A Core Ship From The Start-Chapter 245 - 195: Rat Plague_1

Chapter 245 -195: Rat Plague_1

Although the situation in the town they had left was already very dire, as they continued along the road, they soon came across a sight that was even more horrifying.

“What… What is this?”

Staring at the piles and piles of big fat pigs on both sides of the road, Bambi asked with surprise and unease.

“Aren’t these pigs human food? Why would they… ”

“Probably because these pigs were infected with the plague, so they had to slaughter them… But then again, leaving them unburied and unburned like this, what is all this about?”

Looking at hundreds of big fat pig bodies on both sides of the road, Duanmu Huai also frowned. Although it was reasonable to kill domestic animals infected by the plague in order to prevent its spread, it was equally important to properly dispose of them afterwards. Leaving them so carelessly at the side of the road was certainly a major source of infection —— and it was quite possible that the plague in the town they had left was spread from these pig corpses.

“Sir Knight!”

Just then, Lorena suddenly screamed, stumbled backwards, and nervously pointed ahead.

“That, that pig seems to be moving!”

“Oh?”

Duanmu Huai looked up in the direction Lorena was pointing. It was close to dusk and it was dark, except for some torchlight and the headlights on Duanmu Huai’s Power Armor. Under the bright white light, they saw a big fat pig not far from them, lying on the ground, beginning to slowly move its body. Its head was slightly rotating, as if it wanted to turn towards Duanmu Huai.

Undead pig? There shouldn’t be such a ridiculous thing in this world.

However, a horrifying scene unfolded at this moment.

Under the beam from the headlights, the pig’s soft, bloated belly suddenly began to wriggle, as if something was squirming inside. The next moment, the pig’s belly ripped open and hundreds of black rats, screaming like a flood, rushed out towards them !!

“Ah—————!!!”

All girls are afraid of rats, and the girls next to Duanmu Huai were no exception. Bambi screamed, turned around, and nestled in Duanmu Huai’s arms. And Lorena and Audrey hurriedly retreated back, their faces pale with fright. Only Ogis remained sitting silently on Duanmu Huai’s shoulder, her expression unchanged.

“Get away!!!”

Duanmu Huai would not allow this swarm of rats to rush over. He roared and strode forward. The Soul Flame exploded from Duanmu Huai, igniting everything around. Very soon, hundreds of writhing rats were swallowed up by the fire and disappeared within it. The bodies of the dead pigs that were also burnt by the flame started to explode one by one. More rats emerged from these corpses, screaming and scattering as if unable to withstand the fiery torment.

“What, what on earth is going on?”

Looking at the mass of black rats fleeing in all directions, Lorena was pale. Although this Missionary Priest was quite powerful, unfortunately, she did not possess wide range attack skills like a Mage did. And clearly, with thousands upon thousands of rats, the Holy Canon in her hand was useless.

“Tsk, this is getting more and more troublesome.”

Duanmu Huai glanced around. He could see that although the rats were keeping their distance from the burning bodies, they were still lingering not far off, making a constant “squeak, squeak” noise. In the dark, their eyes were clearly emitting a red glow, which was quite creepy when grouped together.

“Use this.”

As he spoke, Duanmu Huai took out several grenades from his armor pocket.

“What is it?”

“Incendiary bombs, pull the pin and throw it into the horde of rats.”

While speaking, Duanmu Huai pulled the pin, then forcefully threw the incendiary bomb. Soon, there was an explosive “bang.” Flames erupted from the middle of the horde, instantly engulfing hundreds of rats. But it wasn’t over yet; it seemed like the rats themselves had ignitable properties. The fire spread throughout the horde in an instant, but the rats were not stupid. They quickly ran away from their burning mates, then regrouped.

“Ugh………”

Watching this scene, Lorena paled even more, and Audrey covered her mouth with her hand, as if she were about to vomit.

“It’s strange, they seem to have some kind of intelligence.”

Ogis spoke in her usual calm tone, while Duanmu Huai nodded.

“Not strange, it’s the hive effect…The more there are, the higher the intelligence, especially since these aren’t ordinary rats…”

As Duanmu Huai was speaking, he continued to take out more incendiary bombs and throw them into the mass of rats. Very soon, more and more rats were swallowed up by the flames. It was only when only a ring of fire was left around Duanmu Huai that the remaining rats chose to retreat. They turned around and sped into the forest, disappearing without a trace.

“Alright, let’s continue our journey.”

Only when the rats were gone did Duanmu Huai avert his gaze and spoke.

Later, they continued their journey but the conditions around them remained poor. In the end, Duanmu Huai found a run-down small house by the roadside. He used the Gravity Gloves to construct a dwelling like in Minecraft —— although it still looked like a coffin, it was good enough for him. He could deal with everything else the next day.

“I’ve never seen a scene like that.”

