Chapter 18: The Orc King’s Oath

The wind swirled around the high cliff.

The Orc King, bloodied and battered, looked down at me.

His torn and broken body seemed barely able to stand, yet despite everything, he remained upright on his own two feet.

“Ka!”

“Loruka!”

The Orcs behind him shouted.

Clack!

But the king stretched out his arm to stop them.

‘Was he signaling them not to interfere?’

Though the battle was over, the king’s eyes were serious.

“Hey, elder. I usually don’t talk to NPCs, but let me ask something. Is this even possible? It’s not a bug, right? An official route? Right? Yeah?”

Gobori approached the elder and asked.

He listened carefully, wary of the Orcs.

The Orc approaching me showed no sign of movement.

“Well… I only checked the manual, never saw it firsthand. Didn’t expect a user to actually beat this. Amazing.”

The elder stroked his beard and replied.

Gobori snapped his fingers excitedly, as if he had been waiting for this.

“Right! Since it’s an insanely hard difficulty, manual combat is forced! That’s why no user ever beat it by accident! Haha! Our user is the first! Yahoo!”

“So, how did the user beat it? Auto-battle or by chance?”

“Obviously on purpose! What do you take our user for! Haha!”

Gobori laughed at the elder’s words.

That elder…

He said he hated personal talks, but I guess he wanted to discuss this.

Thunk!

Suddenly, the Orc in front of us dropped to his knees.

‘Had he run out of stamina?’

We rushed forward to support him.

But then a light burst forth from the Orc’s body.

“Huh?”

Slowly enveloped in light, he began to float into the air.

Wasteland Tyrant thinks. Your silence. Your patience. What could that mean?

Strange characters appeared on the screen.

“Huh? What’s this message say?”

“What is it! Just give the reward already! The first in the server, right? Hand over the reward!”

Gobori and Rose were puzzled.

Rose…

I don’t know why she suddenly got so fierce.

Ssss…

Pang!

The glowing Orc suddenly exploded.

Flashes scattered in all directions, condensing into a rectangular card form.

“Sp-S-Special hero card?”

“They’re rewarding the Newbie Killer? Awesome!”

The card descended.

The Orc King himself had transformed into a card.

Thunk!

Before I could react, I was returned to the stage.

[Special: Wasteland Tyrant Card Obtained!]

The newly acquired card was displayed in front of the stage.

The golden shimmering card seemed ready to explode with even the slightest touch.

“Newbie Killer! So our user really had a plan? A top-tier tank in Valhalla! All the damage dealers are dead! Yahoo!”

“Open it quickly! Open it quickly! Open it!”

Gobori and Rose jumped up excitedly.

“Oh! So you really got the infamous Newbie Killer? I’ve been curious about this Orc’s gear! Open it fast! Open it!”

Dulv also showed interest and urged on.

Alright.

The situation is complicated, but I roughly understood.

‘This card contains the Orc we just defeated, right?’

There couldn’t be a better reward than obtaining that Orc.

I manipulated the screen to flip the card.

Crash!

[★ Wasteland Tyrant]

Flames burst, and the Orc appeared.

“Oh!”

“Ohh!”

“Ooh!”

The three who had been waiting were thrilled.

“Kyuek?”

Even the Junior poked its nose out from beneath the armor, sniffing.

I thought it was quiet all along, but there you are.

I patted the Junior and looked up at the Orc.

“Wow. Seeing it in person is even bigger. First time this close!”

“Wow! Newbie Killer! Wow! Hard Tank!”

“Show me the gear! Let me touch that radiant armor!”

Rose, Gobori, and Dulv were making a fuss.

However, the Orc didn’t respond.

‘Was he flustered by the sudden situation?’

If so, then I should be the first to greet him.

I stepped forward and extended my hand.

Having become comrades after being enemies, I felt a certain impression.

“Glad to be with you. You understand our language, right? I’m Sid. Let’s put grudges aside and just get along. Nice to meet you.”

I smiled, reaching out my hand to the Orc.

But the Orc didn’t even twitch.

He didn’t look my way.

‘What’s wrong?’

‘Was he upset?’

