The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 121
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 121
Chapter 121
While conducting my reconnaissance, I wasn’t merely slaying the monsters that appeared before me.
I was assessing whether the caravan could traverse the path ahead, identifying what types of monsters inhabited the area, and more.
I was fulfilling my duties as a proper scout.
And what I discovered was this.
“Trolls and goblins.”
These two races dominated the forest.
The Forest was largely divided into territories controlled by these two species.
The trolls were powerful but few in number, while the goblins were weak but numerous, defending their territory with various poisons and tools.
Over time, both races’ territories expanded, and naturally their domains began to overlap, creating an atmosphere of territorial conflict.
Both species concentrated their attention on the intersection of their territories.
The moment the caravan entered that intersection.
“Uuugh… Something strange is coming.”
“Something strange. It’s the goblins’ doing.”
“Yes. Goblins, doing strange things. It must be the goblins’ work.”
“They’ve crossed into our territory.”
“Uuuaaargh!”
The trolls believed the caravan was another of the goblins’ tools, which had been attacking them with various contraptions for some time.
“Kee-ik? What is that?”
“Something huge! Only those stupid trolls could move something that massive!”
“It’s a troll! A troll!”
“Kee-eee-eek! Defend the territory!”
“Gather the poisons and weapons!”
The goblins, seeing the caravan’s size, believed the trolls were dragging something.
Both misunderstandings stemmed from confusion, but monsters’ intelligence wasn’t particularly high.
Upon reaching the front of the caravan and realizing it belonged to neither trolls nor goblins.
“Kee-ik! It’s a troll!”
“Uuuaaargh! Those goblin bastards!”
“It’s a territorial war!”
“Fight! Fight!”
“Defend the territory!”
“Kee-eee-ek!”
“Uuuaaargh!”
They forgot about the caravan entirely and began preparing for their territorial conflict.
As a result, the Simmons Trading Company’s caravan found itself in the position of a shrimp caught in a whale’s fight.
“Hey, mercenary! Hurry and defeat those things!”
“There are so many monsters…?”
“Hide inside the caravan!”
“There’s too much cargo—there’s nowhere to hide…”
“Hide under the carriages, climb on top of them, or find any cover you can! Or get behind the mercenaries!”
The panicked merchants scrambled to conceal themselves.
“Prepare for combat!”
“Damn it, we should target the trolls first, right?”
“What are you talking about? We need to hit the goblins first! Look at their numbers!”
“One swing of a troll’s fist and these carriages will be obliterated!”
“If the goblins charge, everyone here—merchants and all—will be slaughtered!”
Despite their panic, the mercenaries methodically prepared to face the monsters.
There was nowhere to run anyway.
Either we fight and win, or we get devoured.
Those were the only two options.
In that moment.
The man who had known about this plan beforehand.
Jackal, the captain of the Steel Claw Mercenary Band standing beside me, finally spoke.
“You didn’t mention there would be this many.”
Well, I hadn’t anticipated this many trolls and goblins either.
There seemed to be twice as many as I’d expected.
Despite the Forest’s vast size, I was surprised to find so many trolls and goblins lurking within it.
It was unexpected, but.
“I’ll take the goblins.”
“Isn’t that too much? Even so, the other side has the trolls.”
“Then would you prefer to switch? I don’t mind which I face first.”
“Wahaha! No, those little things aren’t satisfying to cut down. I prefer the trolls myself!”
There was no reason to worry.
I had devised this plan precisely because I believed I could handle trolls and goblins, regardless of their numbers.
With that, Jackal drew his crescent blade and charged toward the troll horde.
I stood facing hundreds of goblins rushing from the opposite direction.
“Mirain! Don’t stay here—go help with the trolls! Wasting talent like yours on goblins is a loss!”
“I know you’re strong, but there’s a limit to how many goblins one person can face! So please take the troll side!”
The mercenaries’ voices called out from beside me.
Well, they had a point.
Unless one was a Sage, having a strong combatant stand against mere goblins was wasteful.
But who was I?
The All Master—the supreme class that could wield every weapon and skill, transcending all professions.
The one who had collected every item that existed in First.
“Luke.”
– Yes, Master.
At my command, Luke produced a weapon for me.
It was a crossbow.
A crossbow adorned with golden metal and gleaming jewels.
Its body gleamed like the sun itself, and dragon head sculptures were carved into both ends of the crossbow.
The true identity of this weapon was.
[ Radiant Golden Turtle Divine Mechanism Crossbow ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type : Crossbow
Grade : Legendary
Requirements : Level 900+, Strength 2,000+, Agility 2,000+, Bow Mastery Lv 90+
Description : The golden crossbow that shakes heaven and earth, the Radiant Golden Turtle Divine Mechanism Crossbow. It is said that when one pulls its golden trigger, a single arrow strikes a thousand enemies.
It was a legendary-grade crossbow with a staggering level 900 requirement.
Generally, ranged classes using bows or crossbows are known to be at a disadvantage in multi-enemy combat since they must shoot monsters one by one unless they use skills like “Arrow Rain”.
But with this weapon, everything changes.
A weapon that enables a class capable of wielding crossbows to engage in multi-enemy combat.
The moment I loaded an arrow into the crossbow, I aimed at the hundreds of goblins above and pulled the trigger.
– Using the unique skill of ‘Radiant Golden Turtle Divine Mechanism Crossbow’, ‘One Arrow Thousand Enemies’.
One Arrow Thousand Enemies.
The Radiant Golden Turtle Divine Mechanism Crossbow fires a single arrow that strikes a thousand enemies.
True to its reputation, the arrow shot high into the sky became a thousand arrows.
