I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World - Chapter 26

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

◈ I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World ◈

Chapter 26: It Is Easy to Die Fighting, but Hard to Lend a Road (4)

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Kriel was assigned a small room. For many years, the Border Guard had not needed to worry about attacks from either the Sacred Kingdom or the Abyss. They were effectively guarding a place that no longer needed guarding.

The room assigned to Kriel was proof enough. The Border Guard had once been more than twice its current size, but the long peace had naturally led to military cutbacks. That was why a luxurious private room originally meant for a commanding officer had been left empty.

“We also use it as lodging when inspectors from the capital visit from time to time. So it’s not entirely a waste of money.”

The current commander of the Border Guard left after saying that. He intended to discuss how they would deal with the Wyverns, and whether they might attack again, tomorrow. It was too late now, and depriving a warrior who had fought such an intense battle of rest would be cruel.

Once the commander’s footsteps had faded away, Kriel drew the Horn Dagger.

[Wow. I thought I was going to suffocate in there.]

[Can you feel the mercy of a master who usually pulls you halfway out of the sheath?]

[I thought exposing a “horn” at your waist was some strange expression of a secret preference, but I suppose I should take that back....]

“What kind of crazy nonsense are you talking about?”

Dumbfounded, Kriel grabbed the Horn Dagger and shook it. Orisin let out a strange scream.

“So, Master.”

Tuon changed her appearance. She took the form of a girl with ash-gray hair, blue eyes, and a gothic-style dress.

“Do you believe what they said?”

“What is there to believe or not believe?”

The Border Guard commander’s explanation had been simple. The Advisory Mage had left the city, and the sudden appearance of Wyverns had sealed off the city’s entrances. The Wyverns had been causing chaos for nearly a week.

Kriel had no idea which thoughtless Abyssal minion had come all the way down to a city like this to make such a mess, but the incident itself was fairly common.

Scheming to conquer cities, or even the world, was practically everyday business for the Abyss.

“Isn’t this strange? The timing is far too convenient. I think the missing Advisory Mage is suspicious.”

Kriel nodded. It was a reasonable suspicion. Even in his view, the Wyvern attack had come at far too perfect a time.

“But what can we do about it? It’s not as if we can immediately go out and drag back a mage who’s already left.”

Kriel could roughly predict what would be discussed in tomorrow’s meeting with the commander. The commander would likely send envoys to nearby cities to request support while the Wyverns were out of sight. Kriel himself would probably be assigned to escort them.

It was a sensible response. Kriel possessed great strength, but he was still only one knight. To find whoever was behind the Wyverns and eliminate the source, they would need mages or priests.

“I am a Demon Sword.”

“And?”

“Gratuon possessed the ability to consume corpses and add their strength to itself. The power it absorbed was not merely physical strength. It was power on an essential level, including memories and magical power.”

[That’s too long. Summarize it in three lines!]

Just as Tuon’s explanation was about to become long-winded, Orisin flew over and cut her off. Tuon was about to silence Orisin with her usual line about not listening to those weaker than herself, but then Kriel spoke.

“Could you explain it more simply?”

Taking Orisin’s side.

Tuon stared at Kriel, deeply shocked by her master’s favoritism.

“...?”

Kriel was flustered by the strange resentment in Tuon’s eyes. What did I even do?

“...I inherited Gratuon’s ability. If I cut down the Wyverns, I can learn where their connection leads. Combined with Master’s abilities as a Dark Knight, we should be able to track down the mage controlling them.”

A neat three-line summary. Kriel found Tuon’s proposal appealing. He had thought he might have to spend several days helping the Gate City, but this presented a way to finish things much faster than expected.

[But is this really okay?]

“What’s the problem now?”

Tuon replied in a sulky voice. Orisin flew around the ash-gray girl, needling her.

[To be honest, feeding blood to one of the Seven Demon Weapons is never a healthy thing to do. It might be different if that thug Saintess were here, but are we really allowed to do this?]

“I am not Gratuon.”

[Then what are you?]

“I have become something greater.”

[Doesn’t that just mean you’ve become more dangerous?]

Kriel was impressed by Orisin’s observation. Not because it showed particular insight, but because the horse head, which normally spouted nothing but bizarre nonsense, had suddenly said something sensible.

