As I broke my stealth and joined Yeon-su, I recalled what she had said during the operation meeting.
“Il-wol, the reason I think highly of you is your talent as a supporter.”
“······.”
Yeon-su had seen me fight the black monsters firsthand and had also heard about my exploits in the shelter.
“Il-wol, you may seem like a versatile hexagon at first glance, but you have some shortcomings that need improvement in your attacks.”
“Just…”
“Time. You seem to need time to gather strength for a strong attack. Is that wrong? Am I mistaken?”
‘Bingo.’
It was an undeniable fact, and I had been feeling it too.
The moment I concentrate to cut through space may seem dangerous to Yeon-su, who watches me slice time in pieces for a whole second.
Even [Flame Shot] adds in the time it takes to compress magic power.
‘When you think about it, I am the epitome of imperfection.’
The instability of not being able to step into the void myself still lingered…
Moreover, to unleash my offensive power, I had relied on the help of Irmana and the spirit ‘Ran.’
The time Yeon-su mentioned likely included the time it takes to set up those conditions.
“Clap, Clap, Clap.”
“You must have worked hard to put controls like restraints and provocations in place to overcome it. You probably deployed other dazzling skills as well. Moreover, if you even use those minions of unknown identity you command, most monsters would get caught in your design.”
“Clap, Clap, Clap.”
“I’m not trying to teach you. I want to say that those abilities are what I need. We need your many abilities and adaptability to perfectly cover those shortcomings. You fill in the gaps that Kang Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol Hunter cannot.”
‘Easier said than done.’
Recalling my memory of having to adapt to others’ rhythms in my previous life as a guide, it was no easy job.
I had to keep our morale up, using abilities at the right time to help team members and save them in crises.
Expanding my view and thoroughly checking each variable on the battlefield is the high-level position of a supporter.
Seeing that I didn’t respond, Yeon-su continued.
“Which is more efficient at this moment: us stalling for time while you attack or you helping us with that amazing support ability of yours?”
“······.”
Had it not been for the note on ‘the present moment,’ I might have pondered over it a bit longer.
Honestly, I’m confident my attack is stronger than Yeon-su’s, if not more than Cha Mu-yeol’s.
[Understood.]
As I scrawled a crooked response in my notebook, Cha Mu-yeol and the barrier mages, who were watching silently, gasped and looked at me.
“What, what is it? Is this guy really a monster? I heard there are transcendent beings who transform into monsters, but no way?”
“Not that.”
Yeon-su waved her hand and smiled at me gently, a memory from before we set off.
“Il-wol!!”
Even before Yeon-su signaled, I cast restraints again on the Orc Battle Commander and unleashed Shadow Breath.
“Urrrghhh!! Hahaha!!”
Of course, the guy laughed it off as if it was nothing, but I was sure that laughter wouldn’t last long.
We had five minutes.
If we couldn’t kill him by then, we had to retreat without looking back.
*
What would happen when three awakened beings went all-out in a joint attack, far beyond S-Class?
“Cough! Hack!!”
In just three minutes, we had turned the Orc Battle Commander into a punching bag.
Of course, we didn’t just let them attack, but Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol were sturdy enough to hold their ground.
Then,
Boom!!
An enormous lightning bolt struck from the sky and buried the Orc Battle Commander deep into the ground.
He must have been so focused on fighting us that he didn’t even notice the attack from the ‘White Dragon.’
It was a power that tore through dimensions and appeared out of nowhere.
‘The White Dragon… Truly an envious beast.’
[······?]
As I gazed adoringly at the White Dragon, it tried to hide its face with its bony wings. But it was all too clear.
‘Hehehe, you’re next on my list.’
I couldn’t help but wonder what it would look like if the White Dragon’s stylish bones and wings merged.
Returning to the fight, the Orc was able to return to the ground without issue after being hit by the White Dragon’s attack, and even counter-attacked as he emerged.
“Ugh?!”
Cha Mu-yeol skillfully dodged the club swung by the Orc, but he got hit head-on by a follow-up body slam and was sent flying far away.
The impact must have broken a few bones.
Fortunately, Cha Mu-yeol stood up as if it was no big deal, but the blood trickling from his mouth indicated he had sustained serious internal injuries.
‘Is this where the real game begins? That monster.’
He certainly hadn’t been taking our attacks lightly, and it was clear he had been underestimating us.
‘Could it be… he realized the limits of the barrier mages? Knowing that merely holding out means victory—’
“Hahaha!!”
While I was growing wary of him, the Orc just kept laughing, not saying anything else.
But he wasn’t about to stay still.
Puffing up—
The muscles of his arms and chest began swelling like freshly butchered beef.
‘I have to attack, but… I can’t.’
For some reason, I felt immense pressure that if I attacked now, my head would be smashed.
‘This isn’t just Blood Frenzy. Is it another ability?’
The second Orc Battle Commander I faced was an awakened being with extreme physical prowess.
Of course, most of the Orc species were like that, but this guy’s muscle density was off the charts.
Boom!!!
If you could see how strong he was, every time he slammed down, the distant shelter shook visibly.
‘Stop slamming down. Just when I got settled, it’s tipping now.’
Usually, one would expect a strong physique to come with slower agility and movement speed.
He was no exception to that rule, but the problem was his endurance and defense were abysmally high.
Despite Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol hitting him perfectly dozens of times, he kept swinging his arms stubbornly, trying to land a lucky punch, capable of stripping flesh and shattering bones with a mere brush. We were steadily getting pushed back instead.
Time kept ticking away.
Blood was drying up as our stamina dwindled.
