I Became the Dark Knight in the Game - Chapter 72: The Ritual (2)

The twisted space swallowed Dale and the other two whole.

When they came to their senses again, they found themselves in an underground place surrounded by worn stone.

Pale radiated a holy glow from his hands to illuminate the darkness then looked around.

“Could this be the underground sewers?”

The old stone walls and the floor had shallow filth flowing over them. It appeared to be the sewers running beneath Kaelum Castle.

Esther covered her nose with her fingers due to the foul smell and spoke in a nasal tone.

“There’s no hole in the ceiling where we came in.”

Pale responded.

“It must be magic that distorts space.”

“Space distortion magic? That’s…”

“Yes. It’s a complex and advanced form of magic. Considering that it’s rarely handled even by the archmages at the Magic Tower… it means our enemy is not to be underestimated.”

Dale silently agreed.

Transferring incoming individuals to a different space is not a skill just anyone can master.

It was no coincidence that the inquisitors had trouble finding the lair of the demon worshippers.

Dale thought to himself,

It was good that we entered together.

He had anticipated such a situation to some extent, which is why he had wrapped his arms around Esther and Pale’s waists, ensuring they entered together.

If they had come in separately, they might have ended up in completely different locations.

Pale murmured,

“The other residents… I don’t see them. Did only we end up here?”

“If he’s using people as sacrifices, he’d bring them close immediately. On the other hand, intruders would be kept as far away as possible.”

That would make it easier to weaken them.

And weakened prey is easier to hunt.

“Let’s move.”

“Yes, but which way do we go?”

There were two paths. Forward and backward.

Which one would lead to their destination was unknown.

Dale attempted to detect the scent of blood. He was hoping to gauge the enemy’s location through it.

However, this filthy place had a very strong stench, and the smell of blood was thick throughout the place as the demon worshiper was doing something.

Dale’s sense of smell was of little use in this environment.

Pale and Esther were also deep in thought, struggling to come up with a viable plan.

“Should we just leave it to chance?”

“If we lose our way, we might be too late. We could wander this maze forever.”

Esther muttered thoughtfully.

“Hmm. Losing our way. Losing our way… Ah!”

“What is it, Esther?”

At Esther’s sudden clap, Pale and Dale turned their attention to her.

Esther looked at Dale and said,

“Choose, Sir Dale. Do you want to go forward or back?”

“…. Why do you ask? Are we deciding by majority vote?”

“Just answer for now.”

Dale scratched at his helmet and shifted his gaze between the front and back of the canal.

However, he couldn’t see any difference.

Both directions appeared equally grimy and dilapidated.

Dale responded to Esther’s persistent questioning in the end.

“I think forward might be better.”

“Great! Then let’s head back!”

“?”

“Sister Esther?”

Pale looked at her with a bewildered expression on his face and Esther explained,

“Since we traveled together several times, I’ve noticed something. Sir Dale tends to get lost even on familiar paths without his large wolf. It’s quite incredible, really.”

“Could it be…”

“So, wouldn’t it make sense to choose the opposite of Sir Dale’s suggestion?”

Pale who was mulling over the story stroked his chin and murmured, “That sounds plausible.”

What the hell?

Dale wanted to argue but the truth was it was time to make a choice whether to go forward or back.

Even if it was based on the flimsiest of reasons, once a direction was decided, it was best to follow through.

“Then let’s set off right away.”

“Hold on a moment. Before we do.”

Dale called the two to a halt and pulled a cloth from his belongings.

He then wrapped the cloth around Esther’s mouth.

“The air here isn’t good for the body. Pale, you should wrap a scarf around your nose and mouth too.”

“Eh? Oh, right.”

“…. I can do it myself.”

Esther grumbled but Dale firmly wrapped the cloth around her.

Pale was amused by the scene and also wrapped a handkerchief around his mouth with a smile.

After Dale finished tying it, Esther said with an awkward expression,

“Thank you for looking out for me. But this handkerchief… it sort of smells like metal. I’m asking just in case, but this isn’t the same cloth you always use to polish your weapons, is it?”

Indeed, it was that very cloth.

Dale who had been scratching his helmet and delaying his response suddenly turned his head and said,

“From now on, speak only when absolutely necessary. We never know what might jump out at us here.”

“Hold on. I still haven’t heard an answer.”

“Quiet.”

With that, Dale cut off Esther’s words and took the lead with large strides.

Esther followed behind with a look of dissatisfaction on her face while Pale brought up the rear.

The group moved in silence for a while. The surroundings were quiet.

The squelching sound of stepping on waste and the occasional drip of water droplets falling from the ceiling could be heard, but nothing else.

If there were demon worshippers here, we should be hearing some noise.

It was one of two things.

Either a spell was cast in the sewers to prevent sound from traveling, or the sewer system itself was vast.

After some time of moving in this manner, the group came upon a fork in the path.

It was at a crossroads where two passages intersected in the shape of a cross.

Pale asked,

“What should we do?”

Esther glanced at Dale before asking

“Which direction do you think is correct, Sir Dale?”

“Left.”

“And after that?”

“Right.”

“Then let’s exclude those two and continue straight ahead.”

“……”

There was no disagreement this time either.

The three continued in a straight line.

What if we’ve taken the wrong path?

This thought suddenly occurred to Dale.

Even for him, fearless as he was, there were situations he preferred not to encounter again.

The memories of wandering for a year after landing in this world and being unable to reach Irene resurfaced vividly in his mind.

