Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Scar-9
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It's big.
Humans get scared just looking at something a little bigger than themselves. Even a 30cm height difference means you have to look up at their face.
But this monster, swollen massive with gathered demonic energy, had grown to a size that made it hard to believe it was a humanoid creature with two arms and two legs.
If it could grow that fast, it made sense that Nerwen's warning had come too late. Outwardly, it must have looked no different from any other orc.
"Gruaaarrgh!!!"
A massive greatsword came crashing down. There was no room to dodge. If I evaded, the other adventurers would get caught in that blade right away.
"Haaaah!!!"
I gripped the tip of the holy sword with one hand and gritted my teeth to withstand the strike.
"Ngh..."
Surprisingly, I could hold it. My footing dug into the ground under the orc's destructive power, and my hands burned with pain where they clutched the sword, but I managed to block it.
If the holy sword couldn't protect humans, my palms would have been shredded.
Startled that its strike had been blocked, the orc lord turned its enormous head to look at me.
The hesitation lasted only a moment before the orc lord swung that greatsword diagonally again.
Fortunately, the adventurers, shocked by the monster, had all scattered to the left and right.
Other orcs poured into that space like a tidal wave, but the orc lord's heavy greatsword mercilessly sent even the green-skinned monsters flying.
It was less a bladed weapon and more like a giant club. The orcs caught in the orc lord's attack weren't so much sliced as torn apart by the massive impact, becoming corpses spewing green fluids.
And that was my chance.
The difference in power wasn't that absolute. As long as I didn't take a direct hit from that greatsword, rolling on the ground wouldn't be life-threatening.
With my calculations done, I shot forward like a bullet before the orc could recover its greatsword.
I couldn't easily lift that terrifyingly huge greatsword. But I could buy enough time for at least one thrust.
"Graaah!!"
The orc lord swung the greatsword back in a panic, but a weapon swung fully to the end moved slow enough for me to see and dodge.
Hiding in the shadow of the greatsword raised high to the sky, I charged right up to the orc lord's belly.
"Die!"
It connected. The holy sword, swung from above down, traced a clear path as it sliced across the orc lord's belly.
And then, the orc's greatsword smashed into my back.
"Guh..."
My back felt like it was crumbling. My body twisted.
The sword hadn't gone astray. But that brief moment of hesitation had been a fatal mistake.
Blood was flowing from the orc lord's skin, but barely.
Compared to that massive body, my blade was too small. It hadn't penetrated deeply. Even with the bleeding, it wasn't enough to kill from blood loss.
Not enough stopping power. Unless I severed one of those huge arms or legs from its body, I couldn't let my guard down until the end.
"Groooargh!"
I sidestepped the orc's greatsword crashing down from above. But considering the shaking ground and the downdraft, it was hardly a clean dodge.
I couldn't keep my balance, but I could still move faster than that orc. This time, for real, I slashed at its guts aiming for a lethal blow.
But the holy sword was blocked once more.
Its skin wasn't particularly tough. But from a certain point, the blade just wouldn't go in.
The layers of fat or muscle piled up on the orc lord's belly gripped the sword like it was alive, refusing to let go.
"Grrraaah..."
Even with the sword embedded in its own flesh, the orc didn't stop. Forcing the holy sword deeper here would be too risky.
I gritted my teeth and yanked the sword free. Even that was no easy task.
The greatsword whistled past overhead. Dodging was second nature by now, and I could still block if needed.
"Isn't there anything helpful... No, you're too dull!"
I shouted in frustration at the holy sword, but she seemed to have no good ideas either.
-Is it my fault? This sword was originally made to channel the hero's power. Of course, even without that, it's incredibly sturdy and unbreakable...
"Then why won't it cut through!"
-It's not this sword's problem! Think cutting it is easy? Without proper power and stance, it won't go in!
"I've never learned that stuff!"
I knew how to dodge, but not how to slash.
