I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-320

Ch-320. **“Who were they?”**

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The Knights of the Round Table.

They were a group of the mighty, led by the Knight King Wilhelm.

Enchanted by Wilhelm’s strength and honor, they had gathered from all across the continent—comprised solely of loyal individuals who would leap smiling into a pit of raging fire for Wilhelm’s sake.

Man or woman.

Young or old.

Even non-humans were acceptable.

There was only one qualification to become a Knight of the Round Table: absolute loyalty to Wilhelm.

Thus gathered, the Knights of the Round Table numbered thirteen in total.

They carved countless myths into history.

Of course, little was truly known about their exploits.

Because all credit was attributed solely to Wilhelm’s name.

Everyone devoted themselves entirely to glorifying the name of the Knight King—it was only natural.

And yet—

They were fine with that.

For they had surpassed incomprehensible feats and overturned the tides of wars thought utterly irreversible, time and again.

They accomplished things that no one else even dared attempt.

Those who faced the Knights of the Round Table all clicked their tongues in awe.

“The group I least want to face? Obviously Wilhelm’s retinue.”

“The Knights of the Round Table are made up of nothing but terrifying individuals. I’ve spent my entire life on the battlefield, and I’ve never seen a group so monstrous.”

“You can kill them and they still won’t die. Even with their hearts pierced, they’ll still thrust their swords at you. I can still vividly see their eyes—those blood-red eyes staring at me. They still appear in my dreams.”

“…I don’t know what kind of answer you’re looking for, but to be honest, even the demons of the Demon Realm look kind compared to the Knights of the Round Table. So please keep this confidential. I feel like they’d haunt me even after I die.”

After the Tower of the War God incident and the ensuing Wilhelm craze—

Journalists tracked down and directly interviewed those who had faced the Knight King and the Knights of the Round Table.

The results were nothing short of shocking.

Most said they never wanted to face them again.

After all, how could one publish an article claiming demons were kinder?

One thing was clear: every Knight of the Round Table was overwhelmingly powerful.

So much so that Serengeti—the Knight of Pure White—was considered the weakest, the youngest among them.

And while they were infinitely cruel to their enemies, they were endlessly compassionate to those who were not.

Of course, the definition of an “enemy” was simple: whether one opposed Wilhelm or not.

Yet even those powerful knights all met their end during the Great Expedition.

All to kill the Demon King.

Smiling, they sacrificed themselves.

“…This makes no sense.”

Reporter Kim Hana, holding the interview sheets, could not help but look utterly stunned as she read on.

The appearance of the Island of the Gods.

The dawn of the “Great Awakened Era.”

As curiosity about Wilhelm soared sky-high, Kim Hana, with the help of first-generation Awakeners, conducted extensive interviews across Pangaenia.

They readily accepted her request, and she planned to write articles in a Q&A format based on the interview sheets.

But every answer she received was something she couldn’t publish as-is.

“They really died smiling?”

Above all, the accounts of the Great Expedition were absurd beyond belief.

In the Demon Realm, all the Knights of the Round Table—except Serengeti—had died.

And yet, all participants who witnessed the expedition said the exact same thing, word for word.

That everyone who died had been smiling.

Smiling because their deaths brought the conquest of the Demon Realm one step closer.

But any living being feels fear at the moment of death.

It was impossible for all of them to truly die smiling.

And yet—

They said they had never seen smiles so genuinely happy.

“Everything for the Knight King Wilhelm… beings who didn’t mind being forgotten, as long as the Knight King’s honor shone…”

It was easy to romanticize.

Knights who devoted their entire beings to the Knight King.

How honorable that sounded.

But what about them as individuals?

That was when Kim Hana grew curious.

“There isn’t a single knight whose name is known. Except for the Knight of Pure White, Serengeti. Does that make sense?”

That was the part she found truly incomprehensible.

Aside from Knight King Wilhelm and Serengeti—

…no one knew the names of the other Knights of the Round Table.

There were only endless speculations.

Not a single person knew their true identities.

Despite all the battlefields they had crossed.

Despite all the achievements they had forged.

They had all hidden themselves.

It didn’t quite add up to say it was only for the Knight King’s sake.

They all seemed to actively avoid having their names known.

As if they wished their identities—their very existence—to remain buried.

To never be revealed.

To be known only as “Knights of the Round Table.”

That made Kim Hana even more curious.

She wanted to dig deeper.

Not just into Wilhelm—

…but into the “followers” who had stood beside him.

Tap. Tap-tap-tap.

Her fingers flew across the keyboard.

《“Knight King Wilhelm and the Knights of the Round Table—Who Are They?”》

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Immediately after Serengeti collapsed,

Saintess Seia smiled faintly as she watched Hudson carry her away on his back.

“You’re still close, I see.”

At that, the other saintesses began chattering.

“You mean Hudson and Serengeti? I heard their engagement was broken.”

“Oh my. Was it because of family matters? I heard he’s a merchant of dubious origin.”

“Compared to the Knight of Pure White, he does seem lacking.”

“The picture just doesn’t quite fit, does it?”

The looks the two saintesses cast toward Serengeti and Hudson were anything but kind.

