Chapter 16 - At the Cost of Ignorance (2)

"B-But it's night..."

"Why don't you try saying that to the victims."

Since my back was turned, I couldn't see the dumpling's or the mage's faces. But I was pretty sure I caught the sound of a sharp intake of breath.

"... I will go too."

"My, my... You put an old man to shame."

Hmm. I would've been fine operating solo. They really must be party characters. The fact that we end up traveling together no matter what.

"Hero? Sage...?"

"Haha, I am grateful for the Bishop's consideration, but... that friend of ours is not someone with such 'low responsibility' that he would use fatigue as an excuse to rest with a demon right in front of him."

Meanwhile, the Sage's skill at subtly dissing them was no joke. That would damage their own faces a bit, too, yet he ruthlessly roasted the priests for using fatigue as an excuse to hold us back.

"That's...!"

"An old man shouldn't hold you back. Now, let's depart at once."

"... Yes!"

At the Archmage's words, the Inquisitor clung to my side with a bright expression, like a kid who just got permission. It was ridiculous, but she was cute, so I decided to let it slide.

"Now then... I suppose we should uncover the hidden demon first."

They held us up a bit longer, but ultimately, the three of us left the Temple and began searching the town.

Since we had no destination, we were wandering aimlessly for now, but considering it as familiarizing myself with the map, it wasn't entirely useless.

"Let's hear more from the witnesses—"

"No need."

I cut off the Archmage's words and focused on the smell. Because, from what I remembered, a Draugr's defining trait was a terrible stench.

Of course, back in the PC days, a speech bubble saying 'It smells weird' was all there was to it. But now that it was VR, I had to physically sniff it out and distinguish it myself.

"Ho, have you perhaps figured out what kind of demon this might be?"

It was a bit awkward to just ignore that question. We were allies for now, so should I share the information? But would my concept's nasty temper actually allow me to share it?

More importantly, it was a bit funny that a so-called Sage didn't even recognize a single demon. Though, looking at his expression, it felt like he knew and was just asking.

Well, they couldn't just ostracize a player lacking background knowledge, so guiding them to figure it out themselves like this was the right design. A game had to be player-driven, after all.

"I have no reason to entertain an intellect that doesn't even know this."

So I decided to just throw out a line fitting my concept. It sounded like the dumpling next to me let out a gasp, but you're cute so I'll let it slide.

"... May we hear your insight?"

Still, the Inquisitor was a cleric who wasn't ashamed of her ignorance.

She asked somewhat hesitantly, then soon with a confident voice. The will to etch it into her mind burned brightly in her green eyes.

"I find it impossible to believe that you are a hero."

"I know I am unreliable, but please refrain from such blasphemous remarks."

Ah, so even if I don't believe in her, I should still believe in God? What an inflexible cleric.

"So, what kind of demon is hiding here?"

She was even persistent to boot. I irritably turned my head.

"... It's a Draugr."

"A Draugr... I see! That would certainly explain it."

It seemed she at least knew what a Draugr was. The Inquisitor's eyes immediately began to sparkle.

"Truly fitting for a demon hunting expert. To figure it out the moment you heard..."

Wait, seeing the mage smiling warmly in the back, it seemed he knew too. At this rate, are they just going to become companion NPCs on their own even if I do nothing?

With that thought, I clamped down on my twitching lips. But holding back laughter was quite difficult, and doing it without making it obvious was even harder.

I hurriedly conjured up some gloomy and serious thoughts. Because that always made the laughter vanish instantly.

"Then we will have to find a place that reeks with a terrible stench. Am I wrong?"

Fortunately, there was a convenient topic to focus on.

"If there is a graveyard, it would be good to investigate there. I have heard that Draugr are born in graveyards, after all."

"You are quite knowledgeable as well, Inquisitor."

"How could I possibly compare to the Sage and the Demon Knight?"

The Draugr incident in the original game led all the way to a corrupt parish and demon worshipers.

So how would it play out in the remake?

"Ah, I smell something strange!"

I guess the Priest's nose was better than mine. To be more precise, my sense of smell itself was sharper, but I was terrible at distinguishing scents.

"It is not a very pleasant smell."

Following the Priest into the alley, the smell we had caught earlier hit us dozens of times stronger.

