Chapter 4: The Teddy Knight

In the end, Garen failed to carry out justice as he had intended, for the great Teddy’s intelligence truly surpassed that of ordinary beasts. It keenly sensed Garen’s “special interest” in its flesh and blood, and with almost human expressions and agile body language, conveyed information vital to its survival.

“You’re saying…” Garen slowly sheathed his sword, standing tall and proud, “you have food for me?”

The big Teddy nodded vigorously.

“Where?” Garen’s eyes gleamed with a hungry, almost feral light as he uttered the word. It was hunger, raw and gnawing, that lent that greenish glow to his gaze. At this point, Garen was so famished he no longer cared if the food the dog offered was fit for humans or merely dog feed.

The big Teddy wagged its tail anxiously, then, under Garen’s intense scrutiny, padded over to a tall clump of grass at the edge of the clearing. With a happy flourish, it bit off a bunch of the grass and swallowed it. Then, it brought another clump over and laid it before Garen.

“You…” Garen’s veins bulged with exasperation. “You’re a dog this size, and you eat grass?!”

The big Teddy nodded sincerely.

“Absurd!” Garen swore. “I want human food! Food for people, like me!”

Unable to contain himself, he once again raised his greatsword. “It seems you leave me no choice but to act as the hand of justice!”

“Woof woof!” The big Teddy cowered at the sight of Garen’s imposing sword, yelping pitifully.

It extended a paw, pointing insistently in a certain direction.

“There’s food over there?” Garen tried, suspicion in his voice.

The big Teddy nodded, whimpering low.

“Is it food for humans?” Garen pressed on, “For people like me?”

“Woof woof!” came the affirmative reply.

“Then let’s go!” Garen said, nearly unable to wait—his hunger was making his head spin.

With that, he hefted his greatsword and urged the big Teddy to lead the way to this as yet unknown source of sustenance.

“Wait…” The big Teddy stopped, one paw still in midair. Garen, meanwhile, stroked his chin and scrutinized the dog’s broad back. “I am, after all, a noble knight. How can I travel without a steed?” He swung himself up. “I’ll trouble you to carry me for a while.”

***

Samwell Island in the East Sea was not a place of renown. Yet as a resupply stop along a thriving trade route, it bustled with activity. Merchants, pirates, navy men, and pirate hunters—all manner of folk mingled to form a flourishing town.

The island’s vastness was another hallmark. Despite the size of the town, uncharted forests spread beyond, places ordinary people rarely ventured. This explained why Garen could wander here for a day and a night without finding his way out.

But with Teddy Sun—his new guide and mount—Garen soon emerged from the tangled woods and first set eyes upon this strange new world.

“There really are people here…” Riding atop the big Teddy, Garen heaved a long sigh of relief. In that immense, uncanny forest, he had half believed he’d crossed into some primitive, savage land.

He took a closer look at the town before him: carriages, stone-paved roads, European-style buildings, gas lamps… Were it not for the three-meter-tall Teddy beneath him, Garen could have imagined himself on the European continent two centuries prior.

Yet there was much here that was unusual. Though everyone around him spoke a language that, thanks to the system’s translation, sounded like his own native tongue, the shop signs lining the streets were all in dazzling English, and some even boasted calligraphy in Chinese. For Garen, who grew up speaking Chinese and had passed the highest levels of English exams, it felt oddly familiar—yet inexplicable.

Had Earth already succeeded in invading another world?

More curious sights followed. On the streets strolled gentlemen in suits, as well as youths in short-sleeved shirts; swordsmen with samurai blades at their belts and gunners with flintlock rifles slung over their shoulders; slovenly brutes and simply dressed women. Most bizarre of all was the last detail: not only did the people sport a rainbow of hair colors, but the burly men wandering the avenues were, at the shortest, Garen’s height, and the tallest reached three or four meters.

