I've Come to Admire "Knights"! - 4

Fuck. Something's seriously gone wrong here. Dreamland is a dungeon, plain and simple. It's not some place where you get bathed in glorious sunlight like this.

At level 1, you're supposed to face off against lowbies like goblins in a cave or something. Or maybe replay enemies you've beaten before. Dreamland's partly for farming items, but it's also the devs' way of letting you replay and crush foes you've already taken down once.

Of course, since I haven't beaten jack shit yet, nothing like that should spawn for me. Right now, I'm just a fresh-faced noob whose resume might as well say "bastard son of the Northern Duke" and "wants to be a knight" for motivation.

Sure, inside I'm a vet with 29 loops under my belt, but these days, 29 reruns barely gets you in the door. The job market's cutline is insanely high now. Though I hear they're even taking folks who rage-quit early and tossed their saves. Those guys rolled around like idiots in the prologue, though. And they all seemed to carry PTSD or some mental baggage.

Anyway, point is, as a total greenhorn with zero experience, I should be staring at some unfamiliar cave ceiling. So why the hell am I basking in warm sunlight? Where the fuck is this? Why'd I spawn dumped on the roadside instead of in a dungeon? How am I supposed to clear this shit?

You have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to beat the boss to exit Dreamland. Or hit "back" and forfeit, but since this is reality, no such UI exists. Those knight bastards. This is their big "fuck you," huh?

If I'd known, I'd have stocked up on food or cash. Grumbling to myself, I trudged into the woods. No clue where I am, and sitting tight gets me nowhere. Plus, this could be a high-level zone for all I know.

I kept pushing forward, eyes ahead, when I heard snickering from somewhere. Following the sound, I parted the underbrush and crept closer. There, centered around a brown-haired girl, were two grown-ass men cackling away.

Judging by their grubby looks—like they hadn't bathed in a month—those two were definitely bandits. They'd tied up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what looked like a 15-year-old kid and were laughing their asses off around her.

This is it. Prime time for a knight to step up. Might even trigger the Oath of Chivalry again for some rewards.

Cracking my knuckles, I prepared to deliver divine justice to those psycho fuckers.

But then... my eyes narrowed.

One bound girl. Two bandits tying her up. And the woods.

It felt so damn familiar. Like I'd seen this scene before. Where was it...?

Eh, think later. I snuck up behind one snickering bandit and unleashed a full-power roundhouse kick. My triceps brachii—powered by this 180cm beast of a body—plus steel boots for extra service.

WHAM——!

A true iron mace. The bandit folded at an insane angle, flew off, slammed into something, and twitched violently before going limp. And then the stench hit—right from his crotch, which had darkened. Pissed himself.

Making me look at his pathetic junk. What a loser. No EXP pop-up, so he's not dead. Just out cold.

The other bandit was cursing up a storm, but that could wait. Saving the girl first. I headed her way.

Man, she looks familiar. Like a CG from the game...

I stood before her.

Out of nowhere, Insight Eye triggered. Why the hell now...?

Eh?

I froze, staring at the info it fed me. My eyes were telling me this:

Donnesia Kihano. Lady of the Kihano count family. One of the four heroines of Dawn Star Academia.

The protagonist who shows up at the Logres Ducal Estate on her own and gets adopted. She's the lead for the adoption romance route out of the four romance fantasy genres.

The heroine I'd been looking for. Guess this loop's protagonist is Donnesia.

That explains it. Why this scene felt so damn familiar from the start.

One of Donnesia's bad ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ends. She gets caught by two bandits in these woods, and right before they rape her, she bites her tongue and dies. Super grim for a romance fantasy—sticks in your mind.

Wait. So if I hadn't torn that Dreamland ticket, Donnesia would've died here?

Holy shit, we almost got fucked. A chill ran down my spine at how close I'd come to losing the protagonist.

That's when Donnesia looked up.

