About the time I was picked up and adopted by Tallulah

The situation changed after Maria Linguang announced her participation in the knight competition.

Initially, people just wanted to watch for fun and surrounded the mansion, trying to pry out their opinions about knight competitions, shining knights, and the gradually declining family from the mouth of the young knight girl.

Later, as Maria advanced in the knight tournament and rumors spread about the 'little knight' beside her, the originally dilapidated and deserted mansion became, in a sense, more lively than ever.

Finally, the dust settled on the knight competition, and Casimir underwent a transformation that was neither small nor large. After Maria, who was at the center of the incident, received the commendation from the Grand Knight himself, everyone was looking forward to what this girl who reawakened the oldest and most simple "chivalry" in people's hearts would do, but she chose to return to university to continue studying mechanical engineering. The "Silent Knight" who was knighted as an honorary knight also left Casimir, and the fun that everyone longed for was left unfinished.

Lin Guang's mansion became quiet again, and people thought that this "tranquility" would last for a long time.

"Orson, we've already worked very well together in the knight competition before, right? So from the perspective of efficiency and synchronization, it must be most suitable for you to work with me!"

"I hate hanging out with those idiots who only care about running forward, but if you were the trainer, maybe it wouldn't be so boring."

"Little Knight~ I know you can't wait, right? Those two clueless idiots won't bring any fun, you know? Just sign this contract with me, and we can... hehe~"

Inside the Linguang residence, there was a bustling bustle. At the dining table in the living room, three girls, each dressed in a different style and with a different personality, sat around a young man, holding a strange document. Each was incredibly eager, eager to get in his face like an insurance salesperson.

"At least let me take a look at the contract terms first... Ugh."

The black-haired boy, who was sandwiched on three sides - Orson, who was on paid vacation at the time, looked conflicted. Although he stretched out his hands to try to stop the overly enthusiastic sales promotion, two fists could not fight four hands. If he put a little distance between himself and Maria, he would be immediately pulled in by Platinum Lithium, and vice versa.

——I only came back to Casimir because I had nothing to do during my vacation, so why did it turn out like this...!

Orson complained loudly in his heart. His original plan was to come and see if there was any change in Casimir and chat with his friends about his recent experiences. However, now he was cornered by three girls and forced to sign a "contract of sale". It was a bit too exciting for a vacation.

"Um... I'm not quite sure about the situation yet, but I think this position must be very important, right? I might not be able to do it for a while—"

"Didn't you tell me when you came here before, Orson, that there's nothing to worry about these few days? Don't worry, most of the time a trainer just needs to put their name on the trainer!"

Maria interrupted the excuse Orson had just made, and refuted it with the same words Orson had said to Maria when he first came to Casimir.

——No wonder Maria was so happy when she heard that I was free during this period...

Although Orson was a little puzzled at the time, he just thought that Maria was excited because they hadn't seen each other for a long time. He never thought that this seemingly silly little pony had already started thinking about how to legally abduct Chimera from then on.

"But you see, my physical fitness isn't particularly good. If I were to become a trainer, it would definitely be a weakness—"

"Oh my! Are you trying to trick me into looking for an opportunity to knock you down and eat you, little knight? Besides, trainers don't actually need to participate in training, you know? They're supposed to support their competitors in other ways, like in bed—"

"Wow wow wow, I get it! But anyway, I have no experience in this area, right?"

Orson quickly interrupted Li's words. After all, if he left this guy alone... he still remembered the tragic experience of Lappland tricking two Texas dogs into eating him.

"With your talent, it should be easy to get started, Orson. And from what I know, you're not the kind of coward who would give up before even trying, right?"

Bai Jin said lightly, and threw the ball back into Orson's hands in the form of a question.

"Uh-huh..."

Although these three people usually seem to be completely incompatible with each other, they cooperate very well at times like this, perfectly blocking Orson's repetitive words from all angles.

At the desperate moment when he was completely surrounded by two horses and one rat and could not find a chance to escape, Orson saw a very familiar figure walking down from upstairs.

"Uncle Maenna!"

Orson recognized Kuranta, the middle-aged man who looked sleep-deprived and had the same hair color as Maria, at a glance.

"Orson? You're back in Casimir again, uh—"

When Mainna saw Orson, he greeted him first, but just as he was about to go over, his knight instinct stopped him immediately after he saw the environment Orson was in.

——If I approach rashly at this moment, I will definitely get into big trouble...!

