I Became the Dark Knight in the Game
Chapter 17: The Unknown Enemy (3)

Dale gazed into the dim forest. From there, a monster bristling with spikes like a hedgehog slowly emerged.

But it wasn’t just the hedgehog-like monster.

There was also a creature that hopped around on three legs and another that resembled a snail, and it oozed pus as it approached.

And there was a bat-like creature, blinking its dozen or so eyes as it flew through the sky.

There were dozens of other monsters, each with an appearance so diverse that showed no uniformity whatsoever.

Those who possessed such irregular troops were of a single kind on this continent.

“Demons. These are monsters transformed by demons.”

“What?!”

Esther’s eyes widened in shock.

Demonic monsters were found near Irene.

This was an unforeseen event.

Harkin lifted his shield and his expression hardened.

“These demon bastards… Now I see why the one-eyes and the owlbears fled their territory. What do we do now, Sir Dale? Seems like we’re in trouble.”

“What to do?”

Dale picked up the spike that had been aimed at Harkin.

The spike was harder and heavier than it appeared. Dale grasped it tightly and swung his arm with all his might.

Swoosh… Thud!

The spike flew and hit the hedgehog monster right in the head. Accompanied by a bursting sound, black blood gushed out.

Dale spoke calmly.

“We have to fight.”

That was the signal.

All sorts of monsters charged toward them in unison.

Dale gave instructions while holding his longsword.

“Esther, cast a blessing on Harkin.”

“What about Sir Dale?”

“Blessings don’t work on me.”

Esther nodded and quickly recited a prayer.

A gentle light enveloped Harkin, making him feel lighter.

“Harkin, protect Esther.”

“Understood. And you, Sir Dale?”

Instead of answering, Dale powerfully stamped on the ground.

As the large figure of the dark knight soared into the sky, all the monsters’ attention was drawn to Dale.

Dale landed smoothly in an upright position.

Thump!

He trampled one of the monsters with all his might and looked around him.

He was right in the midst of the monsters.

A perfect position for a brawl.

“I’ll have some fun.”

“Kyaaaah!”

A monster with a leopard’s head and a centipede’s body charged at him first.

Dale raised his longsword and then brought it down fiercely.

Crunch! The monster’s skull shattered, splattering foul liquid in all directions.

Dale immediately withdrew his longsword and thrust it to the side, piercing through the gaping mouth and brain of a serpent-like monster.

Green blood oozed from the monster’s wound and as it touched the ground, it bubbled and frothed.

At the same time, a dull thud struck his back.

Thump!

Dale turned around.

A hefty creature was clumsily swinging its weapon.

The armor on his back was slightly dented after being hit by a hammer and the creature made a gurgling noise.

Dale couldn’t say for sure, but the monster seemed to be laughing.

“Don’t laugh.”

Dale swiftly punched the creature.

Once. Twice. And on the third hit, the creature’s jaw completely shattered until it was unable to laugh any longer.

However, even with its jaw destroyed, the monster’s body didn’t collapse immediately.

So Dale grabbed its torso and hurled it towards the other monsters.

“Kyaaaak!”

A monster with an alligator’s head opened its jaws wide and lunged at Dale.

Dale dodged the attack by twisting his waist and forcefully twisted the creature’s snout.

Accompanied by the sound of snapping bones, the monster’s head spun half a turn. Not satisfied with just that, Dale exerted stronger force on his arms.

Crack!

The monster’s head was ripped off, spine and everything.

Blood spattered everywhere.

The blood that stained Dale’s body was absorbed automatically, instantly repairing his dented armor.

It was a cruel and horrific scene.

A normal enemy would have been terrified and faltered.

But these were monsters created by demons.

Fear was not an option.

Other monsters were about to charge at him. Dale thought as he looked at the scene.

This is endless. I need to learn some area-of-effect skills soon.

Dale, too, was fearless.

On the contrary, his body which absorbed the blood of the monsters reveled in the slaughter.

The number of opponents was irrelevant.

For the dark knight, who could gain infinite stamina through his enemies’ life force, such battles were nothing but fun meals.

It was no wonder the dark knight was called the nightmare of the battlefield.

Dale continued his massacre.

Swinging his newly acquired warhammer, he wreaked havoc among the monsters.

Monsters struck by the massive iron mass were sent flying through the air.

As Dale swung his warhammer, he let out a roar toward the sky.

The cold roar of the half-undead agitated the nerves of the living.

The monsters that were trying to escape somewhere else rushed even more blindly.

Upon seeing this, both Harkin and Esther displayed expressions of disgust.

“I heard he’s half-human, but it’s hard to believe.”

“…Harkin, you’ve been to the frontlines a few times, haven’t you? Are all dark knights like this?”

“Most dark knights are good fighters, but Sir Dale is more… vicious… Ugh!”

Harkin quickly swung his shield. The teeth of a monster were blocked by it.

Although most of the enemies were focused on Dale, not all were.

While Harkin blocked the monster with his shield, Esther swung her mace and smashed the creature’s head.

Esther, too, was enhanced by the blessings, so she easily crushed the monster’s skull.

Blood splattered in all directions, and some even got into Esther’s mouth.

“Ugh. Ptui. Ptui.”

