Chapter 37: Another one

As they passed through the corridor, there was no visible change. It was the same dimly lit corridor with torches flickering on the walls, permeated by the same musky air. Having anticipated no major differences, the party moved forward in their previous formation, with Lyra scouting ahead.

​They navigated the corridor, encountering only groups of Peak Novice-rank ratmen. Although the difficulty did not scale up with every encounter, the groups maintained a constant size of eight individuals. The party employed their proven strategy: Velvet and Brenda took the lead to eliminate them cleanly. This maintained their momentum without slowing their pace of travel.

​After defeating a total of four groups along the way, they noticed a bright light emanating from the far end of the corridor. The sight was instantly familiar—it mirrored the exact setup of their first checkpoint.

​Excitement surged through Smith’s group, knowing another checkpoint lay just ahead. Determined not to repeat their previous mistakes, Brenda, and Marlinda immediately summoned their pawns to form a defensive line with interlocked shields.and Velvet also summoned her pawns to act as the flanks.

This time, Lyra did not scout ahead or send her own pawns forward; she simply fell into formation as the group advanced at a measured and slow pace.

​As they drew closer to the checkpoint, the air grew noticeably less musky, turning clearer with every step. The reason for Lyra’s previous early discovery suddenly clicked: the ratmen had caught her scent in the clear air. The group had missed this detail earlier, distracted by the excitement of discovering the first checkpoint.

​Before they could even reach the source of the light, a series of noises echoed from the other side. They had been detected once again, long before laying eyes on the enemy—confirming that the ratmen relied heavily on scent rather than vision in this environment.

​"Okay, do not panic," Velvet instructed. The group remained steady in their defensive wall.

​This time, the horde surging from the checkpoint was significantly larger than the last. The previous checkpoint had held roughly 20 Peak Novice-rank and 4 Beginner Intermediate-rank ratmen. This incoming horde boasted around 30 Peak Novice-rank and 6 Beginner Intermediate-rank ratmen. Though equipped identically to the previous foes, their sheer numbers were overwhelming.

​As they poured into the corridor, the Intermediate-rank ratmen did not rush forward as before. Instead, they stayed back, sending the Novice-rank ratmen ahead to charge.

​Seeing the shift in enemy tactics, Velvet immediately issued orders. "Lyra, summon your pawns. You’ll be responsible for taking down the least threatening targets. Marlinda and Brenda, hold the line. Me and my pawns will handle the flanking assault to decapitate the Intermediate-rank ratmen."

​Lyra hesitated briefly, confused by Velvet’s definition of the "least threatening" targets. To her, every ratman holding a long-ranged weapon posed a threat to her short-ranged pawns. However, with the enemy closing in—just five meters from impact—she held her questions.

​"All of you, raise shields! Brace for impact!" Velvet shouted.

​Marlinda, the pawns, and the rest of the front line crouched, raising their shields to eye level just as a forest of spears slammed into them. Thanks to their activated titles, the shield line held firm against the massive kinetic force.

​Right after the initial impact, Brenda stepped forward. Wielding her greatsword, she ordered the adjacent pawns to part slightly. Activating the attack and defense boost, she braved the incoming spear thrusts. The tips bounced off her heavy plate armor with sharp tinkling sounds, completely ineffective.

​With a powerful horizontal swing, Brenda sheared through the wooden shafts, severing the extended spears in half. The front line of ratmen stumbled, suddenly disarmed. Without breaking her momentum, Brenda pivoted on her left foot and released a devastating follow-up cleave, cutting the frontmost ratmen down instantly.

​The ratmen packed behind them had nowhere to run. Before they could react to their severed weapons, Brenda took another step forward and delivered a second brutal horizontal slash, bisecting several more ratmen at the waist.

​With just two swings, she had slaughtered twelve ratmen, creating a temporary vacuum in the tight corridor before retreating smoothly back into the defensive line.

​Seeing the opening, Lyra finally understood Velvet’s instruction. What could be less threatening than disarmed, panicked ratmen jammed in a narrow corridor with nowhere to run? She instantly commanded her pawns to neutralize these helpless targets—not focusing on killing them, but permanently stripping away their ability to fight.

​In a single exchange, more than half the ratman horde was neutralized or killed.

​Seeing the tide turn so abruptly, the Intermediate-rank ratmen hesitated to order another charge, causing the lower-ranked ratmen’s morale to shatter. As the enemy command structure faltered and tried to regroup, Velvet and her pawns seized the moment to strike.

​"Charge!" Velvet ordered.

​Her two pawns rushed forward with their titles activated, completely ignoring their own safety. When the remaining front-line ratmen thrust their spears, the pawns took the blows head-on without flinching. Activating Blood Control to stop their bleeding, they pushed through their injuries and mercilessly slaughtered the front rank.

​Seeing the chaos, an Intermediate-rank ratman tried to order a mass swarm onto the two pawns. Before the command could fully leave his mouth, Velvet closed the distance. With a single, fluid strike, she decapitated the Intermediate-rank ratman, who had been too focused on using his subordinates as shields to notice her approach.

​The sudden death of their commander threw the remaining ratmen into complete panic.

​"Lower defenses! Full charge!" Velvet barked. "Their morale is gone!"

​Brenda instantly swapped her stance from defense to offense, applying an attack and speed boost. The group surged forward. Terrified, the remaining Novice-rank ratmen broke ranks and fled back toward the checkpoint chamber, only to be cut down from behind.

​The remaining five Intermediate-rank ratmen tried to stabilize the retreat, but they were no match for Velvet, who was on a total rampage. Within minutes, all five fell beneath her blade.

​With the battle over, the party collected their loot and stepped into the brightly lit checkpoint room. It was identical to the previous one, featuring a central platform, a flight of stairs, and a bronze chest.

​Before inspecting the rewards, the party took time to rest and recover. Velvet’s pawns used Blood Replenishment to heal their injuries. Once everyone was restored, Smith stepped onto the platform, stored the bronze chest into his inventory as agreed, and the party caught their breath.

​With no further paths leading forward from the checkpoint room, they turned around to backtrack through the corridor, ready to explore the remaining unchosen path.