Chapter 57
Chapter 57
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Colosseum Champion: Orc Great Warrior
-----------------------------------------------------------------
By the time the sponsorships had skyrocketed like crazy, amassing hundreds of thousands of D.C. in the blink of an eye.
Choi Shin-hyeok calmed the overheated atmosphere.
"Well, you can keep sponsoring until the end of today's stream, so I'll wrap up the ads here. This isn't just an ad stream, after all."
"Take your time with the elixir lottery tickets until before today's stream ends," Shin-hyeok said to settle them down, then fully tore the half-ripped ticket.
'Time to really push it.'
After regressing to around age 20.
Shin-hyeok had been charging ahead like mad for over two months.
He'd weathered all sorts of incidents and freely shared his pre-regression knowledge to draw in talents who would shine in the future.
Through those incidents, Shin-hyeok had grown.
Through unearthing those talents, his gear and body had strengthened.
To a degree unimaginable compared to the same point before his regression.
'That's why it's time for a check-up now. To see how much I've changed. How much stronger I've gotten. Only then can I leap even higher.'
So Shin-hyeok had challenged the Colosseum champion.
To gauge the limits of what he'd achieved by devouring things utterly incomparable to his pre-regression self.
His thoughts complete, Shin-hyeok was swallowed by the brilliant light bursting from the ticket.
The brilliant light faded, leaving Choi Shin-hyeok already inside the Colosseum.
Cheers roared so loud they threatened to shatter eardrums, reverberating everywhere.
As viewers plugged their ears and winced,
"Looks like this is a passageway. Heading in now."
A single message floated in the dim corridor, morphing into an arrow that guided Shin-hyeok deeper into the Colosseum.
The moment his feet hit the hard dirt floor and he stepped inside...
"...It's massive."
Shin-hyeok beheld the true, overwhelming grandeur of the colossal Colosseum that dwarfed him upon entry.
A gigantic arena.
Packed stands filled to bursting with spectators.
Oddly, the audience appeared as translucent ghosts, their forms indistinct.
But Shin-hyeok knew exactly who they were.
'Residents of the United League, huh. They scout talents from other dimensions in various ways—this must be one.'
Residents of the United League.
More precisely, from lower and higher dimensions.
They used all sorts of methods to scout talents from dimensions still closed to the League.
This Colosseum was just one of many such tools.
It felt like their plaything, but Shin-hyeok didn't care.
'I'll smash or claim them all eventually. No point getting mad now. Better to hide my strength. Show them I'm not hostile.'
No matter how they viewed him now, soon—perhaps very soon—they'd be looking up at him.
Until then, he'd hide himself gladly. So he equipped his gear first.
Shrrrk!
Armor enveloped his body in an instant.
No ostentation, but that very restraint lent it a profound weightiness. With it on, Shin-hyeok armed himself with the magic spear and holy sword.
Kachunk!
Magic spear in one hand, holy sword in the other.
The mere grip evoked an intense sense of transcendence—but only for a moment.
Snap!
He slung Chungmugong's bow on his back.
"Kak!"
Summoned Kakmaki to perch on his shoulder.
Viewers gasped at Shin-hyeok, fully prepped in seconds.
Each piece was a masterpiece no ordinary player could touch.
Gear, pet, physique—nothing lacking. The synergy when they combined like oriental sauce over salad? Mouthwatering.
So the viewers predicted an easy stomp.
Many figured Shin-hyeok would blitz the champion in 1 second, maybe a few.
Even those rating the champ highly expected a quick win.
But Shin-hyeok thought the opposite.
'This'll be tough. The hardest fight since regressing.'
Unlike the viewers, he foresaw the champion battle as his toughest yet.
Viewers would've been shocked if they knew his past fights.
His conviction firm, the champion soon appeared.
Thud! Thoom! Thud! Thoom!
From the opposite passage, footsteps echoed, dominating the vast Colosseum.
One being's stride ruled the arena.
Chill!
