The 3rd Prince of the Fallen Kingdom Returns

27. Ants (2)

The entrance to the tunnel collapsed, and flames spread. Even without any flammable material, the magical fire scorched the ground and burned the orcs.

The orc forces that had charged forward so confidently were now trapped in the middle of the camp.

“Akuakkai! Ko Ometon!”

An Orkbal with flags on its back shouted something. The entire orc troops turned its attention to Yuri, who was positioned among them.

Their seemed their intent was clear: if they couldn’t win this battle, they would at least take Yuri down.

“Hey, give me a break here…”

Yuri’s mutterings couldn’t be heard over the chaos.

The orcs immediately swarmed in. Even the orcs who had been forming a battle line outside turned back and joined the charge.

The Briol forces, realizing the situation, shouted,

“Protect the Prince!”

But the Orkbal had overlooked one crucial fact.

Just because they couldn’t use magic due to their mutual dispelling didn’t mean anything was certain on a battlefield where magic was in play.

The flames that had collapsed the tunnel spread across the ground towards Yuri, encircling him.

A few orcs were caught inside the fiery barrier, but they were no real threat. Yuri swiftly stabbed them, then flung their bodies into the flames, where they writhed and burned.

“Whew, that was close.”

This was the power of a high-ranking mage.

He usually dispelled magic, but when he could use it, he proved to be a reliable ally.

Yuri, protected by the flames, waited for the Allied Forces to subdue the orcs.

But then a sudden gust of wind blew.

Yuri turned around.

Amidst the flames stood the Orkbal, who had leaped over the wall of fire.

“Akuakkai.”

The Orkbal called Yuri’s nickname and removed the flags from its back, throwing them to the ground.

They were consumed by the flames and disintegrated.

“Okumma Kurutu Akamaiku.”

Yuri didn’t understand what it meant, but it was likely something akin to ‘You’re going to die by my hand’.

“Okudoku.”

Yuri responded with a curse in Orcish that he had learned from Kori, gripping Guilty tightly.

The orkbal grinned as it casually swung its halberd back and forth.

It was unusually composed for an orc. Most orcs would explode with rage upon hearing such an insult, but this one didn’t even flinch.

“Come to think of it, what does that mean?”

Curses usually had an origin.

Yuri made a mental note to ask Kori for the full meaning as he locked eyes with the orkbal.

The halberd’s spear-tip and axe-head swayed, alternating as they targeted Yuri.

It was a difficult weapon to wield.

For the Orkbal to carry such a weapon into battle, it must have mastered it to an extraordinary degree.

Yuri activated his mana method, lightening up his entire body, and extended his mana into Guilty.

A faint layer of mana coated the blade.

Throughout his battles with the Allied Forces, Yuri had grown stronger.

Who would believe that an eighteen-year-old could reach this level?

“Come at me.”

The Orkbal, seeing Yuri’s sword, grinned again, baring its fangs.

Its muscles bulged.

Yuri could sense the mana flowing within the Orkbal.

This Orkbal was also a mana user.

Orcs were already a strong race, and with mana enhancing their strength, their power was doubled.

“Kuuaaah!”

The orc charged with a roar and swung its halberd the moment it was within striking distance.

It was a straightforward attack, but the power behind it was something Yuri couldn’t dare to face head-on.

He blocked it with Guilty, diverting the force.

The Orkbal’s stance faltered for a moment, then recovered.

“Khehehe…”

Unlike other orcs, its laughter sounded almost human.

Yuri glanced around.

Trapped within the flames, the narrow space was a disadvantage against an opponent with superior strength.

But asking for the flames to be extinguished was impossible with orcs all around.

“In this case…”

Yuri narrowed his eyes, focusing his senses.

He immersed his senses in the memories of the ancient orc hunter he had received in the ruins.

The seemingly insurmountable battle began to shift in his favor.

Yuri realized what he needed to do.

“Phew….”

He advanced towards the Orkbal.

The Orkbal pulled its halberd back, its muscles contracting.

Yuri advanced further.

It was the moment the halberd swung.

Before the Orkbal’s move could gain momentum and apply full force, Yuri struck the halberd first.

Clashing at an advantageous point, the Orkbal was pushed back.

“Kraaah!”

The Orkbal swung its halberd again, but Yuri struck first before it gained momentum.

