Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 985

“H-here?”

“I won’t waste words.”

Wiggins’ voice was firm, his face just as resolute. Seeing that expression, the guard took a step back without realizing it.

“You know me, don’t you?”

“…Yes, Knight.”

“Call me Wiggins. I’m not someone who can be called a Knight right now.”

The guard swallowed hard and nodded. Those words carried a double meaning.

One was that Wiggins was no longer part of the Round Table, and the other was that, therefore, there was no reason to spare the guard’s life.

“Opening the door isn’t difficult. It just takes more time. Choose. Either face me and risk your neck to buy a few hours guarding that door, or open the door right now.”

It was an intense threat, one that would never have come from the Knight Wiggins the guard remembered.

The guard looked at Wiggins and the Garter Knights behind him with trembling eyes.

‘Why the Garter, too?’

If Wiggins had come with just a few others, he might have hesitated. But the fact that Wiggins had brought the Garter Knights [an elite order of knights] was a different story. The Garter Knights were a symbol of England.

They were the ones who followed the Knight’s orders and defeated the enemies of England. The fact that the Garter Knights were escorting Wiggins meant that they recognized Wiggins as a Knight, not Knight Chadwick.

‘What do you want me to do?’ The guard nodded weakly.

Guarding this door was his role, but guarding it in front of them was meaningless. As Wiggins said, even if he died to protect this door, Wiggins would eventually open it. Wiggins was one of the finest mages he knew.

He didn’t want to risk his life to delay their contact with the Master by just a few hours.

Of course, the guard intentionally ignored the possibility that they might not be able to open the door in the end because they wasted a few hours and reinforcements would arrive from elsewhere.

“I’ll open it.”

“A wise choice.”

Upon hearing Wiggins’ answer, the guard glanced up at the knights. The one at the front nodded, signaling that he would defend him even if things went wrong. Having secured a minimum of safety, the guard took out a key from his pocket and handed it to Wiggins. Wiggins took the key and held it up to the magic circle drawn on the door.

Whirrrrr!

Suddenly, an incongruous mechanical sound was heard, and the door swung open to the left and right. Wiggins patted the guard on the shoulder and then jumped inside.

The musty, fishy smell of the dungeon stung his nose. Wiggins, who had sprinted down the stairs leading below, finally reached the bottom. His eyes fell on the prison cell at the very end.

“Master!”

Wiggins, having confirmed the Master’s appearance, ran to the prison and grabbed the bars. The Master, who had been leaning against the old bed, slowly opened his eyes.

“…Wiggins.”

“Master, are you alright?”

“…You’ve come after all.”

The Master’s face was full of regret. He knew that Wiggins would come. He wasn’t the type to miss this opportunity. But he had hoped he wouldn’t come. Or maybe he had hoped he would.

The Master’s mind was so confused that he didn’t even know what he wanted.

“If you’ve come… that means he’s come too.”

“Master, I’ll get you out of here right now.”

“…It’s a sad thing.”

The Master looked at the bars with a subtle expression. It was Knight LeBeau who had imprisoned him in this cell. Or, to be precise, it was the Round Table controlled by Knight LeBeau. No matter how wicked Knight LeBeau’s actions were, his means of taking control of the Round Table were legitimate.

In other words, he was now in a situation where he had to refuse the Round Table’s orders with the help of the Round Table’s enemy.

“I don’t have the right to refuse, do I?”

“Master.”

Wiggins bit his lip. He came here out of necessity, but that didn’t mean that his respect for the Master had disappeared. He could easily imagine the dilemma he was going through right now.

“You must not be consumed by the means and forget the purpose. That’s what you said, Master.”

“That’s why you have to be careful what you say. Someday, the words I’ve spoken will come back to stab me.”

The Master chuckled softly and nodded.

“Open it. I’ll get out of here. The tide has already turned. If so, at least I’ll do what I have to do.”

At the Master’s words, Wiggins nodded firmly. He drew his sword and took a breath.

“Step back, Master. It might get a little rough.”

“…Hey, Wiggins.”

“Yes?”

“There’s a key right behind you.”

Wiggins turned his head with an awkward expression. He saw a key hanging on the wall.

“Don’t show off your strength unnecessarily, just get the key and open it. These bars are also Round Table artifacts.”

“Yes.”

Wiggins, feeling a little embarrassed, scurried over to get the key and opened the prison door. Still unable to shake off his awkwardness, he said something he didn’t need to say.

“We need to discipline the guards. A key in such an obvious place.”

“I’ve blocked the mana with a magic circle, how could they bring the key from that far away? Don’t talk nonsense.”

“…Yes.”

Wiggins nodded with a subtle expression. It felt like the Master’s personality had gotten a little worse after going through some hardship.

