Jane, Dragon, Gunther and Jester finally return to the castle, where Sir Theodore have been waiting for them to come back.
"Ahh! You came back! How did the test go?" Sir Theodore asked to Jane and Gunther.
"Well, it was not that much of a challenge. Fortunately, there is not much of a threat other than Sir Ivon's invention..which is rather crafted really badly." Jane told her mentor.
"I see. Fortunately, Sir Ivon is going back right now to chec on his machine. You did not destroy it, did you?" Sir Theodore asked.
"No, sir. We did not." Jane told her mentor. "It was Jester who manage to stop it. We should be fortunate to bring him along." Gunther added.
"My! That is very clever of you Jester! How did you know Sir Ivon's ghastly machines' weakness?" Sir Theodore asked with suspicion.
"Well, sire..I happen to oversee most of Sir Ivon's contraptions. So it was not that hard for me to figure it out." Jester answered Sir Theodore's question.
"Wow, so you did brought the right people with you Jane. Good to hear then! You passed! Congratulations! You both have finally become true knights!" Sir Theodore exclaimed to them.
The two are excited now. They have become true knights and soon they will take on more brave dangers beyond their comprehension. The thought of it made them seem even more active than they will ever encounter before in their lives!
"Oh, Sire! We want to ask you of this time of the period. Why is it that people seems very busy during these days? Like Rake and even Smithy too?" Jane asked her mentor (who she soon will no longer call because Sir Theodore will become their partners instead of mentors.).
Sir Theodore seems quite perturbed after hearing this question and then he thinks about it for a few minutes before answering.
"Well Jane, do you know of the Coliseum where the battle of the royal knights takes place every 20 years?" Sir Theodore asked Jane.
"Yes, I do." Jane answer it without thinking.
"Then it makes it easier for me to explain this to you. The Coliseum is where knights from many different corners of the world challenge for the survival of their kings. Should the knight from their team lose, their king lost their life. That is what I am trying to mention to you." Sir Theodore explain in a depressed state. Jane, Gunther, Jester and Dragon is shocked at what he said.
"Really? How cruel! Its like those shortlives ruthlessly kill my own breed!" Dragon said in rage.
"Yes Dragon, it is as you say. And this time, unfortunately, we are selected as candidates for this year. So everyone is very busy nowadays. I didn't help much because a few years back, this tournament killed my own partner in the past with my own eyes." Sir Theodore explained to them.
"N-No! How-How did your partner die?" Jane asked nervously. (which is a first for her since she hardly or rarely seems scared)
"He lost to another knight in the tournament. I do not want to talk about it. It was ruthless. We were still young back then so we were badly scarred by the incident. And I am scared that this year we are going to lose like my friend was." Sir Theodore told them.
"Even the king is busy-..! Do pray tell sire, is this why the king did not call on my services a few days back?" Jester said in quite an enthusiastic mood.
"It seems that way. The king is probably so terrified about the incident that is going to lose his life in the process is the reason why you weren't summoned at all." Sir Theodore said to Jester who seemigly understand what he said.
"That is something else." Jane said.
"Well..shortlives do happen to worry a lot. Like you Jane, that one time you-" Dragon wanted to say what Jane doesn't want to hear, so she hushed him up.
"Sorry there.." Dragon looked quite depressed.
"But still, now that you are going to become knights, you can participate. Though I worry for your safety since when I talked about this to your mother Jane, she looked extremely unhappy and worries for you a lot." Sir Theodore rubbed this into Jane.
"I see your point there." Jane said. "But we were trained for these kinds of situations! If we don't stand up to what happened, the incident will be repeated just like your friend is sire!" Jane said with bravery. Sir Theodore just looked silent in amazement. (Strange for him to feel like that.)
After awhile, Sir Ivon returned to the castle with his big contraption. Gunther then ask his master "What in the world are you making sire? That contraption is a lot more cruder than any substance I've ever eaten." Gunther told to his mentor with a smirkish attitude.
"Don't say like that Gunther! I had to make this for the test! Its important that you know how to deal with this!" Sir Ivon spoke ragely protecting his machine's pride.
"Actually, Jester here is the one who found a way to turn the machine off." Jane told the angry knight.
"Really? I can't believe you brought him with you in the test! T-That's just cheating!" Sir Ivon told the trainees and Sir Theodore.
"I thought we could bring anyone as long as they're not busy and in the castle." Gunther told Sir Ivon, who seemingly tried to calm his mentor down. Which eventually worked since he stood there looking dumbfounded. Everyone, including Dragon and Sir Theodore, laugh for a bit.
"Well..congratulations..you passed." Sir Ivon told to his pupil who seemed to be less energized now.
"Anyways, if you both passed the test then we have to let you both be knighted by the king tomorrow so that we can fully rank you as a true knight." Jester told the "to-be knights".
"Yes Jester, we shall begin the coronation tomorrow. So please rest up, you both looked exhausted." Sir Theodore told the two before Jane and Gunther separate themselves to gain privacy for Jane to talk to Dragon.
"This is fantastic! I finally get to be a knight! And we both can start exploring the world to find more information about your heritage Dragon!" Jane told to Dragon.
"Yeah! That sure is fantastic.." Dragon seemed to be a bit disturbed.
"What's wrong?" Jane asked.
"...Well, it may be just me, but there's been a lot of noise coming from that tower up there." Dragon pointed out the tower of the wizard Jane met few months ago.
"You mean the wizard? Is there something in there?" Jane asked Dragon.
"Hmmmmm...no-not really..but still, there might be something going on there that's important. How about we take a look?" Dragon asked Jane this time.
Jane replied with a yes and, with Dragon, they check out the tower. When they get there, they see worried faces coming from the Wizard.
"What's long beard up to?" Dragon spoke silently.
"Shush..he's trying to say something there." Jane whispered into Dragon's ears.
"No..this can't be happening! I-I failed..the castle..it will soon be..NO!" The magician just slammed his book down in anger. Its odd, usually the wizard doesn't seem to give out any signs of anger. Why the change? The two then returned. Dragon then goes back to his humble cave while Jane goes to bed thinking about it.
Jane's mother is happy yet worried about this since she has already heard that she passed the test and fear of her daughter's safety. Who knows what happens next? But one thing's for sure, Gunther and Jane will be a knight.
Hey guys! I finally manage to finish Chapter 4 here! This story's a lot longer but short as well. Chapter 5 have came out months. So be patient. Anyways, enjoying the story or bore with it, no idea. Enjoy regardless!