It would be fine if it was just his cute niece, but the other two former Unhell Alliance assassins and the war knights beside her were not people he should go join in the fun no matter how he looked at it.

"Uncle Maenna, I need help here!"

Orson waved to Mainna. This man, who had once refused to become the Linguang family's head rider, content to be a social slave, actually possessed skills comparable to the "Shining Knight" Margaret Linguang. If he were to help as a trainer, the results would surely be far better than his own. And even if he couldn't become a trainer, as a senior, Mainna would surely be able to handle this incredibly awkward situation.

More importantly, he had once fought alongside this knight, who had once been disillusioned with Casimir, and they had experienced war together. They were close friends, regardless of age! Orson had no doubt that if he asked for help, Mainna would come to his rescue immediately!

Orson looked at Mainna with sparkling eyes, and the latter indeed met Orson's eyes and felt Orson's fiery gaze.

"..."

After all, Mainna couldn't completely ignore Orson's gaze. He sighed, then walked up to the few people and cleared his throat:

"Choose Maria."

These four words came out of Mainna's mouth, and then this office worker who was currently in charge of matters related to the Casimir Factory in Rhodes Island ran away.

"Hello!?" "What did you say—"

Bai Jin and Li stood up instantly and wanted to confront each other, but Ma Na had already run away by then.

“Uncle Maenna—!?”

Orsen was stunned. He didn't expect that the revolutionary friendship between him and this office animal would be so cheap. He didn't expect that this guy would not only not help him, but also add fuel to the fire and then run away.

"I'll do my best, uncle...!"

"No refueling!" "Don't make decisions over there without your permission."

Maria felt Mainna's will, and she clasped her hands together to express that she would definitely work hard, while the other two girls immediately complained back.

The scene suddenly became more chaotic because of Mainna's interference. Orson even vaguely felt that these girls were about to skip the "peace negotiation" stage and directly enter the "physical competition" stage.

If the situation really comes to that, the only option is to run away... No, there's no way to run away!

Orson looked at the two foals and a hamster beside him and closed his eyes sadly.

"Hmm? It's really lively today. What are you doing - Orson?"

Fortunately, before the "five horses torn apart" happened, another voice that Orson was very familiar with was heard.

Zofia, a former jousting knight from the Linguang family branch known as "Whip Blade," and a Kuranta woman called "Aunt" by Maria and Orson, came down from the second floor.

"Aunt!" "Aunt!"

Orson and Maria greeted Zofia together after seeing her.

"So why do you still call me auntie...even though you don't look very old, Orsen."

Zofia sighed and rubbed her hair, then came to the group.

"You didn't even tell me you were going back to Casimir. What a shame. Are you free tonight? I'll book the Casimir Central Garden Hotel for a night of entertainment."

Zofia complained softly, then took out her cell phone to dial a number to contact someone.

"No, no, that's not necessary, Auntie... I'll cook dinner tonight. There are ingredients here, right? What would Maria like to eat?"

Orson, who didn't like grand occasions, quickly declined Zofia's extravagant invitation, and at the same time, his DNA was triggered and he began to think about what to cook for dinner.

“Creamy carrot stew!”

When Maria, who had previously been determined to grab the title of "trainer", heard that Orson was going to cook, she immediately raised her hand with drooling eyes and named the dishes.

"I think we have all the ingredients—what are you guys cooking? Miss Platinum and Miss Gravel? This is something you don't normally see."

Sofia looked at the crowd who were somewhat on edge and asked.

"Um...actually, it's about the recent invitation to trainers for the new Casimir event."

Orson informed Zofia of the situation. After listening to the whole story, the latter looked at Maria with a slightly playful smile.

"Well... this isn't funny, auntie...!"

Maria said loudly with a blushing face, Maria hadn't even complained yet.

"Yes, yes. So your goals are the same?"

Zofia rubbed the stupid Tianma's head, then looked at the fourth-level knight and the former assassin of the League of No Helmet beside him.

"……almost."

"That's it~"

Bai Jin answered in a low voice, while Li agreed with a big smile.

"I see. I roughly understand the situation now. Before you divide Orson into three, I want to ask, has anyone here carefully read the rules of this Pretty Derby?"

Zofia asked the three of them with one hand on her hip and the other on her chin.

"I've been slacking off and skipping work because the project is wrapping up, so I have no idea what the rules are."

The first to answer was Platinum. She shrugged her shoulders and said that she had no idea about the specific content and rules of the competition. She simply came to find Orson because she heard that contestants could develop deep feelings with their trainers.

