Chapter 238: The Appearance of a Knight King

“Ke’er, would you like some more dessert?”

“Oh, that won’t be necessary, Big Sister Lin. Ke’er is already stuffed.” Ke’er sheepishly touched her stomach.

Given her reserved nature, the mere thought of her raising her fists and shouting “Give me another one!” filled her with deep embarrassment.

“Big Sister Lin, aren’t you hungry?” Ke’er noticed that only her chopsticks had been moving this whole time. The vampire girl beside her seemed fixated on sipping tea. Every so often, she would glance at Ke’er with intense curiosity in her eyes. This scrutiny made the catgirl deeply uneasy.

As someone who was quick to feel embarrassed, this made Ke’er blush. She could not shake off the thoughts of being a freeloader, a parasite sponging off others’ meals.

Lin only shook her head slightly. “I don’t really eat things like that.”

A vampire, whose palate was miles apart from that of a human, would likely only feel disgust and revulsion towards such food.

As for how the bitter and light tea tasted to vampires, that was a mystery only they could unravel.

“Strange. Why is Mr. Ji Bai taking so long in the bathroom? Could he have some troubles with his stomach?” Ke’er muttered to herself, a puzzled look crossing her face as she glanced at the empty chair opposite her.

“…” Lin suddenly set her teacup down and stood up with a solemn expression on her face.

“Big Sister Lin?” Ke’er seemed somewhat baffled by her reaction. Her cat ears twitched, as she wondered if Lin needed to use the toilet too.

“Get down!” The response she received was Lin’s large chest directly smothering her face. The collision knocked her off her feet, and her whole body was pinned down to the ground by the vampire.

“Wahh!” Her head hit the ground hard, causing golden stars to explode in her vision as a wave of pain washed over her.

This was quickly followed by a sea of gray sand engulfing her vision. The building’s beams had collapsed, while the brick walls and tiles had crumbled into pieces like tofu. They plummeted like torrential rain towards the ground, bringing a cloud of dust with them.

Debris cascaded down on the heads of the customers who were bewildered by the unfolding situation.

The sudden collapse threw the store into a sea of disarray. Those struck by the roof beams tragically lost their lives right then and there. The force of the impact tore their insides to pieces, making resuscitation impossible.

The customers who had one last breath in their body and could still move raced towards the exit, tapping into some primal reserve of strength as they scrambled towards the exit in a desperate, disorderly dash for survival. In the face of death, any semblance of order had vanished.

After placing Ke’er underneath the long table, Lin strained her senses.

Through them, she could tell that a black mass, infused with various magical energies, had smashed through the store’s roof after plummeting from the sky. Countless numbers of small scarlet dots darted up and down in the ensuing dust storm, accompanied by a hissing sound that caused one’s scalp to tingle.

It seemed to be searching for a target.

Lin’s eyes turned sharp and incisive.

She recognized that visage all too well.

It was a giant human-faced spider, a creature which had wrought widespread destruction in Border Town before.

“Aaaaah…! W-What is that?!” Transparent strands wrapped around the innocent townsfolk, turning them into prey. The creature then incessantly dragged them towards its massive teeth that opened and closed without pause.

“Uuu… B-Big Sister Lin. Is something going on outside?”

“Just a minor issue. Stay put and don’t come out.”

‘Is there an issue with the barrier of the human alliance again?’

After instructing Ke’er to stay still, Lin began to silently chant a [spell], gathering the enormous [magic] in her body. She planned to launch a devastating blow at the massive spider of unknown origins and put an end to its threat once and for all.

“Rumble!…” However, as if fate itself had intervened and prevented her from making a move, a dark-silvery figure took the initiative and moved first. Making use of gravity to speed their descent, they launched a direct attack on the spider’s completely unprotected back, leaving a series of afterimages in their wake.

“Ji Bai?” Lin could not grasp why Ji Bai had activated his [Sacred Marital Ability] in such a casual manner and made such a flamboyant entrance. Nevertheless, her trust in her partner led her to disperse the scarlet magic she had amassed in her hands.

