Chapter 125 – Northern Conqueror
To become the great chieftain, one had to kill the former great chieftain. No one could interfere in the fight. It was a one-on-one duel in front of all the warriors of the Great Clan. It was the most sacred ritual of the orcs in the Great Clan.
“You are not qualified.” Calmahart looked down at him and said.
Crockta shook his head. “I am an orc like you. What else is necessary?”
It was like he said, there was only one thing necessary to become the great chieftain: be an orc. Anyone with the birthright of an orc could become the great chieftain.
Surka and Caburak stepped back. In the midst of the numerous orcs, Calmahart and Crockta stood there staring at each other.
Calmahart laughed, “Kuhuhu, kuhuhuhu…” He bowed his head and his chuckles became loud laughter, “Kuhahahahahat! A disgusting last-ditch effort! Crockta!”
His eyes flashed and he shook his head.
“The orcs are under my control! Don’t you know what that means?”
“You aren’t controlling anyone.”
“Look! And despair!” Calmahart raised a hand. “Orcs of the Great Clan. I am the great chieftain, Calmahart. Your ruler!”
A red aura emerged from his body, scattering about and surrounded the orcs. The madness in the orcs’ eyes thickened further. The orcs trembled. The orcs shook their heads as they became thirsty. The energy of the tribulation.
“Kill the trash from the continent.”
Calmahart’s eyes shone wickedly. His dominant voice rang out, “Slay him.”
The orcs began to step forward. Calmahart’s red power was encouraging them. Some were pushed to the brink of insanity and raised their weapons.
Crockta looked at them one by one.
Will, or beliefs. There was no such thing. They were just pulled by the madness that dominated them as they headed towards Crockta. The cold light of many weapons turned towards Crockta.
Calmahart had won.
Crockta raised his greatsword. Even so, he wasn’t going to give up without a last hurrah. The moment that Crockta was about to wield his weapon towards them,
Clang.
There was the sound of a weapon dropping onto the ground.
“……!”
It was an orc standing in the front. He wasn’t a warrior or a commander. He was one of the many orc soldiers who would die nameless on the battlefield. A small part of a huge army. He dropped his weapon. As he held back the madness, he struck his chest with his fist.
Then he declared, “A duel is sacred.”
He didn’t advance any further. Rather, he stepped back. It was the beginning. The orcs standing beside him also dropped their weapons. They hit their chests.
“Nobody can interfere with the duel of the great chieftain.”
Weapons dropped in turn. The orcs continued to retreat as the red energy around their bodies was reduced to a faint haze. The orcs struck their chests.
“No one can intervene.”
“The great chieftain can’t refuse a duel.”
“The winner will become the great chieftain!”
Now Calmahart and Crockta were the only ones holding a weapon. It was a Colosseum created by the orcs.
Crockta looked around at the orcs.
Will, or beliefs. He could see it in their eyes.
Crockta smiled. Suddenly, he met Surka’s eyes. Surka beat his chest and nodded. Crockta also hit his chest in accordance with the northern ways. Then he looked at Calmahart. The distorted face looked like a demon.
He was furious at the rejection of his command. He lifted his double edged axe.
Crockta raised his greatsword in response. The blade was stained with blood. Considering the number of lives that had fallen under Ogre Slayer today, it was hard not to be crushed by the weight of the sword.
Even so, he had to grab the handle. Its weight. He would only be liberated of it with Calmahart’s life.
“Don’t think you can win if it is a one-on-one duel.”
The sunset on the horizon cast a red tint. Long shadows covered the ground.
“You talk too much, Calmahart.”
Calmahart slowly began to turn sideways. Crockta responded to the way the body moved. They circled each other and stared at the opponent.
“I will kill you today and trample on all your precious things. The continent will be burned to ashes and your Orcrox friends will become slaves at my feet. I’ll make a cup from your skull and watch all of it.”
Calmahart taunted him.
Crockta didn’t answer. He focused his mind. The world slowed. He saw the moving Calmahart.
One step.
One step.
One.
Step.
Step.
One.
A quarter.
Back to one.
The world was extremely slow. A moment of infinite suspension. The rough breathing of the orcs surrounding them, the expulsion of the waste through the lungs, the eyes watching the duel, the rough texture of the ground. He felt everything.
