20demayo Chapter 363 : The Three Knights’ Statues
Chapter 363 : The Three Knights’ Statues
However, Vito still refused.Vito said, “I’m honored that you trust me, but I can also say with certainty that I’m not suited to be the leader of your Knights’ Guild.”
“You are not a knight, so you cannot truly understand the world seen through a knight’s eyes. To knights, not every strong person is worthy of reverence or even following.”
“Just as the Guardian Knights guard, the Virtue Knights uphold virtues, and the Oath Knights uphold their oaths, every knight has their own conviction.”
“You’ve seen it before — when the Oath Knights had not yet appeared, when nobles were being killed and knights had fallen to the level of mercenaries. That was the result of knights’ confusion. Later, the birth of the Oath Knights, followed by the establishment of the Three Great Knight Orders, gave the lost knights a purpose.”
As he spoke, Vito gestured for Priest Agamemnon to look at the two knights serving as his guards.
“Look at them — your knights. Even though you are only at Tier Two in power, and even though they nominally serve under Councilor Hastings, unlike the other guards, their loyalty belongs to you.”
Finally, Vito said, “Admiring the strong is human nature. But if a knight does not have faith in his own unshakable will, then he is no knight at all. Or… do you think knights are no different from those Northland Barbarians?”
Even though he was a Guardian Knight, Vito, who hailed from Greenwood, still mentioned the Northland Barbarians.
Agamemnon glanced at the two knights. Naturally, he trusted them — otherwise, he would never have brought them along.
Agamemnon was not lacking in protectors.
When he served the Church, he had already gathered a group of men, acting as his unseen hands in the shadows.
After he left the Church, Bishop Corleon did not keep these men, but instead allowed Agamemnon to take them with him.
Among these men were even those at Tier Five.
After hearing Vito’s words, Agamemnon fell into thought, though he still did not give up. He said, “But as I said, the strength of knights is far too important. At the very least, I need people I can trust.”
Vito shook his head. “When Bishop Marl came to Glory Fortress to chat with me not long ago, he said that during the bishops’ council, the Pope advised him to try to trust Marquis Richard, to trust the knights. Now, I want to pass those words to you.”
“If no one in the Senate you stand within can be trusted, then perhaps it’s time you consider trusting the knights.”
Agamemnon sighed softly. Seeing Vito’s resolve, he no longer believed he could persuade him.
At last, he could only ask, “Then, is there any knight you would recommend — someone worthy of trust?”
Upon hearing this, Vito hesitated for a moment before finally glancing in a certain direction.
There, a massive fortress stood faintly visible at the edge of a cliff.
“The Knight Academy?” Agamemnon frowned. “Knight Borien?”
Vito nodded. “In the Old Testament Era, he obeyed the Pope’s command and founded the Knight Academy as a counterpart to the Academy of Magic. In fact, the message to have him establish it was conveyed through you. I believe he would be suitable to lead the Knights’ Guild.”
Agamemnon did not trust Borien.
Or rather, beyond the Church, there were very few people Agamemnon trusted. Knight Borien had joined the Church merely for survival. At least, Agamemnon had rarely interacted with him.
As for whether Knight Borien had performed well, Agamemnon had no opinion.
After all, since the first group of students — those relocated from the original Glory Fortress — there were now over four hundred apprentices at the Knight Academy, the oldest of whom was only fourteen.
When the Knight Academy was founded, the required graduation age was set at sixteen. Thus, none had graduated yet.
For this reason, the Knight Academy’s reputation was far inferior to that of the Three Great Knight Orders, and even to certain unaffiliated knight orders outside the Cross Banner.
After all, since its founding, the Academy had produced only three knights, and four or five years had already passed. Without graduates, it had gradually faded from people’s memory.
Still, recalling the command he once conveyed, Agamemnon thought that since Vito was unwilling, it would not hurt to see whether Knight Borien was suitable.
He did not consider Leo — since Vito refused, Leo, who always stood beside him, naturally would too.
After bidding farewell to Vito, Agamemnon turned toward the Glory Knight Academy.
Though not particularly famous, the Glory Knight Academy had been established under the Church’s will. With Monk Cicero overseeing it, the Academy stood magnificently, resembling a fortress.
When Agamemnon stepped down from his carriage, he immediately saw three statues standing in the courtyard at the main gate.
One statue held a greatsword upright, hands resting upon its hilt against the chest.