“Aaaahh!…” The sharp sword piercing its back drove the giant spider into a frenzy. Its hoarse shrill voice sounded anything but human, as its hands flailed about wildly in an attempt to grab and throw the human off its back.

The dark-silvery knight was methodical in their actions. Twisting the hilt of their longsword embedded in the creature’s body, they incessantly pulverized its flesh and viscera tissue into pieces.

“Aaaah!…” Feeling its life ebbing away, the human-faced spider lashed out with a final burst of power. It twisted its lower limbs with all its might and tore a wall asunder. With no obstacles in its way, it then charged into the street, unleashing a frenzied rampage to vent its torment and anger.

Several clueless pedestrians who happened to pass by the store at the wrong moment were caught in the mayhem.

“W-What is that thing?!”

“Damn it! Isn’t that the spider monster that attacked the town a few months ago?!”

“This town must be cursed! I should’ve never let those low prices fool me into staying here!”

Like muddy water kicked up in a pond, the extremely orderly street instantly descended into chaos.

Its nervous system overwhelmed by pain, the spider monster bared its hideous teeth, tearing through a few unfinished multi-storey buildings and reducing them to their foundations.

Despite that, the dark-silvery knight remained perfectly still, lowering themselves into a slight crouch and allowing the monster to thrash about freely while maintaining a thick grip on their sword. This left the creature in a state of extreme helplessness and frustration.

As its organs were penetrated one by one, the large spider’s movements turned sluggish as it lost its ability to sustain itself. Its many legs twitched twice before they collapsed completely.

The dark-silver knight, having amassed their strength for this precise moment, leaped into the air. The bright gleam of their sword pointed straight at the azure sky above.

[Watcher’s Fury]

A sliver radiance flashed by.

“Crack!” A foul-smelling liquid splashed against their dark-silvery armor.

Following the crisp sound of broken bones, a head with monstrous teeth tumbled to the ground like a leather ball.

The cold glint radiating out from the seams of the knight’s helmet fell on the spider monster, which was now devoid of life.

Their sword — a gold-trimmed hilt adorned with precious stones and a blade engraved with inscriptions — remained untainted by the creature’s filthy blood as they slid it back into its sheath.

“That person… It’s the Radiant Knight!!” With the threat gone and the alarm silenced, the pedestrians cautiously poked their heads out of hiding one after the other.

Sunlight illuminated the silver armor standing next to the monster corpse, making it shine with a dazzling light.

The excited pedestrians had discerned the identity of the person in armor right away.

The deceased fifth-generation Knight King, also known as the Radiant Knight; A paragon of virtue, he stood as the sole figure to have confronted and triumphed over a vampire army, a hero dearly beloved by his people.

“Is it really him? But…hadn’t they announced that the Radiant Knight had passed away…”

“Who knows? Perhaps this is all part of the Temple Association’s plan to make the demons let their guard down…”

“That’s definitely the Radiant Knight! I saw him give a speech before! There’s no mistaking that strength! That gotta be him!”

“His head is turning our way- He is looking at us!”

“Sir Knight, I’ve always known in my heart that you wouldn’t leave the battlefield so easily. Long Live the Knight King!”

Brimming with excitement, the populace erupted in loud cheers as they celebrated the triumphant return of their hero.

The armored figure lifted his head, his flickering gaze scanning the citizens exuberantly welcoming his return.

“Sir Knight, Sir Knight! May I ask where you’ve been and what you’ve been doing in those years you were missing and presumed dead?”

“May I ask if you faked your death on purpose to execute a top-secret mission for the Temple Association?”

Drawn by the news, paparazzi had already arrived at the scene. They had long sensed a big story with their usual keen instincts and had enveloped the armored figure in layers so dense, not even a drop of water could trickle through.

Each of their audio recorders was turned on and ready.

“Please clear the way, citizens. We’re on official knight business.” A voice suddenly cut through the clamor, silencing the throng of reporters, who had descended on the scene at breakneck speed and bombarded the figure with questions.

Following which, a contingent of fully-armored knights cut a path through the crowd, forming a guard on either side like an imposing and unyielding iron barricade.