Pretty girl. The game's official art coming to life made her even more stunning. And though she was underage and her face was disguised with dye or whatever—not her real look—there was this undeniable beauty that couldn't be hidden.

Not the time to admire, though.

"You okay?"

She nodded slowly at my words. First, I untied the ropes around her wrists.

Then I eyed her brave friend who hadn't bolted yet.

"F-f-fuck, who the hell are you, you bastard?"

He noticed my glare and started cursing. Dude's buddy's laid out like that, and he's still trash-talking instead of running? Loyal little shit.

Fine. Time to send him off personally.

There we go. But unlike the Dreamland ticket, nothing materialized in my hand this time. Inventory maybe?

I opened my inventory, and sure enough, one of the empty slots was filled. Check it later.

I shook the dirt off my boots and turned back to her. Her legs must've been numb; she hadn't run. Her eyes were half curious, half wary.

Makes sense. Lived cushy as a noble till 14, then straight to rock bottom. Wandered back alleys, saw all kinds of shit, and just nearly got assaulted by bandits. Even if I saved her, I'm some random tin can in suspicious armor who popped out of nowhere. Face hidden, motives unknown. That stance is natural.

Still...

"Thank you for saving me."

Eyes wary and questioning, but she bowed her head in genuine thanks.

"No big deal. Just did what needed doing."

I shook my head. Headache incoming.

Learned Donnesia's the protagonist via Dreamland, saved her from death—good stuff. Problem's me. Didn't expect the ticket to drop me in this mess. Thought it'd be a light warm-up, but shit escalated.

Give it time, and they'll notice the duke's bastard son vanished from the estate. I'm fucked then. If I were a total psycho, they'd celebrate, but Ian wasn't that kind of wastrel.

How the hell do I return? No forfeit button. So kill the boss? No boss here.

"Hmmm."

My sigh whistled through the helmet slits like a flute. In short: fucked.

Just go full Wandering Knight like this?

"...Who are you, mister?"

As I sighed in place, Donnesia piped up, curious.

Mister, huh. With this thug build, but our body age gap's only 5 years. Does she know that?

"Passing knight. Got lost."

"How'd you get lost?"

'Cause the knight fuckers pranked me.

"Need to go back, but can't. Lost my way home, literally."

"You too, mister?"

Her eyes widened. Right—she's homeless too.

Shit, poked her trauma by accident. I said nothing, just helped her up and brushed off the dirt. No resistance; she accepted my touch. Maybe sensed no hostility.

Anyway, time to decide. Desert the family? Force a return somehow? Or take Donnesia north and drop her off.

Wait. If this is the spot where Donnesia nearly got her bad end...

There might be that hidden piece around here. Once you find it, every Donnesia start hits it unless you're doing challenge runs. Super useful item. Crucial for her.

And since it's a dungeon, clearing it might let me exit. Buff Donnesia too—one stone, two birds.

Issue: will she come?

Grrrooowl——.

Sudden stomach rumble. Right, skipped breakfast. But that wasn't mine...

No way. I turned slowly. Donnesia had her head down, ears beet red. Source confirmed.

Speaking up now would be tone-deaf penalty. Silently, I opened inventory. Key to everything's there.

The reward for upholding knighthood? Jerky. Beat down villains like a true knight, and I get ten strips of dried meat. What's the criteria for these chivalry rewards? Do the Knightly Stars just pick random shit?

Grumbling inwardly, I pulled out the jerky. A faint soy-based salty tang and smoky nuttiness wafted out.

Donnesia's eyes locked onto it like a magnet.

I dangled and shook it; her gaze followed like a sunflower tracking the sun.

Handed it over wordlessly. She snatched it quick and shoved it in her mouth.

Where'd that cool vibe go? She tore into it. Only after finishing did she seem to remember me, coughing lightly.

"Ahem. Um... got more?"

Hand over mouth, back to cool mode. But another strip out, and she ditched the act, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes burning with hunger again.

Well... jerky is tasty.