I thought that was just how the streets smelled, but apparently not.

"Is this a Draugr's...!"

And if there was one more thing I realized, it was that my night vision was also better than the Inquisitor's.

I grabbed the Inquisitor's armor and pulled her back. With a startled, cat-like expression, she was forcefully yanked backward as I stepped in front of her.

"Demon Knight...?"

Ignoring the lingering stench in the alley as much as possible, I brought my hand to my waist. *Click. * The lantern on my waist turned on, illuminating the darkness-shrouded alleyway.

"... Dear God."

"Too late..."

Further inside lay a single corpse, dried out so completely that not a drop of moisture remained. It was better than finding the mangled or half-eaten remains of a victim, but to unaccustomed eyes, it was just as gruesome.

Leaving the lamenting duo behind, I strode right up to the corpse. The stench filling the alley reeked the strongest from the body.

Meaning, this was definitely the scent of a Draugr.

The Draugr itself, the source of the smell, was nowhere to be seen. Yet even its lingering traces carried such a foul odor. I figured coming face-to-face with it would be pretty miserable.

GRIND.

But that wasn't what mattered right now.

I pondered what action would best fit my concept and quickly made a decision. For a character who was a victim himself, acting to prevent further tragedies, his reaction to seeing a victim he failed to save was obvious.

"... You can leave your revenge to me."

Self-blame for not being just a little bit faster. Hostility fueling the belief that all demons must be eradicated. And the wrath that stems from it all.

"So, close your eyes in peace."

The sorrow of projecting his own family onto the victim even in that moment, and the desperate wish for them to find rest.

Now then, you may call me a genius of character interpretation. Ahaha.

"... I will offer a prayer."

The Inquisitor stepped up beside me and clasped her hands together. A prayer that was neither too long nor too short flowed from her lips, accompanied by a holy light.

Even as an atheist, I had to admit it looked pretty nice.

"I have called for the guards."

I had been wondering what the Archmage was doing, and it seemed he had contacted the guards in the meantime. That was also good sense on his part.

Honestly, leaving these bodies behind whenever you stumbled across one in a game always left a slightly awkward feeling. Though in some games, guards would instantly spawn out of nowhere.

"Seeing how strong the scent is, it hasn't been long since the murder. That means the Draugr must still be nearby. Let us find it quickly before another victim appears."

"Are you blabbering about the basics just to show off your brilliance? I consider tracking to be much more efficient than standing around yapping."

I appreciated being notified of my next objective, but my concept apparently hated it. Reacting with unnecessary sharpness, I stepped past the corpse.

I didn't mean to disrespect the dead, but the stench continued in that direction, so it couldn't be helped.

"Haha, right you are."

But the good-natured mage simply clapped his hands at my sarcasm. Instantly, the foul odor lingering in the air shifted into a visible fluorescent color.

"It is tracking magic. It will not last long."

Since I hadn't leveled up a tracking skill yet, I wondered if I was really going to have to rely on my sense of smell to chase it down. To think they provided this kind of mechanic.

I made a puzzled expression at the long-awaited quality-of-life feature. Did this mean I didn't need to learn a tracking skill...? More importantly, what happened if you started the game as the Mage class?

"..."

Well, a good thing was a good thing, so I decided to just focus on the chase.

I took the lead, walking further down the alley. And this time, a white light erupted from behind me.

"I will perform Purification on the demonic energy as we go."

As the divine power gently illuminated the alleyway, the fluorescent fog near the Inquisitor faded away.

Thanks to that, if the path ever twisted back on itself, I wouldn't have to wonder, 'Wait, was it this way??'. And since she was at the rear of the formation, there was no risk of her erasing the tracks we needed to follow.

STEP.

Then I suppose I can break into a run. With that thought in mind, I pushed off with my feet. *Flutter. * My three-tailed coat flared out behind me like peacock feathers.

"Mmm, O wind, lighten our steps!"

The moment I started running, the Archmage hurriedly chanted a spell. Judging by the brief glimpse of the visual effect and my fuzzy memory of the incantation, it was probably the movement speed buff, 'Haste'.

But why did he only cast it on the two of them and leave me out? Was this karma?

"Is it a dead end?!"

