Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1009

Following Knight Vesley’s summons, the knights scattered across the globe began to gather at the Round Table.

Considering the phrase ‘across the globe,’ one might expect it to take a very long time, but in reality, the knights gathered in less than a day.

It wasn’t often that traveling from major cities around the world to London would take more than a day. Also, even if dispatched to other countries, knights rarely left major cities to go to the front lines.

Thus, the knights who gathered at the Round Table were speechless at the sight of the utterly devastated Round Table.

‘Did an army invade or something?’

It was a scene that was hard to believe was created by a fight between warriors.

The entrance was completely smashed,

and the hallway leading to the hall was covered in bloodstains and soot. Above all, the highlight was the hall itself.

The table symbolizing the Round Table had vanished without a trace, and a dark staircase led down below. The knights knew what that staircase meant.

Without their knowledge, a myth had been resurrected, and the resurrected myth had collapsed.

‘What on earth happened…’

Generally, the knights were divided into two groups.

Those who knew that Knight Levo had tried to impeach the Master and take control of the Round Table but couldn’t intervene, and those who hadn’t heard the news at all.

Knight Levo had intentionally controlled information to use the rule that a new knight could be elected if more than half participated and more than two-thirds of those who participated agreed.

The knights who didn’t know how the situation had unfolded were in a state of mental breakdown.

They had rushed over after receiving an emergency call, only to find the Round Table in ruins. How could they not be bewildered?

Moreover…

‘Wait, did the Elder Knights awaken?’

The knights’ gazes turned to the staircase leading down.

Their eyes trembled.

Involuntary groans escaped their lips.

There were two reasons for their shock.

One was that the situation at the Round Table had become so urgent that the Elder Knights had to be awakened, and the other was that the Elder Knights were nowhere to be seen.

‘Could it be?’

The Elder Knights had been defeated?

No, that couldn’t be possible.

Any knight knew how great the Elder Knights were. And how strong they were. Although they couldn’t fully grasp it without seeing it firsthand.

But even if they were only half as strong as the stories told, they would be a force that the current Round Table couldn’t handle.

And yet, all those Elder Knights had been defeated?

They wanted to deny it.

They couldn’t believe it.

However, the situation they saw as they entered the hall made it impossible to deny that fact.

‘Has everyone arrived?’

The knights’ gazes turned sharply to one side. They saw Knight Vesley awkwardly scratching his head as he approached.

‘Knight Vesley!’

‘What on earth happened here?’

‘Well…’

Knight Vesley sighed.

Where should he even begin to explain this?

‘First, let’s sit… no, there’s nowhere to sit. Should we proceed standing, then?’

‘We should bring some chairs.’

Knight Vesley looked up at the voice coming from the side. The Master was entering the hall with Wiggins in tow.

‘Master.’

‘Knight Vesley, have the children bring chairs. We need to sit down first. Holding a meeting elsewhere would go against the traditions of the Round Table.’

‘Yes, I will do so.’

Knight Vesley breathed a sigh of relief.

Thanks to the Master’s appearance, the responsibility of explaining had shifted from him to the Master.

‘Master! Please explain what on earth happened…’

‘Do not rush me.’

The Master raised his hand slightly to stop the knights.

‘I understand your feelings, but nothing will change by rushing. Let’s talk after the chairs arrive.’

‘…Understood.’

Though their faces showed they were not convinced, they couldn’t ignore the Master’s authority.

In a strange atmosphere, chairs were brought in, and the Master and the knights sat around the area where the Round Table used to be.

‘To give you a rough idea of the situation…’

The Master shrugged.

‘Knight Vesley.’

‘Yes, Master?’

‘You explain it.’

‘…Me, you mean?’

‘It would be strange for me to say it. And I haven’t been at the scene for a while. It’s right for you to speak.’

Knight Vesley nodded.

‘This is troublesome.’

There was nothing wrong with the Master’s logic. The Master had been imprisoned and hadn’t seen everything. If an explanation was needed, it was right for Knight Vesley to do it.

Knight Vesley sighed deeply and began to tell everything he knew.

‘…And that’s what happened.’

The knights stared at Knight Vesley with disbelief.

Some of them had a rough idea of how the situation had unfolded, but their reactions weren’t much different. The feeling conveyed by simple text and the recollection of what a person had directly seen and experienced were completely different.

‘So…’

One of the knights opened his mouth awkwardly.

‘To summarize, Knight Levo impeached the Master and a new Master was elected, but at that moment, Wiggins led the General Assembly and stormed in, killed Knight Levo, and rescued the Master, is that right?’

‘That’s correct.’

‘And in the process, the Elder Knights were resurrected, but the head of the General Assembly, this Kang Jin-ho, killed all the Elder Knights?’

‘That’s also correct.’

