"Humility, integrity, compassion, courage, justice, sacrifice, honor, faith."
In the castle courtyard, eight knights stood straight on either side, holding torches and looking solemn. Yilin stood in the center, holding a double-handed sword with a crossguard.
Gray kneeled on one knee, holding a confusingly elaborate oath manuscript. After reciting the initial eight virtues of a knight, his voice faltered.
Abi Robbs whispered, "Continue."
"Can I... can I modify my oath?" Gray stammered.
"No. All knights' oaths are the same. If you want to become a knight, you must follow this oath," Abi Robbs frowned. This was the first time he'd heard of someone wanting to alter the knight's oath.
"But..."
"No buts," Abi Robbs emphasized.
Yilin looked at Gray, who was visibly conflicted, with a puzzled expression.
"Alright..." After a brief silence, Gray reluctantly continued, "In the face of enemies, fear not, act bravely and loyally, worthy of the Holy Spirit, be upright and unyielding, protect the weak, and follow the ways of heaven... what if my opponent is stronger than me?"
"Respected knight, please just read. Do not say extra words. An oath is a serious matter," Abi Robbs impatiently emphasized.
The knights serving as the backdrop couldn't help but laugh.
Huoersi looked disdainful.
Such a person can become a knight? The world is really getting worse. He thought.
The oath's voice was so quiet it was barely audible, full of uncertainty. Each sentence sounded more like a question than an oath. And it was filled with all sorts of irrelevant questions.
Of course, if he knew that the one taking the oath was a lich and not a human, he might understand. Although he might then have a heart attack.
"I... Gray."
"Your surname?" Abi Robbs kindly reminded him.
"I don't have a surname," Gray responded.
"There are people without surnames in this world? Could he be an orphan?" a knight whispered.
"Orphans have surnames too. I've met orphans," another knight whispered back.
What should have been extremely serious now seemed quite the opposite.
Yilin frowned, looking at Gray.
"Alright, continue," Abi Robbs said helplessly, spreading his hands.
"I swear to bravely resist tyranny..."
"I swear to fight against all wrongs..."
"I swear to fight for the defenseless..."
"I swear to help anyone who asks for my aid..."
"I swear not to harm any woman..."
"I swear to aid my fellow knights..."
"I swear to treat my friends sincerely..."
"I swear to be faithful unto death to the one I love..."
"I swear allegiance to Yilin. Beabella. Beisher. All who oppose her shall be my enemies. All who harm her shall be my sworn enemies... As long as it does not violate my oath, I will obey all her commands, fight for her honor, respect her, protect her unto death..."
Stuttering, Gray finally finished.
Next, it was Yilin's turn.
"I, Yilin. Beabella. Beisher of White City, heir to the Duke of the Beisher Family and guardian of Yinsela, hereby bestow upon Gray the title of baron and Silver Moon Knight. I accept Gray's allegiance. I swear, as long as Gray does not violate his oath, I will protect him all my life, respect him, protect his property as if it were my own, shelter his wife and children, and if he dies before me, I will ensure his title and property are passed on to his first heir. If I die before him, my heir will inherit my promise and continue to fulfill it!"
This was a standard knight's oath.
"The silver moon symbolizes luck. We met under the silver moon, and you are my lucky knight."
After speaking, Yilin gently tapped Gray's shoulders with the blade, signifying the end of the ceremony.
"Yay..." The surrounding knights cheered listlessly, symbolically.
A lord, encountering a powerful knight in a desperate situation and receiving help, should be a joyful occasion. However, for some reason, the oath from Yilin's mouth carried a sense of helplessness. After all... Gray seemed to harbor too many secrets, filled with uncertainty.
If not for being cornered, Yilin might not have chosen to accept such a knight.
Cornersed, Yilin, the human lord, decided on a last-ditch counterattack.
Cornersed, Gray, the lich, finally found what looked like a decent place to belong.
In any case, this was at least a good start. At least it seemed so for now. Isn't it?
...
After fighting, Count Caspar stood on the balcony looking down, gulping down the wine in his glass and smashing it to pieces.
The butler behind him retreated a step in fear.
"Send a message to His Majesty the King."
"To His Majesty the King? My lord, didn't you..."
"I know I just took an oath! No need to remind me! Thank you!" Turning his head, Count Caspar glared at the butler, gritting his teeth, "To hell with the oath, a war cannot be fought by one person. Even if we join, even with that knight, the Beisher family won't have any advantage. And we'll likely be buried for her reckless actions. This is the worst possible scenario."
