I Became a Gallery Newbie Beloved by Transcendents-Chapter 15: Siege Warfare (7)

I finished off three more orcs, then took down another group of four.

And then, I crossed a ridge.

As expected, things never went according to plan.

Despite what Yunes had said, the Orc Shaman, whom I thought we would encounter immediately, was nowhere to be seen.

The sun had long since set. The night deepened, stretching all the way into dawn.

But there was no time to set up camp and rest.

"We’ll sleep when it’s over."

Yunes kept whispering that the Orc Shaman was right in front of us now.

Falling asleep now would be tantamount to accepting death.

Fortunately, I wasn’t feeling any fatigue.

If anything, I was unnaturally alert.

Like a bowstring drawn taut and never released.

Both my body and mind had been in a constant state of tension, which probably explained it.

Aside from Yunes, who had been acting more as a guide than a mage, Resellin and her mercenary companion, Rohan, seemed to be in a similar state.

Pushing through the undergrowth, we finally spotted a flickering light in the distance.

A tent, conspicuously out of place in the middle of the mountains.

Campfires surrounding it.

Orcs standing guard with torches in hand.

Everything pointed to the Orc Shaman being nearby.

I spoke in a low voice.

"I’ll take care of the leader. You two handle the rest."

Resellin and her Second-Rank mercenary, Rohan, nodded.

Having seen them fight, I knew they could handle at least 1.5 times their expected share.

"Yunes, just keep listening to me and following my instructions."

Yunes shivered but nodded again.

"...Orc Shamans are said to be incredibly strong. Their personal combat power is around Third-Rank, but when fighting with their orc subordinates, they can exert the strength of a Fourth-Rank Mage."

I memorized his words and opened the Transcendent Gallery.

Title: I think I’ve found the Orc Shaman.

Author: ㅇㅇ*

If there are any tips you haven’t shared yet, or if you’ve killed an Orc Shaman before, drop your experiences here.Replies came in fast.

ㄴ Archmage) Don’t rush to kill the shaman immediately. If the surrounding orcs seem like a threat, take them out first to prevent any complications. Also, make good use of the mage you brought along.

After sulking in silence due to being mocked, the Archmage reappeared, acting like nothing had happened.

Ice Queen also left a comment, which was pretty much the same advice.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ) How did you guys kill an Orc Shaman?

The answers I got were utterly useless.

ㄴ *Archmage) I just reversed its mana flow, and it clutched its throat and died.

ㄴ Ice Queen) I shouted ‘FROOOZEN!’ and it died! Freeze! Freeze!

A magic prodigy and a bloodline prodigy—neither of their solutions helped me in the slightest.

Even the advice from sword-wielding veterans wasn’t particularly useful.

ㄴ Archmage) Oh, if your mana level is close to the shaman’s, fire magic is the most effective against them.

This was useful information, but it depended more on Yunes than on me.

ㄴ *Sword of Light) Just cut it down.

ㄴ Gutter Swordsman) Be careful. Even if it’s a shaman, it’s still an orc, meaning it can fight at a level close to a Third-Rank Knight in melee combat. Dodge its magic, get close, and kill it.

Gutter Swordsman’s response was long-winded, but ultimately, he was just saying to dodge and kill it.

ㄴ Absolute Monarch) You brought a spear, right? Use it to test the distance before engaging.

Finally, a halfway decent piece of advice.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ) I’ll check back after I’m done with the Second Floor.

ㄴ *Just stop announcing it and go.

ㄴ *Lmao, this climber triggers death flags like it’s a hobby.

ㄴ *Dragon King) Beltui- wishes you luckkk.

ㄴ *Shrine Maiden) Return safelyyy.

ㄴ Admin) Go and come back.

With Admin’s message as the last comment, I closed the gallery.

I counted roughly thirty orcs in the area.

A single common trait among them—glowing red eyes.

Behind the line of massive orcs stood an even larger figure.

Its thick neck was adorned with layers of gold and silver ornaments.

Above its head, a familiar message appeared.

[BOSS MONSTER]

[Orc Shaman]

I could feel it.

The overwhelming killing intent radiating from the Orc Shaman.

Resellin and Rohan, standing on either side of me, must have felt it too.

Their movements stiffened.

Like mice caught in front of a cat.

[Activating Skill – Focused Reinforcement Lv.3]

"Snap out of it. I’m going in first. Follow my lead."

Maybe because I spoke first, but the Orc Shaman opened its mouth in response.

KROOOOOOOOAR—!

Its roar blasted through the air, shaking the very mountain.

A suppression-type roar.

A psychological attack meant to instill fear.

There was no time for hesitation anymore.

[Activating Skill – Mana Body Reinforcement Lv.2]

My mana heart pulsed.

Mana surged through my entire body.

I had already confirmed during my battle with the Orc Legion Commander—leveling up completely restored the body.

I would kill this thing and move on to the Third Floor.

The Orc Shaman’s massive right foot lifted.

It slammed into the ground.

