The Knight King Who Returned with Gods : Chapter 8
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
Episode 8 Chivalry (1)
Party leader and tanker Kim Jin-soo swallowed hard as he
marveled at the swarming bony army.
"That's a lot of them."
"Chi- Chief, you distribute potions, right?"
"...I have distributed as much as we can
......."
Unlike the private hunter guilds that invested lavishly
in capturing gates, the Association's raiding party had limited resources and
budget.
They didn't have enough of the short-term buff potions or
the lifesaving recovery potions that hunter guilds would have bought
generously.
After all, the Hunter's Association was part of the
government, and as a national organization, it was difficult to spend more than
the set budget.
"It's a good thing they're a bunch of bones."
"Still, don't let your guard down. We'll still be
able to get stabbed by a stray blow."
Skeletons are the easiest of the undead to deal with.
By nature, strength comes from the muscles. Hunters who
have awakened their powers have tipped the scales, but the basics remain the
same as long as they are living.
Skeletons are merely a bunch of bones without a single
muscle. They are animated by the power of thought or magic.
Their basic power also varies, so be wary of the skeleton
archer who shoots blind arrows or the occasional skeleton mage.
Chief Kim called out to his men.
"Deputies Sa and Park, you two tankers, fall back! I
want you to join Deputy Han to stay as a backup!"
They were the youngest and most talented members of the party.
Jin-soo decided to keep them in reserve, looking for any possible Skeleton
Mages first.
"Mansik! How many archers and mages do you
see?"
"Thirty archers and two mages right now!"
"The ones with sniper skills will take care of them
first, and the ones with shields will stop them from advancing, I trust
you...!"
Before he could finish, the skeleton army charged, and as
they clashed wirh the mass of bones, Kim Jin-soo felt the heaviness on his
shield.
'It's
heavier than I thought, so the Scarlet Gate is different after all?'
But it's not something he, a B-class tanker, can't
handle. With his one hand, he blocked the skeleton warrior in front of him, and
with the other remaining hand, he crushed its skull with his sledgehammer.
-Wham!
It was then. An arrow flies between the skeleton's ribs.
His shield was a little too long, and it almost took him in the knee.
'What
the hell, a skeleton archer can snipe?'
Chief Kim was momentarily stunned, but then he shouted as
he grabbed a new skeleton.
"The archers and mages, hurry up and take care of
those bastards! Skeleton archers are most frightening with their blind
arrows!"
"Sorry!"
In retaliation, the Association hunters sniped at the
skeleton archers one after another. As the skeleton archers fell one by one
with their skulls pierced, they smiled in triumph.
-Goooow!
Then it happened. A magic circle was drawn in front of
them. The skeleton mages had used magic.
'Damn,
there's not a single mage on this side, but those skeletons over there have mages!'
Mages usually demand a high salary. Chief Kim swallowed
the woes of his impoverished organization and shouted,
"I am here!!"
His voice was enchanted. An instantaneous increase in
intimidation. The skeletal mages' eyes snapped to Chief Kim.
The coordinates of the bombing spell that was about to
land in the middle of the group were tweaked. Directed at Chief Kim.
-Boom!
"Kaargh!"
A bolt of thunder shot out of the magic circle and struck
Chief Kim squarely. But Chief Kim held on. He held on.
"Chief!"
"It's okay... It's just a sting. This armor is
expensive──"
At that moment, a shadow fell over him. He was met with a
gaze.
A head cradled in the crook of his waist. A headless
knight. A huge warhorse. All of those were facing him.
"Dullahan...!"
He couldn't react in time with his paralyzed body. The
headless knight with the giant warhorse rushed forward and slammed into Chief
Kim.
"Ugh?!"
Chief Kim was thrown back with a bang. Voices could be heard
calling out to him, but they were quickly replaced by screams.
Dullahan, the headless knight. The boss of this dungeon
had gone on a rampage with his giant sword.
"Kwak...!"
"What, what, what greatsword is so fast...!"
"What the hell are you doing, cover the gap!"
A gap opened up after the devastating cavalry charge.
Skeletons tumbled through the gap.
Skeletons were nothing to be afraid of. A properly
organized party of D-classes can handle them.
On the other hand, the skeletons are most deadly in a
melee.
Unless you crush their bones, these skeletons can easily
get tangled up with your allies.
"Argh, Chief Kim!"
Han Hari and the rest who were standing by in the rear,
looked anxiously at the collapsing front.
"What do we do? We have to go save them, Deputy
Han!"
They had to. They needed to go to their aid right now,
and that was what the backup was for.
But Han Hari automatically sent her glance to Leon, who
was standing behind her.
'If only...
if only this self-proclaimed Lionheart King who had slain even that
archdemon.......'
"Your Majesty, please help us!"
Everyone's gaze naturally turned to Leon. However, even
with those gazes, Leon merely stares coldly.
"A king doesn't take the lead in a small quarrel
like this."
"What? What do you mean...!"
"You should find a way to uphold your own honor, not
try to make me move my royal mantle for a bunch of insignificant bones."
The Knight King did not draw his sword, genuinely
disgusted with the group.
"It is an insult to the goddess to have my sword
touch such undead rags. It disgusts me to even look at them."
'What
the hell! Seriously!'
But Hari knew for sure. This man has no intention of
leaving at this moment. His gaze remained fixed on the headless knight with
interest.
"Deputy Han, what are we going to do?!"
"Ah, damn it! Backup is on its way!"
Hari drew her sword. The entangled skeleton is dangerous,
but the most dangerous of all is the Dullahan rampaging in the middle of the
formation.
"I'll take care of the boss, you guys support Chief
Kim and the rest!"
She gave the command. Using a skeleton as a stepping
stone, she leaped through the air and reached the Dullahan in a flash.