I awkwardly lowered my hand, and the three around me laughed.

“Haha, brother! You’re even trying to introduce yourself to this guy? Special heroes like him don’t understand words! They’re not heroes like us!”

“Wow! Look at Dolswe! Social skills on point!”

“Don’t tease him, everyone. That’s this friend’s virtue.”

Gobori, Rose, and Dulv chuckled.

“Huh? Did I do something wrong?”

I asked, looking at the three.

‘They said he doesn’t understand words?’

Like some kind of man-eating beast?

“Hey, monsters in Valhalla aren’t living beings. They’re a kind of clone? Like artificial humans.”

“Artificial humans? Like homunculi or golems?”

“Oh! Yeah! Something like that. They’re infinitely cloned and resurrected. I don’t know the details either. It’s just the magic of the gods, I guess. Strange things happen here all the time.”

After some thought, Rose answered.

“Special heroes are one of those clones! They give you popular NPCs or monsters!”

Gobori raised his hand and added.

Makes sense.

I guess I have to accept it.

Asking here would only raise more questions.

Trying to understand the mechanics or reasons is meaningless.

“Hammer! Show me the hammer! I want to see the hammer!”

Just then, Dulv hopped over.

Come to think of it, that hammer was incredible too.

I checked the screen.

★★ Wasteland Tyrant Lv. 30

[Orc Chief]

[Ancient Brass Armor]

[Veteran Berserker]

[Ranged Hater]

‘Huh?’

But there was no equipment listed.

“Huh? That’s his base gear?”

“Well, most special heroes can’t switch equipment. If they swapped for better weapons here, it’d be broken!”

Gobori and Rose seemed to confirm this as well.

“What? So it can’t be repaired either? That’s a shame!”

Dulv ran up, disappointed.

I smirked and checked the Orc’s information.

[Orc Chief]

Unaffected by special effects used by the Orc race.

[Ancient Brass Armor]

Reduces all physical attack damage by 50%. Breaks with each hit but restores after battle.

[Veteran Berserker]

Every 10 seconds, increases attack power and attack speed by 10%, up to 150%.

[Ranged Hater]

When health falls below 50%, deals 500% critical damage to a random ranged hero.

The Orc has four traits.

All traits I’d encountered in dungeons before.

“Guh… Feels like the party quality just skyrocketed! Having this guy up front while we shoot spells from behind is a 1-tier shooting combo! He’s a hard counter to damage dealers!”

Gobori admired.

“Hehe, then our team will change too, right? Dulv is melee, so he stays. We need a healer for sure. So… does that mean you’re out?”

“Huh? What?”

“I mean, the expedition party! You got a good hero, but if you don’t use him, you’re an idiot! Farewell, Greenie! It’s been fun!”

“Eek! No! Just 5 more levels to amplify! Please raise me 5 more levels, user! I’ll bring another pet! Please!”

Gobori was getting overexcited while talking to Rose.

‘What’s this all of a sudden?’

‘Amplification at 5 more levels?’

Right.

I vaguely remembered something like that.

The previous user said, “Even if you amplify a 2-star, it’s still worse than a 5-star.”

I should confirm this now.

“Yeah. What’s this amplification thing? I heard about it but didn’t catch all the details. Is it a skill that lets you one-shot?”

I asked Gobori.

He perked up his ears and answered.

“Ah, amplification? It means the hero’s rank goes up! 2-stars like me and you can amplify at level 50! Then you can use the one-shot skill freely!”

“Rank goes up? What rank?”

“It means going from 2-star to 3-star! You gain a star! Permanently!”

Gobori’s eyes sparkled as he spoke.

“Gain a star?”

My ears perked up.

[★★ Goblin Sentry] Lv. 35

[High-wire Goblin]

[Cunning Collector]

But…

‘Gobori is level 35, isn’t he?’

He said amplification is at level 50.

Looks like he was mistaken about something.

“But you’re level 35, right? You said amplification is at 50. That’s 15 levels away.”

“Ah, well, you see? Goblin race like me or… ma… ma…”

“Ma? What?”

“Ma…”

Gobori froze mid-sentence.

