The Knight's Oath
“You’re swearing eternal loyalty to me? Why?”
Kim Hwang-je stared in disbelief.
Objectively speaking, allying with him was a sound choice.
‘Hold on… this guy saw everything I did, right?’
But did he really?
The sight of him summoning a dung golem while trapped inside Manta’s head, swinging his crotch-light to dispatch hordes of succubi and demons, and—worst of all—dancing naked in front of his own daughter to earn the Gujiga spirit’s recognition. He had witnessed it all.
In the end, Kim Hwang-je had even given up and hypnotized himself into believing the whirlwind galaxy was a swimsuit, never bothering to cover himself with his cloak.
‘Thinking about it now, it’s mortifying beyond belief!’
He had been far too casual about someone watching.
Kim Hwang-je clutched his head and screamed silently.
Yet Benedict still wanted to swear loyalty…?
Was he planning to torment him until he became human again?
Had the holy knight found his behavior that repulsive?
“Hmm, do not blame yourself too harshly. Even I might have chosen the same tactic… perhaps… in that situation.”
Holy Knight, sir, that pause in the middle of your sentence was a little long. Did your conscience prick you for lying?
Benedict smiled and patted Kim Hwang-je’s shoulder.
“Hear me out. When I was defeated and captured by Manta, enduring torture, I survived on a single prayer.”
“A prayer?”
Instead of answering, Benedict slowly knelt on one knee before Kim Hwang-je. He closed his eyes and drew his sword, holding it up with both hands.
“Praise the Light. He answered me when I was abused. Therefore, O Light, grant me once more the sword to fight for the abused.”
Flash!
A halo burst from Benedict’s kneeling form. The blinding radiance turned the studio apartment pure white, and beams of light shot out through the windows.
Benedict opened his eyes and extended the sword like a knight receiving his first knighthood.
“Your Majesty, you are the answer to the prayer I offered while being tortured by Manta. Thanks to you, I can hold this sword again.”
“A sword for the abused…”
“Indeed. No matter what… that form… looked like, your heart was always for the weak. I respect that. That is why I make this request.”
Kim Hwang-je swallowed as he gazed at the silver sword glowing with sacred runes.
The light and the holy characters slowly erased the embarrassing memories from moments ago.
Poyu, awakened by the light, lightly hooked her claws onto his head. She peeked out, watching the scene.
A holy knight kneeling before me, a fairy dragon looking down from above.
What kind of world have I been dragged into…
“Therefore, I wish to walk the path of slaying demons, expelling devils, removing treachery, and uprooting evil together with you for the rest of my life. Will you accept my oath?”
“Slaying demons, expelling devils, removing treachery, and uprooting evil.”
The words resonated.
Even without understanding their meaning, the language stirred something deep within Kim Hwang-je.
“Could you explain what that means?”
“A sovereign’s sword is sharpened only by goodness and justice. Its power is not for personal glory, but solely to avenge evil with wrath and establish justice.”
A blade forged from goodness and justice…
Kim Hwang-je’s heart pounded.
“Evil never rests. Therefore, a sovereign must never rest either. He must cut down monsters and expel devils from without, and remove treachery and uproot evil from within. That is the beautiful governance of a true sovereign.”
“Governance can be beautiful?”
As an ordinary citizen, Kim Hwang-je had rarely thought seriously about ruling. He had always seen politics as dirty, painful, cruel, and vile.
Besides, his studio apartment and his own body were all he possessed—how could he lead others?
Yet Benedict looked at him and nodded with eyes full of trust.
“Of course. Your rule carries the qualities of goodness. So if you accept my oath of loyalty, I will raise the sword of eradicating evil for all the abused. I wish to end my long wandering and serve once more the people who will enjoy your beautiful reign.”
He was the very image of a knight from an epic.
Kim Hwang-je’s chest swelled.
Even through such cruel fate, suffering, and wandering, this knight’s spirit had never faltered.
At the same time, he worried whether he was worthy of accepting such an oath.
After a moment’s hesitation, Kim Hwang-je took a deep breath.
“I don’t really know what kind of pain you’ve endured. And I’m not sure if I’m qualified either. Maybe I’m just someone who got lucky with a kingdom inside my body.”
