The Legend of the Great Shaman
Gulp.
Jeong Su-hyeok swallowed hard. This was an opportunity he couldn't afford to miss.
"Understood! I'll show you what I can do!"
"Oho! Now that's the spirit!" Bama-eo nodded with a highly satisfied expression.
Seeing this, the Orc asked in a trembling voice, "Chweek. If you two know each other, can I go now?"
"Absolutely not! You're not going anywhere until I prove my magic was a success!"
Curiously, Jeong Su-hyeok asked, "What kind of magic is it?"
"A spell that stops Orcs from chweeking."
"..."
Perhaps finding Su-hyeok's look offensive, Bama-eo scowled. "Why are you staring at me like that?"
"A-ah, it's nothing. *Ahem!* I will now cast my magic!"
Jeong Su-hyeok raised his staff and prepared his spell. He had no idea what kind of magic Bama-eo would prefer.
I suppose a high-damage spell would be best?
Rather than something with an ambiguous or subtle effect, he figured a powerful, visually spectacular spell would be more impressive.
—Kahladan's Lightning! One of Jeong Su-hyeok's favorite spells!
True to his status as a mage possessing Advanced-tier magic skills, Su-hyeok cast the spell with swift, formidable precision.
A bolt of lightning materialized in midair and struck down with a thunderous roar—a truly spectacular sight! Even the watching Orc let out an admiring chweek.
"I thought I told you to stop chweeking!"
"Chweek! Chweek!"
Bama-eo smacked the Orc upside the head, then shook his head with a tsk-tsk.
"What a lackluster spell."
"L-lackluster?"
"Yes. Do you have any idea how many mages come here begging to learn magic?"
"Actually, I didn't come to learn magic, I came to missionary..."
"Quiet!"
"..."
Bama-eo completely ignored Su-hyeok's words.
"They're all the same! They use those cliché spells they learned at some Magic Tower, then look at me with faces that say, 'How's that?' How's what! Do they really think I'd be satisfied by cookie-cutter mages pressed out of a metal mold? Magic requires creativity, a flash of brilliant ingenuity! Just like my latest creation, 'Orc Tongue Correction'!"
Su-hyeok wanted to ask, But how is threatening an Orc into silence a magic spell? However, he was too intimidated by Bama-eo and kept his mouth shut.
"Disappointing, utterly disappointing! I suppose I shouldn't expect much from an outsider mage. Orc! Are you still chweeking?"
Bama-eo turned away from Su-hyeok and glared at the Orc. Instantly, a stream of fluent, eloquent words poured from the Orc's mouth.
"To assume that Orcs merely 'chweek' is nothing more than a human stereotype. Orcs engage in conceptual and metaphysical discourse far beyond what humans can comprehend, mortal."
"?!?!?!?!"
"To hold me captive, threaten me with brute force, and claim it to be magic is truly barbaric. As an Orc, knowing such uncivilized humans share this region..."
"Shut up for a second."
"Keh-heck!"
Bama-eo marched over to Jeong Su-hyeok and gripped his shoulder with bone-crushing force.
"A-Aaargh! My shoulder! My shoulder!"
"You pass!"
"!?"
"What a clever fellow! To lower my guard with a cliché spell like lightning magic, only to cast your real spell in secret!"
You have passed Bama-eo's test with an exceptionally high score.
Your reputation within the tribe has increased.
The tribe welcomes you.
...What did I even do?
Flustered, Jeong Su-hyeok checked his message log again. He had been too startled to read it properly earlier.
Threaten has been activated.
The skill has taken effect on the Orc, Chomsky.
Jeong Su-hyeok was about to clear up the misunderstanding, but he froze. Tae-hyun's advice flashed through his mind.
—When someone spoon-feeds you, don't act all high and mighty. Just shut up and swallow it!
"...That's exactly it! I couldn't possibly think of any other way!"
"I like you, outsider!"
Bama-eo and Jeong Su-hyeok walked shoulder-to-shoulder into the heart of the tribe.
