Chapter 22: The Orcs’ First Feast

Our Arthur.

[Rank: Advanced.]

Normally, he’s weak against Robin, who’s top-tier…

But there’s a moment when he suddenly becomes incredibly strong.

When?

Clap clap!

“Alright, everyone, gather up! All of you!”

Correct.

Right before dispatch, when we all gather for warm-up exercises.

Maybe because he’s usually so lazy, Robin always stays quiet.

‘Well, what else could he do?’

Since Rani can’t be the one to do it, Arthur has to.

“Alright, here we go! Start!”

And he really loves this.

If you look closely, it might even be his second favorite thing after coffee?

“One! Two! Three!”

See?

Just from his voice, you can tell he’s totally excited.

But somehow, he sounds even more pumped than usual…

“Today you can run all you want! Work hard, right, Sajang?”

“Sure, the training hall is fully soundproofed, so go wild.”

“Ah! Feels great!”

Ah, that place they were running at until yesterday?

The rooftop of the old house.

They managed to train and warm up somehow…

But honestly, it probably wasn’t comfortable.

Now they can shout and run freely, so I told them to give it their all.

“Chiiik! Chiiik!”

What the—?

‘Why are they like this again?’

‘Are you sure you just finished training?’

They still have so much energy…

“Chiiik! Tch!”

“Heh~! The Orc Uncles love poking! Stabbing! Boom! It’s awesome!”

Poke, stab, boom.

Oh.

Those weapons Rani made?

New weapons really are something else.

Just holding them seems to boost their strength.

Then… what about the others with new weapons? Like Robin?

They’re the same.

Clearly excited just looking at them.

Seeing someone who’s usually lazy sweating and running is pretty uplifting.

Everyone’s pumped, so it would feel off to leave someone out.

“Two! Three!”

Rani joins in with a bright smile.

But, Rani, that looks less like warm-up and more like a dance…

“It’s fun!”

Yeah, it shows.

Anyway.

After finishing exercises?

It’s time to shout safety slogans.

“Alright, check your weapons! Good!”

“Chiiik!”

“Check your helmets! Good!”

“Chiiik!”

“Safety’s good! Good! Good!”

“Yeah-!”

“Sajang, you in?”

Me too?

Annoying, but yeah.

Alright, everyone’s excited, so I’ll join in.

“Good! Good! Good!”

See?

That’s the rhythm of a pro.

After safety slogans, preparations are done.

Time to head out, right?

“Chiiik.”

Robin and the Orcs glance at each other.

Everyone must be eager to try out their weapons quickly.

Hmm…

Who to send first?

***

After a moment’s thought, the decision is made.

“Let’s send the Orcs first.”

“Chiiik!”

Robin looks at me like, Why?

No way I’d say it.

Watching the weak guys fight is more entertaining anyway…

Robin will finish quickly, so Orcs it is.

“Let’s pick a difficulty. How about the usual?”

Usually, the Orcs get sent to either F-class or D-grade dungeons.

Since this is a test, is it the same this time?

I asked casually.

“Chiiik!”

They jump and cross their arms in an X.

Strong refusal confirmed.

“Then how about a C-grade dungeon?”

“Chiiik!”

Good enthusiasm.

‘But will they manage…?’

If I ask Arthur—

“I’ll do it!”

Right away.

Okay then.

No second thoughts. Send them.

[Dispatch Worker]

[Dungeon]

“Chiiik!”

Looks like they have no worries about this.

The moment the door opened, they ran straight in…

How badly do they want to try out their weapons?

Anyway.

Do well and come back safe.

We have a dinner party tonight, so no injuries.

[C-grade Dungeon, Jatbitgalgi Wolf Forest]

The monsters here are, naturally, Jatbitgalgi Wolves.

Bull-sized ones, one, two, three…

“Wow, how many are there?”

“It’s okay! We’ll win against those guys!”

“Really?”

Well, they probably only went because they’re confident.

These workers are amazing at self-awareness.

So I trusted them, and honestly…

It exceeded expectations.

***

“Those guys! They fight well!”

