Chapter 145: The Orc Legion Commander

“No way, are these numbers even real?”

A horde of Orcs was pouring over the horizon.

No, that’s not just a horde.

That’s a legion.

An enormous Orc Legion was marching toward the village—no, toward me.

This isn’t even the 50th Floor of the Tower, yet they’re sending hundreds of Orcs at me on the mere Trial of the Fifth Floor.

Does that make any sense?

‘Should I… just exit?’

All the confidence I’d built up clearing up to the Fourth Floor crumbled in an instant.

Is my confidence too fragile?

I would never know unless I have  actually faced it myself.

If you ever saw hundreds of Orcs charging straight at you, no one would dare call it “easy.”

The oppressive force radiating from the advancing Orcs was overwhelming.

That’s why I was torn.

Should I just use the Power of Exit I received from the statues and get out of here?

But… maybe the confidence I built up through the Fourth Floor wasn’t completely meaningless.

“Even if I have to exit, let’s try to hold them off first!”

A bit of courage rose up in me.

Anyway, if things get dangerous, I can just use the Power of Exit.

Even if I get ambushed, the Blessing of the Statues should help me survive at least once.

So, I decided to face them head-on for now.

“Prepare for battle!”

“Preparation, complete.”

Including me, our entire force numbered twenty.

On the other hand, the Orc Legion I could see numbered at least several hundred.

An overwhelming difference, but I had an idea of my own.

I was holding a crossbow.

And I was leading the Combat Team.

But my class isn’t Crossbowman, nor am I a commander—I’m a Blacksmith.

[You are using your Crafting Skill.]

That’s why, as a Blacksmith, I used my most crucial core skill.

[Please select the form of the item to be crafted.]

What should I make?

A lot came to mind.

First, walls.

Repairing and reinforcing the damaged village fence to build a wall that could keep out the Orcs.

‘But that’s impossible in time.’

To block hundreds of Orcs, I’d have to surround the entire village with a wall.

If the Production Team had come with me, maybe. 

But wrapping the whole place alone was impossible.

Maybe I could just protect the Combat Team, but then how would we fight?

Most of the Combat Team members are melee fighters, after all.

Even if I build a wall, it won’t be of much help.

‘Ballista.’

No, that’s not it either.

With a Ballista, I’d be able to attack only a handful of monsters in a straight line.

With hundreds of monsters rushing at me, making a Ballista wouldn’t make much difference.

As I racked my brain—

‘Bombs!’

The hidden boss monster of Zone 4.

I remembered the bombs I made to fight the Necroplasm.

With those, I could attack a lot more enemies at once, far more efficiently than with a Ballista.

And if there’s a weapon that launches bombs, it’s obviously—

“Cannon!”

[Please specify the detailed form of the Cannon.]

A Cannon.

With a Cannon, I could fire my bombs right above the heads of the enemy.

[Please select the material for the Cannon.]

Since I needed to make bombs, I put in sturdy but ordinary Ores.

I added Explosive Ore and Combustible Ore for the firing mechanism, and made the barrel long and thick.

“Clang!”

Anyway, the Cannon itself wasn’t meant to be my main weapon.

The Cannon was just a tool to deliver bombs over the Orc Legion.

The real key wasn’t the Cannon, but the bombs, so I focused on speed over detail and swung my hammer.

Given the size of the Cannon, even rushing, I couldn’t finish it in an instant.

So—

“Buy me some time!”

“Understood.”

The Combat Team moved out.

The Cavalryman, leading the charge, drew the attention of the Orc Legion first.

Whether it was due to increased intelligence or the education from the two statues, even with my clumsy orders, the Cavalryman didn’t recklessly crash in. 

Instead, he circled around the enemy’s flanks, biting away at their edges and scattering their vision.

“Thud!”

“Bang! Bang! Bang!”

Combat 3, Combat 4, Combat 18, and others.

Those who could attack from range struck at the Orc Legion’s front lines, slowing their advance.

“Swish!”

The melee fighters spread out to both flanks, dispersing the Orcs’ focus and further slowing their approach.

Meanwhile—

[Crafting complete.]

[You have obtained the Vulcanus Equipment Cannon.]

The improvised Cannon was complete.

[Vulcanus Equipment Cannon]

Type: Cannon

Grade: S

Requirement: Level 230+

Description: A handcrafted Cannon hastily built by Vulcanus in an emergency

Attack Power: 5,000

Abilities:

1. Fixed – The Cannon cannot be moved, but its attack power increases and its range extends.

2. Explosion – The explosion power of cannonballs fired from the Vulcanus Equipment Cannon is increased.

3. Heating – The longer it operates, the more the barrel heats up, rapidly consuming durability, but attack power increases accordingly.

4. Overload – When durability is fully depleted, the attack power of the final shot is greatly increased.

S Grade.

The rating was a bit disappointing, but for something hastily made with ordinary materials, it wasn’t bad.

The Cannon was finished, but that wasn’t the end.

I still needed to make cannonballs to use with it.

For a moment, I regretted not bringing the Production Team, but if it looked hopeless, I could just quit and exit.

Now that I knew the strategy, even if I failed this time, I could bring the Production Team on the next try and clear it more easily.

[I am using the Crafting Skill.]

I moved right on to making shells.

Again, I used simple, standard materials.

