漫画大王

Chapter 104

The orc smashed through the rope with its stone axe so that we could neither cross over to them, nor they to us.

“Cliffman!”

Splash!

“Ugh! Ack!”

Cliffman, who had been dangling from the rope, fell into the water flowing through the ravine and was swept downstream. Ellen, Connor Lint, and I were stranded on the opposite side of the ravine, while the orc started chasing after the other fleeing kids.

“Wh-What is this? What’s happening?! Is, is this even allowed?” Connor Lint exclaimed.

Connor Lint, having seen Cliffman being swept away by the river and the massive, hulking orc emerging to pursue the other kids, was trying his best to deny reality.

Orcs...

They were a staple monster in medieval fantasy, and although I had intentionally arranged for them to exist in this world, seeing one in person was extremely chilling.

In this world, orcs were not the trash, weak mobs that every other novel portrayed them as.

Think about it—why would a race with such overwhelmingly superior physical attributes when compared to humans be considered mere weaklings?

As I said before, while I didn’t pay much attention to historical accuracy, I had a peculiar persistence and stubbornness for things, which consequently made this phenomenon possible.

Anyway...

Seeing a Dwayne Johnson look-alike appear before your eyes with green skin, wielding a stone axe and roaring, would be enough to unnerve anyone, wouldn’t it?

“Damn it....”

I hadn’t expected the creature to make its appearance in such a manner, and I too felt a shiver run down my spine.

Connor Lint’s face turned pale. “Cliffman...” he mumbled in a daze.

“He probably failed the mission. The teachers will save him.”

If he was left as he was, he would certainly drown, so he must have been rescued by now. The button-shaped artifact that we had been given at the beginning was a device that would allow us to give up during the mission, but it also served as a device that would cast a Recall spell in an emergency. The moment Cliffman’s extreme distress was detected, he would have been summoned to where the teachers were.

In the end, there would be no life-threatening situations during this mission. It was only meant to simulate scenarios that came perilously close. That orc was merely a puppet, obeying all the summoner’s orders. If the students were truly at risk of dying from the orc’s attack, the Recall magic would be triggered, and they would be automatically withdrawn from the mission.

Even knowing all of this, however, my legs tingled with anxiety. I wondered just how terrified the ones who didn’t know this fact would be.

“If we defeat that thing, the mission is over, right?” Ellen asked calmly.

“... Probably?” I replied.

“Y-You’re planning to take that thing down?”

Connor Lint seemed incredulous at Ellen’s nonchalant remark. Meanwhile, Ellen was gripping her machete and looking towards a distant flickering light.

“I’m not sure.”

It was just one orc, but its massive frame was larger than that of an adult man. Ellen seemed to lack the confidence to even assert that she could take it down easily.

“I’ll only know if I try.”

However, she seemed intent on attempting it.

***

The orc was on the opposite side of the ravine, and all we were armed with was a severed rope, one machete, one javelin, and one small knife. But the biggest problem wasn’t our weaponry...

“We can’t even see clearly enough to do anything...” Connor Lint said.

Connor Lint was right. We were missing the most crucial element—light. Harriet, Heinrich, and Riana, who could create light, were all on the other side. We had no light, and to confront the orc, we first needed to cross to the other side.

“We could reconnect the rope to get across,” I said.

“A-Are you serious? You’re actually considering crossing that?”

Connor Lint was horrified by my suggestion.

The rope had been cut, but the severed end on the other side wasn’t too far away. There was enough spare rope to re-tie the broken ends together.

“If you don’t want to cross, stay here.”

At my words, he adamantly refused to stay and felt compelled to use his Teleportation ability. While Ellen turned away, Connor Lint attached the rope I had thrown across to the other side—naked, of course. The cries of the other kids and the wailing of the orc echoed from deep within the forest.

After crossing over, I handed over his clothes. As he dressed himself hastily, Ellen crossed over as well.

“Let’s go.”

We couldn’t move fast because it was dark, but we started heading in the direction of the screams. Ellen led the way slowly, making sure of the path ahead. Connor Lint was in the middle, and I covered the rear.

“This can’t... This can’t be a good idea...” Connor Lint’s voice trembled. He was convinced we were doing something dumb.

The more I thought about it, the more certain I was that my past self had been insane. Did I seriously subject high school kids to this sort of experience? Wouldn’t this leave them with traumas that they would never fully recover from?

Rooooar!

Aaaahhhh!

