Chapter 275: The Design
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 275: The Design
“Who’s next?”
Her voice rang out, and cheers erupted. The cheers were only natural. A small child felling a powerful Orc in a single blow, then, unsatisfied with her victory, calling for the next opponent—it was quite a magnificent sight.
The Green Skins of the East were sending her a fiery wave of support. The warriors of the West and North were the same. Only the Southern faction looked displeased. Among them, Sand Glave’s expression was quite distorted.
His pride must have been wounded.
Sand Glave is one of the proudest Green Skins. A situation like this would remain a lifelong humiliation for him; he was likely regretting sending Barui as the first opponent. All the chieftains were looking at the great chieftain, Storm Shadow, but Storm Shadow simply stared silently at the Southern Orcs.
It was his way of saying he would leave it to Sand Glave’s discretion. He had permitted Kim Yoora to continue her fight under the great chieftain’s banner.
“Barbara.”
Finally, his voice rang out. Still, he didn't send out his own son. It was impossible to know what he was thinking. Seeing this, Kim Yoora drew a spear this time, not a sword.
The Orc warrior who rose at Sand Glave’s call looked strong to anyone’s eyes. He was clearly several cuts above the one called Barui. The warrior shot up from his seat and began to trudge toward Kim Yoora, quietly placing a hand on his chest.
It was a clear sign that he acknowledged Kim Yoora as a warrior.
“Barbara of the Sand Glave Clan.”
“Kim Yoora of the Blood Dagger Clan.”
There was no other talk like before. Barbara stopped silently in front of Kim Yoora, aiming his glaive at her and glaring at the opponent he had to fight.
There was no declaration like, “Let the match begin.” Storm Shadow slowly lowered his arm, and just like that, the second duel began.
Unlike the previous Orc, Barbara didn't charge in excitedly. He quietly aimed his glaive at Kim Yoora, observing her movements. He tried not to miss even the smallest motion, calculating how to move to win rather than openly displaying his fighting spirit.
He’s a pretty smart one, I thought. Their glaive and spear began to clash repeatedly. He was focused on defense over offense, intending to slowly wear down his opponent's stamina and drag the duel into a long fight.
“A smart one. He's conserving his stamina.”
Goff, who was nearby, spoke up.
“Indeed. After seeing the last duel, moving like that is the wise choice.”
He was clearly wary of a counter that used his own strength against him. His actions showed he had no intention of being defeated the same way the first Orc was.
Just one thing.
If he made a mistake, it was underestimating Kim Yoora's offensive power.
Kim Yoora isn't a warrior who only knows how to use her opponent's strength. Tactics are one thing, but her greatest asset is none other than her offensive power.
Before I could even finish my thought about her, she began to move. She thrust her spear at Barbara while drawing a sword with her other hand. She even used the shield on her back as a weapon. Spear, sword, and shield—even without using a unique ability like Weapon Switch, her swaps were incredibly fluid.
She isn't strong, but she is agile. The spear and sword, imbued with magic, were naturally sharp.
The Orc's expression began to cloud with bewilderment.
He was sensing that the flow of the battle was shifting strangely.
The momentum had completely shifted to Kim Yoora, who had switched to an all-out assault. It was futile for him to try and find another way.
She deflected his glaive with her shield and thrust her sword at him again. Meanwhile, her spear was stuck in the ground. Since she couldn't switch weapons like me, she must have planted it there to keep it within reach.
As Barbara pulled back, she planted her sword in the ground and thrust out with her spear. He tried to block it with his glaive, but it was not enough.
Still, it was impressive how he trusted his body and charged forward. He calmly parried her attacks and reached the space right in front of her, but his balance crumbled.
Kim Yoora had swept his legs out from under him with her long spear.
Realizing that her relentless assault up to this point had been a setup to create this very moment, I couldn't help but be impressed.
“She opens a path for a counterattack, only to cut it off. Very similar to someone I know.”
“Ahem…”
I let out a small cough at Goff's words. I realized the 'someone' he was referring to was me. I couldn't say she was exactly like me, but Kim Yoora's fighting style was similar to mine.
Of course, I had never personally taught or trained her. In fact, I thought it would be better for her to learn from Gark or Hark. She must have learned by watching. To think she had seen me fight or train and found her own style… it made Kim Yoora seem all the more incredible.
In any case, the match was over in the blink of an eye. As the Orc, tripped by the spear shaft, lost his balance and fell, Kim Yoora immediately mounted him and drove her sword into the ground beside him.
Once again, a strange silence fell.
“I have lost.”
Barbara spoke in a trembling voice. Kim Yoora stood up, took his hand, and helped him to his feet.
“That was fun.”
“As did I.”
It was a rather strange atmosphere. Everyone was waiting for Kim Yoora's next words. After Barbara had returned to the Southern Orcs' faction, as if to meet their expectations, Kim Yoora spoke again.
“I can go again. Who’s next?”
This time, there were no cheers. Everyone held their breath, staring at Kim Yoora. The little child had completely dominated the atmosphere.
