Chapter 54. I Feel a Little Sorry

Seeing the puny man who’d cut off his hand and stolen his weapon reappear, Urt was furious. He was even bold enough to hold the spear that once belonged to Urt.

"

Krrr!

"

At that moment, rage dominated Urt's mind. He wanted to catch the small man, tear him limb from limb, and crush his heart! Kim Do-Joon was able to escape with some strange magic last time, but that wouldn’t happen again! Urt planned to bring him down with one decisive strike before he could try anything.

"

Kraaaah!

"

With bloodshot eyes, Urt roared and charged.

Thud! Thud!

As he rushed toward the small man, the ground shook with his massive footsteps.

"

Kruk

."

Seemingly paralyzed with fear, the small man didn’t budge an inch. Looking at him, Urt mockingly swung his glaive.

Vwoom—!

Even with just one hand, the swing didn’t lack any power. His combat prowess was just as formidable as ever.

However, Kim Do-Joon's combat skill had drastically improved since their last encounter.

Smack.

"

Kra?

"

Kim Do-Joon parried Urt's attack with a slight flick of his spear. Urt's scarred face twitched in surprise.

Then, with a swift motion, Kim Do-Joon slashed the spear across Urt's neck.

Swoosh—!

Although the spear wasn’t originally designed for slashing, the mana-infused blade made it possible. The cold, sharp mana cut through Urt's neck with ease.

"

Krrk

..."

Urt blinked in confusion, not understanding what’d happened. His vision began to blur as his head separated from his body, rolling to the ground.

Thud!

Urt's massive body collapsed, and blood sprayed in the air. Quickly, Kim Do-Joon stepped back slightly to avoid getting splattered.

— Why would you avoid it? You'll be drenched in blood once you go inside anyway.

"Still, there's no reason to get hit by it if I can help it," Kim Do-Joon replied to Karlish, turning his gaze toward the wooden fence.

The wooden fence had a large gate that looked like it belonged to a castle.

— What will you do? There are quite a few of them inside.

Kim Do-Joon had seen the inside too, coming down the hill. It was teeming with orcs, and not just regular ones, but many named ones as well. The number and quality of enemies were incomparable to any he had faced before.

Gripping his spear, Kim Do-Joon spoke. "I'll fight them head on."

Bang!

Crash!

With a single kick, the fence shattered and collapsed. Kim Do-Joon stepped over the remnants and entered. As the dust settled, countless orcs came into view. All of them turned their eyes to the source of the disturbance, Kim Do-Joon.

"

Kuwaaa!

"

"

Kuralara!

"

Roaring in anger at the intruder, the orcs charged at Kim Do-Joon. Their towering figures made it seem like a stampede of tanks.

"

Ha

."

Kim Do-Joon took a deep breath and spun his spear.

The mana splintered and wrapped around his body and spear. Then, the swirling mana began to surge.

Bababaam—!

The mana then exploded toward the orc horde. Dozens of charging orcs were torn apart by the blast. Seeing this, the remaining orcs hesitated, clearly unsettled.

—

Ha!

That was really satisfying! Whoever created that technique knew what they were doing!

Karlish said with a hint of pride in his tone.

Kim Do-Joon chuckled as a response. People say men remained boys no matter how old they got, and it seemed to be true.

"

K-kra?

"

"

Krrk?

"

Combat was the essence of an orc's being, but even they were capable of feeling emotions. Seeing an enemy decimating dozens of their kin with one blow could evoke only one emotion: fear.

Kim Do-Joon wove through the horde. He moved effortlessly, cutting through the orcs as if they were a flock of sheep. With every flash of his spear, a few orcs would fall lifeless to the ground.

Crackle!

Besides, now, Kim Do-Joon did not even hesitate to use his Lightning Spear, and of course, the Thorn of the Searshader.

— These orcs will find this ridiculous.

"What do you mean?" Kim Do-Joon asked.

— Imagine thinking a spearman has invaded, only to see him casting spells left and right.

The Lightning Spear's abilities might not technically be magic, but to his opponents, it certainly looked the part. Plus, the thorn skill was indeed magic.

I could easily pass as a mage.

