Chapter 592: Chapter 592- Knight Giacomo (3)

Each petal healed her wound and was absorbed into her body.

In the blink of an eye, Cecilia’s breathing steadied, and she was pulled back from the doors of death.

Even her exhaustion disappeared, and she was back to her original self.

For a normal human, such a surge of restorative energy could have overwhelmed the body.

Take Verdia and Delicia, for example. To heal them, he had to go through unusual means and have skin contact to dilute the effects of the skill.

This method caused problems in various ways.

However, Cecilia was a High Elf. Her physique was stronger and unique than a normal human or elf.

Thanks to that naturally powerful physique, she absorbed the divine healing with remarkable compatibility.

Cecilia slowly sat up in Reinhardt’s arms and observed her body. The weakness that had crushed her body moments ago had vanished like a fading dream.

She touched her stomach where the fatal wound had been, only to find smooth skin. There was no wound, not even a scar left.

Astonishment filled her eyes, and she lifted her gaze to the man beside her. The man who had done this.

Now that her mind had cleared, she recognized the voice.

The voice that had echoed through the palace while she hovered on the edge of death belonged to this man.

He had been the one shouting her name in urgency all around the palace.

But the realization only deepened her confusion.

He was human. Her mother had warned her countless times about humans. About their ambition, their deceit, and their endless hunger for power and status.

The man in front of her was no doubt a member of that race. Yet the way he held her.

From the careful way he supported her injured body. From the tension that had clearly filled his voice earlier.

From the quiet relief that lingered in his expression.

It almost seemed as if he had feared losing her.

As if her survival truly mattered to him.

Cecilia couldn’t understand it.

Having finished healing her, Reinhardt looked at Cecilia in his arms.

At that moment, their gazes met.

For a brief moment, there was only silence with neither of them speaking a word.

Then Reinhardt exhaled quietly, and the very next words he spoke almost made Cecilia’s eyes teary.

“I finally found you.”

The words were simple, but the emotions behind them were not.

From his tone, Cecilia could sense relief, a trace of lingering regret, and something else she couldn’t quite name.

Why?

Why was this man so happy and relieved to see her?

What did those words of his mean?

Cecilia’s chest tightened.

For reasons she didn’t fully understand, tears welled up in her eyes. She had a mountain of questions and loads of complaints to tell him.

However, before that fragile moment could grow into something deeper, a chill ran down her spine.

In the midst of the sudden turn of events, she had forgotten about a very crucial matter.

Her head snapped toward the far end of the chamber.

“Be careful!”

However, her caution came far too late.

“Reinhardt.”

A deep, grating voice, powerful enough to give one chills, rang out.

Crimson pupils opened in the darkness.

Reinhardt slowly turned his head toward the throne.

There, upon the elevated dais, sat a lone figure. He had been there the entire time. Silent and motionless, watching the whole fiasco.

His presence, which had become one with the darkness itself, made it impossible for others to sense him.

Even if Reinhardt was distracted, he managed to somehow elude his senses.

Slightly slouched at the stairs leading to the throne, the figure was tall and well built. He had messy black hair that fell over his face, casting shadows over sharp features hardened by countless battles.

Donned from head to toe in ash-gray armor, he gave off a powerful aura, the kind forged by decades of relentless combat.

Reinhardt recognized him instantly.

The person was Sir Giacomo. One of the Three Paragons of Lunaris. A knight who had stepped beyond the limits of superhuman and entered the realm of heroes.

A living legend whose stories used to be sung by the bards when Reinhardt was still just a knight.

Or at least he had been.

Right now, the man in front of him looked nothing like the knight Reinhardt remembered.

Giacomo’s skin was cracked, and from those cracks leaked a dense dark energy. His once human eyes had turned into pools of demonic crimson.

Dark lines slithered across his face, neck, and hands, writhing disturbingly like living veins.

But the most disturbing sight was the glowing crimson orb embedded directly at the center of his armor.

That thing was the very proof that he had changed.

“Sir Giacomo?” Reinhardt’s eyes narrowed slightly.

His mind raced as he recognized the transformation that the other party had gone through.

A demon contract! And not just any contract, Sir Giacomo had implanted a demon heart into his own body.

A forbidden method that practically spelled a death sentence.

However, if successful, a knight implanted with a demon heart could instantly power beyond their levels and access demonic spells.

The impact was even more profound on a Level 10 knight.

Imagine a knight whose every swing and skill could flatten a mountain. Now such a being had also gained access to nefarious demonic spells.

The result was a force of nature far more destructive and difficult to kill than before.

Be that as it may, what Reinhardt couldn’t understand was why would Sir Giacomo, a hero of a kingdom, resort to such a thing?

Just as Reinhardt was about to speak again, a hand grabbed his arm weakly.

It was Cecilia.

“Go!”

Her body that was in his embrace trembled intensely as she looked at the knight seated by the stairs with undisguised fear in her eyes.

“Run from here! Forget about me and go!” Her voice was filled with urgency.

Although she was happy, glad even that he came, she knew how hopeless the situation was. She didn’t want this man, who came to save her and who gave her a feeling of happiness even for a short while, to die here.

“That man… he killed everyone. The king… the knights… everyone.”

Cecilia looked at Reinhardt and spoke in concern.

She barely knew him; no, it could be said that she didn’t even meet him until today. Still, she didn’t want to see him, who came to save her, die.

The knight who killed everyone was incredibly strong, unreasonably so. She had seen it with her own eyes, which made it all the more despairing.

In her mind, Giacomo had become something akin to a symbol of despair.

Seeing Cecilia express her concern and urge him to leave, Reinhardt couldn’t help but smile. That said, he did not run, nor did he take a step back from his place.

He calmly and coolly stared at Giacomo. There was no fear or any trace of anxiousness in his eyes.

Only cold confidence.

The other party had massacred everyone in this place?

He had accepted a demon heart and become stronger?

So what?

For a brief moment, the throne hall fell completely silent.

Reinhardt stood calmly with Cecilia still partially supported beside him, his golden eyes fixed on the fallen knight.

Ever since arriving in this world, Reinhardt had faced countless battles. Monsters… demons… armies. Even demonified knights who were previously hailed as heroes.

He had fought with all of them.

However, none of them managed to push him far, give him the thrill of battle.

His overwhelming Abilities, Stats, Divine Titles, Divine Traits, Skills, and Arsenal all bordered on absurdity.

They were all to say… broken.

With that level of ability came confidence.

The absolute conviction that no matter who or what stood in his place, he would be able to defeat them.

And so now, even with a hero who had implanted a demon heart sitting before him, did he need to fear him?

The answer was a resounding no.

Reinhardt faced the fallen knight. However, he did not attack immediately.

Instead, he began with an exchange of dialogue, probing the man’s intention and his reason behind doing all of this.

It was clear from the sight of the capital that Lunaris had fallen.

However, how this calamity came to pass and what went down, there were still a lot of mysteries that remained unanswered.

One of the seven great kingdoms had fallen; the news was enough to shake humanity to its core.

What’s more, they fell so swiftly, it was unnerving.

For the survival of humanity, this matter needed to be investigated, and what better way to find out than to question the person who was involved in all of this mess?

Reinhardt spoke. “Sir Giacomo, I have long heard about your esteemed name.”

“Is that so?”

Probably intrigued, the latter showed a smile.

“That’s right. I’m afraid there are no knights my age who haven’t grown up listening to the stories of your valor”.

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