“No, not just well— it’s like they’ve changed species.”

“Seriously!”

Kaang!

An Orc swings a shovel hard at a wolf’s side.

[Result: home run.]

The Jatbitgalgi Wolf yelps and flies away.

Are they just going to let that slide?

No.

The Orc with the pickaxe approaches for a crack!

Then finishes it off with a bang! from a hammer.

Stupidly brute force but with insane coordination?

“Alright, I’m telling you! They’re useful now!”

[C-grade Dungeon cleared!]

[Clear time – 00:18:46]

The record is clean.

‘Over 20 kills in 18 minutes?’

And not a single injury.

Definitely worth the rank up.

From now on, the Orcs are officially in charge of C-grade dungeons.

“Chiiik!”

Good.

Now it’s Robin’s turn.

..Ready?”

First, a quick look at the dungeons available for dispatch—

A few A-grade dungeons.

“The Tower is only 12 floors, so it might be boring. Want to try an A-grade dungeon instead?”

“….”

Okay.

Arthur can handle the Tower later, so let’s send Robin first.

[Dispatch Worker]

[Dungeon]

Get ready, and go.

I wonder how he’ll do with the bow the top-tier worker made.

Let’s see it done right.

[Dungeon cleared.]

[Auto-hunting stopped.]

[Clear time – 00:03:41]

“No way…”

See?

I told you Robin would finish quickly.

“Is this for real?”

Right?

Never imagined he’d clear it in three minutes.

“…It’s all about synergy.”

***

“If you shoot all the wyverns right between their eyes with arrows, synergy or not, they’re basically invincible.”

Shoosh! He shoots, and a big bird falls.

Rani, that’s not a bird…

But she sure can shoot well.

Every shot hits right between the eyes.

If it hits, the target dies instantly.

“…Vital Venom, nice.”

“Exactly! Shoosh, nice! Rani made it well!”

“Ugh.”

‘Still not happy with the name, huh?’

Arthur tried it and went crazy saying how great it was.

“But what’s Vital Venom?”

“…A skill.”

Skill?

Let’s see.

[Shook]

[A masterpiece crafted by a highly skilled artisan.]

[Adds powerful poison damage.]

[High chance to inflict poison status on enemies.]

[Special skill: ‘Vital Venom’ available.]

[Immune to poisons below a certain threshold.]

Vital Venom.

The name sounds deadly enough.

Effect?

“Shoosh! When it hits, it spreads an insanely strong poison with a paah!”

No wonder.

That’s why they drop immediately after being hit.

Such a crazy effect.

“…Now, we can go to S-grade dungeons….”

‘Oh?’

‘S-grade?’

“S-grade dungeon?! Do they have good materials?”

Our Rani’s eyes light up again.

Anyway, whenever it’s about materials…

But Rani, S-grade dungeons are almost non-existent.

They barely appear at all.

Even if they do, the competition just to enter because of the rewards is brutal.

“Ah, we could go as Dispatch Workers.”

“Yeah!”

“But there aren’t any right now….”

“Hmm….”

Can’t be helped.

We’ll just climb the Chaos Tower and farm materials there.

“If you bring back materials from there, Rani will make even better stuff.”

“Right! Rani will make prettier, better bows!”

“Wow, not just bows, swords too?”

“Yup! Give me the materials and I can make anything!”

“Chiiik?!”

“Orc Uncles too!”

When you rank up, she’ll make things for you.

Don’t worry, just focus on training hard.

“For now, since you all worked hard today, how about we order some food?”

“Jajangmyeon!”

“Exactly. If you move, you have to eat jajangmyeon.”

“Chiiiik!”

“The Orc Uncles asked if it’s okay to eat a lot because they’re hungry!”

‘Is it okay to eat a lot?’

Of course.

We’re ordering plenty, so don’t worry.

“Delivery’s here!”

Ding dong!

“Already?”

“Of course. You know how fast delivery is in our country.”

You all wait here.

I’ll bring everything over.

Carefully opening the door, peeking out.

Nobody’s around.