The same exchange continued.

The Orkbal stumbled and retreated repeatedly.

It looked easy, but it was a high-difficulty technique that required boldness against an overwhelmingly strong opponent, along with excellent vision and animal-like reflexes.

Yuri smirked.

“Is that all? Pfft, you’re ‘Okudoku,’ after all.”

Mocking the Orkbal after overpowering it with strength distorted its face. It seemed like its monstrous strength was a source of pride.

Yuri glared at its eyes and approached again.

Judging the rage in its pupils, Yuri caught every movement of his opponent.

The Orkbal bent its knees, preparing to spin its whole body.

The agitated Orkbal couldn’t hide its intentions. It was solely focused on splitting Yuri’s head open.

It pulled its halberd back, then thrust it downwards.

Yuri dodged to the side, and the Orkbal, as if anticipating this, reached out to grab his neck.

Yuri thrust Guilty forward, stabbing its abdomen.

Guilty pierced the skin and went deep.

Yuri thought he had won.

But the Orkbal, unfazed, continued to reach for him.

Yuri blocked with his arm, but the Orkbal’s large hand grasped Yuri’s neck and forearm together.

“Ugh…”

Its grip was too strong.

The Orkbal shook Yuri back and forth.

He pulled out Guilty.

Due to the difference in their size, he couldn’t find an opening to stab it again.

He was starting to suffocate.

Yuri gritted his teeth and endured. He couldn’t afford to lose consciousness.

He swung Guilty, slashing at the Orkbal’s wrist.

But hanging in mid-air, with no support, his attack lacked power.

He struck its arm repeatedly, but couldn’t cut through its thick hide. It seemed to know how to reinforce its skin with mana.

“Ugh…”

Yuri recalled one of the slaughtering techniques hunters used.

If you couldn’t cut through, you could use a sawing technique.

Yuri placed Guilty’s blade against the Orkbal’s wrist.

While enduring with his arm that was trapped along with his neck, he moved the blade up and down, like sawing.

At first, there was no noticeable effect, but soon the blade, coated with mana, started to grind its way into Orkbal’s wrist.

Orkbal’s eyes turned bloodshot.

“Kuoooh!”

The Orkbal didn’t let go; instead, it tightened its grip on Yuri’s neck.

Yuri also gritted his teeth and continued to move Guilty up and down.

A tense struggle ensued.

“Kraah…!”

The victor was Yuri.

The Orkbal screamed and flung Yuri away.

And it tried to retrieve the hand caught on Guilty.

But Yuri didn’t let go.

He held onto the Orkbal’s hand as it flew away, landed on the ground, and then raised Guilty high before plunging it down.

His target was the part he had been sawing at.

With flawless precision, the blade pierced the exact same spot.

Orkbal’s wrist was severed.

“Kraaah!”

The Orkbal clutched the stump of its wrist and fell backwards.

Yuri waved the severed hand in the air. Grasping it hastily had caused their fingers to interlock.

“To think I’d be holding hands with an orc, how disgusting.”

But thanks to that, he was able to hold on more firmly.

Yuri grinned and threw the severed hand toward Orkbal’s face.

The Orkbal thrashed wildly.

“Akuakkai! Akumetu! Yukukama…”

Guilty plunged into the Orkbal’s forehead.

Having lost its will to fight, the Orkbal didn’t even try to dodge the attack. Its eyes trembled, then it went limp.

“Okudoku.”

Yuri pulled the blade from the lifeless Orkbal.

“Hah…”

Yuri wasn’t unscathed either.

His neck and arm, which had been gripped by the Orkbal, were badly bruised. It was difficult to move them freely.

Yuri knelt and peered through the flames to assess the situation outside.

“What…?”

But the situation hadn’t improved at all. It was still swarming with orcs.

And suddenly, the flames surrounding him vanished.

“Huh?”

As if by magic, the fiery barrier lifted, exposing him once again to the horde of orcs.

Dozens of eyes turned to him simultaneously.

He was chilled to the bone.

“Damn it…”

Yuri realized what had happened.

It wasn’t that Hernando had withdrawn his magic; another shaman had appeared.

It meant there was more than one tunnel.

Orcs were continuously pouring out from within the Allied Forces’ camp like ants.

