I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World - Chapter 23

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

◈ I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World ◈

Chapter 23: It Is Easy to Die Fighting, but Hard to Lend a Road (1)

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Kriel had a headache.

It was not because he had overworked his body and suffered aftereffects, nor because his weakened immunity had made him ill.

It was just...

[Come to think of it, do Spirits need entry permits under Imperial law? Or, since I was never a Spirit to begin with and should be classified as a bladed weapon, do I not need to file a separate declaration with immigration?]

[Awaken, Master. A knight should have retainers. There is a Monster ahead, so subdue it in one blow and─]

He had a headache.

Kriel accepted Tuon's suggestion one hundred and twenty percent. Rather than merely subduing the Monster, he cut it in half.

When Tuon cried, “That Monster was going to become Master's retainer!” Orisin confidently shouted, “Wouldn't a fine unicorn that can actually speak properly be better than some goblin?”

When Orisin let out a shriek after being told, “What are you getting cocky for when you don't even have legs?” Kriel gave a hollow smile.

“If I'd known this would happen, I would've asked for earmuffs instead of a helmet.”

As Kriel muttered under his breath and clutched his head, the two souls began blaming each other. It was a childish argument, each insisting the other had been too loud.

At times, he wondered if he should just abandon them somewhere and run away, but it was pointless.

If he tossed the Horn Dagger into some corner of a forest, Orisin would chase after him with the dagger clenched in Orisin's mouth. Phantom Sword Tuon had been bound to Kriel's soul from the beginning, so even if he threw it away, it would return to Kriel before long.

Kriel gave up. Having accepted that there was no way to silence the upstairs noise, he tried to at least reduce the volume.

“Could we please be a little quieter?”

[But come on. We've been walking down an empty road for days. We're bored, so we need to talk.]

“Then don't drag me into it. The two of you can chat by yourselves.”

[What? As a refined Demon Sword, speaking with such a lowly Monster without anyone else present would stain my honor.]

[Seriously, everyone I meet takes a shot at me. If we're judging by seniority alone, I'm near the top among the Spirits where I come from.]

[Did all the other local Spirits move away?]

Kriel fell into thought. He had been walking without much thought, but something was certainly strange.

‘There are no people on the road to the Empire?’

There should have been several groups of pilgrims coming from the Empire each day.

‘The Sacred Kingdom doesn't stop travelers, following the Pantheon's practice of welcoming all wanderers. Does that mean the Empire is restricting departures?’

It was strange. The Sacred Kingdom was somewhat troublesome to secular rulers. Though it removed itself from worldly interests and devoted itself solely to eradicating the Abyss, it still possessed considerable military power.

Rulers would not look kindly on powerful figures from another country crossing their borders.

‘But if they block clergy from entering or leaving, the people's resentment would be no small matter. Eradicating the Abyss ultimately benefits everyone. Even if it's inconvenient, wasn't it the policy of the Tirnanog nations to keep the road open to the Sacred Kingdom?’

It was not a question he could answer without more information. Kriel decided to pick up his pace toward the Empire.

[Master.]

“What?”

[Monsters. It is unfortunate that they are not humanoid, but wolves─]

Tuon directly projected scenes from the east and west into Kriel's mind. Kriel casually turned his head, taking care not to show any wariness. In the darkness of the brush, he caught the fierce gleam of hungry wolves' eyes.

They had hidden in the shadows, but they could not escape a Dark Knight's sight. Kriel examined them.

Their eyes shone with an eerie light. It was different from the ordinary appetite born of hunger. The bottomless darkness seeping into the depths of their pupils proved they possessed the Abyss's Demonic Nature.

Once again, Kriel enthusiastically accepted Tuon's suggestion. He drew his greatsword and charged.

[Stop, Master! Wolf knights are cool!]

It was an absurd attempt to stop him. At the same time, Kriel despised himself for hesitating at the simple word, “cool.” Still, he could not leave Servants of the Abyss alone.

For now, they were only a pack of vicious wolves. If they evolved into Demonic Beasts, they would become monsters beyond the limits of wolves. If they became Demonkin, their species itself would change, and they would lurk among humans like werewolves.

