[Main Quest 1]
▷Objective: Dispel the darkness looming over the midterms.
▷Reward: Varies based on completion level.
Quests are typically labeled with descriptors like “Side” or “Event” depending on their importance or nature, and it’s very rare for a quest to be labeled as “Main”.
So when does this rare occurrence happen?
When it is directly related to the EX-rank quest.
More specifically, a Main Quest occurs when the outcome of the event directly impacts the fate of the world.
Currently, the students were trapped within this midterm dungeon and they would be forced to fight ogres injected with Blood Fury.
With the safety mechanisms disabled, the risk of death or injury was very high.
If the number of future heroes were reduced, the world would be much closer to destruction.
So what exactly needs to be done to clear the Main Quest?
The most straightforward solution was to “endure”.
If we continued to endure, the academy would eventually regain control of the dungeon and we’d all be expelled naturally.
However, for higher achievement, I knew we needed to do more than just endure; we had to take it a step further.
We needed to reduce the number of ogres as much as possible and stop the Alpha.
That was why I had laid the groundwork before the Main Quest even began,
And why we had to keep moving so busily now,
I need to take down that one too.
“Growrrrr…”
The ogre glared at us with bloodshot eyes.
Then, suddenly, it pulled back the arm holding the club and hurled it forward with all its strength.
Whoosh —
The thick club which was as thick as a log came hurtling toward us at a terrifying speed.
“!!”
We were momentarily startled by the unexpected move, but Go Hyeon-woo quickly stepped forward.
He used [Pure Flow] which he had prepared in advance while tilting his sword at an angle.
Whizz—
The deflected club continued flying, snapping several trees behind us like matchsticks.
Yet none of us even glanced at the fallen trees; our attention was solely fixed on the ogre’s every move.
“Raaaargh—!”
Perhaps due to losing what little reason it had left, the ogre charged forward on all fours like a beast.
As soon as Go Hyeon-woo and Baek Jun-seok came within range, it lunged at them and stretched out both hands.
“Ugh.”
“Argh!”
Thud—!
The two managed to deflect the attacks in their own ways.
However, unlike before when they had more composure, Go Hyeon-woo was forced to step back a few paces while Baek Jun-seok dropped to one knee.
Even though they deflected the attacks, part of the shock was still transmitted due to the enhanced destructive power from the ogre’s Blood Fury.
But before they could even regain their stances, the ogre’s limbs swung at them again.
Though they barely managed to deflect the next strike, Go Hyeon-woo was pushed back even further, and Baek Jun-seok’s leg was nearly buried into the ground.
“Ugh…!”
“Ugh…!”
Without giving them any break, the ogre’s relentless attacks continued.
Crack, crack,
The sound of stretching tendons and grinding bones emanated from its body.
Its muscles and joints were likely screaming from movements beyond their limits.
Boom! Boom!
Even as Spiral Explosions erupted on its chest and fireballs and magic bullets struck it, the ogre showed no sign of feeling any pain.
It didn’t hesitate for a moment. It just madly swung its limbs with the intent of crushing Go Hyeon-woo and Baek Jun-seok in front of it.
This isn’t good.
The two in the vanguard were gradually being pushed back.
At this rate, Go Hyeon-woo might hold out but Baek Jun-seok wouldn’t last much longer before collapsing.
So I quickly gave a short command and stepped forward.
“Trap.”
“Okay.”
Leaving Shin Byeong-cheol’s response behind, I swiftly approached the ogre.
Thud, thud!
“Ugh…!”
Baek Jun-seok was staggering more and more.
Cracks appeared on the mana shield surrounding his shield.
Just as the ogre was about to slam its fist down again, I intervened.
Thud—!
I added Wind Force and Storm Cloud to Root and struck, causing its fist to deflect sideways.
Baek Jun-seok and I exchanged a glance.
“Thanks, you saved me.”
“Take a break and then get back in.”
“Understood.”
Thud, thud,
While Go Hyeon-woo and I held off the ogre, Baek Jun-seok quickly recovered his strength and rejoined the fight.
When the number of defenders increased from two to three, we could manage somehow.
Meanwhile, Shin Byeong-cheol was setting up the trap as I had instructed behind us.
Countless chopsticks pierced the ground, trees, and rocks. And they gradually formed a defined area.
“……!”
Hong Yeon-hwa also sensed the intention behind this and started chanting her magic.
The ruby on her wand glowed red, and a large fire pillar magic circle was inscribed to match the range of the trap.
Soon, Shin Byeong-cheol shouted.
“Ready!”
I struck the ogre’s fist hard with Root and said,
“Fall back.”
Go Hyeon-woo and Baek Jun-seok immediately distanced themselves to the sides.
As a result, the ogre’s attention turned solely toward me.
The moment it charged, I quickly leaped back before landing between Hong Yeon-hwa and Seo Ye-in.
“Graaaah—!”
And as the charging ogre stepped into the trap,
[Wire Trap]
Swish!
The chopsticks that were tightly packed shot out mana threads all at once.
In an instant, the ogre was tightly wrapped like a cocoon.
“Graaaah!”
With a single twist of his body, more than half of the threads broke, but new ones were fired at once, which bound him even more tightly.
When Hong Yeon-hwa pointed her wand at the struggling creature,
[Fire Pillar]
Fwoooosh—!!
A huge pillar of fire rose from the large magic circle and engulfed the ogre completely.
After watching for a while, the pillar of fire subsided, leaving behind a giant charred lump and a single crystal.
Everyone let out a long sigh at that moment.
“Phew.”
