The commander felt perplexed by the sudden and audacious declaration that they would kill the wyverns. Had those wyverns been ordinary ones, he might have understood Kriel’s proclamation.
The people of Tirnanog had long conducted ecological research on the species known as monsters. Wyverns were no exception. There were differences depending on the habitat, northern or southern varieties, for example, but people had already gathered all kinds of information, such as how far and how fast a wyvern could fly on a single meal.
In other words, by reverse-calculating based on the attack locations and frequency, one could narrow down the possible locations of the wyvern’s nest to some degree. However, these particular wyverns were a different matter.
Those wyverns were clearly tainted by the Abyss. Any analysis based on ordinary ecological knowledge was of little use when it came to creatures of the Abyss. The enhancements bestowed by the Abyss could not be quantified.
To the extent that, at around the level of a demon, even the obvious fact “if a creature’s head is separated from its body, the creature dies” could become meaningless.
There were mountains near the gateway city, so there was a high probability that the wyverns had a nest somewhere in the vicinity. However, that was merely one hypothesis; it was also possible that a particularly nasty mage had marched from afar together with the wyverns.
The commander of the border guards summed up this analysis in a single sentence.
“Sir Kriel. But isn’t there no way to track their whereabouts?”
Kriel nodded his head. Generally speaking, that was true.
But if he used the powers of a Dark Knight, the story would change.
…That doesn’t mean I can explain this exactly as it is.
As previously arranged, Kriel drew his horn sword. The sudden act of unsheathing made the commander flinch, but once Kriel placed the horn sword on the table, the commander relaxed his guard.
Then Orishin rose up from the horn sword.
[Greetings! A strong and mighty morning! If you asked me my name, I am Orishin, a unicorn spirit!]
The sight of the unicorn’s form shrouded in a holy silver glow was impressive. The fact that it lacked a body below its neck did not seem to be a significant flaw for a spirit. The border guards gazed at the unicorn in awe.
Observing the guards’ wide-eyed wonder at Orishin, Kriel offered a suitable explanation.
“This is a weapon personally forged by a saintess of the Eve Kaha Church and blessed with a spirit that grants special abilities.”
That was the extent of his explanation regarding Orishin.
“Normally, it would be a grueling task to locate the creatures of the Abyss lurking in the shadows, but with the power residing in my weapon, I can drag them out into the sunlight. Trust me and grant me just one day.”
What was noteworthy here was that he did not explicitly state that “my weapon” was Orishin. Though his wording might have been somewhat ambiguous, he was not speaking a lie.
At least my Nobility here won’t be reduced.
When the Abyss did it, it was a con trick; when he did it, it was a clever improvisation. Admiring his own wits, Kriel waited for the commander’s response.
“A sword forged by a saintess and blessed by a spirit! Surely it must be a remarkable holy artifact.”
Kriel’s face twisted slightly beneath his helmet. It was indeed true that Morgina was a saintess, and Orishin was indeed a spirit.
But there was no way he could declare that they were an ordinary saint and an ordinary spirit, even with a blade to his neck.
Fortunately, Kriel’s troubled expression was concealed by his helmet. Only the faintest furrow between his brows was visible. The commander interpreted that subtle change in expression as the solemnity of a knight concentrating on his duty.
“We are grateful for your dedication, Sir. Our border garrison will fully abide by your instructions. Please, just give the command.”
A doubt emerged in Kriel’s mind. Strictly speaking, this was another country’s army. Was it really okay for him to assume command so easily?
Well, I haven’t officially been granted command, and it’s only limited to pursuing the Abyss, so I suppose it’s fine.
What truly mattered now were the innocent people suffering because of the Abyss, not political power structures. Kriel stopped thinking about it, using chivalry as an excuse.
He generally tried to keep complicated thoughts at bay for the sake of his mental health.
***
Although he had been granted command, Kriel had no intention of actively deploying the soldiers.
He might have been called a Dark “Knight”, but in reality, Kriel had little experience leading others. Even in the Western Army, most of his orders had been along the lines of “go destroy this and that”, so he had no expertise in large-scale operations.
And so, his orders were simple. It was to reinforce the defenses of the gateway city thoroughly, and if any wyvern attempted to flee here, shoot it down.
After sending the soldiers away, Kriel entered the mountain range that surrounded the gateway city alone.
[Master. I mentioned this yesterday, but in order to track down whoever is behind the wyverns, I must cut them down.]
“I know.”
[But there are no traces of wyverns here, are there? Do you plan to search the entire mountain range by yourself?]
Of course not. Kriel gripped the horn sword in his right hand and stored all his armor into the shadows of his cloak. His pale hair was exposed under the sun for only a moment. Then, Kriel invoked the power of the Dark Knight.
Dense shadows gathered and formed a black mist. Darkness clung to Kriel’s entire body and gear, including Tuon.
Without hesitation, he slit his forearm and drew blood. Splat. Bright crimson drops seeped into the ground.
[What are you doing!?]
Unlike Tuon who was perplexed, Orishin nodded as if he understood.