The only reason the Orc was taking significant damage was that I was sneaking in skills here and there to spice things up.
‘That’s what’s making it hard for me to approach.’
Whoosh—
‘What kind of fist is like a typhoon?’
What I thought was merely him charging while swinging his fists was now different; a strange pattern had appeared on his forehead.
It was no doubt boosting his combat power to an insane degree.
– Roooaaar!!
What else can he show me? He clenched his fists and smashed them into the ground.
As if an earthquake had happened, the ground split apart and swallowed up dozens of the Orc skeletons I had laid down as distractions.
The Orc Skeleton ‘Krabe,’ who was blocking the tide of Orcs when the battle began, had expressed his intent to join, but I shook my head.
‘Is the land helping the Orcs? It seemed almost alive.’
Nature’s hostility.
Turning my head to the side, I spotted two Ogres, previously bound by barrier mages, facing each other with their hands pressed together, pouring magic power into each other.
It hadn’t even been five minutes, and they were free of the barrier.
‘Are you kidding me? Ogres can pull off such teamwork?’
“Watch out!!”
“Clap, Clap, Clap!!”
Yeon-su’s warning.
Thinking that the Orc Battle Commander would strike while confused, I braced myself.
‘What?!’
Unexpectedly, it veered to the right, avoiding us, and headed toward the shelter instead.
Was it trying to shake up our formation?
[Blink]
‘Where the hell are you going, you damned guy!’
In an instant, I minimized the distance and launched black fire pillars in the path he was trying to take while firing [Flame Shot] consecutively, forcing the Orc to halt.
While the sheer power of the flames rendered him momentarily paralyzed, the status ailment ‘Burn’ was deadly for a melee warrior prioritizing durability and defense, which made him step back.
And just when he seemed to enter a dilemma to make a choice.
*CRUSH!*
*SCRAPE!*
The final killer moves of Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol in [Divine Transformation] hit him right, cleanly severing one of his arms.
However, in that moment, he retaliated with his remaining arm against Cha Mu-yeol and Kang Yeon-su.
SMACK—
Cha Mu-yeol’s armor burst like a mirror shattering, and his abdomen caved in as he took a solid hit.
“Cough!”
Yeon-su, too, seemed to have been struck on the chin and tumbled away, landing some distance back.
‘Was it just an arm?’
Depending on how you look at it, it could be considered a big achievement, but for me, it was regrettable.
‘There should have been a time when I followed Yeon-su’s opinion. Well, it’s fine.’
At this point, just being with them would be considered an honor.
If I allowed myself to get too greedy and stepped forward, I felt I would lose more than I’d gain.
Human relationships are delicate matters.
Every little action I took could burden Yeon-hee, so I had to be cautious.
I quickly collected the Orc’s severed arm and prepared to check on Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol when the Orc screamed at me, voice strained.
– You!! Why are you helping humans?! They are the cursed humans who have messed up our world! Don’t interfere!
The Orc Battle Commander, who had kept silent, now lamented to me.
‘What kind of nonsense is this all of a sudden?’
It was absurd.
What did it matter who I helped?
Is there some sort of monster solidarity?
– The humans living in this world have spread a plague to our world! The continent we lived in has become uninhabitable!
SDVIMVFoanVzY1YwSVhjamMzUkt1VHoxeWxtWjBsanEvNWdSaDFpSWs1dEtFYlg4dWR6dG1vbVZnZGlmTGNjWQ
This was a twist that piqued my interest.
A plague?
‘What? No, what are you talking about?! Have you been brainwashed by the Blue-eyed Organization? I don’t even know where you live, how can I…’
Suddenly, lightning struck my head.
I recalled the people who had boldly said they would connect to the association and visit the Blue-eyed Organization.
‘It’s not a direct pathway to the demon realm, as Azraelon said… it must be in some border area between the demon realm and the intermediate zone. Could it be?’
If the time flow of different dimensions and our world is different, and the absurd plan of the Blue-eyed Organization’s raid led to a calamity in the once peaceful world of Orcs…
‘Hah—my imagination is getting carried away. But it’s not impossible either. The association people eventually returned as monsters…’
I felt that someday, I would have to cross that passage and uncover the truth.
Of course, that would be much later in the future—
Whoosh—
Our upright Orc teacher threw me some incomprehensible words and suddenly made a sneak attack.
*CRRACK!!!*
Without activating the absolute evasion skill [Bran], I utilized my magic barrier to block the attack, leaving me in a position not unlike Cha Mu-yeol’s.
After blocking the assault, I felt a sense of weightlessness for a moment.
Boom!
I crashed into an unnamed structure.
The power was so overwhelming that I couldn’t even redirect my trajectory.
‘Ugh… I’m in trouble. That damned guy truly has strength to spare.’
This was the highest level that a life form born to kill could achieve through extreme training.
Then how about the Orc Legion Commander?
‘Those guys must be viewed as divine beings who have already transcended the Orc race. But at the end of the day, we failed.’
With Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol successfully pushing back the Orc Battle Commander, that was where our success ended.
Four Orc Warriors and two Ogres joining the fight.
[Meteors]
“Creak?!”
I had to use all my remaining magic power and present my first battle-ending meteor upon them.
[Blink]
[High-speed Flight]
Tying Yeon-su and Cha Mu-yeol together with shadow threads, as we retreated alongside the ‘White Dragon,’ Yeon-su spoke in a calm voice.
“Il-wol… seeing the falling stars… makes me think this world is really at an end.”
“······.”
I didn’t know why the meteor I summoned made her feel that way, but somehow I felt I understood her heart.
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