For the next few days, the knights and trainees of the Temple of Light continued to train as usual. As per Reinhardt's order, only a handful of high ranking knights knew what was going on inside the village and the upcoming fire festival.
Although they were training as usual, an observant one could tell that there was a different kind of intensity and craziness in their aura. This lit a fire under everyone, making everyone to involuntarily put more effort in their training.
And so days passed by just like that. On the day of the fire festival, Reinhardt had suspended all training and ordered everyone to gear up in their battle armour. Of course, he too was wearing his own.
When he was reincarnated to this world, other than the many skills, titles, and Divine Traits, he was also given three items. A divine sword, a divine armor, and a ring of halo.
Reinhardt was currently equipped with his divine armor— The Celestial Vanguard. A full body heavy armor of pure brilliance and light, radiating the presence of the heavens themselves. Composed of silver white adamantium plates and true gold, the armor was forged by the flames of a star.
Not only was it indestructible and gave a god like defence, simply by wearing it, one's presence intensified manifold.
Celestial vanguard… the armor was the very reflection of the divine and stood true to its name.
Other than the headgear, pauldrons, chest plate, gauntlets, and greaves, the armor also came with a cape. A magnificent cloth woven from the very fabric of the firmament, it shifted between the colours of the dawn and dusk depending on the time.
This was the first time Reinhardt was wearing it, but as one would expect of a divine armor bestowed upon him by a god, he didn't feel strange wearing it. In fact, the moment he donned it, the armor became a part of his body, something that he was used to wearing for a long, long time and fighting battles with.
Of course, his many divine traits and broken stats also played a huge part in getting accustomed to the armor.
When Reinhardt wore the celestial vanguard, he quickly became the centre of attention among the knights. They all gazed at him with awestruck and worshipping eyes.
The man they called the commander was already the epitome of what one would call a divine knight, appearance wise. So when he finally wore his armor, he became the very personification of divine knight among divine knights, man among men.
Knights and trainees of the Order of the Temple of Light stood in a neat formation, wearing their brand new battle armor sparkling in the light and grinning ear to ear with excitement.
The tension and pressure from the upcoming battle was one thing, but the joy of putting on one's armor and marching with the knights was another. The new recruits couldn't contain the smile that was creeping onto their faces.
"Attention everyone!! I hope that you are all aware by now as to why I gathered you here. Today is the day that would mark our passing or failing the mission."
Reinhardt's eyes bore down on everyone, His presence and stature commanding respect.
"There is no guarantee that a battle would break out today. However, in the off chance that it does, I want all of you to be prepared. Follow the order of your captains and remember your training. Prioritize your own and the lives of the villagers during the battle and take appropriate caution. Am I clear?".
The crowd roared in unison. Typically, a gathering of so many armed knights would raise alarm no matter where they were. However, the villagers of the Toto village were already used to seeing Reinhardt and his knights training on the outskirts of the village.
As such, their gathering did not raise much concern. The demi humans went on with their usual activity. Time passed by, and night arrived. It was time for the fire festival to begin.
Reinhardt and the knights could see the lights from the village square illuminating the night sky even from here.
"Let's head out" On his order, the knights arrived in front of the gate, which now had guards from the panther tribe surveilling the area.
Just like what Chief Zerina told him, the guards allowed him and the group to walk in without raising any alarm.
"From here onwards, only a few people can proceed forward so as to not alert anyone" A guard from the panther tribe came forward, leading Reinhardt and the others in. The latter glanced at his subordinates who immediately understood his meaning.
Reinhardt took Karina and Bob with him and left the rest of the high ranking knights to lead the order. When given the signal, they would rush into the square.
Leave it to chief Zerina, she even planned a route and place for Reinhardt and the others to watch the entire proceedings without alerting anyone.
"So this is the fire festival huh? Doesn't give off any festive vibe."
On top of a balcony of a house overlooking the village square, Bob looked down at the people gathering near a large campfire before muttering in a voice that only he and the other people near him could hear.
Just like he said, there was no festive lighting or atmosphere that should come when celebrating a festival, in the village square.
"Even though it is called a festival, it's not something that we enjoy. In fact, it is one of the most painful and humiliating ritual that we have to go through every year just to survive."
The man from the panther tribe did not explain further and continued to stare at the village square with clenched hands and guilty eyes.
Reinhardt and the other did not ask him further; they continued to look at the village square, trying to understand what was going on with the village.
As the trio observed from the balcony of a nearby building, the festival began.