NOVEL WEB Chapter 23
Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity
Chapter 23
The orcs’ blades swiftly aimed at the trolls.
– “Trahaaa!”
The orcs charged, roaring.
Despite being startled by the orcs’ rebellion, the trolls shook them off and trampled them with their enormous strength.
But there were many orcs.
And the orcs did not retreat.
The orcs did not follow the trolls out of fear of death.
They endured only for honor.
Rather, death in the process of revenge was a blessing to them.
The orcs clung to the trolls like swarms of ants, slashing at them.
– “Kruaaa!”
A troll, bloodied, screamed and fell.
Though the troll’s innate regenerative power tried to heal, the orcs slashed and hacked faster.
Thus, the trolls’ screams spread in all directions.
– “Traha!”
The orcs continuously chanted for revenge.
They rushed towards the High Troll Shaman like moths to a flame.
“Mirthal, Orcaa!”
The High Troll Shaman was busy dealing with the orcs charging at him, disregarding their own deaths.
He launched fireballs, burning the orcs.
He kicked and struck with his staff, knocking them away.
But it never ended.
In such a situation, the High Troll Shaman had no time to concern himself with Aden.
During this chaos, Aden roamed the battlefield.
He stabbed the corpses scattered everywhere with Baalzebul.
– “100% achieved.
– The second condition has been met.
– Two-thirds of the seal has been released.”
As a result, the second condition to awaken his unique ability was fulfilled.
Now, only the third condition remained.
‘The Dark Magic of Talos.’
Talos, the evil creature from the underground world ‘Under’.
The dark power of death they used was needed.
In the current world, it was a power one couldn’t even witness unless Talos or a black magician was summoned.
Therefore, in the future, only the black magicians discovered the sword’s secret and used its power.
But Aden had no intention of seeking them out.
‘Because it’s already here.’
Inside his chest, within his mana core, lay a Demon Stone.
And from that Demon Stone flowed dark magic.
Aden began to harness that dark magic.
Following Aden’s will, the dark magic from the Demon Stone moved.
Feeling this sinister energy flowing within him as he wished, Aden felt chills.
‘It feels like becoming Talos.’
Suppressing that chilling feeling, Aden infused Baalzebul with the dark magic.
– “The third condition has been met.
– The seal has been fully released.
– The spirit of the sword awakens.”
Then the spirit that had been dormant within Baalzebul awakened.
– “I am the devourer of all.”
This was the decisive reason the 72 Demon Swords were called demon swords.
It was due to the truth of their origin, from the time before the Demon Lord, the only ruler of the underground world, was born.
The fallen lords who ruled the ancient underground world.
The 72 Demon Swords were made from their bodies.
– “I am the flesh and will left by the ravenous king who sought to devour the sky.”
The ability contained within the sword was a remnant of the powers the fallen lords possessed.
– “What will you devour?”
Taaat!
Aden sprinted at full power and leaped.
His sharp sword targeted the High Troll’s neck.
The High Troll, busy dealing with the orcs, noticed Aden a step too late.
And by then, it was already too late.
Kwaajik!
Baalzebul stabbed the High Troll Shaman’s neck.
That alone ended the game.
– “The special ability of the weapon, ‘Devour,’ has been activated.”
– “Kraaa!”
The troll screamed.
Mana, regeneration, and the very life force that was their foundation.
Everything was being sucked out in an instant, into Baalzebul, which Aden had plunged in.
The overwhelming desire within the sword was conveyed.
To devour everything.
The power of devouring the whole world.
– “Mana has greatly increased.
– The regenerative mana has been enhanced.”
Then that power was absorbed entirely into his own, with the blood pact made with the sword.
Devour.
The ability to absorb all the essence of the one stabbed.
The absorbed power was transferred to the sword’s master, and some of its characteristics could be taken away with a certain probability.
Baalzebul was special among the 72 Demon Swords.
The ancient fallen lords who ruled the underground world.