Sitting by the bonfire, Lorena still looked a bit frightened. It was no wonder; being surrounded by thousands of black rats that seemed to share a distinct will was indeed a terrifying experience.

“I remember you weren’t this frightened when you were in Modheim, were you?”

Duanmu Huai looked at Lorena with curiosity. This Priestess Girl had accompanied him to Modheim once and even fought with the Ratmen. He thought Lorena wouldn’t be afraid of Ratmen.

“I’m not worried about Ratmen, but rats are too small…If I’m not careful, they will get inside…”

While speaking, Lorena seemed quite restless, continuously looking around.

“Sir Knight, are you sure it’s safe here? What if when we’re asleep…”

“Don’t worry. I’ve prepared thoroughly. Those rats can’t get in.”

Looking at Lorena behaving like a little girl, Duanmu Huai gave a chuckle. As he had told Lorena, he had fortified the house against the ratmen. Even if they could burrow, they wouldn’t be able to get in.

Of course, he could understand Lorena’s worries. After all, waking up to find a rat on one’s face would indeed be a nightmare.

“Please have some tea.”

Audrey had also prepared dinner by that time. Unlike the others, she served mostly as a maid. Audrey always carried a small bag that looked no larger than a handbag, yet, it held a rich assortment of items, including dinnerware… Realizing what it was, Duanmu Huai could not help but wonder if this was similar to the ‘Space Pouch’ he had read about in online novels.

Truth to be told, Audrey’s culinary skills were quite good. Duanmu Huai, despite having a hefty build, didn’t have particularly high demands for his food. He ate only slightly more than the average person. To him, food was merely a means to get nourishment. He had no issues eating dried food before.

Even though dried food in this world was mostly air-dried meat, but it was not untasty when accompanied with water.

However….. when good food was available, Duanmu Huai wouldn’t refuse.

Just like now.

“Sizzle…”

The steak in the pan on the bonfire was releasing the savoury aroma of grease. Lured by this scent, Bambi and Lorena calmed down. Sitting quietly at her spot, Audrey skillfully sliced the cooked food with her table knives and put it on a plate, firstly serving Duanmu Huai, followed by Bambi, Lorena, and lastly Ogis———who, of course, declined.

She didn’t need to eat.

“It’s surprising that we reach this point.”

As Duanmu Huai forked a piece of steak into his mouth, he began to talk.

“About those rats…”

“I’m sorry, Sir Knight, but I’d rather not talk about that during dinner.”

“Alright.”

Seeing Lorena’s expression, Duanmu Huai shook his head. He couldn’t believe that a missionary priest could be afraid of rats… of course, to be honest, anything, when present in large quantities, could be scary. Even Duanmu Huai found the multitude of rats unnerving.

Cockroaches would be equally disgusting. He often scared others, but that didn’t mean Duanmu Huai himself fear nothing.

After dinner was over, everyone rested by the fire and fell asleep.

The same was for Duanmu Huai.

However, when he opened his eyes again, everything before him had changed suddenly.

“————————— !!!!!!”

The first thing Duanmu Huai saw was a desolate world. Getting up, he saw the rubbles everywhere. His cottage was gone, and there was nobody else. The entire world looked like a post-nuclear wasteland with yellow sand-laden wind storm covering the sky, barely letting any sunshine through.

“Squeak, Squeak!”

Suddenly, a series of screeches sounded. Duanmu Huai halted and looked ahead. Then, the storm gradually subsided, and the yellow sand that had been blocking his sight retreated. A city appeared before Duanmu Huai.

It was a city he had never seen before.

Judging by its architectural style, it appeared to belong to this world, but wasn’t a city Duanmu Huai had ever visited.

However, the city was destroyed.

All the buildings had collapsed, and there were corpses everywhere——all were humans. They had their skin torn off and flesh being eaten, leaving only the bones exposed.

Duanmu Huai didn’t see anything, but he could feel that countless malicious eyes beneath the wreckages of the buildings were staring at him.

He took a step and walked forward.

“Squeak, Squeak… Squeak, Squeak…”

In the empty ruins of the city, the sounds echoed from underground, but Duanmu Huai paid no mind. He simply walked forward step by step until he reached the city center.

At that moment, the entire city started shaking. Next, innumerable rats rushed out, rapidly merging into a giant rat, as big as a giant. It had long twisted horns like a bull’s. It stared coldly at Duanmu Huai, who stared back, unblinking.

The instant their gazes met, the colossal rat trembled fiercely. It let out an enraged howl, but in the next moment, the body that constituted the giant rat broke down instantly, and alongside, the world plunged into darkness once again.

Duanmu Huai opened his eyes and coldly stared at the now-extinguished bonfire.

Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m freewebnøvel.com.

Interesting, a challenge, eh?

With that thought, Duanmu Huai smiled.

“Well then, I accept your challenge.”