BOOM!

It was an obvious signal for its subordinates to charge.

Of the three javelins I had left, I threw one.

Aimed straight at the Orc Shaman.

Ting!

The javelin was suddenly deflected midair by a transparent barrier in front of the Orc Shaman.

As expected.

Of course, it wouldn’t let me get an easy kill.

I hadn’t bet everything on that throw. Its only purpose was to buy me an opening to move.

I lowered my body and sprinted forward in an instant.

My longsword slashed horizontally.

Two orc heads flew.

With the black javelin in my left hand, I ripped through the gut of an approaching orc and yanked it back out.

Green energy swirled around the blunt staff in the Orc Shaman’s hand.

"Yunes, stay by my side and focus on interfering with its magic. If you identify the spell, tell me immediately."

I spoke faster than ever.

Well, I had to. Staying alive was kind of important.

Yunes’ response came even faster than expected.

"Wind Cutter! A wind-based spell that sends horizontal slicing blades!"

I yanked the poorly held shield from Rohan, who was still standing there dumbfounded, and kicked off the ground.

Shhwaaa!

Two Wind Cutters flew toward me.

I dodged one by twisting my foot, pivoting just in time. The second one I blocked with the shield.

Kraaaaaagh!

Six frenzied orcs rushed at me simultaneously.

[Skill Composure has leveled up. Lv.4]

Dragon Slayer Sword Form 1—Thursahogg.

A crescent-shaped trajectory swept through the six orcs.

They collapsed backward all at once.

I kicked off the ground and charged forward.

Every enemy that stood in my way, I cut down.

In a flash, I had slain fifteen.

I glanced to the side.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Yunes looked pale enough to collapse at any moment, but he was keeping up.

"If I wound the shaman, cast your fire magic in that opening."

He nodded frantically.

I dashed forward again. Just as I cut down three more, my vision was engulfed in deep blue light.

BOOOOOOOM!

A lightning spell.

Yunes barely managed to raise a barrier spell in front of me, but my left arm still took a direct hit.

Crack.

I clenched my teeth.

Even with Pain Suppression at Level 4, the agony was excruciating.

A quick glance at my left arm revealed that it had been badly burned.

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If not for Mana Body Reinforcement and my heightened stats, I would’ve died instantly.

The Orc Shaman smirked.

Did it think it had won?

I beheaded an approaching orc with my longsword.

[Level Up.]

[Lv.9 → Lv.10]

[Strength increased by 6.]

[Agility increased by 5.]

[Endurance increased by 5.]

[Mana increased by 4.]

Crack.

My left arm—fully restored.

Now, aside from the small fry that Resellin and Rohan were handling, only one enemy remained in front of me.

The Orc Shaman.

BOOM!

With a movement barely resembling proper footwork, I closed the distance between us in an instant.

Just as others had warned me, the shaman’s melee capabilities weren’t to be underestimated.

The massive axe in its left hand came crashing down.

I twisted out of its trajectory like an eel.

With my restored left hand, I stabbed the black javelin into the back of its hand—twice.

Kweeeeegh!

It let out a guttural shriek, dropping the axe.

Dragon Slayer Sword Form 3.

A vertical strike—Drakabani.

I slashed down onto its right shoulder.

The arm it had lifted finally dropped.

Shlurk!

My arm moved like lightning.

Hjartagnyr.

I drove my longsword straight into its gut.

KRRRAAAAAAAH!

"Yunes, fire!"

Come on, fire-shuttle.

Fwoooosh—

A spear of flames, conjured at point-blank range by Yunes, impaled the shaman alongside my sword.

The pig bastard’s screams grew even louder.

I twisted my sword inside its body, then followed up with a horizontal slash.

The flames followed my blade’s arc.

A blazing trail was etched into the night.

FWHOOOOSH!

The Orc Shaman’s massive body collapsed, blood gushing endlessly from its gut.

[BOSS MONSTER DEFEATED!]

[LEVEL UP!]

[Lv.10 → Lv.12]

[Strength increased by 12.]

[Agility increased by 10.]

[Endurance increased by 11.]

[Mana increased by 9.]

Two levels up—just like when I killed the Legion Commander.

No idea how long this steep growth curve would last.

『QUEST – Defense of Kiblev Fortress has been marked as SUCCESSFUL due to the defeat of the Boss Monster – Orc Shaman.』

[Second Floor Stage Cleared.]

[Player Han Yuseong’s Second Floor stage score is being calculated.]

Oh, right.

I’d heard that scores were tallied starting from the Second Floor.

《SECOND FLOOR – SCORE RANKING》

1st – Union Leader: 784 points

2nd – Being Tracked: 412 points

3rd – Sinclair: 399 points

⋮

Only first place stood out by a huge margin.

No way I’d be surpassing that guy.

[Score °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° calculation complete.]

The number that appeared next made me realize how short-sighted I had been.

[Second Floor Stage]

[Han Yuseong: 1,532 points]

...What?