"Alright, I'll Talk to Him."

"Alright. I'll talk to him."

"Long live the Guild Master! Long live Power Warrior!"

"You guys are too loud, cut it out..."

They shouted the embarrassing slogan without a shred of hesitation, leaving Lee Da-bi red-faced.

'Now that the work is done, I should head out immediately,' Da-bi thought as she set off toward the Espa Kingdom.

The situation had completely spiraled out of Tae-hyun's expectations.

"No... what the hell."

Tae-hyun struggled to pull himself together. What was he supposed to do now?

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Human adventurer! There is only you. You must lead our tribe!"

Just an hour ago, Tae-hyun had been relaxing, leisurely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠collecting the rewards that practically rolled into his lap.

'How should I spend my Contribution Points?'

Choosing rewards was easily the most delightful part of any game. Tae-hyun had been taking his sweet time browsing the options when...

"??!?!?!?"

A sudden, completely unexpected system window popped up!

"What the hell?!"

Tae-hyun was utterly dumbfounded by the notification stating that the chieftain he had been chatting with just moments ago had been sniped in a single shot.

Tae-hyun wasn't the only one shocked. The Elven players who had fired the shot were equally stunned.

—Whoa. Did you actually hit that?! From that distance?!

—N-No. I just fired a warning shot to threaten them, you know? But it actually hit...

—Your luck is insane!

—No way. This is... skill! Pure skill!

—What is this crazy bastard talking about?

Tae-hyun was flustered by the unforeseen turn of events. This had only happened because he had built the siege weapon too well!

'No... let's stay calm. I already received the Contribution Points and the staff. The plan is still on track.'

Tae-hyun quickly assessed the situation. Fortunately, he had secured the staff from the chieftain beforehand. Otherwise, things would have gone south immediately.

'I should spend my remaining Contribution Points and slip away. Now that the chieftain is dead, there's no telling what these Orcs will do.'

Tae-hyun's prediction was spot on. Orcs were indeed highly unpredictable!

Rumble—

Suddenly, the Orcs of the Wild Iron Tribe swarmed toward Tae-hyun, completely surrounding him.

Tae-hyun flinched.

'Did they find out?'

His default setting in life was always to suspect the worst!

"Chwiik. Human adventurer. The chieftain has fallen."

"Chwiik. It is so sad. But we must keep fighting."

"Right. You're absolutely right. Keep up the good work."

Tae-hyun stood up. It was time to make his exit!

"Chwik. We need someone to lead us."

"...?"

Huh?

"Chwiik. We talked amongst ourselves. And we reached a conclusion."

"Wait..."

Could this be...

"There is only you! Human adventurer! Become our new chieftain and lead us!"

"No... what the hell."

Everything he had done up to this point had transformed into an overwhelming bonus! Because Tae-hyun's achievements were so legendary, he had bypassed all other contenders within the tribe and was immediately appointed as the new chieftain.

An Orc warrior stepped forward and spoke.

"Chwik. Originally, I wanted to be the chieftain, but..."

"You can do it! Looking at you, I think you'd make an excellent chieftain!"

"Chwik. No. Watching you made me realize. In a situation like this, the chieftain must be someone like you. Chwik."

The Orc warrior wiped his nose and gave Tae-hyun a big thumbs-up!

"But I'm a human..."

"Chwiik! What does being human matter! You are more Orc-like than any human!"

"Chwik! That's right! Discriminating based on race is wrong!"

"..."

Tae-hyun could physically feel the situation tangling into a giant knot.

"I refuse..."

"Chwiik! Chwiik!"

"A new chieftain! A new chieftain!"

"W-Was this part of your plan too?" Cain asked, looking utterly bewildered.

They had suddenly been teleported to the chieftain's tent, and now they were surrounded by Orcs chanting, "Wow! A new chieftain! Long live the chieftain!" It was a dizzying development that was impossible to keep up with.

"Sigh... this is crazy."

"I don't think so," Ji-su murmured.

"Right? It doesn't look like it, does it?"

"No way! I'm sure Hyung planned all of this!" Yu Ji-soo declared firmly.

Tae-hyun shook his head.

"It's not?"

"Yeah."

"Oh..."

Tae-hyun let out a deep sigh before speaking.

"I was planning to spend my Contribution Points and slip away, but this is bad."

"Why? Can't you just run?"

"No. They'll chase me down because I'm their chieftain."

A shiver ran down Cain's spine.

"If I desert during a siege, they'll hunt me down to demand an explanation... and if they aren't satisfied, they'll attack my territory."

Orcs were notorious for never forgetting a grudge once it was formed. Tae-hyun already had a bad history with the Great Chieftain. He had no desire to add another target to his back.

"S-Surely it won't go that far?"

"If it were just them, maybe, but they're allied with other tribes. Let's not give them a reason to target us. I need to wrap this up properly before leaving."

"What are you going to do?"

"First, I'll successfully finish this siege. Then, I'll tell them, 'I've done my part, so you guys take it from here!' If I do that, they won't throw a fit about me abandoning the siege."

Tae-hyun laid out his plan cleanly. With his abilities, conquering a fortress like this was child's play.

