66: The Eve of Battle
The Ironhead Mercenaries left all their dungeon spoils in Obongsan's pioneer village. The government would handle transporting everything to New Seoul.
They agreed to receive payment for the goods upon returning to New Seoul, and Choi Jun-seop submitted his report.
Though it was a case of acting first and reporting later, he didn't expect severe reprimand. The information about a guaranteed curse resistance skill spot held considerable value.
Transferring two officers—and only volunteers at that—wouldn't pose any major issues.
"Alright! Let's move out!"
The mercenaries set off for their Cyclops raid.
"Boss, share some of those."
"What?"
"Stat stones. As rewards for the hardworking trainees. Time to give out some carrots."
"Hmm, fine."
Since most were former low-ranking bandits, few had ever received ample stat stone supplies.
Bandit leaders and officers had monopolized most of the spoils.
Their only options had been activating randomly dropped stones or secretly using ones obtained from hunting—bandit leaders didn't welcome underlings growing stronger.
"Be generous. We might get a ranker out of this."
"Uhh, isn't that risky?"
"Why? Couldn't become a ranker yourself?"
"Who do you take me for? I just mean... given their backgrounds, what if they turn their blades against us?"
At Warrant Officer Oh Jun-hwan's retort, Cheoldu chuckled darkly.
"Then we'll crush their skulls."
"...Fair point."
Oh Jun-hwan shook his head vigorously.
Only fools would betray their leader—especially when said leader was a monster. Even if a ranker emerged among them, they'd likely remain deferential to Cheoldu.
The mercenaries followed orders without complaint during both marches and training.
"Squad 14 wins!"
"Woooh!"
They began implementing ranking systems based on footraces and hunting achievements, distributing stat stones accordingly.
"Sim Bong-du! Promoted to corporal! You'll lead the 1st Spear Squad."
"Gasp!"
"Your pay will be adjusted to match your rank!"
"I'll lead them with every ounce of my strength!"
Within this emerging structure, more mercenaries began pursuing promotions, continuing personal training even after group sessions.
"Boss, I propose trainee, private, and corporal as our ranks."
"Hah, still thinking like a military man, Warrant Officer Oh?"
"...I'm discharged already. Stop calling me warrant officer. If you've got better ideas, just say so!"
"Trainee, private, corporal it is."
"..."
Under Unit Commander Oh Jun-hwan's proposal and Captain Kang Cheoldu's approval, the rank structure for lower-ranking mercenaries was finalized.
Whoosh... whoosh...
Cheoldu delegated full command to Oh Jun-hwan and immersed himself in personal training. He was burning to fill his quota of 50 stat stones and reach the duel arena.
Apart from occasionally drilling the 10-man trainee guard unit, he devoted all his time to training.
Swoosh!
Every swing of his axe drew glances from the mercenaries, their expressions uniformly mixed with awe and pride—awe at combat power that enabled solo raids on orc villages, and pride that this monster was their leader.
On the 30th day of their ambiguous march/mobility training hybrid, they reached the edge of Cyclops Forest.
"Make camp!"
Mercenaries scattered to establish defensive positions.
"Pikes over there! Forest side."
"Hey, tents go there."
The newly promoted corporals now maintained discipline autonomously. Accustomed to setting up fortifications, they erected camp swiftly.
Meanwhile, the officers gathered for strategy discussions.
"Forest layout."
Though New Seoul's forces hadn't attempted a Cyclops raid, they'd thoroughly mapped the area.
"The forest forms a dome shape."
Not just circular—literally dome-shaped. The sky-covering branches and dense foliage all stemmed from one colossal central tree.
"We're calling it the World Tree. The area beneath is the core zone, with surrounding woods as the outskirts."
The outskirts alone covered considerable territory.
"Primary threats: ogres. Gnolls patrol the periphery."
They'd frequently dealt with the dog-like gnolls before. But ogres required ranker-level capability.
"Warrant Officer Oh. Can you take an ogre solo?"
"Please. Obviously."
"Stronger than I expected."
"...The boss is the real anomaly here. I'm no pushover."
"Yongsu, you?"
"I'd struggle."
"Too weak."
"Oof. Brutal."
Gi Yongsu clutched his chest theatrically, though he didn't seem particularly hurt. His archery far outstripped his melee skills—not that bows could pierce ogre hide anyway. Even New Seoul's finest bows couldn't manage it.
