Chapter 225
Higher Orc – Red
"Sir… wake up. You'll be late for the excavation team."
…
"Sir, please wake up."
"Estaroth, stop."
Before Kio could stop him, Estaroth's tail moved swiftly, lightly striking Arthur's face. It was gentle, but enough to wake him.
"Huh? What…? What is it?"
Estaroth gently wrapped himself around Arthur's neck, clearly seeming to apologize in his own way.
Arthur placed a hand over his face, then calmly stood up and quickly changed his clothes.
"Damn… looks like I'm a little late."
There wasn't even time to light a cigarette.
He looked toward Rath, who was still calmly absorbing the power of the sword, his eyes closed as he remained immersed in his transformation.
Arthur gestured toward Kio.
Kio immediately understood the signal and stood beside Rath, accompanied by Estaroth and the giant skeletal bear, all standing guard.
Arthur mounted his motorcycle, revved the engine hard, and sped toward Sung's house.
---
"You idiot! You're late! I was about to leave!"
"Yeah, yeah, just get on!"
Before Sung had even properly settled behind him, Arthur twisted the throttle hard, sending the motorcycle forward at a terrifying speed.
"Wai— you bastard!"
Sung couldn't finish his sentence, as the wind was violently striking his face.
Arthur smiled in enjoyment and increased the speed even further.
---
"You almost killed me!"
Sung bent over, trying to catch his breath while holding onto Arthur's arm so he wouldn't fall.
"Alright, alright. Just don't cry."
Arthur mocked him calmly, but he failed to notice the light strike coming from below.
He sighed and took the hit, causing him to fall…
But before he could touch the ground, he pulled Sung down with him, making him land face-first.
Arthur burst into pure, childish laughter.
"Look at you, man!"
The two laughed together, with genuine relief, as though they were brothers rather than merely friends.
---
"We need someone to carry the bags and such. Our carrier didn't show up today."
The leader of the hunters spoke as he looked toward the excavation team.
But everyone ignored his words.
An A-rank dungeon.
Who would risk their life for some extra money?
Then…
Sung raised his hand.
A few seconds later, Arthur raised his hand as well.
"I'll go."
"If this bastard is going, count me in too."
The team tried to convince the two of them to reconsider, but to no avail.
Sung wanted to see a powerful team clear a high-level dungeon.
And Arthur… wanted some entertainment, and perhaps to increase his strength if possible.
"Alright… I only needed one person, but why not? Thank you for joining us.
I'm Son Ki-Hoon, and I've been assigned to lead today's clearing operation."
"Song Jin-Woo."
"Arthur Narin."
Son Ki-Hoon looked at the two of them, then fixed his gaze on Arthur.
"Your face suggests that you're from here, and so does your accent. But your name!"
Arthur smiled calmly.
"Yes, my name makes it sound like I'm from another country, but don't worry. I'm from here. My father named me that way in honor of his grandfather and all that."
Son Ki-Hoon understood and smiled at the two.
---
Everyone entered the cave calmly.
The first things to greet them…
Were red hyenas, C-rank monsters.
They were quickly eliminated.
But suddenly—
A dense, muscular shadow moved from within the darkness, releasing a fierce fighting aura.
Higher Orc – Red.
The battle erupted.
22 orcs
against
17 humans.
The orcs' superiority was absolute.
Strength… savagery… relentless pressure.
"Damn… they really are weak."
Arthur sighed calmly, threw the bags aside, and he and Sung disappeared from sight.
One of the orcs charged toward a female mage from the team.
Its body suddenly trembled and rose from the ground before being torn apart by an invisible force.
It was Sung's doing.
On the other side, the team leader was in a deadly situation.
His armor was shattered, and his sword was on the verge of breaking.
A massive orc raised its hammer above his head.
Then—
The orc's body trembled slightly.
Its eyes grew dull.
And it collapsed to the ground without resistance.
The leader stared in shock.
In the orc's chest…
There was a massive opening.
All of its internal organs had been torn out.
This was Arthur's doing.
---
After the two intervened, the entire course of the battle changed.
Sung wounded… poisoned… weakened.
Arthur struck lightly and precisely, targeting joints, nerves, and points of movement and strength.
The orcs' speed decreased.
Their strength declined.
Then they fell to ordinary attacks from the group, unaware that their victory had been made possible by the two rather than by their own strength.
After a short while…
The battle ended.
Everyone survived.
Arthur and Sung returned to their positions as though nothing had happened.
---
The team leader decided to retreat.
Their strength was insufficient to face the dungeon boss.
But…
Before anyone could pass through the gate,
a magical spell appeared,
and the gate was completely sealed.
Then—
From somewhere no one knew of…
50 Higher Orcs – Red moved forward.
The orc leader approached the team leader and began speaking in a strange, incomprehensible language.
'If Cain were here…'
Arthur sighed and clenched his fist, ready for battle.
But suddenly—
The orc's jaw trembled.
Its eyes turned a dark purple.
"Humans…
I am Karlgan.
And I wish to meet you."
The voice came from the orc's mouth.
Moments later, everyone followed the orc deeper into the dungeon.
The situation…
Was hopeless.
50 orcs.
After nearly 20 had almost killed everyone.
Their only chance of survival…
Was to kill the boss.
Therefore, the group quietly followed the Red Orc.
To survive, they had to kill the boss.
But how could they kill the boss when they didn't know where it was, and the entire place was surrounded by orcs?
So they followed the first orc, hoping that things would be better there and that they might be given a chance to fight.
"Hmm…
It seems another massacre is about to happen."
Arthur sighed as he moved forward, while the team leader whispered to Sung about a surprise attack plan and handed some members their final words.
"They're forgetting one thing…
The will to fight.
If you face a creature whose will to kill is greater than yours…
Then you won't be able to fight, no matter how strongly you believe in victory."
Everyone heard Arthur's words. He did not hide them; he simply spoke them aloud.
But no one cared about them.
In their eyes, he was a weak hunter.
And no matter how powerful or correct his words were, what use were they to them?
That was the thinking of fools, of course…
After some time,
they arrived at a spacious hall, refined in appearance and imposing.
Inside…
There were nearly 500 orcs.
And at the front,
an orc sat upon a simple throne in absolute calm,
surrounded by armored guards.
Karlgan.
"Humans… welcome."
---
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