I Became the Dark Knight in the Game

Chapter 27: The Brotherhood (2)

Rumble

After the sky growled once, it soon began to pour rain towards the ground.

Raindrops fell on Dales helmet, collected just below the eye holes, and then slid down its surface.

It appeared as though the helmet itself was shedding tears.

The surroundings darkened.

Thick clouds completely obscured the sun. Blue flames flickered in the eye holes of the helmet.

The surrounding thieves swallowed hard.

The dark knight, who was already emitting a sinister aura, now gave off a spine-chilling atmosphere.

The sudden shift in the air petrified them.

They wondered if perhaps they had gotten involved with something they should not have.

Dale grasped his sword.

He positioned the blade straight up towards the sky.

The sharp black longsword effortlessly split the falling raindrops.

Dale turned his head towards Jimmy who stood there in a daze.

As their eyes met, Jimmys face turned pale. He shouted as if in a fit.

Attack, attack!

The next moment, the sound of slicing air accompanied several bolts flying in.

These were bolts shot by some crossbowmen who had been lying in wait on the roof.

Dale kicked the ground.

His movements were surprisingly quick for a man of his size.

Bolts struck the ground where Dale had just been standing.

The thieves lost sight of Dale. And by the time they spotted him again, he was already standing in front of the nearest thief.

Whoosh!

Dale swung his sword.

And the thiefs head flew into the air.

A split second later, blood splattered around and it was then absorbed into Dales armor.

This, this who*eson killed Martin!

Gyaaaa!

The other thieves nearby were furious at their comrades death. They grabbed their short spears and rushed forward bravely.

Dale thrust his fist forward. This was not a punch meant to merely knock someone out, but one with the full intention to kill.

Crunch!

The face of the thief hit by the gauntlet caved in. He died instantly and Dale didnt even bother to check.

He had no time to waste.

He immediately thrust his sword to the side, piercing through the heart of another thief.

Not bad.

He moved solely by instinct, casting off the restraints that had bound him until now.

It was a feeling of freedom, of liberation.

It wasnt a bad feeling at all.

Dale plunged his gauntlet into the chest of a dead thief and absorbed his life force.

This too wasnt a bad feeling.

He felt like the emptiness of his stopped heart was being filled, even if just by a little.

Right then, a dull impact hit Dales back.

Thud! Thud, thud!

Several bolts struck his armor and bounced off.

The impact was quite significant.

It seemed they were using crossbows of considerable quality. The bolts hitting him had slightly thrown Dale off balance.

Jimmy, with a flush of excitement, shouted,

Its working! Keep firing the bolts!

Even without his command, the crossbowmen were already reloading.

Their movements were professional; they hardly seemed like mere back-alley thieves.

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Rather than thieves, they looked more like

Soldiers?

But The identity of the attackers was irrelevant. Once again, a bolt whizzed through the air.

Dale grabbed a nearby thief by the nape of the neck and positioned him in front like a sheld.

Gwaaaagh!

The bolts embedded themselves into the thiefs body with a clatter.

The thief who had suddenly become arrows target let out a tearing scream. It was an annoyingly piercing cry.

Dale hit the guy on the head to stop him from screaming any further.

Then he snatched the guys spear and hurled it with all his might towards the roof.

A shieldman who was waiting to protect the crossbowmen hurriedly lifted his shield.

Boom!

The spear, hurled with ferocity, pierced right through the wooden shield and lodged itself in the neck of the shieldman.

The crossbowmen preparing to reload behind was shocked.

What the hell?

Immediately, the crossbowman had to duck his head.

A thrown dagger narrowly missed his hair as it flew by.

Tsk.

Dale clicked his tongue.

It was a shame that he missed, but it didnt matter. Without their shieldman, the crossbowmen wouldnt dare to recklessly expose themselves now.

Dale simply continued what he was doingSlaughter.

The sword flashed and a thiefs head flew off. The resistance of the thieves was utterly meaningless.

Like a wolf hunting a flock of sheep, Dale easily slaughtered them all.

Eventually, Jimmy was unable to bear it any longer and charged forward with his longsword.