Hearing the monstrous bellowing and the screams in the distance only solidified my belief that I had truly been a mad author.

***

As the students of Class A were fleeing, Heinrich tripped over a vine, and the pursuing orc immediately attacked him. Almost instantly, he disappeared amidst the glow of the Recall spell. That effectively reassured the children, as it showed them that this was indeed part of the mission, and that being attacked by the creature didn’t mean death, but simply withdrawal from this trial.

Out of those who were fleeing the orc, only three of them were left: Vertus, Riana, and Harriet.

“Saint-Ouen! Can you use offensive magic?”

“I-I can, but I don’t think I can do it right now!”

One needed to be focused in order to use magic, and the current situation didn’t allow for that, as focusing on escape alone was challenging enough.

Rooooar!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The orc, no longer moving stealthily, was bellowing as it chased after the children.

Vertus clenched his teeth as he ran.

Though it was all part of the way the mission had been set up, it was quite obvious and implausible to think that other humans could be living on the island, a place where various wild beasts existed. Despite seeing the excessively-large footprints, he had also been too complacent in thinking that they might belong to a taller person.

If he had considered it more deeply, he might have noticed the clues that should have warned them of this bizarre reality that they were facing—being hunted by an orc.

‘That thing has sufficient intelligence as well,’ Vertus thought.

The orc had intentionally waited for the moment the group was split up, trying to cross the ravine, before it attacked. It had even gone as far as to sever the rope while someone was in the middle of crossing it, causing Cliffman to fall into the ravine.

It would be a mistake to assume the orc was just a simple-minded monster.

“Granz! Can you take that thing down with your lightning?”

“I’m not sure!”

Harriet had the ability to use offensive magic, but it was difficult for her to concentrate in the current circumstances, and while Granz’s lightning would be quick to cast, they did not know if it would be sufficient to take down the orc.

Since Cliffman had been swept away with the machete in his hands, their only weapons were the two javelins that were in the hands of Vertus and Granz. Although Vertus wasn’t at Cliffman’s or Ellen’s level in terms of combat prowess, he had been training consistently. Since he had some talent in combat, he was aware that, if it came down to a physical fight against the orc, he was the only one with a potential advantage.

Rooooar!

“We’re going to get caught!”

Harriet’s sobbing cry suggested that this chase was nearing its end.

“Granz! I’ll confront it. When I do, see if your lightning works!”

“Got it!”

“Saint-Ouen, I know it’s tough, but prepare your offensive magic. Try to concentrate as much as you can.”

“O... Okay, I’ll give it a shot!”

“Climb a tree or something as well. It might try to attack you.”

“O... Okay...”

The situation was desperate.

‘I wish Ellen was here. Or Reinhart, at least,’ Vertus thought.

He didn’t know what choices those stranded on the other side had made, and now he had to face the orc with only these two by his side.

If they could buy time, Riana’s lightning might take down the orc. And if the lightning proved ineffective, then Harriet would have to attack the orc with her offensive magic.

Most importantly, though, defeat did not necessarily equal death.

Thud... Thud...

However, for anyone confronting the orc, a behemoth that towered over two meters tall and was packed with muscles, it was impossible not to lose all hope and envision death looming before them.

‘A fictitious scenario like this one must be intentionally designed to judge whether a student would be useful in real combat situations, or give up out of fear and prove themselves useless. It probably also assesses qualities like cooperation and leadership as well,’ Vertus thought.

He could vaguely determine why the mission had been set up like that.

But knowing that did not help him make rational sense of the towering green monster in front of him. Even if the violence is fictional, sometimes what you see is all there is.

To Vertus, the orc was a monster he had only read about in books. It was one of the most abundant demons in this world, and all of them were executed after the Great War.

Humans had waged war against armies composed of such monsters, and had emerged victorious. They had trampled over, torn apart, and killed monsters that were tens or hundreds of times more dangerous than any orc in order to achieve victory.

The descendants of these victorious humans now aspired to the most dignified positions in the empire, and Vertus, aiming for such status, could not cower before an orc that was presumed to be merely something summoned by the teachers.

Vertus was fine with losing, especially considering he was still young.

Grrrrr....

“Whew...”

However, he could not succumb to fear.

One who aspired to be the next emperor must not fear such trivial matters.

“Come at me, you monster.”

Vertus pointed his javelin at the orc.

***

Flash! Flash!

Rooooar!

“It sounds like they’re fighting.”

