Uncle here isn't your average office worker!

In particular, Roy also used Margaret's name to claim that he would become Maria's mentor.

He didn't object to Zofia's test last time because Roy was indeed skilled and his teaching methods were quite good. He didn't mind letting Maria gradually grow stronger under his supervision. After all, on this land, one's own strength is the foundation for survival.

But now he could no longer ignore Roy's influence on Maria on a psychological level.

"What do you want to teach her? What can you teach her?"

Marna walked to the transparent weapon display case in the living room, took out the long-neglected sword, drew it from its sheath, and its cold gleam was menacing.

"Should I teach her to follow the same path Margaret took, or should I teach her to be like you, a lackey who speaks so arrogantly?"

Roy chuckled. Marna's aggressiveness was quite something.

If it were the old Roy, faced with such questioning, he might have just laughed it off, then sheepishly said, "I won't bother you," and then moved on. But this Roy is different.

He possesses precognitive abilities, intelligence about the disasters plaguing this land, abundant knowledge and theories, and the power to help him realize the value of these theories.

He could proudly answer, "I will teach her how to transform this imperfect land into the way she wants it to be."

Marna's sword-wielding arm seemed to pause slightly, and a hint of doubt appeared in his eyes.

He didn't detect the concealment and pretense in Roy's words; was he telling the truth?

To teach Maria to transform this imperfect land into the way she desires? This isn't just arrogant; it's downright fanciful! Even the once-proud and unparalleled Margaret only dared to aspire to "change Kazimierz." Change this land? An unprecedented and absurd theory!

But even such an incredible thing, spoken by Roy in such a proud and confident tone, actually made Marner waver slightly.

Because the answer was so outrageous, it seemed like he was telling the truth?

Marner quickly snapped out of her daze, and thinking this, she said:

"Heh, if that's the case, then come on. Prove to me that you have the ability to utter such boring big talk."

A principle that can't be explained will become clear after being demonstrated! (Disgusting)

[Ding! Urgent quest [Marna's Trial of Nearl] has been automatically accepted!]

[Mission Objective: Survive.]

[Secondary Mission Objective: ① Defeat Marna Nearl] (Transfer)

[Secondary objective: ② Gain the approval of Marna Nearl]

[Secondary Task Objective: ③ ? ? ?] Nine

[This is the first time an emergency mission has been initiated. The mission prompt is as follows: The Path of Nearl needs no outside guidance, the Path of Nearl needs no one's questioning. I'm not disagreeing, I just don't believe it.] 4

[Mission Rewards: ??? (Depending on mission completion level, maximum unlockable level: ? module)] Eight

[Mission Introduction: A knight is a noble being who illuminates the entire land! Use your light to prove your will and light the way forward!] 3

Volume 1: Chapter 33 Maria: Good luck, Roy! 2

Maria felt wronged, but this feeling didn't make her back down; instead, it made her even more determined. IV

The girl's world was simple. She dragged Marna to watch the match between Roy and the Candle Knight, partly out of a fan's enthusiasm, but also out of a secret desire to show off her teacher and make her uncle, who had refused to teach her, regret his decision. Zero

To be honest, the girl didn't initially want to become a knight. In this ancient knightly family, it was always her older sister, Margaret Nearl, who dreamed of becoming a glorious knight. She, however, felt she lacked courage, determination, and strength compared to her sister. Her childhood dream was to become an equipment craftsman, maintaining her sister's gear and becoming the Nearl family's strongest support.

As they grew older, they gradually began to pursue their dreams.

Margaret Nearl had a big fight with her uncle and ultimately chose to become a knight of the ring alone. She took the three principles of not joining any knightly order, not accepting any sponsorship, and not forming alliances with any company as her motto and stepped onto the stage of knightly competition with her head held high.

She would often sneak away to a small tavern called Grim Martin, run by retired war knights, to learn about equipment repair from the Ursus army's artisan masters in the tavern's workshop.

Those were the happiest days of Maria's childhood. Her greatest joy each day was sneaking away from Uncle Marna to the tavern, where she would sit in front of the big TV with a bunch of caring knights, watching Margaret's matches and witnessing her victories.