Rose laughed and interrupted.

“Hey! Why can’t you say monster! Heroes like him who are monster-type have lower stats but amplify 10 levels faster. It’s a kind of fast growth. But he’s just anxious he’s gonna be stuck in the warehouse! Haha!”

“Hey! Don’t call me a monster! We’re the normal ones in our world!”

“Next prologue full of goblins.”

“Kyik!”

Gobori grabbed his ears, groaning.

Wait.

‘Then maybe I’m close too?’

I tapped my dwarf on the screen.

[★★ Wandering Swordsman] Lv. 38

[Goblin Exterminator]

[Stray Dog Hunter]

[Unyielding Warrior]

Just as expected.

My level was also approaching 50.

‘If I level up 12 more times, I become 3-star?’

Sounds tempting.

“Anyway, once you amplify, your star count permanently increases. Even if you get discarded in this party, you’ll appear next time as a 3-star! That’s why everyone sings the amplification song. You gotta earn your star first to stop the whining.”

“Also, when you amplify, your name changes. Greenie is 2-star Goblin Sentry, but after amplification, he’ll be 3-star Goblin Tamer. Simple, right?”

“Hey! Watch your mouth! I’m destined to be Goblin Emperor!”

“Pfft. Sure you are!”

“Brother, here’s a secret. That’s why many 4-star heroes are supporters. Supporters have a high chance to get on the bus, so it’s easy to level them up. That’s how bubble 4-stars brag about being 4-star. Like this guy!”

“What? What did you say! I became 4-star through my own effort! Apologize!”

“Next you’re a worthless fly with no attack!”

“Ugh!”

Gobori and Rose bickered.

Right.

Half of the 4-star heroes are supporters, weren’t they?

I started to understand Gobori’s words.

‘In other words…’

‘Heroes who can’t participate much in combat have a hard time earning stars.’

‘They get stuck in the warehouse, get scraped, ignored, and don’t get amplification chances.’

Dulv, who was watching the Orc, caught my eye.

He must have stayed 2-star for a long time too.

I addressed Dulv.

“Excuse me… elder?”

“Hm? Haha, don’t call me elder. I’m just over eighty, but elder sounds embarrassing!”

“Is that so? But Dulv, wouldn’t you feel good becoming 3-star?”

“3-star? Me?”

Dulv’s eyes widened in surprise.

Then he stroked his beard and laughed.

“Haha. I don’t think stars themselves have meaning. Only the feel of holding new steel matters.”

“Is that so? Then…”

“But it can’t be helped.”

“Can’t be helped?”

“Regardless of personal belief, there’s public evaluation. Even if you’re satisfied, who will recognize it? In a world where stars are the standard, it’d be a lie to say you don’t want them. I’ve wished for that reward many times myself.”

Dulv nodded.

I could relate to that answer.

“Right. Many users look down on low-star heroes. I get it.”

“It’s not just the users. Heroes themselves mock each other’s stars. That’s life. Authority.”

Dulv chuckled in agreement.

True.

Even the same words carry different weight depending on who says them.

Authority is something hard to shake off in life.

“I hope we can all become 3-star. Even better, 5-star.”

“Hahaha. Don’t worry about me. Take care of yourself first.”

Dulv stroked his beard and said.

I nodded and smiled.

If possible, I’ll raise everyone’s stars here.

But first, I’ll achieve my own goal.

Now then, let’s flip through the collected cards.

There were thirteen cards on the screen.

I flipped them before heading to the dungeon.

Crash!

“Huh?”

A fierce blaze exploded.

This flame…

Was it a 5-star appearing?

“Huh?”

“Huh? What is that?”

“Ah, damn, it’s aggro!”

The three on stage were baffled.

[★★★ Danchung Flame’s Passionate Sword Demon]

A strange name appeared on the screen.

3-star.

A man wrapped in flames appeared.

The roar and flames just now seemed to have been triggered ‘personally’ by this man.

“You thought it was 5-star? Sorry about that, hahaha! Survivor! A lonely sword seeking revenge! I am Danchung Flame’s Passionate Sword Demon! Use me, master! Please! Hahaha!”