The Game Difficulty Is Crazy
Sildur is a small mountain village located about a day’s ride on horseback away from the Wordsworth Estate.
A paradise of high-quality honey and apples.
Whenever people spoke of Sildur, they all described it the same way.
Of course, that reputation was already more than ten years old. Now, Sildur was nothing more than an abandoned village overflowing with curses, poison, and the dead.
“Grrrr…….”
“Grrk… woooaaargh…….”
Low growling sounds echoed.
They sounded similar to wild beasts, but ironically, the ones making those noises were creatures that had once been human.
“There are about twenty enemies! Take them out quickly! Forward!”
Glen’s voice pierced through the mountainside, followed by an echoing response.
“Forward!”
Ta-at—
Five apprentice knights who had been holding their breath behind the trees charged in at once.
Caught off guard by the sudden ambush, the undead turned their bodies.
Kwa-ga-gak—!
Glen and Tasha, who reached the enemy first, swung their swords, piercing straight through the undead’s vacant face.
“Krrrk……!”
With its face skewered by the blade, the undead flailed its arms wildly.
Tasha calmly followed up with another strike.
Chwaaaak—
The severed head of the undead flew into the air. Even so, its torso staggered forward, trying to aim for Tasha.
At that moment, Glen shouted.
“Shields forward!”
“Forward!”
Bolly and Derek, who were right behind Glen and Tasha, raised their massive shields and pushed the undead back.
“Cheryl! We have to finish it!”
“I know!”
Puok, puk—!
Ost and Cheryl swung their maces, smashing the undead that was left with only a torso.
Even while that was happening, the archer in the rear continuously provided covering fire, stopping the undead that were approaching.
It wasn’t perfect, but it was clean coordination.
Thanks to that, even the undead that kept charging despite losing limbs and having their heads targeted were swept away helplessly by the apprentice knights’ fierce assault.
Watching the scene from the rear, Gregory nodded.
“It’s only been two days, but it was definitely worth teaching them, milady.”
“Indeed.”
Tris agreed.
The coordination of the apprentice knights was quite refined.
Rather than a well-trained knight order, it looked more like a mercenary group that had worked together for a long time.
Of course, there was a reason for that.
“Hey, you two with the maces! Didn’t I say I’d kill you if you got separated from the shields?!”
Glen’s rough but precise commands played a big role.
While standing at the front and cutting off the undead’s heads, he sharply observed the flow of the battle.
If Glen during the fight with the Gnolls was a warrior who cut down enemies with instinctive talent, then today’s Glen looked like a veteran commander controlling the battle with rational judgment.
“Hey! Archers! If your cover fire is late, your friends will all become undead!”
‘His words are a bit harsh, though.’
Tris gave a bitter smile.
Soon, a strange light flowed into her eyes.
“Sir Gregory. What do you think? Doesn’t this seem possible?”
“Are you referring to the purification operation?”
A purification operation.
Not just hunting undead on the outskirts of the abandoned village like now, but entering the village itself and reducing the number of undead in earnest.
‘Originally, because of safety concerns, we only planned to clear the nearby undead.’
But the apprentice knights’ performance far exceeded expectations. And with three instructors responsible for safety, plus the 5-star Holy Knight Tris…
Considering all those factors, it didn’t seem impossible.
Gregory nodded.
“It seems possible, but is there really a need to make apprentice knights carry out a purification operation?”
Normally, a purification operation was conducted by the family head leading an elite unit made up only of 3-star or higher knights.
As Gregory said, purification was not the role of apprentice knights. However—
“There is.”
A clear light shone in Tris’s ash-colored eyes, which had been gentle until now.
“Milady?”
“Sir Gregory. You remember why we came here, don’t you?”
“Yes. We came to train the apprentice knights to be stronger in preparation for the upcoming Holy War.”
“That alone is reason enough.”
Gregory closed his mouth.
Entering the abandoned village was clearly twice as dangerous as clearing the outskirts.
But if they took that risk and succeeded in the purification operation—
The apprentice knights would grow far more than before.
By defeating the undead of a cursed land, they would gain more holy power.
And by overcoming dangers incomparable to fighting Gnoll packs, they would gain strong mental fortitude and camaraderie.
“…Once preparations for the camp are complete, I will inform the apprentice knights.”
Gregory bowed his head. At the same time, cheers erupted from the front.
It was the victory cry of the apprentice knights who had cleanly finished their first battle.
After successfully entering the outskirts of the Sildur abandoned village, the apprentice knights set up camp at a suitable location.
Tatak, tatak—
Sitting around the campfire, Glen and the apprentice knights reviewed the battle from earlier that day.
“So, how was it fighting them? Totally different from fighting Gnolls, right?”
“It was much harder.”
Looking over the apprentice knights, most of them looked exhausted.
Glen smiled faintly.
“That makes sense. Gnolls stop moving once you deal a fatal wound.”
All living creatures become unable to act after receiving a fatal injury.
Cut off the head, instant death. Cut off an arm or leg, and combat power drops sharply.
But the undead of a cursed land were different.
If the right arm is gone, they use the left.
If the legs are gone, they crawl.
If the head is gone, they attack whatever they can reach.
Unless their bodies are completely destroyed, they do not stop.
Burning them would be best, but since Sildur is surrounded by mountains, it could easily lead to a massive fire.
“When the Holy War begins, those things will become the vanguard of the demon race.”
“……”
Several apprentice knights swallowed dry saliva in tension.
“I’m not saying this to scare you. Anyway, the battle you showed today was excellent.”
“It’s all thanks to Young Master’s excellent command.”
Bolly, with his rough face, bowed his head. Glen snorted.
“Me? All I did was curse at you from the front.”
“That is… true.”
“Huh?”
At Bolly’s honest answer, the apprentice knights burst into quiet laughter.
“Learn well when I’m yelling at you, you brats. Don’t make mistakes in real combat later.”
“K-kek, yes, yes!”
“Good. As long as you understand.”
In the warm atmosphere, Glen and the apprentice knights continued talking.
Just as the mood was settling in, Instructor Gregory stepped forward.
“Alright, everyone, attention.”
“Attention!”
“I will explain tomorrow’s schedule. Those on guard duty will be informed separately when they return.”
“Yes!”
“Originally, we planned to patrol the outskirts again tomorrow and deal with the undead, but the schedule has changed.”
Gregory paused and cleared his throat.
“Tomorrow, you will enter the Sildur abandoned village and begin the purification operation.”
“…E-excuse me?”
The apprentice knights stared at Gregory with wide eyes.
They wondered if he was joking to lighten the mood, but Gregory’s gaze was deadly serious.
“S-Sir Gregory!”
“What is it, Cheryl?”
“By purification operation, do you mean the one the family head carries out during expeditions?”
“You know it well.”
“My goodness……”
Cheryl’s mouth fell open.
The apprentice knights beside her were equally shocked.
“I-is this for real, Sir Gregory?”
