Chapter Summaries

Ailin confronted Duke Benson at his mansion and demanded to know why he had corrupted the Pander Empire’s knights and civilians. Benson revealed that he had used criminal organizations to build power for revenge against those who killed the King of Knights, leaving Ailin to reject his justification as the two clashed.

• At the Church Alliance gathering, the churches blamed the Goddess of Dawn Church for withholding Light Force and argued over authority and spoils while Bai tried to leave with the unconscious Caroso.
• An unseen mechanical arm beckoned from the bullet-comment screen, and the divinity in the black ash entered it.
• Ailin fought through the soldiers surrounding Duke Benson’s Mansion, summoned a hundred Silver Mist Knights, and challenged Benson to appear.
• Benson came out and recognized the Sword in the Stone, but Ailin attacked him and forced him to one knee.
• Ailin accused Benson of betraying knightly ideals through exploitation and corruption, and Benson described how the country’s authorities colluded with criminal organizations.
• Benson revealed that he sought revenge for the King of Knights by building an army and creating a rebellious knight, while Ailin called his methods destructive and cowardly.

Ailin confronted Grand Duke Benson over his plan to sacrifice civilians, arguing that the Pander Empire could only prevail by restoring the knight's spirit and uniting its people. After learning Mordred had been killed, Benson accepted that his plan had failed and prepared to take the blame while urging Ailin to heed his counsel.

• Ailin accused Benson of hiding behind civilians and sacrificing them for revenge, while Benson defended their deaths as worthwhile.
• Ailin argued that the Empire should grow stronger and unite around the knight's spirit instead of relying on traitors and civilian sacrifices.
• A seventh-rank knight reported that Mordred had been killed by a young man after Cardinal Celica reached the ninth rank and the Blazing God of War descended with Laevateinn.
• Benson despaired over the failure of centuries of planning, and Ailin urged him to return to Lion City and face judgment.
• The King of Knights' voice spoke through the Sword in the Stone, telling Benson he could still return to the right path, and Benson wept.
• Benson seized the Sword in the Stone and told Ailin to listen to his counsel, while she demanded that he let go.

After Mordred's death ended the magic array, Merlin and Celica revealed Duke Benson and Cardinal Riccardo’s betrayal, and Celica led the awakened civilians and soldiers toward the Duke’s Mansion. They found Ailin emerging with Benson’s severed head, and she announced that the duke had been executed.

• The black mist and magic array vanished after Mordred died, waking the trapped civilians and professionals and revealing many dead victims.
• Merlin told the crowd that Benson had worked with a cult to create a Death Knight, while Celica declared that Benson and Riccardo had betrayed the faith and ordered the soldiers to surrender their weapons.
• The bereaved civilians demanded justice, and Celica led them and the surrendered soldiers toward the Duke’s Mansion.
• The procession found dead soldiers throughout Laria and discovered that no guards remained alive at the Duke’s Mansion.
• Ailin emerged from the mansion carrying Benson’s severed head and announced his execution in the name of Imperial Princess Ailin.

Ailin explained how she saved the people from Benson and killed him, then vowed to investigate his crimes and restore justice. In Lion City, Emmanuelle and the nobles agreed to cede two cities to foreign supervision, while Ailin’s possession of the Sword in the Stone left them fearing she could rally the people against them.

• Ailin told the survivors that Benson had sent people toward the black mist, and that she had used the Sword in the Stone to defeat him and protect them.
• The people praised Ailin as the rightful successor to the King of Knights and urged her to revive knight's spirit and investigate Benson and the Knight Tournament.
• Ailin promised to investigate every demand and punish anyone who broke the law.
• In Lion City, Emmanuelle declared Benson a traitor and proposed allowing other nations to station personnel in Siyuan City and Boshì City to prevent another scandal.
• The nobles reluctantly approved ceding the two cities, while Emmanuelle wondered whether the Empire’s leaders could withstand the scrutiny they had once welcomed.
• The nobles discussed Ailin’s victory and worried that the Sword in the Stone could help her rally the people and threaten their power.

Emmanuelle sent Ailin to Shieldwind Fortress with no supplies and only a knight order chosen from Benson’s forces, framing the dangerous assignment as punishment and training. After waking, Caroso learned that Nimel was safe and that he had become the Church of the Blazing God of War’s Holy Son; he met Ailin as she prepared to leave for Shieldwind Fortress.