Another held a long spear, angled upward, both hands gripping it before the chest.
The third held a longbow, drawing it skyward — facing the spear-wielding knight.
“Swordsmanship, Spearmanship, Archery,” said Knight Borien, who had hurried over. “Following the will you conveyed, Knight Brand, Knight Geick, and I traveled among many knights over these years. We studied their philosophies and found that only the Virtue Knights and the Oath Knights held firm convictions. The rest were largely lost.”
“But that isn’t a bad thing — it means the knights are all searching for their own path. Thus, after much discussion, we decided to teach only these skills. As for whether they can truly become knights with their own ideals and beliefs — that’s for the children themselves to decide.”
Knight Borien’s eyes showed a trace of unease. This had been their own decision. By the time they finalized it, the New Testament Era had already begun.
At that time, Agamemnon had left on his journey, and the Pope had told Borien that as the head of the Academy, his decisions were his own to make.
Thus, this was the first time Agamemnon learned of the Academy’s philosophy since its completion.
Agamemnon was momentarily stunned by Borien’s words, then gazed deeply at him — a look that only made Borien more uneasy.
“But even if I’m not a knight,” Agamemnon said, “in my impression, knights should undergo military training — and horseback riding as well, shouldn’t they?”
“Ah…” Borien looked around, then leaned in slightly — though under the watchful eyes of Agamemnon’s two knight guards, he still kept a respectful distance.
He lowered his voice and said, “True military training cannot be learned by words alone. In the past, there were slaves for that purpose… As for riding, suitable warhorses are far too expensive, and the children are too young to tame them.”
Agamemnon nodded. “I see. Then it’s indeed not suitable.”
He continued, “If convenient, Dean Borien, may I tour the Knight Academy?”
Borien naturally did not refuse.
From afar, the Knight Academy looked merely like a fortress or castle. But upon closer inspection, it was much larger within.
The corridors and rooms were spacious; Agamemnon could tell that if war broke out and enemies reached the foundation of this castle, its main body could house over two thousand people.
That was an astonishing number — even massive fortresses could hold only a thousand. Greenwood’s Castle of Lundex held around twelve hundred, and the Northland’s Pale Castle could accommodate fifteen hundred.
Yet this Knight Academy surpassed both royal strongholds in size.
Because of the three knight statues standing in the front courtyard, it was called the Courtyard of the Three Knights.
Behind it stood the main structure — the Knight Hall — where apprentices attended indoor lessons.
Though Borien said military skills could not be fully trained, basic combat fundamentals were still taught. Whether the apprentices mastered them was another matter.
Additionally, they studied basic medicine, anatomy, animal identification, and hunting techniques.
Inside the Knight Hall, directly opposite the main doors, stood a massive cross embedded in the wall. On the floor lay a circle divided into three arcs, seemingly corresponding to the three statues outside. Above was a glass skylight through which a single beam of sunlight shone directly upon the tripartite circle.
Following Borien, Agamemnon walked through the hall, where about twenty apprentices were studying.
Borien explained, “They’re the youngest batch — they entered less than a month ago.”
Altogether, the Knight Academy had only four generations of apprentices, totaling just over a hundred students. As a result, the place felt desolate.
“Originally, we thought the Academy’s fortress-sized structure would suffice,” Borien said. “But Monk Cicero insisted — this is the Knight Academy. It must not fall short of the Academy of Magic across from it. So, we spared no effort.”
“However,” Borien added awkwardly, “perhaps Monk Cicero didn’t consider that with so few apprentices — even when we begin formal graduations in two years — our numbers will barely reach two hundred.”
Agamemnon said meaningfully, “If it was he who oversaw the project, then perhaps the Academy was always meant to be this grand.”
Of course, Borien knew how vast Greenwood was. Even if only children from York Territory qualified for entry, they could fill the entire Academy.
But there was a serious problem.
“There are only three knights capable of serving as teachers,” Borien admitted, visibly ashamed.
While all Three Great Knight Orders — even the Virtue Knights — had gained members, the Knight Academy still had only three instructors.
Agamemnon was curious. The Glory Knight Academy had been founded under the Church’s command — with such a reputation, it should have attracted wandering knights.
He asked, “In all these years, has no knight been willing to teach here?”
Borien replied, “It’s not that none have come. Some left upon learning that the Academy only trains apprentices and doesn’t participate in wars. Others I personally turned away — they were still too lost, unfit to guide the young.”