This bastard!

Dale watched indifferently as Jimmy rushed towards him.

For a back-alley thug, his stance was surprisingly well-founded. It was clear that he had received professional training.

But what did that matter?

Dale swung his fist and struck Jimmy in the chest.

Boom!

The chainmail armor reinforced with plates was useless. The plates crumpled under the impact of his gauntlet.

Blood trickled from Jimmys mouth as he flew and got forcefully slammed into the wall.

He tried to say something.

W-wait a s

There was no reason to wait.

Bang!

Dale swung his fist at Jimmys head. The wall slightly crumbled as Jimmys head was embedded in it.

Jimmy was rendered forever unable to speak again.

When Jimmy who was the leader of this gang fell, the fight momentarily subsided into a brief lull.

With the thieves hesitating to charge again, Dale surveyed his surroundings.

The sight of the dark knight nonchalantly turning his gaze with his armor smeared in blood struck terror into the thieves hearts.

M-monster.

We-we can never beat him.

From the moment Jimmy died, their morale had completely plummeted.

In such a disadvantageous situation, the back-alley thugs knew what they had to do.

They began to flee in every direction.

But Dale was not one to let them go easily.

He strode briskly across the ground and quickly overtook them.

As Dale suddenly blocked their path, one of the thieves dropped his weapon and raised his hands in surrender.

I-I surrender! Ill do as you say, just spare my life ack!

The thiefs body was impaled by the sword and he fell backwards. Thats when the others realized.

Whether they surrendered or not.

Or whether they begged on their knees, this dark knight was determined to kill them all.

Some of the thieves screamed and ran, but they were Dales first targets and were swiftly killed.

The rest, having lost all will to fight, slumped to the ground. Dale swung his sword without exception at each one of them.

The last of the thieves was a middle-aged man. He glared at Dale with resentment in his eyes and said,

You kill those who surrender and plead for mercy? Everyone youve killed had a family they were providing for. Now, those families will either starve to death or lead lives more miserable than death! Dont you feel even a trace of guilt?

Dale who was swinging his sword mechanically stopped his hand.

What should he say to this shameless man?

Should he tell him that, like these men who had families, the gnome couple also begged for mercy before they died?

Or should he state the harsh truth that those who seek to kill must also be prepared to die?

His mind was in turmoil.

But it seemed unlikely that his words would resonate with the man anyway.

So Dale responded briefly.

So what?

The middle-aged thiefs eyes widened in fury.

You fuc*ing bastard

But he couldnt finish his sentence.

His head was severed from his body and fell to the ground.

Dale absorbed every last bit of life force from the middle-aged mans body.

The body was drained of all its vitality and shriveled up like a mummy.

There were no longer any living enemies on the ground.

Some members of the Black Serpent Brotherhood, who had been far away, had managed to flee, but it was only a matter of tracking the scent of their blood.

However, there were others that needed to be dealt with first.

The crossbowmen on the roofs.

They were like trapped rats.

Dale did not immediately climb up; first, he absorbed the life force from the bodies around him.

While absorbing the life force, Dale also extracted their memories.

Trivial memories flowed into Dales mind.

This isnt everyone.

The leader of the Black Serpent Brotherhood was still alive.

Moreover, it seemed that he was plotting something.

The crossbowmen on the roofs were not a force to be found just anywhere.

I must hurry before they escape.

Since he started the job, he had to finish it. Today, Dale was determined to annihilate the Black Serpent Brotherhood.

He had started all of this with that intention from the beginning.

Pa!

Dale jumped up with all his might and clung to a nearby wall. He then embedded his gauntlets into the wall and climbed up.

It took only a moment before he was up on the roof.

Hes here.

The waiting dwarf crossbowmen muttered.

There were three of them. Including the one Dale had killed with the spear throw, it seemed they operated as a team of four.

Instead of crossbows, they were armed with large double-bladed axes and waiting for Dale.

The eyes of the dwarves showed no fear in the face of their imminent death. It was clear they were veterans who had survived numerous brushes with death.

Dale had no intention of delaying any longer.