It was best to cut down the sprouts of the Abyss early.

On his first charge, Kriel gripped the very end of the hilt with his right hand, almost at the pommel. The greatsword seemed to slide from his hand as he swung it, flashing in a half-moon arc.

The sword's assault swept through the area in front of Kriel, taking the heads of three wolves at once. The wolves sensed that something was wrong, but Kriel's Mark of the Great Warrior was the problem.

The Natural Order was the Abyss's archenemy. The Abyss existed by staining the world with its own laws. The world's inherent Natural Order was its most primal foe.

A god was the embodiment of such principles. They carried a presence the Abyss could not help but oppose.

Kriel felt pleased as the wolves charged him. He was certain he could replenish both his Nobility and the Blood Energy he might need in an emergency.

Before five breaths had passed, a pack of around twenty wolves had been slaughtered. It was a butcher's skill, harvesting three or four lives with one swing.

Orisin whistled. Kriel wondered how that was possible with a horse's mouth, but then again, speaking with a body that had nothing below the neck was already a mystery. He decided not to think about it.

[Wow, you can do that without armor. No wonder that thug Saintess wanted to make you a Champion.]

“Any knight can do this much.”

[Wolf knights... They're cool.]

“I agree, but I won't keep Monsters. Maybe if I made a contract with a wolf Spirit somewhere.”

[A Dark Knight?]

It was Tuon's usual contempt for Dark Knights. Kriel himself had once considered insulting his own class part of his daily routine, but hearing it from someone else strangely annoyed him.

[Master. Accept the darkness within. Power, infinite power, awaits you.]

“I said no.”

A Demon Sword was a Demon Sword. Its temptations were not convincing, but it was quite skilled at techniques that drained mental strength.

[If wolves won't do, find a Wyvern somewhere and become a Wyvern knight...]

Kriel let the Demon Sword's ridiculous temptation pass. Honestly, it did sound cool, but Wyverns were not creatures one could find so easily.

* * *

At sunset, Kriel saw more than ten Wyverns circling above a border city.

“No.”

[See! Even the Six Principles recognize my loyalty to you, Master! This is your chance to become a Wyvern knight!]

[Hey, idiot. Why would the Six Principles acknowledge an Abyssal spawn?]

Kriel sighed at the absurd coincidence. Fortunately, his exceptional eyesight allowed him to spot the danger in the sky before the Wyverns noticed him.

‘No. Maybe they noticed me already and are ignoring me.’

The pack of Wyverns circling above the city was clearly strange. They seemed to be showing deep hostility toward something inside.

[It's still pretty far away. What will you do?]

The Gate City between the Empire and the Sacred Kingdom was also an artificial wall sealing the gap between two mountains. Going around it would take a considerable amount of time.

More importantly...

“What else? I have to go.”

A knight could not turn away from people in danger.

Kriel did not rush straight to the city gates and start swinging his greatsword. A concern briefly crossed his mind.

‘Can I go in wearing armor?’

Kriel scratched his head. Even for him, fighting more than ten Wyverns unarmored was not appealing. If the terrain had been a dense forest with plenty of cover, it might have been worth trying.

But the well-maintained road in front of the border city was nearly flat. Fighting without armor would be foolish.

After considering it, Kriel decided to summon his armor. He had to stay alive before he could uphold chivalry or pursue Nobility.

* * *

The Border Guard of the Gate City raised their spears.

For days, Wyverns had circled above them, raking citizens with their brutal talons. Their behavior was clearly a departure from the Natural Order.

Either some evil mage was controlling them, the Wyverns had been ensnared by the Abyss and become its servants, or they were minions of an evil mage who worshipped the Abyss.

Though afraid, the guards fulfilled their duty. Whenever the Wyverns attempted to hunt, they drove the beasts away with arrows and thrown spears, while busily searching for evidence of Black Magic.

Now, they felt an unprecedented tension.

The sun's radiance was fading into night. At that ominous sunset, shadows stretched long.

A black knight was approaching from the west.

Footnotes:

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