novelraw Chapter 23 : Awakening (6)
Chapter 23 : Awakening (6)
“You tiresome bastards.”
With his aura-wrapped Kukri, Arthur slashed the creature's nape in a flash of lightning.
Paralyzed as its nerves were severed, the Ogre couldn't move a muscle.
Arthur quickly shoved the CheyTac into the creature's gaping mouth and pulled the trigger.
Taang!
He had dispatched the creature in an instant.
“As expected…”
Millerf, who had been holding on with sheer willpower, collapsed as the tension left him.
Arthur quickly scanned the surroundings.
Millerf, Skevin, and Hellot, who could be called the core strength of the Knight Order, were all down.
The Devil's Corps was at the forefront, fighting against the Orcs alongside the rest of the knights.
“Hmm.”
Although they were unilaterally pushing back the Orcs, everyone showed clear signs of exhaustion.
In contrast, the Orcs maintained their numerical superiority, pushing forward endlessly as if employing human wave tactics.
If this continued, they would eventually be pushed back.
He had to turn the tide of the battle.
Arthur climbed onto the Ogre's back so that everyone could see him.
Then, he aimed the muzzle at an Orc warrior.
Taang!
Peo-eok-.
The Orc warrior's head exploded.
In that moment, the entire Knight Order, as well as the Orcs, froze.
They all turned their heads in unison toward where the sound had come from.
Arthur was standing on top of the fallen Ogre.
“Young Master?”
“Don't tell me, that monster…?”
“Huk! Look over there.”
A knight spotted Hellot lying collapsed next to the Ogre.
“Vice-Captain!”
They were then horrified to see Skevin and Millerf also down.
“Th-this can't be…”
Everyone looked utterly dumbfounded, as if they had received a great shock.
Just then, Arthur, drawing the Kukri from his back, dashed into the horde of Orcs and roared like a thunderclap.
“Phoenix Knights!”
“……!”
Everyone snapped to their senses.
“All of you, follow me!”
‘If it's the Young Master!’
As a light of hope appeared in the knights' eyes, some figures moved with remarkable speed.
It was the Devil's Corps.
Though they had reached their physical limits, they unleashed their unique skills without restraint, dealing with the Orcs as they followed Arthur.
Seeing the Devil's Corps following him, Arthur shouted.
“Aim for the warriors only!”
“Aargh!”
They answered with a resounding cry.
They looked as if they could collapse at any moment, but seeing Arthur charging ahead, they felt power surging within them.
He was the one who pushed them to their limits every day.
As such, just seeing Arthur triggered an instinctive reaction.
“To think that the man who made my teeth chatter would be a help in this way.”
“Let’s smash them to pieces!”
“Shall we begin, then?”
The Wright brothers shot forward at a tremendous speed and launched their attacks on the creatures.
Not to be outdone, Mulan also mercilessly swung the two greatswords in his hands.
As the Devil's Corps unleashed their relentless assault, Jonathan, who had received intensive training from Skevin, glared and shouted.
“Let’s kill them all!”
“Kill them!”
“Don’t leave a single one alive!”
The knights, engulfed in fury, charged at the Orcs, swinging their swords at anything in their path.
“How dare you! To our Captain!”
“This is revenge for the Vice-Captain!”
“Wipe them out!”
“Chwiik chwiik! Don’t fall back!”
The Orcs tried to counterattack, but they were cut down helplessly by the tsunami-like assault.
Seeing the Orcs' morale breaking, Arthur spoke to the Wright brothers, who were hot on his heels.
“Keep pushing them just like this!”
“Aargh!”
The Wright brothers pushed forward even more fiercely.
Meanwhile, Arthur ran toward a house-sized boulder at his 11 o'clock.
Quickly climbing the rock, he surveyed the area.
The momentum of the enraged Knight Order was tremendous.
At this rate, it was only a matter of time before the Orcs were annihilated.
However, the desperate struggles of the Orcs trying to survive were also causing considerable casualties.
He took out all the beads from his pocket.
A total of six shots.
He decided to completely shatter what little morale the Orcs had left.
Arthur loaded a bead into the Cheytac and aimed the muzzle at the Orcs. Then, he targeted an Orc warrior through the scope.
“First, you.”
He pulled the trigger.
Taang!
At the sound, like a thunderbolt striking from the sky, the Orcs were startled.
“Chwiik chwiik! There's a magician!”
“Chwiik! Find and kill him!”
Peopeong!
The Orc warrior's head exploded.
“Chwiiiiiiik!”
The Orcs screamed in terror.
In response, the Phoenix Knights and the Devil's Corps launched a relentless assault.
Taang!
Peong-!
Whenever the gunshot rang out, an Orc's head would invariably burst like a watermelon.
A few members of the Devil's Corps stared blankly at the scene.
They knew the sound was coming from Arthur's weapon.
But with him out of sight and Orc heads exploding, it looked as if they were being struck by magic.
For the creatures fighting an unseen enemy, it must have been terror itself.
‘Amazing.’
‘That’s our Young Master for you.’
Mulan, who was pouring attacks on the creatures, shouted.
“What are you all doing! Push forward!”
Those who had faltered for a moment quickly resumed their attack.
Taang!
Taang!
The gunshots continued to echo, and with each one, the Orcs sank deeper into terror.
Taang!
As another one's head exploded, splattering green blood everywhere!
The Orcs finally fell into a crucible of fear.
“Chwiiiiiiik!”
“Chwiik! Run!”
“Chwiik chwiik! The humans have a great magician!”
The Orcs panicked and fled in disarray.
Just then, Arthur, appearing suddenly from somewhere, charged at the fleeing creatures and shouted.
“All units, attack!”
As he fearlessly swung his red aura-clad Kukri, slaughtering the Orcs, he was the very picture of valor.