Among them, it was the power of the most powerful devouring lord, who gained strength by devouring others.
The scream of the High Troll Shaman gradually grew faint.
< “You have devoured the essence of the High Troll.”>
The High Troll’s body, shriveled like a mummified corpse drained of all blood.
Kuooong!
Soon, the High Troll’s lifeless body collapsed.
< “You have defeated the High Troll Shaman.>
This was the message that signaled the end of the battle.
***
Kuooong!
The High Troll Shaman fell.
A heavy silence descended over the Attila Fortress.
A gasp, like a sob, escaped someone’s lips.
“Ah…”
Everyone in the Attila Fortress couldn’t put their feelings into words.
They had no idea why the orcs and trolls suddenly fought, or how Prince Aden single-handedly killed the High Troll.
But a few things were clear.
“We survived…”
They had survived.
“It’s over…”
The battle had finally ended.
“Uwaaaaaaa!”
The soldiers erupted in thunderous cheers.
“We’re alive! We survived!”
Viscount Timon, crying, hugged the infantryman next to him and jumped up and down.
The surviving soldiers held back their overflowing tears.
“We won!”
“The prince killed the troll!”
“Long live Prince Aden!”
All the soldiers dropped their weapons and roared in victory.
Everyone in Attila Fortress chanted Aden’s name.
It was praise for the prince who had protected the fortress and further safeguarded the Remes territory.
—
<“You have earned the achievement ‘Hero of Attila Fortress’.”>
The system notification appeared again.
This time, the description was long.
<[Hero of Attila Fortress]>
Some titles earned through achievements could determine others’ favorability.
Depending on future behavior, it can be revoked or downgraded.
After hearing the system’s notification, Aden relaxed and exhaled.
‘It feels like the first day of scarecrow training.’
Aden smirked as he looked at the High Troll’s corpse.
Thanks to absorbing the High Troll’s mana, his regenerative mana had greatly strengthened.
It was a power that would be very useful in the future.
“I ate well in my past life, and in this one too.”
He looked somewhat tired from clearing out the troll base alone.
His face was a mix of pride, surprise, and confusion.
“Ha ha… To think of causing internal strife, I never thought of that.”
“Monsters or humans, they’re pretty much the same.”
When lumped together as monsters, they all seemed like the same kind of creature.
But each race had its own characteristics, logic, and thought processes.
Tiried Sedus groaned as he looked at the High Troll Shaman, now a mummified corpse.
Then he looked at Aden, asking incredulously.
“Aden, the power you used with your sword to kill this guy… What was it?”
He was obviously dying of curiosity.
He probably couldn’t even imagine it.
A sword he had thought of as merely a symbolic heirloom, just strong and sturdy.
Who would have guessed it hid such terrifying power?
Explaining it would be too complicated.
Anyway, with his pride, he wouldn’t take back the sword he had given now that he knew its power.
Tiried Sedus just looked at Aden with a complex expression and sighed.
He sensed that Aden either really didn’t know or had no intention of telling him.
“In any case, we can’t just let this victory go by.”
He was the one defending the northeastern territory teeming with monsters.
He knew the initiation rites for a victor of battle.
Then he lifted Aden’s arm high into the sky.
He shouted with mana to make his voice carry far.
“Everyone, celebrate the victory of Prince Aden Remes!”
In response, everyone raised their fists.
Once again, a thunderous roar erupted.
The cheers were so loud they seemed to shake the fortress.
In the deafening cheers and praises, Aden could only make a bitter expression.
He didn’t deserve such a title now.
After the battle, Attila Fortress was busy with post-war cleanup.
Attila Fortress was a scene of chaos.
Wounded soldiers groaning in pain.
Destroyed structures, and even the unexploded White Devil’s Flame Potions still buried.
It was too early to fully enjoy the elation of victory.
They had to address the scars left by the battle.
Viscount Timon approached Aden to speak.
He had a rather tense expression.