Thud! Thud!

The sounds of the rampaging orc could be heard a distance away, accompanied by periodic flashes of lightning. Ellen and I quickened our pace.

‘What in the world is happening over there?’

Heinrich wouldn’t have been able to use his abilities in combat yet, and Harriet wouldn’t be able to calm herself enough to cast spells in this situation. Most likely it was Vertus and Riana who were fighting.

As we trudged on, we started to make out the scene, despite still being some distance away.

It was nothing short of a desperate fight.

Zap!

Gruh!

The orc, struck by a bolt of lightning that had been conjured by Riana, grimaced and stumbled back a few steps. The attack clearly had an effect, but it didn’t seem to be enough to critically injure the creature.

A javelin was already lodged in the orc’s abdomen, and Vertus, wielding the javelin he received from Riana, was fending off the orc’s approach. It was a wonder how he had managed to endure so far, considering how utterly battered he looked.

Since it would have been impossible for him to overpower the creature using pure strength, Vertus must have been dodging and rolling, doing everything he could to avoid being hit.

The lightning inflicted damage, but it only momentarily staggered the orc, and the javelins did not seem capable of dealing a fatal blow to the beast.

“Kwaargh

Charging with its stone axe, the orc lunged at Vertus, who attempted to swiftly move to the side.

And then...

“D-Damn it...!”

Vertus tripped over one of the many vines strewn along the ground, losing his balance and tumbling. It was an inevitable mistake in the dimly-lit surroundings.

The orc’s axe was swinging down towards Vertus’s head.

“Vertus!”

Flash!

With a burst of light, Vertus’s body disappeared.

Vertus had been eliminated.

“Rooooar!”

The orc, as if bellowing in victory, now charged towards Riana.

Zap!

Gruh!

Riana remained composed, pushing back the charging orc with her electric shocks whenever it came within range.

The orc seemed to have caught on, realizing Riana would continue to fire off electricity, and it no longer tried to approach her closely.

The orc changed its strategy.

It grasped its axe and, with all its might, hurled it towards Riana.

“!”

Caught off guard by the ferocious speed, Riana couldn’t react in time, and her body vanished in a flash of light.

Two of them had just been eliminated in front of my eyes.

The last one left was Harriet, who, for some reason, had climbed up a tree. The creature retrieved its axe and was now poised to throw it at Harriet.

“Oh no...”

Harriet turned pale as she saw the axe aimed at her.

The orc hurled it at her, and...

Clang!

Ellen made her entrance, skillfully deflecting the flying stone axe.

***

This survival mission to a deserted island had been intended to demonstrate two things.

Firstly, it would reveal that Class A had too many complainers, and it was difficult to get them to work together in a practical situation, while the students of Class B, despite being less talented, were overflowing with enthusiasm and always did what was necessary without complaints. This was the first point—that Class B was actually better than Class A.

And the second point...

Roooar!

“Hmph!”

Slash!

Guah!

The second point was that Ellen Artorius from Class A was the only one who did not give up.

Showing that Ellen hunted the orc alone would also demonstrate that she was immensely strong, much stronger than her peers by far.

This was the first arc that established Ellen as a significant character in the entire story.

In the original story, all of Class A, except for one, voluntarily withdrew, and not a single one from Class B chose to drop out voluntarily.

However, while Class B emerged victorious in this group mission, Ellen was the only one who fulfilled the “special condition”.

This special condition was taking down the orc.

Crack!

Swoosh!

“Gasp!”

Clang!

It was obvious that Ellen was vastly outmatched in terms of strength. However, she deftly parried the creature’s blows, dodged its attacks, and was methodically inflicting injuries upon it with her machete.

The machete was not an ideal weapon for stabbing, and the orc’s sturdy frame wasn’t easily cut either.

The wounds she inflicted were mere scratches on the orc’s massive body. Yet, it was clear that the damage was accumulating, and Ellen was managing to deflect or evade every attack with impressive agility.

For a moment, I could only look on, dumbfounded, as Ellen fought with such extraordinary moves, but I soon realized that this was no time to be a bystander.

Of course, engaging in close range was risky, and interfering carelessly would only hinder Ellen’s efforts.

“Gasp!”

I enhanced my physical abilities and threw a rock at the back of the orc’s head while it was turned away from me.

Thwack!

Roooaarrr

Annoyed, the creature turned to roar at me, and Ellen didn’t miss the opportunity to strike its back with her machete.