The more Arthur was covered in the creatures' blood, the higher the knights' morale soared.
“Kill them all!”
“Don’t let a single one escape!”
Having lost their will to fight, the Orcs were mercilessly killed, and the entire area began to be stained with their blood.
How much time had passed?
The dark sky slowly began to brighten.
A heavy silence fell over the place that had been so fierce just a moment ago.
Arthur, covered in blood, radiated a chilling aura.
When he passed by, the knights, far from being afraid, looked at him with eyes of reverence and offered a sword salute.
Arthur arrived at the Ogre's corpse.
Skevin, Hellot, and Millerf were standing with the support of other knights.
Millerf bowed his waist.
“You’ve worked hard.”
With a firm expression, Arthur checked his condition.
Outwardly, there were no visible injuries, but his face was deathly pale, suggesting he had suffered internal damage.
“It’s not serious, is it?”
“I just fainted for a moment. I'll be fine after a day of rest.”
“That's a relief.”
He then shifted his gaze to Skevin and Hellot.
Both were covered in wounds.
Most notably, Skevin's hair, which had been blond, had turned pure white.
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure myself. There’s nothing particularly wrong with my body, so I think I’ll have to wait and see.”
“What about the other wounds?”
“They are minor injuries.”
Skevin couldn't look Arthur in the eye, feeling guilty for failing to fulfill his duty.
It was the same for the Vice-Captain, Hellot.
“Hmm.”
Confirming that none of their lives were in danger, Arthur could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
By now, all the knights had gathered and were looking at him.
Arthur looked around at them.
Covered in injuries and splattered with green blood, he could guess how fiercely they had fought.
He could also see the Devil's Corps.
They had not only completed the dangerous mission of breaking through to the enemy's heart and crushing the Orc command but had also acted as the vanguard against the Orcs, so they were a sorry sight.
He could see that Kasan, in particular, had suffered severe burns on his face and arms.
Yet, he was grateful and proud that they had fought to the very end.
Moreover, unlike the Phoenix Knights who stood individually, they were supporting each other or standing with their arms around each other's shoulders, which made him inwardly pleased.
It was because this was the image of the team he had always envisioned.
Suddenly, he was reminded of his former comrades.
They had trusted each other as if they were extensions of themselves.
With them, he could go anywhere, and with their perfect teamwork, they had never failed a mission.
But in the long war against ‘them’, they had departed one by one, until only he remained.
To avenge his comrades, he had survived to the end and succeeded in killing ‘that thing’.
He thought the war was over, but…
‘Damn it!’
The war wasn't over.
Here, too, a war with monsters had begun.
He didn't know what kind of being the king of monsters was, but he clenched his fist and made a vow.
That he would blow its head off.
Arthur swore a firm oath and opened his mouth to speak softly.
“Everyone, you’ve worked hard.”
Everyone's eyes flashed as they listened intently to his words.
“We don't know when those things will appear again. Never let your guard down, and I hope you will use this battle to fill in your own shortcomings. Understood?”
“Ack-!”
A thick, resolute voice echoed.
Arthur added another word.
“There is only one way to defeat a strong enemy. It is to fight together with combined strength. Remember that this is the best tactic for victory and the way to save your comrades.”
With those words, he walked forward.
The knights blocking his path parted to the sides, opening a way for him.
As Arthur passed, one of them knelt on one knee and bowed his head.
Then, as if by prior agreement, every knight knelt on one knee to show their respect as Arthur passed.
Watching the scene, a smile appeared on Skevin's lips.
“There are too many competitors.”
Hellot grinned.
“Still, you will be the first one chosen, Captain.”
“I wonder about that?”
Skevin looked at Millerf with a smile.
Millerf, meeting his gaze, made an awkward expression and shook his head.
“I was rejected.”
“R-really?”
“He said he has no need for a freeloader.”
“Ha.”
Skevin let out a dry laugh and looked at Arthur.
He was becoming more and more captivated by his charm.
Today, Arthur's back seemed exceptionally large, and a firm goal formed in his mind.
For now, he could only watch from afar, but he vowed that he would definitely become a Sword Master and follow him.
‘I will definitely do it.’
With a resolute expression, Skevin looked around at the Knight Order.
They had suffered considerable damage in this battle, but they had also achieved tremendous growth.
The number of members who had entered the realm of Sword Expert reached several dozen, and most of the trainees had grown so rapidly they could be accepted as official knights.
Furthermore, the performance shown by the Devil's Corps was beyond expectations.
If they continued like this, they would become powerful figures in the shortest amount of time and make their presence known to the world.
He finally understood the meaning of what Arthur had said about awakening them.
With their current strength, far from being afraid of Count Yarve, he was overflowing with confidence.
He didn't know how many mercenaries Count Yarve had hired, but they had Arthur, who carried on the will of Teheran Julius, and Millerf.
Above all, the knights' faith in Arthur must have been solidified by this subjugation.
Now that he had captured their hearts, their loyalty and unity would be markedly different from before.
His heart swelled with emotion.
“The day we soar is drawing near.”
Skevin muttered as if to himself.
Hellot, who heard him, also smiled and nodded.
Millerf approached, leaning on his staff.
“It won't end with just that.”
“……?”
Skevin and Hellot tilted their heads.
Millerf looked at Arthur with a meaningful expression.
He was certain after seeing him eliminate the Ogre in a single breath.
The words he had spoken to him were not uttered lightly.
For those who touched him, there would only be death.
With a face mixed with worry, fear, and anticipation, he opened his mouth heavily.
“The Young Master will become an emperor. And not just any…”
“……!”
Both of their eyes widened.
Millerf couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, swallowing the words.
‘He is one who will become the Conqueror.’