“You actually think things through!”

[No. Isn’t it strange not to care when the Abyss has left me as nothing but a head?]

Despite Kriel’s praise, Orisin grumbled for a while. Still, Orisin eventually returned to a single topic: Tuon and killing.

[You shouldn’t feed blood to a Demon Sword. That’s common sense. Isn’t that why you insisted on using a greatsword against the Wyverns?]

Tuon turned to Kriel again, her face full of shock. Kriel only looked at Orisin in confusion.

“It has a function like that?”

[By rank alone, the Seven Demon Weapons surpass even Demonkin. They’re closer to Demons, really. They’re a rare case where rank and power aren’t proportional because they’ve been exploited for so long.]

What the hell? Had the old woman who was the Head of the Order really looked at something like that and said, “It’s fine if you use it well”? Kriel began to suspect that the Head of the Order of the Church of Eve Kaha was actually of the Morgina variety.

[If you had used the Cross Sword, those Wyverns would have lined up in single file, begging you to kill them.]

“I didn’t know that....”

Kriel looked at Tuon. She had puffed out her chest as though proudly declaring just how amazing she was. The shock she had felt upon hearing that Kriel had deliberately not used her seemed to have already vanished.

[That’s why I think you should use that thing as little as possible, like you’re doing now. Before my curse is lifted, I don’t want to watch you head down the path of a curse.]

“That is vile slander! I am loyal to Master. A worthless sword with no fidelity like you would not understand.”

[Considering Gratuon’s list of masters, is that side really in any position to talk about fidelity?]

“I’ve said it repeatedly. I am different from Gratuon. I am a finer sword.”

Watching their pointless argument, Kriel closed his eyes and recalled the words of the Head of the Order of the Church of Eve Kaha once more. Not the vague phrase that it would be fine if used well, but something more precise.

If Kriel himself did not submit to the Abyss, then the sword would not submit to the Abyss either.

Naturally, he had no intention of submitting to the Abyss. Even if the Demon Sword, having tasted blood, tried to consume its master, Kriel was confident he could subdue Tuon.

That confidence did not come from possessing Phantom Sword, the skill that allowed him to wield Tuon. Kriel knew better than anyone that skills were not all-powerful.

It was the confidence of a knight who had defeated a Demonkin consumed by Gratuon.

“We’ll do as Tuon suggests.”

The ash-gray girl solemnly folded her arms and looked at Orisin with a confident smile. It was the ease of a victor.

Orisin, who felt no rivalry with Tuon as a sword, lightly ignored that declaration of victory. Instead, Orisin only questioned Kriel.

[Really? It looks awfully dangerous....]

“There are innocent people suffering. How can I speak of my own danger when the people are in danger?”

It was an unconscious answer born from practicing lines for the Nobility stat. Orisin’s horse head broke into a foolish grin and nodded.

[Wow. Now I understand why that thug Saintess acts like that.]

* * *

“Damn it.”

The mage cursed after receiving news from the informant who had conspired with him.

A holy knight had come to trace the Abyss’s trail. What achievements that holy knight had earned in the west did not matter much. What mattered was the pursuit itself.

According to the mage’s plan, this should have taken only a few days, if the mage’s companions had coordinated properly. By now, voices should have been ringing out before the Gate City’s gates, shouting, “We have something to find, so clear the way.”

Whether the Gate City accepted that demand or not, the mage’s long-held wish would have been fulfilled. Yet the awaited news never came, and an unexpected meddler had appeared.

What was worse, that meddler’s ability was no joke. To slaughter Wyverns turned into Monsters that easily? With enough preparation and effort, the mage could defeat the meddler, but it would consume an enormous amount of resources, including Monsters.

‘Damn bastards. What made them so slow?’

The mage cursed the companions once again. If those lazy fools had finished their work on time, the city would already have fallen into their hands as the Abyss had ordered.

This would not do. It was time to revise the plan once more. The mage intended to step away from the Gate City for a while and disappear into hiding.

* * *

“I intend to go to the Wyverns’ nest.”

At the Border Guard’s morning meeting, Kriel calmly made his declaration.

Footnotes:

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