For a moment he was confused. But then he remembered how he had felt before he knew the princess, when he carried only a sword. He threw away the noose and poison and the charged the dragon with his sword. He killed the dragon, and the townspeople rejoiced.
The knight in shining armor never returned to his princess. He stayed in this new village and lived happily ever after. He eventually married, but only after making sure this new partner knew nothing about nooses and poisons.