Novel Bin Chapter 16: The Price of Ignorance (2)
Chapter 16: The Price of Ignorance (2)
“B-but it’s nighttime right now…”
“Why don’t you tell that to the victims, huh?”
With my back to them, I could see neither the dumpling’s nor the Archmage’s face. However, I could hear the sound of gulping behind me.
“…I'll go as well."
“My oh my… Shame on this old man."
Hmm. Even if I had to do this alone, I still would have been fine. It seemed the characters in my party would keep following me. So we needed to go together anyway.
“Miss Hero? Sir Sage…?"
“Hoho, I'm grateful for the bishop's consideration, however… We aren't 'irresponsible' enough to just lay down using fatigue as an excuse when there's a Demon wreaking havoc in town."
By the way, the sage’s way of throwing shade wasn’t ordinary. That would hurt their pride greatly, as he turned away all the priests who tried to make them stay here.
“That’s…!”
“I shouldn’t drag my feet any longer. Let us go.”
“…Yes!”
At the Archmage’s words, the Inquisitor also followed me with a bright expression, looking like a little kid who had been given candy. It really was ridiculous, but I let it slide because she was acting cute.
“Well then… We’ll first have to find that hidden Demon.”
In the end, the three of us left the Temple and began searching the town.
Since we had no real destination, it felt more like we were aimlessly walking around, but it wasn’t a meaningless act if one thought of it as getting familiar with the map.
“Let’s ask some witnesses for more detai—”
“No need.”
I cut off the Archmage and focused on the smell around me. As far as I could remember, one characteristic of a Drauger was its disgusting stench.
Of course, when I was still playing the game on PC, such sentiments were only expressed through text bubbles reading something like ‘It smells weird’ or similar. Now that it was a VR game, I actually had to use my nose to detect it myself.
“Hoh, do you have a guess as to what kind of Demon it is?”
His question was rather vague, so I just went ahead and ignored it. Should I share some information with them now that I was their partner? However, would the temper of my character allow that?
Actually, wasn’t it a bit weird that a sage hadn’t even a clue as to what type of Demon it was? Well, I could tell just by looking at his expression that he seemed to know something, at least.
Since the game couldn’t just let players run around without at least that much basic knowledge, it probably encouraged them to figure things out themselves. A game should always be player-driven, after all.
“How could one call themselves an intelligent being if they don’t even know that much.”
I decided to answer him with some lines that fit my character setting. The dumpling next to me seemed dumbfounded, but I let it slide because her expression was cute.
“…Can I hear your guess?”
Still, the Inquisitor was a priest who wasn’t ashamed of her ignorance.
While she hesitated a little, she still asked me in a confident voice, the will to acquire more knowledge burning brightly in her green eyes.
“I can’t believe you’re a Hero when you’re like that.”
“I know I’m not really that dependable, but please refrain from such blasphemous remarks.”
Oh, did she mean to tell me that I should at least believe in God’s decision if I couldn’t believe in her? What an inflexible priest.
“So what kind of Demon is it?”
Still, she was quite persistent. She turned her head nervously.
“…It’s a Draugr.”
“A Draugr… I see! Certainly, if it’s a Draugr, that would explain everything.”
She seemed to know what a Draugr was, at least. The Inquisitor’s eyes immediately lit up.
“As expected, you are an expert in hunting Demons after all. You found out immediately after you heard the request’s information…”
No, well, judging by the Archmage’s smile, it seemed like he knew as well. Even though I didn’t do anything, would she have automatically become my Companion NPC?
With that thought in mind, the corner of my mouth twitched a bit. It was quite difficult to hold back my laughter and even harder to not make it obvious, either.
I quickly contemplated dark and serious thoughts to cope, and my laughter immediately disappeared.
“In that case, we’ll have to find places that smell bad. Don’t you think so too?”
There just so happened to be quite a good topic at hand for that.
“We should probably examine the town’s graveyard if there is one. I heard that Draugrs are born in them.”
“You are well-informed, Miss Inquisitor.”
“How could I compare to Sir Archmage and Sir Demon Knight.”
The Draugr Quest, which had also appeared in the original, led one to find corruption and Demon worshippers in the parish.
Would it be the same in the remake?