“So, what’s the situation now?”

At the Master’s question, Wiggins’ face hardened.

“Knight LeBeau has opened the temple.”

“Hmm…”

The Master’s voice became somber.

“…He’s made a bad choice.”

Opening the temple was the last resort. The Elder Knights were those who had given up their lives for the Round Table. They were beings who both prevented the Round Table’s crisis and purified the Round Table.

In any case, it was a mistake by the Master and the Knights that allowed the enemy to penetrate deep into the Round Table. And the Elder Knights would never tolerate that mistake.

Whether the Elder Knights won or Kang Jin-ho won, Knight LeBeau had no future.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

The Master took heavy steps. It felt like his feet were stuck to the floor, but he could no longer ignore the situation that was unfolding here.

‘I don’t know what I can do….’

He wouldn’t be able to stop the situation that had already gone to extremes. But he had to see it with his own eyes. Whether the result of this was the collapse of the Round Table or the revival of the Round Table, he had a duty to watch this change.

Knight Besley was feeling a strange sense of incongruity.

What should he say?

Yes.

It was like a scene from a classic old movie blending into reality. It was a feeling of seeing something that was all too familiar, but shouldn’t exist in reality. That’s how bizarre the sight was.

Clank, clank.

The sight of those clad in rusty armor, climbing the stairs in a disciplined, no, disciplined yet free manner, evoked a somewhat uncomfortable feeling in those who watched. Even Knight Besley, who had guessed their identities, felt more eeriness than reverence and respect.

Clank, clank.

Everyone watched the scene silently. Those who guessed what was happening, and those who had no idea what was going on, couldn’t help but realize that they were unusual beings.

Finally, all eleven knights had climbed up the stairs. It was a pace that felt almost leisurely. Rather than rushing to meet the enemy, it was a pace that seemed to be moving leisurely for a parade. And only after all the knights had come up the stairs did Knight LeBeau reveal himself.

Unlike the urgent face he had when he went down to the temple, Knight LeBeau’s face was full of composure. A hollow laugh escaped Besley’s lips at the sight. He had no intention of blaming Knight LeBeau for going into the temple, leaving them behind. He shouldn’t force them to emotionally sympathize and choose death together.

But considering the knights who had died to help him escape, he shouldn’t have come up with that kind of face. Absolutely.

‘If it had been the Master, this wouldn’t have happened.’

At least he was someone who knew what shame was. His teeth clenched involuntarily.

Who could he blame? It was them who had driven out the Master and enthroned Knight LeBeau as the Master. But this was too painful to be called the price.

With a face mixed with despair and anger, Knight Besley glared at Knight LeBeau. Perhaps sensing his seething emotions, the Elder Knights all turned their heads to look at Knight Besley.

“Knight?”

Knight Besley trembled. It was a voice that sounded like it was hoarse. But it wasn’t because his voice was hoarse that Knight Besley trembled. It was because he felt the mockery and contempt in his voice.

“The Round Table has fallen too. To think that someone like that is a Knight.”

“Judging by his energy, he’s like a Bohemian [a person with unconventional social habits].”

“The others are no different.”

Along with the mockery, a subtle anger was felt.

“It’s quite a pleasant thing to breathe the air of the world again after such a long time. But those people are turning my joy into sorrow.”

“There’s no need to be so disappointed, Knight Gawain. I felt the same way three hundred years ago. It means that the world is eventually becoming a place that doesn’t need knights. In a few hundred years, the line of knights might be cut off.”

“It’s a sad thing. An era where those who are not like knights call themselves knights.”

It was an extremely insulting remark, but Knight Besley couldn’t easily act rashly. He knew too well who they were.

The Elder Knights. Those who were knights before he was even born. No, those who were already knights before his country was even founded. They were the ones who had been recognized for their immense power and had earned the right to dedicate their lives to the Round Table, and had gladly accepted that life, which was like a hardship.

Even if such people despised him, how could he dare to express his dissatisfaction?

Besides….

‘Damn it, they’re not exactly wrong.’

He could feel it. How strong they were, how immense they were. Just looking at them made him feel like his soul was freezing. As a fellow knight, he could understand it even better.

“It’s a strange thing.”

One of the Elder Knights opened his mouth.

“There is no one in the Round Table who can be called a knight. Rather, the knight who deserves recognition is over there.”

The Elder Knights’ gazes turned to Kang Jin-ho.

White light surged in the eyes of the Elder Knights as they looked at Kang Jin-ho, who was lowering his sword.

“Indeed.”

“He’s an enemy, but he’s magnificent.”

“One enemy is an enemy.”

“Death to the enemy.”

“Death to the enemy!”

The Elder Knights’ magnificent shouts were directed at Kang Jin-ho.