• Emmanuelle ordered Ailin to resolve the slave revolt and threats from Zakal and the Fear Legion at Shieldwind Fortress, limiting her forces and withholding aid and supplies.
• Caroso woke after a day unconscious, and Alita told him the city was holding funerals while the churches and Empire dealt with the aftermath.
• Alita told Caroso that Nimel and Sophia were confined but safe, and that the Blazing God of War had made him the Church’s legitimate Holy Son.
• Caroso chose to see Ailin before informing his father, then met her as she announced her departure.
• Caroso learned Ailin was going to Shieldwind Fortress and worried that she could be killed there.

After the Knight Tournament ended in disaster, Ailin prepared to lead Benson’s soldiers toward Shieldwind Fortress, while Caroso arranged funding, supplies, and support for her through the Church of the Blazing God of War. Caroso then asked Grand Duke Osiris for troops to bring him home and leave an elite regiment behind, committing himself and Azure Wolf Province to a risky alliance with Ailin.

• Ailin told Caroso she would root out the Empire’s corruption and accepted his one-million-coin loan to fund her journey, agreeing to repay it within three years.
• Caroso asked Pope Krosh Mohan to help oversee Nimel’s identity as a god, establish a church presence near Shieldwind Fortress, and place elite troops there to support Ailin.
• Caroso offered to donate a church building in Azure Wolf Province, and Krosh agreed to provide an item to restore Caroso’s body.
• Caroso told Grand Duke Osiris that he had acted for Nimel and Ailin and wanted to establish a friendship with Ailin, not pursue a political marriage.
• Caroso asked Osiris for a division to escort him home and an elite regiment led by a seventh-rank professional to remain behind.

Caroso secured Osiris's support for an escort battalion and considered asking Teresa to help fund additional protection for Ailin. Teresa trained at the Presia palace, then heard Caroso describe his recovery after the Blazing God of War possessed him and offered him the Muchen Bead.

• Caroso asked Osiris to send a division to escort him home and leave an elite regiment behind, but Osiris refused and approved at most a battalion.
• Osiris suggested Caroso ask Teresa to provide a regiment, and Caroso understood that the two provinces could share the investment.
• Teresa defeated six fifth-rank warriors during training at the Imperial Palace and hurried to the communications room when she learned Caroso had called.
• Teresa teased Caroso about being possessed by the Blazing God of War, and Caroso said reaching the eighth rank should now be effortless once he recovered.
• Teresa offered Caroso her ninth-rank Muchen Bead, but Caroso declined and said the Church of the Blazing God of War was preparing to help him.

Caroso asked Teresa to arrange an escort division and an elite regiment to help Ailin reach Shieldwind Fortress, and Emperor Orsay approved the deployment. After making his arrangements, Caroso met Rio Corleone, who offered to supply Ailin’s expedition.

• Teresa questioned Caroso about his dangerous recent adventures, and he asked her to send a division to escort him home and secretly help Ailin establish herself in Shieldwind Fortress.
• Caroso explained Ailin’s situation to Teresa, who agreed to ask Emperor Orsay for permission to send troops.
• Emperor Orsay approved a division and an elite regiment, seeing the mission as a chance to build ties with Caroso and support a future King of Knights.
• After a day of preparations, Caroso received a visit from Rio Corleone, who proposed handling the supplies Ailin needed for the desert and forest.

Rio and Caroso agreed to pursue legitimate war-supply businesses, while the political fallout from Riccardo’s affair reshaped churches and nations around Caroso and Ailin. Four days later, Caroso attended Nimel and Sophia’s examination as Flame Holy Son, relieved to see representatives of the Church of the God of Wisdom there.

• Rio explained his plan to shift the Corleone Family toward weapons, military supplies, and a mercenary company, and Caroso agreed to discuss it with Ailin.
• The churches and Pander Empire settled on consequences for Riccardo’s actions, while Presia and Azure Wolf Province sent two divisions to bring Caroso home and the Church of the Blazing God of War named him Flame Holy Son.
• Pander’s investigators discovered that Caroso had lent Ailin one million Magic Crystal Coins, prompting speculation that Presia was backing her; Presia denied involvement and called the loan Caroso’s personal choice.
• The Goddess of Dawn Church dismissed three elders, promoted Celica with restricted authority, and assigned her to capture Minette.
• Caroso attended Nimel and Sophia’s examination alongside representatives of the major churches, professional associations, and various nations, and felt relieved when he saw the Church of the God of Wisdom’s representatives.

