For some reason, I had a feeling she would make that choice, so I was preparing [Contaminated Breath] again.
Contaminated Breath Lv.4
– Spreads contaminated breath with poison/paralysis effects in a radius of 39m around the caster.
– When poisoned, maximum health decreases by 0.02% each second.
– The longer the exposure time, the stronger the effect.
– You can choose either poison or paralysis effect.
It was an open space, but having used it daily while completing Irmana’s quests, I was able to somewhat control the direction it spread.
Without delay, I unleashed the breath towards the mass of them. Although it was blocked by the elf, using both poison and paralysis would surely have a significant effect on those guys.
Hmm…
While the other hunters shrank like dots, for some reason, those guys weren’t chasing the fleeing hunters but merely watching the comrades coming out of the gate with vacant eyes.
“Kuh! Dirty humans.”
“Let’s skin them.”
“The females smell delicious.”
“The boss has no orders. We wait.”
They were talking amongst themselves without a care about us. Some even showed us their grotesque things and urinated in our direction.
“Hey!! Damn!!”
‘Oh crap. Almost threw it on impulse.’
Luckily, Helen hurriedly blocked Yeon-hee’s line of sight. Thanks, Helen.
‘It’s annoying that they’re treating us like total idiots, but something else is more concerning.’
The fact that they were waiting for someone was definitely a bad sign.
‘Damn… It’s the same pattern as last time. The one walking out last has to be higher than an orc warrior. We’re in real trouble here.’
If it’s a rank that can command orc warriors, it must be that guy who was a key force during the Orc Legion Commander’s invasion of Seoul.
Why we had to encounter an orc warrior in a D-rank dungeon, and what benefit does the blue-eyed deity get from summoning these guys to this world, was absurd enough to almost seem amusing.
Creeping-
– You have poisoned the orc warrior, dealing damage.
– You have gained a small amount of experience!
Even occasionally poisoning a lizardman while roaming dungeons gave no experience, but it seemed that this bunch had a much higher rank.
“Krauk? Poison… Humans used poison.”
“Coward. Humans are indeed cowards. Just like elves. Must kill.”
“Poison is weak. We wait. Boss.”
“I did not duel with him. Not my boss.”
“My boss is stronger than you. You are weaker than me. Acknowledge my boss.”
“Let’s fight.”
Boom―!!
Smash!!
Watching the sudden fight between two orc warriors, our party couldn’t hide their astonishment.
‘What the hell. These idiots.’
I was used to the sight and just prepared the bomb without a care.
They were clearly looking down on us. One-on-one, they could easily ignore us, especially with their numbers being so small. But their inability to gauge the opponent’s strength meant they were still immature.
Still, there were not a single positive factor in the current situation.
‘These guys are different from the Tooth Monster. They possess intelligence. It won’t be easy for them to perform a suicide charge like last time.’
Orc High-Rank Warrior. Now leading a thousand-strong army, I suppose it’s time to call them Orc Thousand Commander, but generally, they would be evaluated at Boss Goblin level.
A middle-ranking monster that would clearly command low-ranking warriors. If they were that type, they wouldn’t be engaging in such foolishness.
There wouldn’t be any time to gauge my strength while keeping an eye on me and Noh Ha-yoon.
“Are we really going to fight?”
Not fleeing, the Helen combo returned to our side, looking pitifully at us with teary eyes.
‘If we run away now, we’d be marked and caught soon. Being by our side is the only way you have to survive.’
“Uwoooo―!!”
Now their numbers had easily surpassed 500. The concept of cutting them down beforehand was out the window.
‘Gather a bit more. When they’re all together, I’ll bombard them.’
Creak- Creak-
I quickly began crafting skeleton bombs from the lizardman’s bones I took from my inventory while silently watching the ones who were currently fighting for rank.
‘… They look like they’re having fun.’
They were pure and simply enjoying themselves. Was it the thrill of conquering new land? Or was it the anticipation of torturing and killing the humans they so despised?
These were feelings I hadn’t truly felt when I was human. Is it an ability gained from becoming a monster? Quite fascinating.
“Bow down.”
“Strong. I lost. I submit.”
The ones who had just been fighting had evidently had a significant gap in skill and quickly settled the fight.
I wished one of them would get injured during the bout, but they don’t use mana when they duel to settle ranks. So they wouldn’t sustain injuries severe enough to affect their ability to fight.
Standing at 2 meters tall and muscular. They looked a bit smaller than lizardmen, but with tremendous power and speed emanating from their large frames.
They had only one skill, [Warrior’s Roar], but the buff to their strength combined with their racial traits created an immensely powerful warrior.
When strength exceeds a certain level, they gain additional effects from their racial trait.
It could be defense, agility, or even another special ability. Just by physical capabilities alone, they were among the stronger D-rank monsters.
‘Even if I hit them with two bombs at once, there’s no way I’d wipe them out completely. They’re too sturdy.’
They might even be able to take a hit to the head and endure, given those filthy muscle-heads had brains made of muscle too.
The number of orcs had surpassed 700. It was about time to bring out the bombs.
Now it was truly just the party of me, Noh Ha-yoon, and our summoned creatures left.