“Hahaha! Look at you! Maybe you should have been a warrior, not a priest!”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

The fight continued, and the number of monsters, which had numbered in the dozens, quickly decreased.

Thwack!

Dale thrust his longsword into the chest of the last remaining monster. The creature collapsed and it started spewing blood foam as it crumbled.

Finally, the battle was over.

A bright full moon was floating in the dusky sky.

Harkin collapsed right there.

“Phew, I thought I was going to die.”

Harkin heard a squelching sound beneath his buttocks as he sat down. It was a monster’s corpse, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Because the whole place was filled with blood and flesh.

And for that, though Esther looked quite exhausted, she couldn’t bring herself to sit on the corpses.

Squatting awkwardly, Esther muttered to herself.

“The fact that there are demonic monsters in a place like this means there’s a demon, right? Shouldn’t we quickly inform the city and call for troops?”

Dale, who was absorbing the life force from the corpse of a dead monster, shook his head.

“It’s not a demon. If a demon had come here, these creatures wouldn’t be so weak.”

“Really?”

Dale thrust his gauntlet into the corpse and concentrated quietly.

Memories started to flow into his mind.

Usually, the memories of such monsters were blurry and chaotic and hard to discern, but this time his ability had been enhanced, making them somewhat clear.

The first thing he saw were mercenaries fiercely fighting.

The investigative team sent by Garland.

The mercenaries were quite skilled. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

They banded together tightly, fighting against the oncoming monsters.

But there was a wizard among the monsters.

Suddenly, a purple flame flew in, engulfing the mercenaries.

Caught off guard by this unexpected attack, the formation of the investigative team crumbled.

And with that, the monsters charged in.

The monsters attempted to devour the mercenaries on the spot.

However, the wizard intervened, stopping the monsters and then capturing the mercenaries before dragging them somewhere.

Into the dark and deep underground.

Dale murmured to himself.

“A wizard serving a demon, it seems.”

“Are you saying there are servants of demons?”

“Yes.”

As the demons conquered half of the continent with overwhelming power, the authority of the gods was greatly diminished.

People started to doubt the God of Light.

Questions arose whether demons might be more powerful beings than gods.

A new religion of people worshipping demons emerged.

And the demons willingly granted power to the humans who followed them.

“If there are servants of the demon, we need to call the heresy inquisitors.”

“I think we should return to the city first. If we die here too, it will be out of control.”

Harkin and Esther agreed, but Dale shook his head.

“Well, there are two points to consider.”

“Two?”

“First, there might be survivors. The mercenaries who came before us were taken alive, so some might still be alive.”

“…….”

Both fell silent.

They had assumed the mercenaries were already devoured by the monsters controlled by the demons and didn’t expect any survivors.

Esther rolled her eyes in surprise, and Harkin asked nervously.

“What’s the other point?”

“It seems the demon’s servant is up to something.”

“Up to something like what?”

“I’m not sure. Some kind of ritual, perhaps. But there won’t be anything good about this ritual being completed.”

Demons and wizards should not be given the time to do what they want.

And now they were facing a wizard serving a demon.

If the ritual was completed, the extent of the havoc that could be wreaked was unknown.

Esther, who had been quiet, finally spoke.

“We should stop it.”

“What?”

“If we just leave the demon’s servant be, who knows how many people will get hurt? We need to stop it before the damage spreads. Besides, there are people who have been captured. We can’t turn a blind eye knowing they’ve been taken.”

Harkin frowned. Did this naive newcomer realize what she was suggesting?

“Do you have any idea how terrible it is to confront a demon’s servant? Those bastards are all different, but they’re all equally vile!”

“I know it’s dangerous. But as a servant of the light, I can’t just ignore this. Plus, we have Sir Dale with us.”

Both turned to look at Dale at the same time. Dale was nonchalantly polishing his sword.

The longsword, now coated with blood and grime, had lost its previous sharpness.

Harkin asked Dale a question.

“Dale, what do you think? Surely you’re not suggesting we go alone, are you?”

Dale glanced briefly at Harkin before returning to his sword polishing, as if the question was too obvious to warrant a response.

“Of course, we must go.”

“What?”

If it were a real demon, that would be one thing, but this was just a servant of a demon.

It seemed like a foe that could be defeated.

Moreover, in Dale’s memory of the game, creatures with “demon” in their name usually yielded generous rewards when hunted.

The life force and soul force of a demon’s servant.

It would certainly provide greater growth for Dale.

“There’s no growth without risk.”

“No, but still…”

“If you’re scared, go back alone.”

Harkin scratched his curly hair.

The idea of running away alone during a request was unimaginable for a mercenary. If Harkin actually did that, his future in this industry would be doomed.

Harkin forced himself to muster courage.

Yes, with a dark knight around.

Whether it was a demon’s servant or not, it couldn’t be stronger than a dark knight.

And defeating the servant would surely yield plenty to gain.

Harkin was confident of securing a big share as well.

“Scared? That’s not even possible. I, Harkin, am definitely not the kind of person who abandons his comrades and runs away alone.”

“…Sounds like you’d do it though.”

Esther muttered under her breath, and Harkin gave her a sharp glare.

On the other hand, Dale, who had been quietly polishing his sword, stood up.

“Let’s go.”

Once a decision was made, there was no reason to hesitate.

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