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Chapter 18: A Warrior’s Qualifications (2)

The stone hit him in the shin. Grom clutched his hit leg while hopping on the other. The excited Goblin began throwing stones more enthusiastically.

“You little...!” Grom charged at the goblin with his axe in hand.

The goblin quickly turned around and ran while continuing to spray dirt or toss stones at Grom.

“Stop, right there!”

The goblin hid behind thick bushes, but Grom easily jumped over the bushes with his large orc’s stature.

“Got y—!”

However, once Grom landed on his feet, he realized he was completely surrounded by goblins.

“Kyah! Kyah!” the goblins clamored.

They were not carrying tiny objects like stones. They held poorly made but lethal weapons: a sloppy stone axe, a rusted longsword, and a long spear that appeared to have been stolen from a corpse.

The goblin that had lured Grom into this ambush laughed at him with a despicable expression and threw another stone at him. The stone hit Grom in the head and fell onto the ground. That made Grom angry. He really wanted to attack this pesky little goblin, but he was greatly outnumbered as there were dozens of goblins in this group.

Ultimately, Grom took a few steps back. Someone tapped on his back, and when he turned to look, he saw a goblin smirking behind him with an axe in hand. He was now completely surrounded.

Grom laughed awkwardly. He knew how to laugh like an orc now although he looked a little cowardly. Regardless, the goblin raised his axe high and made a slashing motion at his throat, expressing his intent to take Grom’s head.

As the despicably annoying goblin continued to mock and laugh at him, Grom was gripped by a sense of déjà vu. Anger boiled and rose up inside him. The goblin was annoying as hell. He had felt this emotion in the past when he told some kids to be quiet at the PC bang. [1]. In response, the kids had pressed the reset button on his computer before sticking out their tongues and running off.

Grom’s axe struck the goblin’s head, splitting it apart. Shocked by this sight, the goblins immediately stopped laughing and instead charged at Grom.

Grom swung his axe again, but that wasn’t enough to stop them as the goblins were all around him. So, he decided to spin around on the spot with his axe directed at the surrounding goblins. Unable to approach Grom, the goblins were forced to retreat as Grom continued to spin wildly with his axe. It was a last-ditch struggle, but it was effective!

Grom recalled a movement from an old game and shouted, “Whirlwind!”

A message popped up.

[Congratulations!]

[In the struggle for survival, you have acquired a secret technique of axe warriors!]

[You are now like a murder tank that runs and destroys its surroundings.]

[There is no opponent who can handle this attack!]

[Slaughter your opponents so that they can no longer mock you!]

[A massacre, a feast of blood, awaits you!]

[Overwhelming Assault (Common) is in effect. Go forward!]

‘Oh, my god!’ Grom’s face lit up.

This was definitely an Easter egg. It was a hidden skill in Elder Lord!

[You have attained Overwhelming Assault (Common)!]

Grom stumbled. Although it had a grandiose name, it was a Common skill. While he almost lost his balance out of dismay, weapons came at Grom again.

“Aargh!”

He managed to avoid the full force of the goblins’ attacks by rolling around, but the goblins’ stone hammers hit his head, making him dizzy. At the periphery of his vision, he saw goblins yelling and raising their weapons.

Would this be his first death as an orc? Grom closed his eyes while wondering about this.

At that moment, the ground began to shake. The goblins flinched as a sound like that of thunder rang in their ears.

“Buuuuuuuul’taaaaaaaar!”

Grom opened his eyes to see ten orc warriors charging toward him from afar. Because of their ridiculously broad shoulders, they looked like dozens—no hundreds of soldiers. They advanced like a runaway train and swept away the goblins, sending them flying.

“Kyahhhhh!”

“Kyah!”

The goblins yelled out as they crumbled under the force of the orcs’ charge. The dozens of goblins were eviscerated in one strike.

Grom also screamed, but the orc warriors paid no attention to the collapsed Grom and simply stomped past him.

[You are in critical condition!]

Grom’s body began to sag from the loss of tension. The fight ended in an instant. The orc warriors mercilessly slaughtered the goblins as their bodies writhed on the ground.

“Apprentice! Where are you? Are you alive?”

“Uhhh...” Grom struggled to get up.

He could see the faces of the warriors. Each and every one of them appeared threatening; their faces and bodies were covered in tattoos, and their weapons were saturated in blood. They walked leisurely with a confident swagger. These were true warriors whom Lenox had acknowledged.

