I Became the Teacher of a Troll Tribe

Chapter 16: Iron Jesro (1)

“Keuh, keuaaak-!”

That bastard. How dare you mess with me? I’ll fry your head whole.

Chijijit, chijijit—

Whoosh!

Black flames flared up in both hands clutching its ears, engulfing the creature.

Fwoosh! Fshk! Fwoosh!

My thighs were torn so badly the bones were visible, and even now, my chest was being shredded to bits…

‘I won’t let go. Never.’

Clench!

I tightened my grip further, carefully avoiding piercing its heart. Blood dripped down my palm as my nails tore through its ears and embedded into my hand.

Compared to the blood I’d already spilled, this was nothing.

“Ah… ahh…”

“…!”

It was its final, desperate struggle.

The frantic slashes halted, and the creature’s hands, which had melted and deformed, fell limp.

“Hah… haa…”

I survived.

Against a rank-4 mercenary.

Thud!

As my grip loosened, the creature collapsed. The survival instincts that had hammered my head for days finally began to fade.

[You have defeated a formidable opponent equivalent to a rank-4 war mercenary.]

[This is an extraordinary achievement for your current stage. Additional rewards will be given.]

[Your stats have increased.]

[Your stats have increased.]

[Your stats have increased.]

…

..

.

That was the last thing I remembered that day.

***

Beeeep—

“Jinyu? Jinyu!”

A familiar voice pierced through the ringing in my ears.

It was Toka.

‘…’

I saw a ceiling.

It wasn’t a house or a tent.

It was a gray ceiling, meticulously assembled with precise craftsmanship.

Even just that gave me a sense of relief.

At the very least, I was lying somewhere civilized.

“Are you coming to your senses? Say something!”

“…How long has it been?”

“Three whole days! You were out cold for three days straight!”

What the—? No wonder my head feels oddly clear.

I rolled my eyes to scan the surroundings.

Through a half-open door, a miniature-sized human walked by.

Ah…

“Where am I?”

“Where do you think? A hospital! Oh, if you’re asking about the city, it’s Iron Jesro! We all made it here safely!”

This was the story: The scouting party had advanced to the central region of Naplen’s Grasp, breaking through monsters along the way.

When we didn’t show up after half a day, they retraced their steps.

They found Stone Grunder carrying my nearly lifeless body.

After regrouping, they arrived at Iron Jesro three days ago.

‘…I’m oddly touched.’

Were trolls always this loyal? Seems like my past year hasn't been wasted.

But my body…

‘…’

How the hell did I survive?

“You… you lost so much blood! We did everything we could right away, but…”

My whole body was covered in bandages.

Damn it. No wonder I can’t move.

For a brief moment, I envied the natural regeneration trolls possessed.

Just then, some familiar trolls entered.

“Goooooh! You’re finally awake!”

Stone Grunder.

Still as lively as ever.

“…Grrk! The captain will be here soon. Can you move?”

It was Gromnar.

Looks like he fully recovered, too.

Well, I could move if I really tried…

But honestly, I didn’t feel like lifting a finger.

I just wanted to lie down a bit longer.

First, I asked the question that bothered me most.

“How did the negotiations go?”

“The captain handled it smoothly. But it was mostly just conveying our intentions.”

Conveying intentions?

After all that suffering, that’s it?

“…”

I should’ve been at the negotiating table.

At the very least, I could’ve held them accountable for the ambush.

‘…What’s done is done.’

I swallowed my frustration.

Since when did I care so much about international politics, anyway?

I survived, and that was enough.

I should be thankful for that.

The conversation shifted to events from the past few days.

Stone Grunder started recounting how he almost got kicked out of the city for patting a bald dwarf on the head.

“Grrrk! It was hilarious! Those tiny things barely reach my thighs!”

“Unbelievable… You should thank Gromnar! How can you be so clueless?!”

Watching them, it was like a comedy sketch.

It was peaceful, in its own way.

After a while, Morgan entered the hospital room.

“You’re awake, huh?”

The cheerful look on his face suggested he was back to his usual self.

I’d been worried about him after Lockhart’s death, given how down he looked.

“You’re looking better. Did you find something worthwhile?”

“Well, nothing earth-shattering. But I made sure the previous captain was held accountable. It’ll give us an advantage in the formal negotiations. That mage bastard wasn’t entirely cut off from the dwarves, after all.”

The dwarf mage… I killed him with my blade.

If he had any sense, he wouldn’t have mentioned it.

Anyway,

“Formal negotiations?”

“The official delegation left for Zul Dron two days ago. We’ll stay here for now and return with them once they’re done. You focus on recovering.”

Ah, so that’s how things were progressing.

Considering the scale, it’d take about ten days.

“Ahem. And here’s some recent intel. Everyone, listen up.”

“Grrk?”

“The tribe has decided to reward all of us for this mission. Especially for intercepting the empire’s delegation beforehand. Zul Dron hadn’t even anticipated that. We all played a big part.”

“Goooooh! Rewards!”

“And as for you, Seong Jinyu…”

Morgan’s expression turned ambiguous.

It was likely about the aura user or the war mercenary I’d taken down.

Either way, it was a sensitive topic for me.

I silently hoped he’d let it slide…

“We’ll discuss it later. For now, focus on getting better.”

Ah, come on.

There’s always someone like this.

***

Night fell over Iron Jesro, and everyone left the room.

I summoned my status window for the first time in a while.

Name: Seong Jinyu

Race: Human

Hidden Traits (A): [Master of Languages], [Master of Black Flames], [Descent of the Shadow]

Hidden Traits (P): [Survival Instinct], [Eyes of the Dark Priest], [Unyielding Will], [Calm Mind]

Unique Skill: [Troll Language]

Dominance Level: None

Essence Acquired: None

‘…I still can’t see my stats.’

