Chapter 119 :

Episode 119 - Victory (2)

It did not take long to realize that something had gone wrong.

Because there was no sign of the faint sounds of battle being cut off.

If he just used his power, it would end quickly, so why was he dragging it out like that?

Along with that question, what suddenly came to mind was the duel between Jing and that fellow behind the cabin.

Even the conversation afterward.

— I don’t die even if my stomach is pierced. Even if my arm is severed, as long as it isn’t completely destroyed, I can attach it again.

The moment I had the illusion that the fellow’s indifferent answer was biting at my ears, a curse came out of my mouth on its own.

"That insane lunatic, seriously!"

It was not that I was worried about the fellow getting hurt.

It was because I knew why the fellow was doing that even while enduring the pain of injuries.

"Damn it, damn it."

Whatever happened, I had to use power.

Preferably something that could help the fellow until the water came rushing in.

What was there that could deal with orcs?

I knew there was no animal that could fight orcs, but even so, my thoughts did not stop.

Anything that could help that reckless bastard fighting the orcs.....

It was the moment I reached the conclusion that the only thing that could defeat monsters was another monster.

A burning energy that felt as if it would scorch me began spreading inside my body.

At the sudden heat painful enough to make my body curl on its own, my body instinctively curled up.

What is this all of a sudden?

Even while my mind was in chaos from a sensation both familiar and unfamiliar, I could still be conscious of one strange phenomenon.

The pit was gradually getting smaller.

Though I soon realized even that was my misconception.

The pit was not getting smaller.

My body was gradually growing larger.

As proof, my eye level was gradually becoming even with the one-armed fellow who still had not regained consciousness.

I felt that the pit, just large enough for one orc to barely enter, was becoming cramped, but that did not bother me.

My whole body was too hot for my motor nerves to keep up with the speed at which my body was growing.

When the searing sensation reached its peak, my body’s growth finally stopped.

At the same time, the cave wall supporting me and the leader reached its limit.

Rumble!

The cave began to collapse.

From above, I heard the confused sounds of orcs panicking and moving about, and the sound of the insane lunatic protagonist bastard muttering curses.

Through my vision blurred by high fever, I saw the body of the one-armed orc collapsing weakly.

I reached out with my right hand and grabbed the fellow’s one remaining arm.

Immediately after, the fall began.

Between the broken piles of rock, the black-haired human also came into view.

I stretched my remaining hand toward the fellow.

I saw Ratel, thinking I was attacking him, correct his sword in midair.

The fact that as soon as I became an orc, I would end up in the same situation as the leader fellow was so ridiculous that the corner of my mouth twisted even amid the pain.

Fortunately, I did not end up in the same situation as the leader fellow.

Because I saw Ratel’s face, which had been glaring at me as if looking at a madman when I suddenly smiled, become dyed with surprise.

Without hesitating any longer, I grabbed the fellow with one hand.

The moment I carefully grabbed the fellow so he would not burst, the river water falling from above swallowed us.

Ironically, once I was submerged in the cold water, a sense of liberation washed over me as the breath that had been struggling from the high fever opened up.

Beyond my fading consciousness, a low voice spoke to me again this time.

— Keep the promise.

I told you, I never made any promise.

* * *

The fury of the orcs that discovered a human who had intruded into the community’s most secret core was fierce.

There were those approaching while swallowing their drool, and there were also those that held only killing intent to tear him apart, but Ratel was calm.

— Kkweeeek!!!

The orcs, feeling not the slightest threat from the fact that their opponent was a single human, charged at Ratel all at once.

Ratel, who stood his ground with the altar stone behind him, cut off the neck of the first orc.

Immediately after, green blood burst out from the clean cross-section, and the orc aiming for Ratel’s left hesitated for a moment.

As the price for that brief hesitation, the monster had to offer up its neck just like the first orc.

Fear and shock passed one after another through the eyes of the remaining orcs as they looked at the two heads of their comrades rolling on the ground, and soon after, rage covered over them.