After running for a bit, the Draugr's trail abruptly clipped straight through a building wall. It was something only possible because the Draugr was an incorporeal demon capable of phasing through solid objects.

"..."

What should I do? Go around the side path? But then I might lose the trail. Plus, it would ruin my cool image.

In that case, should I take advantage of this being a virtual reality game again?

"Demon Knight?!"

Instead of slowing down, I slightly veered to the side. The densely packed buildings fortunately offered plenty of ledges and protrusions for me to grab onto and step on.

THUMP!

Running up the wall, I hooked my hand onto a window frame and hoisted myself up. I wasn't entirely sure if it would work, but parkour was actually viable. Plus, since this was an in-game body with insanely high specs, it felt even easier than I could have imagined.

Once my wild ideas turned into reality, scaling to the rooftop took no time at all. The bark-shingled roof slightly caved in under my boots with a faint crunch.

"What a relentless man..."

Party members in games were often programmed to teleport to your side if the distance grew too large, so I didn't need to worry about them. Now, where did the stench lead?

Sprinting across the rooftops, I scanned the streets below. I could spot sparse patches of fluorescent fog, indicating it had phased through a building, crossed the street, and phased into the next building.

CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.

I bounded over the dried bark roofs, crushing the shingles beneath my feet. Since leaping between buildings—which I originally thought wouldn't work—was actually possible, this was far faster.

Wait, it was awfully quiet behind me. Could it be that this game didn't have an auto-teleport system for separated party members?

GLANCE.

I confirmed my suspicions only after glancing back at the completely empty space behind me.

There were quite a few games where straying too far from your companions resulted in an instant 'Game Over,' so I was a little nervous, but no warning windows popped up. You know, those 'Return to your party within X seconds' prompts.

Did that mean the game supported solo operations? Or was it just an oversight by the developers? Splitting the party wasn't exactly a groundbreaking concept, so they should have accounted for it. In that case, were they intentionally forcing players to match the pace of their party members...?

Unfortunately for them, I refused. I was a true-blooded Korean who absolutely despised a slow pace!

"Found it."

The magic must have worn off, as the fluorescent trail vanished, but I had finally laid eyes on the source of the stench instead. It was in a narrow empty lot between the buildings.

Piercing through the pitch-black fog, a pair of glowing red eyes flashed. Even translated from 2D into 3D, it was unmistakably a Draugr.

「Draugr | A wraith that deceives human eyes to lure prey into its maw. Rising from the grave, it prowls for its victims by swimming through solid rock.」

「❖ The Evil Lurking in the Town

∎ Eliminate the Draugr 0 / 1」

FLUTTER!

With the quest update, I turned my back to the moon and leaped down toward the empty lot.

My coat flared out in the process, but it didn't hinder my movement. Meanwhile, my hands were busy unsheathing the clattering Zweihänder from my back.

WOOOOO—!

The Draugr let out a low, echoing wail and narrowly dodged aside just as my Zweihänder slammed into the spot where it had been standing. I had gripped it with both hands and brought it down the second I drew it, so it was a shame that the strike missed.

Though, realistically, even if it had connected, it wouldn't have dealt any damage due to the incorporeal nature of the monster making it immune to physical attacks.

"... Glory to the heavens."

Whatever. Did I ever mention that a true roleplayer must maintain their concept perfectly even when no one is watching?

"And vengeance for the dead."

I forcefully wrenched my sword out of the ground and leveled it at the Draugr once more.

A thick black fog began to blanket the empty lot. The dizzying, nauseating stench was an added bonus.

HOOOOOO.

Wait, if I remembered correctly, wasn't it impossible to parry incorporeal enemies? What a shame. Parrying was the easiest way to create an opening to attack—

WOOO!

"I was wondering how to shake off the heretics... As expected of you, Gretchen."

—But then, a variable appeared.

"O Gretchen, the King seeks you."

A robed figure rose up from within the Draugr's fog.

A sinister black robe adorned with red jewels. Even without my knowledge of the original game, their identity was glaringly obvious.

「Demon Contractor | Those who have sold their own souls by forging a pact with a demon. Whether they truly sold their souls to a demon, or merely sold out to their own desires, remains unknown.」

It was a Demon Contractor.