20 bowls of jajangmyeon and other dishes.

With everything here, I quickly bring it over and finish setting up.

“Wow~! The smell is amazing!”

“Wow… We needed this meal.”

Rani and Arthur sit down immediately.

Robin comes over quickly too.

The Orcs?

***

“Chiiik….”

“Hey, stop drooling and come sit down already.”

Honestly, they’re drooling so much it could flood the floor.

Still, when I call them, they come right away.

“But do you know how to use chopsticks?”

“Chiiik?”

Never mind.

Just eat deliciously…

“Chiiik!”

Luckily, when I give them spoons, they handle them better than expected.

Alright, let’s eat.

“Everyone, enjoy your meal.”

“Rani, thank you for the food!”

“Wow, me too!”

“Chiiik!”

It’s the Orcs’ first time eating together like this.

But they use spoons well and eat very neatly.

“Chiiik!”

They even give thumbs up.

Glad we ate together.

“If you work hard, Sajang will buy delicious stuff! Wow, I even got to try chicken!”

“Rani too!”

‘You’ve only tried it once, haven’t you?’

Last time I ordered it for you, you bragged about it right away.

But?

That brag worked.

“…Chicken? It’s coming out every day now….”

Robin, at first, was just trying to finish quickly because he was lazy.

But at some point, he started regretting it.

Even when it’s time to leave, he lingers, staring out the window blankly.

Now, every day, he envies the food that keeps coming.

Can’t have that.

The welfare of workers, the human resources manager must take care of it.

“Robin, hang on a bit. I’ll get you ranked up fast so I can call you every day too.”

What’s your current EXP?

[(8/15)]

Phew.

Not much left.

The missions are…

[Mission List]

[Clear Chaos Tower floor 20]

[Complete 5 training sessions at the training ground (0/5)]

Still, at least they’re all easy for now.

Let’s clear these first.

Level up smoothly and steadily.

“Sajang, you’re not eating?”

“If it tastes bad, should I give it to Rani…? This is good though….”

“Chiiik! Chiiik!”

Ugh, these meerkats.

The moment I get distracted, they stare right at me again.

Alright, let’s eat.

Eat well and stay strong.

Beijing, China.

The atmosphere at the Central Awakened Administration Bureau was dark.

***

[Alert]

“Russia has sent a request for support.”

“That’s right. They want help capturing a mysterious Korean creator who keeps appearing and disappearing. They’re willing to meet most demands.”

“Reject it.”

“Yes, understood.”

Russia’s request for support.

[The target: Korea.]

Normally, we would have accepted.

The problem is—

“Give me a briefing on the current situation.”

“Monsters have advanced within a 10 km radius around the dungeon. We’re mobilizing all registered hunters and barely holding them back…”

“Any progress on suppression?”

“…Sorry.”

“Sigh… How did it come to this…”

A national disaster.

The unprecedented situation of monsters from an S-grade dungeon roaming outside.

This was China’s current state.

“Any sign of Wei Jin’s location yet?”

“Yes. Since he went to clear the S-grade dungeon, he’s been missing…”

‘When the S-grade dungeon suddenly appeared?’

Nobody was surprised.

Even though it’s near Beijing.

‘Why?’

Because only hunters ranked above floor 60 in the Tower can tackle it.

Wei Jin, ranked #1 in China, was clearing Chaos Tower floor 62.

So, they sent him.

Of course, expecting him to clear it and return.

“But no one thought Wei Jin would die.”

“We can’t be sure yet….”

“Monsters expanded 10 km outside the dungeon, and no news from Wei Jin. Can we really say he’s alive?”

‘The result?’

[Wei Jin: Missing]

[S-grade Dungeon: Breach]

China lost their #1 ranked hunter, and monsters escaped the dungeon.

There’s only one way to stop this.

“If we clear the core S-grade dungeon that caused the breach…”

But is that even possible?

We’d have to break through a 10 km field of monsters.

“Sigh…”

No choice.

“Request support from the United States.”

We must prevent the catastrophe of monsters advancing to Beijing.

Yes.

No matter the cost.