He could feel the strands of twilight shining out from the horizon. He could see for certain how powerful Calmahart was. His presence was huge. Even if he combined the energy that he felt from the horizon on all sides, it couldn’t be compared to the aura of Calmahart standing in front of him.
Meanwhile, something raised its head in his heart. It built an antenna in his body.
Fear.
Crockta started laughing.
Calmahart had an awesome presence. Calmahart, who accepted the power of the tribulation, might’ve been the most powerful enemy he had ever met.
So Crockta moved first.
Kwaang!
He took the lead. The earth shook. It was just like the way he trampled on the bud of fear. Crockta wielded his greatsword. The double edged axe and Ogre Slayer encountered each other. Sparks flew as the weapons bounced off.
It was an acrobatic like fight. They avoided any damage from attacks in their gaps. The weapons clashed, causing sparks to rise in the air and fill the eyes of the spectators.
Calmahart with the monster like body and Crockta with his sturdy orc body. It was a fight between those who didn’t look quick, but their movements were at a speed that the eyes couldn’t follow. Flashes of light filled the area.
Kwaaaaang!
Both weapons collided and caused an explosion like there was gunpowder present. The first one hit by an attack that couldn’t be avoided was Crockta. The flesh was cut and blood burst out. Calmahart smiled. It was only a light graze, but it was enough to split the skin and caused bleeding. It was an incredible force.
Crockta ignored the blood and gripped Ogre Slayer tighter. The two exchanged blows again. This time, it was Calmahart who received damage. There was a slash on his thigh. However, it healed at a visible speed. The bleeding stopped.
Truly a monster.
Their movements gradually became rough. Now the testing period was over. It was the time to put their flesh and blood on the line to kill the other. At the same time, both of their blood were scattered about. The two of them roared and collided.
***
His ears were ringing. He couldn’t hear any sounds.
Crockta raised his head. The axe heading towards him shone red. Crockta could see the glow of the sunset on it. The sun hadn’t fallen yet.
He twisted his body. The axe passed by the side of his neck. Blood flowed. He raised his legs and got into a stable posture. He raised his greatsword and stared at the enemy.
His vision was blurry. His swollen eyes weren’t working properly. He raised his hands and rubbed them. Two or three blurred images gathered into one. Calmahart was swinging an axe towards him.
He rolled across the ground. His wounds filled with dirt and caused him pain. Crockta endured the pain and got up. It was actually fortunate. His mind cleared from the pain.
Calmahart was looking down at him with an arrogant expression. “How boring.”
Crockta gulped. Blood spread.
Calmahart was strong. The blows severely broke his body. The difference in physical strength was clear. Crockta gritted his teeth.
His mind entered the realm of the Pinnacle again. In the slowed world, Crockta brandished his sword towards Calmahart. Calmahart laughed. In a world where everything converged to a stop, Calmahart moved quickly. Before Crockta’s attack could hit, he kicked Crockta’s legs.
Crockta grabbed his abdomen and fell over.
The sky appeared. It was an expanse of blue and red.
Crockta thought about it. Why did he have to endure the pain here? Elder Lord, another world that existed somewhere. But this wasn’t his world. His world was Earth, the land of South Korea where his little sister and cafe were.
He got up.
The orcs were still watching him. The sacred duel ended when one of them died or surrendered. Crockta still hadn’t yielded.
“You can’t beat me.”
He looked at Calmahart. It was a fearsome face. The scar Crockta created made him seem even more heinous. Crockta smiled instead of answering.
Familiar faces were seen behind Calmahart. All of Spinoa was watching this duel. There was Tiyo, Anor, the faces of those Crockta met in the Luklan Mountains, and those he fought with in the north.
Everyone was looking at him. They believed in him.
‘I believe in you.’
‘Raven. Your mission.’
‘As expected from Oppa.’
He always had to shoulder this burden. But he never resented it.
Crockta smiled. He fought because he had to. So he did it. That was all. One reason covered all his actions. He could stop this.
“A warrior doesn’t yield.”
It was just a joke when he selected an orc. But then he met the warriors of Orcrox and became a warrior. They were characters in a game, but great spirits that existed here in the world of Elder Lord.
He wouldn’t know if he hadn’t met them. Since he had met them, he would do what he needed to do.
A warrior.