"Hmm... I don't know either~? Actually, I only found out about this a few hours ago. My master isn't interested in these things at all, so there's no need for me to know. If I hadn't heard that the little knight was coming, I wouldn't have cared about this kind of event."

Li didn't hide anything and directly said that she came to Seosen and had never thought about any knight activities. She didn't even check whether this competition was only for Kuranta to participate.

"You really don't hide your desires... What about Maria?"

Zofia frowned. Although having a clear goal was a good thing, this goal was too clear, which made Zofia worry about Orson.

"Hehe, I've read the rules! A trainer and a competitor undergo several days of intensive training, then show off their skills in a competition, showcasing the power they've gained through hard work to everyone—wuwuwuwu!? Why are you pulling my ears again, Auntie...!"

Maria said "hehehe" confidently, but was interrupted by Zofia by pulling her ear. Maria asked Zofia with tears in her eyes what she had done wrong.

"Before I tell you why—"

"First of all, Miss Senomi, who has committed the sin of Slaanesh, it is absolutely unacceptable to participate in the competition with such a mentality."

"I know~"

"Then there's Miss Platinum, who has committed the sin of laziness. If you continue in this state, even if you and Orson become a team partner, you will soon be forced to separate due to poor grades."

"Well……"

Although Bai Jin felt very unhappy, he could not find any reason to refute.

"Finally, it's Maria who's guilty of stupidity—what rules did you read? This tournament clearly states that, due to various considerations, the decision has been made to switch from a single-player format to a team format. And apparently, because the organizers are obsessed with APEX, the team size is set at three."

“Eh… Eh!?”

Maria opened her eyes wide, not daring to believe what Zofia said for a moment.

"You're... Seriously, whenever something has nothing to do with machinery, you always get so clumsy. Here."

Zofia took out a brochure from her clothes and threw it to Maria. It clearly stated on it that "a team consists of a trainer and three players."

"So, one trainer can be in charge of three members?"

Hearing this, the three of them pricked up their ears at the same time, and the expressions on their faces changed from being tense to happy in an instant.

"That would be great—wait."

The first person to come to her senses was Sister Shi Le. She said “Great!” halfway through when she realized the problem.

To put it bluntly, the purpose of making Orson his trainer is to have enough time to spend with Orson in a reasonable and legal way. This is also the reason why the three of them formed an opposing stance.

If a trainer can bind three players, although at first glance it seems to be a satisfactory outcome for everyone, in essence - no problem is solved.

“…Tsk.”

Bai Jin also realized the essence of the problem and exclaimed in surprise.

"Great! Time to come up with a team name—how about calling it the Chimera Knights?"

Maria, who had committed the sin of stupidity, was completely unaware of the problem and had already started researching the name of the team.

"……Ugh."

Sofia looked at Maria, who was like her own sister, and her naive appearance. In the end, she just sighed and wished in her heart that she could seize the opportunity.

Orson also sighed. His 'paid vacation' had also lasted for a while. He now slowly noticed that his 'vacation' seemed to be even more "exciting" than his normal working hours.

----------

Casimir was originally the Knights' Arena. Now that knights' arena has gradually withdrawn from the stage, this venue has been transformed to adapt to the emerging competitions and is closer to the traditional concept of a "sports field".

There was a Pretty Derby match going on at the stadium today, so there were quite a few spectators. However, with the arrival of a group of 'new spectators', many of the spectators' attention was drawn to them.

"Then... that Miss Kuranta over there, if I'm not mistaken, could it be the [White Archer on the Chessboard] - Miss Platinum!?"

One of the audience members said tremblingly, pointing at the expressionless white-haired Kuranta in the team.

"The white archer on the chessboard...? Is that your new title, Platinum?"

Orson, who was blocked in the middle by Maria Li and Platinum, tiptoed out and asked curiously.

"That's about right. It's not a title worth mentioning."

Bai Jin waved his hand. This lazy emperor was not interested in the extremely handsome title at all. It would be more accurate to say that his increased popularity made it increasingly difficult for him to carry out his lazy activities.

After the decline of the Helmetless Alliance, Platinum was initially responsible for dealing with the remaining remnants of the Helmetless Alliance. Due to his outstanding abilities, he soon gained the favor of the Grand Knight and was promoted to the Royal Guard Knight of the Council of Elders.

Although Bai Jin didn't like this position arrangement, she had nothing to do during that time. Her account was blocked along with the Wu Zhou Alliance, and she couldn't even do it with the Sashuang NEET.