Chapter 36 - Heroic Shield, the Wall of Despair (2)
Kang Shin-hyuk felt a need to get a grasp on the situation first. It was a quest to get the Heroic Shield back, which means that those who claimed it as their wall would be his enemies, but what if…
“Return the Orb of Water!”
“Those damn Survival Alliance guys! Stealing Orde’s treasure was a nasty trick!”
“In this world, power is order! Weakness is a sin!”
“No defeated soldiers will grow old. Kill them all!”
At least the good and evil on this battlefield was clear. Kang Shin-hyuk was able to figure out the situation by picking up the yells and screams ringing out on the battlefield. Those who currently occupied the wall were the Survival Alliance, and they had stolen a treasure known as the Water Orb from the group named Orde. They were fighting now to retrieve it, but couldn’t cross the wall, with their situation looking dire. Kang Shin-hyuk immediately realized he needed to cooperate with Orde to get the Heroic Shield back. Even leaving aside the concepts of good or bad.
“There’s someone wearing unusual clothes over there.”
“Leave them be!”
“No, kill them and take their stuff!” Apparently, one of those stationed on the wall had a sharp eye, crying out a warning as he discovered Kang Shin-hyuk. It was frankly odd he hadn’t gotten any attention up until now, wearing modern clothes around these soldiers decked out in medieval armor.
“Kill him!” Arrows rained down toward Kang Shin-hyuk from the top of the wall but looking at it; he felt neither fear nor anger, only a distant longing. He was prepared to suffer an attack since he was in a battlefield, even if they were all humans.
-They’re not the same as you. They’re aliens with different customs than your world.
“It’s unfortunate that my first contact with an alien is like this…” Kang Shin-hyuk pulled out Godslayer and filled it with his spiritual power, tracing a trajectory in the air above him with it. He stopped the magic arrows of Mitsui Yuta like this, so ordinary arrows stood no chance. He swung his sword once, smashing and scattering the arrows closest to him. He quickly fell back after that, sword still at the ready.
“He’s a skilled warrior!”
“He dares insult our citadel? Activate the wall! Kill him with everything you have!”
They were referring to the special abilities of the Heroic Shield. It was a type of counter that converted the damage done to the shield into energy and fired it at a single point. It was originally at a level that could frighten the enemy. But ever since becoming a giant, it was now a terrifying weapon of destruction that could wipe out an entire area.
“Can’t you stop it?”
-You have to avoid it.
Kang Shin-hyuk put as much spiritual power in his body as he could, retreating at full speed. A huge crater remained in the ground where the energy had struck, the place he had just been.
“Die!” The warriors of the Survival Alliance, who were fighting the soldiers of Orde under the wall, attacked Kang Shin-hyuk as if they had been waiting for him. Kang Shin-hyuk’s face hardened as he realized their weapons were aimed at his vitals.
“…Hoo!” His hesitation was over quickly as he struck at the spearman leading the charge, narrowing the gap between him and the attackers. He swung his sword, the attack neatly cutting through the necks of three people. It was a skillful enough attack that those who saw it retreated.
-Sorry, dear member. Even I couldn’t predict that such a large-scale war would be happening.
“It’s okay. I was prepared for anything…” He had been prepared ever since he decided to become a superhuman. He was prepared to take a person’s life. The enemies of humanity weren’t just limited to monsters; there were plenty of wicked people who had become drunk on power and left bodies in their wake. If he wanted to live in that kind of society, he would have to face them one day. And if he wanted to live, he would have to take their lives. Shinyoung didn’t neglect in that training, either.
‘I didn’t think I’d be doing it for the first time now though…’ He saw no reason in sparing the opponents who rushed forward with the intent to kill. Especially not in a battlefield where the lives of countless people could be snuffed out in an instant.
“…” But even still, as he tried to reason it out, he was still human. The feeling of killing another human who looked like him left him feeling unbearably filthy.
“Woo…”
-Hm?
Kang Shin-hyuk let out a deep breath, his sword-arm trembling. The people around him were still amazed by his skill, and thus didn’t yet notice his agitation.
-Dear member, are you okay?
“…I’m okay now.”
-Myu!
“Thank you…I won’t give you the Godslayer, though.”
-Myu…
Kang Shin-hyuk managed to endure the feelings welling up inside him, and hastily began to withdraw from the battlefield. He put all of his remaining spiritual power into his legs, running even faster than he did with Karen Stringfield. The enemies couldn’t even dream of catching him. Those on the wall still screaming after him, but those who had seen his swordsmanship decided it best not to approach him and let him leave.
“Get back! Retreat!” Around that time, the soldiers of Orde began to retreat as well. The Alliance shot arrows at them as they fled but didn’t actively pursue them. In the first place, there had been more archers on the safe walls than soldiers down below fighting. They wouldn’t abandon the overwhelming advantage they had.
“Listen up, if you surrender to the Survival Alliance and give up all your stuff, we’ll accept it!”