A middle-aged man of illustrious status walked at the center, his hands clasped behind his back. Each of his steps resonated with vigor and strength.

The figure leading the procession was clad in a dark-silver knight’s gown. Despite wrinkles lining his face, his brows were firm, framing a gaze that was both bright and expressive. His eyes held a striking solemnity, with an overall bearing hinted at the handsomeness he once possessed in his youth.

“That’s…”

“Oh, I remember! That seems to be Enzo, the present vice-head of the Chivalric Group of Radiant Knights. I remember seeing him give a speech in Border Town before!”

“He doesn’t seem the slightest bit surprised by the Knight King’s appearance… So this is why he has always been reluctant to take up the role of Chivalric Head; He’s been in on the secret this whole time!”

The middle-aged man remained unfazed by the baseless conjectures and gossip of the crowd as he continued his methodical walk.

He then bent over and sank to one knee before the armored figure.

The knights on both sides quickly followed suit, kneeling in the same manner.

“My deepest respects and earnest congratulations for your triumphant return, Milord.” A sense of deep respect was evident in Enzo’s words and action, as he meticulously performed a knight’s salute.

“Just as I thought! That’s His Excellency, the Knight King… There’s no way Sir Enzo would mistake him for someone else.” The crowd lit up with expressions of understanding, as if everything had clicked in place for them.

That fully-enclosed dark-silver armor… The holy sword, Heaven’s Abundance, flickering with a silver radiance in their hands. There was no mistaking it. That could only be the Radiant Knight.

Only when the armored figure returned the salute did Enzo and the crowd of Radiant Knights bearing the sun cross upon their shoulders feel free to rise.

The seemingly ordinary exchange was a piece of groundbreaking news to the paparazzi.

The thirst of gossip fueling the predatory gleam in their eyes, they took out their equipment and unleashed a flurry of shutter clicks, one after the other.

They could already think of a headline for the story: BREAKING! The Long-Missing Knight King, the Radiant Knight, Emerges Back into society! His Dire Justification Moved the Holy Father to Tears and Left Enzo Speechless!1

“Are you alright, Ke’er?” Pushing the table aside, Lin swept Ke’er up into her arms and ran out of the store, which had been reduced to rubbles.

“I’m okay. And you, Big Sister Lin?… And that person in armor, is that Mr Ji Bai?”

“Mhm.” Lin responded with a small nod. Though she was somewhat perplexed by his current actions, she was undeniably sure it was him.

“Uhmm, I see…” Ke’er tilted her head. “Big Sister Lin, why is everyone suddenly looking at us?”

“…!?” Lin was taken aback. It was only then she noticed that the cloth once covering Ke’er’s head had disappeared without a trace. Her large furry ears, twitching and shaking unreservedly, were now exposed for all to see.

‘This is bad. Now that… ’

“Boom!…” In that instant, the dark-silver figure leapt over the crowd, landing steadily beside them.

They slowly rose to their feet, a chilly killing intent seeping out from the seams of their helmet.

“‘Mr… Ji Bai??’ Ke’er flinched and leaned closer to Lin. The ‘Ji Bai’ standing before her gave her a clear, unsettling feeling.

“Go to hell, demon.” Their muffled voice was devoid of emotion, yet it surged with an intent to kill.

Uttering those words, the Radiant Knight held their holy sword up high and emotionlessly swung it downwards.

“Boom!” Their strike left a dent in the ground.

“Have you gone insane, cockroach?!” Lin roared in fury, as she carried Ke’er out of harm’s way just in the nick of time.

Lin’s furious rebuke did nothing to slow the knight, who kept up his vicious and lethal barrage of attacks.

Confused by what had bewitched ‘Ji Bai’, Lin had no choice but to continually dodge.

“Clank!”

Just as the swift and fierce holy sword plunged towards the pair, an incomparably battered, black longsword was thrust into its path, sending a shower of sparks scattering into the air.

“I stepped out for a bathroom break and this is what I return to… Can anyone fill me in here?”

It’s based on those clickbait titles.