The light vanished.
"Urgh."
I slowly opened my eyes. The familiar cave ceiling came into view.
'I'm here.'
I hurriedly stood. Even now, the warriors were bleeding.
"Uohk!"
A cry erupted from deeper in the cave. The Primitive Humans rushed toward me.
The elderly, the women, and the children. Not the warriors who had gone to fight.
"Uohk! Uuohk!"
With trembling hands, they pointed to me and then outside the cave. Their eyes held desperation and hope.
'Yes, I know. I'm here.'
I drew a deep breath.
"Give me a spear. Hurry."
Swoosh!
A man quickly grabbed a spear and ran over.
A familiar, reassuring weight. The feel of the wooden shaft. It was a good spear.
'This is enough.'
Spearmanship LV.1. The knowledge in my mind flowed into my fingertips. How to hold a spear, thrust it, and throw it.
Before, with only a 20% Ability Conversion Rate, I had felt it through instinct. This time, it felt like structured knowledge entering me.
"Uugh! Uugh!"
The other Primitive Humans stepped forward. They held spears and looked at me too, their eyes saying they would come. They struck their chests to show they could fight.
But.
"No."
I raised a hand to stop them and firmly shook my head.
They were elderly or women. Or too young. They had no combat experience. They would offer little help, and there was too much to lose.
"You stay here. Protect the cave."
I slapped the cave floor with a hand.
Their faces darkened, but they slowly nodded.
'I'm sorry.'
I swallowed the words. There was no time to apologize.
I gripped the spear and walked toward the cave entrance. Wind blew in from outside, carrying the smell of blood.
'Awakened, warriors... hold on a little longer.'
I gritted my teeth.
The moment I left the cave, I ran at full speed. North. Three kilometers. I kicked off the ground with all my strength.
***
Had I been running for about 3 minutes?
THUD! CRASH! CRACK!
I heard something. Collisions, screams, and bestial roars.
'I'm close!'
My breath rose into my throat, but I accelerated, putting more strength into my legs and driving off the ground harder and faster.
The forest opened.
"!"
Warriors lay on the ground, groaning in pools of blood. One, two... five of them. My heart sank.
Beyond them.
"GRAAAAGH!"
The Awakened fought alone.
Five Orcs surrounded him.
'Orcs.'
My breath caught.
Green skin. Towering bodies well over 2 meters. Knotted muscles bulging beneath that skin. Yellow tusks protruding from their mouths. They looked exactly as they had the hundreds and thousands of times I had seen them in the game.
But these were not clusters of pixels on a screen. They were monsters of real flesh and blood.
My hand trembled. Sweat ran over the hand holding the spear.
'Do I really... really have to fight those things?'
The monsters swung their clubs and threw punches. The Awakened desperately blocked with his spear, thrust, and dodged, but he was clearly being driven back.
Blood flowed from the Awakened's shoulder, arm, and forehead.
'Focus. Focus!'
I gritted my teeth and tightened my trembling hand.
'In the game. How did I kill them in the game?'
My mind raced. Three thousand playthroughs. Hundreds of encounters with Orcs. I desperately dragged those memories to the surface.
'Orcs are tall, so their knees are weak. The cartilage. Their ankles too. And the carotid artery beside the neck.'
Their weak points came back to me, the places I had always targeted when fighting Orcs in the game. Once their lower bodies collapsed, victory followed.
'Take out their legs first. Then we win.'
My trembling stopped. My heart began beating properly again.
There was no more time to think.
I raised the spear over my shoulder. The Javelin Throwing stance. My body moved on its own. I shifted my weight backward, gathered strength in my arm, and took aim.
I did not target the back.
'The knee.'
The back of the rearmost Orc's knee. The hollow behind it, where the cartilage was weak. Weak Point Detection activated, and a red dot appeared in my vision.
WHOOSH!
I threw with all my strength.
SWIIIIISH!
The spear flew through the air, rotating with perfect accuracy.
THUNK!
"GRAAAAGH!"
It lodged in the hollow behind the Orc's knee. The creature screamed and fell to one knee. Its enormous body lost balance and pitched forward.
'It worked!'
The Orcs all turned. They had found me. Murder filled their brutal faces.
The Awakened turned too. Our eyes met.
"AUUUUGH!"
He roared at the sky, a cry to resume the battle.
I shouted back at the top of my lungs.
"I'm with you!"
I quickly snatched up a spear from the ground. It was covered in blood, but that did not matter. Then I ran at full speed.
One Orc turned toward me. It charged at tremendous speed, raising its club high over its head.
Swoosh!
Instinctively, I rolled aside.
CRASH!
The club smashed into the spot where I had just stood. The ground caved in. A chill ran down my spine.
I stopped rolling and stood.
The Orc raised its club again. It was large and slow.
'Now!'
I drove forward into the Orc's reach and closed the distance.
I angled my spear downward.
SQUELCH!
The knee. I stabbed squarely into the joint.
"Grrrgh!"
The Orc groaned and staggered. Its enormous body lost balance.
I pulled out the spear and thrust again.
SQUELCH!
The other knee.
"GRAAAGH!"
The creature dropped to its knees. Its height of more than 2 meters sank to eye level.
'Now!'
I swung the spear horizontally.
SWISH!
The side of its neck. The carotid artery. I cut it open. Blood erupted like a fountain. Warm liquid splashed over my hands and face.
The Orc clutched its neck and collapsed.
'The weak points work!'