"I'm here."

"Da-bi!"

"What on earth happened?"

"Well, it's a long story..."

Tae-hyun explained how he had cleared the dungeon using the celebrities. As ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠expected, Lee Da-bi was astonished.

"What a brilliant idea!"

"Right? Right?"

"Should we gather volunteers on the Power Warrior forum?"

"That wouldn't be a bad idea."

"Oh, by the way, Tae-hyun. This suggestion came up within the guild..."

This time, it was Tae-hyun's turn to be surprised.

"What a brilliant idea!"

"Ah, really?"

"It sounds like an amazing idea! It's perfect for clearing out our inventory."

The others watched their exchange with cold, dead eyes.

"Anyway, we can make the items to use as prizes later... For now, we need to conquer that fortress over there."

"That fortress? Rankers are heading this way right now, is that alright?"

"Huh?" Tae-hyun asked, puzzled. What rankers?

Da-bi pulled up a video on the forum to show him. Rankers from the Dungland Kingdom were indeed marching toward the fortress.

"Why all of a sudden?"

"Apparently, the Duke here offered a massive reward. That's why even players who weren't participating are showing up."

"Ugh..."

Tae-hyun clicked his tongue. The variables in his plan were multiplying by the second.

'Can I handle all of this?'

-Master.

-...?

A message came from Golgol-i. Tae-hyun had left Golgol-i behind at the Elven fortress, always preparing for any contingency.

-The Elven commander here wishes to see you.

-What? How's the mood? Does it feel like they're calling me to kill me, or to keep me alive?

-...F-First of all, it doesn't seem like they want to kill you.

-They're not going to make me their commander because theirs died too, right...?

-Pardon? What kind of nonsense is that?

-I know, man. I know.

Tae-hyun grumbled. It was the Orc tribe that was weird, after all...

"I should go to the fortress and do some scouting first."

"Huh? You're the chieftain, is it okay for you to leave?"

"Of course not. That's why I'm delegating it to you."

Tae-hyun handed the chieftain's staff to Cain.

"W-Wait. Is it really okay for me to do this?!"

"Just hold onto it for a bit. You don't have to do anything special. Don't you want to look cool in front of her?"

Cain looked at Tae-hyun, then at Ha-yeon, and then back to Tae-hyun. With a look of grim determination, he nodded.

"I'll do it!"

"...You really are..."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Entering the Elven fortress, Tae-hyun looked around, his mind operating purely on the principles of engineering.

'Where should I sneakily plant the bombs before I leave?'

Even with the influx of rankers, Tae-hyun's plans remained unchanged. He had no intention of fighting fair anyway!

'If I just destroy the fortress, they won't last long against the sheer numbers.'

Rankers weren't invincible. They couldn't hold off an endless wave of Orcs on open ground forever.

"Please come this way."

'What did I do again? Ah... I sniped the Orc chieftain...'

Tae-hyun finally realized why the Elven commander wanted to meet him. The siege weapon he had constructed had performed far too well.

-Da-bi. Do you have any information on Duke Gellendel of the Dungland Kingdom?

-Not much. Apparently, he absolutely despises Orcs.

-Is there any Elf who doesn't despise Orcs?

It was rare to find an Elf who didn't hate Orcs. It was practically a racial trait.

-He seems to hate them a bit more than usual.

-Hmm...

Tae-hyun racked his brain. What could he do to leave a strong impression on Gellendel?

'To exploit him, I need to get close to him first.'

'No... that's not it. That's a bit much.'

If Kim Tae-san had heard that, his heart would have skipped a beat.

'That's too precious. Hmm, what should I offer him?'

Few players possessed as many rare Orc-related items as Tae-hyun. Starting with the Great Chieftain, he had looted Orcs to a sickening degree. He had so many that he was struggling to choose.

Giving something too mediocre wouldn't have much of an effect, but giving away something too valuable felt like a waste.

'Ah. Should I bring this out?'

Tae-hyun pulled out the weapon. It was the reward he had received directly from the Count of the Salz Kingdom after sweeping the rabbits. Not only did it grant various buffs against Orcs, but it was also the very weapon the Count had used to slay Orcs himself. It was the perfect gift.

Since Tae-hyun had already obtained and crafted much stronger equipment, he hadn't used it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in a while.

"W-What is that weapon?"

The Elven servant gasped in surprise as Tae-hyun suddenly produced the massive weapon.

"Ah. It's a gift for the Duke."

"I don't think... he would like such a thing... but enter anyway. You must maintain your manners in front of the Duke. Even though you performed well in this defensive battle, the Duke despises rude people."

'Elves are so picky, it's annoying...'

Elven NPCs were notoriously fussy and difficult to please. Dealing with them after dealing with Orcs felt incredibly strange.

"Your Grace. I have brought the adventurer who performed meritorious deeds."

"Let him in. What is this?"

"It is a weapon the adventurer wished to present... If it is unsightly, I shall remove it."

"No. Wait... Is that Orc blood?! A weapon stained with Orc blood!"

"I-I will remove it—"

"What a precious treasure!"