Whoooosh!
Compared to Artemis’s arrow, Iokeira, which I had used in Second Crown before, the power was somewhat weaker.
But the number of arrows was far greater.
Goblins were monsters that gained their advantage through numbers, cunning, and tools.
Their individual strength was relatively weak.
“Kyieeeek!”
“Kyiek! Arrow rain! Run, gack!”
“Kyiewk!”
They fell helplessly under the unique skill of the Radiant Golden Turtle Divine Mechanism Crossbow.
Only a handful of goblins survived—those who managed to dodge or raised crude shields to block the arrows.
The mercenaries watching the scene stood slack-jawed, muttering as if entranced.
“Insane….”
“Hundreds of goblins in a single strike…?”
“Someone pinch me. This has to be a dream.”
Pinch!
“Argh! This is real?”
Regardless.
After confirming the fallen goblins, I turned back and spoke.
“You should be able to hold them off with this, right?”
“Y, yes!”
“Of course!”
“A few dozen goblins are nothing!”
“We’ll hold the line for sure! No, we’ll annihilate them completely, so don’t worry!”
“Then, I shall trust you.”
Leaving the goblin cleanup to the Steel Claw Mercenary Band would be sufficient.
With that decided, I sprinted toward the opposite side to face the troll that Jackal was handling.
Those watching me.
And the merchants’ gazes toward the mercenaries began to shift.
* * *
Robert, the chief merchant of the Simmons Trading Company.
He had been thoroughly displeased with the mercenaries’ presence throughout this journey.
The Steel Claw Mercenary Band.
Considering the route of this journey, he had hired them in full, despite their rather steep fees.
‘Why aren’t monsters appearing?’
There were no powerful monsters to speak of—only the occasional appearance of a few weak creatures.
The Steel Claw Mercenary Band, whom he had gone to such lengths to employ, merely sat in the carriage yawning.
From the perspective of the merchant who hired them, the expense was nothing but wasted coin.
‘This won’t do. I must find some fault and reduce their payment.’
This transaction was far too important.
And if he could save on mercenary fees here as well?
Wouldn’t Edwin Simons, the owner of the Simmons Trading Company, be all the more pleased?
With that thought, he sought out the mercenaries and began finding fault with them.
The mercenary captain had come to him spouting nonsense about how a specially designated scout had been clearing monsters in advance, but he ignored it.
The mercenaries’ mood had soured, but he didn’t care.
If they grew angry and abandoned the contract, that would actually be ideal.
He was eagerly anticipating how much coin he would save if the mercenaries simply left of their own accord.
“Uuuaaarrgh!”
“Kiek! Territory dispute!”
“Shrieeeek!”
Monsters appeared.
Dozens of trolls and hundreds of goblins.
At the sight, Robert gasped and hid behind the mercenaries.
Though he had risen to the position of chief merchant, he had primarily conducted business within cities and at most traveled to nearby villages.
This was his first time facing so many monsters directly.
“Y-you mercenaries! Quickly, defeat those creatures!”
In such a situation, there was no one else to call upon but the mercenaries.
The mercenaries seemed displeased by Robert’s summons, their expressions darkening, yet they carried out their duties properly.
The mercenaries’ backs as they held back the monsters seemed impossibly reassuring.
Had the mercenaries left, he could scarcely imagine what would have become of him.
Above all.
Splash!
“Good heavens….”
Mirain, the escort mercenary who had joined them claiming to have been specially designated at the end.
That power was extraordinary.
A single trigger pull felled hundreds of goblins.
Only then did I fully comprehend what the mercenary captain had said—that the scouts had gone ahead and eliminated the monsters beforehand.
“But, more importantly, what about the troll!”
Thanks to the arrow barrage, the goblins had been largely dealt with.
Plenty of goblins remained, but the mercenaries were steadily mopping them up.
Then, what of the troll?
I turned my head.
“Hah.”
Robert, the captain of the Steel Claw Mercenary Band, was cleaving through trolls with a massive crescent blade.
I could see Jackal.
I’d thought it was merely a weapon he carried to look impressive.
Yet he wielded that enormous crescent blade with such effortless grace.
The sight of the troll’s shoulder being severed in a single stroke felt almost surreal.
“Uuuaaaargh!”
However, even with Jackal’s strength, he couldn’t hold back dozens of trolls alone.
The trolls whose attention Jackal had diverted began charging toward the carriage.
“Hold them back!”
“Damn it, trolls!”
“Ugh!”
The mercenaries admirably blocked the trolls’ path.
But one troll slipped through.
“Uuuaaaargh! Goblin tool! Bad! Destroy all!”
The troll charged toward the carriage.
The merchants shrieked and fled in panic, but the carriage remained fixed in place.
At this rate, the precious carriage would be utterly destroyed.
Then.
Whoosh!
The escort mercenary who had felled hundreds of goblins with a single arrow.
Mirain leaped from the carriage roof.
In his hand, replacing the golden crossbow that had vanished, was a large and wickedly sharp greatsword.
As he closed in on the troll, scorching flames erupted from the blade’s edge.
In that instant.
Slice!
Mirain and the troll’s bodies crossed paths.
A moment of silence.
The instant the troll turned to look back with a confused “Uuh?”
Boom!
Searing flames exploded from the troll’s neck.
Even a troll, renowned for its tremendous vitality and regenerative prowess, could not regrow its severed neck when the exposed wound was cauterized by such infernal heat.
Boom!
The troll collapsed where it stood.
Watching Mirain’s figure dash forward to finish off the remaining troll.
“…Was there a performance bonus clause in the contract?”
Robert began to reconsider his thoughts about mercenaries.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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