Reincarnated With The Strongest System

Just as the black flames were about to devour the guards and burn them to a crisp, the gates opened and a powerful gust of wind blew the flames back to where it came from.

William casually waved his hand and made the black flames disappear as he eyed the familiar face that had appeared before him.

"So, you have returned, William," an old man holding a staff said as he looked at the black-haired teenager in front of him. "Why have you returned? You already know you are not welcomed here."

"What makes you think that I want to return here?" William asked back with contempt. 

The old man arched an eyebrow. "Then what are you doing here?" 

"Maybe the Gods wanted your city to be destroyed?" William replied. "I'm not gonna lie. I am very tempted to make it happen."

"Very funny. After not seeing you for a few years, you already know how to bluff," the old man commented. "You plan to destroy Camelot? You and what army?"

William laughed. This was the first time he ever laughed since he became the Prince of Darkness. It seemed that the question "You and What Army?" tickled even his black-stained heart, and the Half-Elf was very tempted to show the old man in front of him just what kind of army he was able to command.

Just as William was about to show the old man whether he was bluffing or not, he sensed something in the distance.

WIlliam turned his head to look behind him and saw a procession of knights headed in his direction. At the very front of the formation was a handsome, middle-aged man flanked by several high-ranking knights that the Half-Elf used to look up to.

But now, they no longer amounted to anything in his eyes. That young bastard that was sent away, because he would tarnish the King's family name, died long ago. Whatever wishes he had in the past to make his father recognize him as one of his sons, was irrelevant to the current William.

Seeing a suspicious person at the gate, the knights spread out and encircled the Half-Elf who was looking at his father with an amused expression on his face. 

"Why are you here?" the King asked. "Didn't I banish you from this place?"

"That's the third time I've been asked that question," William replied. "And it doesn't get less annoying every time someone does. How about I ask you a question instead. Are you ready to die?"

"He has come to assassinate the King! Men, to arms!"

"Protect his Majesty!"

"Kill him!"

Several magical barriers surrounded the King of Camelot, while William simply crossed his arms over his chest. 

Black flames erupted around him and spread out towards the Knights. This time, he didn't hold back and truly unleashed the power that would kill everyone in the surroundings. 

"I will not let you have your way, you fiend!" 

Golden radiance met William's dark flames and the two collided in blazing glory. A minute later, both attacks were canceled, but the Half-Elf was still standing at ease, while the person who blocked his attack was panting heavily as he kneeled on the ground.

"As expected of you, Gawain," William commented as he looked up at the sun that was currently at its Zenith. "The knight that is said to be invincible under the sun. I seem to have formed some kind of karma with people belonging to the Sun Faction."

The Half-Elf chuckled as he remembered the Sun God, Lugh, whom he had fought in the Celestial Realm in the past. That was when he discovered that the people who had been blessed by the Sun God were like cockroaches.

They were very hard to kill.

"Everyone step aside," the King ordered. "None of you are a match against him."

Gawain sighed as he backed away while glaring at William. The sword, Gelatine, trembled in his hands as if it no longer wanted to clash with the black-haired teenager a second time. 

"I'll ask again. Why–"

"If you continue your question, I will guarantee that you, as well as your knights, will die here today. Do not annoy me any further. I will be the one asking questions, and you will answer them. Do I make myself clear?"

The King gazed at the young man before shifting his gaze at the old man in the distance. 

The old man shook his head as if telling the King to not provoke the black-haired teenager whose power he could not fathom.

"Fine," The king answered. "Ask your questions."

The Half-Elf stared at the King for a full minute before asking his question.

"How many years have I been exiled from this city?" William asked.

"Six years," the King replied. "The last time I heard about you is when you joined the warriors of Tintagle Castle to drive out the invaders that had stepped into the mainland. No survivors from the castle returned, and your corpse was found among the dead. Are you back to haunt us for not giving you a proper burial?"

"You didn't give my corpse a proper burial?"

"All those who died were given a proper burial because they died as heroes protecting the realm. As for your corpse, the Lady of the Lake asked for it. I do not know why she did that, but since I didn't feel any ill intention coming from her, I allowed her to take your corpse back with her into the Lake."

William pinched the bridge of his nose as he thought of Ashe's past life. Back then, he didn't know that the lady whom everyone revered in Camelot was smitten with him. During his teenage years, he only had eyes for Acedia after making a vow that he would spend his life caring for her after he returned to Alfheim.

"Okay then has anything unusual happened as of late?" William inquired. He was very tempted to go to the lake and see what Ashe had done with his corpse. However, his instincts were telling him that he shouldn't do that.

The Black-haired teenager felt that if he went to see Ashe right now, he might discover something that would make things awkward when he finally found a way to revive her. 

So, in order to keep the future peace in his family, he decided to let bygones be bygones, and let the Lady of the Lake do whatever she wanted with his corpse.

The King was looking at the black-haired teeanger with a serious expression on his face. He could feel that the boy that was in front of him was no longer the teary-eyed boy whom he had banished from his city, six years ago.

"Three Daemons appeared, and are wreaking havoc in the Northwest Regions of the Kingdom," the King replied. "All three are beautiful women, but their magic far surpasses the magic that we knew. One could control the power of lightning, while her twin screams thunderous roars that could shatter the eardrums of those who were close enough to hear her screams.

"The last one was a fairy-like being with long red hair. She had golden butterfly wings behind her back. Although she wasn't as aggressive as the other two Daemons, she was still capable of charming people, making them fight against each other. We just came back from our crusade against them. Unfortunately, they were simply too strong, so we decided to retreat."

With such vivid descriptions, William could easily guess the identity of the three "Daemons" that the king was talking about. 

'So, they're also here,' WIlliam thought with great interest. 'I thought that all of us would have individual trials, so I guess I was wrong.'

The Half-Elf then looked at the Northern Regions as his entire body was shrouded with lightning. A second later, a crisp "Kzzzt" sound reached everyone's ears before the black-haired teeanger vanished from where he stood.

Now that he knew where his comrades were, William decided to reunite with his subordinates first.

Something had been bothering him since the King answered his questions. 

'Six years since I left Camelot,' William mused as he made calculations inside his head. 'Isn't that the same time when Asgard fell? Could this just be a coincidence?'

The Half-Elf didn't know the answer to his questions. All he knew was that he needed to find a way to clear the trial before he snapped, and return to Camelot to start killing people.