Chapter 93 – LV.Fourteen Orc Vampire Oh Haengbok – [Six]

Park Taeyang held a long-standing grudge against Seo Yun. It was a grudge that had formed three years ago on that day, when he nearly got beaten to death by his stepfather while trying to snatch snacks from that girl.

The fact that he almost died was something he could endure. What angered him more was that he had fallen out of favor with his stepfather ever since.

The criticism from people around him—that the incident happened because he was in the wrong—didn’t matter to Park Taeyang. Anyway, it happened because that girl showed up, so it was her fault.

After that, his stepfather ignored his stepson and doted on that girl, and even at seventeen, Park Taeyang still craved his stepfather’s attention. Since the girl had stolen that attention, Park Taeyang’s grudge only grew stronger.

And then, of all things, he ended up owing her a debt. When they were almost captured by the military, the girl sacrificed herself to let everyone else escape.

After that, he kept his distance, too afraid of what others might think to pick a fight, but then another debt piled up. While an uncle he was close to pretended not to see him being dragged away, that girl stepped in and saved him. That fact was unbearably humiliating and embarrassing.

And now, Park Taeyang had finally been captured.

The village elders had helped Park Taeyang escape along with the village boys who might be conscripted. The reason was that he had caught the attention of the Paladins, making him a top priority for conscription.

While fleeing the village, he was caught and bound by the Paladins.

He wasn’t the only Player captured. There were two more: Gaeulbi and Kim Rayeon.

With both hands tied, Kim Rayeon muttered in a dazed voice despite the situation.

“So fucking cool.”

“What is?”

When Park Taeyang asked in a sharp voice, Kim Rayeon replied.

“Seo Yun earlier… Is that how you have to act to become a Goddess?”

Park Taeyang’s face twisted. He couldn’t understand why this lunatic was praising her in this situation.

Gaeulbi, also captured, seemed equally baffled as she asked.

“Why are you so relaxed? Can’t you grasp the situation?”

And Kim Rayeon answered.

“It’s fine because the Troll is here right now.”

Gaeulbi raised an eyebrow.

“The Troll is in this village?”

“Yeah. Earlier, he hid his appearance and asked me if I was okay.”

“But he’s not rescuing us?”

“Maybe he’s handling urgent matters first before saving us? He probably needs to conserve Spells… Well, don’t worry too much. If we wait a bit, he’ll…”

Then Gaeulbi’s expression twisted.

“Wait, my ass.”

Gaeulbi turned her head. With a face full of anger, she looked this way and said.

“Sun Priest, you’re Level 3, right?”

“Yeah, but why…”

“Cast a Heroism Spell on me.”

Park Taeyang was startled. Was she planning to escape using brute force? So, to knock out the watcher?

Most of the Paladins had left to help their comrades, but one remained to watch over the boys and girls. Paladin William.

Park Taeyang glanced at William and nodded. Even though his hands were tied now, it seemed possible.

Somehow, the bindings felt loose. William had tied Park Taeyang up, but he hadn’t done it tightly. It wasn’t loose enough to break free and escape on his own, but it was possible to turn his palms outward and cast a Spell.

Praying it wouldn’t reach William’s ears, he recited the Spell in the smallest voice possible.

A moment later, the Spell spread over Gaeulbi’s body.

“Fuck…”

Gaeulbi strained with both hands and finally broke free of her bindings.

Only then did William, who had been looking elsewhere, turn his gaze this way. He asked.

“I thought you were going to use a Flash Spell, but I guess not?”

Gaeulbi retorted.

“A Flash Spell?”

“I thought you were going to blind me and then run away.”

That Paladin spoke as if he had known and let it happen. Perhaps he had intended to show some mercy.

But even that seemed to displease Gaeulbi, as she frowned.

“No.”

“Then?”

Instead of answering, Gaeulbi clenched her fist. Even to Park Taeyang, who had trained in Taekwondo in the past, it looked like a proper martial arts stance.

William stared blankly for a moment, then grinned and took the same stance.

Gaeulbi took a step forward, stomping down hard.

Seo Yun watched Sir Marshall and Oh Haengbok begin to fight each other.

It was a fight between a Vampire and a Paladin. Naturally, Oh Haengbok was expected to be at a disadvantage. She thought she should help in some way if things went wrong. So, while Healing the fallen village Warriors, she kept her eyes on the two of them fighting.

So far, their fight had been evenly matched. The Superhuman and the Vampire clashed repeatedly with unrealistically massive weapons—a hammer and a greatsword—that no human could wield, and each time, thunder rumbled across the Mortal Realm. It was as if hundreds of armies were compressed into their bodies and colliding.

Oh Haengbok swung his hammer and roared.

“Hey, you motherfucking bastard! What grudge do you have against me—!”

Meanwhile, Sir Marshall’s anger wasn’t expressed through such loud battle cries. Sir Marshall calmly and easily defended with his greatsword held at an angle.

Then he raised one hand, palm facing forward.

Seo Yun immediately knew what that Paladin was trying to do. She shouted so Oh Haengbok could hear.

“Be careful! He’s going to unleash a Flash—”

For ordinary people, a Paladin’s Flash Spell would only blind them temporarily, but not for Oh Haengbok. Almost all Spells of Sun Priests and Paladins have the effect of Turn Undead. A Paladin’s Flash Spell also becomes an Attack Spell against Vampires, burning any skin touched by the light.

Fortunately, Oh Haengbok heeded her advice. Before Sir Marshall’s palm flashed, he raised his left arm to cover his eyes.

Thus, he avoided being blinded by the Flash that erupted the next moment, but in doing so, he had blocked his own vision in the middle of the fight.

Sir Marshall didn’t miss that opening. He immediately advanced, raising his greatsword high. It looked like he was about to bring it down any second.