[It was similar when you drew me in, wasn’t it?]
“You have a good memory. That’s right.”
[All I have left is a head, so I’d better be sharp!]
It was a method similar to when Kriel had used the pretext of a contract to summon Orishin, who had been turned into a Bicorn. The difference was that this time it was far cruder.
The biggest problem was that there was no living sacrifice to offer for the ritual. But it could not be helped.
When he had summoned Orishin, who had fallen into a Bicorn state, the father and daughter chosen as fake sacrifices had known nothing about magic rituals or the Abyss. Even if they saw the process of preparing the Abyss contract, there was no risk of them growing suspicious of Kriel.
However, all the soldiers in the border guard had at least basic training regarding the Abyss. Kriel preparing a contract ritual with the Abyss with a living sacrifice?
They might have immediately drawn their swords and started shouting, “You audacious demon disguised as a Paladin! Face the blade of justice!” There was no way he could even pretend to sacrifice someone else in front of the border guard.
All the more so under the current circumstances, where he claimed to be the Champion of Eve Kaha.
Hence, Kriel prepared a very simple, makeshift contract. He promised that later he would grant fine offerings, such as human souls or suffering, and for now he would cover the upfront payment with his own blood.
It was like saying, “I’ll pay you a deposit now and settle the rest later.”
During Orishin’s days as a corrupted spirit, his fundamental nature was that of a spirit, which meant his intellect was exceptional. In other words, he was meticulous about profit and loss. He wouldn’t have had any interest in such a sloppy, forced contract.
But this time, the target Kriel intended to lure in was just a mutated wyvern, a mere monster that hadn’t evolved to the intelligence of a demon or anything of that sort.
Blood offered directly by a Dark Knight like Kriel was of great value to such creatures. It would be tempting even if they were under the influence of other spawns of the Abyss.
“Even if the enemy is a demon, as you said Tuon might be, a few bewitched wyverns should still come our way.”
[And then you won’t actually make the contract and just slice them up. Be honest. How many Abyss spawns have you tricked this way?]
“I invoke my right to remain silent.”
Deceiving the Abyss was a noble act based on chivalry. At least in Kriel’s view. When it came to the Abyss, he was a knight of unparalleled flexibility.
[Hey. Even to you, that can’t look very knightly. Not that I’m saying you have to fight the Abyss fairly….]
As someone who had been knocked down, neck snapped, and skull crushed by Kriel’s “contract (which was a lie)”, Orishin seemed inwardly conflicted. Surprisingly, however, Tuon approved of Kriel’s fighting methods.
[That’s good.]
[Huh. Weren’t you the one who revered knightly honor and all that? ‘Embrace the power of the Abyss, maintain your dignity as a knight’. Doesn’t what you say change every time?]
[Does the Abyss not naturally submit to one who is stronger? My master, as the rightful ruler who will preside over tens of thousands of demons in the deepest pit of the Abyss, must be obeyed by lesser Abyss creatures no matter what he commands.]
[Wow. You’re more crazy than I thought. Are you planning to make him the Demon King or something?]
Kriel let the chatter of the noisy swords go in one ear and out the other as he waited for the monster to approach.
Drip. Drip. The droplets of blood gradually increased.
By the time the blood stopped seeping into the ground and began slowly pooling, the sound of wings flapping came from above.
Whoosh. The surrounding branches shook. It was a clearing a bit too narrow for a wyvern to land, but befitting the name “monster”, it used its powerful body to forcefully snap and break the trees, before landing right in front of Kriel.
The wyvern looked up at Kriel. At first it thought it recognized his scent from somewhere. But its curiosity faded almost immediately. The pale-haired man descended in an aura of darkness intense enough to consume the sun.
His blood radiated an authority too overwhelming for a mere beast to question.
Slowly, the wyvern bowed its head.
Then it gestured with its eyes as if it was asking, “May I have the honor of receiving this blood?” Kriel, shadowed by the sun, nodded with the utmost arrogance. He took on the air of an invader who had conquered his enemy’s domain after slaying another demon.
In the Abyss, everything followed the logic of power. Realizing that perhaps a demon, or possibly a devil, far more powerful than its current master had arrived, the creature decided to become the new arrival’s first servant, hoping to enjoy the glory of devouring the old master’s flesh before anyone else.
Just as the wyvern crawled forward with its head bowed, Tuon’s blade, plus the length of Kriel’s arm, was exactly one step away from striking the wyvern’s heart.
With lightning-like speed, Kriel drew Tuon and carved a line from the wyvern’s back straight to its heart. He flawlessly slipped the blade through the gaps in the creature’s scales, missing every part of its complex skeletal structure, and split the flesh directly to the heart.
The wyvern died without ever realizing what had happened.
[Ah, I can see it now: those feeble demons bowing beneath our master’s feet!]
Tuon shouted as she drank in a full measure of blood with her entire blade. Dark energy wrapped around the sword as it absorbed the wyvern’s blood, leaving the carcass pale in an instant.
Orishin who was watching this tilted his head.
[Is this really the right look for us…?]
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