The Knight King Who Returned with God-Chapter 3 The Lionhearted King

The character Han Ga-hye's name has been changed to Han Ha-ri.

Kim Jin-soo, Chief of the Korean Hunter Association.

Despite returning after the tremendous achievement of closing a black-ranked gate, he was met not with celebration but with investigations and endless meetings.

"Ha-ri, how's it going?"

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

In the lobby outside the interrogation room, Assistant Manager Han Ha-ri looked visibly exhausted.

"No one believes us."

"Of course they don't."

A black dungeon had been cleared. And not just by anyone, but by the advance team—who everyone had expected to come back half-dead.

What's more, it was one of the infamous Demon Gates. And a great demon had appeared? Under normal circumstances, they should've been completely wiped out.

Kim's direct superior had a thought:

—Did these bastards conspire together or something?

No matter how you looked at it, it defied logic. And yet, every single Hunter who had been part of the advance team said the same thing. Naturally, all attention turned to one man.

"May I ask your name?"

A radiant blond man, seen through the magic mirror. A powerful warrior who had taken down a great demon in a single blow and annihilated all the other demons.

Even at a conservative estimate, he measured at least as an S-rank Hunter. And his identity...

"You're... a survivor, right?"

"Yes, I am a survivor from another world."

They appeared occasionally—those who had survived beyond the gates.

The gates that had emerged all over the world for the past 30 years had one thing in common: they were connected to worlds that had either already been destroyed or were in the process of being destroyed.

Governments around the world theorized that gates connected to the records of destroyed worlds or post-apocalyptic realms. And in rare cases, some survivors would cross over from those places.

Not just humans—elves, dwarves, and other fantasy races, too.

These people who came from other worlds—people started calling them "survivors."

"But... it was a black-ranked gate. Is it really possible for someone to survive in there?"

"He's standing right in front of us."

Considering his absurd strength, maybe it was possible.

Arguing over what's normal and abnormal had long stopped making sense. The world had been a string of abnormalities for the past 30 years.

Everything changed when monsters burst out from rifts never seen before.

More than half of humanity perished. The land became polluted, cities were destroyed.

Fortunately, those blessed with mana—commonly referred to as Awakened or Hunters—began to appear, allowing humanity to barely survive. But there was still so much unknown about the gates.

"A survivor, huh..."

Survivors.

Unlike the Awakened, many of them were natural mana users. Having survived in a ruined world, many were on par with—or even stronger than—Hunters.

But with that came pride, and since their cultures and ways of life were so different, they struggled to blend into modern society.

People who claimed to be from empires, sages of the forest, masters of underground dungeons—they must've lived in worlds completely detached from modern civilization.

That's why governments took a policy of utmost respect and accommodation toward survivors—to recruit them, if possible.

"We absolutely have to recruit him. That guy... he's insanely powerful."

"Yeah... no matter what, we must."

Even A-rank Hunters risk their lives against high-ranking demons.

But a great demon? Apart from the nightmare-inducing demon lords, great demons were the strongest known monsters.

And Leon had one-shot such a demon. Sure, some Hunters in the past had managed to repel great demons, but none had overpowered one.

Even survivors—whose strength was basically a given—still feared demons. None had dominated them like Leon did.

And beyond his strength, most survivors around the world came from cultures vastly different from Earth's.

Given that he referred to himself as "I, the royal," he was likely at least of noble or royal blood. Investigators would have to proceed with extreme caution.

"I think... he might be easier to communicate with than we expected."

"Based on what?"

"His voice. I could tell. He seems like... a good person."

Ha-ri couldn't forget that warm voice—how he had encouraged her, helped her to her feet.

A man who praised the brave and looked upon others with benevolence couldn't possibly be a bad person—

"You lowly cur! How dare you sully the glorious name of Lionheart!"

CRASH!

A single punch brought down the desk. The shockwave shattered the reinforced glass, strong enough to block even monster attacks.

Beyond the now-broken magic mirror, the radiant blond man was shouting furiously at the investigator.

"...You said he was nice."

"M-maybe... cultural differences?"

Ha-ri blinked rapidly, trying her best to defend him.

Leon felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity as he gazed upon Earth, returned to him after 300 years.

Well, it made sense. In his twenties, he had been a penniless orphan doing manual labor, who eventually died of overwork.

After reincarnating, he spent over a hundred years as a knight—and then as a king—in a kingdom of another world. When demons invaded that world, he spent the next 200 years hunting them down.

His memories from 300 years ago were faint, so it was a miracle that he remembered anything at all.

The problem was that even comparing those faint memories, today's Earth was completely different.

"Hello, are you... Leon Dragonia Lionheart?"

"Hmm..."

But Leon chose not to show any familiarity. They referred to him as a Survivor. That meant there were others like him.

No reason to tell them I'm actually from Earth.

Revealing he was originally from Earth might make for an unusual story, but it would provide no real benefit.

Besides, which sounded better—a 20-something who died from overwork doing manual labor, or a 300-year-old knight-king from another world?

More than anything, Leon had lived the life of a knight and a king for far too long.

"Address me as Your Majesty, commoner."

"Eh? O-oh... Yes, yes! Y-Your Majesty!"

