Chapter 9 - Chapter 9- Purging the Demons

"Oh? What's this? So the rumour was really true. Reinhardt the Divine Paladin has finally woken up" A voice interjected.A couple of figures walked out of the carriage that entered the residency. Leading them was a plump man with short height and stubby legs. He wore lavish clothing and a balmoral on his head. Whether it be his garb or style of walking, it screamed or at least pretended to be a man of importance."Marquis Boulevard, so you came too" Raymond acknowledged."I greet the duke" The chubby man who was referred to as Marquis Boulevard bowed his head slightly to the duke. His eyes than took a glance at the big frame of Reinhardt beside and he erupted in a merry laughter."Hahaha, this is great. With the commander of the Temple of Light up and running again, our kingdom has become stronger than ever. This is a huge event, I can see why the duke has assembled everyone here"."Wrong, I didn't assemble everyone, Reinhardt did" Raymond gestured at his son."Oh? The commander himself. I wonder if the commander wanted to announce the news of him waking up himself?"…"That's right, I called them here to let them know I am back. However, that is not all, there is an important matter I need to discuss with them. Marquis Boulevard, you came just at the right time" Reinhardt announced a mysterious smile playing on his lips."Oh, pray tell".BOOM… All of a sudden Reinhardt released his aura, his presence was so powerful that everyone felt a mountain was pressing on them."Today I call you here for no other reason than to fulfil the code for which our order exists. That is to exterminate the demons".WOAHHH… His words caused a bolt of electricity to run through the knights and paladins assembled. Their commander had only just recovered but he was already raring for action. How could they not get excited? Plus the following words from Reinhardt only seem to fuel that flame."You all might wonder why I am so impatient as to want to exterminate demons the very moment I recovered. Although it is the code of a knight to fight against demons, this time it is different. This time it is revenge. As you are all aware, the curse that I was afflicted with was no ordinary curse, even a warrior like me had succumbed to its effect. A curse like that, cannot be easily put onto a Divine Paladin like me unless they set up a complex scheme to trap and weaken me" He looked at the expressions of all present, his eyes narrowing down on those showing slight signs of apprehension.He continued "On our last crusade on the Lost Valley, I was fighting the 9th Heavenly King. Naturally, I was all drained and weak after that fight. However, even with the power of the 9th Heavenly King, he cannot put a curse so powerful on me without me being aware of it. The fact that I did, proves that it was an insider job".The crowd was shocked, this was the first time they had heard about the origin of the curse that was put on their commander. The knights and paladins all looked at each other, suspicion apparent in their eyes. Nobody doubted Reinhardt, they all seemed to believe him unconditionally."Wait a moment, I was wondering what you wanted to announce. But this!! Have you lost your mind after waking up? An insider work? Are you trying to sow discord in the order?" Marquis Boulevard shouted, spit flying from his mouth like a faucet."Marquis Boulevard this is a matter of my Temple of Light, do not interfere" Reinhardt stared down the plump man."Of course, I will interfere. Have you forgotten that all the knight orders of the kingdom are accountable to the king and thus to us, the Council of Elders? As one of the elders I have every right…""Shut up!!" Reinhardt activated [Divine Presence] knocking the noble unconscious."Y-Y-You…" Marquis Boulevard pointed, but that was all he could do before foaming from the mouth, eyes rolling behind his back.With no one to disturb him anymore, Reinhardt proceeded with his plans "I know what you are all thinking, who is the backstabber? No need to look around you, I have a way to find them. That is why I gathered you all here. I plan to purge the eyes and hands of the demon who planted their spies here. I want absolute cooperation from everyone".Most of the knights and paladins unhesitantly nodded their heads while some showed signs of distress and even fear. Reinhardt captured all of their faces, slowly walking into the middle of the training grounds. This would be his first time using an attack skill, he was filled with nervous expectations. He had already checked his Status Window and his stats and Divine Traits were absolutely busted. But how about his skill?"Time to break out the new content to the people of this world…" In a grand and impressive fashion, Reinhardt made a fist towards the sky and then brought it down as if he was punching the ground."[Radiant Ascension]!!" The moment he called out the name of the skill, his body was covered in faint white fire and trails of white streaks of light appeared at the edges of his eyes.At that moment, the clouds in the sky suddenly spread apart and a giant pillar of light descended from the sky. The scene was so visually impactful that all observing eyes stared on with amazement. In a matter of seconds, the pillar of light descended from the sky and fell on the entire training ground, shaking the place, the mansion and the entire Duke territory to its core.Not only that, the giant pillar of light falling from the sky was so eye catching that it could be seen even from the city at the base of the mountain. People started pointing at the pillar of light wondering what it was.Meanwhile, inside the territory of the Arcknight, on the training grounds, shrill screams and wails that could chill one soul rang out. A few of the knights and squires fell on the ground, clutching their body and rolling on the ground. Black miasma continuously seeped out of their body before getting instantly cleansed by the pillar of light.