After being rejected multiple times, Conrad started to feel dejected. He had known beforehand that in order to become a Dragon Knight, your Dragon must first recognize you as its partner.
Seeing that the Wyvern was firm in rejecting him, the third son of the Marquese felt like giving up.
Seeing his sad expression, William knew that the time was now right to offer a carrot that the young noble wouldn't be able to resist.
"I have a way for that Wyvern to recognize you as its Master," William said in a casual manner. "The question is, are you willing to pay the price?"
Conrad turned his head to look at his commander who was looking at him with a serious expression. He didn't know how William was able to make these Wyverns submit to him, but he was willing to pay the price if that would make his dream a reality.
"What price must I pay, Commander?" Conrad asked. "Do you want me to become your servant? Your slave?"
William shook his head. "I don't need a slave, what I need is a Knight. Conrad Kent Carlton, are you willing to become my Knight?"
"Sir, I am already your knight as a member of your Knight Order," Conrad answered. "Is there a difference between being a Knight of your Order and being YOUR Knight?"
"Of course there is a difference," William replied. "Although everyone who joins the Angorian War Sovereign will become a part of our Knight Order, what I am referring to are my True Knights. Right now, I only have one True Knight in the order and that is none other than Dave."
Conrad thought back on the changes that he had felt when he saw Dave return with William that day. The newfound confidence and charisma that Dave radiated was very different from when he was still serving as Conrad's subordinate.
Although he was still the same chubby boy that he knew, he had changed, and Conrad had to admit that the change was for the better.
Conrad also remembered the words that Dave had told him in passing
-----
"But, I hope the day will come when you will become Sir William's strength," Dave said with a serious expression. "I look forward to that day."
-----
'I see, so this is what you meant when you said those words to me, Dave,' Conrad thought as he looked at the red-headed boy in front of him.
As the son of a noble, Conrad was a prideful person. He would not allow himself to serve someone whose rank was lower than his. If others were to offer him the opportunity to serve under them, even if it was a Duke, he still might have refused.
However, William was different.
In his mind, the Half-Elf was just a shepherd.
A shepherd who had miraculously won the title of the Head Prefect of the Martial Class Division.
A shepherd who had led the charge against the Dungeon Outbreak and turned the tide of battle.
A shepherd who had beaten the disciple of the Sword Saint in one-on-one combat.
Conrad felt his blood burn inside his body. He wanted to be able to accomplish the same feats that William had. He wanted to become someone like him who could stand above the rest, regardless of his poor background.
The boy with reddish-brown hair, and hazel eyes, knelt on the ground on one knee. He pressed his closed fist over his chest as he bowed his head in order to show respect to his Commander.
William stepped forward and summoned Rhongomyniad from his storage ring.
He lowered the lance and lightly tapped Conrad's left shoulder.
"In the name of the God of all Trades, Gavin, and the Goddess of Knights, Astrid, I gave you the right to bear arms and the power to mete justice," William said with a righteous tone. "May you protect the innocent and use your strength to uphold the honor of your Sovereign and people."
The lance glowed once as if it was empowering William's words.
"I, Conrad Kent Carlton, hereby declare my undying loyalty to Sir William Von Ainsworth," Conrad pledged. "I swear upon my name that I will serve you with everything in my power and uphold your honor as a Knight of the Angorian War Sovereign."
William lightly tapped Conrad's right shoulder before raising his lance once more towards the sky.
"Rise, my Knight, and uphold the oath that you have made today," William stated. "May your courage, and bravery, illuminate the world for eternity."
Rhongomyniad, showered Conrad with a golden brilliance. The King chess piece within William's Sea of Consciousness, also glowed thrice before returning to its normal state.
Just like what happened when he knighted Dave, a series of words appeared on William's status page.
-----
< Second Knight of the Angorian War Sovereign has been registered >
< Name: Conrad Kent Carlton >
< Bestowing Knight Title....>
< Appropriate Title Found! >
< Conrad Kent Carlton: Dragon Knight of War >
-----
Name: Conrad Kent Carlton
Race: Human
Health Points: 12,000 / 12,000
Mana: 3,000 / 3,000
Prestige Job Class: Dragon Knight of War (Lvl 1)
< Strength: 40 (+10) >
< Agility: 40 (+10) >
< Vitality: 50 (+10) >
< Intelligence: 20 (+10)>
< Dexterity: 40 (+10) >
Skills:
Duel Ex
Union of Man and Beast
Tactician
Dragon Descent
Shield Boomerang
Dragon Meteor
Title: Dragon Knight
< Dragon Knight>
-- When riding a dragon all stats increase by 100%
-- Aerial Mobility increase by 150%
-- Can use Dragon Fury 3x a day.