‘Do they have a stronger sense of camaraderie than I thought?’

As he cut the neck of one of the orcs charging at him all at once, Ratel idly thought such a peaceful thought.

The reason he could remain composed even in a situation where dozens of hands were rushing at him wildly was not particularly because of confidence in his own skill.

As proof, at the same time Ratel drove his sword into the neck of an orc charging from the left, his left arm was grabbed by an orc whose number he had already lost count of.

Crunch.

Under the monster’s grip strength, his bones were crushed, and pain came with a horrific sound, but Ratel did not panic.

His arm would heal quickly anyway, and he would not die from an injury of this level.

He pulled out the sword he had planted in the orc’s neck and cut off the arm gripping his own arm.

— Kkieeeek!!

The orc in pain grabbed its severed arm and stepped back, and Ratel roughly shook off his arm.

By the time he took his stance again, the fractured arm had already recovered.

However, the attacks of the orcs that had found a gap in the flow once it was disrupted grew even fiercer.

Thanks to having the cliff behind him, the risk of being attacked from the rear had decreased, but Ratel was still surrounded by monsters.

The number of times his arms or legs were grabbed gradually increased, and the attacks increasingly stopped not as effective hits, but at wounding his limbs.

But unchanged, Ratel did not lose his composure.

Injuries were not frightening.

No, should he say they were actually welcome?

Ratel, whose left arm that had been broken before was attacked once again, thought blankly.

Seeing as he could still think such thoughts, it seemed the dangerous moment had not yet come.

Injuries were not frightening.

Because when the body was in pain, useless thoughts disappeared.

Through various experiences, Ratel had realized that the moment only one emotion remained in his heart was the moment he became stronger.

So, not yet.

Not yet.

At this level, this trial was infinitely insufficient as a stepping stone for growth, and not even enough to use for shaking off useless thoughts.

Or perhaps enough for the strange behavior of one orc entering his vision.

It was not especially larger than the other orcs, nor was it especially more ferocious.

Rather, it only looked dull enough to be knocked back by the others in a situation where all the orcs were attacking his openings at once.

Ironically, that orc’s stupidity led to the behavior Ratel had been most wary of.

It happened because the fool that had been knocked over by the other orcs happened to roll to the very edge of the cliff, and because the fool’s mind was far more distracted than the other orcs.

The orc, which was startled after nearly falling below the cliff and was trying to get up in horror, shifted its gaze below the core as if sensing something strange.

"Kwek?"

The orc stretched its body down below the cliff to examine below.

"Damn it."

Ratel muttered a curse mixed with irritation and twisted his captured left arm and leg.

Pain accompanied the twisting of his bones, but that did not matter.

Once he realized the fellow’s target was below the pit, injuries that would recover anyway were pushed even further into the background.

The damn imperial prince he had hidden below the pit had his limbs tied.

Well, even if his limbs had not been tied, it was unknown whether that guy could properly deal with a single orc.

After tearing off the orc hanging from his leg, Ratel turned his body to stop the orc heading below the cliff.

But at the same time, because the orcs charged at him again, it did not go as he wished.

Ratel had to admit that he had lost the battle against that damn imperial prince again this time.

Because his plan to slowly deal with the orcs had completely fallen apart.

Ratel, who had not known that the matter would be ruined because of one fool, cursed through gritted teeth.

His mood worsened further when he imagined how unpleasantly the imperial prince would smile if he knew things had gone according to his plan.

Ratel reached out his hand with a deep frown.

His target was the fool.

He intended to at least pierce a hole in its neck as payment for handing him defeat.

Fortunately for the fool orc, and also somewhat fortunately for Ratel, the outcome between Ratel and the black-haired imperial prince was reversed.

Rumble—

The vibration shaking the floor signaled a come-from-behind victory.

However, Ratel could not fully enjoy the joy of victory.

Because in the very next moment, before he could even recognize what had happened, the ground beneath his feet began to collapse.

Even as the ground beneath his feet collapsed, submerged in water, and he fell downward, Ratel did not panic.

