Praise the Orc

Chapter 53: Yi-Yoo’s Revenge (2)

When Crockta entered the city, he wasn’t restrained at the entrance, unlike at Arnin. Was this what big cities were like? Even Crockta was impressed this time. Elves riding on pegasuses flew in the sky, and huge spirits he had never seen before were roaming around with elves on their shoulders. The buildings were so big and beautiful that he felt as if he was surrounded by works of art.

This was Maillard, the city of elves! Maillard was considered to be the birthplace of elf players. With its bustling urban life, diverse work opportunities existed, and the nearby hunting grounds were perfect for beginners as they didn’t have high-level monsters. Compared to Orcrox, it was heaven. However, that was the problem. Crockta shook his head disapprovingly. This place was too refined. The elves here probably didn’t know what it was like to struggle and had only walked smooth-sailing paths.

‘The mind becomes weak if the body is too comfortable!’

“Fragile elves!” muttered Crockta with the pride of an orc warrior.

Yet, his eyes were distracted by the curvaceous figures of the beautiful elves passing by.

He shook his head to come to his senses. “A warrior is not enticed by women!”

‘Pain makes a warrior stronger. I must not be enticed by sweet things.’

Crockta began singing the song of orc warriors to keep his mind straight, “A warrior doesn’t need womeeen!”

Something was off though. Every citizen he passed by glanced at him warily, even though orcs weren’t uncommon here. This was a big city where anyone could enter. He even saw a few orcs nearby.

Then he ran into someone who cleared up his confusion.

It was an orc. The orc’s eyebrows twitched when he saw Crockta. He then approached Crockta eagerly. The orc was also a warrior like Crockta. He had tattoos all over his face and body and had a huge build. Crockta could sense the orc’s great strength.

The orc extended his fist. “Are you alive? Crockta!”

“...?”

‘How did the orc know his name?’ Crockta wondered inwardly.

“How...?” he asked.

“It’s obvious with your tattoos of honor and black bandana. Your name is spreading all over the continent! Honorable warrior! Bul’tar!”

Crockta and the orc bumped fists.

“I’m orc Purat! I’m a big fan! I look up to you!”

“Nice to meet you, Purat. I’m really not that great though.”

“What are you saying?! You rescued people at the Arnin Plains, exposed the hypocrisy of Arnin’s politicians, and fought for the innocent victims at Chesswood!” Purat hit his chest passionately. “It’s an age when warriors no longer remember the commandments. You are a warrior worthy of respect.”

“I’m embarrassed by the excessive praise.” Crockta shook his head.

Come to think of it, people around him were whispering to one another as well.

“Is he the famous orc, Crockta? They said he’s the orc of righteousness who punishes injustice.”

“Crockta, Arnin’s honorary citizen and Chesswood’s hero?”

As people gradually recognized him, Crockta puffed his chest out with pride. He was also proud of how much he had grown from his past experiences. His achievement points had increased dramatically as well.

[Status Window

Orc Warrior

Title: Pursuer of the Pinnacle

Level: 39

Achievement Points: 76510

Assimilation: 80%

Skills

Orc Warrior’s Destruction (Rare)

Orc Warrior’s Regeneration (Rare)

Leyteno’s Swordsmanship (Essence)

Combative Spirit (Essence)

Mind’s Eye (Special)

Tattoos of Honor (Rare)

Crushing Roar (Rare)]

The highest level currently known in Elder Lord was Level 60. Considering Elder Lord was a game that was difficult to level up in, Crockta had grown at incredible speed. Players of Level 40 and above were universally acknowledged as veteran high-level players. Moreover, Crockta had two Essence-tier skills, even though it was difficult to attain just one. Thanks to his battles at Chesswood, Crockta’s Indomitable Fighting Spirit had upgraded to Combative Spirit, while his Leyteno’s Greatsword Technique had upgraded to Leyteno’s Swordsmanship due to him practicing wrapping his blade with mana.