Shin-hyeok shuddered, then assumed stance—ready to spring or counter anytime.
As he tensed, gripping spear and sword tighter—
Ruuuumble!
With a final step, the Colosseum's champion emerged.
The champion was an orc.
No ordinary one.
Nearly 3 meters tall, with a massive frame to match.
Boulders for muscles crammed into that bulk.
Unlike typical green-skinned orcs, his black hide amplified the intimidation, making him seem alien even among orcs.
A lone ruler of the battlefield.
One against hundreds.
Maybe thousands.
Shin-hyeok knew this type well.
'Orc Great Warrior. One of the pinnacle classes in orc hierarchy. If the Great Chieftain leads the tribe, the Great Warrior spearheads it. Strength beyond measure. Yeah, this won't be easy.'
Orc Great Warrior.
Peak even among orcs, the innate warrior race.
Orcs blend cold reason and hot frenzy in battle; some tribes lack even Great Warriors.
Hence their immense value.
But Shin-hyeok focused elsewhere.
'Black Orc. Non-green orc. Doesn't look like he earned champion status honorably. Funny thing—humans, heteroraces, all obsessed with skin color or looks.'
The Great Warrior was a Black Orc.
Orc world splits two ways: green-skinned or not.
Elves too, by skin.
Dwarves by beards, not color.
Knowing this, Shin-hyeok straightened before the Orc Great Warrior.
"...What're you doing, human?"
The orc frowned at Shin-hyeok's maintained tension but relaxed stance.
Viewers watching the stream were stunned.
Talking heteroraces were unprecedented.
Inevitable, really—pre-League Dimension Arena foes were replicas, speechless.
But this orc champion was real.
"Greetings, Orc Great Warrior."
"...You know me?"
"Impossible not to. The glorious, honorable class granted only to orcs at the pinnacle of strife and battle."
"...Heh, flattery sounds good anyway."
Shin-hyeok bowed his head politely.
This foe deserved respect as a warrior first.
The orc sensed the sincerity and chuckled softly.
His fierce face softened, easing the mood between them.
"Human. What is your name?"
"Choi Shin-hyeok."
"Choi Shin-hyeok... Choi Shin-hyeok. Your dimension hasn't opened to the League yet, yet you know of Great Warriors. Impressive."
"Plenty of ways to get info, even pre-League."
"True. Obvious answer. Talents like you trip over methods. Understood."
After light introductions,
the orc marveled briefly at Shin-hyeok's knowledge, then accepted it.
League info was near-impossible pre-opening, but types like Shin-hyeok shattered impossibles to stand here.
But their chat couldn't last.
"...Damn system's interrupting even chit-chat."
"Tell me about it."
The translucent system message cut them off.
The orc frowned at his own copy, swiped it away.
Then gripped his massive glaive from his back with both hands, readying.
Shin-hyeok matched: plunged spear and sword into ground, drew Chungmugong's bow from back.
"Versatile with weapons."
"I like handling many."
"Fair. Won't meddle in a master's ways. Human warrior, Choi Shin-hyeok. I am Tarkhan, Great Warrior of the Wild Boar Tusk Tribe."
The Orc Great Warrior—Tarkhan—didn't nitpick Shin-hyeok's weapon arts.
Just shared his name, ramping battle spirit.
Shin-hyeok swallowed dryly at the razor-sharp aura raising his hackles, nocked an arrow and drew the bowstring.
Kraaaank!
Tarkhan gripped his glaive tighter at the sight of Shin-hyeok nocking a spear-length arrow.
Graaaank!
Both warriors poised to charge.
"For the Great Earth Mother God!"
"......"
Each heralded battle in their way.
The obstructing message and barrier vanished—
KABOOM!
Tarkhan brutally kicked off, cratering the sturdy floor like a meteor strike. Shin-hyeok watched the cannonball charge impassively and released.
Kraka-BOOM!
One arrow sliced air, rent space, heralding the champion showdown.