Chapter 28
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From the very first moment she felt hungry, Cynthia had suspected that this wretched fate would torment her once again. And sure enough, when they reached the kitchen entrance following the map, it was swarming with Ghost Rats, all scurrying about.
Squeak, squeak!
Kkkkrrt! Squeak!
There were about five or six of them. With that many, it wouldn’t take long for them to bite the protagonist’s head and trigger an instant death scene.
But Cynthia didn’t hesitate. She immediately opened her inventory and hurled the rat bait toward the horde that darted at her, ready to bite her flesh the moment they saw her.
“Eat up!”
Squeak squeak squeak!
No matter how disgusting these creatures were—devouring human flesh like a swarm of locusts—in the end, their brains were no better than mere animals. Instead of the 163cm hunk of meat right in front of them, they flocked to the round lump of bait like it was the only thing that mattered.
While the rats, mesmerized by the bait, buried their heads and devoured it, Cynthia signaled to Segleninde—who was waiting with his hand on his sword—to come over. As he approached with a puzzled look, a status message cheerfully popped up.
From now on, all Ghost Rats on the First Floor will obey your commands.
“Attention!”
Wondering if she could really do in real life what she’d only seen in the game, Cynthia gave the order. Just as the rats finished eating, they all lined up in a row and stood on their hind legs.
Spotted Ghost Rats with long noses sniffed hard at the air, staring at Cynthia with round red eyes. At least on the first floor, she would be safe from these monsters now, and that was a relief.
“Roll!”
Skit skit skit!
At Cynthia’s command, the Ghost Rats all rolled across the floor in unison. Segleninde’s eyes widened in surprise. Cynthia, emboldened, gave the next order.
“Down!”
Splat!
“Handstand!”
Skit skit!
With every word, the rats performed the command, impressing even Cynthia, who had just mocked them for being dumb animals. When they finally formed a pyramid, Segleninde, who’d been watching with fascination, even applauded.
“Amazing. A noble lady who can tame rats.”
“Cut the sarcasm.”
“I’m complimenting you. Don’t twist my words.”
“Then don’t make them easy to twist.”
Gritting her teeth, Cynthia shot back. Then, she commanded the rats—still stacked in a pyramid—to scatter. As the Ghost Rats collapsed in a heap, a message appeared before her eyes.
Effect: On all floors except the first, Ghost Rat attacks against you are weakened. Condition: Issue three or more commands to the Ghost Rats
The rats, now back to their original positions, lowered their heads to Cynthia as if paying respect to their new boss. Pleased with their attitude, Cynthia came up with a good idea.
“Follow me!”
Squeak squeak squeak!
With Cynthia’s bold command, the Ghost Rats flocked after her.
Segleninde, clearly impressed by the spectacle, finally took his hand off his sword and brought up the rear of the rat parade. Cynthia, resisting the urge to ask if he was a rat too, led the way confidently into the kitchen.
“Nobody’s here?”
Entering the kitchen and glancing around warily, Cynthia looked up with a puzzled expression. Segleninde, who had crouched low behind her, straightened up.
“Who are you looking for?”
“There are always… um, cooks in this kitchen. They all look exactly the same. Maybe they’re brothers.”
“Oh, those guys? I actually remember them. They’re rather friendly fellows. They’re not always in the kitchen, they sometimes go outside to gather ingredients.”
Once again, Cynthia was struck by the thought, ‘Right, he really is inhuman.’
It takes an inhuman mind to call creatures who butcher humans for ingredients ‘friendly fellows’.
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