Chapter 34: 34. Why Are You Here?
The center had been breached for the moment.
My companions came charging through the opening with desperate cries.
As though even their voices were too precious to waste, they simply gritted their teeth and ran.
The orcs rushed at us from every direction, trying to encircle our group as we broke through at a single point.
The young lady drove her shield beneath an orc’s jaw and shoved with all her might, while a knight slashed at the ankle of the fallen orc.
Crack!
Magna swung Zenin around and kicked the orcs in the groin, driving them back.
Crunch!
"Grrork!?!"
"What are you doing? Use magic!"
"Fire Ball!!!!"
Boom!
Only after forcing them back again and again did we finally reach the edge of the forest.
Of course, the fighting was anything but quiet.
Orcs emerged from between the trees, alongside kobolds with their backs grotesquely swollen.
The kobolds, seeming to wear vile smiles, began loading their crossbows.
It would have been nice if they had just rushed us, but now we had to worry about ranged attacks too.
If even one person got injured here, we were done for.
I shouted at the knights.
"Shields! Do you have shields?"
"Yes!"
"Get your shields out and just follow me!"
The knights sheathed their long swords and drew short swords and shields.
At the moment, Zenin’s magic was our only means of ranged attack.
"Magna! Protect Zenin, and force him to drink mana potions if you have to!"
"Oh!"
Magna pulled out a blue potion and shoved it into Zenin’s mouth.
"Mmphh?!"
Since he was dangling from her, potion sprayed from Zenin’s nose and mouth, but even with tears streaming down his face, he diligently cast magic.
"Wind Cutter—urk! Gulp!"
Whoosh!
Seeing the kobolds’ heads severed in an instant, Magna grinned.
"Excellent, mutt!"
I nodded and charged forward.
"Hey! Jang Ryu-o—"
Thwack!
"Urgh!"
The young lady’s shout was cut off by an incoming arrow.
I invested every remaining point into Agility and focused.
As I circulated my qi, warmth flooded my body and my field of vision widened.
Roots, stones, fallen leaves, thorns, vines—I didn’t need to worry about any of them.
I could use even those as footholds.
An orc stood behind a tree, unable to conceal its entire body.
It raised its club to intercept me as I flew toward it.
Its waist twisted to swing, its armpit opened as it put strength into the blow, and its shoulder and wrist adjusted the angle.
I could even see the creases in the orc’s palm as it tightened its grip.
A strike filled with the intent to turn a person into a chunk of meat.
As if convinced that a human suspended in midair could never evade it, the blow came down at me.
Whether it was the effect of my Agility or my training, I could see its trajectory far too easily.
When I changed direction in midair, the club tore through empty space.
I stabbed the soft flesh visible inside the orc’s open mouth and slashed sideways.
Squelch!
I put strength into the blade, split the orc’s cheek, and pulled my sword free.
Slash!
The attack had happened in an instant, and my body was still airborne.
Thinking that slowing down meant death, I dealt with every orc I encountered in a single strike.
Like a bee drawing circles in the air, I carved through enemies around my companions.
The orcs had even forgotten their berserk state, faltering in confusion.
Whizz!
I dodged the incoming arrows with the barest movements.
For some reason, I could hear the sound of arrows flying toward me exceptionally well.
Whoosh!
Something seemed to brush my ear, but since I felt no pain, it must have only been the wind.
I tore through the trees, slaughtering everything in my path...
"Jang Ryu-o has lost his mind!!"
Thud! Thud!
"Urgh! We can’t lose either!! Kyahahaha!!!"
"Hahahahaha!"
"Grrgh! Fire Ball!!"
As the blocked path ahead gradually opened up, a hopeful madness gleamed in my companions’ eyes.
Was this what it felt like to fly?
Blood seeped from my overworked, torn hands and mixed with sweat, forming bloody foam around the hilt...
Swish!
Splat!
It didn’t hurt or sting. If anything, the sword felt more natural in my hand.
[LV.8 Basic Swordsmanship]
As I cut down enemies in a state of selflessness, the fatigue in both my body and mind began to fade.
My body relaxed, and because I exerted force only where it was needed, my sword path felt more fluid.
"We’re almost at the portal!!"
I threw an oil barrel behind my companions, and Magna aimed Zenin at it.
Perhaps Zenin’s concentration was at its limit; he immediately grasped the intention and cast his spell.
Boom!
Ding!
[Level Up!]
Watching the orcs get swallowed by the blaze, we stepped into the portal.
Only the ninth floor now. We had to do this two more times.
My head felt hot, and a hollow laugh escaped me.
Still...
It’s doable.
Was this adrenaline? We could all die if we slipped up, yet I couldn’t stop smiling.