The surprise was brief, and strangely, no anxiety came.

Instead, a faint irritation and certainty took its place.

The certainty that tying up his limbs had, as expected, been utterly useless.

He instinctively knew that the one who had committed this absurd act was that black-haired imperial prince he had locked below.

He did not know what unimaginable thing he had done this time.

But even Ratel could not remain calm when one huge orc that had risen from the ground reached its hand toward him.

Ratel instinctively tried to cut off the orc’s hand, but he soon noticed that the movement of the orc that had risen from the ground was completely different from the other orcs.

From the surprisingly cautious movement that did not suit its enormous size, he could not feel the slightest intent to attack.

At the touch of the hand grabbing his arm as if wishing not to hurt him, Ratel loosened the strength in the hand holding his sword.

Because a truly absurd assumption vaguely came to mind—that this orc might be someone he knew.

Ratel was soon able to realize that his prediction was correct.

Kwaaaaaaaa—!!!

Because the sound of water, so powerful it could not even be compared to before, began filling every direction.

* * *

The reason I slowly regained consciousness was thanks to the fishy smell of water and the smell of rot stinging my nose.

There had been times when my sense of smell became sharper after transforming into a dog or a wolf, but this smell stimulating my nose was intense beyond comparison with those times.

I diligently drew in air to make my nose get used to the severe stench, which could almost be called pain, but it was of little use.

All I did was realize that among the stenches, there were even smells whose source I could not identify.

Damn it, it would be better to wash my nose with water.

Unable to endure the stench, I eventually snapped my eyes open.

"......."

.......

What greeted me when I regained consciousness was Ratel’s face staring down at me.

It was a face that could be considered welcome, but I instinctively knew.

At least that he and I were not facing each other as human to human.

Looking at that expression mixed with confusion and strangeness, there was no doubt.

I quietly examined the sword in the fellow’s hand.

The fellow’s sword, lowered toward the ground, did not seem like it would point at my neck right away.

It seems he is at least giving me a chance to make an excuse this time.

Thinking that it was impressive he had not killed me while I was unconscious, I slowly opened my mouth.

"......Kwek."

What I had originally intended to say was, First, listen to me.

Not a pig’s cry like metal being scraped.

"Don’t tell me you can’t even speak."

Perhaps as flustered as I was, Ratel asked.

I knew it was rare for Ratel to be shaken like that, but I was far too flustered myself to tease him.

I cleared my throat once again and opened my mouth.

"K-kuwek......, I can speak."

Fortunately, I confirmed that words were coming out and felt relieved myself.

Something resembling a pig’s cry was attached, but anyway, the important thing was that I could use language.

I slowly raised my body and looked down at my hands covered in green skin.

The fingers moving according to my will proved that my body had truly turned into an orc.

"......There’s a puddle over there."

In an unusually cautious tone for him, the fellow pointed at the floor where water had gathered.

He probably meant that I should check my face, but I shook my head.

"Kwek, it’s fine. Kwek, even without looking, I think I know what I look like."

I probably look like an orc, what else?

The more important problem than my current appearance was how to explain this situation, where I had suddenly turned into an orc, to that protagonist bastard.

For now, he was watching because he was too stunned, but if things went wrong again, there was no telling where the fellow’s sword would point.

"K-kuwek, so this is......, a constitution."

Feeling self-loathing at an excuse that even I thought was terrible, I quietly waited for the fellow to bring his sword to my neck.

But no sharp blade threatened my neck.

The fellow’s body folded forward.

"Kwek, what is it?"

Was he hurt somewhere?

Come to think of it, the two orcs that had been taking quite threatening postures before I lost consciousness were too quiet.

Wondering if he had perhaps been attacked by them, I hurriedly looked around, but both orcs were simply lying face down on the floor obediently.

Just as I wondered what on earth made the protagonist bend over at the waist and took one step toward him—

Ratel straightened his bent waist.

"Kk, ahahahaha!"

The fellow burst into laughter.

Very loudly.