My game knowledge worked in reality too.
TAP-TAP!
Footsteps sounded behind me. There was no time to look.
I ducked.
WHOOSH!
An enormous fist passed over my head. Barely.
I turned and thrust low.
SQUELCH!
The ankle. The Achilles tendon. Another Orc weak point.
"Grrrrgh!"
The creature staggered. It could no longer support its weight.
The instant I rose, I thrust the spear upward.
THUNK!
It pierced beneath the jaw. The Orc convulsed and collapsed.
"UUUUGH!"
Across the clearing, the Awakened felled an Orc. His spear pierced its head with perfect accuracy.
Two Orcs remained. One was the creature whose knee I had destroyed with my first throw. It still could not stand and crawled across the ground.
Victory seemed possible. I thought we could win.
But.
THUD!
Something flew from outside my field of vision. A club. I saw it too late.
"Ghk!"
It struck my side directly. I heard my ribs crunch. My breath stopped. Every bit of air was driven from my lungs.
My body flew through the air. I could not control it. I hit the ground and rolled. The taste of iron filled my mouth.
"Ghhh."
I tried to rise. I pushed with my arms, but they had no strength. My entire body screamed.
THUD! THUD!
The Orc slowly approached and raised its club again. It intended to finish me.
'I'm going to die.'
That was the moment.
"AUUUUUUGH!"
The Awakened shot toward me at explosive speed. He threw himself between the Orc and me like a shield.
CRASH!
The club slammed into the Awakened's back. I heard bone break. He spat blood. Crimson droplets splashed my face.
But he did not stop.
Swoosh!
He swept his spear horizontally and cut squarely through the Orc's neck. Even the neck bones were severed.
"Grrrrgh."
The Orc collapsed clutching its neck. Blood sprayed everywhere.
One remained. The creature with the ruined knee.
Perhaps terrified, it tried to crawl away.
'No.'
I gritted my teeth and picked up a spear lying nearby. I staggered to my feet. My ribs screamed, but I ignored the pain. Adrenaline smothered it.
I raised the spear over my shoulder and hurled it with every scrap of strength.
SWIIIIISH!
The spear flew.
THUNK!
The back. It pierced precisely through the heart.
"Grrrrrgh!"
The Orc pitched forward, convulsed, and went still.
Silence fell.
"Haa. Haa. Haa."
Only ragged breathing remained, mine and the Awakened's. The stench of blood filled the air.
We had won. We had won. My game knowledge had worked.
The Awakened slowly turned. His body was covered in blood, but his eyes remained alive.
"Uu ugh."
He knelt before me and bowed his head deeply.
I dropped to my knees too. I no longer had the strength to stand.
"You held on. You did so well."
I reached out and patted the Awakened's shoulder.
He slowly raised his head. His eyes shone with mingled gratitude and relief.
We had survived. We were alive.
DING-DING!
Then a cheerful sound rang in my ears.
[Battle Victory!]
Orcs Killed:
― 5 Orc Warriors
[Total Points Acquired: +250P]
[Current Points: 252P]
'Two hundred fifty-two points.'
My mouth fell open. Fifty points per Orc. That was on an entirely different level from deer or boars.
But this was no time to celebrate.
I looked down at the ground. Fallen warriors groaned in pain and bled. One already lay motionless.
My heart grew heavy.
'At least save the ones I can.'
▸ Blessing: Accelerated Injury Recovery (24 hours): 30P
[Confirm Purchase]
'Purchase.'
HUM!
Warm energy welled from deep inside my heart. It filled my chest, then flowed through my entire body and spread outward through me toward the warriors.
"Uu ugh?"
One fallen warrior opened his eyes and looked down at his arm in confusion.
The deep, blood-soaked wound visibly began to heal. Torn flesh slowly joined, the bleeding stopped, and new skin grew.
"Uugh! Uuuugh!"
The other warriors began to stagger upright one by one. They touched and patted their bodies. Bones had clearly broken and flesh had torn, but now they were almost whole.
"Aoh! Auuugh!"
They cheered and looked at me. Several knelt and bowed.
The Awakened stared at me in surprise too. The wound on his back was healing rapidly.
I could feel it as well.
The pain in my side steadily faded. Inside my body, I felt my crushed ribs returning to their proper places. The stabbing pain with each breath disappeared.
I touched my side. Blood still stained it, but the injury had nearly healed. I inhaled deeply. There was no pain.
'Did I save as many as I could?'
I could not save them all.
One warrior lay motionless in the distance. I could not save him. It was already too late.
I bowed my head for a moment of mourning.
But the others had survived. I had to take comfort in that.
"Uugh."
The Awakened slowly approached, knelt before me, and bowed his head. The other warriors followed.
"Stand. Everyone fought well."
I gestured for them to rise.
The warriors slowly stood.
'Let's go back.'
It was time to return to the cave.
DING-DING!
Then another alarm sounded. It was different from the one before.
[Special Achievement Complete!]
Successfully Repelled a Superior Species!
Special Option Unlocked:
▸ [Species Learning]: Acquire an Orc ability
― Investment Cost: 100P
― Effect: Primitive Humans learn one of the Orcs' innate abilities.
Available Abilities:
1. Hardy Body (Stamina +30%)
2. Regeneration (Increased recovery rate)
3. Combat Instinct (Enhanced close combat)
Caution: You may choose only once. This decision cannot be changed.
"!"
After our struggle to the death, we had received a valuable reward.