The heavy footsteps grew louder, each step vibrating through the stone floor, sending a ripple of unease through the group. The air thickened with a suffocating weight, the dungeon holding its breath as if waiting for something to break the silence.
The man—no longer able to hold on—let out a final, strangled gasp, his fingers slipping from Rika's wrist. She glanced down at him, but there was no time for mourning, no time for regret. His warning still hung in the air, the name of the creature that haunted this forsaken place.
The Rotten Knight.
A low, rasping laugh echoed from the shadows, sending chills down Rei's spine. It wasn't a human laugh, not anymore. It was a twisted mockery of what once might have been.
"I have no humanity, and I must kill," a voice boomed, deep and distorted, carrying through the dark corridor like an ancient curse.
Rika's eyes snapped to the shadows, her heart hammering. "Where is it?" she hissed.
The walls groaned again, the very stone seemingly bending under the weight of something malevolent. A shape began to emerge from the blackness—tall, armored, but not like any knight they had ever seen. This figure was a grotesque mockery, its armor twisted and decayed, corroded with time and madness. It was the Rotten Knight, his presence radiating death, his face hidden behind a rusted helm.
Rei's stomach churned. "This isn't… this isn't possible."
The knight's helm tilted slightly, as if sensing their disbelief, then let out another growl. The air seemed to shift, warping as though it too was afraid to touch the creature's presence. The Rotten Knight didn't walk—it dragged itself forward, each movement slow but deliberate, as if savoring the fear that gripped the group.
"You shouldn't have come," it said, the voice now more a rasping whisper, laced with hunger. "You will die here. Just like the others."
Rei's heart raced. He could feel the oppressive aura of the knight's presence crushing in on him, the fear crawling up his spine. The tales had been vague, but now—now—he was living the nightmare. The knight wasn't just a monster; it was something worse. It was something that remembered, that wanted to make them suffer.
"I told you," the injured man's voice echoed in his mind, faint but still haunting. "He remembers."
"Regulus," Rei whispered, turning to the towering man beside him. "We can't fight this. We should've listened to the warning."
Regulus gave no answer, his gaze locked on the approaching knight. His grip tightened on his axe. "Then we die fighting."
Kajala, his earlier bravado now replaced by a rare seriousness, took a step forward. "We're not getting out of here unless we stop it. Together."
Eryan shifted her stance, readying her sword. "We fight. We fight to survive."
And with that, the group sprang into action. Regulus charged first, the heavy thud of his boots reverberating through the stone as he swung his axe in a wide arc. The Rotten Knight didn't flinch. In a blur of motion, it raised one rotting arm, catching the axe mid-swing with an inhuman strength.
The force of the blow sent Regulus stumbling back, a growl of frustration escaping his lips. "This thing's not human!" he snarled.
The Rotten Knight's voice echoed in the air again, cold and unrelenting: "I have no mercy. I must crush."
It lunged forward with a speed that defied its decaying form, swinging its massive, rusted sword in a sweeping arc that sent the adventurers scattering. The ground shook as the blade cleaved into the stone, sending shards flying in all directions.
Eryan barely dodged the attack, but Rei, who had been too slow, felt the sting of the passing blade cut across his arm. He hissed in pain but gritted his teeth, refusing to fall. "It's like fighting a ghost!" he shouted.
"We need to distract it!" Rika yelled, pulling a dagger from her belt. She threw it at the Rotten Knight's face, but the weapon clattered uselessly off the creature's helmet.
Kajala's fox ears twitched. "I have an idea, but it's risky!" He darted toward the far corner of the dungeon, disappearing into the shadows.
"Where are you going?!" Regulus bellowed, but Kajala's voice drifted back.
"Trust me!"
The Rotten Knight shifted its focus, turning toward Kajala's retreating figure, and that was when Rika took her chance. She dashed forward, aiming to strike at the knight's exposed side. But the knight turned with inhuman speed, raising its sword to deflect her blow.
"Foolish," it whispered, the sound like dry leaves scraping together.
Rei lunged, his sword meeting the knight's with a deafening clash. His arms shook from the sheer strength of the impact, but the Rotten Knight barely seemed to feel it. Instead, it tilted its head, and in a voice barely above a whisper, it said, "I have no soul, and I must burn."
A crackling sound filled the air, and suddenly, the torches along the walls flared to life, blazing with an unnatural intensity. The temperature in the dungeon spiked, the very walls seeming to burn with an ethereal fire.
Kajala's plan was unfolding—but whether it would be enough to stop the Rotten Knight, no one could yet say.