Sand Glave's face was mercilessly crumpled. His pride must have been incredibly wounded. Two of his tribe's young warriors had fallen to a human he had so looked down upon. From his perspective, it was a situation from which he could neither retreat nor escape.
This was completely different from when he had first avoided a confrontation with her. He knew for certain that running away now would be true cowardice.
In the end, Sand Glave turned to the Orc sitting beside him and spoke.
“It's your turn.”
At Sand Glave's words, an Orc rose without a word. Seeing his armament, I was certain he was Sand Glave's son. His glaive was slightly longer and larger than the others. It looked almost like a blunt weapon, a tool born not for cutting but for smashing.
He slowly began to walk toward Kim Yoora. She planted her spear and sword in the ground and waited for him.
“Karsak, son of Sand Glave.”
“Kim Yoora of the Blood Dagger Clan.”
This was the third introduction already. Kim Yoora's expression remained unchanged. But she must have felt it. She must have noticed that Karsak was stronger than the previous two. Still, I wasn't too worried.
Once again, Storm Shadow's arm fell, and once again, the duel began.
Karsak immediately swung his glaive at Kim Yoora. It was impossible to know if it was an expression of confidence or just his style. It was probably both; he likely had an aggressive personality and a style to match.
CRACK!
With a loud noise, the ground where the glaive struck erupted. He was confident in his strength. A direct hit would be fatal. He wasn't holding back his power, but his expression didn't suggest he intended to inflict a fatal wound on Kim Yoora.
He couldn't guarantee victory otherwise. It was a kind of threat, clearly meant to intimidate her. Witnessing such destructive power would naturally restrict one's range of movement. As if accepting his unspoken warning, Kim Yoora also began to move a bit more cautiously.
He's the type to wear you down.
Just as I was thinking he must have a skill or ability to match that style, Black Spear spoke.
“She's slowed down.”
“Her movements have become sluggish. To be precise, it would be more accurate to say she's gotten slower.”
It was likely a unique ability, one that slows down the opponent. It might seem useless, but it wasn't. For someone not confident in their own speed, simply restricting Kim Yoora's movements was good enough. Assuming the ability was still developing, he had a promising future.
Kim Yoora didn't panic. She pulled back, putting some distance between them, testing the range. She was analyzing her opponent's ability. And by now, she must have realized it: the closer she got to him, the more her movements slowed.
Kim Yoora stomped her foot on the ground. Red-shaped weapons erupted from below. She, too, had activated her unique ability. She grabbed the emerging weapons and threw them haphazardly. As the red weapons flew forward, they slowed down upon entering a certain radius. Karsak's unique ability was affecting them as well.
‘Smart.’
Kim Yoora was doing well. It looked like she was throwing them randomly, but she was testing his ability, one piece at a time. She threw a sword quickly, a spear a bit slower, and a handaxe even faster. The weapons, slowing as they entered his radius, each ended up with a different velocity.
It doesn't restrict momentum. It simply slows things down.
Kim Yoora smiled, and I, too, bared my fangs.
She continued to throw the weapons that sprouted from the ground. The difference was that now, she wasn't throwing them quickly, but very, very slowly.
Even after entering Karsak's radius, the red weapons continued to advance slowly toward their target. Of course, since their movement was slow, Karsak could dodge or block them.
But their numbers steadily increased. The red weapons ate away at the space Karsak had to evade, pressing in on him more and more.
At that moment, Kim Yoora leaped toward Karsak.
The moment she entered, her movements slowed. But because she was so fast to begin with, her speed now looked similar to Karsak's.
“Thank you.”
Her voice rang out.
“This is the sensation I've been wanting to feel.”
It might be the same landscape I see when I'm extremely focused, I thought. The feeling that everything is slowing down.
Karsak swung his glaive. Kim Yoora also swung her sword. The difference was that Kim Yoora had imbued the hilt of her sword with magic.
She struck his glaive precisely with the hilt of her sword. With his chest wide open, Kim Yoora swung her blade. It was a method I often used. However, it wasn't an unavoidable attack. Karsak began to pull back, and at that moment, a strange sound rang out.
One of the red weapons had struck him.
Pang!
It was a weapon she had thrown before entering his domain. It had arrived later than she did, striking him. Since it was thrown slowly, the damage was negligible. But it was enough to get on Karsak's nerves.
In the brief moment he was distracted, Kim Yoora closed in again. As soon as he moved his body to the side, another sound was heard.
Pang!
A red spear she had thrown just before entering struck him and dissipated.
Pang! Pang! CRACK!
Various weapons began to hit him continuously. It was almost as if someone were singing. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by the red weapons.
‘It was all by design.’
She had clearly calculated and thrown everything. As Karsak's face finally clouded with panic, Kim Yoora struck him squarely in the side with the flat of her magic-filled blade. In that instant, all the flying red weapons converged and struck him at once.
Everyone was staring blankly at the scene.
War Song, War Song Kim Yoora. It was the moment a nickname everyone would honor was born.