After defeating those mercenaries, I’d seen messages about my stats increasing.

I’d hoped for some visible changes, but there was nothing new in the status window.

I felt like something about my body had changed, but maybe it was hard to notice after being unconscious for days.

This system was annoyingly vague.

“Let’s see.”

Resigned, I pulled out some bean sprouts from my Dimensional pouch.

The clock showed exactly 10 p.m.

“Sir! Is that you? Why haven’t you contacted me?”

“I had a lot going on.”

“I thought maybe TrollPods wasn’t working that far out! But of course, that wouldn’t happen with Evelyn Weaver’s masterpiece! Hohoho.”

Huh?

Shouldn’t she be asking if I’m okay first?

Seriously, this girl seemed to live out her dreams through this world.

“Did you make it to Iron Jesro safely?”

“Yes. Negotiations are roughly wrapped up.”

“Oh… That’s smoother than I expected.”

Tch, Smooth?

She has no idea what I’ve been through.

Well, no need to explain everything right now.

“I heard the tribe sent an official delegation to Iron Jesro.”

-“Yes, it’s been quite the talk lately. Remember how you mentioned a delegation might go to the beastfolk? I looked into it, but there’s been no movement on that front. Instead, the Great Chief announced that an official delegation would be sent directly to Iron Jesro.”

“How’s the tribe reacting to it?”

-“Of course, there’s backlash. Especially from trolls who lost their families to the dwarves in the last war. But what can anyone do? The Great Chief himself stepped forward.”

“Do you have any guesses why? Why the dwarves?”

-“Hmm… artifacts, maybe?”

Artifacts?

“What do you mean?”

-“Come on, haven't you played the game for ten years?”

Of course, I knew what artifacts were.

They were the most broken items in the game.

People didn’t call Arcane Chronicle “Artifact Chronicle” for nothing.

Ridiculous stat boosts were just the baseline; some even came with three active skills. And the number of them? Endless.

-“Dwarves and artifacts—shouldn’t that instantly click?”

Could it be… that artifact? The one only mentioned in the storyline?

-“The Primal Artifact, the most powerful of them all—[The Hammer of Origin]. It belongs to the dwarves.”

“…So the Primal Artifacts really exist?”

-“Honestly, you still don’t know anything after a whole year here, huh?”

Hey now, it’s not like I don’t know.

I just didn’t think they were real.

“Well, uh… I see.”

It’s just too overpowered, isn’t it? If a single strike with that hammer could obliterate an entire city… Not that it would come without conditions, of course.

-“It’s just a guess. Maybe the Great Chief simply thinks the dwarves are smarter and more capable than the beastfolk. Who knows what’s going on in his head?”

True. Makes sense. For now, let’s chalk it up as a possibility.

-“Anyway, keep in touch more often! It’s so boring on weekends without you! I miss your classes so much… Alright, I have to go now!”

“Okay, take care.”

Time will reveal the truth. For now, I should focus on recovering.

I stared at my palm, still bearing deep nail marks, before falling asleep.

***

[Hidden Trait ‘Master of Languages!’ is now active.]

“Hello-o. Your beard’s so… majestic?”

“Oh… oooohhh!!”

Several days had passed.

I was learning Dwarvish from Toka.

Since she visited daily, I figured I might as well make use of the time.

“Thank you! Your hammer is beautiful, too.”

“Jinyu! You’re a language genius! Perfect, except for your awful accent!”

“Th…anks… Th…anks…”

“So cute!!”

Ahem.

I did seem to be picking it up fast.

Apparently, just learning the alphabet usually takes a month.

Dwarvish was notoriously difficult.

“Read more! Read more!”

Watching her, it was clear she’d found her perfect calling.

I, too, once thought teaching was my true vocation.

Creak—

“Am I interrupting?”

It was Morgan.

His first visit since the first day.

“Hm? Not at all.”

“How’s your body? I heard you’re walking now.”

A bit late on the news.

Not just walking—I’d mostly recovered.

Aside from the occasional ache in my left thigh, where the wound had been deepest.

“Yeah, I’m doing fine.”

His lips twitched. What now? He wouldn’t have come just to check in.

“Come with me. Toka, excuse us.”

“Hm? Is something up? We were having so much fun!”

…

Of course.

I followed Morgan down the corridor and outside the hospital.

The moment we stepped out, I spotted a familiar figure—Stone Grunder.

Standing beside him were trolls I’d never seen before.

‘What’s going on? Why are there so many?’

There were five of them in total.

For a second, I wondered if the delegation had arrived early, but that wasn’t it.

“Grrk!”

They all wore plain black uniforms without any emblems. What was this about?

Even after spending so much time among the trolls of Zul Dron, I felt an inexplicable unease. It wasn’t just because we were in Iron Jesro.

The most unsettling part was Stone Grunder, who always carried himself with confidence, now standing timidly. …A bad feeling crept in.

“We’ll introduce them later. Follow me.”

“Wait, suddenly my chest hurts.”

For the first time in a while, I spoke in Korean.

Instinctively, I knew—this was one of those moments.

You know, the kind you see in movies sometimes—

“Don’t try anything funny, Professor.”

One of the trolls responded in Korean, their tone cold.

Then, turning sharply toward me, they said—

“Seong Jinyu, instructor of the Troll Language Academy.”

And just like that, they struck a dramatic pose.

“By the authority of Swahali, you are under emergency arrest.”

Clink!

Handcuffs snapped onto my wrists.

They were enchanted restraints designed to suppress abilities.

“The charge is…”

Gulp.

“Concealing your power.”

I knew it.

I figured they wouldn’t let me off that easily.