The warriors cackled when they discovered Grom.

“Hahaha, you are still alive, apprentice! Great job!”

“Goblins come in herds when they see you! What a talent!”

“It’s the law of the universe that a weakling recognizes another weakling and goes after them!”

“The goblins have good taste! They are excellent at judging others. They can detect another weakling from a mile away! Hahahah!”

The truth of the matter was that Grom had been acting as bait all day. Goblins were usually guarded against orcs, but whenever they saw Grom, they attacked or provoked him and brought him to their herd without fail. So, the orc warriors’ strategy was for Grom to act as bait, and once the goblins fell for it and led him to their herd, the warriors would charge in and massacre them at once. Grom almost died many times, but the goblins were so annoying that he couldn’t help but fall for their provocations each time. It was a pattern of Grom getting trapped by goblins, and the warriors sweeping them up each time. Thus, the goblins who had ventured into Orcrox Fortress were now rapidly dying out.

The warriors urged Grom, “Apprentice, go fetch some more goblins!”

Grom shook his head. “Warriors, it will be difficult going forward.”

“What do you mean?”

“Goblins are monsters with intelligence. They should have discerned our strategy by now.”

“Hmm.”

“Moreover, I’ve also evolved while battling. I’m different from before. I’m stronger. If they have eyes, goblins won’t approach me so easily anymore!”

Grom had benefited from hanging out with the warriors. Despite almost encountering death a few times, he was able to improve proficiency in his skills and accumulate achievement points. Moreover, he acquired a Common skill—Overwhelming Assault. Even goblins couldn’t underestimate him anymore; Grom was on another level now.

“Makes sense.”

“Yes, it does!”

“But can you do it one more time just in case?”

“Understood, but it will be a waste of time,” Grom said and walked back into the forest.

Things were different now. Puffing out his chest, he tried to exhibit the power of a warrior, showing he had gained some experience from being alongside warriors!

However, a goblin appeared even before Grom’s self-reflection had ended, and Grom ultimately resigned to himself to being bait again.

While circling around Grom, two goblins shouted at one another and exchanged looks. Even Grom could understand what they were saying. ‘A weakling! We caught a weakling!’

Grom’s resignation turned to fiery rage, and he succumbed to it. His rage spread like wildfire and struck the goblins.

“You guys!” Grom exclaimed as he activated his hidden skill, Overwhelming Assault!

“Kyah? Kyah?”

‘Why is that weakling suddenly spinning? Is he crazy?’

The goblins tilted their heads questioningly and retreated, but dozens of new goblins appeared behind the rocks.

Grom, who had lost his senses, continued to charge toward the goblins. He was like a runaway train!

“Buuuuul’taaaaar!”

***

-Now, this segment is...!

-We only share the hottest clips from trending videos!

-We only squeeze out the good parts, like red ginseng extract!

-Oh, my. Jaehan, isn’t talking about red ginseng going too far?

-Hahaha, sorry, I’ve been taking red ginseng extract lately, so I couldn’t help myself.

-Red ginseng extract? Who is it for? [2].

-It’s a secret, hahaha.

“They’re ridiculous. They are just screwing around.” Yi-Yoo shook her head with cold eyes.

“They’ve been suspicious lately. I think there’s something going on between them.”

“They should focus on running the show.”

Yi-Yoo was lazing around at Café Reason with her friend Yoon Bo-Ra. This was supposed to be a meeting for a school group project, but as usual, their group members got into various accidents, were sick, or had a death in the family and left the two to fend for themselves. However, Yi-Yoo and Yoon Bo-Ra decided to give up on the group project as well. Instead, they watched the segment of Elder Lord Times in which MCs Yoo-Jung and Jae-Han introduced the hottest clips.

-The fourth video of the day is an unreleased clip from Elder Lord’s comedian, militia leader Kim Dal-Kwang!

-They say Kim Dal-Kwang’s other name is a ‘Monster Birthed by Capitalism.’

-Yes! He boasts unconventional role-playing. Not only is he funny, but he also is a high-ranker of great skill. Now, let’s watch his video together!

Café Reason’s door opened. It was Yi-An.

As he entered the café, he noticed Yi-Yoo and approached her.

“You’re here.”

“Yeah, oppa.”

