Episode #10: Ogre Slayer
The number of soldiers waiting around the portal had decreased significantly.
Already more than half had gone through the portal to Nova.
The escape quest itself is completed by going through the portal to Nova.
Having become a Novice, a citizen of Nova, they would complete their escape by setting foot on Nova's land.
Escaping this Earth that is heading towards its end.
The quest is completed by settling in Nova.
Sarge Kim Sang-cheol was all for Cheol-du's plan to power up the Goblin Shaman first.
In his view, it seemed that Cheol-du could face a real Ogre Junior with just a few more power-ups.
"Ogres as a species have skin that is too thick, you can't hunt them with rifles."
It was only because the one they encountered was an Ogre Junior that there was some effect; if it was even a little bigger, they wouldn't even scratch it.
"You're actually supposed to avoid field bosses. If you're armed with tanks or heavy weapons, you can catch them, but there's almost no point. You almost always lose them when you start the quest anyway."
It costs more to hunt them than you get back.
The rewards are random – you might get something, you might not. But the costs and risks are high, so it's better to just avoid them.
"In fact, you can get stat stones and ability stones in Nova too. In the apocalypse test, it's cool if you get them, but no big deal if you don't."
So, the plan for this Cheongju operation was to find Goblin Shamans and loot stat stones as much as possible until 12 o'clock, and then gather at the portal around 12 o'clock for a headcount before heading to Luna.
"But, hyung, I heard you're getting discharged soon, so why'd you come here? I thought everyone here volunteered?"
"Ah, I'm one of those doomsday prepper types."
Fighting together like this, you get a real bond.
Jin-tae and Sarge Kim Sang-cheol were already close enough to call each other 'hyung' and 'dongsaeng' – basically, older and younger brother.
"It's the apocalypse test, right? But is the apocalypse actually happening on Earth? People are split on whether it'll happen someday or not."
Kim Sang-cheol chuckled.
"If Earth's going down, Nova's the only thing that matters. And it's better to get settled in Nova fast, while I'm still in the military."
"Since I volunteered, my military service might get extended, even after we get to Nova, but that's alright."
"If Earth's got no future, it's definitely better to get into Nova first, even if it sucks for a while."
"Wow, talk about decisive!"
"Shut up, there's a Goblin Shaman over there."
Cheol-du, who had been walking silently all along, stepped forward.
"Get out of the way."
He hefted the axe, judged the distance, and then chucked it.
Whump, CRACK!
The axe hit the Goblin Shaman's head, one-shot kill.
Normally, they would have finished off the remaining Goblin Warriors with rifles, but as discussed beforehand, Cheol-du, who had rushed ahead, took them all down with his military greatsword.
"Your friend is seriously badass."
"He's incredible."
Im Chang-jin agreed.
"Haha, Cheol-du has been exercising for a long time. Gym owners were always trying to get Cheol-du to go pro."
"No wonder."
"Wow, what kind of sports did he do?"
"Various kinds."
Sarge Kim Sang-cheol and Im Chang-jin were blown away by Cheol-du, and Kim Jin-tae was practically bursting with pride over his friend.
"Damn, nothing."
Cheol-du clicked his tongue in disappointment.
The Goblin Shaman only dropped 3 coins.
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"Let's go that way."
The hunt was going smoothly, and Cheol-du absorbed a few more orbs.
Whoosh.
<Strength has slightly increased.>
Thump-thump.
<Stamina has slightly increased.>
Tingle.
<Senses have slightly increased.>
Tingle.
<Strength has slightly increased.>
After absorbing four more orbs, Cheol-du felt a rush of confidence.
'I can do this. I can take him.'
His strength, way more solid than before, felt like it was straining to be unleashed.
If he'd bulked up like some juicer, he'd be slower and weaker, but this was like a power-up with zero downsides.
Cheol-du still looked like a natural athlete, no steroids, but the strength orbs gave him insane power for his size.
The stamina orbs, which increased endurance and recovery and regeneration, also suited Cheol-du's barbarian body well.
And the sense orbs? Let's just say they made him hyper-aware.
"Alright. Let's go now."
The group was still led by Sergeant Kim Sang-cheol.
He started shooting every goblin they saw, pulling aggro.
Bang.
He took down a Goblin Shaman and an orb appeared.
"Oh? A sense orb."
"Oh. Congratulations, hyung."
"Don't be silly."
Kim Sang-cheol accepted Jin-tae's playful remark, now that they had become quite close, and absorbed the sense orb.
"I'm almost out of coins too. Jin-tae or Chang-jin, you guys take the next shaman. Jin-tae, I'll show you how to shoot."
"Awesome."
"Yes, sir."
Kim Sang-cheol shot a glance at Cheol-du, his eyes flicking to Cheol-du's hand for a second.
"You're not bummed about that?"
"About the coins?"
"Yeah. How many do you have left?"
"108."
"Damn, seriously? That's crazy."
Kim Sang-cheol genuinely admired him.
Even after using that many to activate the stat stone, he still had that many Goblin Coins left.
That's what happens when you kill a ton of Goblin Warriors. Plus, a bunch of shamans just dropped coins and vanished.
"That's such a waste."
Im Chang-jin chimed in.
The quest coins you get here disappear when you go to Nova.
That's why you have to exchange them all for other items at the Goblin Shop before going through the portal, but there wasn't really anything worth spending 100 coins on.
"Nothing we can do."