I'd learned the basics from Elenor, but the goal of that training was purely my survival.
I still thought it was half emotional on her part, but that was how it was.
I didn't need to cut anyone down. It was more rational to endure somehow and hope for help from the hero or archer than to take that risk.
Naturally, I could learn to dodge and parry, but not to slash.
"Should I thrust...?"
But against that massive body, poking a point wound didn't seem very effective.
In the worst case, if I couldn't pull the sword free, I might waste too much time.
"Why can't I use that power in the first place..."
-Who knows. I thought you'd be able to by now... Sorry. I really don't know.
"Damn it, how the hell have people fought monsters like this..."
The orc lord was undoubtedly a legion commander-level monster of tremendous strength, but not the strongest.
Not just the Demon King, but there were plenty of other monsters dispatched to the front lines that were at least that strong.
-Orcs are weak to fire, so use fire... Anyway, there are no cases of a pure human facing one down with swordsmanship alone.
"I see..."
-Usually the hero handled it. If not, they'd use magic or prepare plenty of oil and fire.
"Anything a normal person can do besides that?"
I dodged another greatsword swing and added one more wound to the giant orc's body, but the monster paid it no mind and kept swinging that terrifying hunk of metal.
-There were people who faced them with swordsmanship, but from what I know, they were half-dragon, half-human. They say it took days of fighting to finally win.
Just as the orc couldn't kill me in one blow, I couldn't kill this orc lord in one hit either.
"So that's all there is to it..."
Keep wounding it and don't make a single mistake.
I didn't know my endurance limit, but I had no desire to test it.
Elenor was terrifyingly strong, but she'd still get hurt by attacks that could hurt her and bleed from those that could make her bleed.
If that orc greatsword had hit my neck instead of my back just now, my head might have come loose from my body.
And here, there was no saintess or mage.
"...Can I pull this off?"
I dodged again and slashed once more.
I was getting used to the orc's movements bit by bit, but the orc seemed to be adapting to my actions too.
It was unpleasant, but that race was born for battle. In our fight, the monster was learning more than I was.
The pattern of dodging one falling greatsword and slashing the orc's body once was starting to break down.
The orc lord wielded more restrained swordsmanship now, swinging its greatsword in quick succession with controlled power instead of full-force ground-shattering blows.
Dodging had its limits, and the orc's movements were fairly agile.
After a long stretch with no new wounds, the orc lord grinned in victory and brought its sword down again.
"Not so fast!"
And yet, despite my small frame, my strength was a match for that monster's.
Taking the full impact of that heavy blade head-on was tough, but I could parry attacks where it held back its power.
To the briefly off-balance orc lord, I added a wound to its leg.
"Hoo..."
The belly wound I'd made first had already clotted; no more blood flowed.
That monster's stomach was covered in green blood, but I didn't feel like I was killing it. How much longer did I have to keep this up? How many more minutes could I dodge these attacks?
"Kuh!"
A crude spear thrust from the side threw off my stance a bit. Unlike human soldiers who cleared space for me, the orcs kept charging regardless, trying to hack at me.
Most were swept away by the orc lord's power, but some managed to land hits on me when I left an opening.
"Watch out!"
An arrow from behind covered for my stumbled stance. It struck true into the orc lord's eye, but the green monster ignored it and moved again.
But through that tiny gap, I raised my sword and blocked the attack once more.
"The main force is breaking! Even the commander is fighting with sword in hand! If you want to live, run!"
"Ugh..."
"No, it's too late! There are way more orcs than we thought. Fall back!"
A quick glance around showed I was already surrounded by orcs. That explained why Nerwen's arrow support had been spotty.
Nerwen, perched on a wooden plank, was slashing down orcs with her sword. A makeshift front line had formed around her, but even that looked precarious and unstable.
"...Did I come for nothing?"
I gave a wry smile, but I couldn't take my eyes off the orc lord.
Resigned to death, I parried the orc lord's sword once more.