I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

2 – 002. Blade Embodiment (2)

*Shwaaack!*

What I held was a small dagger. But the result created by that small dagger was astounding.

“Chwieeek!”

The orc’s filthy scream echoed through the cramped prison.

It had all happened in an instant. The eyes of those left in the prison trembled.

“Ho, how did the youngest one…”

“Was he hiding his power?!”

“I didn’t even see it!”

The mercenaries’ shocked shouts were laughable.

But there wasn’t time to answer them right now.

The reason was simple. Even though I’d landed a valid attack, the thing still wasn’t dead. It still had a murderous glint in its eyes.

*Whoosh!*

Perhaps because its right shoulder was completely split open, it immediately threw a left fist. The sound of it cutting through the air was fierce. If I let that hit, I wouldn’t be getting away with just a few days of rest.

*Sshhick!*

I spun my body quickly. A fist grazed past me at the same time.

‘……!’

Was it the effect of the trait?

I saw a shimmering ‘light’ on the orc’s body as it rotated violently.

And the sensation of his movements appearing slow. This, too, must be the power of the trait.

‘Now!’

From the moment I gripped the dagger, my body felt light as a feather. An unfathomable confidence surged within me.

The result was obvious.

*Thunk! Shwiiish!*

Large movements always created openings. My dagger, having grasped that fact, buried itself into the orc’s neck.

“Tch, Ick!”

*Thump!*

And with a death rattle, the orc collapsed.

“Haah, haah.”

Sticky, disgusting blood soaked my face. It could have been unpleasant, but instead, my chest pounded.

‘I can do it. It’s possible.’

It was just a fight against one orc. An indoor fight that was disadvantageous against the big brute, yet it gave me immense confidence.

‘I’m stronger than I imagined.’

From the moment I gripped the dagger, I felt an endless torrent of blessings wash over me. It was impossible not to understand what it meant.

The power of my many traits was far more powerful than I’d thought.

*Thunk! Thunk!*

I stabbed the fallen orc several more times with my dagger before shaking off the blood that covered my face.

A kill confirmation.

If this were a game, the dead monster would have turned to light and crumbled, but this was no longer a game; it was reality. It was a necessity for me.

*Swoosh.*

I stood up and looked around.

I saw the bewildered faces of the men, who still hadn’t grasped the situation. I muttered to them briefly.

“Let’s go. Now.”

“Y-yes! We should!”

Was it because of the overwhelming divine power he’d shown?

Even though it was a jumbled order from the youngest, the men trapped alongside him answered immediately.

“Hey… kid. What are you planning to do now?”

It was a question from a middle-aged man with a scraggly beard. He was a disheveled mess, having not properly washed or eaten for days.

“We need to escape from here. Right now.”

“E-escape? Now? Through those b*stards?”

“If we don’t leave now, we’ll die. I’m sure of it.”

“……!”

The mercenaries swallowed hard at his emotionless voice.

He’d just sliced through an orc with a simple, old dagger.

They probably had no idea what was going on either. This rookie, this greenhorn mercenary they’d seen all along had just killed an orc single-handedly.

“Don’t you think they’ll notice? Even the boss was injured.”

“That’s not the important thing. I guarantee, if we stay here, we’ll die.”

“I’ll follow the kid! I don’t want to become food for those gruesome b*stards!”

“Y-yeah, me too!”

Everyone was in agreement. Even Hans, grimacing in pain, was nodding. What more was there to say?

The half-open prison door was already clear in their minds.

“We need to arm ourselves first. Even though it’s dawn, there’ll be guards at the entrance.”

“Y-yeah, probably. They’re not just ordinary orcs, they’re Red Orcs.”

“Orcs will keep their spoils, which means weapons, in a storeroom. We need to get our hands on at least some weapons there.”

My following explanation was extremely simple. There wasn’t a simpleton among them who wouldn’t understand.

“How does the kid know so much about orc biology? He’s only just a rookie mercenary…”

“Is that what’s important right now?”

All eyes shot to the one who’d spoken.

“……!”

The man, feeling the silent pressure, shrank back like a turtle, and I moved toward the half-open door.

Creak, clunk!

That goddamn old door.

Any hope of minimizing the noise shattered, but thankfully, no orcs reacted to the sound of the prison door opening.

‘It’s truly filthy.’

The view beyond the prison window was my first real impression of the world outside.

Ork Village. What the game called the Ork Camp was a place of utterly wretched conditions.

No concept of toilets, need I say more?

*Crackling!*

Small torches blazed here and there in the camp. We, hidden in the shadows, dodging their faint glow, scanned our surroundings.

“There!”

Finding the warehouse wasn’t too difficult.

There were no orcs wandering inside the camp, and the torches offered at least a little light through the darkness.

Silently approaching the warehouse, I eased the large iron door open.

*Thud!*

Contrary to our worries, the warehouse door opened with ease, and everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.

“Enter.”

“Okay!”

The warehouse was bigger than we thought. The moonlight filtering through a broken window made the interior surprisingly bright. A stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

“My sword! My sword is here!”

“Damn it. My hand axe and shield were here too.”

The men who entered the warehouse were eagerly stroking their respective weapons.

‘And me…’

I stood there blankly, eyes darting around the warehouse.

I had no memory of fighting orcs, so I had no idea what weapon I even used.

“Huh?”

Then I spotted a unique sword.

It was a black sword. The others didn’t even glance at it, as if it was a weapon already lost by its owner. But it felt strangely luxurious.

