Chapter 181: Floors 32-33
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 181: Floors 32-33
[The recommended number of participants for this trial is 8.]
As usual, I ignored it and started alone.
Whoosh!!
My consciousness faded as my body was transported.
*
“Kwoooooooar!!!!”
“Kuaaaack!!”
From a distance, the mixed screams of humans and beasts could be heard.
The sound of steel and flesh clashing indiscriminately, a place reeking of blood and filth.
‘A battlefield.’
The theme of the 32nd floor's trial was,
‘Subjugation.’
[You are the mercenary captain of Cromwell's unit. Help the lord and defeat the enemies.]
A very simple explanation.
This time, it wasn't a complex trial, but a clean, pure combat trial.
‘In my past life, I just had to kill one boss mob to finish, but it seems this one will be a bit longer.’
I stopped my thoughts and surveyed the battlefield.
Defenders were fighting orcs along the castle walls, and it seemed we had circled around to launch a surprise attack on the orcs' flank.
Our mercenary unit wasn't the only force that had circled around.
Thousands of soldiers—various other mercenaries and adventurers, as well as the lord's personal knights, elite soldiers, and conscripts—all seemed poised for an all-out offensive.
The number of orcs... was massive. I couldn't see the end of them.
A disorderly horde of orcs stretched endlessly through a narrow canyon. It seemed the plan was to wipe them out in a single surprise attack, even if it meant sacrificing some of the defenders.
The castle walls were quite high and sturdy, still intact. The foolish orcs had come without any siege weapons, so the lord must have felt confident enough to plan an attack from the rear.
Looking back, I saw mercenaries armed with various weapons positioned behind me.
Honestly, I didn't have high expectations for them. They all looked a little terrified, as if this was their first battle.
"This is impossible... A surprise attack is one thing, but a pitched battle with orcs on an open plain... The lord must be insane..."
If I had come with a party, these guys would have been replaced by them. They were just background characters. Of course, what they said was true. Trained orc warriors were fearsome beings capable of taking on five to ten ordinary people.
‘Though I'm going to win for them anyway...’
I crouched down behind a rock and took another look at the orc army.
Just then, I heard small, sneering voices from behind me.
“Hah, what's a bitch doing here? She should just go home and pop out more babies."
“Look at that plump ass. I'd love to fuck it right now.”
“We'd have a better chance of winning if we just used that bitch as a whore to boost morale.”
They snickered and continued their sexual harassment, but even though their captain was being harassed, the men in my unit just stared at my ass along with them, not saying a word.
“...Sigh."
‘Just you wait. I'll show you.’
I ignored them and waited for the order to charge.
And finally.
The end of the orc legion came into view, and I could see a massive number of orcs packed densely at the base of the castle wall.
Everyone tensed up, anticipating the next command,
Bwoooooooo~~!!!
At the sound of the great horn, everyone began their attack.
"All troops!!! Attack!!!!!"
Starting with the general's booming voice, shouts erupted from all sides as a volley of pre-prepared arrows and cheap magic spells rained down on the orcs.
"Chaaaaarge!!!"
I ran out, taking the lead at the very front.
“Come, Bicorn!”
Heeeeeigh!!!
I immediately leaped lightly onto the Bicorn's back and charged forward.
“Wh-what is that!”
“Wait, charging in alone is suicid—”
[Roar]
Heeeeeeeeeigh!!!!
A roar that debuffed monsters of a lower class than the Bicorn rang out. The ferocious cry of the giant black horse shook the heavens and the earth, making not only the orcs but also our own side flinch.
[Charge]
Alone, I charged forward faster than anyone, as fast as light.
The ground trembled from the Bicorn's heavy gallop.
Dudududududu!!!!
The terrified faces of the orcs, a race of valiant warriors, closed in in an instant,
Pabababababak!!!
They were sent flying with a powerful shockwave.
Massive orc warriors, over two meters tall, were flung away like broken twigs, and their defensive line collapsed in an instant.
‘Now, is it my turn!’
Now that my momentum had slowed,
I imbued my spear with energy and swung it lightly. The orcs trying to attack my mount were split apart, spraying blood everywhere.
Slicing through their tough, hard hides and bones as if they were water, I broke through the heart of the orc army all by myself.
‘This is what cavalry is all about!’
The brave orcs, who did not fear death, fled in all directions to avoid me and the Bicorn, pushing and trampling each other in the process.
A single person threw the elite orc army into chaos, making them scramble about like a disorganized mob.
This was the so-called Lu Bu-style tactic.
No strategy or tactic can stand against overwhelming power.
“Kwoooar!! I'll take you on!!!”
‘Finally showed up, have you.’
The captain of the orc army.
Not quite an Orc Lord... just looked like a slightly stronger Orc Warrior.
“Let's go, Bicorn. Crush him!”
Of course, I had also been conserving my strength for this moment.
I stacked all my buffs eight times on myself and the Bicorn.
With a 20% reduction in divine power consumption, I could now manage my divine power a little more freely.
Dududududu!!!
Its physical abilities now doubled, the Bicorn crushed the surrounding orcs as if stepping on eggs.
The orc captain's eyes met the Bicorn's red ones, and he panicked.
His reaction said he hadn't expected this much power.
"Kwo...?"
Puk!!
It gored the panicked orc captain's heart with both its horns and tossed him high into the air.
Heeeeeigh!!!
At the roar of the giant black horse, the faces of the orcs who had lost their captain filled with despair.
And into the gap created by their completely shattered formation, the subjugation force began its surprise attack.
"N-Now! Don't let a single one escape!!!"
