Chapter 133
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 133
Dodging by a hair’s breadth is impossible.
Every time Kaltum swung the hammer, it felt as if all the surrounding air was being sucked into it. If Niphrim didn't make large, sweeping movements to dodge, he felt like he would be dragged right into its path.
There were barely any openings.
And yet…
I can win.
Those near-nonexistent openings occasionally flashed before his eyes.
Kaltum swung his hammer relentlessly. Whoosh! Whoosh! The sound of the wind splitting was enough to make his ears ring.
Each blow was a devastating strike that could kill him if it connected, yet Niphrim remained calm.
It was powerful, but compared to facing Death Knight Patrick, this was nothing.
Back then, he couldn't even see the attacks coming. Now, at least, he could read his opponent's moves while dodging.
After evading a few more attacks, Kaltum faltered for a brief moment.
Niphrim plunged his dagger into the Orc’s abdomen. Whether as a symbol of his rugged strength or for some other reason, Kaltum’s armor covered his chest but left his stomach completely exposed.
Niphrim had no illusions about felling a giant Orc with a single dagger strike. For now, ripping into his guts was the priority.
Squelch.
But the sound was wrong.
Perhaps because the hide of his belly was tougher than expected, the dagger barely pierced the skin. Startled, Niphrim hastily pulled the dagger out and took several steps back.
After putting some distance between them, he looked at the blade. It was completely dull.
He had no idea when it had become this worn. Come to think of it, how long had it been since he’d last sharpened it? There were too many possibilities, leaving him utterly confused.
"Pathetic," Kaltum sneered, a clear smirk playing on his lips.
Niphrim ground his teeth.
If he couldn't pierce the belly, he would just have to pierce somewhere else.
Since stabbing didn't work, slashing wouldn't make a difference either.
Niphrim glanced at Kaltum's neck.
No matter how thick his hide was, surely it couldn't protect the thin skin of his throat.
Of course, targeting the giant's neck was no easy task. He had been lucky to create distance just now, but from here on, the moment an attack failed, a counterattack would follow instantly.
He had to neutralize him in a single strike.
The face, then, or the throat.
"If only my weapon were better..."
Or if he had Physical Enhancement Magic like before.
Only now did such regrets surface. Honestly, he didn't even need Physical Enhancement Magic. If he just had the sword the Third Eye used to give him, this was a fight he could have won.
As if refusing to give him any more time to think, Kaltum charged with a roar. The battle cry made Niphrim's body shudder. Once again, the hammer swung toward his flank.
This time, Niphrim ducked low to dodge and lunged toward Kaltum's chest.
Just like this, I’ll stab his neck—
Grab.
He only realized his charge had been stopped when his rapidly shifting vision suddenly froze, locked onto a single spot.
"Ah."
Thud! The heavy hammer crashed to the ground. Kaltum had discarded his weapon, reaching out with his massive hand to shield his neck.
The dagger aimed at Kaltum's throat stopped, having barely scratched halfway through the Orc's palm.
Blood dripped from Kaltum's hand.
"You're nothing special."
Kaltum's massive fist slammed directly into Niphrim's abdomen.
A heavy, dull thud echoed from his midsection.
Along with the sound of ribs snapping, his ruptured organs churned violently inside him. The pain forced all the air from his body, his lungs feeling as if they were shriveling up.
Blown away by a single strike, Niphrim crashed to the ground. With half his face buried in the mud, he squirmed on the floor like a worm.
Rainwater poured into his mouth and nose. He needed to breathe, but all he could manage were ragged, choking gasps. His eyes stared blankly into the empty air.
Only his hearing, which remained somewhat intact, registered the muffled, gagged cries of the villagers.
"An ordinary human would have died from that."
Kaltum walked toward the fallen Niphrim, his expression indifferent.
"Fascinating that you won't die. You really are different from ordinary humans... If there are more like you, it could become a variable in the war."
Kaltum called over a subordinate Orc.
"Watch him and see how long he survives. If he dies, retrieve the corpse. If he’s still alive after thirty minutes, imprison him. I will report this to the Legion Commander."
"Then, what, do, we, do, with, the, remaining, humans?"
Niphrim's vision blurred. His hearing, which had been barely functioning, began to fade like a dying ember.