She would cheer for her sister's victory, grieve for the false accusations she suffered, argue with onlookers who slandered the reputation of the Radiant Knights, and boast to other Radiant Knights fans.

"That Radiant Knight is my sister!"

She often placed her hands on her chest, speaking with a smug air, but her gaze remained fixed on that heroic face, filled with a hint of envy and contemplation: My sister is so amazing, can I become a knight like her? If I really had the chance, could I stand in the knight's arena like her, receiving cheers and applause from so many people?

She said this, thought this, and envied this, until the 22nd Kazimierz Knights Special Tournament came to an end.

The Radiant Knight's light has fallen!

Winning the Major is a lifelong dream for any competitive rider, a goal that countless people can only dream of, and a stamp of recognition for a successful career. But for Margaret Nearl, the Radiant Rider, it was the beginning of her tragedy.

From the eve of the championship, various rumors detrimental to the Radiant Knights began to circulate. During the finals, the so-called "ultimate revelations" flooded the media. A series of media outlets that used to attack each other suddenly united in their hatred and jointly promoted false news about the Radiant Knights. The huge popularity that the championship should have brought was now a raging storm that fueled the fire. In an instant, flames rose everywhere, covering the sky and igniting the entire Kazimierz.

Maria is furious that the Radiant Knight is corrupt, accepts bribes, and engages in underground transactions. These accusations attack Margaret's character.

Maria, at a young age, frequented bars and other places of ill repute; Marna, an employee of the company, often abused her family's reputation and her niece's status to commit crimes; Cyril, relying on his age, lived a life of extravagance and waste, leading the Supervisory Council to corruption and depravity. These were attacks on Margaret's family, and Maria felt wronged.

The Lin Guang family bullies others with their power, the Supervisory Council operates in secrecy, and the knights and nobles, after all these years, remain as arrogant as ever, trying to treat ordinary people like monkeys, disregarding rules and laws as if they were nothing! Some even use Margaret's influence to arbitrarily rise in power, attacking fields she knows nothing about, has never been involved with, and can hardly even imagine. Maria feels lost.

Yesterday's champion, today's criminal. The higher those who praised her propelled her, the more they wanted to see her fall from that position in a pathetic fashion. The Radiant Knight streaked across the sky like a meteor, swift in her arrival and swift in her departure, untouched by the mundane world, yet some still wished to see her burn out completely, crumbling into pieces.

Then, the National Council ruled that Radiant Knight Margaret Nearl was stripped of her knighthood and banished from Kazimierz, because she had concealed her infected identity and participated in the knightly tournament, violating the rules!

Did Maria not know her sister? When did she contract Oripathy? She wanted to dispel this terrifying rumor, but everyone, even her grandfather, told her, "This is the truth."

Thus, as the annals of history began, lies became truth, and Margaret, an infected person, was exiled a hundred miles from the Qazimir border, where she remains missing to this day, with no known return date.

Everything seemed to have settled down, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief, falling silent as if trying to forget the incident. But one person remained unconvinced.

Maria will never give in!

She understood her uncle's good intentions. He had never supported Margaret becoming a gladiator, and after witnessing her rise and fall, he was even more convinced of his conclusion. He saw himself as a second Radiant Knight, and he didn't want her to repeat his mistakes, didn't want her to suffer the slander and humiliation that the Radiant Knights endured. He worked tirelessly to support the family, even going so far as to have a huge fight with her and threaten to kick her out of the house. This wasn't just the stubbornness of an older generation; it was a silent and heavy love, like that of a father.

She respected Uncle Marner and was grateful for his selfless love.

But she was sorry, because this time, she couldn't bear this mountain-like weight of kindness.

Because Marner was teaching her to succumb to this reality.

Submit to the tyranny of the Business Federation, submit to the media that spread rumors about my sister, submit to the National Assembly that exiled my sister, submit to this distorted society, submit to this cannibalistic, dark land!

Maria will never give in!

Even if she were truly like the Radiant Knight, merely a fleeting shooting star streaking across the night, she wouldn't care. Even if she were less than her sister, just a firefly, flickering for a moment before dying, it wouldn't matter. Because, just like the Lightbringer family motto she had learned since birth—fear not the darkness! Even if only for a fleeting instant, she would pierce through the darkness!