No matter how much they loved to fight or how brave they were, even orcs wouldn't charge a dragon.
It meant they, too, could feel fear and knew their place.
And right now, to them, the Bicorn and I were practically on the level of a dragon.
I rampaged through the orc army, unleashing my aura without restraint.
Surrounded on all sides, the orcs had nowhere to run.
The orcs who fled, trying to save their own skins, were easily slaughtered by the humans. The orcs who remained to fight were torn apart by me as easily as paper.
The blood and flesh of orcs flew in every direction.
"Kwoar..."
The despair-filled groans of the orcs echoed.
*
About ten minutes later.
Except for a few orcs who had completely surrendered, all of them were dead.
It was a great victory against thousands of orcs.
“Waaaaaah!! All hail the Cromwell mercenary captain!!!”
"A-All hail!!! That was an insane performance...!!!"
"Th-Thank you!!! We're alive because of you!"
The trial ended as I watched the guys who had been sexually harassing me while staring at my ass earlier now desperately sweating and worshiping me.
"Hmph..."
[Tiring~]
[You have cleared the 32nd floor trial. Your reward grade will be increased for solo play.]
Whoosh~~!
I left the chaotic battlefield and arrived directly in the waiting room.
“So, the reward is…?”
[An A-rank reward will be given.]
“Tch, that's it?”
It seems the trial's difficulty was B-rank to begin with, so the reward was only A-rank. Of course, for me, it would become an S-rank reward anyway.
“I'll take my reward and head straight to the next floor~”
- Sudden speedrun lol
- That was satisfying for real
- But there was no orc sex
- You gonna go to the 40th floor in one go?
- Is this the Lee Do-hee of old?
- fr if it weren't for the possession-type trials she'd probably be at floor 70 by now lol
- Is this a trial or a walk in the park?
- Now that's a charge!
Watching the viewers' admiring comments scroll by in the chat, I flipped over the cards at once.
Tadadat!!
<Steel Wood Piano>
A piano made from the rare material, Steel Wood.
Its melody, which brings peace to the heart, is very charming.
[Special Stat]
Healing Power +1
<Black Dragon Brigade's Combat Warhorse Armor>
Can only be equipped on a horse.
◇ Weight +20%
◇ Strength +50
◇ Defense +100
◇ Armor Defense: 300
"Oh... warhorse armor? I couldn't find any on the market anyway, so let's pick this. It looks like my 'Life is a Gamble' trait turned it into S-rank."
When a trial is successfully completed, summons also return to the waiting room, and their resummoning cooldown disappears.
In the waiting room, I equipped the warhorse armor on the Bicorn, who was still snorting with the excitement of battle.
For reference, a summon's body is pierced in the same places as its master's.
The terms and locations change slightly—shoes become stirrups, the head becomes a bit and bridle—but they are pierced in almost the exact same way automatically.
"No need to delay. Let's go right away!"
[The recommended number of participants for the 33rd floor is 8.]
Whoosh!!
Once again, I challenged it alone for the solo play bonus.
*
Flash!
I quickly opened my eyes to a strange sensation.
‘The gravity is weak.’
About... 70% of Earth's?
There's no way a space combat trial would appear this early...
[You are an explorer of the Alpha Exploration Team. Retrieve the target and return to base.]
The theme of the 33rd floor trial was 'Tomb Raiding'.
‘The target... so I just have to steal that thing.’
I looked down at myself and saw I was wearing a thick spacesuit. The surrounding environment was a unique alien landscape.
The ground looked like an orange wasteland. A light dust storm blew over it, obscuring my vision. Visibility was about 500 meters.
There were bizarrely stacked rocks all around, and craters of various sizes dotted the landscape, suggesting a massive impact had occurred.
And a little way off in the distance stood a giant, triangular structure that looked like a pyramid.
Looking at the map displayed on the top left of my spacesuit, the pyramid seemed to be my destination.
I was the only explorer.
I could also communicate with one person, presumably on the spaceship.
Ksshk... ksshk...
[The destination is 300 meters ahead.]
He seemed to be the taciturn type, only saying what was necessary. Or maybe we just had an awkward relationship.
I walked, letting my body adjust to the weak gravity.
My boots crunched on the ground.
As I passed by, I touched a strangely balanced cairn, and it collapsed with a rumble.
[...We are on a secret mission. Refrain from leaving unnecessary traces.]
"Yes, sir..."
I continued walking quietly.
I spread my energy around, wondering if anything would appear, but I didn't detect anything special.
There was only one problem.
I couldn't sense anything inside the pyramid in front of me.
‘What is this...’
As I got closer, I saw that the outer wall was made of a special alloy that looked like bricks. I could probably break it if I tried, but there was no need to do so with a perfectly good door right there.
I stood before a huge entrance, about five meters wide and five meters tall.
‘It's huge.’
[Take out the recognition device on your wrist and hold it to the entrance panel. It should open. Once the door closes, communications will be cut off, so you'll be on your own from there. Good luck.]
Beep.
Kugugugugugu...
The massive door, which looked like it hadn't been operated in a long time, slid open to the sides.
Just as he'd said, once I stepped inside and the door closed, the communication line went dead and the map support vanished.
I was left alone in a silent space with no light whatsoever.
First, I turned on my headlight, then took a flashlight from my thigh and shone it forward.
There was no path ahead.
Instead, there was a huge underground staircase, large enough for a car to fit through.
Only an endless darkness existed there.
"......"
‘Come to think of it, I don't know the difficulty of this, do I?’
The reason so many people die in the Tower.
And the reason so many people give up on climbing.
You never know what difficulty you'll get until you face it.
A faint sense of anxiety began to grow.