Thwack!

Guagh!

Caught between us, the creature rolled to the side, keeping both Ellen and I within its line of sight. It was clearly infuriated, already annoyed that it was struggling against what it perceived as inferior opponents.

The orc, covered in blood, seemed to be deliberating whether to deal with me first, or with Ellen. Ellen was the more dangerous adversary, but the orc might have been considering whether it would be better to eliminate me quickly, if only for a moment.

Despite knowing that my life wasn’t on the line, I couldn’t help but break out into a cold sweat.

Roarrrgh!

The orc charged at me, and I sidestepped, smoothly avoiding its rush.

Thoom!

Its stone axe whirled through the air, striking a tree instead of me. The sight of the large tree almost split in half by the stone axe was an absolutely chilling display of brutal strength.

Ellen seized the moment when the orc was caught off-balance and darted towards it as the orc brought its stone axe down in a vertical chop.

Thump!

Dodging the axe as it struck the ground, Ellen reached for the javelin that had presumably been driven into the orc’s abdomen by Vertus.

Squelch!

Rraaargh!

Wrenching the javelin from the giant’s body with one hand, Ellen wasted no time and thrust it straight toward the orc’s eye.

Thunk!

Kwaaarrrgh!

It was a seamless set of movements performed in an instant, almost as if she were dancing. She moved like water, without any superfluous actions, and the orc had no time to react.

The orc, now debilitated and with one eye gone, staggered backward. Without any need for me to intervene, Ellen had nearly neutralized the orc on her own.

And then...

“It’s, it’s ready...” came a somewhat deflated exclamation.

Rumbleeee!

A sound much more menacing than that deflated exclamation arose, and the jungle surged with crimson light. Glancing behind me, I saw Harriet awkwardly perched in a tree, a burning sphere of scarlet flames floating to the right of her face.

With a grunt, she yelled, “Everyone, get away from that thing!”

The orc, injured in the eye, began to stumble backward, but Harriet, who had completed her spell, was faster.

Psssshhhhh!

Both Ellen and I threw ourselves backward onto the ground, distancing ourselves from the orc.

Then...

Boooommmm!

A huge explosion tore through the jungle.

***

I had set the novel up such that the Fireball spell was equivalent to an anti-tank rocket, in modern terms.

Screech!

A tremendous explosion rang out, loud enough to cause our ears to ring.

It was only natural that the orc, which had taken a direct hit, was blasted to pieces. And it was only expected that Harriet would lose her balance due to the shockwave generated by the explosion. She wobbled and tumbled out of the tree.

“Ah, Ahhh!”

If things continued to play out this way, the orc would be defeated, only for Harriet to be disqualified due to potential death from a fall. She was too far away for me to catch her.

Immediately, I yelled towards Connor Lint, who was a safe distance away, “Hey! Catch her!”

“Wh-What? Huh—?”

“Go and catch her, dammit!”

Caught between embarrassment and the safety of his classmate, Connor Lint quickly made his decision and performed a series of instantaneous teleports, miraculously catching Harriet in mid-air and gently landing on the ground.

Of course, he was stark naked all the while.

“Th... Thank y—eek!”

“Th-there was no helping it!”

Harriet was shocked to realize who had caught her, and even more so when she saw that her savior was the nude Connor Lint.

Connor Lint put Harriet down and then disappeared again in a series of instantaneous teleports, evidently mortified by the situation.

How many times today had that boy taken off and put on his clothes?

Harriet looked bewildered, glancing back and forth between Ellen and me. Suddenly, her face crumpled up and she crawled over to me, clinging on desperately.

“That was... That was so scary!” she said, sniffing and sobbing. “Waaah! Uaaaah!”

Now that she finally felt safe, Harriet began to cry, clinging to me as she did so. She probably had no idea how she’d managed to complete the Fireball spell in such a state of panic.

And why was she clinging to me when it was Connor Lint who had saved her? He had to be feeling incredibly wronged by this...

‘What should I do?’

It seems like I may have planted the flag with her a bit too strongly during this mission.

“What’s there to be scared of after you’ve blasted it to pieces? You did great, kid.”

“Waaaahhhh!”

I gently patted Harriet’s back while she wept bitterly.

In the original story, it was Ellen who hunted down the orc and of course, Ellen had dealt it a significant blow.

However, it was Harriet, who—in the original story—was supposed to give up on the mission on the second day, who had performed the remarkable feat of taking down the orc.