Ch.14The Guardian of Balance NPC. (1)

Two days had passed since I bowed my head to Ira.

“With this, 30,000 cans…!!”

-CRUNCH!!

After crushing an orc’s skull under my foot, I gather all the magic stones around it.

Unfortunately, trolls have barely appeared these past few days. I have 10,000 cans on hand, and I’ve earned 30,000 cans so far.

I’m still 20,000 cans short of buying a ticket to the Empire by tomorrow.

Even if I manage to scrape together the exact amount, we’ll still need extra travel money for food and drink.

In other words…

“…I’ll have to take the one to Nati in two weeks.”

Looking at the game map, the Empire is closer to Aigram.

But since we don’t know when Ponia might collapse, I want to prioritize getting out as quickly as possible.

If I make a mistake trying to shorten the distance a bit or earn a little more travel money, and end up caught in the destruction parade, I’d die from the sheer injustice of it all.

The bastards who stole my money are going to die anyway, and I’m just enduring this because I won’t get caught up in it. But if I do get involved and lose my sister…

“Then I’m going dark. Ponia won’t be destroyed by demons, but by my hands.”

I’ll charge ahead on the level gangster route. Anyone who put a bounty on me, anyone who chased me because of it—I’ll kill every last person in that village.

“So, if you don’t want a man-made disaster, just give me trolls, mountain, please.”

Orcs are worth 1,000 cans each, but that’s still too little compared to trolls at 3,000 cans. Killing 3 trolls for 9,000 cans versus killing 10 orcs for 10,000 cans—there’s a huge difference in time and effort, right?

After collecting all the magic stones, I move to a different spot.

I’ve seen quite a few orcs recently, but perhaps because of me, their numbers have dwindled. Neither my senses nor my status window can detect any monsters nearby. It’s truly depressing.

As I’m circling around the mountain…

-THUDUDUDUDUDU!!!

I turn my head toward the sound of something rapidly pounding the earth. Despite the distance, I hear intense hoofbeats. A carriage racing at this speed so close to the city? Could this be…

[(!) Quest – Save the carriage being chased by trolls.]

“Oh. Ni~ce. Sweet.”

Seems like the mountain has answered my prayers.

*

“Hya!! HYAAA!!”

Merchant Tom, frantically driving his carriage, couldn’t understand how he’d ended up in this situation.

He’d heard that a monster parade had broken out in the territory of Poria. Luckily, he’d obtained this information faster than other merchants and had hired two blue-rank adventurers at a high price. He’d made a good profit selling weapons in the area and was heading to a safe city. But why was this happening when this route should have been safe?

“Damn it!! Horse!! If you don’t want to die, run faster!! HYAAA!!”

Desperately whipping his horses, Tom looked back.

Three trolls. And one of them was a different color.

Normal trolls are green, but that one was blue.

A special specimen called a Blue Troll—a dangerous monster that requires at least two gold-rank adventurers to take down.

When they first encountered the monsters, there was only one green troll. The two blue-rank adventurers had gotten off the carriage to fight it, saying it was on their way anyway.

But after exchanging a few blows, they sensed something was different about this troll compared to what they knew, creating an ominous atmosphere. Eventually, one of them was crushed under the troll’s club and burst open.

The other one immediately told Tom to drive the carriage, and Tom did just that.

The remaining man managed to dodge the troll and jump onto the back of the carriage.

Yes, everything was fine up to that point. Until another troll suddenly appeared from the side and grabbed the man’s leg.

In the end, he fell from the accelerating carriage and was beaten to death by the other trolls, leaving Tom as the sole survivor—or so he thought.

But even that was a grave misconception.

The creatures weren’t satisfied with killing the two adventurers and were now frantically pursuing the carriage. In the midst of this, another troll suddenly emerged from the forest.

The Blue Troll.

If they were normal trolls, the carriage at full speed could have outrun them. But just as the adventurers had said, the distance between him and the two green trolls wasn’t decreasing at all, and the blue one was gradually getting closer.

At this rate, even a glancing blow from a club to the back of the carriage would overturn it, sending him to the afterlife.

Merchant Tom whipped his horses, desperately trying to reach the city…

-WHOOSH!

“?!”

Something darted past the extremely tense Tom’s field of vision, passing the carriage and running toward the back.

Having been ambushed twice already, he was paying extraordinary attention to what was ahead. And that’s why he saw it.

A man. A bare-handed man flew past the carriage as if he were soaring. Tom was so dumbfounded that he briefly turned his gaze.

Taking his eyes off the road while driving at this tremendous speed was extremely dangerous, but his curiosity got the better of him—he had to know what kind of person would charge toward trolls.

And what Tom’s eyes witnessed was…

“…Huh? What?”