“Ah, it smells strange!”
It seemed the Priest’s nose was a lot better than mine. Or rather, while my sense of smell was better, my ability to distinguish different scents was inferior.
“It really doesn’t smell that good.”
As I followed the Priest into an alley, the stench I had been smelling all that time before seemed to become a dozen times stronger.
I had thought it was coming from the street, but it seemed I had been wrong.
“That’s a Draugr’s…!”
Another thing I realized was that my night vision was far better than the Inquisitor’s.
I grabbed the Inquisitor by her armor and pulled her back. After forcing her behind me, her expression similar to a disgruntled cat’s, I went ahead.
“Sir Demon Knight…?”
I reached my hand to my waist, trying to block out the smell permeating the alley as much as possible. Click. The lantern at my waist lit up, brightening the alley that had been engulfed in darkness.
“…Oh my god.”
“We’re too late…”
Within it was a dried-up body completely devoid of moisture. While better than finding a crushed or half-devoured corpse, it was still a disgusting sight to those unfamiliar with these kinds of scenes.
I walked up to the body, leaving the two behind. The stench filling the alley was thickest around the corpse.
It was obviously the smell of a Draugr.
The source of the smell, however, was absent. But even the traces it left behind were already so strong. I suspected my nose would suffer quite a bit if I encountered it.
Tak.
But that wasn’t important.
I was thinking about what action would best fit my character and came to a quick decision. As a former victim, he would move to prevent the creation of more victims after seeing someone who couldn’t be saved.
“…I shall avenge you.”
Self-blame over not having been faster. Hostility toward all Demons. And the mixture of both these feelings turned into rage.
“So, rest in peace.”
He would feel sadness as he projected his feelings toward his deceased family onto this victim and his desire to let them rest peacefully.
You may call me the genius of interpretation, haha.
“…I shall pray for them.”
The Inquisitor, who had come to my side, put her hands together. A prayer flowed from her lips, neither too long nor too short, a divine light accompanying it.
I was an atheist, but that did look pretty nice.
“I called the guards.”
Just when I was wondering what the Archmage was doing, he returned after contacting the guards. That was also a good decision.
To be honest, it had felt strange to leave a corpse unattended whenever events like that occurred in games. In some games, a guard would get immediately summoned to the corpse’s location.
“Judging by the strong smell, it hasn’t been that long since he died. In that case, the Draugr should still be somewhere nearby. Let’s find it quickly before there are any more victims.”
“Are you babbling about these basic things to show off how smart you are? It’s more efficient to talk while we are tracking it down.”
It was nice of them to let the player know what would come next, but my character setting didn’t allow me to appreciate that. I reacted unnecessarily harshly and crossed over the corpse.
I didn’t mean to insult the deceased, but I couldn’t do anything about it as the stench continued into the alley.
“Haha, yes.”
However, the wise Wizard just clapped his hands at my obvious sarcasm. Then, the stench we could only smell until now became visible, manifesting as strange fluorescent colors swirling in the air.
“It’s {Tracking} magic. It doesn’t last for long.”
I hadn’t even selected tracking skills yet, so I was wondering whether I would have to continue relying on my sense of smell to go after it. So that was how they implemented it.
At that convenient spell, I made a rather puzzled face. In that case, wasn’t it pretty much unnecessary for me to select tracking skills…? Rather, how would this pan out if one started as a Wizard?
“…”
Anyway, it was a good thing, so I just decided to pursue it.
* * *
* * *
I took the lead as we advanced into the alleyway. Then, I noticed a white light bursting forth behind me.
“I’ll follow you after purifying the Demonic Energy.”
As the Divine Power gently lit up the dark alley, I saw the fluorescent fog near the Inquisitor dying down.
Was this where the path would later become twisted or something? I hoped there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings or confusion happening. She was now in the rearmost position, so she couldn’t follow us without any traces.
Crunch.
In that case, I should just run. With that in mind, I put strength to my feet. Rustle. My coat’s collar, divided into three parts, spread out like a duck’s tail.
“Ehem. Oh Wind, lighten our steps!”
As I started running, the Archmage quickly chanted a spell. Considering the effect and the words spoken, it was probably something like {Haste}, a buff that raised movement speed.
