After Reinhardt got up, Erich brushed the ash and snow from his hair. As they walked back to the training grounds, he continued, "With me in the Steel Knight Order, Sedon can't touch you. But you must also remember the lesson from today. Awakening your Knight Power doesn't mean you can go and provoke him.
Sedon advanced to Earth Knight even earlier than I did. His strength is far beyond your imagination."
'An Earth Knight...'
Reinhardt had originally thought the Extraordinary Power of an Official Knight was already formidable enough. But after sparring with Erich, it was as if a veil had been lifted for the first time, revealing just the tip of the iceberg of this world's true magnificence and grandeur.
And above Earth Knights...
There were Sky Knights, the Legendary Immortal, and Eternal Radiance.
Beings that had only ever appeared in the fairy tales and history books of Mortals now seemed to leap from the page, materializing right before his very eyes!
But still, Reinhardt wasn't entirely convinced.
He had possessed his awakened Knight Power for less than a day, and right off the bat, he had to face a full-power strike from an Earth Knight of the Deputy Commander Level. The fact that he wasn't killed instantly was the greatest testament to his grueling training.
"Vice Commander Erich, today doesn't count. Once I advance to Earth Knight, let's have another match."
Erich froze for a moment, then burst out laughing and slung an arm around Reinhardt's shoulders. "It's a deal! I'll be waiting for the day you become an Earth Knight."
'For an ordinary boy with a common bloodline to become an Official Knight is already a one-in-a-hundred achievement. To advance to Earth Knight requires not only an unimaginable amount of hard work but also a little bit of luck.'
'War is merciless, and death follows like a shadow.'
'Elias, the one in the Steel Knight Order with the most hope of becoming an Earth Knight, already lies buried beneath the cold and snow of the Northern Lands.'
'Serving in a Knight Order that has been forsaken by the high command of the Seventh Group Army, can this boy in front of me truly live to see that day?'
Although Erich was powerful, in the hands of a behemoth like the Radiant Empire, he was merely an insignificant pawn in a grand war. The same was true for the entire Steel Knight Order.
He had never said it aloud, but every subordinate in the Knight Order knew it in their hearts: the Empire had sent them to guard Frostfire Fortress, intending to use them—a troop of worn-out soldiers—as cannon fodder. Even if the fortress fell, their sacrifice would buy precious time for the main front.
The great upheaval of 1438 had reduced what was once a main force Knight Order of the Seventh Group Army's third echelon to its current state. Whenever Erich recalled their former glory, his heart bled.
Sedon and his Direct Lineage Knights were slacking off precisely because they knew this.
Once the fortress fell, they would surely be the first to retreat, preserving their strength. After the old guard of the Knight Order was wiped out, it would be only natural for Sedon to take over the Steel Knight Order.
To this day, Erich still couldn't understand it. Why did the high command of the Seventh Group Army refuse to let go of a small unit like the Steel Knight Order?!
'It's as if they won't be satisfied until they've watched every last one of us die in battle.'
'Perhaps Commander Bashk knew the answer, but the dead are gone like smoke. He would probably never know the truth about this matter, even on his deathbed.'
Erich pulled his thoughts back to the present and began to discuss official business on the training grounds with Reinhardt.
"You should know that a Knight's Power has four different attributes: Elemental Domain, Extraordinary Armament, Guardian Barrier, and Destruction Force Field.
A strong Physique is the foundation that allows us to manifest our Power, while our Spiritual Energy is the external expression of that Power.
Experiences, obsessions, pain, defiance...
It is the strength from the depths of our spirit that grants our Power its different attributes."
Reinhardt had never heard any of this information about Knight Power before, so he listened with great concentration.
According to Erich, the attributes of Knight Power came from Spiritual Power. If that was the case, then it made sense that his Extraordinary Armament was the Morphic Armor.
He wasn't a native of this world. His Extraordinary Armament came from his past experiences—from the tank equipment in his favorite game.
