The Romance of Wielding a Greatsword
The romance of swinging a greatsword is the very definition of romantic. Ah~ what a thrill. Absolutely incredible. This is what life is all about!
“Stop them! Grrrk!”
“S-save us! Grrrk!”
“We’re finished! Grrrk!”
The sight of those idiot goblins and orc undead brawling and tearing into each other filled me with deep satisfaction as the mastermind behind it all. I felt like I might even develop a taste for this kind of carnage. Ma-po tofu! Someone bring me some mapo tofu! And make it extra spicy!
“The way those goblins are dropping looks just like garbage!”
But now it was time for me to become the spicy mapo tofu myself.
“I’ll wipe every last one of you out without missing a single experience point, you worthless trash!”
I charged straight into the chaos between the orc undead trying to break through and the goblins desperately trying to hold them back.
“That’s my experience!”
I sprinted toward the wooden fortress, stomping on an orc’s head to launch myself into the air.
“A human?! Grrrk!”
“Here’s~! Johnny!”
Crack!
“Krrrk!”
I slammed the flat of my greatsword down on a goblin’s head like I was cracking open a pot. Using the recoil, I twisted mid-air and landed neatly on top of the fortress wall.
“I am the reaper. I am your death.”
Offer your necks obediently. The funeral bells shall toll for you.
“Kill that human! He’s the mastermind who caused all this!”
“Sorry, but I’m just a delivery guy from the Delivery Tribe. So go ahead and place your order!”
I hurled a rock at the goblin warrior who had pointed me out. Clang! The stone flew fast, but unfortunately it was blocked by an axe.
“Pathetic!”
“Amateur move.”
There was only one reason I’d thrown that rock: to block his line of sight. The moment the idiot lost track of me, he left himself wide open to my approach.
“S-so fast?!”
“Not as fast as you’re about to die!”
I raised my greatsword high and brought it crashing down. The poor bastard tried to block with his axe in a desperate bid to survive, but I cleaved both the weapon and its owner clean in two.
“I’ve cut down something utterly worthless.”
It would’ve been nice if I could have slain a named knight or an honorable warrior, but no, I had to get stuck with these monsters. My greatsword was probably crying right now.
“Is there no one else?!”
Is there no hero worthy of crossing blades with me?! Is this truly the limit of the goblin race?!
“This is exactly why goblins get called an inferior species!”
I deliberately provoked them even more. If I could draw even a portion of their attention this way, it would make things much easier for the undead to rampage.
“Nice.”
A goblin corpse that had been torn apart by the undead slowly rose back to its feet. There wasn’t a single trace of intelligence left in its eyes.
“From their perspective, I must truly be a calamity, huh?”
Dragging undead along, using my own kind as bait, and making them fight each other again—this was the very essence of entertainment.
“At this rate I might actually fall to the dark side.”
No way. Once you awaken to this kind of flavor, there’s no turning back.
“Guess I should focus on hunting from now on.”
I couldn’t forget my original purpose. Why was I rampaging around like this in the first place? It was all for leveling up.
“Just a little more and I should hit it.”
My gut told me I was right on the verge of a level-up. And it wasn’t just a feeling—this was the real deal.
Level has increased.
“Hell yeah!”
I had finally, finally reached the long-awaited level 10. Now I could finally change classes…
You have reached Level 10.
The minimap has been activated.
The shop window has been activated.
Huh? Something even more insane had popped up. But what about my class change?
“Charge in!”
“We don’t need to kill every single undead! Just clear out the ones blocking our path!”
After the decoy team successfully lured away a massive horde of undead, the remaining people in Belkan began entering the city.
“The decoy team did their job well. There aren’t many left.”
It was good news. With their limited forces, there was a clear ceiling to what they could accomplish. But if they could even slightly reduce the burden, the number of things they could do would increase.
“Ignore the other buildings and head straight for the city hall!”
While the soldiers dealt with the few remaining undead, Knight Yan carved a path toward the city hall. Most cities of this size usually had large bunkers built beneath their city halls. If any survivors remained, they would likely be hiding there. Not wanting to waste any more time, he activated his aura across his entire body.
“I’ll break through the center. Support me from the sides.”
Wedge formation. It was the perfect formation for breaking through enemy lines.
"Lance Charge"
⟨ LANCE CHARGE ⟩
Normally a lance was a weapon used in mounted combat, but for a knight who wielded aura, it was something else entirely.
“I’ll pierce straight through.”
The aura gathering at the tip of his lance was clearly extraordinary. Sensing the threat, the undead along the street let out shrieks and charged at him.
“Too late.”
Shiiiing—!Booom—!
By the time they realized what had happened, Yan had already passed them. The peak speed he had reached in that instant was the speed of sound—something easily attainable for a knight who could handle aura. The undead who registered the impact a moment too late found their upper and lower bodies separated.