"So..."
"You made an Orc stop chweeking?"
Cain chimed in, looking utterly bewildered.
"You stay quiet. Right, so it's great that you befriended the tribe, but how on earth did you end up commanding these Orcs?"
Tae-hyun pointed to the Orcs standing outside the tent.
They were guarding Jeong Su-hyeok with the utmost reverence! Even when they glared warily at Tae-hyun and Cain, the moment Su-hyeok said, "Stand back," they retreated with polite bows.
"W-well, once I was permitted to enter the tribe, I had to complete quests there to raise my affinity further."
"Right. That was around the time you contacted me."
It was when Su-hyeok had messaged him saying, Senior, I'm getting close to the tribes, and the Orcs here are armed to the teeth and look incredibly terrifying.
Of course, Tae-hyun had only remembered that detail because he had immediately afterward watched the video of Evangeline snatching his ring...
But how did things escalate to this point in such a short time?
The effort Jeong Su-hyeok poured in after gaining entry to the tribe was nothing short of tear-inducing.
Though he had managed to win their initial favor, he was still a long way from converting them to the Akisus Cult.
"Excuse me, do you happen to know about the god named Akisus...?"
"Please consider believing in Akisus!"
"Believe in Akisus! Just believe! Come on! Give it a try!"
However, the tribal mages remained entirely indifferent.
"Akisus? We don't believe in gods."
"What do we get out of believing in that?"
One mage even shouted with a bizarre expression:
"I am god!"
"?!"
"Ah. Don't mind him, he's just out of his mind. You can ignore him."
"..."
This tribe was a tough nut to crack.
At best, a few showed a sliver of interest because Su-hyeok's magic seemed connected to Akisus, but it wasn't nearly enough to convert the entire population.
"Elder Bama-eo! Please help me!"
"Even if you ask me, my boys aren't the type to listen to orders. Convince them yourself. If they want to believe, they will."
"I don't know how to convince them!"
Jeong Su-hyeok clung desperately to Bama-eo's pant leg.
"This god, Akisus... he does seem rather intriguing. I wouldn't mind believing in him myself."
"...!"
"But as the chieftain, I can't force the entire tribe to convert based on my personal curiosity alone."
He's surprisingly responsible despite his eccentric appearance.
"I feel an offensive gaze lingering on me."
"Pardon?! No, not at all!"
"In any case, if you want us to believe in this god Akisus, you must prove his worth."
"How do I prove it?"
Jeong Su-hyeok raised his staff once more. Did he need to cast another spell?
But Bama-eo shook his head.
"This isn't something a single spell can solve! Worth is something you must demonstrate through action. Prove it yourself! As it happens, an opportunity to do just that has presented itself. Well? Are you up for it?"
"...Of course!"
His intuition screamed that this was a high-difficulty quest. But Jeong Su-hyeok could not back down.
Tae-hyun had trusted him and sent him all the way here! (Though Tae-hyun hadn't exactly sent him out of trust.)
He had to show proper results to live up to that trust.
Jeong Su-hyeok clenched his fists and answered resolutely.
"Good! Follow me!"
Following Bama-eo, they arrived at...
...a gathering of Orcs.
"????"
A group of vicious-looking Orcs sat around, chweeking amongst themselves. Though heavily armed, they didn't attack.
"Chweek! Bama-eo. Have you made your decision?"
"Yes. I have. This mage here will fight in our stead."
"Chweek! Bama-eo! What kind of nonsense is this! We need powerful forces! Trying to trick us with some scrawny weakling... *Gasp!* It's him! It's him!"
"...?"
"It's the human mage who summoned the earthquake! Chweek! Don't go near him! He's dangerous!"
The Orcs shrieked in terror upon recognizing Jeong Su-hyeok.
"..."
"You did something like that? I like you even more now! You'll do splendidly!"
Bama-eo's gaze toward Su-hyeok grew even warmer.
Bama-eo holds you in much higher regard.