"The remaining humans..."
Before he could hear the rest of the conversation, Niphrim lost consciousness.
*
When he regained consciousness to a pain that twisted his very organs, Niphrim was already locked in a prison cell.
Not a single part of his body was intact. The mere act of being alive was painful. His modified body seemed to be keeping him alive somehow, but that didn't mean he was healing.
"Pri... son..."
As Niphrim groaned, the Jailer Orc turned his head toward him.
"A, cripple, dares, to, glare, at, me," the Orc sneered, mocking Niphrim's gaze.
Only then did Niphrim look down at his legs, realizing that both were completely crushed below the knees.
The agony racking his entire body was so intense that he hadn't even noticed until the Orc pointed it out.
"Shhhk, you're, a, strange, human," the Orc spoke. He periodically talked to Niphrim, perhaps out of sheer boredom.
He said Niphrim would be dragged before the Orcs' Legion Commander. Until then, they wouldn't kill him.
"Until, then, I, was, ordered, to, keep, you, alive. Though, who, knows, what, will, happen, before, the, great, Legion Commander."
The Orc hissed with laughter. Niphrim made no reply other than answering a few questions. Finding his silence boring, the Orc turned his head away again.
After a long while, food was served. The Orc tossed the meal toward Niphrim.
It was a chunk of meat.
"I, was, told, not, to, let, you, starve, since, you, mustn't, die."
It was no ordinary meat.
"Humans, hate, cannibalism, don't, they?"
The Orc laughed continuously, giggling. Other nearby Orcs gathered to watch Niphrim.
Their eyes were filled with anticipation.
Would he eat it, or would he not?
The Orcs talked amongst themselves and soon placed bets. Most of them bet that he would eat. It seemed they had conducted this experiment several times before.
At first, humans would swear they'd rather die than eat it, but once their minds were completely broken, they would eventually eat to survive.
And the Orcs thoroughly enjoyed watching that process.
"Now, eat."
Staring blankly at what lay before him, Niphrim buried his face in the floor.
Not that. Anything but that. To Niphrim, that was an unforgivable sin.
"You, can't, eat, it, right, now, I, suppose."
"You'll, end, up, eating, it, eventually. I, look, forward, to, seeing, that, pathetic, sight. Shhhk."
Judging that Niphrim wouldn't eat immediately, the Orcs who had gathered from all around dispersed.
The air was humid. The rain fell endlessly, showing no signs of stopping.
It was around the time the Jailer Orc, who had been killing time by watching raindrops fall from the roof, finally succumbed to drowsiness and let his head droop.
Niphrim raised his head once more through the pain.
"..."
Staying locked up like this wouldn't improve his situation in the slightest.
Right before his eyes lay the only way to break through this predicament. He didn't want to eat it, but he had to. An endless conflict welled up inside him. It had been the same when he entered the Primordial Core.
Back then, he had eaten, half-driven by madness. But even then, he had a reason. He had to survive. He had a goal he wanted to achieve.
Now, though… he wasn't mad.
"Ah..."
His body trembled, as if urging him to make a choice quickly. He barely squeezed a groan of pain past his lips. Even after picking up the object before him, Niphrim hesitated for a long time.
This time, too.
He still had a goal he needed to achieve, didn't he?
—At the very edge of the crossroads of choice.
Niphrim finally opened his mouth.
*
A noisy rattling sound from behind woke the dozing Jailer Orc.
The first thing the Orc did was check if the keys hanging from his waist were secure. Next, he held his spear more upright.
Only after confirming that no other Orcs were watching him did he let out a sigh of relief and look back.
And then.
"No, way..."
Before he could finish his sentence, his massive body crashed into the muddy ground.
*
"That, guy, definitely, his, legs..."
Before the words could fully form, the Orc's massive frame was launched into the air.
Having escaped the prison, Niphrim slaughtered every Orc in the vicinity before turning a corner. Beyond the corner lay the village's cultivated fields.
In the fields, several Orcs were haphazardly digging up the ground.
The Orcs, who had been trying to harvest the crops, all turned their gazes toward Niphrim at once. Perhaps due to the sound of the rain, they didn't seem to have heard the screams of the Orcs near the prison.
