I Became the Dark Knight in the Game - Chapter 79: Returning (4)

The bandit was surprised and found himself unable to react in time. Dale had already grabbed and hoisted him up.

“Uh-oh.”

It was almost like the scenes from stories where a prince would lift a princess with one arm under her waist and the other under her legs.

The only minor difference was that, instead of a beautiful princess, it was a middle-aged man with a scruffy beard being held. And the one doing the holding was far too menacing to be mistaken for a prince.

“…….”

“…….”

The bandit and Dale’s eyes met. And the close eyes of the dark knight became almost too intense to bear.

The bandit whispered a plea in a frightened tone.

“Please spare my life.”

Dale responded bluntly.

“No.”

Crack.

Dale exerted more force on his hand and crushed the bandit in his grasp. Then, without hesitation, he hurled the now lifeless body towards the other bandits who were still aiming their bows at him.

Bang!

“Argh!”

The bandit was flung through the air and collided with a couple of his comrades, scattering them across the ground.

Dale immediately drew his weapon. When Harkin and Harty were about to help him, he stopped them.

“Stay still.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll handle this.”

He had been eager to test his new weapons. Dale charged forward before hurling a hand axe into the fray.

The axe flew around spinning in the air and embedded itself in the forehead of a bandit.

The bandits instinctively released their bowstrings.

Thud-thud. Arrows pattered against Dale’s helmet. They were quite good with their bows.

Yet Dale remained unfazed.

With a flick of his wrist, he immediately threw the dagger with a black-edged blade.

“Agh!”

A bandit clutched at his chest and fell. This was the price of not wearing even the most basic padded armor.

The distance between Dale and the remaining bandits quickly closed.

Caught off guard, the bandits hesitated. They didn’t know whether to flee or to fight.

But it seemed their anger over losing a comrade outweighed their fear of death.

“How dare you harm our big brother!”

“Kill him!”

A massive logging axe aimed for his skull, but Dale simply twisted his head and deflected the axe with his sturdy pauldron.

He then took a step forward and smashed the head of the bandit in front of him with his mace. And then he swiftly spun around to deliver a powerful kick to the solar plexus of another bandit.

Both bandits collapsed with their eyes rolling back as they hit the ground at the same time.

Now, only about eight bandits remained.

Witnessing Dale’s power, the faces of the other bandits turned to despair. The ones with the bow couldn’t even muster the strength to nock an arrow.

Dale asked,

“Is that all? Didn’t you claim this was your territory? Shouldn’t you be fighting harder to defend your own land?”

It was an attempt at humor on Dale’s part but no one was laughing.

The bandits glanced nervously at the bodies of their fallen comrades. The stark disparity in skill was now glaringly obvious.

We can’t win.

Only then did their reason which had been clouded by anger return. Which in turn gave way to creeping fear.

Dale was sensitive to fear and immediately picked up on the shift.

“Just so you know, if you’re thinking of running away, it’s probably best to…”

“Scatter, scatter!”

Cutting off Dale’s words, the bandits began to flee in all directions.

The bandits had been confident in their own territory. This was a dense forest where even veteran hunters hesitated to enter without good cause.

They believed that if they scattered in all directions, they would have a good chance of escaping.

Dale held two daggers in both hands and threw them one after the other. Two bandits fell to their deaths. But the rest of the guys ran away.

“What a nuisance.”

Harkin approached Dale and asked him,

“What should we do now?”

“We must catch and kill them all.”

If those guys were left alone, they would just regroup and attack innocent people again.

Harkin asked further,

“How do you plan to chase them? It’s easy to lose one’s way in the forest paths.”

“It’s common to use dogs when hunting.”

“Dogs? Ah…!”

Both Harkin and Dale turned their gaze to Harty.

Harty growled in displeasure as if to say he was not a dog but a wolf.

Dale asked.

“Can you track them?”

Harty walked past Dale with a dignified stride then turned his head as if signaling them to follow.