"Ch-chweek. Very well, Bama-eo. If it is a mage of this caliber, we can accept him. I shall speak well of him to the Great Chieftain."
"U-um, what exactly is going on here?"
Jeong Su-hyeok cautiously raised his hand and asked.
Before Bama-eo could even explain, a quest window popped up!
Answer Bama-eo's Trust
The Orc Great Chieftain, who has united the Orc tribes of the Uruk Region, has issued an ultimatum to the Primitive Human Tribe—a long-standing thorn in his side. They must either join the Orcs' war or fight them to the death.
The wise chieftain Bama-eo knows they cannot win a direct conflict against the united Orc forces. However, joining the Orc army means facing extreme danger alongside unpredictable allies and enemies alike. Bama-eo cannot trust his eccentric, uncontrollable tribal mages with this task.
Answer Bama-eo's trust. Succeeding in this task will earn you the absolute faith of the tribe.
🎁 Reward: Absolute support of the Primitive Human Tribe of the Uruk Region. The Primitive Human Tribe will join the Archisus Cult. [?], [???], [????]
Only then did Jeong Su-hyeok fully grasp the situation.
An impending war waged by a massive Orc army. A quest to participate and aid them! This was no ordinary, run-of-the-mill quest.
On top of that, it was a task so perilous that even Bama-eo refused to trust his own tribesmen with it.
Though fear gripped him, Jeong Su-hyeok steeled his resolve.
I can't run away. I just have to give it my all!
"I'll do it!"
"I love your enthusiasm!" Bama-eo slapped Su-hyeok on the back.
"If you pull this off, everyone in our tribe will acknowledge you."
"I will do my absolute best!"
"No, there's no need to go that far."
"...?"
"Just do enough so the Orcs don't complain! If things look bad, just run away!"
"...Is that really okay?"
"Who cares? Once the Orc army marches out, they won't be coming back anytime soon. Do you really think those brutes would abandon their distant pillaging targets just to march back and slaughter us first?"
Having survived constant clashes with the Orcs while leading only a small tribe, Bama-eo was clearly no ordinary man.
"Chweek. Human mage. Follow us!"
"Chweeeek. Human mage. Don't touch me! Keep your distance as you walk!"
"..."
Being treated like some sort of biohazard by the Orcs left him feeling rather indignant.
But Jeong Su-hyeok's mental fortitude was not weak.
Not just anyone could spend hours on end practicing spells in a dusty corner of the Magic Tower all by themselves while other mage players were out partying up and clearing quests.
Still, being treated like garbage by Orcs didn't feel great!
Swallowing his anxiety and discontent, Jeong Su-hyeok set off with the Orcs.
But the legend of the great Orc Shaman, Jeong Su-hyeok, was only just beginning.
"Chweek. Is this the human mage they brought?"
"Chwek! Why is there only one! Unless those tribal bastards are looking down on us, this makes no sense!"
The Orcs roared in anger upon seeing Su-hyeok.
At that, the Orc warriors who had escorted him quickly began to defend him.
"Chweek! He may not look like much, but he is no ordinary mage!"
"Chwek! How are we supposed to believe that!"
"Chweeeek! This is the very mage who caused that massive earthquake!"
"Chweeeeeeeek!"
The Orcs shrieked in terror, instantly scrambling backward to put as much distance between themselves and Jeong Su-hyeok as possible.
"Chweek! Don't make eye contact! If you look him in the eye, you might die!"
"..."
Your Infamy among the Orc army has increased.
The Orcs fear you.
The Orcs' obedience has increased.
Of course, not every Orc was easily swayed by mere rumors.
A formidable-looking Orc commander stepped forward, glaring down at Jeong Su-hyeok.
"Chwek. Human mage. Cast a spell."
"What kind of spell do you want to see?"
"Chweek! Whichever one you're most confident in! Do I really have to spell everything out for you?"
Jeong Su-hyeok raised his staff.
He figured casting a spell like Kahladan's Lightning in a place like this might cause too much collateral damage.
A movement speed buff should suffice.