The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 62
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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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Episode 62
62.
“……This… What is this!”
A Guardian had fallen.
Helplessly.
“Where did these creatures get such power…!”
The Int Orcs were the very ones who’d trembled before the Guardians back then, able only to flee.
True, it had been possible because their leader fought alongside them, but fundamentally, Int Orcs couldn’t match the physical prowess of Guardians.
That’s why they’d felt safe.
They’d grown stronger since then, so naturally Int Orcs wouldn’t even be worthy opponents.
But the Int Orcs possessed strange equipment.
“That Iron Mace……!”
The Iron Mace that had just crushed a Guardian in a single blow caught their eye.
“Something’s different! Be careful!”
The Int Orcs had possessed equipment like that before. But it hadn’t shone like this. It hadn’t given off such an ominous aura.
“Wretched monsters!”
A few enraged Guardians stamped the ground with all their might.
Then they attacked the vanguard Int Orc with everything they had. The Int Orc couldn’t evade. Their equipment was better, but their physical ability fell far short of a Guardian’s.
Screeeech—!
“Die.”
At the perfect moment, the Guardian’s attack struck the Int Orc’s heart.
Crack.
Normally, it should have pierced through.
They’d struck that hard.
But.
“Grrrrgh—!”
It was the Guardian who took the damage. His knuckles shattered, his fist badly wounded.
“My body feels lighter……?”
The Int Orc who’d been struck instead felt his body grow lighter.
-Your vitality recovers!
“I took the hit, but my health recovered.”
It was thanks to the Options attached to Jin-woo’s equipment.
Moreover, a pitch-black aura writhed across the Guardian’s body like earthworms.
Weakness Force.
The Necromaster’s special Options began to overwhelm the Guardians.
“Now’s our chance!”
“Attack!”
Having seen with their own eyes that their attacks worked while the Guardians’ didn’t, the Int Orcs began pressing forward viciously.
Crash—!
Crackle—!
“This was given to us to break through your hard shells!”
Jin-woo’s Iron Mace shattered the Guardians’ tough outer skin completely.
“Grrgh—!”
“You… you wretches!”
A complete reversal. Yet more Guardians came rushing from behind.
“Make way!”
It was a Guardian wielding a massive Great Sword. Growing frustrated with those suffering in front, he raised the blade high.
“Pitiful creatures. And you dare call yourselves Guardians? Against such as these……!”
Several Int Orcs stood before him.
From the fight just now, the Int Orcs could be certain.
Right now they were invincible. As long as they had Jin-woo’s equipment, they would never be wounded!
“With the equipment the great one gave us, we shall never fall.”
“Let them see the great power we wield!”
Screeeech—!
The massive Great Sword came down on an Int Orc.
It was certainly a ferocious blow—the Int Orcs who raised their Shield to block sank into the earth, the ground beneath them caving in from the impact.
“Ugh!”
The Int Orc groaned from the force.
Yet in moments, he felt his vitality recovering.
“Just as expected!”
The Shield Jin-woo had given him possessed Life Drain.
So each time he blocked an attack, his health recovered.
Crash—! Crash—! Crash—!
The Great Sword Guardian hacked away like a madman.
The more he did, the more the Int Orc was wounded and healed in succession.
“Gasp… Gasp… Gasp…”
The Great Sword Guardian grew exhausted, while the Int Orc who’d blocked his frenzied assault countless times stood unmarred.
“How can you still be standing……!”
He’d struck more than a dozen times. With everything he had.
Even with perfect defense, he should have dealt some damage. There had to be at least a little.
But the Int Orcs showed no injury at all. It was the Great Sword Guardian who was taking damage.
His stamina was completely drained.
“Are you spent?”
“Our turn now!”
The Int Orcs’ attacks poured down. The Great Sword Guardian collapsed in an instant.
Beyond the fallen Great Sword Guardian, the Int Orcs turned to clash with the other Guardians. The Guardians ground their teeth watching these Int Orcs.
These were not the Int Orcs of before.
Behind the Int Orcs.
Jin-woo rode upon First.
“Do I… have to… fight as… well?”
“No need to fight. This battle is entirely for those Int Orcs to wage.”
Jin-woo sat atop First, observing their clash. He watched carefully to see how they wielded and employed the equipment.
Jin-woo gathered feedback on his equipment, observing the battle with his own eyes.
“Hmm. I should make the Armor more intuitive.”
Since defense was uniform across all areas, he could maintain protection no matter where he was struck, but this caused their stances to become awkward in many situations.
“If they block with their shoulders, they can follow up immediately. Hmm, Life Drain works well. The Shield and Life Drain especially have excellent synergy.”
With the Armor, if they took a hit deliberately and then noticed the Life Drain effect, the advantage in combat disappeared. But the Shield was different.
“The Shield can be moved freely to block. The Necromaster’s special Options are quite effective. It makes gaining the upper hand in combat much easier.”
Everything was visible to Jin-woo’s eyes. The battles of all those wearing his equipment were both seen and comprehended.
His mind burned as if ablaze.
“Impressive.”
First was immensely proud of such a master.
Boom—!
