Chapter 80: The Knight Who Should Be Dead

Roy’s gaze unexpectedly met that of a man he never thought he’d see here.

The man seemed to recognize Roy as well; his eyes widened slightly as he muttered in a dazed voice,
“This can’t be. The person who was supposed to be dead is why here……”

Roy realized from the man’s voice that he hadn’t mistaken him.

After staring at Roy in confusion for a while, the man suddenly went pale, then turned and began to run away.

“Brother Roy? Where are you going?”

Without hesitation, Roy followed the man.

Kim Chan and Lee Doha, startled to see Roy suddenly chasing someone, hurried after them.

{I can feel the energy of the Continent of As from that person!}

Earth’s voice echoed sharply in Roy’s mind.

‘It’s someone I know.’

One of the twelve knights who guarded Kairus personally.

Joel Ritas.

He was the one who, whenever he saw Roy, would cling to his origins, constantly harping on his background.

A man who took pride in the noble blood flowing through his veins to a ridiculous degree.

{…The Mismatch Phenomenon is happening somewhere I don’t know about as well.}

Mismatch Phenomena were supposed to only occur around Roy.

That was why Earth always hovered near him — to respond quickly to any abnormalities.

But the man Roy had spotted seemed to have been dropped into this world some time ago.

Even his clothes weren’t from the Continent of As. When Roy first fell here, he wore clothes from As.

“Ritas! Stop right there!”

Roy shouted the surname. Joel glanced at Roy’s face before immediately slipping into a nearby alley.

“Ris!”

At Roy’s call, Ris flew up from his hiding place beneath his hood.

The sluggish image of Ris was gone as he moved swiftly in the direction Joel had disappeared.

“Is that someone you know, Brother?”

“Yeah. We have to catch him.”

Kim Chan and Lee Doha stayed close to Roy, running alongside him.

The situation was urgent, and it was clear Roy had no time to explain.

“Huff… huff…”

Cornered in a dead end, Joel was breathing heavily.

Roy’s sharp gaze landed on the filthy clothes he wore.

One shoe was so worn out that his big toe was visible, as if he’d scavenged it from a trash bin.

“He’s lost his power.”

The swordsmanship of those guarding Kairus was among the best in the continent.

There was no reason for him to be so winded after this chase.

Joel’s eyes trembled desperately. He raised a hand to wipe his face and spoke in a trembling voice.

“You’re… saying I wasn’t mistaken?”

“Looks like you still remember my face.”

Roy’s eyes cooled sharply.

He was just as shocked to see Joel here, but when he was sure it really was him, uncontrollable rage surged inside.

“Are you really the Joel I knew?”

Confusion flooded Joel’s eyes.

Instead of answering, Roy scanned the surroundings.

“You’re alone, right?”

Joel didn’t seem to be waiting for anyone.

Like a rat cornered in a trap, he stared anxiously at Roy.

“Sorry, but I’m going to talk to him now.”

Roy turned to Kim Chan and Lee Doha, asking them to step aside.

He still couldn’t reveal to them that he came from another world.

Though there was some risk, Roy’s explosive level-up had restored him to a strength comparable to when he ruled the Continent of As.

In contrast, Joel looked like he had lost his powers.

More importantly, Roy knew he’d have to tell them someday, but now wasn’t the right time.

“Got it, Brother. Let us know as soon as you’re done. Doha and I will stay nearby.”

“Thanks for understanding.”

They must have had many questions.

Roy had never spoken about his past to them.

They had grown so close from enduring hardships together that they barely remembered the first time they met.

Yet whenever the topic of the past came up, Roy kept silent.

Though curiosity burned in Kim Chan and Lee Doha’s eyes, they willingly stepped aside.

“Ris, take us to the rooftop of that building.”

“Phee.” (Understood, Contracted One.)

Roy and Joel’s bodies floated gently upward.

Joel couldn’t resist even as his body moved against his will.

Compared to his former self, he looked like a toothless tiger.

‘He must have had a hard time.’

Roy thought.

If he hadn’t immediately met Kim Chan and Hwang Gu-man here — no, if Earth hadn’t helped him — he couldn’t imagine what kind of miserable state he’d be in now.

“How long have you been here?”

“…You didn’t answer the question either.”

Joel made it clear he wouldn’t answer.

Even powerless, he clung to the pride of a knight he treasured like his life.

Roy narrowed his eyes in displeasure.

At the same time, Ris moved subtly in response to Roy’s will.

“Ugh…”

“Looks like you don’t understand the situation yet…”

Roy approached Joel with leisurely steps and bent down to meet his eye level, forcing him to kneel.

