The Knight King Who Returned with Gods : Chapter 24
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
Episode 24 Hunting Spider (7)
The top floor of the United States Magic Tower.
This was where the Lord of the Tower resided... Reynald
Shelman, an expert S-class mage.
He was called the Archmage of the world, and even the
President of the United States can't mess with him. But here he was, groveling
in his room, begging for forgiveness.
"Forgive me, My Lord! I have failed to fulfill your
command!"
The object of his prostrations was a solid black gem.
The Jewel of Wisdom. An unchallenged-grade treasure from
the Red Gate of America. It looked at the mortal prostrating before itself and
spoke in a chilling voice,
「Foolish, stupid
thing. I have taught you the truth and the wisdom of Samra, and you let me
down.」
"For- forgive me!"
Reynald begged for forgiveness, bashing his head until it
bled.
It was not the kind of dignity that belonged to the
so-called Archmage of the world, but addicted as he was to the knowledge bestowed
by the Jewel of Wisdom, Reynald worshipped it like a god.
"It, it was unavoidable. A survivor named Leon was
an unexpected variable, even for us!"`
「You defile my ears
with your flimsy excuses. Just a survivor named Leon...... what?」
"Yes?"
Reynald looked up with a puzzled expression at the sudden
rise in the voice.
「Who, who did you just
say?」
"A man named Leon..."
「Don't tell me it's
the same guy? The news... turn on the news.」
The voice grew increasingly frantic. Was it an illusion that
it sounded as if it was frightened?
When Reynald turned on the news program to the report of
the capture of the Cheongju Gate, there was a blond haired young man in the
spotlight.
[I am the Lionheart King, Leon Dragonia Lionheart].
「Khhhhhhh!」
It was a close-to-screaming sound. The Jewel shouted in
alarm,
「Why is that bastard
here?! Why! How come?!!」
"M, My Lord?"
The mighty voice that had always dazzled the Archmage
with its solemnity and seriousness was nowhere to be heard, and it was filled with
fear instead.
「I, I give up. I will
not. I won't.」
In the next moment, the black energy in the jewel
scattered and it turned white. It was as if something within it had completely
disappeared.
"My Lord? My Lord?!"
Reynald repeatedly called out to the orb, but the orb
never spoke again.
* * * *
"Have you destroyed the Jewel of Wisdom?"
Oh Kang-hyuk, the chairman of the Hunter's Association,
had a sad look on his face when he heard that Leon had destroyed the Jewel of
Wisdom.
"Are you displeased?"
"......No, because the condition for closing the
gate was to either destroy or obtain the Jewel of Wisdom. If Your Majesty had
defeated the Yakt Spinner, then what to do with the Jewel is also in Your
Majesty's hands."
Still, Leon recognized the hidden disappointment in the
Association Chairman's expression. Yes, ignorance does indeed make one blind in
the face of immediate gain.
"Don't be regretful. It's poison."
"Poison... ?"
"It is something demonic."
"Demonic?!"
At the mention of demons, Oh Kang-hyuk, the chairman of
the Association, was stunned.
Demons.
The immortal beings that emerged from the Demon Gate.
They had always been the cause of nightmarish damage to mankind.
"The jewel is an object created by the wickedness of
wisdom and inquiry to seduce humans. At first, it grants the wielder what they
desire, and then it demands a price."
The mages of the Empire had fallen under the spell of
such orb.
It didn't take long for what was initially a curiosity to
turn into an enticement for eternal life, immortality, and eventual devotion to
the demons.
"The Emperor of the Empire fell prey to its
temptations and sacrificed millions of his citizens. You said it had been found
elsewhere? You'd better hurry and destroy it."
"I can't believe......."
A drop item from the gate could harbor such a sinister
purpose... The Chairman of the Association was somewhat skeptical of Leon's
story, but he was certain that if it was true, something terrible would happen.
"I will bring this to the attention of the US
government."
"That would be wise, but... they may have already
fallen under the influence of evil."
Leon did not overestimate the willpower of humans in this
era.
They were weak creatures, easily swayed by greed, susceptible
to temptation. Their obliviousness to the gods holds no comparison to the
inhabitants of the other world.
'They
are ailing, poor, weak, and greedy.
That
is why they need true faith and enlightenment all the more.
They
must be taught that God's love is a grace extended to all.'
"Chairman, lead me to the place where he is laid to
rest."
"Yes, of course. It is in the basement of the
Association."
Leon followed the Chairman's lead to what appeared to be
a storeroom.
In the storeroom, where the things and byproducts of the
gates were usually stored, lies the remains of the Yakt Spinner, the boss of
the Cheongju Gate.
"Y- you have come, Your Majesty, Association
Chairman!"
Starting with Hari, who had been waiting, the association's
employees bowed their heads. They were instructed to be respectful towrad Leon.
"Go on with your task."
Accepting their salute, Leon stepped forward and stood
before the remains of the Yakt Spinner.
The remains of the Yakt Spinner was, to put it mildly, a
mangled mess.
Its body, crushed and battered by Leon's holy lance, had
lost its imposing presence over the hunters.
It was now a pale shadow of its former glory. No, it was
literally nothing but scraps.
"What shall we... do with it?"
"Since this one was an honorable knight, we should
bury it and pray that it finds its way to the feast of the gods."
A suitable plot of land could be found in the Naju Plain,
which the goddess Demera had blessed. Leon patted the Yakt Spinner before him.
