A Champion of Rats Chapter 3

Tutorial (2)

The situation was sothing like this.

This sewer used to be the ratlings den, but one day, goblins ca in, killed a bunch of them, and took away their ho.

Of course, there were more details to the story, but this was all I could understand from the shallow and halting speech of these rats.

At first, the rats had also resisted the goblins, but they couldnt compete either in weaponry or in military organization, so theyd naturally lost in the end. The ones before were the remnants who were hiding here.

"Indeed. Right. That's it.

I get it, but did you need three hours to explain that?! Three whole hours!

Three hours? What. Is that?"

Thats right, theres sothing like that Oh, you ignorant bastards.

I was feeling so weak even my words were slurring. Id been ignoring it for a while.

"You. Vagabond. We. Colony. New brother! Receive. Give! In return. Help! Us!"

A colony' referred to a community of rats, and vagabond' was a term for rats who didnt belong to a colony' and road around.

In other words, theyd accept into their community and Id help them in return.

I hesitated for a mont. Because, just looking at the situation, I could see that he was trying to use .

But a group of goblins was out there, and I was reluctant to just leave.

As I pondered, the ratling whod brought here suggested sothing. Oh, by the way, his na was First'. He was the guy whod beco my right-hand man in the future.

"First. al. New brother. Been a long ti. Special al.

When the phrase special al' ca out, the younger and the elderly rats all flinched.

Why? Because you get to be that special al' if youre unlucky.

Thats common sense, isnt it? Ratlings are cunning, cruel, and greedy creatures, and theyre rciless to the weak of their own kind.

They treat their slaves and their prey much worse than humans.

The rats who were on the younger or the elderly side were quickly encircled by their stronger brethren who were in their pri, as if theyd been waiting for such an opportunity.

The younger and elderly rats were the majority, but they didn't dare put up a fight.

Realizing the situation, I cried out in surprise. To have your first al by preying upon your own kind? I couldnt agree to that, at least not now.

What do you fucks think youre doing!

"We. Are. Not. Fuck."

"Huh?"

"Falk. Is. Your. Na. Last ti. Goblin. Fight. I heard."

Fuck it, you bastards

"We. Are. Not. Fuck."

"Ah, really alright, let's say thats true. What are you doing?

Then First' said with an expression full of pity, as if he was looking at an idiot.

Special al. at. Now. Our. Kin. Are. Only at left."

Understanding his aning, I shouted at the ceiling.

"Hey you. You made a real good ga, you fuckheads. How do I log out?

"Log. Out?"

Ugh, making money sure isnt easy. Fuck Hey, forget all that. Can I get sothing else to eat? Sothing a little less disgusting.

"Need. A lot of. Food. Eat. More. Get smarter. Eat less. Weak. Die."

It was true that I needed to eat a lot to get strong and smart.

Rats require a higher amount of food than other races to survive. Not only that, the amount of food also determines their intelligence and physique.

In other words, the more nutrients they get, the stronger and smarter they beco. Maybe that's why rats literally risked their lives for food.

Food' is essential for survival' and evolution'. So First' continued to explain to the importance of special als.

However, I refused again and again. Less than a day had passed after starting the ga. I was reluctant to prey on my own people.

I liked playing hardcore, but there was a limit to everything. And above all, rat at was disgusting.

Another ratling intervened.

"We. Want. Eat. at."

The other bastards all scread in unison that they too wanted to eat at. At this point I wanted to go and ask her'.

Why did you design such a perverted race that eats its own kind? Didnt you have any other options? Like handso elves or muscular barbarians?

Whether they knew what I was thinking or not, these idiots kept shouting for at. They were dancing with excitent. (I an this literally.)

"at! at! at! at! at! at! at! at!"

I was at the limit of my patience. All the stress thatd been building up inside due to various reasons, such as my mothers sickness, my worries about the future, and my sudden employnt, all erupted at once.

Fffffuuuck it, fine! You nasty assholes! Fine! I'll get you at!

Everyone looked at with surprised eyes. I thought Id said sothing wrong, but suddenly they started cheering. Even the young and the elderly rats cheered.

Falk! Falk! Falk! Falk! Falk!

It looks like they're cheering, but why does it sound like theyre swearing at ?'

That was how I happened to beco a at delivery boy for the rats.

As I was about to return to the hole Id co from, First followed .

" too. Go. With you. You. Amazing. at. too. Help. Falk.

I was too exhausted to argue.

Itll be tough. Do as you like. And stop tacking on fuck at the end of your sentences.

