The castle gates opened with a heavy grinding sound.
Morning light spilled across the stone road outside.
Karnan stood beside a group of royal knights, watching the activity around him carefully.
Soldiers moved quickly across the courtyard.
Messengers ran between buildings.
Horses were being saddled.
Something urgent had happened.
He could feel it in the tension around him.
A knight captain approached.
Tall.
Scar across his cheek.
His armor looked older than the others, but well maintained.
"Dragon Bearer," the captain said.
Karnan noticed the title immediately.
Not his name.
Just a role.
The captain continued.
"A caravan from the western road was attacked this morning."
Bandits.
The word sounded simple.
But nothing in this world felt simple anymore.
"We ride in two minutes."
Karnan nodded.
No long explanation.
No training.
Just immediate deployment.
He climbed onto a horse with the knights.
The movement felt strange at first.
But his body adjusted quickly.
Radiant Sync: 10%
The number flickered briefly in his vision.
Something inside him was adapting.
The group rode fast through the countryside.
Green fields stretched around them.
Farmhouses scattered in the distance.
But ahead—
Smoke.
Thin black smoke rising into the sky.
The caravan.
They reached the road within twenty minutes.
Karnan dismounted immediately.
The scene was chaotic.
Broken wagons.
Scattered supplies.
Three merchants hiding behind an overturned cart.
And about fifteen bandits surrounding them.
Rough armor.
Axes and swords.
Poor discipline.
But still dangerous.
The knights began forming a line.
Karnan watched carefully.
And instantly saw the problem.
Their formation was wrong.
The knights formed a tight defensive wall.
Good against cavalry.
Bad against scattered attackers.
Bandits had already spread out.
Flanking positions.
Two on the left.
Three circling the rear.
And their leader—
Standing slightly behind the others.
Observing.
Karnan focused on him.
The man moved confidently.
But something was off.
His breathing.
Heavy.
Shoulders rising slightly too fast.
Stamina weakness.
Probably an experienced fighter pushing past his limits.
Karnan mapped the battlefield instantly.
Fifteen enemies.
Eight knights.
Terrain slightly uneven.
Loose stones near the roadside.
One wagon blocking the center.
Bandits had initiative.
But poor coordination.
He stepped forward.
The knight captain noticed.
"Stay behind us."
Karnan shook his head slightly.
"They're baiting the formation."
The captain frowned.
"What?"
"Your left flank is open."
Right on cue—
Two bandits rushed from that exact direction.
The knights reacted late.
Steel clashed.
One knight stumbled.
Formation broke instantly.
Chaos spread.
Exactly what the bandits wanted.
Karnan moved.
Not charging blindly.
He stepped into the center gap.
Drawing attention.
One bandit turned toward him.
Then another.
And another.
Good.
That was exactly what he needed.
The system interface flashed suddenly.
Skill Triggered: Provoke
The words appeared briefly.
Then vanished.
But the effect was clear.
The bandits' focus shifted toward him.
Four of them rushed him at once.
Behind him, the knight captain shouted.
"Protect him!"
But Karnan already moved.
Not aggressively.
Strategically.
He stepped backward slightly.
Positioning himself where the road narrowed between two wagons.
Now only two enemies could reach him at once.
Classic choke point.
The first bandit swung wildly.
Karnan sidestepped.
The blade hit the wagon instead.
He pushed the man sideways.
Using his own momentum.
The second attacker stumbled into him.
Both fell.
Behind them, the others hesitated.
Good.
Hesitation created space.
He glanced quickly at the leader again.
The man had started moving forward.
But slower now.
Watching.
Calculating.
Karnan recognized the type immediately.
This was not a random criminal.
This was someone used to command.
Which meant—
If the leader fell, the rest would break.
But reaching him required clearing the front line first.
He turned slightly.
"Captain!"
The knight looked toward him.
"Collapse the right flank!"
The captain blinked.
"What?"
"They're overextended!"
The knight looked.
And realized Karnan was right.
Four bandits had moved too far forward.
Leaving a gap behind them.
The captain reacted instantly.
"Right side advance!"
Knights surged forward.
Steel clashed again.
But this time—
They had the advantage.
Two bandits fell quickly.
Another ran.
Karnan moved again.
Straight toward the leader.
The man raised his sword.
"You think you're brave, boy?"
Karnan noticed the man's grip.
Slight tremor.
Exhaustion.
Exactly what he predicted.
The bandit leader attacked first.
Heavy overhead strike.
Powerful.
But slow.
Karnan stepped sideways.
The blade slammed into the dirt.
The leader pulled it free angrily.
Second attack.
Faster.
But his breathing was worse now.
Karnan didn't counterattack.
He waited.
Forced the man to keep swinging.
Three strikes.
Four.
Five.
Then the leader's shoulders dropped slightly.
Stamina breaking.
That was the moment.
Karnan stepped forward.
Grabbed the man's wrist.
Twisted.
The sword fell.
Before the leader could react—
Karnan pushed him backward hard.
The man crashed into the wagon.
The knights finished the remaining bandits quickly.
Silence returned to the road.
Only the sound of heavy breathing remained.
Karnan looked at the system text.
Skill Learned: Provoke
Skill Type: Tactical Aggro
Effect: Forces enemy attention toward user
Useful.
Very useful.
The knight captain approached slowly.
His expression was strange.
Half surprise.
Half confusion.
"You've fought before."
Karnan wiped dirt from his hands.
"...Something like that."
Another knight spoke quietly.
"You moved like a battlefield commander."
Karnan didn't answer.
Because the truth sounded ridiculous.
He wasn't trained.
He wasn't a soldier.
He was just someone who spent thousands of hours studying combat systems.
But systems—
Whether game or war—
Always had patterns.
The captain looked at the captured leader.
Then back at Karnan.
"You saw everything before it happened."
Not exactly.
He just understood how people behaved under pressure.
Overconfidence.
Fatigue.
Poor positioning.
The same mistakes appeared in every world.
The captain exhaled slowly.
"Your Majesty was right."
Karnan looked up.
"About what?"
"That you're not normal."
The merchants began thanking the knights repeatedly.
But most of the soldiers were staring at Karnan instead.
Not with fear.
With something else.
Respect.
Battlefield respect.
And that was far more powerful than prophecy.
Radiant Sync: 11%
The number rose again.
The system was reacting to combat experience.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The captain mounted his horse again.
"We return to the castle."
Karnan climbed onto his horse.
But before they left—
He glanced toward the distant hills.
Something about the air felt different.
Heavy.
Watching.
Far away—
Something ancient had noticed the Radiant Core's first battle.
And it was awake now.
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