Assimilation was another story. Everyone had been shocked when the Elder Lord Times revealed that Kim Dal-Kwang’s assimilation rate was seventy-three percent, but Crockta’s was eighty percent! Just based on the assimilation rates, it would seem like Crockta was perhaps at the pinnacle of Elder Lord. ‘Pinnacle’—what a cool word!

[Your name is now well-known in the world of Elder Lord.]

[NPCs you meet will be increasingly favorable toward you.]

[Purat is looking at you with eyes of respect.]

Purat was in awe of Crockta.

“I heard you were humble and intellectual unlike most orcs, and it was true! You are amazing! You are different from regular orcs! Hahaha!” Purat chuckled.

However, Crockta refused to acknowledge what Purat said.

“What are you saying?!” exclaimed Crockta with a firm expression on his face. “No one can determine what is or isn’t orc-like. Only you can judge for yourself!”

“...!”

“An orc’s potential is limitless, Purat!”

Purat looked at Crockta with a surprised expression. It was true. Even though Purat was an orc, he had prejudices against orcs. Not only that, he believed that humans were mediocre, elves were fast but weak, dwarves only had good craftsmanship, and gnomes were just little twerps! He had been judging the world according to his prejudices.

Nevertheless, meeting Crockta enlightened him. When Purat realized that he could become anything he wanted to be, he gained a surge of confidence.

Crockta continued, “The instructor who taught me once said that a warrior is not born but made.”

“Was he...?”

“He was the instructor of orc warriors, Lenox.”

“Lenox!”

Purat had heard about Lenox’s reputation. To become a warrior, Purat had learned from an instructor in another city instead of Orcrox, but his instructor had been Lenox’s student. Lenox had been an instructor of warriors and an instructor of instructors; he had been a true warrior.

“Lenox! I heard the news. Those filthy humans!” exclaimed Purat.

“I am going to avenge him.”

“Revenge!”

“A warrior always pays back in kindness and revenge.”

“As expected...” Purat grabbed Crockta’s hands and held them. “As expected, you are an honorable orc.”

Crockta nodded in agreement. He knew he was a cool orc.

Crockta and Purat chatted for a while.

“It was an honor to meet you,” said Purat as he bumped fists with Crockta. “Let’s stay alive and meet again. Bul’tar!”

“Bul’tar!”

After Crockta bid farewell to Purat, he strolled around the city. He had become more confident after meeting Purat. It seemed that even the beautiful elves were looking at him with admiring gazes.

Crockta puffed out his chest and thought, ‘Look, elves. This is an orc warrior.’

“He looks really scary.”

“Don’t look at him.”

“Even an orc of justice looks frightening.”

“I’m grateful it’s not dark outside yet.”

The elves whispered to one another as they looked at Crockta.

Anyways, Crockta had come here for one reason—to avenge his sister Yi-Yoo! Yi-Yoo probably wasn’t the only victim of those shameless men. People like them repeated the same behavior because people didn’t change easily.

Suddenly, Crockta stopped in his tracks. “Don’t change... Do people not change? No, they don’t change easily.”

He used to believe that people never changed, but he now knew that people did change. They could definitely change.

“A person can be anything,” muttered Crockta to himself.

There had been a time when he wanted to change himself badly. It hadn’t seemed possible, but he had gritted his teeth and managed to change. A person could become anyone they wanted if they had the will. That was how a human was.

“You guys will change too,” Crockta muttered as he thought of the impudent kids who had bullied Yi-Yoo.

They would soon meet an educator named ‘Crockta’ and be reborn.

“Hmm...?” Crockta suddenly noticed that beside him was a store selling mirrors.

He saw an expensive and rare mirror he hadn’t seen before. Beautiful elf ladies were fixing their hair in the mirror, but they jerked away in surprise when they saw the orc’s frightening face behind them.

Crockta observed his appearance in the mirror. ‘A terrifying orc wearing a black bandana!’

He wore leather armor that revealed his bulging muscles and carried a huge greatsword on his back. Furthermore, what about the tattoos all over his body?