The investigator awkwardly bowed, trying to play along with Leon's forceful demand. Was the investigator just naturally mild-mannered? Or was the government treating all Survivors with cautious respect?

"S-so... about the Black Gate... You met our Hunters in your world, and you... subjugated those demons? Correct?"

"Indeed."

The demons he slew last night carried the final traces of demonic energy in his world. They were the cursed ones, marked by the Goddess of Light, Ariana, who used the last of her power to brand them.

"You've forgotten."

"I—what?"

"That I, the King, have vanquished the cursed ones and upheld the honor of the knights. I now appoint you as my temporary scribe. I grant you the honor of recording this glorious event."

"Uh... y-yes... r-right..."

The investigator, now looking at Leon like he was half-insane, kept reminding himself, Cultural difference... cultural difference... as he took notes on Leon's report.

"By the way, do you not have customs here for treating a guest of honor?"

Put plainly, he was asking for food—just in a very noble-sounding way.

"Ah! Y-you're... hungry—no, you must be famished, Your Majesty! My apologies! I'll have a meal prepared immediately!"

The investigator hurried out to order some takeout.

While waiting for the food to arrive, Leon began questioning the investigator.

"More importantly, commoner—enlighten me. Tell me about this world. What kind of place is it?"

Leon already knew about Earth, of course. But what he wanted to learn about was the Earth after his disappearance.

What in the world had happened to 21st-century Earth?

"Of course. Allow me to explain."

Thirty years ago, the Great Cataclysm.

Gates. Dungeon Breaks.

As he listened, Leon couldn't help but feel the disasters that befell Earth were similar to those that had once devastated the Kingdom of Lionheart.

Though... not exactly the same.

In his kingdom, Demon Gates opened all at once. Imperial dark wizards had formed pacts with demons and forcefully opened the gates.

From there, countless cursed creatures poured out, slowly causing the collapse of entire nations.

But Earth had gone through something different.

While Gates did erupt across the world, it wasn't like demons flooded out of them indiscriminately as with the Demon Gates.

Each gate had its own "theme," and upon entering, a system window would appear with something called a "Clear Mission."

It was as if someone—or something—was testing Earth. As if it was strengthening it through progressive trials.

Earth saw the Gates as disasters, but from Leon's perspective, they looked more like ordeals meant to refine and empower.

And there are others like me here?

Survivors.

Beings from beyond the Gates.

Were they, like him, originally from Earth as well? But what he did know for sure was that none of them had ever claimed to be Earth-born.

"Your meal is ready, Your Majesty!"

The investigator brought in the food. At the sight of it, Leon's eyes trembled slightly.

Seolleongtang.

That milky-white beef bone soup, seasoned with salt and pepper... and kimchi!

To Leon—back when he was just a laborer on Earth—seolleongtang was practically soul food.

That taste: simmered broth from beef bones, seasoned to one's liking with salt and pepper, poured over a bowl of perfectly cooked white rice, eaten with crisp napa cabbage kimchi—divine.

No... no, I mustn't.

But Leon swallowed the rising drool with effort. Even though it was his first time seeing seolleongtang and kimchi in 300 years, he reminded himself of who he was now.

Leon Dragonia Lionheart.

A royal of another world. A knight devoted to chivalry, the divine agent of the gods. Guardian of the Holy Grail. Wielder of the Sacred Sword and Spear.

For someone of his stature, was it truly appropriate to eat a commoner's soul food?

Could he really slurp noodles and sip soup with reckless abandon and still uphold royal dignity?

"What is this food before me?"

"It's called seolleongtang, Your Majesty. It's considered a kind of soul food for the common folk—"

SLAM!

Leon slammed the table, eyes gleaming as if he'd been waiting for this moment. He rose to his feet and thundered:

"You wretched knave! How dare you defile the glorious name of Lionheart?!"

"Wh-what? Pardon?"

The investigator blinked in confusion, completely clueless about what he had done wrong. He trembled under the weight of Leon's oppressive presence.

"How dare you serve commoner food to royalty?! Is this how your so-called Kingdom of Korea treats foreign nobility?!"

"N-no! That's not what I meant, I just..."

Meet Park Jong-pal, age 42. A lifelong citizen of the democratic Republic of Korea—he had no idea how one was supposed to serve a royal guest.

"Begone at once! This is the folly of the lowborn!"

With a roar, Leon chased the investigator out of the room. Once alone, he eagerly began poring over the documents the investigator had left behind—modern Earth's basic knowledge.

Leon Dragonia Lionheart.

A survivor.

A living legend who embodied 300 years of war.

The nemesis of evil who destroyed the Demon Lord Malus, 23 Archdemons, and millions of lesser demons.

A demigod.

Guardian of the Holy Grail.

Avatar of the Pantheon.

The Lionheart King—he who bears the heart of a lion.

Wielder of the Sacred Sword and Spear.

A living saint.

The first knight of Ariana, Goddess of Light and Justice.

And upon witnessing the sorry state of the Earth he had returned to after 300 years, Leon thought to himself:

"This place is a mess. All because proper faith no longer exists."

It was only right, he concluded, that a royal should take on the duty of enlightening these foolish commoners.