Fuck!

“So you’ll use your divine power to help them?”

I shook my head firmly at Inis’s question.

“No. I have no intention of showing our cards before the battle even begins.”

Combat strength is most effective when the opponent doesn’t know about it. I had absolutely no intention of stupidly revealing my abilities from the start.

“After all, these are the bastards who tormented you and made you a slave just because you have black hair. Would such people peacefully coexist with someone contracted with a devil?”

“Ah. That’s true.”

“For now, I plan to help them using this.”

I said, showing her the mace. I’d been carrying it all along but had rarely used it. I never imagined I’d be using it like this here.

“But what if you get hurt, Master…”

“I’ll just go easy on them. Don’t worry about whether they get hurt or not. Just pretend to help them. Our goal is to head to the stairs together. Understand?”

“Yes. I understand.”

“Be careful not to show your hair and face.”

Inis nodded.

“Yes. But they might not recognize me even if they see my face. We hardly ever faced each other directly.”

She said that before, she had hidden herself, and after being discovered, they had forced her to cover up, so they hadn’t really seen each other.

“And they know my leg became crippled. Even if they see my face, they probably won’t recognize me.”

“That’s not ideal. Let’s go for now.”

I ran toward the battlefield with my weapon. As we got closer, I could better perceive the size of the orc rider, which was much larger than I had imagined.

If I were hit accidentally, an arm would likely break. Getting struck by that club would mean certain death.

“Be careful.”

Inis nodded after seeing the orc rider’s size.

We both approached the enemy tensely. They didn’t notice us approaching from behind, likely because they were completely focused on the adventurers in front of them.

Thwack!

I gripped the club like a baseball bat and struck the back of the orc’s head. The orc’s body collapsed.

Stab!

Inis’s longsword pierced the enemy’s neck. As she twisted and pulled it out, the orc fell, spurting blood. It stopped moving in less than 10 seconds.

“Kraaarghhh!”

The orc rider shouted when it saw us. It was startled by humans suddenly joining the fight. The adventurers, on the other hand, seemed grateful.

Of course they’d be happy about help arriving in a desperate situation. They couldn’t imagine what our true purpose was.

One of the two orc riders began charging toward us. The wolf moved at a decent speed even with an orc on its back. I watched it charge and then ducked sharply.

Whoosh!

A sound like the air being torn apart. The noise from above was truly terrifying. I couldn’t help but swallow.

I thought I was used to this kind of thing by now, but apparently not.

Thunk!

An arrow struck the side of the orc rider as it passed me. Probably shot by them.

“Dodge!!!”

The other orc rider charged toward a woman holding a bow. A man nearby belatedly leaped to warn her, but it was too late.

Crack!!!

The club struck the woman’s head. Her skull shattered, blood and brain matter exploding outward. Splat, blood fell. The body, now just a shell, collapsed.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

Another woman who witnessed the scene fell to her knees, clutching her head. Her body trembled violently.

‘What’s this?’

Seeing that, I felt puzzled. It was disgusting to see, but aren’t such things common in the labyrinth?

The goblin caves were where most people died and gave up exploring. That’s where rookie adventurers underestimated goblins and suffered.

Goblins, in particular, were cruel by nature and showed no mercy. They would dismember human corpses and play with them, not to mention kidnapping women, raping them, and impregnating them.

How could adventurers who had made it through such places be so terrified by this scene? Does everyone react this way when faced with the fear of death? If not, then…

Whoosh!

My thoughts were interrupted by an orc’s axe flying toward me. I stepped back, and the blade passed right in front of me. The smell of blood was strong.

Thwack!

I immediately swung my club and struck its head. Though its head didn’t explode, it collapsed from the concussion.

Crack-

I crushed its head with my heel. Through my sturdy shoes, I could vividly feel the skull breaking.

“Whew.”

Bang!

“Urgh…”

Inis, who was beside me, blocked an orc’s attack. An axe embedded in her shield. Both of her arms trembled. To block a blow from such a large creature… her skills were truly remarkable.

Thwack!

I immediately ran and struck the orc’s leg. It fell with a painful cry.

Slash!

Inis, who had abandoned her shield, brought her longsword down on the back of the orc’s neck. Its large head rolled across the field.

We had already taken down four orcs. Now only three remained.

