Chapter 22: The Warrior's Exam
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 22: The Warrior's Exam
The next morning, I shoved Jung Hayeon, the Alraune lying beside me, aside and got up. I caught sight of her smiling face, a sign that she must have been quite satisfied with the previous night.
It had been a decent night for me, too. I wasn't sure if it was because of the honey she produced, but it was a completely different experience from being with a human. I felt a pang of guilt thinking of Choi Seulgi, who was probably going through hell on the continent, but honestly, it was even better than my time with her. I don't think I need to elaborate further.
I slowly sat up. As I did, Jung Hayeon startled awake. She shot up, covering her chest with her hands.
“I… I’m sorry.”
She was likely apologizing for waking up later than me, but I didn't bother to answer. Instead, I simply patted her on the head and headed outside.
“Krrrreuk… Pack your things! Pack your things!”
Outside, the Orc who was the eldest of the five loyal siblings was already preparing for our departure. The leather waterskins we'd made yesterday were filled to the brim, and the carrying frames destined for the large Hobgoblins were packed with rations.
The preparations were certainly satisfactory. I couldn't just stand around, so I started to help them out. Soon enough, not just our clan, but all the Green Skins had finished their preparations.
“Krrreuk. Where should we be heading?”
I spoke toward the direction where I sensed its presence. As I suspected, it seemed to be serving as both our examiner and our guide. I didn't have to wait long for its voice to ring out.
“South. I can tell you nothing more.”
I had expected as much. Since it was called an exam, I figured there would be some level of difficulty.
The continent was vast. Finding our way with only the word ‘south’ as a guide would be incredibly difficult for most, but it was a different story for me. The reason was simple: I had a rough map of the continent in my head.
From what I remembered of my final days, the Queen of the North was entrenched in the North, while the Saint Knights Order and the Sword Saint held the West. Humans lived in the South as well. I remembered a desert city there, protected by a mage known as the Jewel of the Desert.
The land east of that city was known as the Monster Lands. Of course, that was just what the humans arbitrarily called it, but the region was unequivocally a ‘forbidden zone.’
There was no information about it, other than that magical beasts roamed there. Any human who entered was never seen again. I’d heard a rumor about five years before my death that the desert city had been completely annihilated. Piecing things together, I began to suspect that the Great Tribe Leader’s Land of Glory might be located within that forbidden zone.
They were still primitive, but even I hadn't expected the level of the monsters' ‘civilization’ to be this high.
It must be there. The Great Tribe Leader had to be in the Monster Lands.
After organizing my thoughts, I explained the situation to Goff and Black Spear. Soon, we began our march toward the Land of Glory. Our numbers were around 200. Who would have guessed that the secret behind the massive, sporadic monster migrations was this very journey to find the Great Tribe Leader's Land of Glory?
“Krrreuk. Let’s go! To the Land of Glory.”
“Thump! Thump! Thump!”
And so, we walked. I knew it wouldn't be an easy journey, but it was harder than I’d anticipated. The reason was that nothing happened. The forest was pristine, clearly not one inhabited by magical beasts. In fact, it felt almost unnaturally well-preserved… It gave off the strong impression of being a sacred place, prepared to welcome the warriors returning from the Tutorial.
Beyond the forest lay a barren wasteland, stretching as far as the eye could see. Seeing it, I was certain of one thing: if we hadn't packed water and provisions beforehand, many Green Skins would have been left behind.
“Krrreuk… You were right, Blood Dagger.”
“…”
Goff spoke up as he surveyed the wasteland, and I gave a simple nod in response. The wasteland was endless. There was truly nothing there; not even a single ant crawled across its surface. A completely forsaken land.
Still, the Green Skins walked on. The goblin beating the drum seemed to be struggling, as the rhythm grew fainter and our marching pace slowed.
I used the tedious hours for physical and mental training. When boredom became too much, I'd call over Jung Hayeon or Mev and chat about whatever came to mind.
Naturally, I spoke with many other clan members as well. The loyal Five Goblin Siblings were among the first I talked to.
“Krrreuk. For Blood Dagger!”
They greeted me as soon as they saw me. I had thought the younger sisters were quite noisy, but in front of me, they were unusually quiet. They even seemed shy, pushing each other toward me.
“Y-You go!”
“N-No, you go first, Unni! Kkireuk!”
The eldest two, as I've mentioned, had both evolved into Orc Warriors. I didn't yet know what class they would advance to after Intermediate Warrior, but their rapid growth was satisfying. However, seeing them play with daggers so often, I couldn't help but think they might class change into assassins. The thought that they might one day choose to become Ogre Assassins made me needlessly anxious.
The strange thing was the younger goblin sisters. While the Orcs might choose to be assassins, these ones seemed determined to see how far they could go as goblins, continuing to advance as warriors. They had already surpassed the Intermediate Goblin Warrior stage; one had become an Intermediate Shield Warrior, another an Intermediate Hammer Warrior, and the last an Intermediate Greatsword Warrior.