Crockta nodded approvingly. He had the appearance of a very cool warrior. Still, he wanted to become even cooler.

“Now that I think about it, I’ve only been fighting lately.”

It was time for shopping.

***

“Are you alive?” greeted Crockta.

“Ah! Hello.”

The elf saleswoman was startled by the appearance of her new customer. She ran a clothing store for other species, so she sold fashion items made for diverse body types—like dwarves, orcs, and gnomes—but didn’t have clothes for elves and humans. Of course, she had quite a number of orc customers, but it was her first time seeing an orc customer who had such a rugged appearance. He was covered in tattoos and appeared as if he had come straight from the battlefields.

She froze up at his fierce gaze. “What are you looking for...?”

Instead of replying, the orc stood in front of the mirror. The orc caressed his chin for a while and studied his reflection. Then he nodded his head contentedly.

He opened his mouth to say, “A cool...”

“A cool...?” wondered the saleswoman.

“Headband,” replied the orc.

He had been wearing the bandana with the Blacksmith Company logo all this time. It was time for him to get rid of it. He planned to purchase a headband to cover the star on his forehead.

The elf saleswoman calmly laid out various headbands in front of the orc. They were mostly items worn by adventurers to prevent sweat from dripping down their faces. Crockta chose the headband that appealed to him. It was a red headband.

“Red is the best, right?” he asked.

“Yes? Yes...” replied the saleswoman with hesitation.

“I’d like the red one, please.”

“That will be three silvers.”

“Hmm.”

The headband was inexpensive. Crockta immediately put on the headband and tied the straps behind his head. It had enough room to fit an orc’s head.

“Does it look cool?” asked Crockta.

“Of course,” said the elf lady.

After all, she couldn’t say that the orc looked like he was soaked in blood from the battlefields when he wore the red headband. In fact, she was surprised that he appeared even more heinous when he took the black bandana off and wrapped the red headband around his head.

“It’s nice,” said Crockta.

“...”

“Please toss this,” requested Crockta.

He handed the elf lady his Blacksmith Company bandana for disposal, and it was thrown straight into the trash can. After making the purchase, Crockta confidently strolled out of the clothing store.

Now, he had a red bandana that covered the star on his forehead. As his rough strands of hair fell down in tangles, it seemed to multiply his charm. People glanced at Crockta.

Crockta then went to the armor store and bought equipment more expensive than his original leather armor. Although the base was leather, it had iron plating layered over his private area, so it upgraded his defenses. He then put on gauntlets and boots that protected his hands and feet. Finally, he put on a belt where he could hang his daggers. He looked like a brand-new orc. Crockta now had the appearance of an experienced orc warrior!

Then he headed to a blacksmith shop for an inspection of his Ogre Slayer. Upon seeing the greatsword, the dwarf blacksmith’s eyes widened in surprise.

“This is...!” exclaimed the blacksmith.

The blacksmith immediately recognized that the greatsword was made out of adamantium alloy unique to the Golden Anvil tribe. He knew that only the Golden Anvil tribe could skillfully harness adamantium to this extent.

“Are you a friend of the Golden Anvil tribe?” asked the blacksmith.

“I’m not, but my friend saved some members of the Golden Anvil tribe, so I was able to acquire the greatsword.”

“I thought it was a thing of the past for orcs to carry weapons from the Golden Anvil tribe. I will sharpen the blade so that it can cut through anything! Look forward to it!” said the dwarf with excitement.

After the weapon inspection, Crockta purchased two daggers from the blacksmith shop to hang on the belt of his new leather armor in case of emergencies. When he received the greatsword with its freshly sharpened blade, he felt as if he had been reborn.

Since the beginning, Crockta had been working hard non-stop. He had rolled across training grounds to become a warrior under Lenox, and even when he departed from Orcrox, he had gotten involved in various incidents and hadn’t had the time to look after himself. Now, he finally felt like himself.

Crockta walked confidently with his back straight. It was nice being in a big city. He saw quality equipment and items that he hadn’t seen in the villages and cities he had visited so far. Consequently, he headed to a store that sold miscellaneous goods to purchase some potions.