"Huk...!"
But the Dullahan seemed to have eyes in the back of his
head, blocking Hari's blade behind his back with his greatsword.
"He, he blocked it?"
The ambush was foiled in an instant. It was a lost cause,
but there was always next time.
Dullahan spurred his horse into a steady trot. With a
twist and a turn, she slashed at the Dullahan's chest.
-Ka-kang!
But her blow was intercepted by the Dullahan's armor and
ended in nothing more than a scratch.
'Ugh...
I should have bought a more expensive sword!'
It was the best weapon on a limited budget. But the
dungeon boss's armor was stronger and tougher than she'd expected.
For now, Hari was satisfied that she had managed to draw
the Dullahan's attention to herself. Indeed, unlike when he'd been cutting
through the formation, the Dullahan was now pulling on his horse's reins,
mindful only of her.
"Come!"
As if in response to the taunt, the reins jerked the
horse into motion, and the slight distance between them allowed the Dullahan to
execute one of his most daring cavalry charges.
With a heavy thud, the Dullahan slammed into Hari. It was
a charge that would knock a B-class tanker, Kim Jin-soo, off his feet. The
dizzying impact was transmitted to her──
-Bang!
But flames erupted at the moment of collision. It cushioned
the impact of the charge. Hari smirked at the Dullahan, who realized that this
was no ordinary flame.
"I'm sorry, but my technique has too many
applications."
As if she had been waiting for this moment, flames
erupted from her sword.
She'd activated her skill just moments ago, waiting for
the enemy to move away from her allies.
The flames, generated by the magic within her core,
quickly grew into a great blaze that engulfed the Dullahan.
-GAAAAAAAA──!
A guttural scream came from the burning Dullahan. Without
stopping, Hari stabbed the burning Dullahan right through the head.
-Bang!
"Huh?"
The stab, which was sure to bring victory, made such a
resounding sound. As if the attack had hit steel.
'Did
he parry it with the side of his greatsword in that situation?'
-Hoo.
There was a gasp, a brief pause, and a fist burst through
the flames.
"Kagh...!"
Hari rolled on the ground from the punch. She didn't understand.
It wasn't like he couldn't take her down with a single strike. But he didn't
even try.
"Hari!"
Just then, the hunters rushed to her aid. But their
attacks were no match for Dullahan's swordsmanship.
"Khhh?!"
He lightly swung his man-sized greatsword, deflecting the
attacks and using the momentum to strike back.
Though it was necessary to protect his head, which was
his fatal weakness, Dullahan's ability to overwhelm the hunters with such a
penalty was a sight to behold.
It was pure swordplay dominance.
Deflecting, parrying, and delivering a deadly blow all on
his own.
"Excellent!"
It was that moment.
A booming voice echoed throughout the dungeon.
All eyes turned to the blond man behind them.
* * * * *
He scorned the headless knight for being an undead.
Leon had always loathed the undead.
Bone soldiers, ghouls, corpse golems, and of course,
death knights.
There was no honor or glory in raising the dead and using
them as meat shields.
Those that had lost the finesse of their former lives,
and were driven by sheer willpower and magic, were no match for a Holy Grail
Knight.
'I
was mistaken. That's not just any undead.'
Leon had faced countless undead, but none of them were as
skilled with a sword as that one.
The move was impossible for an undead. How could a mere
undead perform such a sophisticated swordplay?
"Excellent!"
And so he decided to fight.
When one sees a great knight, what greater honor is there
than to defeat them?
His booming voice drew everyone's attention, even the
bones.
"First, let me apologize for my shallow eyes that
mistook such a fine knight as yourself for an undead."
-.......
The Dullahan stopped brandishing his sword at Hari and
listened to the man's words.
"You, brilliant swordsmanship, despite being
one-handed. A mastery of strategy and tactics. You must have been a renowned
knight in your days."
He was talking to the dungeon boss. Even the hunters
paused at the absurdity of the situation.
"Very well. I, Leon Dragonia Lionheart, King
Lionheart, hereby permit you to speak your name. State your identity!"
-.......
The Dullahan didn't answer. But that was not quite right.
Dullahans have no vocal cords. They had no means of
delivering speech.
Understanding, Leon nodded.
"Hmm... I see. The king has been negligent. I regret
not learning your name, but let's leave it as a battlefield tragedy."
"......No, Your Majesty."
What if you are actually talking to the boss...? Hari
couldn't get the words out.
Leon continued to speak in a nonchalant manner, much to
the amusement of the hunters.
"Nameless Knight, I shall grant you the right to
challenge this Lionheart King to a duel!"
A duel? No, he didn't even ask for a duel, but rather
granting the right to challenge him in a duel? To a monster?
It was unprecedented in the history of the Gate. But the
man didn't stop there.
"There is no need to harm irrelevant soldiers. Let's
end this conflict with an honorable duel between two knights!"
Do you think that will work? Everyone swallowed those
words immediately.
-Nod
It worked?!
For the first time ever. A dungeon boss actually accepted
a duel from a hunter?
No, the man himself wasn't even a hunter in the first
place!
But that wasn't the end of the story.
"Hmm... However, it appears that this king does not
have the necessary steed to fight as a knight. Due to circumstances, I am
unable to prepare a horse at this time. This is clearly this king's failure,
but......."
So what are you going to do.......
"Knight, for the sake of your honor, why don't you
get off your horse and fight me fair and square, feet to feet?"
The boss isn't an idiot, why would he get off his horse──
-Dismount!
He's getting off?!
Hari and the other hunters' jaws dropped. The headless
knight, who had been charging on his horse, wielding a greatsword larger than a
man, dismounted of his own accord.
For a fair fight between knights!
The hunters were dazed as they watched him dismount, and
so they begin to form a circle.
***
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