Yuri scanned his surroundings, gripping Guilty.

A horde of orcs and Orkbal were approaching.

Breaking through seemed difficult.

Having witnessed Yuri’s agility, the orcs had formed a tight encirclement, several layers deep.

Even if he broke through one line, another would surround him.

“Hoo…”

Yuri took a deep breath.

Coming here to kill the shaman had been a mistake.

There wasn’t just one tunnel.

He had underestimated the orcs and moved too recklessly.

It seemed he had become complacent after achieving success since returning to the past.

Just like the Orkbal he had just killed—blinded by arrogance and never doubting victory—had its forehead pierced by Yuri, Yuri too had not doubted himself.

And there would be a price to pay.

Yuri set his jaw tightly and fixed his gaze on the orcs.

He had died once before.

He now knew what was more agonizing than death.

“Yuri Briol. Even if I die today, it won’t be without honor.”

He muttered under his breath.

He activated Heart and Soul Slash, and his mana surged more violently than usual.

“Come at me, you worms! For Briol!”

Then, someone answered.

“An admirable resolve.”

Yuri’s eyes widened.

“As the saying goes, ‘Do your best and leave the rest to heaven,’ and ‘Those who are determined to die shall live, and those who cling to life shall die.'”

“Whoa…!”

Yuri felt the solemn determination that had filled his heart instantly fade away.

Moyongchan was walking towards him through the air, his hands clasped behind his back.

He looked like a celestial being descending from the heavens.

Yuri murmured,

“Indeed. There’s no way I would die so easily.”

The ferocity in his eyes vanished, and his stiff expression softened. He casually shifted his weight onto one leg.

Yuri Briol had returned to his usual relaxed self.

“Glad you could make it. Hahaha…”

“You…”

Moyongchan gave him a disappointed look at the sudden change.

“Your resolve crumbles in an instant. You’re that kind of person, eh… Sigh…”

“Hahaha, I knew the Master would come to save me anyway.”

“That spirit of yours is fading.”

“What are you talking about? Shouldn’t we defeat these orcs together, as the only disciple? Let’s kill them all! Hahaha!”

“Tsk, tsk…”

Moryongchan stepped up to Yuri’s side, clicking his tongue in disapproval.

Yuri didn’t mind and grinned.

Just not being alone gave him strength, and it wasn’t just anyone— it was Moyongchan.

“Half.”

Moryongchan declared,

“Exactly half. I won’t help any more than that. Got it?”

“Yes, of course.”

In any case, the two ended up facing the orcs, back to back.

Fighting dozens of orcs at once wasn’t easy, but Yuri had the memories of the ancient hunter.

The hunter had used the red gemstone to gather the orcs and then slaughtered them in an instant.

Yuri recalled that scene and activated his Mana Method.

Sensation returned to his hands.

Heart and Soul Slash was both a Mana Method and a swordsmanship style.

This meant there were no fixed forms or techniques in Yuri’s swordsmanship. Therefore, it could easily adapt to any form.

He overlaid the ancient hunter’s swordsmanship onto Heart and Soul Slash.

Yuri felt his swordsmanship transform into a completely different style.

It guided him in a swifter, more cunning manner.

“Ooh…”

Moryongchan tilted his head, watching Yuri’s movements.

He already knew that the Mana Method this boy possessed was unique, but could he really change his swordsmanship style so suddenly?

It was like watching someone else entirely, not Yuri.

The movements were experienced and practical.

Strange.

In his fleeting movements, there was a trace of someone who had already perfected their path.

Something must have happened.

There was no other way he could have grown like this.

“Ahem…”

Moryongchan cleared his throat and turned his gaze.

His disciple had returned, having learned an unknown, unheard-of swordsmanship style—and he was quite good at it.

He didn’t like it.

“I’ll show you the Pure Heart, Empty Mind Sword myself.”

Moyongchan drew his sword and activated his internal energy.

The mana of the Pure Heart, Empty Mind Method circulated through his body.

A faintly bluish aura enveloped his rough sword.

“Watch carefully!”

He swung his sword, drawing a perfect semicircle.

Azure Sky Crimson Mist Sword Technique.

Crescent Moon Stance.

From Moyongchan’s center, the glow of a setting sun spread outward.

Blood splattered over it.