Roundtable Hold, I F***ing Stepped on Malenia!

Lucian put on his helmet, having no intention of revealing his true face for now.

He had no idea what the situation was like at the Roundtable Hold, so it was better to be cautious.

Besides, the Roundtable Hold had an old schemer like Sir Gideon Ofnir. Lucian knew that he kept a group of informants under his wing, doing his bidding everywhere.

Lucian had no desire to be watched and monitored.

Melina took Lucian's hand, and in an instant, they arrived at the Roundtable Hold. Melina's figure vanished immediately afterward.

The scene before Lucian's eyes shifted in an instant, becoming a grand hall.

Lucian had wanted to take a closer look at the Roundtable Hold, but things did not go as planned. Cries of alarm from all around interrupted him.

"Gah! A Banished Knight! Everyone, get back!"

"Why is there a Banished Knight in the Roundtable Hold?!"

"Waaah! Didn't they say the Roundtable Hold was safe? Someone save me!"

Lucian swept his gaze around. There were quite a few Tarnished in all kinds of starting gear nearby, many of them youthful-looking and now shrieking in terror.

There was a Banished Knight in the Roundtable Hold?

Lucian froze for a moment. No, they seemed to be talking about him.

Come to think of it, Lucian remembered that he should have been sitting down. Why was he now eye level with them?

He lowered his head and looked. He was indeed still sitting, perched on the edge of an enormous roundtable.

When he turned back, he saw more than a dozen weapons of different shapes planted in the center of the roundtable, surrounding a massive golden Grace.

Unlike every Grace he had seen before, the Grace at the Roundtable Hold hung above the table. It was enormous, as tall as one or two people.

When he looked back at those young Tarnished constantly retreating, it was no wonder they had been frightened away.

A figure clad head to toe in Banished Knight Armor had suddenly appeared in the Roundtable Hold, sitting atop the roundtable they normally did not even dare approach.

Those newcomers who did not know the truth probably thought the Roundtable Hold had been invaded by a Banished Knight.

Some veteran Tarnished in the distance also frowned when they saw Lucian and began studying him carefully.

They had already confirmed that Lucian was a Tarnished.

After all, if someone who was not Tarnished wanted to enter the Roundtable Hold, they needed recognition from at least two official members of the Roundtable Hold and had to be brought in. Yet this man had arrived alone.

But they did not relax in the slightest. This guy was probably no good either.

Normally, they would have assumed some old hand had stripped gear off a corpse and put it on.

But this guy before them wore a full set of Banished Knight Armor, sword and shield included. There was not even a scratch on it, so it did not look like it had been stripped from a corpse.

Moreover, they sensed a dense killing aura from Lucian, something only warriors could detect.

At least several hundred lives had died by this man's hand, and it had happened recently.

Lucian climbed down from the roundtable. When he landed, the clatter of his armor colliding once again shook the tender hearts of the young Tarnished.

Lucian found it rather amusing and suddenly had the urge to raise his sword and shield to scare them.

Imagine charging right up to them with a Storm Shield Bash, then shouting, "You think the red eyes are just special effects?"

It would be a perfect cosplay. Just thinking about it was fun.

But Lucian only thought about it. There were too many people in the Roundtable Hold; it would be bad if they really mistook him for a Banished Knight and cut him down.

He cleared his throat and asked in a gentle tone,

"I'm new here. Could someone show me around and introduce the place?"

The young Tarnished exchanged glances. The veterans did not want to get involved, and no one stepped forward.

Just as the atmosphere turned awkward, a hearty laugh came from behind the crowd.

"Haha, I'll show you around, mighty warrior bearing the aura of an ancient storm."

A woman pushed aside the young Tarnished in front of her, walked up to Lucian, and introduced herself.

"I'm Nepheli Loux, a warrior who also wields the wind."

The savage hero's attire barely covered her chest, fully displaying her wild, agile, leopard-like figure. Her bronze skin bore scars of all sizes and kinds, each one a warrior's medal.

"Lucian. I heard the Roundtable Hold was filled with heroes, so I came to see it for myself."

After Lucian left with Nepheli Loux, the young Tarnished all breathed sighs of relief and returned to their own business.

What had happened by the roundtable was quickly reported to Sir Gideon Ofnir by his informants.

Sir Gideon Ofnir kept his head lowered as he continuously flipped through books and reports.

Even after hearing how those Tarnished had behaved, he did not stop turning pages, though he could not help shaking his head.

"I've had enough of them. A bunch who think the Roundtable Hold is a shelter. They are nothing but counterfeit Tarnished."

Only those who could see Grace were able to enter the Roundtable Hold. It had once followed an elite path, and ordinary Tarnished had found it difficult even to gain entry.

But Tarnished these days, let alone receiving guidance, were few even among those who could still see Grace.

Thus, Gideon Ofnir changed the Roundtable Hold's admission policy, sending informants everywhere to spread word in the hope of restoring the Roundtable Hold to its former glory.

But the Tarnished had once been an army of immense size, and counting their descendants, their numbers were even greater.

Even though the proportion of those able to see Grace had become very small, their massive numbers still meant that a great many entered the Roundtable Hold.

Among them were inevitably weaklings who had been scared out of their wits, yet could still barely see Grace through sheer luck.

Like that group by the roundtable, hiding in the Roundtable Hold and treating it as a refuge.

Gideon Ofnir had long been dissatisfied with them. Their existence was practically an insult to the heroes' Roundtable Hold.

Still, they were merely passersby and had not truly joined the Roundtable Hold, so there was no need to waste his attention on them.

"But that newcomer..."

Gideon Ofnir fell into thought. His senses were sharp.

When Lucian arrived, Gideon Ofnir had sensed an aura very similar to Queen Marika's.

He suspected that Lucian could not only see Grace, but had also received guidance from Queen Marika.

"I hope he proves useful in the future."

"Were those Tarnished from earlier also part of the Roundtable Hold?"

Lucian asked curiously. Not only was this place much larger than it had been in the game, there were also far more people.

There had been seven or eight Tarnished like complete newcomers just now.

"They are not official members of the Roundtable Hold. Since they do not dare venture through the Lands Between, they stay at the Roundtable Hold to make a living."

"They can receive protection here, and I protect them as well, so it is not so bad."

Nepheli Loux held no resentment toward them. After all, protecting the weak was one of her principles.

"Make a living?"

Lucian was somewhat puzzled. What could Tarnished who could neither forge nor perform spirit tuning do in the Roundtable Hold?

"Yes, the Roundtable Hold has many functions. Commissions can be posted here, and items can be sold as well. Those people from earlier run errands, delivering information and items to other Graces."

"For example, this is the stall of a wandering Perfumer. Usually, she sends all sorts of items to others through those Tarnished from earlier. But she seems to have gone out today to look for some precious materials. I'll introduce her to you next time."

Nepheli Loux pointed at an empty stall as she explained.

Lucian understood now. So they were delivery workers.

It seemed the Roundtable Hold's functions and population far exceeded his expectations.

I set up a reader group where you can discuss the plot, find people to play with, chat, submit supporting character ideas, and ask for Wind Spirit Moon Shadow. I can post it directly in the group if you need it. Everyone is welcome to join, meow (''). Also, please give a daily free recommendation vote ∩_∩