'Be a real man!'
'Be tough!'
Reinhardt's system panel showed a second, completely different Power that was not yet awakened. The progress for Steel of the Heart was already fully stacked, but the awakening conditions were unknown.
But he believed that grueling cultivation, relentless effort, and the blood and scars from valiant battles would provide an answer!
Erich summoned his Knight Power, Celestial Star Sacred Radiance.
This time, however, the phantom Mecha was significantly smaller. It seemed he was only maintaining the bare minimum of power necessary to demonstrate it for Reinhardt.
"But you probably don't know that for a Knight to increase his strength, he needs more than just day after day of grueling training. He must also seek the power deep within his heart and guide his 'Power' to develop new abilities."
"The attribute of Celestial Star Sacred Radiance is Guardian Barrier. Logically, this type of Power greatly enhances a Knight's defensive strength and ability to resist enemy attacks, but the price is becoming incredibly cumbersome."
Recalling his youth, Erich gave an inexplicable smile and said, "When I first manifested my Power, you couldn't call my running slow... you could only say it was like a turtle crawling on the ground.
Could you have ever imagined that one day, I would possess the speed I have now?
Reinhardt, your Power is Extraordinary Armament. This attribute of Knight Power is inherently born with certain Combat Techniques that other Powers lack.
But developing new abilities is, conversely, more difficult than with other attribute types.
I've observed your Extraordinary Armament. Your Combat Technique should be a speed-enhancing ability. The advantage of such a technique is that the stronger the user's fighting skills, the greater the advantage gained from speed.
But its floor is also low. I've seen many speed-type Knights; once they are caught or controlled by the enemy, their fate is often not a pleasant one."
Erich's intention was to warn Reinhardt not to rely too heavily on his speed advantage and neglect to hone the most fundamental combat abilities of a Knight.
That being said, Erich still felt that there was something strange about Reinhardt's Extraordinary Armament.
'If it's a speed-type Power, it must have sacrificed a certain amount of defense. But the feedback from my earlier strike told me Reinhardt's durability is far beyond expectations. For a moment, it even made me suspect his Power's attribute was Guardian Barrier.'
'In his life, he had taught no fewer than twenty young Knights, but only Reinhardt's Power possessed a strength that was beyond his comprehension.'
'This was because the sum of a Knight's Physique and Spiritual Energy was fixed. This was especially true for a newly advanced Knight like Reinhardt, who had just awakened his Mighty Power and was still in the adjustment period. If his Extraordinary Armament was geared towards speed, then his defensive and offensive capabilities should be greatly reduced.'
'Otherwise, maintaining such a Power would place an extremely severe burden on the Knight's body and spirit.'
'This boy's Extraordinary Armament made him, without a doubt, the fastest new Knight he had seen in his thirty years as a Knight.'
'But he couldn't understand: if it was a speed-type Extraordinary Armament, how could it possibly maintain such high defensive strength?'
'Theoretically, if that were the case, Reinhardt would have trouble maintaining his Extraordinary Armament for even a single minute after summoning it.'
'Erich wondered if it was because he was getting old, his control over his strength no longer as precise as it was in his youth.'
'Or was it that Reinhardt's Extraordinary Armament was simply like this from birth?'
Erich glanced at the young man listening intently to him, and couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion. 'If that's really the case, then the future of this boy sitting next to me is destined to be anything but ordinary!'
However, when it came to the attributes of his Extraordinary Armament, Reinhardt had his own firm beliefs.
The defensive power of his Morphic Armor had been thoroughly combat-tested when he cleared out those thirteen Abyssal Hounds. The fact that he was completely unscathed after tanking a full-powered blow from an Earth Knight—even though it had drained all his stamina—proved this point.
'After all, Morphic Armor was an item that provided comprehensive Physical and Magic damage reduction, grew tougher the more it was hit, and could be called the most durable frontline tank equipment of all!'