‘Ha…’

The knights’ reactions varied.

Some were dumbfounded that Knight Levo had plotted such a thing, while others were furious that another group had invaded the Round Table.

And there were those who felt humiliated that they had been excluded from all of it.

However, everyone had the same reaction to one thing.

‘Did you say that this Kang Jin-ho defeated all the Elder Knights?’

‘Yes.’

‘…Were the Elder Knights not as strong as we thought? Or…’

‘The Elder Knights were stronger than what we had heard.’

The Master, Wiggins, and the surviving knights all nodded.

‘Then that doesn’t make sense, does it?’

‘I know you want to deny it, but it’s a clear fact. Everyone who witnessed it can testify to it. If you doubt it, please confirm it yourselves. Everyone currently staying at the Round Table will give the same testimony.’

‘What on earth…’

The knights’ faces became strange.

The Elder Knights.

The legends of the Round Table.

How were they supposed to accept that they had all been defeated by a single person?

It wasn’t that they were denying it.

They couldn’t deny it when everyone was saying the same thing. But the fact didn’t make sense in their minds.

‘Then…’

Knight Johanneson swallowed hard and opened his mouth.

‘Where are they now?’

‘They’re at the Round Table.’

Knight Johanneson’s face became strange.

The fact that the enemy they had fought was staying here meant only one thing.

An occupying force.

The Round Table had lost the battle and had been occupied by the General Assembly.

But it was strange to accept it that way. Because they hadn’t seen a single Asian person while entering the hall.

‘Where?’

‘They’re staying in the lodgings. They’re using the South Gate side.’

‘Lodgings?’

Knight Johanneson was so flustered that he didn’t even realize his words were short.

‘I know what you’re implying. However, the current situation isn’t as extreme as you think. The General Assembly doesn’t want to control the Round Table.’

It was an incomprehensible statement.

Then why did they invade this place and start a war?

Knight Negri interrupted Knight Johanneson.

‘Master.’

‘Yes.’

‘What are you planning to do now?’

Everyone’s attention was focused on Knight Negri and the Master.

This was what everyone wanted to ask at this moment. The deed was already done. It was meaningless to confirm what had happened or what the intentions were.

The important thing was what stance the Round Table would take in the future.

‘First… I plan to run for Master again.’

‘Hmm…’

‘It wouldn’t be bad to elect a new Master at this opportunity, but now is not a good time to appoint a new Master. The Round Table is currently facing a crisis.’

The knights nodded.

Other groups might have the option of overcoming a crisis with a new figure. But that was difficult for the Round Table. The Round Table was a coalition of several countries, and if a new Master was elected, the conflicts of interest would become very clear.

It would take an enormous amount of time just to coordinate that chaotic situation. It was better for someone who had already held the position of Master for decades to sort things out.

‘And after that?’

‘We will form an alliance with the General Assembly.’

The knights’ faces twisted grotesquely.

An alliance with the General Assembly that had invaded the Round Table and killed the person who had taken the Master’s seat?

They knew they had to think rationally, but they couldn’t help but feel a sudden sense of repulsion.

But they were knights.

They were warriors representing their countries and were well-versed in the politics of the Round Table. They weren’t foolish enough to ignore the Round Table’s position because of a momentary emotion. They understood that since the Round Table had been effectively occupied, the only thing they could do was make peace.

‘Master.’

Knight Negri spat out the words.

‘I believe there is some merit to what you say. But before that, there is something we need to confirm. Is the alliance you speak of a choice for the future of the Round Table, or is it a choice for a Master who has surrendered to the General Assembly to survive?’

It was a rude remark.

But it was also a necessary one.

‘Do you doubt me?’

‘If only the Master were here, I wouldn’t doubt it. But!’

Knight Negri stood up abruptly and glared at Wiggins.

‘Doesn’t the fact that this traitor who betrayed the Round Table and lost his position as a knight is present at this meeting say it all? Why do you tolerate this person being here? No matter how much the Master cherishes him, this is…’

‘That’s not it.’

The Master interrupted Knight Negri.

‘It’s not?’

‘That’s right. I never intended to bring Wiggins. Wiggins’ participation in this meeting is at the request of the General Assembly. Wiggins is here not as a former knight, but as a representative of the General Assembly.’

Knight Negri’s face twisted.

That meant that even the Round Table’s own meetings were being held under the surveillance of the General Assembly.

‘Rather!’

‘Enough.’

The Master interrupted Negri once again.

He knew what was about to be said.

Let’s try to drive out the enemy with the troops they brought. That was what was about to come out.

But that was something that should never be said.

‘It seems you all need to understand. There he comes. If your thoughts don’t change after facing him, I’ll consider your opinion.’

At the Master’s gesture, the knights all turned their heads and looked at the open door.

A man was slowly walking from the dark hallway.