First, I needed to see how effective the Cannon and shells would be in the Fifth Floor’s Trial.

I gathered all my fire- or explosion-related materials and fashioned them into rough spheres.

Because the form was so simple, crafting was finished in a flash.

[Crafting complete.]

[You have obtained Explosive Shell.]

An Explosive Shell.

It was a basic round, but enough to check the Cannon’s power.

Standing behind the Cannon, I aimed at the Orcs.

Truthfully, I wasn’t great at aiming, but with hundreds of Orcs charging from afar, I hardly needed to be precise.

“Fwoosh!”

The Cannon fired, sending the Explosive Shell flying.

The shell soared at incredible speed.

It landed a bit off from my original aim, but that spot was packed with Orcs too.

In the end, the shell flew right over the Orcs’ heads and—

“BOOM!”

As soon as it hit the ground, it swept through the Orcs.

Even with just physical force, the shell was tremendously powerful, and I’d just made an ‘Explosive Shell.’

True to its name—

“KA-BOOM!!”

A thunderous explosion erupted.

Tremendous power.

The unleashed flames swept through the Orcs.

Not only that, the shattered Ore fragments from the exploded shell shot out in all directions, piercing through the Orcs.

Incredible might.

After the first shot, I was sure.

“EICH!”

This works.

Orc Legion or not, I can win this.

With that confidence, I kept making shells and firing the Cannon.

I even felt it was a waste of time to handle the Cannon myself, so—

“Combat 18!”

“Yes, Master.”

“Can you operate the Cannon?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll keep making them—just fire at the Orcs as soon as I finish one!”

“Understood.”

I left the Cannon operation to Combat 18.

Combat 18 used to operate the musket, but quickly adapted to handling the Cannon.

Honestly, when it came to aiming, Combat 18 was probably better than me.

Like that—

[Crafting complete.]

[You have obtained Freezing Shell.]

[Crafting complete.]

[You have obtained Flame Shell.]

I kept making shells.

“Boom!!”

Combat 18 kept firing the Cannon.

Every time, explosions rang out amidst the Orc Legion.

Frost burst forth, and shards of ice became razor fragments that pierced the Orcs.

Hot flames clung to their bodies, burning fiercely.

Just in case, I’d packed plenty of materials in my Space Pocket, so I could craft shells without worry.

“Fire! Keep firing!”

“Boom!”

The number of Orcs steadily dwindled.

Every time the Cannon spewed flame, dozens of Orcs were wiped out—of course they were.

But as time passed, anxiety started to creep in.

Sure, the Orcs were being reduced in number.

And the Cannon’s power was undeniably strong.

“But how are there so many left?”

There were just too many Orcs.

I must have taken down hundreds already, yet it felt like less than half were gone.

Meanwhile, the distance between us kept shrinking.

At this rate, the Orcs would reach the village before I could wipe them all out.

Should I exit, bring the Production Team, and try again? 

But I’d already spent so much material making Cannons and shells.

Thinking that just a little more investment might do the trick, I pulled out a new material.

[King Slime’s Necroplasm]

An S Grade material I’d gotten as a reward from the First Floor of the Tower.

Since I had plenty of S Grade materials from the Tower, I didn’t hesitate to use it.

I crafted a shell using the Necroplasm.

“Fwoosh!”

Fired.

The shell flew straight at the Orc Legion, now close enough for me to see their faces.

The moment it landed in the center of the horde—

“SPLURT!”

A massive wave of Necroplasm burst out of the shell.

So much that it completely engulfed over a hundred Orcs at once.

“Chiiik! What is this!”

“It’s sticky!”

The Necroplasm’s stickiness was enough to halt the advance of the Orc Legion.

But that wasn’t all.

“Ssszzz—”

“Chiiik! It burns! My flesh is melting!”

“My feet are stuck! Chiiik!”

The Necroplasm didn’t just stop their movement.

Its acidic content began to melt the Orcs’ bodies.

Their comrades tried to pull them out, but that only got more Orcs caught in the slime.

“Nice!”

Now I had breathing room.

With the Combat Team still active, I could take my time finishing off the remaining Orcs.

Or so I thought, relaxing a bit—

“CHIIIIIK!”

Something leapt out from the pool of Necroplasm.

What the—

“Orc?”

It was an Orc.

But different from the others.

This one was at least 1.5 times larger than the rest.

His whole body was covered in scars and tattoos, with not a single spot left unmarked. 

His thick jaw had tusks twice as large as any other Orc.

He was also armed to the teeth.

The other Orcs were well equipped, but none could compare to this one.

A massive suit of armor adorned with bone and metal, reinforced with chain mail.

The rough Glaive in his hand looked especially menacing.

“Stop him!”

I knew right away that was the Legion Commander of the Orc Legion.

The boss monster of this trial.

“Understood.”

The Legion Commander shook off the Necroplasm and charged straight at me.

My assistants desperately blocked his path.

“WHAM!”

But the Legion Commander’s power was overwhelming.

He didn’t even need to swing his weapon.

Just by ramming forward with his shoulder, he knocked aside the entire Combat Team and kept coming.

Locking eyes with the Legion Commander, a sense of crisis flooded me.

“CHIIIIIK!”

His gaze was radiating a deadly killing intent—directed straight at me.