The Thief Strikes from Behind (2)
If you want to see far, high ground is best.
We climbed up to the roof of the National Assembly Building. At the top of the stairs, Han Sora stood near the railing, staring toward the bridge.
"Sora."
"Oh, Oppa! Seyeon unnie! Seeun! Th-there! Over theeeere!"
The moment she spotted the three of us coming up, Han Sora jabbed her finger frantically in one direction.
We hurried to her side. Squinting, I followed the line of her pointing finger.
There it was.
Vroooooom...
A truck rumbled into view, rolling across the bridge toward Yeouido.
Between the moonlight and the headlights, I could just make out its shape. The problem was, even that truck alone would have been enough of a headache — except...
Thud. Thud. Thud!
From the section of the bridge leading toward Gangbuk, dust billowed up and a deep tremor rolled through the earth.
All four of us snapped our gazes that way at once. And of course, when it came to figuring out what the hell we were looking at, the person with the best eyes was the obvious choice.
Han Sora shrieked.
"M-monsters! And they're huge! Th-three of them!"
Three of them?
A moment later, the rest of us — whose vision couldn't match Sora's — finally got a clear look at the unidentified beasts.
Outlined in moonlight, their silhouettes were every bit as massive as Sora's panic had suggested.
What was even more horrifying was that those hulking bodies had started to run.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
They were charging across the bridge straight toward Yeouido — that much needed no explanation. And for their size, they were alarmingly fast.
At this rate...!
I gripped the railing and spun toward Kim Seyeon.
"Summon Yun Mina at once."
"What? J-Jeong Hoon-ssi!"
"Oppa!"
"What are you doing, Hoon oppa!"
Before any of their protests could stop me, I vaulted off the rooftop.
Anyone watching would have called it a suicide leap, and they wouldn't have been wrong.
A leap of faith from thirty-two meters up!
Thud!
I landed without a hitch, of course.
Leveling up really had toughened my body. Unless you were a monster, a jump and landing like this barely left a scratch.
I stayed kneeling for a second to catch my breath, then shot forward like an arrow.
My destination was obvious — the bridge entrance into Yeouido. Riding the speed of Agility 18, I tore past the fountain, cleared the main gate, and hit the boulevard. I sprinted down the midnight avenue, now almost entirely free of monsters.
Vroooooom!
Ah — so the trucks had finally entered Yeouido. Had I gotten here too fast?
I planted myself dead center in the road. Less than a hundred meters out, three trucks came barreling toward me.
I spread both arms as wide as I could and waved them side to side, praying they'd get the message.
Vroooooom...
They got it. The trucks slowed. The lead vehicle carefully steered past me along the road, and the other two followed suit.
Clunk-clunk, clatter-clatter...!
No — all three trucks decelerated hard with a racket of grinding metal. Their engines and chassis must have been pushed past the limit.
They'd floored it the whole way just to escape this far. I'd deal with how to treat these people later...
I poured power back into my legs and charged toward the bridge.
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
Closer now. The thunder of heavy monsters running grew louder.
No — I could feel the vibration under my feet. You're going to collapse the damn bridge, you fat bastards! I wanted nothing more than to unload a full stream of curses on them.
Actually... why not? Something told me it would be the perfect way to draw their attention.
"Halt, you filthy monsters!"
Just as I had when luring monsters before, I hurled a lion's roar straight ahead.
If it worked, great. If it didn't, no problem. I'd just kill them.
But... they stopped.
"Huh? Lit-tle-hu-man!"
"=Speak quietly! Ears hurt!"
"Human, ridiculous! Block our path!"
The monsters each spat out a line, as if they'd actually understood me.
Just then, the moonlight fell more cleanly across the bridge. And thanks to that, I finally got a proper look at the monsters flaunting their bulk up there.
For starters, they stood at least two meters tall. They were so broad that three of them standing side by side could have filled the entire width of the bridge. Their skin was a mottled mix of orc-like green and rock-gray. On top of that, the jutting tusks, long noses, and faces stretched long both vertically and horizontally left a powerful impression.
Ogres? I wondered — but no.
The system helpfully spelled it out for me in black and white: stinking, filthy troll bastards.
But what the hell was with that health bar?! They were a lower level than the Minotaur (Lv.65), so why was that HP bar so goddamn long?! They'd inherited the classic fantasy-world troll traits perfectly. Shit!
Just from the health bar and those bloated frames, it was obvious these things were on a completely different level from anything I'd fought so far.
Thump, thump...!
My heart pounded with excitement for the first time in ages.
It really had been a long time since I'd faced an opponent like this. Over ten days had already passed since I'd taken down that Minotaur. In the meantime, I'd been slaughtering the same boring, weak monsters and zombies over and over.
Honestly, I'd been so bored I could yawn — but Lawful Good had done such a thorough job packaging my outward appearance that I hadn't been able to show it.
But this thrill... even Lawful Good wouldn't dare suppress this.
Yeah... this is what I wanted. If you're going to slap the "zombie apocalypse crawling with monsters" label on a world, you've got to throw in some genuinely nasty enemies to make it worthwhile!
Shiiing!
I drew the iron sword strapped across my back. Good thing I'd grabbed it on the way out of the office. I leveled it at the trolls and roared again.
"Come at me, you filthy monsters!"
To anyone watching, I would have looked like nothing more than a tiny human picking a reckless fight.
And sure enough, that was exactly how the trolls in front of me saw it. They laughed.
"Bwahahaha! This human, much dumber than you. Shaukan!"
"No, dumber than you. Shihutu!"
"Human! Dare challenge us! Me, you! Smash-to-pieces!"