"Got it. Falk.

You son-of-a But more importantly. What's your na?"

"? Na. Dont have one."

None? Then, should I make one up for you? Talking feels uncomfortable if theres nothing to call you by."

"? Na?"

He had a surprised look. This was when I ca to know how valued nas were for them.

Umm co to think of it, youre the first one I t. So let's go with First'. Its easy to rember, too. Start with Fur'. End with St'. How about it?"

"Great! I like it! I am. First!"

I got the directions from First' and returned to the sewer.

Surprisingly, this body that could squeeze into and out of narrow gaps was quite useful, and besides that, I also quite liked the eyes and nose that worked smoothly despite the darkness and the stench.

Rats might not be too bad.

I used my sleek and muscled body to shoot through the sewers.

It was a gigantic place, and after wandering around for a while, we arrived at a section subrged in water. First was about to wade into it, but I put my hand on his shoulder to stop him.

No, doing that will make noise that others might hear. See there, those parts of the sewer walls sticking out of the water? We can cross from there.

"Oh! Falk! Smart!"

Shut up, please.

and First started crossing over to the other side by stepping over those outcropped parts of the wall.

When wed almost reached to other side, we slled goblins.

Kahak. I don't like it here. It slls.

"Cant be helped. Need to lie low. First recover here, then take revenge.

"I'm sleepy. Why do we need two to patrol?

Stop complaining! Just before. One of ours got attacked. Search has stopped. We move in twos till we catch the culprit. Keep patrolling.

I guessed it was about . But what bothered more was that the goblins were more erudite than the rats. My god. Were we a race inferior to even the goblins?

"at. Goblin at. Good. Chewy.

Can we take them?

"Oooh! Great! Goblin. Good! Strong but good! Two. Eat to the full!"

I leaned further and observed the two goblins patrolling.

The lack of torches suggests that they had natural night vision, but the conversation made it clear that they werent used to the sll of the sewers. Above all, they were poorly ard and hadnt noticed us.

In other words, they were vulnerable.

There was a sudden sense of tension thrumming in my veins. I knew it was a ga, but I was feeling very nervous at the thought of the upcoming fight. This ga was too well-crafted.

For a mont, I considered simply retreating, but then I rembered that I wasn't just playing for fun. I was doing this for money.

I might have to test how the ga system would react if I killed them. And more than anything, First's eyes filled with expectations were bothering . His eyes were shining far too brightly for an NPC.

It's really, needlessly high-quality.'

I passed the club to First. Because I rembered how hard itd been to catch the goblin with it. In th end, n are made to wield blades.

"Ill count one, two, three. On three, we attack.

"Great. One, two, three But. Whats count an?

Fffuuuck

I sighed and charged at the back of the goblins. Fortunately, First followed right behind .

Susurr-

I moved swiftly like the wind and plunged my dagger into one goblin's shoulder. The green-skinned shorty understood the situation only after hed been stabbed.

The goblin scread in pain, but unfortunately it wasn't a fatal wound.

He turned and saw . Those goat-like eyes gave goosebumps.

I muttered to myself.

This is a ga. This is a ga. It's a really fucking well-made ga.'

I couldn't finish him in one shot, so I had to tangle him from up close. Unfortunately, he was stronger than .

He knocked over and climbed on top of .

I tried to ask First for help, but he was occupied with the other goblin.

Useless bastard! I shouldve taken the club!'

The goblin climbed on top of and pulled out the dagger stuck in his shoulder. His grin was dripping with malice.

Was it instinct? The mont the goblin raised the dagger, I surged up and bit his neck with my snout.

My sharp fangs pierced flesh and cut through bone.

Blood!'

The goblin's green blood flowed naturally through my fangs and into my mouth. I mightve gone crazy, but the taste of that blood was amazing!

Just a single sip of that indescribable sweet and salty taste filled with a surge of energy like Id just downed a bottle of energy drink, and I unconsciously bit down harder with my snout.

Then, the neck bones completely snapped, and all strength drained out of the goblin's body.

It was my victory.

Feeling excited after getting a taste of goblin blood, I imdiately jumped at the second goblin that First was dealing with.

He was so distracted with his own fight with First that his side was completely open. My dagger stabbed into his earhole.

Sothing soft yet dense broke inside.

And the goblin trembled and collapsed.

I involuntarily licked the dagger. The sweet and salty taste of victory rode down my tongue and lit my brain on fire.

This ga I loved it!

Editor's Notes:

None for this chapter.