Roaming these underground sewers for years was something he decidedly wanted to avoid.

However, Dale’s worries turned out to be unfounded.

After a long walk, the group stopped in their tracks. They heard noises of something bustling around. The noise was getting closer to them.

Dale assessed the dark passage ahead and announced,

“It’s coming.”

***

In a large cavity within the underground sewers, the hunched-back man looked around with satisfaction.

“Hmm. This is good. It was wise to move the ritual forward.”

In the underground cavity, residents with dull murky eyes were seated at regular intervals.

Demon worshippers wearing white masks were strictly watching over these residents.

“Now, with the arrival of that dark knight, our preparations will be perfect. Finally, we can summon our lord…”

The hunched-back man looked to be overwhelmed with emotion and wiped the corners of his eyes. Of course, there were no real tears.

A worshipper wearing a mask approached the hunched-back man and whispered the situation into his ear.

And the man nodded in understanding.

“So, they didn’t run away but came straight here as expected.”

The hunched-back man looked satisfied before continuing,

“However, the others are an annoyance. They are unnecessary. Therefore…”

The hunched-back man’s eyes flickered momentarily.

“Send them a gift. The dark knight might be fine, but the other two won’t stand a chance of surviving.”

Having said this, the hunched-back man waved his hand dismissively.

The worshiper nodded and quickly disappeared to carry out the command.

With the worshipper gone, the hunched-back man refocused on the ritual.

Today, everyone present would become living sacrifices used for the ritual.

And through it, a dead demon would descend upon the earth once more.

***

“There’s a presence and a strong one at that.”

“Yes, that means…”

“We’re on the right path.”

Something was rapidly approaching them. This also meant that the group had arrived at the right destination.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been targeted for an attack.

Could it be that Esther’s method actually worked?

Was it just good luck?

Ridiculous as it seemed, a success was still a success.

Dale gripped his sword and warned,

“There are many of them. Be cautious.”

“Yes.”

Soon, the approaching enemy revealed itself.

Estherl’s face turned pale.

“Rats?”

It was a swarm of rats that was rushing toward them.

They were not just any rats, but monstrous ones that were almost the size of a human’s thigh.

Their eyes shone a blood red and their teeth were sharply pointed. There were many of these monsters to the point where it was overwhelming.

The horde of rats filled the space in front, behind, and even the floors, ceilings, and walls, swarming towards them.

Esther muttered,

“I’d prefer the demon worshippers at this point.”

“If you don’t want to be torn apart alive, get your act together and fight.”

Dale immediately charged forward. Due to his unique fighting style, being too close to others could be more of a hindrance.

Raising his cursed sword vertically, Dale brought it down with full force.

Thud!

“Squeak!”

With a single stroke, he cleaved through a dozen rats. Yet, the horde was fearless.

Regardless of whether their comrades were crushed or not, they blindly rushed at Dale with bared teeth.

Sharp teeth clashed against Dale’s armor, but it was the teeth that ended up breaking.

The fangs of the beasts were not sharp enough to penetrate his enhanced armor.

No matter how extraordinary these rats might be, a rat was still a rat.

The real issue was their sheer number.

The rats who bred for generations in this old-looking sewer were now too numerous to count.

Dale slashed and slashed again, yet the swarm of rats showed no signs of abating.

Dale was undeterred. His cold heart which didn’t beat endowed him with limitless stamina.

As he cleaved through the rats and absorbed their life force, he could continue fighting until every last one of them was dead.

No matter how numerous they were, they were not infinite.

The concern lay with Esther and Pale.

“Grant your servants light.”

“Haa!”

They were surprisingly holding their own in the fight.

Within the barrier erected by Esther, Pale swung a glowing mace infused with divine power with frantic fervor.

The issue was that, unlike Dale, these two were ordinary humans.

Humans are bound to tire, and divine power is not an infinite resource.

Eventually, they would be overwhelmed by the relentless tide of rats.

Both Esther and Pale seemed aware of this and gritted their teeth in frustration.

“If only I had known, I would have learned some offensive miracles.”

“Hmm.”

Leaving them to perish was not an option.

The swarm of rats needed to be dealt with swiftly.

But how?

The question was always the method.

Dale who lacked wide-range attack skills found himself at a disadvantage when facing multiple enemies.

Up to this point, he had methodically taken them down one by one…. but it was clear that a change in strategy was necessary.

A skill that can eliminate many at once…

Dale racked his brain and scoured his memories for any hint of a solution.

Eventually, his thoughts even drifted back to his days of gaming and he started searching for inspiration.

It was there that he stumbled upon a spark of an idea.

Is it possible?

It was a technique he had never attempted before. Since it was difficult just to think about.

Yet this was not the time for doubts. To eradicate this horde of rats and save his companions, he had to succeed.

Dale had a natural talent. He was a genius when it came to killing.

He decided to trust in his abilities.

Here goes.

He grasped the hilt of his cursed sword with both hands and extended it forward with determination.

Dale suddenly stopped in his tracks, and the swarm of rats sensed something amiss and froze as well.

Caught off guard by the abrupt silence, Esther and Pale turned their gazes toward Dale.

In the next moment, Dale began to spin in place.

He started off slowly but his pace rapidly increased until his own face became blurred with the speed.

As Dale spun, his cursed sword traced a vast circle in the air. A circle of death, a whirlwind of blades, a storm of swords.

This storm swept through the sewers and was literally grinding the horde of rats to pieces.