I had sparred with them briefly once and was surprised at how much stronger their combination techniques were than I expected. Their fighting style was also more suited to a rogue than a warrior. The interesting thing was that their appearances were gradually becoming more ‘human.’ The high-ranking goblins from other clans all retained their fierce appearances, so I had to ask why these ones were changing to look like humans.
“Why do your faces resemble those of humans?”
“W-We don't really know either.”
“A-Actually… ever since we heard that the… the Chieftain has peculiar tastes… Kkeuruk…”
“W-We also… like the plant-woman… or… M-Mev…”
Hearing them say such things with their completely childlike faces, I was at a loss for words. It seemed they wanted to mate, just like Mev, but I figured I wouldn't be dealing with them until they grew up and shed their goblin forms.
The same was true for the other clan members. A high percentage chose to become archers, and an even higher number chose to become assassins. It was heartbreaking that there were still no shamans in the clan, but I was relieved to have Jung Hayeon.
Around this time, after twenty days of walking, we finally escaped the wasteland. The distance was greater than expected, so we began to conserve our food as much as possible. We often marched on just one meal a day.
“I’m hungry. Chieftain, I’m hungry.”
“Endure it a little longer. The other clans are enduring it, too.”
Strangely, no fights broke out. Though they could have fought over food, the Goff Clan, who ate more than the others, instead reduced their own rations to take care of the weaker goblins. Moved by this, the others also began to share what little they had.
Nevertheless, goblins began to collapse from exhaustion. But the group ate the fallen and continued onward.
We grew tougher with each passing day. I don't mean physically, of course. We were becoming stronger as a clan, as a tribe, as a collective. The relentless march was agonizing, even for the resilient bodies of the Orcs. Worse, we could feel that we had traveled far to the south, as the sun's heat became scorching.
Our feet were blistered and raw, our water supply was nearly gone, and with parched lips, we pressed forward. We probably wouldn't have survived if the shamans hadn't summoned water. But there was no way a handful of shamans could provide enough for over a hundred goblins.
Nevertheless, we pressed on.
It was around then, just before the wasteland gave way to desert, that we found an oasis. Everyone quenched their thirst, hunted the beasts gathered there, and began to advance once more. Despite the hardship, no one seemed tempted to linger.
The waterskins had never felt so reassuring. But our opponent was the desert. Before long, they were empty again. Nevertheless, the group continued to press on.
We encountered and hunted small Sandworms and large Frilled Fire Lizards, creatures found only in the desert. Around this time, the archers began to develop an eye for finding edible creatures, and the shamans gradually learned to conjure water and other spells to ease everyone's burden. The warriors who carried heavy loads to endure the desert days grew physically stronger. After another thirty days, I could feel that the group as a whole had grown stronger.
The most peculiar thing was that we hadn't met any humans.
We had started this journey haphazardly, but I began to feel that someone was watching over and guiding us.
Our bodies were in pain, but our spirits were full. Thanks to the monsters like Sandworms that the archers brought back, we didn't have to go hungry. And thanks to the shamans' improved abilities, drinking water was now being reliably distributed to each clan.
As we gained momentum on our journey, the warriors even started to test their strength against one another. They weren't life-or-death duels, but they became a great source of entertainment on the tedious march.
“Krrk… I feel like we’re getting stronger.”
“That’s right, Goff. We are getting stronger.”
We are getting stronger.
The empty wasteland, the desert where survival itself felt like a miracle. All these environments were tempering us.
I felt like I was beginning to understand the meaning of this exam. It was completely different from human education, which only ever pretended to teach.
We were truly learning how to survive, how to become strong. Why hadn't we met any humans? Why couldn't the archers find even a trace of any truly powerful monsters?
If I hadn't been human before, I wouldn't have questioned the fact that we saw no adventurers from the desert city while crossing this desert. Just like the cities ruled by the Sword Saint or the Queen of the North, the city ruled by the Jewel of the Desert was massive. Logically, it was incomprehensible that we hadn't met a single human.
Someone was watching over us. No matter how high our levels were compared to other Green Skins, we were still severely lacking compared to those who were already on the continent. The Great Tribe Leader in the Land of Glory wanted no impurities to interfere with our arduous pilgrimage. After about ten more days, it seemed that not only I, but the other clan members as well, began to realize that we were being guided.
Around this time, I began to organize my fighting methods in my head. In truth, it was something I had been thinking about constantly since we departed. From Goff, I learned the basics of the axe, and from the Goblin Three Sisters, I learned how to use a shield and hammer. I even learned archery from Mev.
Sparring also continued. Goff seemed to be intentionally avoiding a match with me, but occasionally he would look at me with burning eyes. It seemed he had resolved not to clash weapons with me until I had restored the honor I lost to the Queen of the North. And so, Goff and I would simply move our bodies while watching each other. If I had no sparring partner, I would train alone, endlessly swinging the greatsword on my back.
And after about twenty more days, we were able to set foot in the Land of Glory.