He had to chase the others before the rain could wash away the scent of blood from those who had fled.

Dale rapidly closed the distance.

One of the dwarves muttered as he watched Dale getting closer and closer.

Fu*k. Had I known Id be up against someone like this, I would have asked for more money.

A little later, three more bodies were added to the count. Dale, who had drained the life force away from them, soon left the scene.

After he left, the scene was left with bodies dried up like mummies, their worn equipment, and blood copiously spread in all directions.

Only then did the people of the slums who had been holding their breath quietly poke their heads out.

They were shocked at the grisly scene unfolding before them.

However, they quickly regained their senses and disappeared after scavenging the fallen thieves equipment.

A few responsible individuals who were concerned about the spread of disease burned the bodies.

Now, only bloodstains remained on the ground.

But the rain was heavy, and the droplets were large.

The rainwater would soon wash away the bloodstains.

***

The Black Serpent Brotherhood was a relatively old organization.

It had existed since the birth of the empire, and at one time, it even prospered enough to dominate the night streets of the imperial capital.

However, this venerable organization fell into decline with the invasion of demons.

The emperor who lost his capital needed a scapegoat to blame for his defeat, and the thieves guilds became the target.

And the Black Serpent Brotherhood was regarded as the leader among these thieves guilds.

The emperor appeased the angry citizens by hanging the leader of the Brotherhood.

For Abaph who was the current head of the Brotherhood, the memory of that day was vivid.

He remembered his father hanging in the square with the crowd hurling insults and stones at him.

Abaph could never forget that humiliating day.

Hey, Mr. Abaph. What will happen if you get distracted during a meeting?

Abaph snapped back to reality.

Sorry.

A young man covered in a black robe chided in a frivolous voice.

Really. Do it properly. How else do you expect to hang the emperor?

..!

Abaph glared at the young man who only shrugged his shoulders mischievously.

Getting so upset over a small jab. The Black Serpent Brotherhood I know used to be thieves so fearsome they could silence even a crying child, but now theyre rather disappointing. Did I choose the wrong group to collaborate with?

Abaph gritted his teeth, his hand instinctively reaching for the dagger in his pocket.

The young mans smile grew wider.

Are you going to draw it?

Abaph closed his eyes tightly and shook his head.

I am not a fool who stabs his allies.

Ah, thats a pity. I really wanted to get my hands on Abaph. If you had drawn your knife first, I could have acted freely Anyway, take care of yourself, Abaph. Id love to work with your corpse someday to create a masterpiece.

Youre a creepy one.

Im being serious, though

The young man seemed hurt and fidgeted with his fingers.

Abaph, watching him, furrowed his brow in annoyance. Being alone with this madman was definitely a bad idea.

When are those guys going to show up?

The troops that had gone to kill the dark knight had yet to return.

Abaph suddenly felt uneasy.

Surely, they havent all been defeated?

That seemed impossible.

Aside from Jimmys gang there were a dozen more of his own men, veteran crossbowmen whod been paid off by the young man, and the undead soldiers hed brought along.

No matter how strong the dark knight was, handling such a force alone would be difficult.

Besides, there was that story he had heard from Jimmy.

In a tavern, Jimmys gang had fought with the dark knight and nobody died.

The dark knight wouldnt have hesitated to kill, so this probably meant he wasnt as strong as they thought.

But why is there no news

Just then, the door burst open. It was one of Abaphs men.

Abaph finally relaxed and chided him.

What a useless bunch. Why were you so late?

However, instead of responding, his subordinate shouted at Abaph with a face stricken with terror.

Huff! Huff! Help! A -A monster

Abaph frowned. How could his usually calm and cold-blooded subordinate lose his composure like this?

Stop stammering and speak clearly.

Run. We need to run

At that moment,

A dagger flew in from outside the door, striking the subordinate in the back of the head. With eyes rolled back, he collapsed to the floor.

Then a knight whose black armor was completely stained with blood came striding inside.

The knight turned his head towards Abaph and their eyes met.

What is this

Abaphs pupils quivered.

The emotions that he had felt on the day his father was hanged returned to him.

Abaph felt death.