But why didn’t he cast it on both of us? Was there some restriction?
“A dead end!”
After running a little, the trail of the Draugr that led us into the alleyway stopped at a wall. Something like that was possible for Draugrs because, as immaterial Demons, they could walk through objects.
“…”
What should I do now? Should we go back to the road we came from? But then we’d lose its trail. That wouldn’t be cool.
Then, should I again take advantage of this being a VR game?
“Sir Demon Knight?!”This chapter is updat𝓮d by nov(e)(l)biin.com
Instead of slowing down, I just turned slightly to the side. Then, just in time, I saw that the densely placed buildings had several protrusions I could grab or step on.
Thud!
After running up a wall for a bit, I put my hands on a window frame and pulled myself up. I had wondered if something like that would work, but I could actually perform parkour in this game. It was a lot easier than I thought, given that my body was that of this game character. My performance was better than expected as well.
Climbing up to the roof was but a matter of time, with my movements only limited by my imagination. The roof of tree bark crunched slightly beneath the soles of my shoes.
“You really are one unstoppable man…”
In many games, party members were programmed to teleport next to the player if the distance between them grew too wide, so I didn’t have to worry about it. Now, where did the smell lead to?
I ran over the building as I looked down onto the street. I could see the fluorescent fog appearing over roads before disappearing into buildings again and so on.
Crack. Crunch. Crack.
The dried-bark roof crunched under my feet as I lept up. I jumped between buildings, something I’d initially thought impossible, as it was faster.
But why was it so quiet behind me? Could it be that this game didn’t have a party-member teleportation system?
Glance.
I only confirmed it after I saw no one was behind me.
I became a little anxious because some games would prevent me from advancing if I got too far away from my teammates, but no Warning Window or the like appeared. I mean, something like ‘Please immediately regroup with your Companions’ or similar.
Did that mean individual actions were also supported? Or was it a bug? This couldn’t even be called a novel idea or something, so I had to somehow deal with this now. Did they just want the player to keep pace with his party members on his own…?
No way in hell. As a born and raised Korean, I hated being slowed down!
“Found it.”
The fluorescent light disappeared, maybe because the spell’s duration had ended, but in its stead, I saw the source of this stench. It was in a vacant lot between buildings.
Even though its red eyes flashing through the deep, dark fog had changed from 2D to 3D, it still was the same Draugr.
「Draugr │ A specter that deceives people’s eyes and devours them. Raising from their tomb, they move through rock like fish swimming in the sea in search of prey.」
「❖ The Evil Lurking in the Town
∎ Pursue the Demon hiding in the Town
∎ Draugr eliminated: 0 / 1」
Flutter!
Seeing the updated Quest, I jumped into an area close to the lot with my back to the moon.
In the process, the hem of my coat spread out, but it didn’t feel too uncomfortable. I was holding onto my Zweihänder, which had been making clattering sounds on my back.
Wuooooooh—!
The Draugr made some humming noises as my Zweihänder slammed into the place it narrowly escaped from. As soon as I raised the blade again, I firmly held it in both hands and swung but was disappointed to realize I had missed once more.
However, I wouldn’t have damaged it even if I’d hit it properly, as its immaterial nature made physical attacks ineffective.
“…Glory to the Heavens.”
Whatever, I did say that a true roleplayer perfectly played their character even if no one was around, right?
“I shall avenge the dead.”
I violently pulled my sword from where I had stabbed it into the ground and charged at the Draugr again.
A thick black fog began to roll over the lot, accompanied by that mind-numbing stench.
Wooooooo.
Actually, according to my memory, attacking this thing in its immaterialized form was pretty much impossible, wasn’t it? Too bad. The easiest way to time attacks in that state was by parrying—
Uuuuoh!
“Just when I was thinking of how to get rid of those heathens… You’re Gretchen, aren’t you?”
—however, a variable appeared.
“The King is looking for you, Gretchen.”
Someone wearing a robe rose from the Draugr’s fog.
They wore sparkling red jewelry on their somber, black robe. Even if I hadn’t played the game, I would have known their true identity.
「Demon Contractor │ Those who have sold their soul by contracting a Demon. It is unknown whether they truly sold their souls to a Demon or to their own desires.」
They were a Demon Contractor.