*Shing!*

Without a second thought, I picked up the sword. And as I slowly drew it, the jet-black blade caught my eye.

‘Even for someone who doesn’t know swords, this looks like a good one?’

First, the appearance. A heavy longsword all in black. The flowing, subtle curves were almost beautiful. It had a heavy, balanced weight that screamed this was no ordinary blade.

‘I don’t know.’

Yeah, either way, I’m taking it. But by the looks of it, this sword shouldn’t be lying around here like that. Something about it bothered me a little.

“That’s it. No time to worry about that.”

A smirk escaped me.

My own nose is three feet deep in shit, what do I care about weapon materials? I’ll just pick up what’s in front of me.

I strapped the sword to my waist and looked around. The men all had their weapons ready, their faces tense.

‘Is it even possible?’

I thought as I slowly took a step.

This isn’t a game anymore, it’s the reality I face. If I escape, how will I survive?

Where will I live? How will I get money? I was called a nobleman’s son, should I go to my family?

The questions kept popping up.

But I shook my head.

‘Let’s focus on escaping for now.’

Creak!

I pushed open the half-closed warehouse door. The wooden door swung open with the sound of rusty hinges.

“Keep your voices down.”

“Yes sir.”

Whispered voices. The sounds penetrated the chirping of insects, and the men all nodded.

Thud.

I carefully stepped out. The scenery outside the warehouse was the same as before.

‘I suppose that’s something, at least.’

Orcs have dull senses. It felt fitting for a race that put everything into their physical strength. That’s why we can even move like this.

How long did we hold our breath while walking?

“There’s the exit!”

A man’s scream echoed out.

Sure enough, we could see a gaping hole in the haphazardly built wooden fence. It was an awkward shape, but it looked like a guard post.

I didn’t relax, and looked around instead.

Something was off. The orc camp I remembered wasn’t so easy.

First, even if the orcs’ intelligence is pathetic, they always guard their camps strictly. All life except for their own is their enemy, after all.

Second, the strangely quiet camp was bugging me. Even if orcs sleep a lot, there wasn’t a single one patrolling.

“We’re alive, we’re alive!”

“Let’s go, let’s get out of this hell!”

“Wait! Everyone stop!”

A sharp shout ripped from my throat.

Regardless, even the ailing Hans was recklessly throwing himself out of the camp.

*Whizzzz!*

*Thwack!*

“……!”

It was then that an axe, larger than any human male, came flying.

“Tsk tsk tsk! Human! Fool!”

A voice like scraping metal. The chilling sound, which seeped into your very bones, rang clear in my ears as I stood there dumbfounded.

The source of the voice was the giant orc I’d seen during the day.

The war-chief, or perhaps some tribal leader, circled the camp entrance with heavy, leisurely steps. Then, at the last moment, he turned his back to the village, his cold red eyes gleaming.

“Human! I kill!”

I couldn’t speak. The image of men’s heads being severed in an instant kept flashing in my vision.

“Hans, Johnson, Miguel.”

And old comrades whose names I never even knew. They had met their futile end, cut down by the axe that giant had thrown.

Why?

It had only been a few words exchanged in a prison cell for three days, but facing their deaths chilled my blood. A shiver ran down my spine for some unknown reason. Yet somehow, I knew that the feeling wasn’t fear.

“Tskk!”

“Tsk!”

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

At the same time, countless orcs began to emerge. It seemed as if they had planned to lure us out of the prison from the very start.

“A trap, then?”

Something felt too easy, I had thought. I looked at the small watchtower at the corner of the palisade. A few headless bodies lay sprawled on the ground.

“Tsk tsk tsk! Not trap! Hunt festival!”

“Tskkk!”

“Tsk tsk!”

*Clench.*

The orcs’ raucous laughter. Just watching them made my grip on the sword hilt tighten.

To survive, I had to think.

Escape?

Not the best option. The problem was whether I could actually outrun their pursuit.

‘Fight.’

Faced with a rage that threatened to freeze my entire body, I maintained a surprisingly calm mind. The traits ‘Composure’ and ‘Clear Mind’ were proving their worth even at this very moment.

‘Kill. All of them.’

I made my decision instantly.

‘Rely on my traits. Engaging in combat offers a higher chance of survival.’

The probability of a successful escape was extremely low. I assessed the situation with cold detachment.

*Swoosh!*

The sword, acquired just minutes before, revealed itself to the world with a clear sound.

The jet-black blade, reflecting not a single ray of light, felt perfectly suited to the sinister pre-dawn scene.

“Chweeek? Weak human! Not running away!”

“Chweek! No fun! No fun!”

The orcs’ words dripped with arrogance. I, standing before them, stared directly at my enemies.

“Yeah.”

Once the decision was made, a strangely dispassionate tone escaped my lips.

Of course, a little worry wasn’t absent. It was simply that the power of my traits had calmed my mind with more intensity than ever before.

“Chweeek! Weakest human! Only one left!”

The orcs swept me with their surging red eyes. Just the eye contact alone caused a wave of discomfort, making my brow furrow.

‘The weakest human?’

The fools’ words that completely missed the mark made me chuckle.

They clearly hadn’t fully grasped the situation. They likely never imagined that the youngest and seemingly weakest one among us would be bracing themselves for battle.

“I’m not the weakest prey, but your…”

I raised my sword. Facing dozens of orcs, information regarding the battlefield, my enemies, and their weapons flooded my mind.

“Enemy.”