“Um, if you’re not too busy, could you do something about those guys?”
He pointed to the group of orcs.
The orcs, who had been nearly 200 strong during the fortress invasion, were now less than fifty.
But their fearsome presence hadn’t diminished.
The soldiers cautiously avoided and watched them.
They didn’t seem to have any fighting spirit left.
Aden approached the orcs and asked the orc chieftain in a bored tone.
“Why are you still here? Do you want to keep fighting?”
Then the scarred orc chieftain spoke in clumsy Imperial.
– “Krk. Thanks, we owe you. For the opportunity of revenge.”
The orc chieftain expressed gratitude.
For giving them the chance to take revenge on the trolls.
Aden clicked his tongue and said.
– “We wish to pay the price. The broken oath of our tribe.”
The orc chieftain spoke unfamiliar words.
Aden asked a few more questions and roughly understood the situation.
The chieftain lost, and the orcs swore never to descend from the mountains again.
They made the mountains their home and protected their land.
They fought hard against the monsters of the wasteland that tried to cross the mountains.
‘So, this was why the Remes territory was safe.’
In other territories, people suffered from orc raids every year.
But in the Remes territory, the problem was goblins or other monsters, not orcs.
Apparently, the Remes family had forgotten this truth.
– “We broke the oath. The price is death. But we ask for mercy.”
The orc chieftain growled, determined.
– “My life in exchange. Forgive my tribe.”
The orcs behind him shouted in dismay, trying to dissuade him.
But the orc chieftain’s eyes were already resolute.
‘Well, isn’t this a first. Hearing a plea from an orc.’
It was a strange experience in both his past and current life.
Aden thought for a moment and frowned.
“I don’t need your head. The remaining orcs might go wild for revenge.”
These were the ones who endured the humiliation of being used as slaves to defend the territory.
If Aden decapitated this big guy, they wouldn’t return quietly.
“I don’t need your head, so just go back. To your tribe.”
The orc chieftain’s face twisted in a fierce expression.
– “Krk! Ancestor’s oath! It must be paid! The broken price!”
For a moment, Aden considered asking Tiried Sedus to wipe them all out, but then he shook his head.
These orcs were the reason the territory had been safe from the mountains.
If he eradicated them, the territory would have to deal with what the orcs had been handling.
Aden scratched his head and thought deeply.
“If you really want to pay the price, how about this?”
The fortress was half-destroyed.
There were a lot of things to handle, such as repairs, cleaning up corpses, and guarding.
They needed manpower and labor desperately.
That day, knights arrived late to support the fortress.
They couldn’t be blamed for being too late.
However, when they arrived, they couldn’t believe the scene before them.
Sir Spele, leading the knights, rubbed his eyes and looked again.
In front of Attila Fortress, after the battle, a bizarre scene unfolded.
“Hey. Move that to the other warehouse!”
“Wow! Lifting that! Orcs sure are strong!”
Soldiers and orcs worked together, moving broken iron gates.
The orcs gathered the troll corpses in one place.
Orcs and soldiers took turns standing guard on the fortress walls.
“You’ve arrived, Sir Spele. You were a bit late. The battle is over.”
Carl gave a serene smile in response to Sir Spele’s question.
His mouth smiled, but his eyes didn’t.
“Yes. It’s unbelievable, right? I can’t believe it either.”
It was indeed a strange sight.
Carl looked at his brother with a sour gaze.
The man who had created this scene.
Aden was conversing with Tiried Sedus.
Tiried Sedus clicked his tongue.
“Putting orcs on guard duty, you’re truly crazy.”
“Is there a problem with that?”
“The fact that you’re asking that question is already problematic, isn’t it?”
Tiried Sedus was at his wit’s end.
Who in the world would put orcs on guard duty at a human fortress?
From Aden’s perspective, there was no problem.
During that time, even the dreadful trolls and humans had formed an alliance to fight.
So what was the big deal about orcs guarding the fortress?