The voice, reminiscent of scraping metal, filled the air with its harshness. Did orcs originally speak the language of humans? Sihyun pondered the emerging question, recalling no mention of such during theoretical classes. At most, he thought they would make grunting sounds and cry, that's all.
"Charge-!"
At the sound of metal again, the children instinctively tensed without anyone prompting. Sihyun licked his dry lips, narrowing his eyes at the forehead, trying to recall if he ever heard such a story during theory classes. It wasn't something he expected to learn.
Thud! Thud!
Footsteps resonated like an explosion. In a desolate place where Sihyun and the kids had taken shelter behind a single large rock, they huddled together. Perhaps someone worried that a foot might slip out of the rock, Yesol moved her foot to the side.
"Charge-!"
Another metallic sound echoed, and the children remained stiff without anyone prompting them. Sihyun pursed his dry lips, glancing at Hamin as their eyes met. As their gazes interchanged, Hamin, who had been squinting, quickly jerked his chin over his shoulder.
"... When I give the signal, everyone run and find your positions."
Confirming Hamin's chin gesture, Sihyun whispered as if talking to himself. The approaching footsteps were proof that it wasn't an ordinary orc coming. The road was coming.
Darn it.
Sihyun, biting his lip, turned his head to meet Hamin's eyes. Hamin, who had been squinting, seemed to understand the situation, and with a quick jerk of his chin, signaled behind him.
"... When I signal, run and find your positions."
Sihyun, glancing at Hamin, spoke quietly. The approaching road was not going to pass them by.
"When I say three, run. Don't run like fools in one direction. Kang Haewoon, you take care of Haeun and Hajin. The pile of rocks is the safest place because it's in the air, but the problem is whether Hamin can snipe from the air."
Sihyun, who spoke quickly, looked at Haeun, holding a gun. The distance to the pile of rocks was far from here. Even though Haeun was in the sniping class and could attack, Haeun and Haewoon, who needed to throw the reagent and provide buffs, couldn't move too far away from the combat zone. Thud, an orc came closer. It was really soon. Without saying anything, Sihyun just looked at Haeun, who had a gun.
"... I'll go to the pile."
"Are you okay alone?"
"Yeah. The pile is high, so other orcs won't easily attack. Also, Sihyun, you created a barrier around us. If you give me a flying buff, I'll go to the pile on my own."
Sihyun, who quickly spat out his words, looked at Haeun holding the gun. The distance to the pile was quite far. Even if Haeun was in the sniping class and could attack, Haeun and Haewoon, who needed to throw the reagent and provide buffs, couldn't move too far away from the combat zone. Thud, another step of the orc came closer. It was really soon. Sihyun, who had checked Haeun's chin gesture, confirmed that the distance between them and the orc was less than five steps and released his lips.
"One."
Thud!
"Two."
"Charge-!"
"Three!"
Tap! The children all slammed the ground simultaneously. At the same time, Sihyun reached out to Hamin behind him. The fact that the road, which was approaching them, would just pass by without any problem was impossible.
"Charge, humans!"
When Road, who had discovered Sihyun's group, got angry and shouted, the orcs inside the fortress rushed out. The children moved rapidly towards their respective positions. It was a route that inevitably scattered their gaze.
Given the situation, Hamin, who had let go of the shield to hold Sihyun, lifted his sword with one hand and kicked his foot. Looking at the scattered children, Road's gaze dropped.
Hamin was the one who announced the start of the battle.
Slamming the ground and lifting his sword, he swung it towards Road's chin. It was a swift attack, but something went wrong, and he soon groaned and landed far from Road, emitting a short moan. Tsk, Hamin clicked his tongue and adjusted his grip on the sword.
"What's so tough?"
In the place where Hamin swung his sword, there was only a slight bruise, nothing to call a serious injury. The kids nodded at the mention that it would be useless without using skills.
"Uwaaaa!"
Road, wiping his chin as if tickled by Hamin's initiative, roared loudly, raising his club. Sihyun clenched his teeth at the thunderous sound, almost forgetting that he was hanging on to Hamin.
Kugugung, the sky roared with Road's cry, and the ground trembled. Each cry seemed to shake the heavens, and then...
"Chwiiing-!"
"Chwiik!"
Ordinary orcs, looking like they could easily surpass thirty, rushed towards Sihyun. Seeing the approaching orcs like a wave, Sihyun swung his staff.
"What are you looking at? Attack!"
Sharp shouts reached the children along with sustained healing. Only when the kids, who had been frozen in front of the orc horde, moved as they were shocked. After Haeun cast an attack power buff on the kids, she also cast a debuff on the orcs rushing towards them. Just as their movements slowed down, there was a bang, and something exploded.
"Kwaaack!"
The orcs screamed in unison as they rolled over.
"We'll definitely support you, so focus on Road!"
Hajin shouted from the air. The first to respond to the powerful shout was Shin Ijae.
"I'll go first!"
Smiling widely like a boy who received a Christmas present, he floated up, rotating his body. The sword, raised as if to pierce the sky, descended straight down. With a scraping sound, the sharp blade penetrated the orc's shoulder.
