I Became a Mythical-Tier Tamer Due To A System Error Chapter 75

After class ended, on the way to the livestock shed.

A pair of glasses I thought I had seen somewhere before appeared at the bottom of my vision.

“Hello!”

It was Haze, the bespectacled senior I had seen inside the barrier.

What was she so happy about?

“You’re still so lively, even though you were a barrier victim.”

“Hahaha! Why would I lose energy? I’ve got major scoops inside my head! Just thinking about dropping a huge one soon makes me super excited every single day!”

“…Yeah, nice meeting you. Take care.”

As I tried to walk past her first, Haze grabbed my arm.

“W-wait a moment. Please, just a little interview.”

“Ah, what is it.”

She looked ready to follow me all the way to the livestock shed, so reluctantly, I decided to hear her out.

“The Black Knight.”

Those words dug straight into my ears.

“Do you know anything about the Black Knight?”

“I don’t.”

I deliberately sounded indifferent, but Haze’s eyes changed into the look of someone seeing a pitiful soul.

“You didn’t see him even though you were inside the barrier… Well, I guess that makes sense. You were either imprisoned or unconscious.”

“……”

When I silently stared at her, Haze cleared her throat and continued quickly.

“Anyway, there are lots of rumors calling him a hero who rescued the Princess and defeated that vile Verdi. There are plenty of witnesses too.”

Haze pulled out a notebook and pen from her pocket.

“The truth is, I’ve been narrowing down the candidates for the Black Knight.”

“Candidates?”

“Yes. I also saw the Black Knight, even if it was from afar. He was very tall. At first glance, it looked like he was just wearing a black coat… but in reality, it was a Yggdrasil uniform painted black.”

The smile vanished from Haze’s face.

She was staring at me with a serious expression.

“The Black Knight is a student of Yggdrasil.”

…She had realized that much. I was at a loss for words.

She wasn’t a reporter for nothing—her eye for detail was sharp.

While I was inwardly impressed, her pen suddenly pointed at me.

“For the record, you’re one of the Black Knight candidates too.”

“Why me?”

Outwardly I acted like it was nothing, but inwardly I couldn’t help being startled.

How did she notice?

I should have erased all possible evidence.

Did I miss a clue?

…I had even suffered the humiliation of crawling into a trash bin just to avoid any connection.

While my head was spinning with thoughts.

Haze smiled again and spoke.

“You know, it’s just like in those popular novels these days. A wealthy young noble heir who lost his parents—by day he’s just an ordinary noble, but by night he becomes a dashing knight who protects the city! That’s why, as the heir of the Dedenkman family, you’re also a candidate!”

…So that was all.

I felt deflated.

I sighed and asked back.

“…My family’s head is still very much alive.”

“Hahaha, I know that too! It’s just a figure of speech! Since you were at the barrier scene as well, I thought it would be fun to add you as one of the candidates!”

After that, I only answered a few of Haze’s questions before heading back to the farm.

They weren’t questions meant to seriously suspect me as the Black Knight, but rather trivial event-type ones.

‘She’s just trying to pad the list of candidates.’

After all, the only commonality with the Black Knight was my height.

…The next day.

Once again, after finishing class and heading to the livestock shed, I saw Haze loitering in the same place as yesterday.

The moment she spotted me, she waved her hand vigorously.

When I asked why, it turned out the student newspaper had been published today.

“This is a thank-you gift for letting me interview you. Don’t feel shy about taking it!”

Haze said as she handed me a newspaper.

Just as I received it, someone shouted at her.

“Hey, Haze! This article was so fun to read. My friends are begging me to lend them the paper too.”

“Really? Thanks~!”

Haze waved back in the direction of the voice.

“You heard that, right? I’m really proud! For the first time in Yggdrasil history, we’ve gone to a third print run in just one day! The demand is so high even in other regions—it’s explosively popular! It’s an incredible record!”

“Is that so…?”

“There are tons of exclusives, so you’ll have fun reading it. I’m busy, so I’ll get going now!”

Haze waved at me and dashed off somewhere.

With nothing to do on my way to the farm, I decided to read the newspaper she had given me.

The headline on the front page read…

「The Black Knight who defeated the traitor Verdi and rescued the Princess. Who is he?」

“…I knew it.”

A large photo showed me mid-battle, using Shurk’s ability.

‘When did they even take that picture?’

Judging by the red glow and shattered stained glass, it was clearly taken inside the barrier.

Fortunately, my mask in the photo was intact, so there was no danger of my identity being revealed.

‘They sure exaggerated a lot, though.’

Reading through the article, it described me with embarrassingly heroic traits.

Well, reporters did tend to embellish the facts…

「Shocking incident. Balrak Verdi, Commander of the 14th Division of the Imperial Army, arrested on charges of treason.」

「First-year Duke Ren, risking his life to stop the traitor Verdi.」

「In recognition of Duke Ren’s great merit, he is to be formally granted knighthood.」

A photo showed Ren, wrapped head-to-toe in bandages like a mummy, smiling brightly.

…In the game too, once the Victory Festival episode ended, it was revealed in the papers like this.

‘Although normally, Ren’s photo should have been the largest one.’

But the one called the Black Knight—me—took up more than half of the front page.

The official record had shifted slightly, but I didn’t pay it much mind.

‘Well… since the newspaper doesn’t have a huge impact on the story, I guess it’s fine?’