"Rest in peace, faithful knight."
The moment he blessed the Yakt Spinner, the thing moved.
"What?!"
Hari's voice rang out, drawing the attention of the
Chairman and other employees.
"Huh?!"
"The Yakt Spinner?"
"Aah, it's moving!"
The nightmare of Cheongju Gate. The boss monster, which
had destroyed the entire raid group three times, began to move with a weak
creaking sound, causing the employees to freak out.
The only one who remained calm was Leon.
"Stop panicking!"
Leon's one simple phrase sounded like a battle cry.
Suddenly, they realized who was in front of them.
Yes, Leon, the man who brought down the Yakt Spinner, was
right before them. Relieved by Leon's presence, they swallowed hard and stared
at the Yakt Spinner.
"Your Majesty......."
Leon was equally puzzled by this situation.
-Creaak... creaak!
The Yakt Spinner creaked as if it couldn't support its
own weight, and then it began to dismantle itself with its still
well-functioning robotic arm.
Undoing bolts, removing limbs, disassembling...
reconfiguring itself.
Throughout the process, Leon sensed a familiar energy
emanating from the Yakt Spinner.
"This... is Holy Power."
The holy water he'd used in the consecration of the Yakt Spinner
at its last moments. It had somehow affected the Yakt Spinner.
The Yakt Spinner's power source was shattered and unable
to function properly, but with the blessing of the Holy Power, a miracle had
occurred.
Yakt Spinner eventually finished disassembling and
reconfiguring its body.
Now reduced to one-twentieth of its original size, the
Yakt Spinner stared at Leon.
Leon smiled, bowing his head in glee.
"I see. If it's you... perhaps you may be able to
win the Goddess' favor."
Leon summoned the Grail and conjured holy water from
within it, which he then poured onto his holy sword.
The old, tattered sword began to gather light. As if it
was its duty to become the center of the world's lights.
Leon's old metal sword was brilliantly coated in divine
radiance.
"Wow......."
"What is that......."
Everyone marveled at the divine glow, its very existence
a miracle, a blessing.
He slashed through the air with this holy sword of honor,
bestowed by the Goddess.
As the sword, which had condensed its own energy with the
energy of the Holy Grail and Holy Water, cut through the air, a blinding light
split the space.
There... The white face of a human, no, a goddess was
revealed.
The goddess, with snow-white hair dripping with ethereal energy,
slowly opened her eyes to reveal priceless golden pupils.
"Aaah......."
Leon didn't need to say it. Everyone in the room
intuitively knew. That the woman of light was no human.
She was something divine, something beyond all
comparison.
Everyone fell to their knees before her. It was
impossible not to. Leon from the beginning got down on one knee, so how could
they, the lowly commoners, stand on two legs?
"Goddess Arianna."
"Lionheart... my First Knight."
She was the goddess of light and justice. She was the
main deity worshiped by the Lionheart Kingdom, and an existence revered by
demigods and saints alike.
Leon wanted to say more, but he realized the significance
of the occasion. He held up the Yakt Spinner as if to introduce it.
"This is Sir Yakt Spinner, an honorable knight, a
model for all knights. He is a knight worthy of Goddess Arianna's
consideration."
The goddess looked at the strange knight that Leon had
introduced. Her golden eyes bored into the machine's red ones.
「This one has not
fulfilled my quest. He has not proven his honor and brought me glory.」
"As the First Knight of the Goddess, I can vouch for
him. If not for my existence, he would be a great knight, capable of rivaling
the glory of a Lionheart King."
「If my knight can
speak that highly of him... there is nothing more to look into.」
The goddess had absolute faith in Leon.
He served her as her knight, raised her honor, and
ultimately gave her glory on an impossible battlefield.
The gods of the Pantheon hold him dear, and how could
they find fault in his words?
「However, one thing
must be made clear.」
The goddess looked over at the Yakt Spinner. Even this
inorganic piece of machinery had humbled itself before the Goddess.
「Will you,
otherworldly steel knight, enter the gates with my knight, the Lionheart King,
to praise light and sing justice?」
-Kririg?
The Yakt Spinner shifted its head as though it didn't
quite understand the goddess' words. She then spoke in a different way.
「You are full of honor
and knowledge, but your wisdom is still that of a child. Simply understand
this: Help my knight destroy evil. Then you are also my knight.」
Evil.
The Yakt Spinner's camera panned over to Leon.
Calmly assessing the situation, it recalled Leon's words,
the power he had shown, and most of all, the theoretically unrealistic
possibility of its reactivation.
The Yakt Spinner quickly reached a decision.
-Kririg! Krik! Kririg!
It spoke something in machine language, but soon realized
that it would not be understood, and began to search for a language that would
work in this world.
Hacking the radio towers of nearby satellite
communication stations was a simple task for the Yakt Spinner.
-Check. Plan. Evil. Attack. Good plan.
The answer was broken into short words, but neither Leon
nor Arianna considered it rude, nor did they ask the Yakt Spinner to repeat
itself.
They were merely genuinely delighted to have this
honorable Grail Knight at their side.
「Good. Sir Yakt Spinner.
As long as you remain loyal to my First Knight and aid him in his endeavors, I
will be with you in your glory.」
Holy Grail Knight Yakt Spinner 10,253.
Here, a new holy grail knight had been ordained in the
name of light and justice.
***
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