Those “giants” roamed the streets with impunity, making Garen, who prided himself on his stature, feel suddenly insignificant. The women were just as peculiar—some so ugly they could have claimed a world record, others so beautiful they seemed otherworldly. Especially those with impossibly exaggerated S-curves, whose slender waists seemed doomed to snap under the weight above; Garen couldn’t help but worry for their spines.

Yet no one here seemed to find any of this unusual. Small wonder, then, that no one batted an eye at a knight riding a giant Teddy dog—compared to the other oddities in town, he was almost ordinary.

“What kind of world is this?” Garen murmured to himself as he rode atop Teddy Sun. The big Teddy, of course, could offer no answer, and Garen didn’t dwell on it for long.

For he had caught a scent—the aroma of food.

To be precise, it wasn’t an earth-shattering aroma, nothing to match the myriad delicacies of his former life. But hunger sharpens the senses; after starving this long, even a bowl of fried rice would have sufficed to make him abandon all pride.

“Let’s go!” Garen urged the Teddy forward, following the tantalizing smell. Before long, he arrived before a restaurant.

It was no ordinary establishment; even the doorway bespoke luxury. Crystal chandeliers cast a riot of colors, the open doors were inlaid with intricate golden patterns, and a carpet of fine alpaca wool lined the entry, flanked by uniformed security guards and two stunning young women serving as greeters.

Regardless of the era, the elite are always adept at creating an atmosphere that leaves the commoner in awe. Just as anyone might marvel at the grandeur of the Forbidden City, so too was Garen struck by the opulence before him.

Yet it wasn’t humility that filled him. Modern folk, after all, are not so easily cowed by displays of wealth—at least not outwardly. What truly amazed Garen was the sudden realization: he had no money.

He was a recent arrival to this world, and naturally penniless. Even the clothes on his back—his suit of armor—were a gift from the system.

“Should I go in?” he wondered, troubled. “Not a coin to my name—will I have to dine and dash?”

This, too, was the mark of modern civility: a tendency to be bound by rules.

Just as Garen was hesitating, the restaurant staff sprang into action. A male attendant deftly brought over a mounting stool for the big Teddy, while the two lovely greeters approached Garen with sweet smiles.

“Honored knight!” They chorused, “Please dismount and enjoy your meal.”

Their voices were soft and charming, and with practiced ease they flattered him by referring to his dog as a noble steed.

Garen detected their fawning, but was too hungry to care. With his stomach rumbling, he slid off the Teddy and followed the scent of food inside.

No sooner had he entered than a middle-aged man in a suit, manager by the look of him, approached with a welcoming smile and escorted Garen to a VIP table.

Garen was even more at a loss.

What he failed to notice was that, though he had nothing now but his suit of armor and greatsword, these were no ordinary items. The original Garen's armor was none other than the storied Courageous Armor, and his sword the royal Demacian Stormblade.

Though they no longer bore any special attributes, their appearance alone radiated an unmistakable might. The armor, thick and solid, gleamed with platinum and gold; the sword, forged from the finest materials, boasted a golden hilt and broad silver blade, masterfully wrought as one. Set into the pauldrons and sword hilt, sapphires sparkled with a purity and size the likes of which the manager, seasoned judge of men and valuables, had never seen.

He would have staked his life on it: this man was a true noble knight—even if he rode a dog.

Meanwhile, outside the restaurant, Garen’s mount, the stately Teddy Sun, was about to slip away. Freed from Garen’s oppression, the big Teddy turned to retreat into the forest. But a loud male voice called out behind it:

“Captain! The knight’s mount is trying to escape! Quick, stop it! We can’t let a guest’s steed go missing on our watch!”

The security team sprang into action. Though they were “just” restaurant guards, in the chaotic and lawless age of pirates, such a post required no small amount of skill.

“Woof woof woof!” Teddy Sun howled in distress but was soon rounded up and confined to the restaurant’s stables by the enthusiastic young men.

***

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