Chapter Twenty-Two: The Charge into the Ratmen's Forest

Twelve soldiers clad in half-armor gripped ordinary long spears. Three hunters stood nearby—one young man and two middle-aged. Aliris, Blake, and the mayor, Sir Joniel, the seasoned knight, were among five knights fully armored. Along with myself, that made a total of twenty-one combatants ready for action.

Not to mention, Aliris, Blake, and Joniel were all confirmed as third-tier knights.

“Your Highness, is this force sufficient?” Blake asked.

Without hesitation, Kana nodded firmly. “Enough. More than enough. Those vermin aren’t that formidable.”

Frankly, deploying such a force to eradicate ratmen was a bit extravagant. Those ratmen would likely flee at the mere sight of us.

“The Kingdom of Safro lies at the very edge of this continent, a remote and obscure place. Normally, there shouldn’t be any ratmen here. Based on information gathered from the villagers, it seems the ratmen only began stealing in town within the past week. We can be fairly certain, if the fishman prophet is accurate, that these ratmen arrived here within the last one or two months. They are still in a cautious state, nesting and alert.”

Kana took a moment to brief everyone before the imminent raid. Ratmen with pointed ears were mere hostile creatures in the game world, found scattered throughout nearly every part of the continent. However, their main concentrations were not on this land where Kana stood.

The fact that even Blake and the veteran knight Joniel were unfamiliar with such creatures suggested ratmen were nearly nonexistent in this kingdom. Otherwise, any intelligent town-dwelling race would have had to deal with them.

Reflecting on it, these monsters were scarce in the early stages of the game. The Kingdom of Korn had very few ratmen, so it was natural that Safro, sharing a border with Korn and located on the continent’s remote tip, had none.

“Let me describe our enemy,” Kana said, gesturing toward his thigh. “They stand about this tall, like upright rats, mostly covered in black fur. Unless something unusual happens, they generally speak the common tongue.”

This revelation surprised those before him.

“They can talk?” a young soldier asked, wide-eyed.

“Indeed. All ratmen possess remarkable linguistic talents and can learn another race’s language very quickly.”

As for why, it was suspected to be linked to the use of the Creation Stone. In this world, anything inexplicable was conveniently attributed to the Creation Stone, with a 95% accuracy rate.

“They are small and agile but lack great strength. Beware of their teeth—they are razor-sharp and carry some toxic bacteria. Their weapons mostly consist of slingshots, wooden spears, and scavenged broken blades.”

Hearing this, the soldiers relaxed somewhat, relieved. These rats seemed quite weak.

“Don’t underestimate them, though. They come in great numbers. When the fight starts, each of you will likely face multiple foes.”

Just as Kana finished speaking, a young hunter suddenly raised his hand.

“What is it?” Kana asked.

The hunter glanced nervously at the group and said cautiously, “Sir, I think I’ve seen these ratmen before.”

“What? Why didn’t you report this earlier?” Joniel demanded angrily.

His stern tone clearly frightened the young man.

“I—I…”

“Don’t be afraid. I won’t blame you. If you perform well during this mission, I’m sure Joniel won’t hesitate to reward you.”

Upon hearing Kana’s attempt to calm the situation, Joniel softened and stepped back.

He bowed slightly to Kana. “Apologies, Your Highness, I acted rashly.”

“No matter. As mayor of this town, your anger is understandable.”

The young hunter regained composure.

“Tell us exactly what you saw.”

He nodded. “About two months ago, I set traps in the forest across the river. From afar, I saw a large rat moving swiftly through the woods. At first, I thought I was mistaken. Afterward, the forest had fewer prey, so I assumed I had scared them off and didn’t return.”

Kana nodded. “Good. You’ll lead us there shortly.”

Once everyone was prepared, Kana took a round shield from Joniel.

Earlier, with Aliris’s help, they confirmed how these rats arrived—by small boat. After inquiries, it seemed the boat was stolen from a fisherman who recently lost his vessel and blamed the fishmen.

They had used a medium-sized riverboat, not a fishing boat. Riverside Town, being near a large river, had a demand for such crafts.

Upon reaching shore, the young hunter pointed toward a patch of forest in the distance.

“There. That’s where I saw the big rat.”

Joniel looked at Kana, clearly awaiting orders. Among them, Kana was unquestionably the most esteemed and knowledgeable about ratmen, so command naturally fell to him.

This was a squad of warriors and knights—honestly, Kana had never led such a team before. He muttered to himself.

“Lead the way.”

Turning to Aliris, he added, “Pay attention to the scent of ratmen’s blood in the air.”

Aliris nodded. She had already memorized the scent of ratmen blood.

Not far into the forest, Aliris suddenly smelled something and found a small bloodstain on a leaf.

“It’s the same scent as in that house—some of the blood odor is drifting from the forest.”

Hearing this, Kana nodded, forming a plan.

“Who are you?” he asked the young hunter, pointing.

“George, sir. My name is George,” the hunter replied quickly.

“Enter the forest carefully, pretending to be hunting. Scout for ratmen. If you see even one, come out immediately.”

George swallowed nervously but nodded resolutely, then dashed into the woods.

While George scouted, Kana addressed the others.

“If the rats are inside, Mayor, you take eight soldiers, the two hunters, and Blake’s group to the far side of the forest. Your task is to form a loose encirclement. If any ratmen attempt to escape, kill them on sight. One by one, no chasing.”

Blake frowned, catching Kana’s intention. “Your Highness, you want to lead the rest in a direct assault?”

Kana nodded.

“No, that’s too dangerous,” Blake refused outright. His duty was to protect Kana, and if anything happened, he would be held responsible.

“Don’t worry. With Aliris present, if it gets too risky, you can come in with me.”

After some thought, Blake reluctantly agreed.

Soon, George emerged from the forest.

“Sir, I saw it. A large rat standing upright, holding a broken spear. But it saw me and ran off.”

Kana nodded and said, “Mayor, as discussed, take your men to surround the back of the forest.”

He added, “Once the encirclement is secure, send two hunters slightly inside. If fighting begins but no ratmen break through, then you may advance.”

The mayor nodded and hurried with his group around to the rear of the forest.

“Everyone else, follow me.”

Kana readied his shield, drew his longsword, and led the way inside. George was somewhat dazed but followed closely behind.