WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: WeTried Translations

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◈ I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World ◈

Chapter 9: There Are Too Many Abysses (2)

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The Priest-King’s praise drew everyone’s attention. Morgina proudly shrugged, as though telling them to behold her Champion.

But her true feelings were different. If the emotions she held inside had shown on the surface, she would have already broken into a sweat.

‘That little brat never cared about what anyone else did, so why did he have to say something so needless?!’

Every Saint currently active in the Sacred Kingdom was watching Kriel. They might recognize the power of the Abyss within him.

Of course, she had taken various precautions to prevent such a disaster.

Making him wear the uniform of the Church of Eve Kaha was one such measure. The Divine Power contained in clothes woven from blessed fabric was enough to suppress the Abyss’s presence.

Morgina’s tastes had played a part as well, but she had a perfectly sensible reason for forcing Kriel into that uniform.

The pendant known as the Mark of the Great Warrior served the same purpose. Since Kriel himself wanted to stay as far from the Abyss as possible, its power was unlikely to be exposed unless some ancient, incomprehensible mystery like the Temple Gate came into play.

‘...It won’t, right?’

Well, even if he was somehow discovered, she already had an excuse prepared. Morgina was ready to rattle off Kriel’s accomplishments as the Soul-Washing Ascetic.

Fortunately, the Saints were more interested in Kriel’s abilities than in Kriel himself. The position of Champion carried that much trust.

“A single artifact, you say. Can you explain further?”

The elderly martial monk was the first to rise and question the Priest-King. Remembering that he temporarily held the position of Champion within the Church, Kriel chose his words carefully.

“Of course. Each fragment does carry the power of the Abyss, but their foundation remains connected. It seems that something immensely powerful was split into many pieces.”

“They deliberately split apart a powerful Abyssal artifact? The Abyssal Spawn have never been sane, but this is even harder to understand.”

“It isn’t difficult to understand. The Abyss can consume souls and use them to strengthen itself.”

Kriel recalled a cartoon he had watched on TV back when he went by another name. It had been about searching for the fragments of a shattered orb.

The countless fragments of that orb granted power to whoever put them inside their body.

What the Abyss had done was similar. The difference was that the Abyssal Wedge came with the added function of devouring its owner’s soul.

“To those incapable of distinguishing the Abyss, this Abyssal Wedge will look like an artifact that grants great power simply by being implanted somewhere in the body. But the Abyssal Wedge will instead take possession of the soul of whoever seeks to possess it.”

“So the fragments grow by consuming souls?”

“To reach power comparable to the Abyssal Wedge’s original form, they would need to devour an unimaginable number of souls. But ten or so would be enough for one to become an independent entity capable of wielding the Abyss’s power without any connection to the main body.”

“An Abyssal artifact of that level would be more than capable of creating a Demonkin...”

Those tainted by the Abyss were broadly divided into three stages. Monsters, who had simply been infused with Demonic Nature. Demonic Beasts, who possessed not only Demonic Nature but also the cruelty and strength of beasts. Finally, Demonkin, who had gained human cunning and intelligence.

In rare cases, beings were so thoroughly tainted by the Abyss that Demonic Nature consumed their entire spirituality. They were called Demons. Their souls were rejected by the world, and they dwelled beyond the Material Realm, within the chaos of the Abyss.

Demons devised countless schemes to expand the Abyss’s influence. Demonkin were the ones who directed those schemes in their stead, acting for Demons who could not easily appear in the present world.

The elderly martial monk’s expression hardened.

“An Abyssal Seed.”

The Priest-King clapped and gave Kriel a grateful look for explaining it in his place. The crisp sound drew the Saints’ attention.

“But fortunately, the Demon’s scheme has been discovered in advance. Seed is an apt term. These Abyssal Seeds are still bound to their main body.”

“Is that why you gathered us? To find and destroy the main body?”

“Yes. Here is a map of the regions where the Holy Knights found seeds, along with statistical data.”

It was a map completed by practically working most of Temlis’s high priests to death over the past few days. If one had to list its ingredients, the Priest-King himself would make up the largest portion.

“If you need them as clues for tracking, take the seeds with you. I hope you can wither every last one before they sprout.”