Dale followed closely behind.

It seemed they would have to spend the night in the mountains after all.

***

It took half a day for Harty to track down and eliminate all the bandits by scent.

The task was easier because the scattered bandits had regrouped at a single location.

In a hideout situated halfway up the mountain.

After killing the returning bandits and securing their hideout, Dale surveyed the area.

It’s quite well-made.

A few crudely constructed houses stood and there were even some farm animals like chickens being raised.

It had the appearance of a small village.

Of course, it was unlikely the bandits were raising the livestock themselves. Someone else was taking care of them.

A boy with a scruffy face was tending to the chickens, and he fell on his butt when Dale approached him with Harty.

Tears welled up in his eyes and he started sobbing softly.

“Sob. I’m sorry, so sorry.”

“…. For what?”

“I’ll do better from now on. I won’t be lazy; I’ll listen to my mom, and I’ll wake up early in the morning….”

It seemed the child had been frightened by night tales that if he wasn’t a good boy, a demon would come to snatch him away.

From the child’s perspective, the dark knight who appeared accompanied by a large wolf was not much different from a demon.

Dale who initially tried to convince the child that he was not a demon soon gave up. It seemed futile as the child was unlikely to understand.

Instead, Dale asked him,

“Where’s your mother? You can’t be here all alone.”

At this, the child who was sitting down grabbed Dale’s leg.

“No, please! I’m fine, just spare my mother.”

“…….”

Dale sighed internally and scanned the surroundings. There was some sign of life in a few of the houses.

Dale trudged along with the boy still clinging to his leg.

He opened the door and saw women with their legs tied to prevent them from escaping. Their appearance spoke volumes about the terrible treatment they had received at the hands of the bandits.

When the women saw Dale, they retreated to the corner in fear.

Trying to speak to them here might only backfire.

Though it would be a hassle, it seemed better to bring Esther here.

Dale brought Esther and Harkin to the hideout.

The priestess was at a loss for words at the dreadful sight before her.

Dale made a request.

“Esther, I want you to heal these women and explain the situation to them.”

“…Yes, I will do so.”

Esther approached the women with a sad smile on her face. Seeing that Esther was also a woman like them and a priestess at that, they finally felt at ease.

Meanwhile, Harkin asked Dale.

“Have you checked the other houses?”

“No.”

“Then let’s hurry and do so. We might find a considerable amount of money.”

Dale nodded his head and searched the houses one by one. He only managed to find a few silver coins and some crude weapons.

But the loot was not as significant as expected.

Harkin muttered.

“Something’s off… There should be more than this…”

Just then, Harty who had been walking nearby tapped a wooden plank on the floor with his front paw.

Catching onto Harty’s hint, Dale lifted his mace and slammed it down hard onto the floor.

Crash!

The floor gave way, revealing a small hole beneath it.

Inside the hole was a wooden chest.

Harkin’s face lit up.

“I knew it! Would bandits have any honor? It’s natural for them to stash things away like this. Let’s open it quickly!”

“Stop making a fuss.”

Dale pulled open the lid of the chest, and then it swung open with a clicking sound.

As the contents of the chest were revealed, Harkin let out a gasp of surprise.

“Oh, oooh!”

The chest was filled with piles of silver coins, and among them were a few glittering gold coins and a couple of jewelry pieces like necklaces and rings.

They’ve collected quite a stash.

A grin spread across Harkin’s face.

“With this, we could live in leisure for years, couldn’t we?”

Dale nodded his head in agreement.

Lately, it seemed his purse was getting heavier by the day.

With income increasing but expenditures not keeping pace, his wealth had gradually grown.

Should I consider banking?

Having a considerable amount of money saved up was never a bad thing, especially now that he was moving up to the upper districts where there would likely be more opportunities to spend.

Dale decided to be grateful for this unexpected windfall.

Just then, Harkin asked subtly.

“Sir Dale, I’m not greedy.”