The orc rider that had been aggressively attacking now kept its distance and looked at us. It broke off the arrow stuck in its side. Breathing roughly, it glared at us with murderous intent.

“Uaaaaaaargh!”

It roared at us, then suddenly pulled out the axe hanging at its waist and threw it.

Bang!

Inis stepped forward and blocked it. She stood firm, taking only a slight step back.

The adventurers also managed to block an axe. It seems they weren’t surviving here for days for nothing.

“Kuaaaaargh!”

The orc rider spat out a mixture of blood and saliva and fled. The lone remaining orc shouted after them, but they didn’t return.

Slash-

Dealing with the last one was all too easy.

“Inis. Collect the magic stones first.”

I ordered her while catching my breath. It was quite tiring to move directly after standing still and only using divine power. I should get back to physical training.

“Yes.”

She drew her dagger and began dismembering the orcs. Meanwhile, the adventurers watched us nervously as they recovered their companion’s body. A meaningless task, really.

‘That one surprisingly survived.’

The blood-covered woman. I expected the orc rider to take her out first, but she survived against the odds.

“That woman. The other bastards protected her.”

Inis, who had somehow come to my side, explained. I answered while receiving the magic stones from her.

“Really?”

“Yes. They blocked the orc rider’s attack with that big shield. The bastards who never once protected me…”

Inis’s language became rougher. Her voice seemed to growl, indicating her anger. She also seemed excited. Probably because the moment of revenge was approaching.

“Was that woman originally in the party?”

“No. Originally it was three men and one woman. The one who just died with her head blown off was the bitch I asked to help with my hair.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

The woman who deserved to die most painfully had died too easily.

“It’s okay. In terms of cruelty, the others were worse. Especially that shield-bearing bastard who told me to go sell my body.”

“What a piece of shit.”

I wasn’t particularly angry. Why waste emotions on people I was going to kill soon anyway? And since Inis was excited, I needed to stay calm. That was the only way to manage the situation.

“But what about that person then?”

The woman vomiting with the help of the other men. She drank some water from her pouch and washed her face.

“Well, well.”

From the looks of it, she had spent all her energy fighting the orcs. They weren’t even thinking about needing water to safely pass through the cave.

“Th-thank you so much.”

As we stood watching, the most presentable of them approached and bowed his head.

“Sure.”

I answered without enthusiasm. His eyebrow twitched, but only for a moment.

“Are you also planning to use the stairs?”

“What if we are?”

“Well, would it be possible for us to use them? We’ve been here for too long, and we discovered those stairs first.”

“So what are you saying? That we should be considerate to you because you’re struggling right now?”

“…Yes.”

I smirked and said,

“Why should we show consideration to you? If what you say is true, couldn’t we just take the stairs by force?”

“There are four of us. Do you think the two of you could handle our party?”

His eyes blazed. His face was tense, and his hand moved toward his sword hilt.

“One of you is clearly in no condition to fight. And the rest, including you, don’t seem to be in great shape either. What? Want to try it?”

“…I apologize.”

He suddenly bowed at the waist.

“I think I misspoke because I’m too exhausted. Um, what would we need to do for you to let us use the stairs?”

I took out an empty pouch from my bag and threw it. The man picked it up with a scowl and asked,

“What is this?”

“Put all your collected magic stones and money in there and bring it to me. If the amount satisfies me, I’ll let you live.”

“Do you think that’s reasonable!?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? What, are magic stones and money more important to you than your lives?”

The man cowered when I growled at him. His spirit broken.

“If you don’t want to end your adventurer life here, shut up and gather everything. Understand? Behave yourself.”

“…Understood.”

He returned to his companions, clutching the pouch tightly.

“Master.”

“Yes?”

Inis, who had been quietly observing the situation, spoke to me. She slightly lifted her robe, revealing a face full of smiles.

“Are you enjoying this?”

“Yes. Seeing that bastard get angry makes me feel so good.”

Finding her cute, I stroked Inis’s head. She stayed still like a puppy, then spoke again.

“Oh. By the way, Master. That woman over there. That’s her.”

“That’s who?”

“The person who took up the most space on the request form!”

I was slightly surprised at her words.

“You mean the count’s daughter?”

“That’s right.”

I let out a deep sigh. This situation was getting complicated.