* * *

Morgina had returned to the Grand Temple of Eve Kaha for the moment. The task assigned by the Priest-King was heavier than she had expected.

“Abyssal Seeds...”

Her gaze beneath her witch’s hat turned toward Kriel. It was not the stern gaze of an executioner who punished the Abyss, but one filled with concern and worry.

As though unaware of her gaze, Kriel had scattered several seeds across the table and was examining them.

“Tracking them won’t be difficult. If we set out with the other Saints, it should be resolved easily enough.”

“Hey, wait a second.”

Morgina asked without thinking.

“Tracking is the hardest part of this, isn’t it? While most of the Saints are staring at maps and statistics until their heads hurt, couldn’t the two of us just go and claim all the credit? Even if it was a powerful artifact, it has been carved up that badly. It should not be hard for you and me to deal with.”

If they built up undeniable merit this way, there would be stronger grounds to keep Kriel in the position of Champion. And even if it was discovered that he had been tainted by the Abyss, people might at least be willing to hear him out first.

Kriel calmly shook his head.

“Dealing with the Abyss isn’t a competition. It is work for the whole world, so it is right to do our best.”

Not “good,” but “right.” He said that, and he still claimed he was not a proper knight. After silently chewing out that stubborn blockhead a few times, Morgina sighed.

“Fine. Do whatever you want. I’ll be happy if we finish quickly.”

Her words were half resignation and half admiration. As soon as she finished speaking, the Horn Dagger tied at Kriel’s waist began to hum and vibrate. The moment Kriel raised the blade slightly from its sheath, Orisin poured out words like the wind.

[I think Kriel is right! No matter how finely you tear the Abyss apart, it swells back up in no time!]

“Like your corruption.”

[Yes. Like my corruption. And the artifact that became the source of these seeds. The more I think about it, the stranger it seems.]

Perhaps Orisin had grown used to the sarcasm, because Orisin nonchalantly brushed it off. Morgina’s eyebrows twitched.

“What’s strange about it? Kriel explained everything. They shattered a powerful artifact because the gains outweighed the investment.”

Thinking Orisin was repeating the same point, Morgina answered curtly. There was another reason for her irritation, though.

She had gone through all that trouble to bring that stubborn knight to the Grand Temple, but because of the unicorn ghost, they never had any time alone.

[Forget the risk and return. What in the world did they break that it still has power after being split into so many fragments? Like you said, it has basically been hacked to pieces. If an artifact was that powerful, wouldn’t it be recorded in the Holy City’s archives?]

Orisin’s point was reasonable. An Abyssal artifact that retained its function after being broken into hundreds of pieces would have left traces in the world. If they could find information beforehand, the coming battle would be much easier.

Boasting about remarkable intuition, Orisin declared that they should visit Temlis’s Grand Library tomorrow. The unicorn spirit also added that they should see whether there was another purification method, rather than relying on the Violent Saint’s suspicious methods.

What Orisin had not expected was Morgina’s memory.

Every letter printed in a book was engraved in her mind.

Morgina placed her index finger against her lips and sank into thought. She recalled the forbidden books she had read deep within Temlis’s Grand Library.

“Right. If it was something that powerful, wouldn’t it be one of the Demon King’s Seven Demon Weapons?”

[The Demon King’s masterpiece? The Archdemons destroyed that?]

Orisin asked, then nodded. In truth, there was no other part left that could move.

[The Demons of the Abyss would not attach any special meaning to one of the Demon King’s creations. There cannot be anything like camaraderie among Demons. The culprit, no, the demon culprit, must be one of the six Archdemons.]

While Orisin muttered something, Kriel repeated the word that had abruptly appeared in their conversation.

The Demon King.

Kriel considered that familiar yet unfamiliar title.

The Demon King had been at the foundation of Tirnanog RPG. Whether one opposed the Abyss or joined its side to destroy the world, one would eventually fight the Demon King.

Defeating the Demon King and becoming the Abyss’s new representative was an essential part of the process.

The title Demon King was familiar to Kriel for that reason, yet in this world there had been no occasion for the name to be heard.

It was not because people were too afraid to even speak the name.

The Demon King had already perished.

The world within the game where Kriel had fallen was set after the game’s ending.

Footnotes:

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