Sophia and Nimel underwent a Church appraisal to determine the nature of their divine power. Sophia was confirmed as a vessel for divine descent, while Nimel’s appraisal revealed the God of Wisdom, whose appearance ended with the Goddess of Dawn watching him from afar.

• Homero began Sophia’s appraisal before the assembled church leaders, and the magic circle showed that her body could contain pure divine power but held no divine spark.
• Krosh told Sophia to protect herself from evil gods, and she left the appraisal in a fluster.
• Nimel entered the magic circle, where her divine spark gathered her power as the Church’s magic circle tried to restrain it.
• The God of Wisdom appeared through Nimel, and the pope of his Church fell to his knees and pleaded for a divine revelation.
• The God of Wisdom’s power broke free of the magic circle and rejuvenated his pope before the deity turned toward the Goddess of Dawn’s phantom.

Nimel was recognized as the bearer of the God of Wisdom’s divine spark, and the pope invited her to the church in Winter City. That night, Caroso noticed a new support option on the barrage screen and wondered what it would do.

• The God of Wisdom’s phantom vanished, while the crowd’s memories of His appearance were altered to show only Nimel’s phantom.
• Homero declared that Nimel carried the God of Wisdom’s divine spark, and the influential figures bowed to her.
• The pope asked Nimel to return to the Church of the God of Wisdom, and Nimel agreed after asking to go home first.
• Caroso read barrage messages about players struggling against Boss Caro and wondered whether his BOSS card had come to his aid.
• Caroso noticed a new screen option labeled “[Support] Completion: 35%.”

Caroso told Nimel she would be sent to the Presia Empire for protection because her confirmed identity as a true goddess made her a target. They promised to grow stronger and reunite, and Nimel spent one last night with Caroso before their separation.

• Caroso noticed a new support option in his game, but its progress bar was not full enough to use.
• Nimel visited Caroso and asked how long she would have to stay at the church and whether he would abandon her.
• Caroso explained that Nimel would go to the Presia Empire because her goddess identity and the strained relationship with Perus made it unsafe for her to remain with him.
• Caroso promised to bring Nimel back once he was strong enough, and Nimel agreed they would grow stronger together.
• Nimel asked to sleep beside Caroso, and they spent the night together before the ship arrived the next day.

Caroso and Nimel left together after spending the night, and Bai checked that Nimel had recovered. At Laria harbor, Teresa arrived to bring Caroso back to Presia, reunited with him, and met Ailin as diplomats handled the official talks.

• Caroso took Nimel out the next morning, and Bai checked Nimel's condition and confirmed she had recovered well.
• Presian warships arrived at Laria harbor, where Teresa greeted Caroso and embraced him.
• Ailin watched Teresa and Caroso reunite while Nimel and Elena looked on with resentment.
• Teresa declined to speak with the Pander diplomat and directed the official discussions to her delegation.
• Caroso introduced Ailin to Teresa, who explained her diplomatic choice, and the two princesses shook hands.

Caroso reunited with Teresa and Ailin in Laria, where they discussed the growing threat of war and their ideals for improving life for commoners. He proposed gradually weakening noble privilege, and Teresa accepted that as a more practical first step than abolishing nobility outright.

• Teresa praised Ailin for wielding the Sword in the Stone, then invited her to drink with Caroso and Nimel.
• Red let Saya through to see Caroso, but Saya felt increasingly distant from him as he watched him leave with Teresa, Ailin, and Nimel.
• At the Moonlit Beauty tavern, Caroso recounted his adventures after the Free City Incident, including his voyage into the Sea of Taboo and his battle with Salazar.
• Caroso warned Teresa and Ailin that international tensions were rising and asked what ideals they hoped to pursue.
• Teresa and Ailin described their wish to improve commoners' lives, while Caroso proposed eliminating or weakening the noble class.
• Teresa warned that new privileged groups would replace the nobles, so Caroso suggested starting by weakening noble rights and making their abuses illegal.

Caroso, Ailin, and Teresa formed an alliance to improve ordinary people’s lives and weaken the power of nobles and the Church. Teresa and Caroso pledged troops and resources to support Ailin’s investigation of the Knight Tournament, leaving the three committed to changing the world together.

