Chapter 36: An Old Friend Becomes a Monster

"King" was a title with a strong sense of history.

In the Empire’s current administrative structure, the highest-level divisions were the four Governor Districts of the East, South, West, and North. Each Governor District oversaw several Duke territories. The highest leader of a Governor District, the Imperial Governor, was a high-ranking official who answered directly to the Emperor, standing below one person and above all others.

However, eight hundred years ago, the Empire was still in its fledgling era of expansion, its territories unstable and ever-shifting.

In that era, the higher administrative division above the major Duke territories was not the "Governor District" but the "province," an ancient concept long buried in the annals of history.

At that time, the Empire consisted of thirteen provinces, and the supreme ruler of each province was called "King."

For instance, the legendary Duke Hadrian, who led a massive army across the Lion Heart River and made monumental contributions to expanding the Empire’s borders, was conferred the title of "King" of a province by the Emperor. Hence, he was historically known as "King Hadrian."

However, much like how anyone on modern Earth could be called "Boss," the imperial customs of eight hundred years ago dictated that the title "King" could not only refer to those thirteen provincial supreme commanders but could also serve as an honorific for ordinary nobles.

If two nobles met in the Empire back then, a conversation like this was entirely possible:

"Good afternoon, King!"

"Good afternoon to you too, King!"

"What did you have for lunch, King?"

"I had some fried noo... I mean, bread!"

Therefore, upon suddenly hearing this somewhat unfamiliar, obscure, yet distinctively respectful ancient title, Xiahou Yan instinctively halted his crowbar.

The rapidly approaching black iron-clad figure did not betray the Lord’s trust. He stopped three paces away from the Lord, dropped to one knee with a heavy THUD, and bowed deeply toward him!

Behind Xiahou Yan, Master Laurie and the others stared at the scene in a daze, their minds unable to process what was happening.

"Who are you...?" Xiahou Yan asked cautiously, equally surprised and uncertain.

"Imperial Thorn Knight, Juan Clemente, greets you, King!" A muffled voice came from inside the iron suit, its tone sounding both excited and... sorrowful?

Master Laurie smacked his lips behind the Lord. While the Empire had always maintained the tradition of conferring knighthoods, in recent years, they were mostly granted under the three tiers of "Lily Knight," "Rose Knight," and "Bauhinia Knight." As for the overly ancient rank of "Thorn Knight," the last time it was conferred was probably... eight hundred years ago?

Coupled with the outdated title of "King" used by this walking tin can, Master Laurie couldn’t help but narrow his eyes.

Xiahou Yan stared at the black iron-clad knight kneeling before him. He was just about to ask a question when he heard an uncontrollable wail echoing from inside the armor.

"Eight hundred and two years, five months, and four days... Eight hundred years... I’ve spent eight hundred years in this dark hole, counting the hourglass, and someone is finally here..."

Xiahou Yan was left utterly speechless.

It took several minutes for the highly emotional armored knight to stop crying. Between sobs, he recounted his tragic tale to the Lord.

Juan Clemente, born eight hundred and forty-two years ago, was not only a Thorn Knight personally conferred by the Imperial Emperor, but also the Guard Knight Commander under Count Henry Igor, the Lord of both Raven Castle and Black Water Town!

Eight hundred and two years ago, Grand Mage Adrian’s Necromancy experiment failed, turning the entire Black Water Town into a zombie-infested Raccoon City overnight. Thus, Count Henry Igor, hiding in Raven Castle, dispatched Knight Commander Clement to brave the town and investigate.

It was hard to say whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, but Juan Clemente, wearing a low-quality Magic Resistance Crystal, actually managed to withstand the dense Netherworld Magic Power. He crossed the town and entered Adrian’s wide-open Magic Laboratory!

Because Adrian’s bronze statue was shifted out of place at the time, even this secret passageway shaft was exposed to Clement!

However, before he could find any clues in the underground corridor, the security circuit of the Magic Laboratory returned to normal, and the entrance to the secret shaft was sealed shut once again by the returning bronze statue!

And so, the pitiful Clement was imprisoned in the dim corridor for over eight hundred years, until Xiahou Yan and his group destroyed the bronze statue, finally allowing both Clement and Adrian’s secret corridor to see the light of day once more!

After being utterly alone in an underground corridor for eight hundred years, he suddenly encountered several living people. As luck would have it, Xiahou Yan was wearing the Igor Family’s unique Golden Threaded Eagle Pattern Clothing, clearly sharing the same lineage as Clement’s former master, Count Henry Igor!

All of this combined made it impossible for this walking tin can not to weep bitterly, overwhelmed by deep emotion!

As for how Clement could defy the laws of nature and survive for eight hundred years without food or water, the Lord and Master Laurie had already noticed the clues.

Through the gaps in Clement’s helmet, one could clearly see the dense gray Magic Ability lingering inside the armor.

It was obvious that Clement, just like the townsfolk from eight hundred years ago, had been transformed into a zombie by the Netherworld Magic Power—no, judging by the excessively rich Netherworld Magic Power within his body, he must have reached the level of a "Death Knight"!

Necromancy was not merely the art of toying with ordinary zombies. Through the Master-level Undead Magic, "Resurrection Death Knight," a corpse could be temporarily converted into a "Death Knight" with extremely formidable combat prowess!

Unlike the regular zombies created by the Apprentice-level Necromancy "Resurrection Technique," a "Death Knight" not only possessed far greater strength and agility but could also utilize a portion of the Martial Arts learned during its lifetime!

Of course, only a Grandmaster-level Magic—the greater "Resurrection Technique," differing by just one character in the ancient scripts from the lesser "Resurrection Technique"—could transform a corpse into a truly immortal zombie!

All other types of Undead Magic produced Undead Creatures that were bound by time limits and would dissipate on their own after a while.

As for why Clement had lived for eight hundred years without disintegrating after becoming a Death Knight, and had even retained his own memories and thoughts... Master Laurie couldn’t understand this mysterious phenomenon, nor did he wish to delve deeper into it. He just chalked it up to Clement being marinated in Netherworld Magic Power for far too long!

After witnessing a series of "miracles" performed by the Lord, the Master had cultivated a rather carefree, take-things-as-they-come personality.

On the other side, Xiahou Yan patiently waited for Clement to calm down. He then explained his group’s identities and their purpose for being there to the Death Knight. At the same time, he briefly mentioned the historical changes over the past eight hundred years, along with the rise and fall of the Igor Family.

This atmosphere, which felt much like lovers reuniting after a long separation to reminisce about the beautiful past and pour their hearts out to one another, made the Lord feel extremely irritated inside.

After listening to Xiahou Yan’s account, Clement stood up amid the scraping of metal armor and said in a trembling voice:

"K-King, please follow me. Master Adrian’s corpse is right over there..."

The armored Death Knight turned around and was about to lead the way, but tilted his head in thought and turned back.

"...But, could you promise me one condition first?"

Xiahou Yan suddenly grew a bit tense. "Speak."

"After you find what you’re looking for, could you take me out with you on your way?" Death Knight Clement pleaded, his voice thick with tears. "I don’t want to play chess against myself in the dark anymore... As long as you can take me back to the surface, I can continue to fulfill the oath I swore in life and continue serving your family!"

"Granted!" Xiahou Yan said without a shred of hesitation.