Calmahart was running. His double edged axe split the air, the space around it collapsing and the explosive momentum bursting out towards Crockta.
A distance that couldn’t be avoided. A speed that couldn’t be avoided.
Crockta gritted his teeth. In the world of the Pinnacle, Crockta’s will unfolded. He followed the flow of the causes and effects in the world. Just as the stone thrown into the sky would come falling down, the axe swinging towards him would break Crockta’s body.
Calmahart’s speed was faster than Crockta’s and his strength wasn’t something Crockta could endure.
The whole world was moving forward towards his death. The end that was nearing, the destiny that nobody could avoid.
He saw it.
Crockta raised his greatsword. The movement was too weak compared to Calmahart’s axe. Then…
“……!”
The axe passed by Crockta’s neck. It was a strange ending that couldn’t be created by any cause and effect existing in the world. Crockta survived when he should’ve been killed.
The distortion of causality didn’t stop here. Crockta’s greatsword shook. The great chieftain dodged. A clean evasion. Crockta’s greatsword should have definitely cut through the air.
Then…
“Cough…”
Suddenly, Crockta’s greatsword pierced Calmahart’s neck.
“How…?”
Calmahart couldn’t believe his eyes.
A miracle. He went beyond causality and wielded the world. It wasn’t the flow of history, but those who made the history.
[All Pinnacle ranked skills have been upgraded to the Hero rank.]
Crockta moved Ogre Slayer. Calmahart’s head flew through the air. It was the end of the great chieftain Calmahart, who terrorized the north.
A red aura emerged from his severed neck. It shattered into pieces. The fragmented red power scattered like petals and disappeared. It was the end of the tribulation.
“Ahhh…”
Everyone saw it clearly. Crockta killed the great chieftain.
The area became quiet.
Surka broke the silence. He hit his chest once and kneeled. This caused a wave as the orcs started kneeling in turn. All the orcs of the Great Clan who invaded Spinoa were now saluting Crockta. None of them could open their mouths. It was silent in the north.
The Great Northern War that began with Calmahart’s call. It was stopped by Crockta.
Now.
“Everybody get up.”
He was the great chieftain.
***
“Do you want to go orc hunting?”
“Why hunt orcs all of a sudden?”
“A quest was opened. The great chieftain is doing something. It seems like an event so I should practice in advance.”
Youvidser Laney scratched her cheek as she listened to the conversation of users passing by.
She should be prepared. Sieges weren’t interesting. The Youvids site was now dominated with raid and war videos of the Heaven and Earth Clan, led by Choi Hansung. At one time, she also followed the Heaven and Earth and filmed a video. But she couldn’t adapt. She didn’t want to put the images of dying people on the screen. So she quit.
She recalled the orc Crockta who had disappeared. His behavior had impressed Laney. Her chest became hot just thinking about it. It wasn’t a cruel war. However, he disappeared from Elder Lord after he left for the north. Considering the nature of the game that didn’t care about the convenience to users, maybe Crockta wouldn’t appear before them again.
“Phew…”
Right now, she should be preparing for that crazy chieftain. Just as she was thinking this…
The users started to raise their heads one by one. Laney was the same. It was Elder Lord’s system wide message window. The contents were something that no one had ever imagined.
[The orc great chieftain, Calmahart, who is preparing for the war that will lead to the destruction of the continent.]
[His ambitions have been crushed.]
[He swept the north with the flames of war and created many victims, eventually defeating the world tree. Before he could gain the entire north, he was brought to an end by an orc warrior.]
The users in the square started murmuring.
“What was the point of starting this then?”
“Those bastards were preparing for something big, but it didn’t work so they are just canceling it?”
“I even prepared equipment because of this!”
The users became quiet again as the next message window rose.
[The destiny of the continent, which was supposed to experience a devastating war, has changed.]
[From the continent to the north, the great warrior who endured all sufferings and pushed ahead with his ideals is called the ‘Northern Conqueror.’
Laney’s eyes widened. It was him.
[’Northern Conqueror’ Crockta, who protected the world from the madness of the mad chieftain.]
[The entire north praises his name.]
[His name will forever be remembered in the history of Elder Lord.]
[The name of the northern conqueror is Crockta.]
[The orc warrior Crockta.]
Crockta was back.