At least Ren also made the front page.

And it wasn’t like my identity as the Black Knight had been exposed.

Yes, that was enough.

Turning the page, several bold articles immediately caught my eye.

「Hell Survivor Helte Queens receives knighthood commendation. “On the hellish frontlines, I never once lost courage. The monsters were all my food.”」

「Bijou Lalilala to receive a commendation from the Barrier Society for her decisive role in dispelling the barrier.」

「Motorcycle owner: ‘I put the fragments of the motorcycle broken by the Black Knight up for auction as memorabilia and made twelve times the profit.’」

「On page 4, you will also find the vivid firsthand account of reporter and Hell Survivor Polrn Haze, who wrote this article! Please be sure to read it!」

It seemed the barrier had already been firmly branded with the modifier ‘hell.’

After skimming through a few articles, I turned to the next page.

‘I’m getting tired of these kinds of articles. Isn’t there something else?’

While looking for an article that might catch my interest, something stood out.

「Review of V’s Cafeteria」

‘…That’s my shop, isn’t it?’

Feeling a bit curious, I kept reading.

「We invited three renowned dessert critics.

‘Park Fesik (10 points) – I have arrived in heaven.’

‘Sermondier Jetetchi (10 points) – To taste the best dessert of my life in such a place, it is nothing short of astonishing. With my flawless palate, I can deduce the ingredients included only the finest cheese from the Alps…’

‘Puron Maciron (10 points) – I was once again reminded, through this opportunity, that food has the power to stir emotions. If V reads this, please contact me. Let us go into business together. My number is XXXX, so reach out to me…’

The reporter has redacted the number to protect personal information!」

‘The reviews are insanely good.’

Those three were the NPCs who appeared as judges in the cooking contest.

‘For them all to give 10 points?’

Especially Park Fesik, who was infamous for stingy scores.

He would even give just 4 points to cakes perfectly enjoyable to ordinary people.

Receiving 10 points from him meant the dessert was nearly flawless.

‘In the game, players had to use top-grade ingredients and raise their proficiency to the extreme just to earn 10 points from Fesik.’

The thought crossed my mind that maybe a dessert business wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Turning to the next page, reviews of my booth continued.

「Review of V’s Workshop

Buyer A: Thank you, unknown professor!

Buyer B: Maker unidentified, but the quality is excellent. Truly worthy of a Grandmaster-level item.」

As I read the reviews, I blinked.

“…What?”

It explicitly said Grandmaster-level, not Master-level.

I thought it might be a typo, but then I read the next review and blinked again.

「Buyer C: Very cheap for a Grandmaster-level item.」

“Not Master, but Grandmaster?”

That meant the Titanium Sword I made wasn’t just Master-level, but Grandmaster-level.

‘No wonder it looked so extraordinary…’

Without equipment appraisal skills, I had never realized it was Grandmaster-level.

‘So the more I craft using that Goddess’s Kit, the higher my crafting proficiency climbs, huh. I had no idea.’

I turned the newspaper to the next page.

There, a large photo of me was printed.

This was the Black Knight candidate list Haze had mentioned.

「First Candidate:

Blue Ivory Knight Order Assault Captain – Rubeltz von Kleinbert

A third-year who had accomplished remarkable feats. After graduation, it has been decided he will transfer as vice-captain of the 17th Imperial Army Knight Order. A sword mage who uses the Dark Attribute. Considered the closest match to the Black Knight among candidates due to his strength. However, he has an alibi, as he was among the first dispatched to the incident after the Victory Festival. Despite his scary looks, he is rumored to be very kind.

Second Candidate:

Student Council Vice President – Jed Rubin

A genius who has served as vice president since first year! A second-year in the Department of Magical Engineering. He can use three attributes, with Dark as his specialty. Though he should have been busy with the festival, he suddenly vanished during the Victory Festival incident. No witnesses or alibis for that time. With so little information, even I had a hard time gathering intel. Said to be quite the handsome man, stealing the hearts of female students.

Third Candidate:

Red Hawk Knight Order Vice Captain – Joel Gelhart

A promising second-year who rose to the position of vice captain despite his age. Like the other candidates, he is well-built and highly skilled in combat, a rising new knight. The youngest to serve as vice captain of the Red Hawk Knight Order. Known for his flexibility in negotiating with the rival Blue Ivory Knight Order. Uses Dark Attribute techniques primarily. At the time of the incident, he neither deployed with the order nor was seen by anyone, instead secretly taking a nap. (This is information I uncovered myself.) In other words, he has no alibi. In my opinion, a very strong candidate!

Fourth Candidate:

First-year – Riz Villed Dedencman Ludwig

Second son of the Four Great Houses’ Dedenkman family. Said to only be able to use fire and earth attributes. Happened to be present at the scene inside the barrier. And, he’s tall! Nothing more to explain, but who knows. Perhaps he really is the Black Knight?

That concludes the introduction of the candidates, but this reporter will one day reveal the Black Knight’s true identity!」

‘Please don’t reveal it.’

I sighed as I continued reading the newspaper.

In the game, the newspaper never had much impact.

But this issue was unusually filled with articles about the ‘Black Knight.’

‘I never wanted to draw attention…’

But it had been unavoidable when I rushed in to save Ren and the Princess.

‘I just hope this trend dies down and gets forgotten soon.’

I folded the newspaper and continued walking toward the livestock shed.