“?”

“Just share ten percent with me. I won’t ask for more.”

“What have you done to earn it?”

Harkin fell silent.

Certainly, Harkin had done nothing to contribute to the handling of the bandits this time.

Even though Dale and Harkin were close, it was important to meticulously distribute such things.

Harkin looked sullen at the words he couldn’t refute.

“With all that you’ve earned, where do you plan to spend it?”

“Well, there’s always something to spend money on… but there is one place that comes to mind where this money could be immediately useful.”

“Oh? What is it?”

Dale did not respond, leaving Harkin looking at him in confusion.

***

The group had rescued women and children who were captured by the bandits and were now transporting them in the carriage.

The women, having endured long periods of abuse, were in a weakened state. So they couldn’t move quickly or easily without assistance.

Fortunately, the carriage provided by the count was comfortable, and the two white horses pulling it were strong.

After several days’ journey, they finally arrived in Irene.

Dale consulted with Esther about the treatment of the women captured by bandits.

“These women will likely head to a quiet monastery in the west. Right now, their physical strength is low and their mental state is troubling.”

Dale nodded his head in agreement.

It would be good if the church could take care of these displaced women.

Dale opened the wooden box he found at the bandits’ hideout and filled a sack with about half of the silver coins. He then extended it towards Esther.

Esther asked with her eyes wide open in surprise.

“This…?”

“It’s compensation for taking in those people. Since I brought them here, it’s only right that I bear some of the responsibility.”

Esther waved her hands in refusal.

“No, no. This is something the church should naturally do. We can’t accept money.”

“Think of the women’s future and take it.”

“What do you mean?”

“If you pay for their stay at the monastery, they become guests. Without payment, they’re just an unwelcome burden. So, take it.”

Esther wanted to deny his words. She wanted to say that everyone in the church was sincere and good, so they would welcome the women even if they didn’t pay anything.

But she couldn’t.

Esther now understood that the world didn’t always work in beautiful ways, and her faith in her fellow brothers and sisters of the church had been significantly shaken.

The recent encounters with the heresy inquisitors had been a profound shock to Esther in many ways.

She looked pensively at Dale, whose advice was always grounded in reality.

In the end, she nodded her head in resignation.

“…I seem to always learn things from Sir Dale.”

“Think of it as a donation, if that helps.”

“A dark knight making a donation to the church? Wouldn’t the goddess of night take offense?”

“I don’t think so…”

But he couldn’t be entirely sure.

What if a real donation was seen as an act of betrayal and caused offense?

Nonetheless, Dale placed the sack of coins into Esther’s hands.

He didn’t particularly mind parting with it.

The women had every right to claim a share of the money the bandits had accumulated.

Fair distribution was important.

That was Dale’s way, and it was also the way of those who followed the night goddess.

The group crossed the castle gate and entered Irene. Esther who was leading the women then said.

“I’ll head to the church first. There’s much to report, and these women need proper care.”

“Alright. You worked hard.”

“Yes. Once I’m done, I’ll stop by Kayla’s inn.”

Dale nodded his head in response.

As Esther moved forward, the women bowed their heads to Dale and followed suit.

Even that young boy with a runny nose clutched his mother’s hand and walked along.

All the while, he kept glancing back at Dale while sneaking peeks with curiosity.

For some reason, the boy wore a bright smile.

Perhaps he was excited by the sight of the bustling city for the first time. Or maybe just the simple joy of walking outside with his mother was enough to delight him.

It was certainly a more pleasant sight than tears and sniffles.

Whether the child would continue to smile in the future was uncertain. The life laid out before him wouldn’t be easy.

But surely, any place would be better than the bandits’ hideout.

The child and his mother would get through life together just fine.

Mother…

Dale remembered he too had someone who called him a son.

It had been a while since he last visited the temple.

He had accumulated a lot of souls so it was now time to offer them to the goddess.

Dale set off towards the temple of the night.