Niphrim responded to their bewildered expressions with a smile.
Realizing the situation, the Orcs clumsily formed a line and readied their ranks. It was utterly ridiculous to see them forming a battle line to deal with a single person.
The two Orcs at the very front charged at Niphrim.
Holding the axe he had taken from the Jailer Orc, Niphrim drove it straight into the abdomen of the first Orc to reach him.
After lightly dodging the other Orc's attack, he slammed his elbow into the Adam's apple of the one who was losing his balance and falling forward.
"Gwaaaargh!"
The Orc struck in the throat immediately spewed vomit.
Some of it splattered onto Niphrim, but he merely shook his arm lightly. The heavy rain would wash it all away without him needing to pay it any mind.
Just as he was about to finish off the squirming Orc on the ground, another Orc, who had approached silently from behind, raised a club.
"Gwooooooh!"
He intended to snap Niphrim's neck.
Crack!
But just before it reached him, Niphrim blocked the club with his bare hand.
Perhaps because he couldn't absorb the full impact, his hand trembled violently. Yet, his expression remained perfectly serene.
Niphrim turned his head to look at the Orc.
His wide-open eyes no longer seemed human.
"You couldn't... kill me in one go."
"Sh-Shhhk!"
This absurd strength had already surpassed human limits.
Crack, snap.
The sound of a neck bone twisting completely around echoed, and the massive body was sent flying over the bushes.
At that sight, an Orc who had been running up from behind skidded to a halt.
But that Orc, too, was already right in front of Niphrim.
When Niphrim struck the retreating Orc's shin with all his might, the Orc screamed and collapsed onto the muddy ground.
Niphrim snatched its club and repeatedly bashed the back of its head.
Thud, crack. With every blow, the Orc's body jolted. Even after death, the body twitched a few more times before Niphrim finally threw the club aside and stumbled.
"To, the, Chieftain!"
About half of the Orcs watching the scene turned on their heels and fled. The remaining Orcs looked back and forth between their dead comrades and those fleeing, then charged at Niphrim in desperation.
To them, Niphrim was still an injured man. They didn't know how his crushed legs had healed—but seeing him limp, it was clear they weren't fully recovered. His physical condition didn't look normal either.
"Shhhk, shhhhhk!"
Forgetting Kurak's command to control their unique breathing, the panting Orcs rushed at Niphrim simultaneously.
It was a decision based on the judgment that it was too late to run; if they had to fight, they needed to subdue him as quickly as possible.
Orcs lunged from all directions as if to crush Niphrim under their weight, and blood splattered everywhere. The sound of bones snapping echoed endlessly.
—The pile of Orc corpses grew higher and higher.
"Ha, hahaha!"
Having annihilated all the Orcs in the area, Niphrim burst into a mad laugh.
Catching his breath, he did not head straight for the clearing. Instead, he made his way inside a building through a side path between the houses.
Since the fleeing Orcs would have reported the situation, heading to the clearing where the Orcs were already gathered would mean facing hundreds of them at once.
Unless he was a mage capable of casting high-tier magic, he couldn't possibly win against them.
But if asked whether he intended to avoid the fight and run away—
—Of course not.
Holding onto the window bars, Niphrim climbed inside the building, but suddenly lost his balance and rolled onto the wooden floor. Lying face down, he gasped for breath for several seconds.
His legs were trembling violently.
"Ugh..."
It hurt.
It hurt like hell.
Because the amount he had eaten in prison was too small, he hadn't fully recovered.
He hadn't even been able to bring himself to finish that small amount, leaving some behind.
Rationally, he should have eaten all of it, but the moment he tried to put more in his mouth, his instincts made him gag.
Of course, considering his legs and internal organs had been completely crushed, recovering this much with such a small portion was a miracle in itself.
Hold on.
For now, he could only pray.
Dragging his screaming body, he painfully climbed the stairs to the second floor. As soon as he reached the top, he glanced at the first storage room he saw, then walked toward a smaller room.
A bachelor's humble space, smelling of damp wood.
It was the room of the Uncle, who had told Niphrim stories every night.
"The sword..."
Whenever he had time, the Uncle would grab Niphrim and tell him stories.
Most of them were trivial tales, and no matter what he talked about, he always ended by boasting about his son.