Kang Shin-hyuk slowed down to wait for the retreating soldiers while listening to the insults slung by the Survival Alliance. There was only a single road leading out from the deep valley the fortress was located in, so if he waited here, he could meet with those retreating.
“Well now…?”
“Ah, it’s that man!”
The soldiers carrying their wounded soon discovered Kang Shin-hyuk and shouted out loud. He looked quite different from them, wearing his modern outfit and the bag upon his bag. Onyx was situated on his shoulder.
“He showed up in the fight!”
“I saw him too; he appeared out of nowhere.”
“He cut down three of those alliance soldiers with a single strike!” Fortunately, unlike the Survival Alliance, they didn’t try to attack him. He remained vigilant but decided to relax a bit around them. Soon, a man wearing an armband pushed his way to the front to speak with him.
“Were you waiting for us?”
“Yeah. I thought our goals would match up.” The language was different, but he could understand it. The administrator helpfully informed him it was a function provided by the Hero Universe. He decided to ask about it more later, specifically for his foreign language studies at the academy.
“Our goals…” The soldier speaking to him looked back to the others. Kang Shin-hyuk saw one of them nod his head, and the one in the lead turned to him.
“Hmm, alright. We’ll listen to it.” The soldier let out a laugh and nodded.
“But first, let’s move out. This is still their territory.”
“Alright.”
They eventually stopped in the highlands, completely outside of the valley. The land was dry, without a trace of water to be found. But the soldiers had a well-equipped barracks stationed there.
“Looking at your expression, you really know nothing about us.”
“No. I really don’t.”
“Alright. Come this way.” The other soldiers began to take care of the wounded as the one in the lead brought Shin-hyuk to the largest building. Three other soldiers, including the one he nodded at before, followed them in.
“Alright, now let’s talk. I’m Zeke, and I lead these soldiers. At least, for now, as my superior just died.”
“I am…” Kang Shin-hyuk was about to give him his name but stopped. He couldn’t trust these soldiers quite yet, so he had to be careful.
“Anvil. You can call me Anvil.”
“Anvil? That’s a peculiar name. Is it a pseudonym?”
“It’s a name I made up; it’s like my recognition code.”
-300HP bonus for this member!
Even though he felt like it was a misunderstanding, the administrator seemed to be extremely thrilled that he called himself Anvil. But, in truth, he had only thought of that name since it was because he went through Anvil’s My Room to retrieve his shield that he was now in this situation. At least for now, he was working as Anvil. Thus, it was only natural he used that name.
“Anvil…yes, I see. Then I hope you can explain to us how in the world you suddenly appeared in that battlefield.”
“I used a special kind of magic. It sends me to the place where something I want is.”
“Magic…?”
-A 50HP Bonus for your artistic explanation!
“Have you ever considered that what you call the Wall of Despair looks rather strange?”
“It’s like a huge shield. It’s never been broken, and even when the continent was destroyed, it protected the Survival Alliance who were hidden inside it.” Kang Shin-hyuk briefly wondered about the destruction of the continent, and if it had led to the war between these two groups.
“It is a shield. In another world, it was a shield meant for a human.”
“…What do you mean?” The real boss spoke up this time, the one who had been watching quietly from the group of three behind me. He was wearing a helmet, so I couldn’t see his face, but he sounded young.
“I am from a different world, here to retrieve that shield.”
“I heard from my father that different worlds exist, but are there any who could travel from them beside monsters? No…I suppose you’re not a monster.”
“That shield is something I made.” He ignored his own remorse, reminding himself he was working as Anvil now.
“So you’ve come to retrieve it…is there a way to recover it?”
“That’s what I need to figure out now. But one thing is for sure; I need to get rid of those you call the Survival Alliance if I want to recover it.”
“I understand.” He nodded and stepped forward, dignity and prestige evident in his movements.
“I am Milan Van Orde, the Prince of the now ruined Orde.”
“I am Anvil.”
“Orde was robbed of the Water Orb- our lifeline. We must retrieve it from them, so our purpose is the same.” Kang Shin-hyuk simply held his hand out to the prince of these ruins.
“Are you asking me to form an alliance with you?”
“Indeed. I wish to form an alliance.” Shin-hyuk thought this prince was a pretty cool guy as they shook each other’s hand.
“Do you have a specific plan? As you can see, we are struggling with crossing the wall, and, if possible, I am hoping that you can help us make a strategy. That is, given you are the creator of that wall and shield.”
“I’ve no memory of making it, and I’ve no experience in sieges, but I do have an idea. Do you have any archers?”
“None have survived, and they are difficult to train.”
“I figured that would be the case.” He glanced at the backpack he was carrying. He had the javelin, a destructive and straightforward long-range weapon that could fly quite far if thrown by a strong man.
“Do you have any forges?”
That was how Kang Shin-hyuk, or rather Anvil, began his first dimensional quest.