“Ahhh.”
“The same ogre, yet it’s gotten so much stronger all of a sudden. It must be the secret elixir of the Blood Cult.”
Go Hyeon-woo murmured in admiration as he cleaned his magic sword.
With six of us, we thought the ogre would be easier to handle, but with the Blood Fury Pill, it became difficult again.
Unfortunately, this was only the beginning.
Thud, thud, thud,
As the heavy footsteps drew closer, Shin Byeong-cheol and Baek Jun-seok each spoke up.
“Seriously, another one? Can’t we take a break?”
“Three in a row is too much.”
The Blood Fury Pill had not only enhanced the ogres’ strength but also heightened their senses.
The pillar of fire was a perfect lure for such creatures.
The ogre that soon appeared glared at us, letting out a low growl.
“Grhhh…”
“Same plan as before.”
We all moved into position with swift coordination.
***
We continued to advance and took down each ogre that appeared like sausages lined up one after another.
Even though we were a little tired, we didn’t have to go around looking for them so it was a good thing.
In the meantime, the gloomy sky had grown darker and turned indigo, and the drizzle that had started with a few drops had become a downpour, almost as if the heavens were pouring down.
Swoooosh—
Seo Ye-in wore her invisible ghillie suit, but with the constant battering of the rain, she became like a translucent water spirit.
Hong Yeon-hwa created a small flame umbrella and used it just for herself.
The men simply took the rain as it came and got drenched.
“……”
I was soaked to the bone and watched as Hong Yeon-hwa rolled her eyes around nervously.
She seemed to be contemplating whether she should extinguish her flame umbrella and let herself get drenched as well.
I didn’t want to make her feel awkward in this situation, so I turned my gaze back forward and continued walking.
Hong Yeon-hwa trailed closely behind me.
– Koo-koo-kooong,
Not long after, a loud roar pierced through the sound of the rain.
It meant other teams were engaged in battle.
The distance seemed fairly close as well.
My companions focused their attention on me and waited for instructions.
It was an obvious decision.
“We’re going to help.”
To increase the completion rate of the main quest, I needed to prevent even one more person from getting hurt.
If their skills were up to standard, they might be able to join forces with us when we face the Alpha.
So we picked up speed and headed toward the source of the booming noise.
As expected, what we found there was,
“Kraaaah—!”
An ogre that was driven mad by the injected Blood Fury Pill.
Opposite it stood Kwak Ji-cheol, Jung Soo-ji, Park Na-ri, and the tiger Bum, along with an unidentified female student.
It seemed like the Emerald and Mother Nature clubs had paired off into teams of two.
I quickly assessed the situation.
A full-on defense team.
They had left the offense to Bum, while the other four focused on buffs, healing magic, and suppressing the enemy.
This strategy might have been somewhat effective against other participants, but their current opponent was an ogre.
Their attack power is sorely lacking.
Bum darted nimbly around the ogre and kept clawing at it.
As a spirit beast, Bum possessed combat abilities comparable to a typical first-year student, but its attack power was nothing extraordinary.
And yet, the four of them were relying solely on Bum’s attacks. This made it impossible to land a significant blow on the ogre.
To make matters worse, the Blood Fury Pill had made the ogre even more powerful.
And we arrived just as they were barely managing to hold their ground,
“Kraaagh!”
“Kwak Ji-cheol!”
To be more precise, it was the moment when Kwak Ji-cheol was struck by the ogre and sent rolling across the ground.
I’m a bit late.
When I pointed at the ogre with Root, wind gathered at its chest and then exploded.
Boom!
“Kraaagh!”
The ogre immediately whipped its head towards us and charged at a terrifying speed.
But then the nearby trees began to tilt and stretch as if they were made of rubber. Then they wrapped themselves around its limbs and held it in place.
Park Na-ri’s team had cast a wood-type spell.
Park Na-ri shouted.
“N-Now!”
We abandoned our formation and focused solely on attacking.
Go Hyeon-woo’s Clear Stream, Baek Jun-seok’s sword strikes, Shin Byung-cheol’s chopsticks, and Seo Ye-in’s magic bullets…
The relentless attacks crushed the ogre’s chest inward.
“Grrr…”
Thud,
Leaving the ogre behind as it fell with a death rattle, we hurriedly rushed to Kwak Ji-cheol.
And at that moment, our expressions turned grim.
“Ugh…”
Kwak Ji-cheol’s body had been partially crushed by the berserk ogre’s arm.
His limbs were twisted at odd angles, and blood streamed from his nose and mouth.
Despite suffering such serious injuries, there was no sign that the dungeon’s escape mechanism was going to activate.
“J-Just wait a little longer! We’ll h-heal you!”
Park Na-ri’s group poured recovery magic into him, but their magic was only point heals.
While it had excellent sustain, its effect was far from strong.
It wasn’t enough to bring someone back from the brink of death.
“……”
Kwak Ji-cheol’s gaze moved over each of the people watching and his eyes finally settled on me.
He reached out his hand and squeezed out the last of his strength to speak.
“Tell… my brother… that I’m… sorry…”
“What are you saying, you idiot.”
I pulled out a [Recovery Scroll] and tore it apart.
A bright light flooded my vision.
Flaaash—!
When the light faded away, Kwak Ji-cheol’s injuries had healed completely. Not a single scratch remained on his body.
I blinked and gave the lying Kwak Ji-cheol a few kicks.
“Get up, you idiot.”
“……”
Kwak Ji-cheol stood up. He looked quite embarrassed.
***
TN: Bro can’t even act cool in death
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