I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods – Chapter 154

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“A-ahem. I sincerely apologize for my earlier… indiscretion. Knight Commander of the Dark Starry Night Knights.”

The lord of the city, who introduced herself as Cassandra, sat on the sofa, her face flushed crimson with embarrassment.

Helga looked at Cassandra with undisguised contempt. I imagined my own expression was similar.

While my ambiguous wording might have contributed to the misunderstanding, she was the one who had offered her body.

“So, the terms outlined in your letter—”

Cassandra flinched at the mention of the letter, her body trembling slightly.

Noticing my gaze, she coughed awkwardly, her embarrassment evident.

“……Are they all… true?”

“Ahem, yes, they are. I will transfer ownership of all spoils and byproducts obtained from the Rune Dungeon, including the runes themselves. I will also offer additional compensation if you wish. In return, I ask for your discretion regarding the dungeon’s existence.”

“Understood. I accept your terms.”

I agreed without hesitation.

Cassandra’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Y-you accept? So easily?”

“I don’t see a reason to refuse.”

“With all due respect, you are aware that this… deceives the Empress, correct?”

“Of course. I have taken that into consideration.”

The runes found in this dungeon were quite powerful. While they wouldn’t be useful in the late game, they were more than sufficient for my current needs.

And I doubted Cecilia would execute me for acquiring a few runes. The reward far outweighed the risk.

“Very well. Do you require any additional compensation or rewards? I will provide whatever you require.”

“…….”

As I considered her offer, my eyes narrowing slightly, Cassandra quickly added,

“I-I’m not referring to… my body! I’m asking about material rewards!”

“I know. I was thinking about what to request.”

Cassandra stared at me, momentarily speechless, then blushed again, clutching her dress.

I wondered what went on in her mind. She seemed convinced I was interested in her body. She would probably agree even if I did ask for it.

Not that I had any intention of doing so.

“Commander.”

Leaving Cassandra to wallow in her embarrassment, Helga tugged at my ear, whispering,

“What?”

“Are you sure it’s wise to conceal this from the Empress?”

“It’ll be fine. What’s the worst that could happen? She’s not going to kill us.”

“…….”

Helga’s expression soured. She clearly thought my answer was irresponsible.

I was confident Cecilia wouldn’t harm us, but Helga didn’t know that.

She likely assumed I was simply favored by the Empress, having been granted command of a knight order and half of the Golden Twilight Knights.

Her concern was understandable.

But I couldn’t explain Cecilia’s… unusual interest in me without revealing my secrets.

“Besides, I’ve done this before. It’s not my first time.”

I showed her the rune tattoo on the back of my left hand.

Helga’s eyes widened slightly.

Even the Silver Dawn Knights, who had remained loyal to the Empress for years after being exiled, had given me a rune.

The rule about reporting all runes to the Empire was essentially meaningless.

What was the point of a rule if even the most loyal knights openly disregarded it?

While it might be different in the Holy Kingdom, such rules were practically nonexistent in the Empire.

Even in the game, players rarely faced consequences for keeping runes for themselves.

In that context, Cassandra’s anxiety was… unusual.

“That’s… unexpected.”

“What did you expect?”

“I assumed Her Majesty had granted you the runes along with the knights.”

Her assumption wasn’t entirely wrong.

Completing certain quests for the Empress would reward you with a rune as a token of her favor.

They were practically useless, however, only serving as achievements.

“If… if that is the case…”

Cassandra, seemingly recovering from her embarrassment, spoke, fanning herself with her hand.

Her cheeks were still flushed.

“Would you like to rest at the mansion before departing? Or would you prefer to rest after clearing the dungeon?”

“We’ll leave immediately.”

I couldn’t relax at the mansion while the others were waiting in the forest.

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“Hee hee hee, you’re here?”

As we entered the forest, Nix, now using informal speech, greeted us with a creepy giggle. It seemed her other personality had taken over.

It made sense.

While I wasn’t sure about her usual pattern, the formal personality had been dominant ever since our encounter in the city. It was about time for a switch.

“No signs of a fight… good. Well done.”

I instinctively reached out to pat her head, like I had done with her other personality, then stopped myself.

Nix, however, grabbed my wrist and rubbed my hand against her head.

She continued to rub my hand against her face, her actions bordering on… unsettling.