"Chwiik!"
The one who screamed and held the club was hit by Shin Ijae. When Shin Ijae swung the club, Shin Ijae agilely dodged it, holding the sword handle with both hands. With a quick movement, he pulled out the sword just as the end of the club grazed Shin Ijae's face.
"It seems impossible to cut them down at once! Can this... kill them?"
"Just try something for now!"
As Shin Ijae, who experienced a precarious situation, was about to say something, Yesol, who was watching nervously, ran towards Road. Though he seemed timid, he boldly kicked the orc's instep with the raised sword.
"Kwaaack!"
In pain from the unfamiliar sensation, Road raised one foot and hopped. It sounded like hopping, but in reality, there was a thud sound. Every time he hopped, the ground shook. Wobbling, Yesol staggered, and above him, the shadow of a giant foot loomed.
"Ah...."
Yesol's pupils widened in surprise. Sihyun, who was desperately swinging his staff, spoke.
"Let's pull the aggro properly. The others are getting attacked."
"Do I need to say it? I'll do it without saying."
Without uttering a single word, he complained while swinging the sword. Perhaps because he was used to using two swords, he let go of the hand habitually holding the waist. With a sudden feeling of floating, the startled Sihyun hugged Hamin tightly.
"Are you crazy?"
Surprised, he complained before realizing and held his waist again.
"Sorry."
It was a simple apology that didn't fit the situation.
Hamin, who firmly held onto Sihyun, attempted to attack again but landed gracefully, glaring at Road. His purple eyes showed a menacing glint. After receiving attacks from four people in turn, Road, despite having some wounds, still looked sturdy.
"... It might take a while."
Hamin, who wiped the blood on the sword, muttered. Sihyun, who turned his head, looked around. Thanks to Hajin and Haeyeon consistently providing support, there was no interference from ordinary orcs while attacking Road. Orcs scattered everywhere were hit by the potion, then rolled over again. Seeing this scene, Sihyun, who had been exerting strength on his arm holding the staff, felt it trembling slightly and looked at Hamin, who was supporting him quite solidly.
"Still, he doesn't say it's impossible."
"Yeah."
"Then provoke him or something."
In a commanding tone, a sarcastic laughter echoed. Thump, thump, as Hamin, who had kicked his foot, provoked once again. Road, holding back the hand that caught his eye, looked down at Hamin instead of swinging the bat.
"Drunkard! You're the, heh, strongest, drunkard! Human!"
Road, who spat out vague and choppy words, had an enraged expression.
"I'm kinda strong."
Hamin raised the corner of his mouth. Sihyun, who was about to say it's not about him, closed his mouth as he saw Road's bat rising towards him. Thump, and a huge bat stomped in front of Hamin. If he hadn't quickly dodged, he would have been crushed underneath. Sensing the threat, Sihyun activated a barrier like armor.
"Shin Ijae!"
Thump, calling out his name while avoiding Road's consecutive attacks, a boy with a greatsword jumped up. A moment of red light flashed in his eyes.
Swoosh!
A loud noise echoed. Responding to Sihyun's signal, Shin Ijae threw the greatsword he was holding, consuming 50% of his stamina. The massive sword stuck into Road's abdomen. Sihyun hastily cast a heal on the staggering Shin Ijae.
It became the trigger for three attack-focused kids to rush towards Road. Yesol struck, followed by Haru exploiting Road's weakness, and when his attack ended, Hamin rushed in. Despite suffering a powerful blow, Road didn't divert his attention from the others.
"Waaah!"
A guy, as if losing his sanity, ran towards Hamin and Sihyun.
Thud!
The ground shook multiple times.
Bang!
Gunshots rang out.
Boom!
The sound of an explosion was deafening.
The final sound, decorating the end of a battle that lasted over 30 minutes, was Road's scream.
"Drunkard...."
As Road, who had been engaged in the battle, seemed to slow down his footsteps, he eventually stopped all movements and stood still. Whether he died standing or just froze without moving, it was a death befitting the name Road.
With a sigh, the kids sat on the ground. Even in the midst of this, Sihyun, perhaps trying to maintain the dignity of the protagonist, released Hamin's arms, who refused to sit on the ground. Shin Ijae, who had been leaping around like crazy in the latter part of the battle, had shaky fingertips. If the battle had lasted a bit longer, his mana would have run out first.
"...It's over."
Shin Ijae said in a dazed voice. Just as Sihyun was about to nod, the ground began to shake.
"What, what is it?"
Kids, who were complacent with the end of the battle, hurriedly stood up. And at that moment, the ground under Sihyun and Hamin sank.
"Sihyun!"
"Hamin!"
Thud, the desperate voices of the kids calling themselves were heard from their bodies, which were rapidly falling out of range. Haewoon swung his staff to use a flight buff, but Sihyun and Hamin had already been out of reach for a long time.
Thump!
As the ground collapsed, Road, who was standing there, collapsed through the hole. His heavy body covered the hole, preventing the ground from collapsing completely. It was the moment when light disappeared from Sihyun's sight.
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