Then, from far away, a thunderous sound echoed. Jin-woo’s head snapped around.
“Finally comes.”
There was a reason the battle with the Guardians flowed so one-sidedly.
Their leader was absent.
Red Eye.
“Visible even from this distance.”
Those crimson eyes.
A frame far more massive than ordinary Guardians.
And the Great Sword he bore was quite striking.
“Ooh.”
Jin-woo focused on the Great Sword.
Yet he couldn’t see it clearly. Wishing to see better, he concentrated—and a notification appeared.
-A powerful will shapes a skill!
-Vision has been heightened!
-You have acquired the skill [Hawk’s Eye]. Distant things now appear clearly.
His will and desire to see distant equipment had shaped this skill.
“I can see it clearly now!”
Jin-woo smiled as he gazed at Red Eye’s Great Sword. Red Eye, gripping it with both hands and hoisting it high, was the very image of a general.
“Commander!”
“Forgive us! Things have come to this!”
The Guardians looked to Red Eye with eyes of hope. The Int Orcs, meanwhile, began to tense. Red Eye’s strength was on an entirely different level from ordinary Guardians.
An ordinary Guardian’s full power was comparable to Red Eye’s casual strikes.
Gulp.
Then Rigardo raised his Staff high.
“There’s no need to fear. Victory is still ours. We will show Red Eye, and take back what is ours. Our land!”
“Grrrrgh—!”
At Rigardo’s cry, the Int Orcs roared.
“Cowards, you dare come here!”
Red Eye bellowed.
With such a Red Eye in the vanguard, anyone would have felt assured.
But this time, things were different.
Suddenly.
Red Eye’s gaze snapped toward where Jin-woo stood.
“Wide field of view?”
But it didn’t last long. Int Orcs were charging at him. Those rushing at Red Eye wore Jin-woo’s original equipment, not the modified versions.
“Grrrrgh—!”
Red Eye roared.
“Green dwarves, you came this far on such small tricks!”
“You’ll see how small they are!”
“You think such Sorcery will work on me!”
Red Eye swung his Great Sword.
“Shields!”
The Int Orcs formed ranks swiftly, Shields rising to block Red Eye’s Great Sword.
Clang—!
“!”
Red Eye’s brow furrowed in shock. It was a blow meant to crush everything. He’d never imagined it could be stopped.
“You’re blocking this?”
From either side, Int Orcs wielding Iron Maces struck at Red Eye’s legs.
Red Eye drove his feet hard into the ground, deliberately creating a tremor.
Boom—!
The Int Orcs’ bodies shook instantly. But only briefly—some quickly regained their balance.
“My Armor is light!”
It was an Int Orc wearing the Armor Jin-woo had made. They wore much lighter Armor than the others, allowing them to recover balance swiftly.
Screech—!
His club struck Red Eye’s ankle hard.
Crack—!
“We… succeeded.”
They’d managed to land an attack on Red Eye for the first time.
“Grrrrgh—!”
Red Eye roared. It was utterly different from before. His entire body blazed red like his eyes, and in moments the wound healed.
“What in the world is happening.”
Red Eye’s eyes spun wildly. Then he looked at Rigardo.
“You couldn’t possibly have such talent. If you did, you’d have used it against us long ago.”
Then his gaze snapped to Jin-woo. The distance was considerable, yet his aim was precise.
“It’s you. You!”
The Dark Aura that rose from Jin-woo.
Red Eye marveled. This man—he was the one who changed everything.
This human had transformed it all.
“These tools… they’re all your handiwork. Ah, magnificent human!”
Red Eye cried out loudly.
“Why do you stand there with such talent! Come! Let us serve our Incarnation together!”
“What could you give me?”
“Everything!”
“Materials and such?”
“……What are you saying?”
“Seems you can’t. Then I won’t go.”
At Jin-woo’s words, Red Eye’s anger deepened.
“You! Leading these dwarves in heroic play with such talent!”
Jin-woo merely smiled.
Then Rigardo moved. Rigardo had been conserving his strength until now.
For precisely this moment.
“Soul Shackle.”
The Incantation carved into his body and the Incantation granted to his Staff began to unfold. Swirl—! Transparent chains erupted from the Staff, wrapping around Red Eye’s legs, arms, and torso.
Sink.
Then they burrowed toward his heart.
“This is no heroic play.”
Rigardo spoke.
“This is the true hero of our people.”
Red Eye fell to his knees.
“Only one remains.”
All the Guardians had fallen.
Rigardo made a slow gesture.
Thud.
The Int Orcs stepped forward in unison.
Those wielding Jin-woo’s Iron Maces raised their hands high.
“Let us reclaim our land.”
“No… No, I can’t……!”
Crash—!
Red Eye collapsed. At the same instant, countless notifications flooded Jin-woo’s vision.
-The Guardian Commander’s Incarnation has passed.
-You have cleared the Quest!
-You have received a Chain Quest!
-Your Level has increased!
-You have achieved an Achievement!
-You have gained the Achievement [Breaker of Guardian’s Will].
-You have gained the Achievement [Hero of the Int Orcs]!
…….
…….
Countless notifications welcomed Jin-woo.
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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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