"Pity. Train your close combat."
"Haha, roger."
"Ogre hunting team: me, Warrant Officer Oh, and Jun-seop."
"I'm not a warrant officer anymore..."
Oh Jun-hwan's muttering was ignored.
"Note the encircling ridgeline. Three viable entry points—we're at the southwest."
Relative to the forest, their camp sat at the 4 o'clock position.
"I'll take point. Warrant Officer Oh left flank. Jun-seop right."
"Formation?"
"We advance as one unit."
They lacked the luxury of splitting forces. With critically few members capable of facing ogres, they'd need to methodically probe the outskirts while keeping all combat power concentrated.
"Remember. Steady progress."
"Obviously?"
"I'm reminding myself."
"..."
Cheoldu continued his soliloquy, ignoring the stares.
"Hoo. Patience."
A rookie barbarian couldn't remain green forever. His inner world—like young Aiden on barren hills—couldn't stay childish indefinitely. It was time to forge a mentality matching his warrior's frame.
"Step by step. Kang Cheoldu."
"..."
The stares meant nothing. Barbarians cared not for others' opinions.
He suppressed the surging impatience, aggression, confidence and recklessness. Underestimating an unseen Cyclops? That was rookie behavior.
Methodical. Careful. Yes.
"Heh. I'm ready."
Cheoldu's preparations were complete—in stark contrast to his officers' draining confidence.
"...Yeah. If the boss is ready, that settles it."
"Uh... Should we prepare fallback positions?"
"Tactical necessity."
"Maybe split into defense and hunter teams?"
"Solid plan."
As discussion surged, Cheoldu shook his head.
"Fine. You handle the details."
Pre-battle mental rest proved wise.
"Rest, Captain. We'll finalize planning."
"Heh. Understood."
Leaving the minutiae to his subordinates, Cheoldu exited camp. Flanked by ridges, a narrow gorge awaited tomorrow's advance.
"Sonadda."
Poof!
"Neigh!"
Mounting his summoned steed, Cheoldu galloped, channeling his pre-battle excitement.
Crash! Boom!
His mounted combat skills improved daily.
*Colonel Park Jun-pil pursed his lips while reviewing Captain Choi Jun-seop's initial report.
"An orc village..."
This capturable dungeon would reset ownership every 24 hours if unconquered.
"Infinite respawns..."
Theoretically, daily clears could yield massive quantities of ironware and spoils. The monster density unique to dungeons, combined with village resources...
The enormous haul now piled in New Seoul's government warehouse.
"The difficulty is prohibitively high though."
The problem was that "conquering" it was required to obtain those iron goods—and judging by the report, it seemed impossible with current forces.
Could Major Lee Eun-young's combat unit succeed?
'Impossible.'
While orc warriors might be manageable, warlords rivaled ogres. These near-ranker monsters appeared in numbers. And the chieftain?
That was beyond ranker level.
"And my friend soloed them all."
What stunned Park was that every single kill had been claimed by Cheoldu's axe—Choi Jun-seop and Gi Yongsu hadn't even engaged.
Park now felt something beyond awe at Cheoldu's pre-ranker combat prowess—genuine fear. If someone like that turned terrorist or rebel...
He was beginning to understand why the higher-ups were nervous. Their philosophy was clear: better eliminate an uncontrollable beast than try to leash it.
"He'll slay the Cyclops too."
Dungeon conquests existed, but no pioneer village had ever downed a Field Boss. If Ironhead succeeded, it would be Korea's—perhaps the world's—first such achievement.
"Heh."
Bound to this walking bomb, Park felt both pride and wariness.
"Colonel, your repor—"
"Hah. You're here."
The colonel's good mood prompted Quartermaster Ahn Seung-woo to quickly switch his salute to a bow, offering a strained smile.
"Yes, sir! The routine capital report has arrived."
"Let me see."
The colonel scanned the dispatch from Army Headquarters.
"Hmm?"
"What is it, sir?"
"Did you read this?"
"No, sir, I—"
"You—!"
Bang!
"Captain Ahn Seung-woo!"
"Stop joking and read it properly."
"Yes, sir."
Internally weeping, the quartermaster read:
Goblins massing near Osaka Portal. Uncontrollable due to random spawning. Information blackout failing.