Benedict paid no heed.
“Your Majesty, who else would swallow a meteor with their crotch exposed?”
Kim Hwang-je’s breath caught.
His face flushed with embarrassment.
But Benedict was serious.
“You could have bought a skill to split that meteor. But you didn’t.”
When he thought about it, that was true.
“Awakening and luck can come to anyone. But among them, who would choose that pain the way you did? That is what makes a sovereign. A respected sovereign is not defined by the power they hold, but by the one who bears the people’s suffering.”
Benedict raised his sword again with both hands.
“So it is clear to me. You are the answer to my prayer. You fight with goodwill for the people.”
Benedict continued with unwavering resolve in his eyes.
“Though the Light may be slow, it triumphs in the end. That is the song of my heart. Your Majesty, what song does your heart sing?”
Kim Hwang-je felt that determination.
He reached out and placed his hand on the surface of the silver sword.
The blade was warm, like human skin.
Good grief.
Someone like me, whose greatest joy in life is George’s safe return, is receiving an oath of loyalty from a man like this?
“……”
Ah, they say there are three moments in life that can never be undone. Is this one of them?
‘The royal castle… and the studio apartment…’
Kim Hwang-je looked around the familiar studio apartment and the royal castle visible through World Observation.
The apartment was still covered in traces Bahu had left behind.
In the castle, he saw women preparing meals, children playing, blacksmiths repairing armor and weapons, and the laughter returning to their faces.
Instead of the cracked walls and despairing eyes he had first seen, reinforced concrete walls now stood, and the soldiers atop them gazed out with hopeful eyes.
They had changed.
Had he changed as well?
“I see……”
Of course he had.
Kim Hwang-je now simply liked their smiles.
He didn’t need to say much.
He wanted to protect those smiles.
He wanted to make this fragile, sprouting world a place worth living in.
“Ah…”
“Your Majesty, did you hear the voice of your heart?”
“I heard it clearly.”
I want to become the guardian of these people.
Whether as a breakwater, a castle, or anything else, I want to protect them.
Rather than becoming endlessly richer, I want to join in boundless justice so that this laughter spreads.
Kim Hwang-je firmly grasped the hilt of the sword Benedict offered.
“Understood. Let us protect the world together. Let us slay monsters and eradicate evil.”
“Thank you…”
Kim Hwang-je accepted the sword.
Then, like in the movies, he touched the blade to Benedict’s left and right shoulders.
Each time the sword touched, the light grew twice as strong. When it finally touched his left shoulder, the radiance exploded.
Flash!
The light compressed endlessly before bursting outward.
Soon it gathered into a single point and inscribed golden runes onto Kim Hwang-je’s Emperor’s Robes.
The phrase “Slaying Demons, Expelling Devils, Removing Treachery, Uprooting Evil” was now engraved on one side of the robes.
Emperor’s Robes
[Legend Grade]
• Acquired the inscription: Slaying Demons, Expelling Devils, Removing Treachery, Uprooting Evil!
• Emperor’s Dignity increased by an additional 5.
• Access privileges elevated.
[Ancient Facility: Imperial Administrative Facility] Lv.1
[Ancient Facility: Imperial Ministry of Defense Facility] Lv.1
Your Majesty, congratulations.
The noble Benedict fought against the Lords of Evil for countless years and never despaired, no matter the circumstances.
Even after being banished beyond the rift, he did not falter.
Remarkable.
To think you would receive the oath of loyalty from such a great lord-class figure?
May you continue to be the sword of justice!
Your Majesty’s Dignity has increased by +40.
• Current Dignity: 91. When it reaches 100, you may establish additional vassal states.
“Um, Benedict, do you happen to know what these ‘Ancient Facilities’ are?”
“It seems our empire’s facilities are now treated as ancient facilities. They were the empire’s fortresses built to stand against the rifts. Though whether they remain intact…”
“Ooh!”
As Kim Hwang-je marveled, Benedict continued.
“Your Majesty, may I ask for a moment of your time? Let us train your holy arts.”
“Pardon?”
I must have misheard.
But Benedict’s gaze was serious.
“I wish to teach you the holy energy art that purges evil. This technique will drive away the darkness of the world.”