Figured as much, trolls. Well then...
Shall we find out if you've got the skill and strength to back up all that noise? Hmm?
I dropped low right where I stood and kicked off the ground.
With Agility 18, my body moved as if it were wrapped in wind. My target was the leftmost of the three trolls. I circled around behind him.
Earlier today, I had hit Rogue class level 12.
And one of the features of Rogue level 12 was the ability to trigger Backstab without Stealth.
Without the slightest hesitation, I drove the iron sword straight into the troll's disgusting spine.
CLANG!
A sharp metallic ring, and the iron sword bounced right off.
The recoil was enough to stagger even me. I'd put everything I had into that thrust, and all I got for it was a spray of fragments.
And those fragments were from the troll. Its skin was basically rock!
Only then did the troll react to the sudden ambush.
"Ow! Back, stings!"
Yeah, I'll bet it stings.
Because all I'd managed was a hit at the "stings a little" level. How the hell are these things so tough?! Weren't trolls supposed to be the type that take wounds easily but regenerate like crazy? Since when was their hide this solid?
"This human, fast!"
"Moves like rat!"
"Ow ow, you, made me hurt!"
Whoosh — a troll's arm carved through the air toward me.
It was the one I'd just stabbed in the back. Damn, that kind of speed with a body that size?
Not that I couldn't dodge it!
I slipped out of the way, and the troll's fist slammed into the innocent bridge instead.
BOOM!
If that had connected, my skull would have been pulp. The destructive power was insane.
Enough force to crack the asphalt road. But since it hadn't hit me, the troll looked thoroughly pissed.
"Urgh, that tiny human! Why so fast!"
"Feet, let's bind!"
"You, smash legs!"
Huh? Smash what?
While I was still tilting my head, all three trolls suddenly each lifted one leg high.
A chill ran down my spine. Instinct screamed at me to get the hell out of there immediately.
But was turning my back and running really the right call here?
While I hesitated—
THOOM, THOOM, THOOM!
All three trolls brought their raised legs crashing down. A deafening roar, and the vibration hit.
A vibration strong enough to make my legs buckle as it slammed through the bridge.
"Kh...!"
Holy shit! Stomping hard enough to dump shockwaves into the ground itself?! What kind of ridiculous bastards are these?!
Naturally, I staggered. Keeping my balance was nearly impossible. The trolls, determined not to waste the opening, lifted their legs again.
No — I have to stop that—
THOOM, THOOM, THOOM!
"Ugh...!"
Another massive tremor hammered the bridge, and the shockwave slammed up through the soles of my feet. I'd been barely holding my balance — and then my ass hit the pavement. Ow!
Damn it, using ground-shock tactics?! They look dumb as rocks, but these troll bastards have a cunning streak!
"Fell down!"
"Kill him!"
"No, smash him!"
The three trolls had excellent coordination. The second they confirmed I was down, they charged.
...About time our support made a move. Still not ready? Hmm?
Fwoosh, fwoosh, fwoosh!
Sora!
Three arrows streaked toward the heads of the trolls charging at me.
Thwack, thwack, thwack!
"Argh!"
"Ow!"
"Hurts!"
All three trolls took arrows to the head mid-charge. They'd been hit right in the eyes, so they staggered in pain. But not even a scratch? Even the eye area is supposed to be a weak point, and that's all it did?
I used the opening to pull myself together and get back on my feet, then quickly put some distance between us. Perfect timing on the support, Sora!
"Jeong—Hoon—ssiii!!!"
Huh — a slightly speaker-distorted voice rang out from behind me. A familiar one. Ah, Kim Seyeon. She was clearly using the megaphone kept inside the National Assembly Building.
"Sora says! Those trolls! They have regeneration too!"
Yeah, I already know that.
The one I'd stabbed earlier was already regenerating its HP.
These things were genuinely infuriating. Tough hide, regenerating health, deceptively fast, and they coordinated well with each other.
How the hell do I deal with these? In fantasy worlds, when the protagonist fights trolls, what do they usually do again?!
"Human, annoying!"
"Irritating!"
"Die!"
"Ugh...!"
No time to think. They charged me again.
I backpedaled as fast as I could. An Agility-18 retreat put more than ten meters between me and the trolls in an instant.
But hadn't I just said these trolls had speed?
"Stay—right—there!"
"Said ears hurt already!"
"Stop!"
They closed the gap I'd just opened in a heartbeat. Damn it!
Flame Arrow
"O arrow laden with flame... fly to my enemy and burn its body to ash!"
I loosed a Flame Arrow at one of them.
All three flinched and dove sideways to evade.
"Uwaah!"
"F-fire!"
"Hot! Hate hot fire! Give cold fire!"
What kind of insane nonsense is that? Anyway, it made them freeze for a second, and I used it to put even more distance between us.
...Wait. Hold on.
These things regenerate. So to stop the regeneration...?
Heh...
The mind of a former gamer found the answer. A triumphant smile spread across my lips in an instant.
"Mi—na—!"
I unleashed a lion's roar, mimicking the way one of the trolls in front of me had been bellowing.
"Argh!"
"Human! Don't copy me! Ears hurt!"
"Want to kill more, tiny loud-voiced human!"
The trolls reacted to the voice. I wasn't asking for your reviews!
Yun Mina should have come out of the dorms by now, right? I'd asked Kim Seyeon to call her before I left, but...
"Yeees—Ora—beo—nii!"
That familiar voice came through the megaphone again. Thank god!
I readied my sword and bellowed at the top of my lungs, like a knight charging across a battlefield.
"FLA—MING—AR—ROWS!!!!"
I could only hope Yun Mina would understand those few short words.