Kim Do-Joon thought with a chuckle. Besides, he even had the Invincible Body, granting him resistance akin to a tank. If this were a game, he’d be the most versatile character.

"

Keuaaaa!

"

A massive roar suddenly echoed across the battlefield. It was a sound far beyond any regular orc's scream, shaking the entire ground.

"

Krrr!

"

Hearing the roar, the terrified orcs suddenly snapped back to their senses. Actually, they went berserk. Their eyes, once filled with terror, now gleamed with ferocity.

That must be the boss.

Kim Do-Joon's eyes glinted as he scanned for the source of the roar.

He saw an orc with a more solid and formidable appearance than the rest. His large build was composed of solid muscle rather than soft flesh. If ordinary orcs were pigs, then this one was a muscle pig.

"

Kuooor!

"

The orc lifted his axe and pointed it at Kim Do-Joon, letting out a short, sharp shout. In response, the bloodshot-eyed orcs charged at Kim Do-Joon

en masse.

[Warlord Teruzan]

Compatibility

- 58%

The Compatibility was over 10% higher than the rest of the orcs. Therefore, he must be the boss.

But... Warlord...?

Kim Do-Joon pondered the title. He had expected a name befitting a king since the dungeon was named the Middle Orc Kingdom.

Could it be that he isn’t the final boss?

Kim Do-Joon frowned at the thought. If so, he’d have to continue exploring this place, especially now that his Compatibility wasn’t increasing anymore.

"

Kuaraaa!

"

"

Krak! Kuraak!

"

The orcs charged at Kim Do-Joon, with Teruzan leading the pack. Kim Do-Joon quickly made a decision.

I’ll know once I defeat him.

Teruzan leaped toward Kim Do-Joon, his axe glinting in the sunlight. Kim Do-Joon aimed his spear at the oncoming orc.

Not long after, he killed Teruzan.

[You have defeated Teruzan.]

[You will be given rewards for successfully clearing the labyrinth.]

For the first time in a long while, the familiar sound of dungeon-clear fanfare rang in Kim Do-Joon's ears.

***

Before heading home, Kim Do-Joon checked his rewards. First, he gathered up all the miscellaneous items the orcs had dropped. He picked up Poison Pouches to sell at the market and a few white weapons with minor attack boosts.

Among them were the remaining pieces of the set items he had previously obtained.

[Orc Centurion’s Helmet (Set)]

[Orc Centurion’s Armor (Set)]

Conveniently, he had yet to use his copy-paste ability today. So, he combined the effects of both pieces and copy-pasted them to himself.

[Additional Effect]

- 30% increased damage against Orcs

This effect will be quite effective against orcs.

A 30% damage increase was a significant and valuable effect. Orcs appeared not only in this labyrinth but also in various dungeons.

Next was the item box.

[Item Box (Random, Epic)]

Again, there was a box that contained Epic-level items. Unlike last time, where he had a choice, this one was random, but that was still good.

I had a lot of fun with the Lightning Spear I got last time.

Excitedly, he pressed the open button. However, the box revealed a large shield covered with thorns.

[Thorn Shield of Guardian Gerk]

Effects

- Defense Power + 81

- When installed on the ground, Defense Power + 52

Both the name and the effects were defense-related. Considering the number of armor pieces he had destroyed to achieve the defense power of 200, the numbers were impressive.

But why does it have to be defense power...?

Defense power wasn’t particularly useful to him anymore. After acquiring Invincible Body, he needed ways to mitigate internal shocks or poison.

This item will be for So-Eun.

Anytime he received something that was not useful to him, he could always give it to someone else. Currently, Kim So-Eun had maxed out Cold Resistance, and was working on vitality and four other elemental resistances.

Just in case, Kim Do-Joon had been copying snake skins from the Elemental Island for her. Once he’d fully developed Kim So-Eun's resistances, he planned to start copy-pasting items for Siwelin next.

Kim Do-Joon placed the shield in his inventory. Then, the last reward was a key.

A key...

It was a key to the next labyrinth. He went through the trouble of clearing the labyrinth just for this, so it was the best reward.

Let’s head home first.