And it seemed Oh Haengbok had anticipated and prepared for that moment’s attack.

With his left arm still covering his eyes, Oh Haengbok swung his hammer with his right hand without even looking at Sir Marshall.

Oh Haengbok’s hammer was faster than Sir Marshall’s greatsword. The tip of the hammer struck Sir Marshall’s chest as he approached Oh Haengbok.A sound like an artillery shell striking armor. The deafening roar, impossible to believe came from a collision between cold weapons, left Seo Yun’s ears ringing.

Yet despite that terrifying hammer blow, Sir Marshall’s armor was only slightly dented. From the impact, Sir Marshall was merely pushed back, his posture disrupted, but he was fine…

No, he wasn’t.

The brilliant cluster of light that had enveloped Sir Marshall’s armor vanished. Why?

‘Ah, Spell Shatterer. Each time it strikes someone, it strips away two layers of spells cast on them…’

A Paladin’s power comes from the various Divine Spells cast upon themselves. Oh Haengun knew this too and had been focusing on dispelling spells since earlier, using large-scale Dispel Magic Spells on the Paladins, but he couldn’t do anything against Sir Marshall. This is because all spells of a Level 15 or higher Paladin are enhanced by their own Divinity, making them impossible to dispel with ordinary spells.

However, Oh Haengbok’s war hammer was an Artifact recorded in the Rulebook.

Oh Haengbok swung his hammer again. The sound of splitting air roared like an exploding drum.

Sir Marshall, stumbling backward in an unsteady posture, took another hammer blow to the stomach. That hammer once again devoured the spells cast upon his body.

Presumably, this time it erased spells enhancing physical strength and even the Small Sun spell that powered the armor.

Stripped of all those brilliant spells, Sir Marshall seemed reduced to a mere tin can robot. Without the radiance surrounding him or the superhuman strength that moved the massive armor, he staggered pitifully.

Now, Sir Marshall was visibly struggling to block Oh Haengbok’s continuous attacks. It wasn’t defense for counterattacking, but merely defense to prolong his life.

Oh Haengbok, attacking one-sidedly, swung his hammer diagonally. The blow struck Sir Marshall on the thigh.

Seeing their Vice Commander being pushed back, a Paladin shouted.

“Hold on just a little longer, Sir Marshall! The Commander-in-Chief will be here soon!”

As he said. Seo Yun, turning her head, groaned.

The hull of the landed Sun Ship was opening. Beyond the gap, gray helms flashed. Paladins inside were waiting, ready to rush out any moment.

Among those Paladins would be their Commander-in-Chief.

‘Lifelong Commander-in-Chief of the Crusaders, Cairo Simon…’

The setting for that Paladin, said to be a Dhampir, a half-human, half-vampire hybrid, was written in excessive detail in the Rulebook. Detailed settings like how he acted as a vampire hunter hundreds of years ago, joined the Crusaders and was persecuted by the Paladins, then was chosen by the Sun God and rose to the position of Commander-in-Chief.

Matching such a grand life story, he was said to be one of the most popular characters in the Immortal Kingdom. Weren’t several novels published with him as the protagonist?

A name among names, an Epic Level NPC would swing his shining sword toward them.

The hull opened completely.

Just as Paladins were pouring out through the wide-open door…

An explosion occurred.

Not one massive explosion, but dozens of large and small explosions detonated simultaneously. It happened right in front of the Sun Ship’s door that had just opened. Huge flames and smoke obscured the Paladins’ figures.

The Paladins, about to rejoice at the reinforcements, froze.

“What?”

Seo Yun, healing another Warrior, watched the scene unfolding before the ship with wide eyes.

Seo Yun suspected she might have missed something. Like when watching a movie, briefly closing and opening your eyes and missing the middle part.

After the explosion’s flames cleared, only the result remained before the Sun Ship, the middle process gone.

The Paladins rushing out of the Sun Ship were all lying on the ground, smoking. Even the largest Paladin, presumed to be Lord Cairo, was lying on the ground.

Standing alone at the scene of the explosion was a giant clad in a silk robe. That distinctive attire made him unmistakable even from afar.

A Troll Mage. He stood at the center of the fallen Paladins.

What just happened? Easy to guess. He must have stopped time and poured out all sorts of spells. The Paladins gathered in one place were suddenly annihilated.

However, the Troll seemed to have been hit by something even while time was stopped. The Troll’s golden mask was shattered, and blood was flowing from his face. The Troll staggered and then vanished from the spot, as if using some spell.

The Paladins fighting here wouldn’t know about that Epic Level Troll’s presence. They glanced at the Sun Ship even while fighting. They seemed anxious, wanting to check what happened or go help but unable to do so.

And the leaders here, Sir Marshall and Oh Haengbok, couldn’t even pay attention to the explosion. One was busy getting hit, the other busy pounding.

“Damn it—!”

Sir Marshall took a hammer blow to the shoulder and staggered.

Even in that shocked state, he raised his greatsword to defend himself, but the next moment, his knee was struck by the hammer, and he finally couldn’t hold on.

Sir Marshall knelt.

Oh Haengbok brought his hammer down on the head placed below him. A Paladin screamed.

“No—!”

Sir Marshall’s head was buried between his shoulders.

Oh Haengbok, having shortened Sir Marshall’s height by about 5 cm, roared.

“Son of a—bitch—! Long live—Happy Village—!”

It was unbelievable how that phrase, which should be full of hometown pride, could sound so ferocious.

As the Happy Village people cheered their Chief’s victory, the Paladins seemed shocked by this outcome. Soon, Oh Haengbok, having defeated his opponent, now charged at them. With each hammer swing, a Paladin fell with a roar.

The Paladins couldn’t withstand this either. They spasmodically shouted.

“Retreat!” “Retreat to the Sun Ship!”