Kim Hwang-je immediately understood and let out a sigh of relief.
For a second he had thought the man was going to teach him some kind of eunuch cultivation method or something.
The translation magic of that damn eunuch was on another level!
“Let’s change the translation to Holy Magic.”
Kim Hwang-je declared firmly.
“And it takes a long time to learn, right?”
“…Indeed, as it is an ancient secret art…”
“Then please teach me slowly. Even if I don’t learn it, you can use it yourself, correct?”
Kim Hwang-je felt like the ultimate opportunist, but he didn’t back down.
“Hmm, yes. It won’t be as strong as in my prime, but it should still be effective.”
That was good enough.
Anyway, Kim Hwang-je was a busy man.
Seo Jun-seo was waiting for him regarding the crown and the hotel collapse cleanup.
“I’ll definitely learn it. But right now I have many mouths to feed and matters to settle.”
Benedict nodded.
“Then may I remain with my soul in your necklace and manifest as a spirit above your crown? My power is still insufficient to stay in this state continuously.”
“Yes, please do. Poyu would get bored sitting alone, so I’ll try to acquire more holy relics soon.”
“Thank you.”
With those words, Benedict shrank into his two-head-tall spirit form and flew up onto the crown.
Poyu had been peeking with half-open eyes, and when Benedict shrank, she let out a cheer.
“Kyaah, Ahjussi! You’re super~ cute when you’re small.”
“A pleasure to meet you, little dragon friend. Your name was Poyu, was it not?”
“Yeah, I’m Poyu. Hello, Benedict Ahjussi!”
“Thank you for the warm welcome.”
Now palm-sized, Benedict looked like a tiny doll, while Poyu appeared like an enormous dragon in comparison.
“Hehe… Can I sleep while hugging you?”
“That is fine. I have fought alongside dragons in the past, so I am accustomed to your kind.”
“Hehe, I see~”
Poyu pulled the tiny Benedict into her embrace atop the crown.
“Hmm, yes. It has been a long time since I felt such warmth. Mmm. But there—there is a bit sensitive, so please move your hand up a little… Thank you.”
What are they doing up there…?
Yet Benedict smiled and closed his eyes.
Watching the scene through the mirror, Kim Hwang-je smiled as well.
It would be nice if they got along.
Ah, come to think of it, there was something he wanted to ask.
“Um, Benedict?”
Benedict opened his eyes.
“You may simply call me Sir Benedict.”
“Then, Sir Benedict, can you see this?”
Kim Hwang-je opened the World Observation status window and showed it to Benedict.
Can he see it…?
Benedict nodded.
“I see an undead being worked to the bone through harsh labor.”
It was Bahu.
Bahu was catching schools of fish that resembled tuna. The evil spirit trees wove their trunks into nets, and whenever Bahu gave the order, they hauled up the bluefin tuna. When the fish piled up on the deck, Bahu and the evil spirit trees would rush in, gut the massive catch, salt them, and string them up to dry.
It was the very picture of grueling labor and exploitation aboard a distant-water fishing vessel…!
“A pitiful soul. What sin did he commit to receive such punishment without even being allowed to die?”
“Ah, he committed treason. Right now he’s gathering food for the people of the royal castle.”
“It is good that he strives to atone for his sins, even in this way. But please do not harbor too much resentment. Releasing the dead is also one of the mercies an emperor may show…”
“Ah… Understood.”
He had been lectured.
Of course, that wasn’t why he had shown this.
Kim Hwang-je displayed Bahu’s map from World Observation.
The status window explained that it was the [Undersea Detention Facility].
“Do you know anything about this undersea detention facility? There’s someone inside I need to rescue.”
According to Bahu, Lavanus—the teacher he could entrust with internal affairs—was trapped inside!
Benedict studied the magical map in silence before nodding.
“This is a standard prison under the Imperial Administration. Though it has sunk due to demonic corruption, the magic within feels familiar. If you intend to rescue someone, I can assist with the power of purification.”
That was welcome news.
Once he dealt with the immediate issues at Lost, he should be able to resolve the internal affairs problem as well.
“Thank you, Sir Benedict!”
“Not at all.”
Afterward, Kim Hwang-je purchased a Teleportation spell from Gemini and immediately flew to Lost.