Maybe instinct was making me smile so I could keep the momentum going...
And so we ran like moths into a flame.
**
Twisted elbows, heads dripping blood, armor dented all over, and scratches covering their bodies.
My companions looked terrible after that grueling march.
The fortunate part was...
"The final floor..."
That the eyes visible through their swollen, bruised eyelids were still alive.
You know those times, don’t you? When you are exhausted enough to collapse, yet your limbs still move.
The eyes of people so addicted to hope that they had forgotten their pain.
Everyone stood there in a wretched state, their eyes shining as they waited for my orders.
Being someone others could rely on didn’t feel bad.
Just as we forced down potions that barely went down and prepared to enter the forest...
Creak! Crackle! Creak!
A skin-crawling sound came from the edge of the woods.
It sounded like something being forcibly stretched and pulled.
The source of the sound shoved trees aside, steadily announcing its presence.
Before our eyes, an orc was changing color and growing larger.
Despair drove the madness from my companions’ eyes.
"What... is that...?"
"H-Hahahaha! No... nooo!"
"Hoo..."
A gigantic orc, its body crimson and covered in black tattoos.
An ominous gleam passed through its savage golden eyes as it looked down at us.
For some reason, it was not moving at all, but the real problem was...
"Hi~ Did you say your name was Jang Ryu-o?! What exactly are you? Hm?"
A pink-haired girl swung her legs atop the orc’s shoulder.
As if the orc were completely under her control, she patted its cheek with her palm.
"Hmm, this thing is pretty useful, isn’t it?"
"..."
When I stayed silent, the pink-haired girl’s eyes curved softly.
"Hehe... It’s an Orc Hero! Its weak points are... its neck and heart? Same as a normal orc!"
The huge orc pointed at its own face and heart.
At the hopeless sight, one apprentice knight fell to his knees and laughed emptily.
Thud!
"Hehehehe... We’re all dead..."
"Kyahahahaha! It does look scary! If my master finds out I used it, she’ll blow her top... Well, I’ll just avoid her for a few days! And then—"
I shouted to everyone.
"Run—"
"Not happening!"
At that moment, the Orc Hero drew the enormous hammer at its waist and roared.
"Ooooooooooh!"
Rumble...
"Aah!"
My head shook, and the strength drained slightly from my legs.
The pink-haired girl had vanished without anyone noticing.
Realizing the person on its shoulder was gone, the Orc Hero charged at us.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
If I abandoned everyone and ran alone...
I erased that weak thought and shouted.
"Just fight!!!!"
As I charged the orc, it raised its massive hammer high.
I could hear every terrifying sound of its muscles straining.
Creak! Whoosh!
I threw myself to the side with every ounce of strength I had, and earth blasted from the ground, covering my whole body.
Kablooom! Rattle!
I couldn’t even imagine deflecting that.
If that hit me, wouldn’t I get mixed with the dirt and turn into modeling clay?
Despite qi coursing through my entire body, a chill ran down my spine.
"Fire Ball!!!"
Boom!!!
As expected, Zenin’s magic did not even leave a scratch.
When the flames that had struck its face directly died down, the Orc Hero looked at Zenin.
"Eeeek!"
Taking advantage of its diverted gaze, I shouted at my companions.
"Magna! Young lady, take its right leg! Knights, its left leg!"
It was a disjointed explanation, but my companions understood at once and charged.
If we tried to fight while protecting the mage, we would accomplish nothing and die anyway.
The orc swung its leg as if kicking garbage off the roadside.
"Kid!!!!"
"Hup!"
Magna grabbed the young lady’s back and used divine power, but...
Crunch!
"Gah!!"
Their strength was far too insignificant.
They were sent flying together with their crushed shields, and the orc showed no sign of caring.
I ran around the orc with all my strength.
"Grrr!"
Kablooom! Boom! Thud!
It was like a game of whack-a-mole.
Every time the gale swept past, my heart dropped, but I circled it and gradually closed the distance.
I put my last remaining point into Strength and stabbed its Achilles tendon.
Stab!
"Grrk!"
Its flesh was so tough that the sword only went in an inch, but...
Swish!
I twisted my wrist and drove the Bug Sword in.
"Grrrrraaaah!"
I saw hope. I widened the distance again, moving beyond the reach of the hand trying to grab me.
Then I leapt high once more...
"Gnh!"
Whoooosh!
Huh?
As if all its previous hammer swings had been a joke, the hammer came crashing down over my head at incredible speed.
I extended my sword toward the hammer and dug my fingers into its wrist, forcibly activating the Bug Sword.
Clangclangclang!
The hammer slowed down, but...