“So that’s what a knight can do…”
“He’s on a completely different level from us.”
“If you make a knight your enemy, you won’t even leave bones behind.”
The soldiers and mercenaries who had witnessed the knight’s true power could only click their tongues in awe. Some even wondered if he was truly human.
“Kiiiik—!”
“Grrruuugh—!”
Even with their bodies split in half, the undead still struggled to rise. The sight made the people’s faces twist in disgust.
“Even if you smash their heads, crush their hearts, or even split their torsos from their legs, they still move…”
“Seeing something like that would make it hard to sleep alone at night.”
Even the toughest men would probably suffer nightmares after seeing something so grotesque.
“Don’t waste time—burn them!”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
The priests who had been watching from behind immediately poured out their holy power the moment the undead were subdued, purifying them on the spot. The creatures that had stubbornly refused to die from any other attack perished instantly under the holy energy. Holy power had an absolute advantage against malice and demonic energy.
“Thank you for making things easier.”
“Not at all. Tending to the servants of the Goddess is our duty.”
“Then I’ll continue to rely on you in the future.”
“You can count on us.”
After spending an hour clearing out the undead that kept popping out of every alley, they finally reached the city hall located at the heart of Belkan.
“It’s completely ruined.”
“Still, the building’s skeleton remains. We’ll have to watch out for collapse.”
The building stood with only its bare bones left, yet it had not collapsed. It was as if it refused to surrender.
“From here, only a small group will enter. The rest of you maintain formation outside and eliminate any approaching undead.”
Thud. Thud.Crunch.
Stepping over the shattered remains of what used to be a door, Yan entered the city hall building.
“It’s quiet inside.”
Surprisingly, there weren’t many undead. Yan spread his senses even more carefully, scanning every corner.
‘There’s far more broken furniture and fixtures than necessary.’
Unable to shake the uneasy feeling, Yan fell into thought for a moment.
‘Undead that blindly chase after living beings… destroying furniture? That doesn’t make sense.’
Just what had happened here?
“Sir Yan! There’s a door leading underground over here!”
One of the soldiers who had entered with him pointed behind the fireplace. There was a small opening that led into a dark basement.
“Sharp eyes. Well done.”
“I’m glad I could help!”
“We’ll need to widen the entrance. Stand back for a moment.”
With aura wrapped around both arms, he grabbed the edges of the fireplace and forcibly widened the opening.
Crack—!
The old bricks couldn’t withstand the tremendous force and crumbled away.
“I can’t see the bottom. Is it deeper than I thought? Hand me a torch.”
The soldier waiting nearby quickly pulled a torch from his pack and handed it over.
“Follow me carefully.”
The passage leading underground was narrower than expected, making it difficult to swing a sword. With no other choice, he drew a small dagger from his coat and held it ready. He moved downward cautiously, holding the torch and dagger out in front of him so he could respond instantly if anything appeared ahead.
“Just how deep is Belkan’s bunker?”
It already felt like five minutes had passed, yet there was still no end in sight.
‘Perfect for a siege defense.’
A straight corridor like this was incredibly difficult to break through. For the attackers, it was a nightmare of a terrain.
“A door?”
When he finally reached the bottom, an iron door greeted him at the end of the passage. Yan approached it carefully and knocked.
“Is anyone alive in there? We are an investigation team from Dorua.”
Thud-thud-thud—!
The moment he spoke, multiple footsteps rushed toward the door from the other side.
[I-Is that… a living person?]
“Yes. We are an investigation team sent to identify and confirm the abnormal situation in Belkan.”
[W-We’re saved! The rescue team is here!]
[Can we finally get out?]
[Open the door, quickly!]
While cheers erupted from beyond the door, Yan gave a meaningful look to the soldiers behind him. It was an order to secure the escape route. The soldiers who received the command turned and headed back the way they had come.
Creeeeak…
The slowly opening door revealed a sight grim enough to make one frown. The musty underground stench, the sour smell of unwashed bodies, and the rotting odor coming from infected wounds. It was clear just how much the people inside the bunker had suffered.
“I am Yan, knight and leader of the investigation team dispatched from Dorua. Are these all the survivors?”
“Y-yes. We are the last remaining survivors of Belkan.”
A middle-aged man, clearly exhausted, stepped forward.
“And you are?”
“My name is Dwen. I worked at Belkan City Hall.”
“Very well. Dwen, the environment here is terrible. Let’s step outside and talk.”
“H-have you… taken care of all the monsters outside?”
“There may still be a few undead remaining, but don’t worry. We will protect you.”
“U-understood.”
The people began hurrying out. Having been trapped underground for so long, they desperately needed sunlight.
“Hmm, wait. And this person?”
“Ah, that man is…”
Yan spotted a familiar figure. A nobleman lying unconscious with bandages wrapped around his abdomen. He was the lord who ruled over Belkan—Baron Lishkain.