Slightly calming down, Caspar looked at the departing people and continued, "I took an oath to Yilin in front of everyone, I can't publicly violate my oath. Otherwise, she can immediately strip me of my title. But I can't let the Caspar Family be buried for a little girl's reckless actions. You send a message to the king, telling him that for various reasons I cannot fulfill my previous promise. But I still stand by his side and will provide assistance when necessary. Yes, when necessary."
"Should I inform His Majesty of the events here? Especially about the mysterious knight?"
"Do you think he would believe it?"
"Probably... hard to believe."
"If so, then don't tell him."
"Understood. My lord, I will take care of it." The butler respectfully saluted and turned to leave.
At this moment, no one noticed a black cat yawning on the canopy above Caspar's head.
...
The crazy day finally came to an end.
Since Gray had no luggage, there was no need to return to the inn to pack. He was directly arranged to stay in the castle.
Upon opening the door to his room, Gray found a black cat already lying on his bed, licking its fur.
"Nicely done, you're much more capable than I imagined, starting to resemble a lich. Except for the not-so-evil part."
Quietly turning and closing the door, Gray was so happy he jumped up!
"I'm a knight! I'm a knight! Hahaha, I'm a knight!"
"I saw, a Silver Moon Knight. Doesn't sound too bad, except it's not quite fitting for a lich."
"Didn't you say no lord would accept my allegiance?" Gray picked up the black cat from the bed.
"Uh... usually, yes."
"But I succeeded."
"Yes, I saw."
"This means that with effort, there's always a way, right? Even a lich can become a knight!"
"I'll reserve my opinion on that."
Gray disdainfully threw the black cat back on the bed, then ran to the desk, pulled out among his armor the oath manuscript and the "Knight's Guide to Success" he'd just gotten.
"What are you going to do?" The black cat asked, bored, with its chin in its hand.
"To be a good knight, there's still a lot I don't understand. Like the oath just now, this book didn't cover it."
"Oh, really? Such an important thing wasn't included, no wonder it didn't sell."
"Although there are still many things I don't understand, luckily I'm a lich who doesn't need sleep. I can use the night's time to quickly learn how to be a qualified knight. Cats don't need sleep either, right? I can ask you if I don't understand something."
"I just sleep during the day..."
"Oh, is that so? Close enough, you get the idea."
"That's quite a difference, ok?" The black cat sighed helplessly, not planning to argue, turning instead to ask, "What do you plan to do next?"
"Huoersi said we're returning to White City tomorrow. I'll go with them."
"And then?"
"Then I follow Miss Yilin's orders. Well... just follow orders, no need to overthink. It's much easier than being a lich. In comparison, being a knight is a relaxing job."
"Oh, is it? Actually, I think if you knew what they're doing now, you might find occupying a castle, summoning an army of undead, and charging tolls from passersby more suitable for you. Maybe even kidnapping a princess or two for heroes to rescue."
"What did you just say?" Gray turned around.
"Nothing. I said being a knight suits you! Really!"
Gray contentedly turned back: "Tonight, let's start with the basics. You help me understand concepts unknown in the underground, like men and women, the church, prayer, love..."
Watching Gray's serious attitude, eager to learn, looking like a model student, the black cat couldn't help but sigh.
"The Holy Spirit must be napping now, otherwise how could it be crazy enough to let a lich become a knight? By the way, are liches under the Holy Spirit's domain?" The black cat thought to itself.
...
At the top of the clock tower, two angels stood silently, watching Gray's lit room in the castle from across the moat and walls. Watching Gray alternately read, jump, and argue with the cat, threatening to throw it out the window, the startled black cat struggled.
...
"Did you say women and ladies mean the same thing?"
"They do mean the same thing!"
"Then why use two words?"
"Because 'women' refers to older females!"
"Then why not just say 'older females'? Are you lying to me?"
"How would I know? Just put me down! I have acrophobia!"
...
"Running from the underground to the surface, becoming a knight... what is that lich thinking?" the male angel murmured to himself.
The female angel besides him tilted her head, puzzled as well.
"Could it be that he just randomly ran up here with no specific goal?"
"A lich with no goal, is that possible?"
"But none of his opponents today died, not even seriously injured. He doesn't seem like a lich with violent tendencies."
"A lich without violent tendencies is the most frightening," the male angel said decisively.
...
Under the starlit night, the castle gate opened, and a cavalryman rode out swiftly.
Yilin stood silently on her tower balcony, watching.