about this world to anyone other than his four friends. There was nothing he could really do about it as long as the restriction spell was still in place.
After the end of the speech, the accolade ceremony finally started.
First, it started with the oath. The 100 squires stood together and recited the oath perfectly.
"We are the knights of the Divine Order. We are the protector of the realm, slayers of evil. We will always be brave and upright. Speak the truth even if it leads to our death. Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong. This is our oath!"
The three knight commanders stood up, walked in front of the gathered squires and started to call their names.
The called squire walked to the front and knelt with one knee in front of the three knight commanders.
Sir Aewin the Aegis pulled out his sword. From a glance alone, it was clear the sword was made by a master blacksmith, the carvings on its handle looked exquisite yet sturdy enough to withstand countless blows in battle. The blade was gleaming white under the light of day.
The knight commander raised his sword and swung it twice, stopping right above the squire's shoulder every time.
"With the power vested in me by the Divine Order and by the blessing of all the witnesses here, I dub thee a knight of the divine order."
The knight commanders repeated the gesture one by one to all the squires. Each was done with the utmost respect, showing how sacred it was to the people.
"Lanzelot Dulat!"
The same words and gestures were repeated to him.
Right after the ceremony was finished, the knighted squires all shouted.
"Sir Lanzelot Dulat!"
"Rise, from today onwards, all of you are knights!" The Knight Commander shouted.
Everyone stood up and cheered, both for Emery's knight ceremony and for their own success. Right after they stood up, they were directed to another room. Each of them was given a box made of smooth wood.
They opened the box and looked inside, admiring the sword nestled against the luxurious red fabric. The sword's handle was simple, but beautifully carved wood covered with leather for easy gripping, while the blade was brilliant silver reflecting each squire's face on its surface.
The sword was a special weapon made as a welcome gift to the order. Even from a single glance, Emery could recognize the sword had a similar quality as the roman sword. This is the exact same sword that used by Sir Badgemagus.
Next, the knight commanders announced Lanzelot's success as a triple champion. The emergence of a triple champion was such a rare event, the amount of times it happened in any yearly tournaments throughout the history of Briton could be counted on one hand. Even without knowing this fact, everyone realized the weight of Lanzo's achievement.
Winning against favored squires from other kingdoms was no easy feat, after all.
To commemorate this achievement, he was given a golden medal and a hefty bag full of gold coins. Right now, Emery didn't really need coins considering his relations with the Quintin's, but more money was always better. He had always known that he could not rely on another's generosity forever, no matter how generous they seemed. After all, there was no telling what might happen in the future.
After the ceremony was over, the new silver knights were all called upon for a special commemoration event just for them. Together with all the golden knights present, they were led to another building, a certain fort-like building that Emery had been sneaking on into.
This was the one moment Emery had been waiting for.