“Hello, oppa!” Yoon Bo-Ra enthusiastically greeted Yi-An, who smiled in return.

“Hello. Bo-Ra-ssi, right?”

“Yes, you remember. It’s been a while.”

“Yes. You must have been busy. You should come by more often.”

“Yes!” Yi-Yoo nudged Yoon Bo-Ra with her elbow.

“Why, what?” Yoon Bo-Ra asked.

“Watch this,” Yi-Yoo said.

Yi-An also eyed the tablet. He was a full-fledged Elder Lord player now, so he needed to know what was trending these days.

-Hahahaha, so funny.

-I know, right? I feel like my belly button is going to fall off from laughing so hard. Jaehan, where is my belly button? I can’t find it.

-Hahaha, your belly button?

-Yes, belly button! Please find my belly button!

-I will look for it after the recording. Trust me.

-Thank you! I’m looking forward to it!

“Ah... What the heck!” exclaimed Yi-Yoo.

“...” Even Yi-An shook his head this time.

-Hahaha! Sorry! Now, it’s time for the clip Youvidser Laney filmed. It’s a hit!

-Oslams, rise! Let’s experience the power of an orc warrior!

The word ‘orc’ drew Yi-An’s attention. Which fellow warrior accomplished a great deed and spread the charm of orcs to ignorant humans?

“...” As Yi-An observed the screen, he saw a familiar face.

The familiar-looking orc promptly slaughtered three users. The way he carried the weapons and looked off into empty space was very familiar. That was...

-“Today, I met three evildoers and brought forth justice by killing them.”

“Ough!” Yi-An began coughing.

-“Where are those who know honor?”

Yi-An was choking now.

“Oppa, what’s wrong? Did something go down the wrong pipe?”

Yi-An had choked on his own saliva due to shock. Yi-Yoo brought a glass of water for Yi-An. He coughed for a while and then took a sip of water to calm himself. He felt conflicted as he listened to Yi-Yoo and Yoon Bo-Ra converse about how orcs were cool and that they were scary-looking but manly.

“Who the hell filmed that?” wondered Yi-An.

At that moment, the bell rang as the door to Café Reason opened. A woman of great beauty walked in. Even from a glance, they could tell her clothes were expensive. Her slight curls gently rustled with every step. The sight of her sweeping her hair back alluringly made the hearts of those watching flutter. Onlookers wondered whether celebrities at photoshoots looked like her in real life. The man on standby outside looked like a bodyguard. No, he was actually a bodyguard.

“Pretty...” Yi-Yoo was impressed.

The beautiful woman came up to the counter.

Han Yeo-Ri asked her in a friendly tone, “What would you like to order?”

“Is the owner here?” asked the woman.

“Huh, the owner?”

“Yes, Jung Yi-An-ssi.”

“Uh, the owner is... over there...” Han Yeo-Ri pointed in Yi-An’s direction.

The beautiful woman turned around slowly and beamed when she saw Yi-An.

Yi-An thought that she looked familiar. The name of a woman who once cried in his arms sprang up in a distant memory.

“Ji Ha-Yeon-ssi?” Yi-An said.

The beautiful Ji Ha-Yeon’s heavily lidded eyes bent upward in a fine curve as she smiled. It was a bright smile reminiscent of a blooming flower.

She walked up to Yi-An and held out her hand. “It’s been a while.”

“I didn’t expect you to come find me like this.”

“You saved me. Of course, I should visit you.” Yi-An and Ji Ha-Yeon shook hands. “Raven—no, you are Jung Yi-An here, right?”

Yi-An smiled bitterly at his old title that reminded him of his past. “Just call me Yi-An.”

“Yes, I will. No, actually, I looked into some of your information—ah, it was because of that incident...”

‘That incident...’ Yi-An remembered and put on a bitter smile once more.

“Yes,” he replied.

“...And I saw that I’m a bit younger than you.”

Yi-An tilted his head, wondering what she was getting at. “I suppose.”

A smile bloomed on Ji Ha-Yeon’s face again. “Is it okay if I call you ‘oppa’?”

There was a gasp from Yi-Yoo.

During this brief moment of meeting Ji Ha-Yeon, Yi-An smiled bitterly yet again for the third time.

1. PC bang is a public internet café, which is very popular in Korea. People go there to play games with high-speed internet and to hang out with friends ?

2. Red ginseng extract is known to improve virility in men ?