Maria stood at the doorway, her mind made up, and she didn't step inside.

Her unwavering gaze was fixed on the two people inside the room. The tense atmosphere had reached its peak, and perhaps in the next blink or the next breath, the two figures in green and gold would collide.

For the first time in her life, Maria hoped that Roy could truly possess the strength to defeat her uncle Marna, as the Wine Gazette had described.

She lacks strength, so she needs guidance, a teacher, and Roy. If Roy is defeated, her most likely outcome is that Marna will drag her home like a feathered beast and lock her up in confinement.

But she didn't want to do that. If Uncle Marner made that choice out of a sense of responsibility as an elder, then she did it out of a dream.

This is a battle of responsibility and dreams, and Roy is now fighting for her dream!

"Go for it!" she shouted, meeting Zofia's astonished gaze and Marna's oppressive stare. She took a deep breath, put her hands to her mouth to form an "O" shape, and yelled, "Go for it, Master Roy!"

"That girl who's always siding with outsiders," Marna murmured, though for some reason, her complexion seemed a little better than before.

Roy raised his hand, with his back to Maria, and gave her a thumbs up.

Leave it to me!

He looked at Marna and took the bow off his back.

"Since you've drawn your sword, I have to take this seriously too."

"Bench man reading the newspaper, to be honest, I've always had a slight doubt about whether your strength is truly superior to mine. So, before the fight, I'd like to ask you one more question."

As Roy spoke, he placed the newly purchased standard-issue longsword from his waist onto the bowstring.

Marna narrowed his eyes, becoming wary. Legend has it that the Xuan Tie Grand Master of the Unarmored Alliance doesn't use traditional arrows when using a bow and arrow. Instead, he nocks a specially crafted giant Xuan Tie heavy sword on the bowstring, and with a single arrow, his sniping range exceeds a thousand meters, making him incredibly difficult to defend against! Could Roy also possess a similar method?

Roy raised his bow and slowly asked, "A knight is a noble being who illuminates the entire earth. If that's the case, Marna, do you believe in the light?"

“What?” Marna asked in surprise.

"Stella! (A shooting star!)"

The next second, light filled the entire room.

Volume 1: Chapter 34 Fully Stacked Buffs, Overpowered Start!

Manna Nearl, also known as Ra the Winged Dragon, is one of the three mythical creatures in Arknights.

She had immense popularity and generated a lot of buzz even before her official release. After her release, she didn't follow in the footsteps of other popular operators who were known as "top DPS operators." Instead, she used her "Unseen Glory (True Gold Slash)" to dispel all rumors and gossip, breaking through the category of key operators and becoming a top-tier operator, second only to one person and above 246 others.

The two people who are compared to him are Suicune, the Titan of Obelisk, and Surtr, the Sky Dragon of Osiris, which shows his prestige and importance.

Furthermore, this prestige extends beyond in-game stats; it's also reflected in the storyline. His imposing presence—from reading the newspaper on the bench to instantly defeating Xuan Tie with a shower of light, to asserting that Kazimierz had no right to award him a medal—along with his impressive combat prowess, has cemented his place among Kazimierz's strongest warriors, earning him titles like Radiant Knight, Platinum, and Xuan Tie, making him the undisputed top fighter in the Kazimierz storyline.

Facing such an opponent head-on, Roy didn't have a 100% chance of winning. In fact, even the system probably felt that this battle was too difficult, so the mission objectives became simpler and more direct.

Survive.

The three simple words seemed to be a warning to Roy that the mission was dangerous and could even be fatal.

But Roy can't back out now.

"If you had told me earlier that there was a life-threatening situation, I might have had to think it over more carefully. Now that the fight is about to start, what's the point of reminding me of this now?"

Roy gave a wry smile, muttering to himself as if mocking himself. His hands, however, didn't stop moving in the slightest.

Roy is the best at protecting himself. As a reliable adult male, if the system really warned him in advance, he might actually consider whether to back down and not get involved in the Lin Guang family's domestic affairs.

"However, after consideration, I'll probably still accompany Maria on this trip."

Roy glanced at Maria, who was cheering him on loudly, out of the corner of his eye, and muttered to himself.