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Cheol-du shrugged it off, but everyone else was more bummed about it.
Bang!
Just as Jin-tae was getting the hang of shooting and they were taking down goblins easily, a huge roar echoed through the forest.
"Kuaaaaaaah!"
Everyone jumped.
"Ogre."
"It's the same one from earlier."
Cheol-du was itching for a fight.
"Heh, time for payback."
Seeing Cheol-du getting excited, Sergeant Kim Sang-cheol stepped forward, worried.
"Cheol-du. You remember what we talked about earlier, right?"
"Of course."
"If it gets dicey, signal right away, and stick to the plan."
"I understand."
Cheol-du waved them back.
Kim Sang-cheol and the others backed off and hid, looking worried.
'It'd be great if Cheol-du wins, but...'
Cheol-du's victory is Plan A.
Plan B is, if Cheol-du gets it in a hold, Kim Sang-cheol and Im Chang-jin run up and unload their rifles into its mouth.
The idea is to aim for the brain through the roof of its mouth – hopefully, bullets can do enough damage that way.
Ignoring the others' worries, Cheol-du got pumped up, steeled himself, and roared.
"Uwoooooo!"
Come get some! I'm right here! Let's go!
"KUOOOOOOOO!"
They heard it crashing through the nearby forest, and then it appeared, stomping towards them.
"Heh heh heh, come at me."
The Ogre charged straight at him, swinging its club down hard.
Whoosh! CRASH!
Cheol-du sidestepped the club, then used the momentum to smash the Ogre Junior's wrist.
Whack!
"Keuo!"
It roared and dropped the club.
Cheol-du quickly kicked the club away.
"Let's go, hand-to-hand!"
"Kreooh."
The Ogre, pissed off, reached out to grab Cheol-du's neck, but Cheol-du didn't dodge – he grabbed its hand.
Crack.
They locked hands, but the Ogre was a good meter taller, so it looked like a grown man bullying a kid, pressing down on him.
'He's still stronger.'
Cheol-du quickly sized things up, then shifted his weight and tripped it.
Whoosh!
As soon as they broke apart, he backed off. While the Ogre was struggling to get up, Cheol-du closed in again and kneed it in the face.
CRASH!
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"Kuaooo!"
The Ogre Junior was furious and kept trying to grab Cheol-du.
This slippery little human shit.
If it could just get its hands on him, it could rip him apart, but he kept dodging, just out of reach, pissing it off.
What really pissed it off was that his punches and kicks were hurting way more than before.
"Kuaooo!"
Furious, it charged again.
Screw tearing him apart, it was just going to crush him.
As the Ogre charged, Cheol-du dropped his stance.
'Use its weight too.'
Its hide's too thick for a knockout blow. The thing's built like a tank.
Whooong.
He didn't dodge the charge – he went in closer and used a Judo throw to slam it headfirst onto the ground.
Not on the dirt, but on the rock he'd been maneuvering towards.
CRASH!
He slammed it down so hard, the ground shook like an earthquake.
"Kueoooo!"
He moved in on the dazed, staggering Ogre and started throwing a flurry of punches.
Thwack, thwack, thwack!
He only aimed for the body.
He couldn't reach its head without jumping, and that would just weaken his punches.
Maybe focusing on the body was working?
After about twelve punches to the body in two, maybe three seconds, there was a sickening crack from the Ogre.
'Got it!'
Cheol-du drove his fist into its side again with everything he had.
CRUNCH!
"KUOOOOOOOO!"
The Ogre crumpled to the ground, rolling around.
It was writhing in pain – no surprise, with broken ribs.
"Now we're on the same level."
Cheol-du rushed over, grabbed the back of its thick neck, and started hammering it with knee strikes.
Thwack, thwack, CRUNCH!
The Ogre flailed around, trying to block, but Cheol-du didn't care if it tried to grab him – he just kept kneeing it, determined to crush its skull.
CRUNCH!
The Ogre's hands, already slowing down, were barely moving now, blood pouring from its broken nose.
Cheol-du knew he was close and drove his knee up even harder.
Crack!
His knee sank in, and the Ogre Junior's face just caved in. Its body went limp.
"Huff, huff."
He let go of its neck and stepped back as the huge body crashed to the ground.
Whooong.
"Hoo, hoo."
With his senses boosted by the stat stone, Cheol-du couldn't feel any life force from the Ogre anymore.
Fsssssss.
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As the Ogre's body dissolved into light, the others came running.
"Waaaaaah!"
"Uwaaah, shit!"
The others, who'd been hiding and waiting for the chance to back him up, came bursting out, yelling like madmen.
"Crazy. Shit."
"Taking down an ogre with your bare hands in the apocalypse test!"
"This is freaking awesome. Shit. I can't believe I'm seeing this."
Everyone was hyped up, yelling 'shit' and 'awesome' – they couldn't calm down.
"Huff, huff."
Cheol-du was just as pumped.
'I won.'
I won.
Against a guy with stronger power than I have.
It was a rush like no other.
"Uwooooooooo!"
Cheol-du let out a victory cry.
"Heh heh heh."
The rookie barbarian had leveled up.
Kang Cheol-du forced himself to calm down, not wanting to get cocky.
Fsssssss.
Maybe because it was so big, the Ogre's corpse, which was turning into light and fading away like ashes, left behind some loot.
10 Goblin Coins and one black orb shone brightly.