• Caroso proposed an alliance, and Teresa agreed on the condition that the alliance would not target her.
• Ailin pledged to investigate the Knight Tournament and eradicate the corruption of the Pander Empire.
• Caroso revealed that he had provided one million Magic Crystal Coins and an elite battalion from Azure Wolf Province to support Ailin.
• Teresa promised an elite regiment, and Caroso explained that Ailin would need manpower and support for the difficult road ahead.
• Ailin accepted their aid, and the three raised their cups and vowed to make their mark on history.

Ailin left Laria for Shieldwind Fortress after earning the people’s support by punishing Benson’s corrupt officials and helping those they had oppressed. As the people sent her off with gifts, Caroso urged Teresa to send promising nobles to Avalon Academy to learn new ideas.

• Ailin led her soldiers out of Laria toward Shieldwind Fortress, with Rio arranging delivery of the remaining supplies.
• Ailin’s actions against Benson’s abuses had won the people’s devotion, and she promised to return and continue defending them.
• The people crowded around Ailin and her soldiers with food and gifts, delaying the departure and providing several days’ worth of provisions.
• Caroso and Teresa watched the farewell and agreed that making the people smile was the right course.
• Caroso asked Teresa to send promising nobles who shared her ideals to Avalon Academy, where they could learn new ideas.

Caroso returned to Azure Wolf Province and discussed the province’s spies, his judgment, and his brothers with Osiris. The chapter ended with Osiris asking whether Caroso could repair his relationship with Saya.

• Caroso returned to Morning Star City with Saya, Red, Alita, Bai, Nimel, and Jesta Hines, where Osiris welcomed them and secured Alita’s continued work as Azure Wolf Province’s cardmaker.
• Osiris hosted a banquet, then spoke privately with Caroso about the trip, Azure Wolf Province’s finances, and Saya’s strengths and limitations.
• Osiris showed Caroso a list of suspected spies, and Caroso recommended killing some, expelling others, and leaving a few in place.
• Caroso spent nearly three hours deciding how to handle each person on the list, and Osiris told him that his heart had grown softer while urging him to make his own responsible choices.
• Osiris told Caroso to spend time with Nimel before she left, then asked whether Caroso believed he could repair his relationship with Saya.

After returning to Mal Academy, Bai showed Kong an eighth-tier epic card that increased cardmakers’ mana, revealing a discovery that could change their class. Caroso resumed classes and encountered Elena’s renewed friendship and Karei’s courtship before Bai began teaching.

• Bai returned to Mal Academy with Caroso and Alita, then reunited with Kong and created an eighth-tier Mana Enhancement card for cardmakers.
• Bai explained that the card could help cardmakers overcome their weak class bonuses, and she planned to research the series further.
• After resting, Caroso returned to class and felt far removed from his classmates’ concerns about gaining class marks and reaching fourth tier.
• Elena greeted Caroso warmly, accepted Karei’s tuna, and invited Caroso to eat with them, but he declined.
• Bai entered the classroom with textbooks and began teaching while the students wondered why Kong was absent.

A year and a half later, Caro commanded two divisions and learned from the players that Ailin was in danger as the world moved toward war. He declared war on the Pander Empire to reach its capital, while an longtime player sent him a farewell letter before stepping away to face life.

• Caro reviewed how he had strengthened Azure Wolf Province and built up his forces over the past year and a half.
• Caro learned that Ailin had marched toward Laria and faced an impending attack by old nobles and neighboring forces.
• Caro asked Isis Pre about declaring war on the Pander Empire, then ordered him to announce it in Azure Wolf Province's name.
• Caro gave the Death Knight's alleged ties to Pander's capital as the reason for the declaration of war.
• An old player named Sophia My Wife wrote Caro a letter explaining that work had left her too exhausted to follow his story closely, and wished him success.

Caroso faced a Perus Kingdom fleet led by Prince Gaitan Roland, who had orders to stop Azure Wolf Province from attacking the Pander Empire. As Gaitan agreed to duel him, Caroso began breaking through the sixth rank after holding back his advancement for a year and a half.

• Caroso thanked the departing viewers who had supported him and wished them well before a horn announced an approaching fleet.
• Gaitan Roland and chief mage Andre arrived with Perus Kingdom warships and ordered Caroso to turn back, warning that he had no authority to declare war.
• Caroso insisted he would attack the Pander Empire and proposed settling the standoff with a duel against Gaitan.
• Gaitan accepted the duel and said he would suppress his strength, but Caroso told him it was unnecessary.
• Caroso explained that he had delayed his advancement to strengthen his foundation, then drew on his understanding of laws as he prepared to break through to the seventh rank.