Crockta paused in shock.

‘Blacksmith Company again! The store was the Maillard branch of the Blacksmith Company! Blacksmith, the owner of the company, must be extremely rich.’

There seemed to be a Blacksmith Company store wherever he went. Crockta decided to go inside anyway because products made by the Blacksmith Company were trustworthy.

Yet, once he went inside, he flinched and stepped backward in surprise. ‘Why’s that woman here?’

Crockta took deep breaths to calm himself.

“Huh, a customer? Come in, come in. Why the hesitation?” a familiar voice tried to draw Crockta into the store.

Crockta didn’t move, but the woman’s hand grasped Crockta’s arm and pulled on it.

“An orc customer would need... potions? Or a sword? What do you need? We sell everything, everything,” the woman said.

The woman was Stella—the Blacksmith Company intern with whom Crockta had sold vegetables in Anail! Moreover, he was certain that Stella was one of his sister’s friends in real life.

While thinking of this, Crockta stared at Stella.

“...?” Stella tilted her head curiously in response. “Why? Is something on my face? Ah, sorry, but I’m not interested in other species.”

She didn’t recognize him.

Crockta realized that with the tattoos he had acquired from the orc warrior ceremony and his larger stature, he looked cooler now. He looked completely different from his beginner orc apprentice days, so it was natural that she couldn’t recognize him.

‘Thank god,’ he thought.

Then Crockta deepened his voice and said, “Hmm... I have come to buy a potion...”

“We have lots of potions. Come on in.”

The Maillard branch of the Blacksmith Company was quite large. It was clear that Stella had been promoted, as her name tag had ‘Stella, Manager’ written on it.

‘It’s all thanks to me,’ thought Crockta as he smiled contentedly.

Just when Crockta was about to purchase a bag of potions...

“Wait,” interrupted Stella.

“...?”

“I have one question,” said Stella to Crockta.

Crockta flinched because he thought she had found out who he was.

“What does a potion mean to you?” asked Stella.

“...?”

“I’m Stella, an honorable manager. I will only sell to adventurers who understand the value of potions.”

“...”

“Now, give me your answer!”

‘Stella... No, Yun-Ji. No, that’s not how it works,’ Crockta thought.

He ultimately turned his back to Stella without a word.

“What? Huh? Hey! Aren’t you going to buy it?”

“...”

“I will take back what I said. I said it by mistake. Here’s the potion!”

“...”

“No, don’t go! Discount! Discount! I will give you a discount! Okay?”

It was only at this point that Crockta turned around. Thus, he was able to purchase potions from Stella at a discounted price. He could hear Stella in the background grumbling and wondering why the method hadn’t worked for her.

“I have one question,” said Crockta in a husky voice. “Do you know the scoundrels in the area who pick on weak players and attack them?”

Stella had to have heard the rumors.

She furrowed her eyebrows at Crockta’s question. “Perhaps... you’re talking about them?”

“Them?”

“There are guys who hit on female players—no, women who have been cursed by the stars.”

“Correct.”

“What? No way...?” Stella stared at the greatsword hanging from his back.

Crockta nodded. “We shouldn’t just let them be.”

Stella was in awe. “Wow, orc warrior, you are amazing. In that case, I will help you. My friend was attacked by them.”

She was talking about Yi-Yoo. Yi-An was surprised. He had assumed Jung Yun-Ji wasn’t that close to Yi-Yoo and that they were just acquaintances in the same year who occasionally exchanged greetings.

Now that he thought about it, Yi-An didn’t know much about Yi-Yoo’s university life. He had vaguely heard about it from the past police incident, but he didn’t know what she was like outside of home. However, if he worked with Stella on this mission, he could subtly ask her questions about Yi-Yoo.

“Sounds good,” replied Crockta.

“I get off work soon. Let’s go together then!” said Stella excitedly.

Thus, Yi-An and Yun-Ji—or Crockta and Stella—embarked on a mission together, although their intentions were slightly different.