Boy Under the Night Sky

Under the starry night sky, the rugged Bennett Castle stood like a giant guarding the plains. This was the fief of Knight Bennett, located at the junction of the Duchy of Camai and the Rift Mountain Range, at the southernmost tip of the Holy Continent. It was far from wars and served as an important granary for the Duchy of Camai.

Under the moonlight, the wheat fields were neatly arranged, swaying gently with the summer night breeze, as if displaying the richness of the land.

"Hah!" A black-haired boy, about twelve years old, was swinging a greatsword. He wore an iron armor that was too large for him; his height of about 1.5 meters made the armor look like a bell placed on him. However, his small face was very serious, as if he were doing something sacred.

With every swing of the greatsword, the boy had to shout, partly to exhale and partly to squeeze out every last bit of strength from his muscles.

The sound of hoofbeats, "da da da," startled the boy who was focused on swinging his sword. He turned his long black hair, revealing a young and tender face. Sweat had matted his black hair, clinging to his cheeks. His purple eyes held a dreamlike luster.

"Abel, look what I brought you!" An eighteen-year-old young man jumped off his horse. He had long golden hair, thick eyebrows, a high-bridged nose, and sky-blue eyes. He wore leather armor and boots, and he took a small package from the saddle as he spoke.

"Big brother, you're back."

Abel didn't seem as curious about the gift as a typical child. Instead, he politely greeted the young man.

Zack, his older brother, was accustomed to Abel's attitude. Ever since Abel fell from his horse and woke up a year ago, he had seemed to mature greatly, becoming very sensible.

These two youths were the sons of Knight Bennett of Bennett Castle.

The older one was eighteen-year-old Zack, the eldest son of Knight Bennett and a Level 4 Rookie Knight. He had just returned from Libo Town. The younger one, who was still practicing diligently in the night, was Knight Bennett's second son, who had only started his Rookie Knight training two months ago.

As the eldest son of Knight Bennett, if Zack became a knight, he would inherit the knight's domain and Bennett Castle. The second son, Abel, would have to make his own way in life.

But this did not affect their relationship. Every time Zack went to town, he would use some of his meager allowance to buy gifts for Abel, fulfilling his duty as an older brother.

Abel, on the other hand, was always sensible and never asked his father for training resources. Although the knight's domain spanned a hundred miles, it had no special products, and its income relied solely on grain. After paying taxes, the annual grain revenue was only five hundred gold coins.

This money had to cover the castle's expenses and Zack's knight training costs, leaving little surplus.

Abel took the package from Zack. It was a long box, carefully wrapped in a colorful cloth, showing the thoughtfulness Zack had put into the gift.

"What a beautiful dagger," Abel exclaimed with a hint of surprise, fiddling with the dagger in his hand. It was made of fine iron, heavier than a regular iron dagger, and much more valuable.

"I'm glad you like it. I got lucky today; someone who didn't know its value was selling it for only 70% of the price of a common iron dagger, so I bought it." Seeing Abel's delighted expression, Zack felt very happy. Abel rarely showed such a childlike smile in the past year.

"You keep practicing; I'm going home."

Zack didn't want to disturb Abel's practice any further. The entire castle only had one set of this iron armor. During the day, Knight Bennett usually designated it for Zack's use, and it was only handed over to Abel for practice at night.

Rookie Knight training first involved practicing the corresponding introductory sword techniques. These techniques effectively compressed and settled every bit of strength in the muscles, eventually feeding back into the body as Qi. This Qi would slowly accumulate to form Qi Veins. Each Qi Vein formed represented an increase in Rookie level. After forming five Qi Veins in the body, they would be further compressed to form a Qi Core.

Knights with a Qi Core were already official knights. They could use Battle Qi to fight, and Battle Qi could unleash various Battle Skills, enhancing the knight's combat power.

To quickly compress muscle strength, knights discovered through thousands of years of exploration that practicing in heavy armor could significantly speed up the formation of Qi Veins. Therefore, every knight's family had to have a set of iron armor. This armor could be used for training in peacetime and served as a sturdy shield for protection in wartime.

By reducing or adding armor plates, both novice Rookie Knights and more advanced knights could use the same armor for practice. Thus, armor, like warhorses, was a standard equipment for knights; a knight without armor and a warhorse would not be recognized.

"97... 98... 99... 100." As Abel swung his final sword strike, the last bit of strength in his body vanished, and he collapsed onto the ground. His purple eyes looked up at the stars, and he murmured, "Which star is my home?"

The original Abel had died a year ago in the fall from his horse. A soul from Earth had taken over his body, becoming the new Abel. This was the reason for the change in Abel's personality over the past year. A thirty-year-old soul entering a ten-year-old body would inevitably feel different, no matter how careful one was. However, due to the fall, everyone assumed he was just a frightened child.

Abel, whose Earth name was Li Abel, was a seasoned fitness coach. He was usually busy with work. He remembered that day he got home after 10 p.m. Feeling a bit restless, he took out his laptop and opened his old game, Diablo 2. Diablo 2 was one of the few games on his laptop and a game he always kept.

He clicked on the icon and played for a while, finding that the "Town Portal Tome" showed 0. He often forgot to buy Town Portal scrolls. Since he was just bored and killing time, he opened a cheat tool and modified the "Town Portal Tome." A moment later, he contentedly looked at the attributes of the "Town Portal Tome," which automatically replenished its quantity every minute.

Just as he was feeling pleased, a lightning strike hit the building where Li Abel was located. The building's lightning rod was useless; the lightning traveled through the electrical wires and struck Li Abel, who was playing on his laptop, sending him flying.

When Li Abel woke up, he found himself to be the second son of Knight Bennett, also named Abel.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Abel, having regained some strength, stood up and walked towards the castle with his greatsword. He felt good today; he might be promoted to Level 1 Rookie Knight tonight.

Upon returning to the castle, Abel didn't go to eat. Dinner was still half an hour away. He would use this time to maintain his armor.

He carefully cleaned the sweat stains from the armor, piece by piece, ensuring every small gap was cleaned. Then, he applied maintenance oil. Abel was very meticulous about this process. Whether it was Abel, Zack, or even Knight Bennett himself, they would all maintain the armor after using it. This was a knight's tradition and a necessary means for the armor to be passed down through generations.

Next was the greatsword. This greatsword was a type of two-handed sword. Its massive blade and unadorned hilt reflected the swordsmith's philosophy: simple and practical.

After everything was done, Abel took a bath and went to the dining room. His father, Knight Bennett, his mother Nara, and his elder brother Zack were already seated.