Others Summon Dragons, I Summon Legendary Knights novel Chapter 422

Chapter 422: Apollyon The Redeemed

"While you sang songs, I rode into death. And at the end, when I stood victorious, when I had taken the head of that lich, all around me were corpses."

His voice became softer, weakened by pain.

"I couldn’t see victory because in that sea of corpses lay my brothers, and in that moment all I felt... was pain. You all stand before me, giving lectures. You did not feel what I felt... You do not! Not! YOU DO NOT KNOW ANYTHING!"

The hall shook.

"Never sing praises of my past, never utter a word before me. I might be weaker now, but even a Banshee Queen can be my creation. I once rode with the living, now the dead cling to me."

He went back to his throne.

"Leave me to my misery. I want to drown eternally... in it."

Dirge took a step back. She knew what he used to be like. They had met several times at the sanctuary. That gallant commander of the Black Night Cavalry, oath-bound to the White Winged Cavalry, had turned into this.

He was already hollow. He fought, he defended, he spoke, but there was no heart behind it anymore.

This was a shell.

"Is this it then? The banshee that destroyed the sanctuary was made by that undead. It was its most powerful weapon besides itself, able to bind souls and use them as an army. I was a victim of that beast, that I know, but I suffer, same as you."

"Your men knew what that charge meant. Don’t fall, not to a foe you’ve defeated in the past. What is your duty, Chief General?"

Lament squinted when Dirge asked that.

"What is your duty, Chief General?"

She asked again.

"Leave."

"Will you deny your oath then?"

Lament rose.

"Watch your words."

"You are Chief General, I am an Elite General. It’s not just titles. You, I watched you say those words to broken knights. So, once again, I repeat your words. What is your duty?!"

Lament picked up his halberd and took a step forward.

’To serve as long as I draw breath.’

A solemn voice rang within him. His own voice.

Lament froze.

Dirge, seeing her words might have hit a spot, decided to leave. She had pushed him enough, but one last sentence was enough.

"If you don’t want the king to fall into the same pit you fell into, stand beside him, not with your body alone but your heart."

Lament sat.

Three Alchemists appeared with three Royal Apostles.

"Chief General Lament, we have decided to remove the Dark Lich from you and demote you back to a commander. Once we have the approval of His Majesty, this process will be effective immediately."

Lament looked at them.

"I... reject."

***

Apollyon lowered her staff.

"Critize me all you want. You don’t know what I thought of myself when I realized the Unknown King was all a fallacy. I finally discovered I was mad all along. I was seeing things that weren’t real, and those kings refused to send food to our brothers out there fighting for them. Their greed caused the deaths of many more than I killed!"

She glanced at him.

"Our brothers and sisters had to fight starving and die screaming. Why wait for a king that wasn’t real when I could bring an end to it all?"

The White Knight swung his lance over his shoulder.

"It only brought chaos. It only split our people, it made us lose trust. Your action singlehandedly caused a crack that couldn’t be fixed."

"Not by us, but by the king...It can" Apollyon lowered her staff to the ground. "I was so far gone. But... if we swear our oath once more, he’s willing to accept us."

"That isn’t the king you spoke to us about."

"No. I’m telling you about the king I saw, the one Abaddon knelt to. I watched him regain his spark in a way I did not expect."

She looked at the sky.

"I want to serve. The dawn of the order is back and I will do all, all that is necessary to right my wrongs. The king isn’t unknown anymore. I’ve seen him, I’ve known him. He’s the Known King."

The White Knight was shocked when he saw Apollyon dissolving into motes of golden light.

"Impossible!"

A voice from afar shook the realm.

"Raise your lance, brother. Raise it high and he shall see."

She dissolved completely, the golden motes drifting into the black skies.