The Dark Knight's Story
When Xiwen followed Dumbledore and Headmaster Dippet up the self-service spiral escalator to the Headmaster's Office on the Seventh Floor of the castle, he found a figure already waiting at the door.
The figure was transparent, clad in full armor, and wielded an extremely heavy greatsword, like a knight from the old society transformed into a ghost.
A gruesome black armor clad the ghost knight's entire body, and a rusty helmet obscured his face, with only a pair of empty, dark eyes peeking out from the gaps in his mask.
Upon suddenly seeing the knight in full black armor, Headmaster Dippet was taken aback.
They had just fought a fierce battle against the black-clad Death of death, so the sudden appearance of this transparent figure, also dressed in black and with an indistinct face, naturally put Headmaster Dippet on high alert.
"Who are you, and why are you blocking the entrance to the Headmaster's Office?" the principal asked sternly.
The ghost knight, clad in black armor, remained silent for a moment, then a harsh, metallic voice, like the scraping of metal, emanated from within his armor—a voice that was particularly distressing and extremely grating.
"I mean no harm; I'm only here to fulfill my mission," the Ghost Rider said with a grating metallic scraping sound. "I've waited as a ghost for over a thousand years, and only now have I finally found the opportunity to complete my mission."
Dumbledore frowned, looked at Xiwen, and asked, "Doctor Strange, have you seen this Ghost at Hogwarts?"
Xiwen thought about it carefully, then silently shook his head.
"I haven't met this gentleman before. Perhaps we should call Sir Nicholas and the monk over; they know more about ghosts," he said to Dumbledore and Headmaster Dippet.
"No need for that. I haven't appeared in your sights publicly." The Ghost Knight shook his black helmet, making a metallic scraping sound even more grating than his voice. "I only awoke from my slumber this time because I sensed that evil aura."
"Since no one knows you and no one can verify your identity, how can we trust you?" Headmaster Dippet looked into the dark eyes beneath his mask and asked seriously.
"You can listen to my story first before deciding whether to believe me," the Ghost Knight said slowly.
Headmaster Dippet thought for a moment, then nodded slightly.
"Then come into the office and tell us." He walked straight to the brass door knocker shaped like a griffin in front of the office door and spoke to the Ghost Knight.
With the command aloud, Headmaster Dippet strode into the spacious, beautiful circular room of the Headmaster's Office. After navigating past numerous strange and unusual instruments, he sat down directly behind the long-legged desk and let out a heavy sigh.
"Are you alright, Armando?" Dumbledore asked with concern, noticing Headmaster Dippet's tired appearance.
"It's nothing, just a little tired. I'll rest here for a while," Headmaster Dippet waved his hand casually and said. "Please, make yourselves at home."
Xiwen sat at a large table with claw-shaped legs, sizing up the Ghost Knight in front of him.
The knight showed no intention of sitting down; he simply propped his greatsword on the ground and stood motionless.
Xiwen's eyes flickered, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw that many of the principals' portraits on the wall had opened their eyes curiously, seemingly very curious about this unfamiliar Ghost Knight.
"May I begin?" The Ghost Knight seemed somewhat uncomfortable with the gazes from the surrounding walls and asked stiffly.
"Of course, do as you please," Headmaster Dippet waved his hand behind his desk.
The Ghost Knight remained standing motionless, giving the principal a slight nod.
My story begins more than a thousand years ago...
Through the Ghost Rider's explanation, the three of Xiwen learned a somewhat heavy story—
It turns out that this Ghost Knight was a noble knight-captain in the early Middle Ages, and he started out as a low-ranking knight.
This knight studied diligently and assiduously, striving to uphold the eight virtues of chivalry: humility, honor, sacrifice, courage, mercy, honesty, justice, and spirituality, and faithfully protecting the nobleman he served.
Because of his excellent swordsmanship, horsemanship, and magical abilities, as well as his unwavering chivalry, the knight rose through the ranks and eventually became the highest-ranking knight commander under the Earl.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this Ghost Knight will likely face one of two fates: either he will remain as a knight commander, protecting the Earl he serves, and die peacefully, eventually passing the position to his son; or he will die on the battlefield in glory, protecting the Earl during a territorial dispute.
People today may not understand what a good ending it is to die on the battlefield, but in fact, both of these endings are extremely perfect for a knight commander who deeply understands the spirit of chivalry and is not afraid of sacrifice.
However, if he had simply lived an ordinary life as a glorious knight, there would naturally be no Ghost Knight in black armor appearing in the Hogwarts Headmaster's office today.
This Ghost Rider encountered a major accident that would change his life forever --
The knight was nearly thirty years old at the time, strong and healthy, full of youthful vigor, at the most charming stage of a man's life. The Earl he served had just received a mission: to escort a princess to a neighboring country to marry the prince there.
The most powerful knight commander readily accepted this important mission and personally escorted the princess away from the Earl's territory.
However, it was during this escort journey that the young princess, who often admired heroes, and the handsome and strong knight commander, who had never been married, gradually developed feelings for each other. Initially, the two suppressed their feelings due to their respective identities and missions, intending to keep their feelings to themselves and forget each other in the world.
However, another unexpected event occurred!
One day, the enemy army, unwilling to allow the two countries to form a marriage alliance, launched a surprise attack and captured the princess. At the princess's most desperate moment, the knight commander, alone, wielding a greatsword in one hand and a magic wand in the other, broke through the enemy camp and bravely rescued the princess.
After that, the two could no longer suppress their feelings and eloped to the desolate mountains and wilderness.
The two powerful nations could not tolerate the scandal of a knight eloping with a princess, and sent an army larger than their enemy to hunt down the knight and princess. No matter how strong the knight was, he was ultimately no match for so many forces and could only flee with the princess time and time again.
Finally, one day, while fleeing on horseback, the princess on the knight's back was accidentally struck by a stray arrow and tragically died. The knight was devastated and carried her body to a remote forest, where he wept for a very long time.
Just when the knight was at his saddest, Death appeared in the forest.
Death used the knight's overwhelming negative emotions to control his mind, turning him into a killing machine belonging to the Demon God, prompting him to swing his greatsword at his own people.
Ultimately, the knight committed numerous heinous crimes in the war between Death and humanity.
Only after the three powerful wizard brothers joined forces to seal Death in another dimension did the knight gradually regain his senses and sanity.
Upon regaining consciousness, the knight was overcome with grief. After much agonizing reflection, he realized that he had completely violated all chivalry and was unworthy of the blood-stained armor he wore.
So he forged himself a set of black iron armor, completely sealing himself within it, and called himself the Dark Knight. He also wore a black iron greatsword, and never took off this armor again.
From then on, the knight walked in darkness his entire life, punishing evil and sweeping away sin, trying to atone for his heinous crimes.
As his life was drawing to a close, the knight suddenly realized that Death had only been sealed away and had not truly died.
Death will one day return!
By then, there will be many more people like him in the world who will be controlled and persecuted by Death, and there may not be another powerful group like the three wizard brothers to stop Death's invasion.
Such a profound obsession caused the knight to become a ghost after his death; his existence was solely to pass on the message of Death to those who would face Death in the future...
"I sense that you have already faced Death head-on, haven't you?" the Ghost Knight asked in a harsh, metallic voice.