“I have power, you don’t. But you keep refusing to answer me.”

A chill wind brushed beneath Joel’s chin.

Cold sweat trickled down his temple.

Roy knew the temperament of the Spirit King of Wind well.

Usually barely noticeable, it would raze everything nearby once a battle began.

That gentle breeze was a warning — it could turn ferocious anytime and pierce right under his chin.

“What do you want me to do then?”

Joel’s body floated upwards.

As he drifted slowly beyond the railing, Joel struggled desperately.

“That would be murder here, wouldn’t it?”

One of Roy’s eyebrows lifted lightly.

It seemed Joel hadn’t been wandering aimlessly since arriving here.

He appeared to have some understanding of how this world worked.

But unlike Joel, who seemed like a loner, Roy had allies.

{I’ve reactivated all the surrounding CCTV!}

“I found a better helper than you think. You don’t have to worry about that.”

Roy’s feelings toward Kairus were far from positive.

Naturally, he had no good feelings toward those guarding him either.

Besides, Joel was the kind of guy who couldn’t even confront Roy back when he was on good terms with Kairus.

“One last question. Did you come here alone?”

Realizing Roy could kill him without hesitation, Joel finally nodded.

“Alright, come down now.”

But Joel’s body still floated midair.

With one command from Roy, Joel would fall to the ground, his body crushed like dried meat.

Though Joel’s voice trembled with fear, Roy calmly crossed his arms.

“Tell me everything you know about the situation on your side before you came here.”

Joel had vanished after Kairus’ sword pierced his heart.

His body was never found, so some might think he survived.

The problem was how much time had passed since Joel had fallen into this world.

‘…A year has passed since you disappeared.’

Roy’s expression darkened.

He had been living in a hectic blur here, but it wasn’t even a year yet.

“At first, your lord believed you were alive somewhere and issued a continent-wide manhunt.”

But after searching the entire continent like a mad dog, Kairus couldn’t find a single strand of Roy’s hair.

So he made one decisive choice.

Roy frowned deeply and spoke bitterly.

‘…He must have executed my comrades.’

Kairus’ method was simple — killing one by one those Roy truly cared about.

****

After several repetitions, Kairus finally accepted Roy’s death.

Even after publicly executing Roy’s treasured comrades one by one, Roy never showed himself.

“That bastard Kairus…”

The events after Roy’s disappearance flashed vividly in his mind.

His veins bulged as he clenched his fists tightly.

“What happened to my little sister?”

She was his only remaining family.

Their mother had begged Roy on her deathbed to protect his one and only younger sister.

“She’s alive, at least for now.”

Roy was afraid to ask what kind of hardships she’d faced.

His eyes dimmed.

At that moment, Ris’s gaze, the most sensitive to Roy’s emotions, also grew cold.

“How did you gain power here?”

After falling into this place, Joel had felt more despair at losing his power than fear of the strange world.

The magic he had painstakingly gathered inside had all vanished.

When he realized he’d returned to a normal human state, he cursed the god who had done this to him.

But Roy was summoning all four Spirit Kings just like when he ruled the continent.

“I’m under no obligation to tell you.”

“What…?”

Roy had extracted all the information he could from Joel.

His loyalty to Kairus was strong, so it would be impossible to get more without breaking his spirit.

Roy dropped Joel to the ground.

“Ber.”

At the call, Ber inflated his body greatly.

Though not at his full size, he was large enough to cover Roy’s upper body.

Flames rippled in his body as if about to melt, making Joel’s face turn pale.

{Master! Don’t kill him yet!}

Roy intended to kill Joel in the most painful way possible.

Joel had surely aided in the execution of Roy’s comrades before falling here.

Earth intervened.

{We still need to learn something. Why this person fell here first.}

Earth understood Roy’s anger but reminded him that now was the time to think of the greater good.

After all, Roy was summoned here to prepare for the war with the Continent of As.

But something had happened beyond Earth’s predictions.

They didn’t know how this would backfire.

They had to extract as much information as possible from Joel.

‘How? This guy won’t open his mouth easily.’

{There’s a way!}

Before Earth finished speaking, Joel’s eyes glazed over.

“Master!”

Joel’s mouth opened and the voice that came out was Earth’s tone but Joel’s voice itself.

“Ah.”

“Still, it’ll take some time to scan his mind.”

“Is that even possible?”

“Normally, no.”

Joel — or rather Earth, inhabiting Joel’s shell — raised a finger and wagged it like a pendulum.