Sharp teeth flying through the air, and two green trolls tumbling backward.

*

[Troll: Level 29]

[Troll: Level 31]

[Blue Troll: Level 42]

Three against one might be tough, but we’re talking about 6,000 cans plus a Blue Troll magic stone.

This is exactly when I should trust my boss-level HP and go a little overboard.

Ignoring the Blue Troll that was chasing the carriage at incredible speed, I delivered a kick and a punch to the faces of the two trolls behind it. Then I deliberately dodged the club swung by the Blue Troll from behind me by a hair’s breadth, making it hit a green troll’s head instead.

-CRUNCH!!

Oof. As expected of a level 40 monster, it’s incredibly strong.

Its club wasn’t satisfied with just smashing the green one’s face—it half-exploded it. Well, that’s instant death without even needing to check the status window.

While the blue one was still wide open after swinging its club, I rapid-punched its leg, then launched a kick that sent the other troll flying like a popcorn machine. Then I lunged toward it.

As expected, the enraged creature swung its club recklessly, and this time it sent the troll flying with enough force to fold its waist.

“Wow. Is that one dead?”

The last thing I saw before it flew away was its body bent backward like the letter ‘ㄱ’, but I’m not sure if that killed it.

Trolls were known for their fast HP recovery in the game, so it might not be dead.

Well, I can deal with this one first and then go finish it off.

Dodging the Blue Troll’s club swings—much faster than a normal troll’s—and its relentless attacks with its other hand, I truly feel like my level is cheating.

Is this the difference between a level 30 troll and a level 40 troll?

It sounds like I’m talking about age, which is funny, but it’s truly experienced and threatening. Its movements show it knows it just needs to land one hit to win—swinging widely but steadily trying to corner me. Pretty fierce.

“But you’re one-dimensional.”

Seeing it swing its club down and immediately reach out with its other hand, I launch myself forward, avoiding the arm while closing the distance, and immediately drive my elbow into its jaw.

The bone resonates with a dull sound, and the sensation of the jaw breaking transmits through my body with a tingle.

Ugh, not a pleasant feeling.

Seemingly surprised by my unexpectedly strong attack, it backs away, but my turn isn’t over.

I immediately grab the arm it was swinging the club with, twist it backward, and strike upward with my fist. With a sound like crackling snacks, the creature screams.

As it drops its club and flails its broken arm trying to shake me off, I float slightly in the air from the recoil, deliver a knee strike to its face, then reach out to grab its shoulder and climb on top of it.

Hmm, come to think of it, I’m also one-dimensional.

“But this is the formula for victory.”

As soon as I mount its neck, I twist its head sideways as it tries to reach up with both arms, then immediately strike it hard with my fist, breaking it completely.

Even a Blue Troll is just a beginner mob. It’s not at a level that would lose to this.

-THUD!!!

The creature, larger than other trolls, collapses, and the status window displays the word (Dead).

This feature is truly excellent, I tell you!

I immediately move to finish off the troll that had been sent flying earlier, only to find it already dead and turned into a magic stone. This is absolutely sweet.

“Ha! I earned over 10,000 cans in one go? If I push myself a bit more today, I might be able to buy that ticket!”

I wonder how much the Blue Troll is worth—surely more than a regular troll? As I’m gathering the magic stones while thinking this, I hear hoofbeats.

Huh? Did the carriage come back?

“Ha, ha…!! D-Did you defeat the Blue Troll and the trolls all by yourself?!”

“Haha. Yes. It’s good money. I’m glad you’re safe.”

“…My goodness. Weren’t these trolls stronger than normal ones?!”

“Huh? Oh, yes. They were a bit stronger, but how do you know that, driver?”

What’s this? A past life? Does this old man also have a masochistic status window?

“I hired two blue-rank adventurers as escorts, but they said something was off and died pathetically. One tried to escape with me but was caught and killed. That’s how I knew.”

“Ah, I see. So normally, two blue-rank adventurers can take down a troll?”

“Y-Yes, that’s right. Are you an adventurer too? You don’t look like you’re from the military or the guard.”

“Yes, I’m an adventurer. Gold rank.”

“W-What?! Gold rank?!!”

I’m not the type to run away when I can paint my face gold.

When I proudly told him, the old man treated me like he’d met an incredible VIP and even asked if I would ride in his carriage and escort him, despite the city being not far away.

Hmm, but I need to earn more money, and I don’t know how much a Blue Troll magic stone is worth. I should probably decline…

“What? You’re going to the Empire? Perfect!! Then, would you be my escort? I was planning to go to the Empire after this job anyway! I’m going to register with a merchant caravan. For the escort fee, let’s say… 20,000 cans. What do you think?!”

It was too good an opportunity to pass up.

My goodness, the quest given by our perverted status window was a blessing!!