Helga, watching us, commented dryly,

“Aren’t Lize and our lord enough for you?”

“You’re quite blunt, aren’t you, Helga?”

Despite her languid demeanor, Helga wasn’t one to mince words. She had always been rather… unfiltered.

I patted Nix’s head a few more times, then pulled my hand away.

Nix giggled, moving to stand behind me.

I stood before the entrance to the Rune Dungeon, drawing Wingless Nightmare.

The sound of metal on metal echoed as the other knights drew their weapons.

“Remember what I said?”

“Yes. You’ll handle the guardian, and we’ll prevent any other monsters from approaching.”

Helga, holding a silver longsword, replied casually. Despite her nonchalant tone, she clearly understood the plan.

“Good. Let’s go.”

I stepped into the dungeon. Nix followed, then the regular knights, with Helga bringing up the rear.

The dungeon walls were rough-hewn, as if carved directly from the rock.

I walked confidently forward, the knights following nervously, their eyes darting around. There were no enemies here, so there was no need for caution.

We hadn’t walked far when the passage opened into a large cavern. Circular openings dotted the walls, and stalactites hung from the ceiling.

It was a familiar sight.

Unlike the previous three games, which were largely linear, BD4 was a true open-world game. That meant a significant increase in the number of bosses.

Not only did each region require its own boss, but the main story, side quests, and dungeons also needed bosses, along with numerous mini-bosses.

That meant some reused dungeon layouts and palette-swapped bosses were inevitable. This dungeon was one such example, reusing the layout and boss from another dungeon.

And that boss was the infamous Rock Centipede.

‘Though this one is much easier.’

Fortunately, this version didn’t have the same frustrating mechanics. That was why it received less criticism, despite the reused assets.

It was a straightforward fight, not a puzzle boss. If they had copied the mechanics as well, the players would have been furious.

“These are…”

Someone muttered, likely noticing the scattered, dented, and bloodstained armor.

It wasn’t difficult to imagine the fate of the armor’s previous owners.

“What are your orders? Should we retrieve them?”

Helga’s question snapped me out of my thoughts. In the game, the armor had been part of the background, unobtainable.

Here, however, we could collect it.

“Not now. We’ll collect them on our way out. Gather them in one place for now.”

“Yes, sir.”

The knights gathered the armor in a corner of the cavern.

The number of sets was surprisingly small, considering that over ten knights had been lost in the dungeon. But it was a miracle that anything remained at all.

The centipedes in this dungeon tended to devour their prey whole, armor and all. I had seen it countless times in the game.

“Prepare for battle.”

I gave the order as we reached the center of the cavern. The knights gripped their weapons, their expressions tense.

I continued forward, and the sound of skittering claws echoed from the surrounding tunnels.

“Remember the plan. I’m going down. You handle these, and wait here.”

“Understood. Be careful.”

I left Nix, Helga, and the other knights, descending the sloping passage. I could hear the sounds of centipedes bursting through the rock behind me.

While the enemies in this mid-game area provided decent experience, I didn’t want to engage in a forced multi-enemy fight.

In BD4’s combat system, fighting multiple weaker enemies was more difficult than fighting a single powerful boss.

I had wanted to bring Nix, but her area-of-effect spells were indiscriminate, and I didn’t want to be caught in the crossfire. She wasn’t as precise as Minerva.

I continued deeper into the dungeon.

Perhaps due to the reused layout, it was much shorter than the original Rock Centipede dungeon. I reached the boss room quickly.

Just around the corner, a weaker, palette-swapped version of the Rock Centipede, the Stone Centipede, should be waiting—

“What the fuck?”

I stared at the… thing in the boss room, a string of curses escaping my lips.

I rarely lost my composure, but the sight before me was genuinely shocking.

I hadn’t expected this.

The first thing I noticed was the angular, blue body. It was long and narrow, the top covered with a curved panel.

Numerous wheels were attached to the underside.

A smokestack protruded from the rear, and the base supporting the structure was red.

And the face… it was grotesque.

A single, large, round eye that took up a quarter of the face, triangular eyebrows, a rounded, hooked nose, deep nasolabial folds, and a strange, unsettling grin.

Standing where the Stone Centipede should have been, was a blue steam locomotive.

That goddamn Thomas the Tank Engine.

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