My plan was straightforward: as soon as the Orc High-Rank Warrior appeared, I would throw all the bombs I had and run.
That would surely draw aggro towards me, allowing me to escape while maintaining a suitable distance, buying us time to secure our safety as long as possible.
Ideally, if I could behead the commander with my stealth abilities, that would be the best.
‘That’s going to be tough. The Tooth Monster and my physical capabilities should be about the same. First, let’s see how much damage I can do with one Tooth Bomb.’
I wished it was some grand strategy, but it felt futile against such a power gap.
‘It’s a shame to use the bomb made from Tooth Monster bones… but wanting to save this even now seems kind of funny.’
Tap tap tap-
The remaining blue-eyed followers had already turned around and began chasing after the fleeing hunters.
‘What a waste. Those guys…’
I had no choice but to watch the followers, who were now looking like a feast. There was nothing I could do. The orcs were getting ready slowly.
900 orcs…
We were being pressed back by the rapidly swelling numbers, stepping back as we turned completely around to create distance.
“Get ready. Something’s different about the atmosphere. Is something about to come out?”
“It seems like they’re waiting for someone. Is it the commander?”
“Tch… This is maddening.”
“What the heck is that? Skeleton bombs… Where did all those come from?”
“The problem is, even with those, I don’t think it’ll fix anything at all.”
Noh Ha-yoon said with a tense expression we hadn’t seen before.
“After the bombs explode, I’ll use Ice Field at maximum. So don’t be too startled!”
“Please make it explosive enough to surprise us.”
“At this point, it honestly feels reassuring. Tch.”
Noh Ha-yoon flashed a brief smile as she prepared her wide-area magic, and Yeon-hee was instructing the summons to cover the rear.
950 orcs… Time to take off.
I motioned for Lizardman 1 to get ready, then stepped back a few steps, preparing for a run-up.
[Stealth]
Then, using Lizardman 1’s rock-like hands as a springboard, I leaped high into the air.
Flap-!
Jumping at least 15 meters high, I glanced down for a moment.
Boom-!
Shortly after, one monster who stood out significantly from the orc warriors walked out from the gate, looking notably different.
With a green body mixed with red hues, it loomed larger than Yeon-hee while wielding a massive axe with one hand.
From a distance, it was difficult to distinguish differences among orcs, but this one decidedly stood out among the more than 1,000 orcs.
‘No doubt about it. It’s the Orc High-Rank Warrior.’
Orcs tend to redden in color as they rank up. So, that patchy-red guy is also not among the higher tiers among orcs, which was relieving.
But without a doubt, it was an overwhelmingly burdensome opponent for us now.
I hurled nearly all the bombs I had created directly at the approaching Orc High-Rank Warrior.
Of course, I meticulously aimed and threw one bomb made from the Tooth Monster’s bones.
Whoosh—
Around 50 bombs I had unleashed fell in an orderly manner below.
‘Eat this. And please die.’
In an area densely packed with a thousand orcs. Just as the Orc High-Rank Warrior emerged and the orc warriors bowed their heads to him, the massive firepower of the bombs exploded.
BOOOOM!―――!
KA-BOOM!―――!!
KREEEAAAK―!!
As hundreds of orcs screamed in agonizing pain altogether, the sound was eerily surreal.
In the split second the bombs detonated, I veered my direction with a gliding cloak, and at that moment, my gaze locked with the Orc High-Rank Warrior.
Chills―
‘Damn… what a sturdy bastard, if you’re feeling wronged, come chase after me!’
“……… Krrr-kkkrrr…”
I could almost hear the grinding of its teeth in frustration.
Based on the sensory vibrations I perceived, the bombs had surely hit it. Especially the final trump card, the Tooth Bomb, showed five times the explosive power of the regular lizardman bombs.
A creature that had suffered almost no damage from lizardman bombs staggered slightly and dropped to one knee after the Tooth Bomb exploded.
‘There was no way it could escape being damaged; after all, I raised those skills and bombs.’
The creature that had covered its head with its arms when the falling bombs came down didn’t seem to have been launched away, but its appearance was noticeably ragged.
– You have defeated the Orc Warrior!
– You have defeated the Orc Warrior!
– You have defeated the Orc Warrior…
– Your level has increased!
.
.
.
They had happily congregated to welcome their commander but were struck down mercilessly, and many had been wiped out immediately due to my skeleton bombs.
‘Thanks to the Tooth Bomb, I managed to take out about 100. The destructive power was tremendous, but the area of effect was somewhat regrettable.’
Brushing away the rapid influx of defeat messages in my mind, I quickly landed on the ground.
“Capture them alive! Dirty humans, we will skin you ourselves!!”
KRAHHHHHHHH――!!
As the Orc High-Rank Warrior let out a fierce roar and commanded, the eyes of the orcs gleamed as they charged toward us in unison.
Kugugugugugu―
The ground shook violently as if an earthquake had struck, the orcs activated their skills, and their roars sent birds in the nearby woods flying into the air in panic.
“Wow… this is insane…”
‘What are you doing? You should be running away.’
Having once been amazed at the overwhelming power of the skeleton bomb, I quickly signaled to those standing frozen in place at the orc’s roars.
“Clap, Clap, Clap!!!”
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