Storing the key in his inventory, Kim Do-Joon returned home. He decided to take a day off. Once home, he immediately took a shower, cleaning off the blood and dust as Karlish had suggested.

After washing off the grime, he came out drying his hair. In comfortable clothes, he turned on his phone. Over the three days he had been away, a number of messages had accumulated.

When he opened the app to check them, he saw that he had been added to a strange chat room.

Ah!

I see! I'm also happy to be invited so unexpectedly 8D>

The conversation continued in a similar vein. The association president frequently shared photos of trees and the sky, to which Lee Ji-Ah always responded in some way. Kim Do-Joon chuckled. It seemed like a warm interaction, but there was more beneath the surface.

It was a bit intimidating, being suddenly added to a chat room personally by the top boss.

I feel a little sorry for her...

Lee Ji-Ah had also sent him a personal message.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Kim Do-Joon replied.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much he could do at the moment. The association president claimed it was for socializing, so outright refusing wasn’t an option.

Meanwhile, there was a personal message from the association president, which was more business-oriented.

Seeing his text, Kim Do-Joon nodded. The message continued with information about the stem of the World Tree that had recently appeared.

Apparently, just like the roots, the stem seemed to connect to another space. However, it was currently being blocked to prevent anyone from passing through. Discussions with various guilds were ongoing about how to organize the initial exploration team.

That must be a

sensitive issue...

The first exploration was extremely risky since it involved venturing into an entirely unknown area. The presence of elves on the other side made the matter even more delicate. However, the first exploration was also a prime opportunity to gain information that no one else had.

As soon as he sent the text messages, the response came.

Kim Do-Joon replied with a thank-you message and set his phone down. There were no other important messages. Having completed all his tasks, Kim Do-Joon spent the rest of the day with his family. With his usual schedule filled with labyrinths and dungeons, he made a point to spend any free time he had with them. He didn’t have many hobbies, anyway.

The next day, he entered the next labyrinth.

[You have entered the Sky Road.]

In front of Kim Do-Joon appeared a mountain piercing through the clouds, with endless stairs winding up its slopes.

***

[The government has announced that the incident in Hwaseong City was the work of a mysterious terrorist group. These individuals, who dress like elves from movies, with long ears, are reportedly involved.]

[That's right. This was a worldwide attack. Reports say that over fifty cities have been affected.]

[What could their objective be?]

[Well... It is hard to say what their objective is since they have not made any statements. However, if we look at the cities they've targeted...]

Amid the concrete jungle of gray buildings, a large crowd watched the giant television screen on a billboard. The program was discussing the recent disaster in Hwaseong City.

Among the onlookers was a barefoot woman in a hooded cloak. Unlike the passersby who glanced at the screen and moved on, she stared intently at it. At that time, the footage showed the terrorist summoning a massive storm giant.

“Elves? What are they talking about? The video doesn’t show them without the hoods.”

“Look at you. Already thinking about something inappropriate when hearing elves. What, you think they’re going to be pretty or something?”

“What do you mean by something inappropriate? I’m just terrified because people say they’re terrorists.”

The woman's ears perked up at the nearby conversation. Soon, she moved into the shadows between buildings to avoid the crowd. However, she was not alone even in the alley.

A group of students in school uniforms was there, surrounded by cigarette butts and beer cans.

“Hey, Lady, this place is taken. You should go back.”

Ignoring the remark, she continued walking through them. There were fewer people ahead compared to behind her.

“Hey, don’t be a bother. Or what, you wanna hang out with us?” one of the boys stood up, grinning, and pulled back her hood.

Underneath, her brown skin and long ears were revealed. The boys' eyes widened in shock at the sight of her non-human ears.

“

Huh?

”

The woman’s eyes narrowed as she looked at their pale faces filled with fear.

“Is she... like the ones on TV...?”

“

Aaah!

”

Swoosh—!

Before they could react, she made a move. It took only a moment to silence all five boys.

Moments later, the woman walked out from between the buildings.

“If I just deal with the ears, it should be fine. Liaz.”

At her call, a black shadow enveloped her ears, making them appear as small as a human's. She touched her newly altered ears, finding them slightly awkward, and then walked through the gray jungle. Now, she no longer needed the hood.