I’m screwed...
Wham!
HP: 220/790
"Guh!"
Intercepted in midair, I was slammed into the ground at tremendous speed.
The pain was more bearable than I expected, though I couldn’t help the air bursting from my lungs.
The real problem was...
Swoosh!
"You’ve got to be kidding me!"
For the first time, it wasn’t my head but my torso that had sunk into the ground.
There was definitely pitch-black darkness beneath this...
Just as my face was about to slip into the earth as well, I thrashed wildly.
Trusting in the movement techniques I had used until now, I kicked my legs like a duck swimming in a lake.
As I clawed at the ground with my nails and struggled disgracefully...
Boing! Whoooooosh!
Ding!
[Transmigrant Title Activated! Strength +3]
What?
In an instant, I had been launched into the sky and was free-falling.
What the hell is this...?
I forcibly swallowed the scream trying to escape and looked down.
The wind dried out my eyes until they hurt, but I opened them as wide as I could.
I could faintly see the crown of the Orc Hero’s head, which thought it had dealt with me.
This body was too good to be afraid of the impact from falling.
The stat I had just received was Strength. I doubted a better opportunity would come.
I kicked empty air.
My falling speed increased, and my eyes ached even more.
So I closed them, recalling my master’s teachings again and again.
[There are many things you can use besides your eyes.]
The wind wrapping around my body was so violent that it was hard to tell.
My eyes were closed, icy wind slashed at my entire body, my tongue was parched, my ears were muffled, and as for my nose, what was there even to say?
And yet, somehow, I could sense the Orc Hero. I could see its image.
Sensing something unusual from above its head, the Orc Hero looked up.
I thought I was fast enough, but the Orc Hero twisted its body slightly in an instant.
Aiming for the crown of its head, I instead drove my sword into the back of its neck...
Squelch! Riiiip! Splaaat!
"Grrrrraaaaaaaaaah!!"
I gripped the hilt tightly and used the momentum of my fall to split straight through its back and down to its legs.
Thud!
"Ghk!"
HP: 90/790
I hit the ground, but my speed had slowed considerably, so I was relatively fine.
Though I landed feet-first, not a single bone was broken.
Long live the slime body.
I climbed onto the orc’s back as it fell forward and stabbed the Bug Sword into the wound.
Swish! Scrape! Splurt!
The blade dug into flesh, tore apart dense muscle, and shattered bone.
"Grrrraaaagh!!!!!"
Swish!
I drove the sword once more into the gaps between the shattered bones and activated the Bug Sword.
Its final death cry was heard no more, and then...
Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!
[Level Up!][Level Up!][Level Up!][Level Up!]
[LV.9 Basic Swordsmanship]
Before I could even rejoice at the sense of accomplishment, something pulled me out of the Orc Hero’s body.
Splat!
"Huh? What... hey..."
A fist-sized orb touching my solar plexus gradually floated upward.
I was pulled out along with the orb.
For now... I put it in my inventory.
An essence? You had to take what you could get.
I immediately flopped down on top of the Orc Hero’s back.
Splat!
Blood splashed, filling the air with a metallic stench, but...
"We... won..."
"Jang Ryu-oooo!!! In front of you! Right in front!"
Before I could savor the joy of victory, a shadow fell over my face.
"What are you, seriously? Isn’t this only your second time in a dungeon? Arin’s husband? Her disciple? Where did you come from? Were you born in the Eastern Continent? Outside? The Empire? Where?"
The shadow belonged to the pink-haired girl, who knew a lot and was curious about even more.
Ha... She hadn’t left. Of course she hadn’t...
The pink-haired girl stared at me with gleaming eyes.
"I like you. I like you so much. I have to have you."
"Get... lost..."
The moment I said that...
Splaaat!
"...?!?!?!?!!"
The pink-haired girl’s torso exploded into chunks of meat.
My thoughts kept freezing in the face of this insane situation.
That’s not what I meant when I told her to get lost...
No, why did things keep turning out like this?
Another enemy? A second phase? Had the thirtieth day already arrived?
When I barely managed to turn my head and look to the side...
"..."
Cheon Hwayeong was staring at me with a terrifying expression.
Why was she here? I seriously had no idea.
"..."
"..."
"You...?"
"...Haa..."
Cheon Hwayeong pressed a hand to her brow as though she had a headache.
It felt as though all the tension had suddenly drained out of her.
Frowning, Cheon Hwayeong approached and lifted me into her arms.
Rustle.
"How... did you know...?"
"...Hoo... What did you do to me?"
"???"
"Enough. Go to sleep."
Tap!
Huh?
Please... Someone explain this to me...
I don’t know anyth—
"Zzz..."
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