The Knight of Pure White was a famous figure—after all, the only Knight of the Round Table to return alive from the Great Expedition.

On the other hand, little was known about Hudson.

Just that he was from a merchant background.

“I heard he used to run a gambling den in Arcana.”

“…How vulgar. That makes him even less fitting.”

“And there are rumors he tends monsters in the Labyrinth City.”

“Oh dear…”

Their meddling knew no bounds.

And besides, Saintess Seia hadn’t been referring to Hudson and Serengeti’s relationship at all.

*The Knights of the Round Table are still close.*

She had seen it.

The Knights of the Round Table.

Their honor was with Serengeti.

They had been so close it made one jealous.

Even in death, they were still protecting Serengeti.

Meanwhile—what about the saintesses?

“Saintess Seia, why don’t you set the example?”

“That’s right. You’re the holiest among us, aren’t you?”

Subtly, they were competing.

Especially with Saintess Seia.

Instead of blessing her return—

Only then did Saintess Seia recall why she had left the Goddess Church in the first place.

*I was sick of it. Sick of the Goddess Church.*

She envied the Knights of the Round Table.

Their freedom. Their bond.

Perhaps she had wanted to belong there herself.

That was why she had left the Goddess Church without hesitation and joined the Great Expedition.

She had marched straight into a place no one else dared go—despite everyone trying to stop her.

…And yet, she had returned.

*The Goddess Church is rotting.*

No matter what, she was still a saintess.

She bore the duty to serve the Goddess Church.

She could not simply stand by and watch it crumble.

Now that her memories had returned.

Now that she was alive.

Her return to the Goddess Church was only natural.

“All right. I’ll go first.”

Saintess Seia didn’t care.

About their jealousy.

Their envy.

Even the looks that wished for her to have fallen, to be dishonorable.

She only had to prove herself.

That was the sole reason she had come here.

To prove it.

Saintess Seia stepped forward.

—

—

“High Druid, there are fifteen individuals who possess ‘honor’ of stage three or higher.”

After all verifications by the World Tree were complete,

High Elder Albino reported the results to me.

“That’s more than I expected.”

I nodded lightly.

It truly was unexpected.

I thought four would already be a lot.

To think there were this many with over twenty thousand honor.

“Those who had been hiding for a long time have all appeared with the World Tree’s emergence. Among them, three even reached stage four or higher.”

Three with over thirty thousand honor.

From among them, I had to select a few to head into the Forgotten Dungeon of Honor.

I had Hel summon Serengeti and her companions here, but honestly, it was still uncertain whether they truly met the criteria of honor.

“May I see the list?”

“Of course.”

Albino turned the pages.

There was the list of everyone whose honor had been verified.

And the names and details of the fifteen who had confirmed honor above twenty thousand.

“…The White King?”

The very first name was already a hurdle.

The White King.

That arrogant White King had his honor verified by the World Tree?

A being who rarely even showed himself had appeared so openly.

Perhaps regaining his power through the fang I gave him had bolstered his confidence.

“Saintess Seia is here too.”

Stage three.

As expected.

I had been certain she possessed at least that much honor—or an equivalent stature.

What was surprising were the other saintesses.

Surely only the most outstanding saintesses had accompanied her, yet their names were nowhere on the list.

*So the rumors of the Goddess Church’s honor falling to the ground were true.*

I had seen the cathedral myself, but the situation was even more dire.

A saintess’s honor inevitably reflects the honor of the Goddess Church.

Proof that the Church’s name had been dragged through the mud.

In that context, Saintess Seia proving herself was all the more impressive.

“…Serengeti is stage four?”

Even more surprising was Serengeti.

Even for her, possessing over thirty thousand honor was unexpected.

*Serengeti, the Elf Queen, and the Giant of Ruin—these three are the ones touching stage four. But why is this Dramut guy here?*

The Ruins of the Old King.

Dramut—the first Star Guardian I had obtained—was also here.

Not just Dramut, but many Star Guardians had gathered.

When Star Guardians moved together, there was always a reason.

Like when the King of the Dead appeared in Cramdel.

They only acted for matters related to the Goddess’s Star.

*The Star Guardians are moving en masse… but there’s no other star here.*

Why?

I was maddeningly curious.

*I need to complete a seven-member party. Who should I include?*

More important than anything else was completing the party.

I had to consider who would make progress smoother.

That was when—

“Um…”

Breaking the long silence, High Elder Albino spoke up.

“High Elder, what is it?”

“Please speak casually. I’m fine with it.”

“You’re my master’s elder. How could I speak casually to you?”

“….”

Albino fell silent.

I had been meaning to address this anyway.

It was strange that he treated Raiga condescendingly but spoke to me with honorifics.

But something more urgent seemed to be on his mind.

“…About the World Tree’s dungeon.”

“Do you wish to join as well, High Elder?”

“Yes. I believe I should.”

He had guarded the World Tree for countless years.

It was a reasonable claim.

But I shook my head.

“No.”

“…Why?”

Albino’s expression hardened.

But I had my reasons.

“You haven’t had your qualifications verified, have you?”

“…What?”

“Go to the World Tree and have your qualifications verified first.”

“……”

I smiled lightly.

“I did it. So you should too.”

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