-----
'His stats are stronger than Dave's,' William thought as he looked at Conrad's stats. 'I guess this is to be expected since his role is the vanguard.'
While William was checking Conrad's skills, the latter looked at his hands with a shocked expression.
Conrad could feel the surge of power that was flowing throughout his body. He then looked at William who he had recognized as his new lord.
The red-headed boy was still holding Rhongomyniad in his hands with its tip pointing towards the sky. He fully understood that his new-found strength was due to his oath to become William's True Knight.
Conrad gave his new Lord a respectful bow before turning his head to look at the Wyvern who had repeatedly rejected him.
The young boy walked towards it with the "Let me see if you dare to reject me this time" expression on his face.
The Wyvern instinctively took a step back because its instincts were telling it that the young boy in front of it had the ability to make it submit now.
The other Wyverns also backed away in fear that Conrad would choose them as his partner instead.
Conrad walked with even steps and stopped two meters away from the Wyvern. He then raised his hand as if beckoning the Wyvern to lower its head and recognize him as his new partner.
The Wyvern looked at the boy for a full minute before lowering its head in submission. Conrad pressed his hand against the Wyvern's head and the bond between the two was officially formed.
The young boy sighed in relief when the Wyvern had recognized him as its rider. He had a feeling that this was only the beginning of a journey that would make him the man he wished to become.
-----
Dave, who was brushing his partner's furry body, looked towards the East. He had sensed a fluctuation of magic power which felt familiar.
A sudden realization appeared in his mind which made him smile.
"You finally made your decision," Dave muttered as a powerful screech resounded from the Eastern part of Lont.
A Wyvern flapped its mighty wings and soared towards the sky. On its back was a young teenage boy who looked at the world around him with a determined gaze.
Since the two were connected with the skill "Union of Man and Beast", Conrad was able to ride the Wyvern without a specialized saddle. The two made incredible aerial stunts in the air which wowed the children who were looking at him from the ground.
Some of them even cheered as the Wyvern passed over their heads.
William watched Conrad's antics with a smile on his face. With the addition of his new Dragon Knight in his armed forces, the success of hunting the Mountain Trolls increased dramatically.
----
A day after Conrad's knighting, William took his officers, and twelve of his subordinates to hunt for the Mountain Trolls. He also invited Gideon to join them because he was a Beastamer that specialized in land creatures.
The reason why he only took twelve of his knights on this journey was due to the fact that there were only twelve hipogriffs that were able to perform at their peak condition. These were the Hipogriffs that "volunteered" to come with William after he bullied the Alpha of the Herd to agree to his request.
He chose those who were experienced in riding horses, because, technically, Hipogriffs were similar to horses. Also, it would be best to train his knights to ride these magical steeds as soon as possible.
Looking for Mountain Trolls was not an easy thing, especially in the Western Region of the Hellan Kingdom.
Fortunately, he had the system which allowed him to pinpoint the places where possible Troll Lairs were located. Ironically, the nearest one was near the Pantheon of Courage where William had met Est.
After traveling for two days, they finally arrived at their destination. Along the journey, William made sure that his knights had gotten used to their new mounts and were able to perform basic aerial maneuvers.
At first, William planned to "Knight" them like he had done with Dave and Conrad, but didn't push through with it. The reason? He wanted to make it an incentive for those who performed exceptionally well under his Knight Order.
This would give his subordinates the drive to do their best in the hope that they would be rewarded for their merits.
< Three Mountain Trolls detected two kilometers away from our location. >
'Understood.'
William gave out his order and Dave guided his partner to go in that direction.
It didn't take long for them to spot three Mountain Trolls lying on the ground, asleep. For some reason, the three trolls looked very familiar to William. They looked exactly the same as the Mountain Trolls that attacked their encampment when they were headed towards the temple to offer a prayer to the Gods.