74. Saving the Elves (2)
“It’s an illusion!”
As the Orcs realized that the figure’s hand had no effect, they quickly showed their fierce nature.
No longer did the figure’s threat hold weight.
“Argh…! These bastards!”
He tried to block their view somehow, but such actions did not last long.
*Beep!*
[Warning! Abnormal operation detected!]
[Repeated abnormal operations pose a fairness issue and will result in sanctions. Your figure will be forcibly restricted from appearing until the combat situation is resolved!]
The system imposed sanctions.
At the same time, the figure’s hand vanished with a flick.
“Oh, no!”
He needed to stall for just a bit longer…!
Without a moment to regret, their battle resumed once again.
[Stop the wolves!]
Behind the orcs who were shouting loudly,
Zion, who had quietly approached by lowering himself on the snowy ground, leaped forward.
Swish.
A black blade sliced through the man’s wrist.
[Screaaam!]
Facing the man who screamed in agony while clutching his severed forearm was the elven boy, Zion.
“You’re dealing with me.”
Even the captured elves were not exempt from fear.
“Everyone! Over here!”
At that moment, someone holding a bright torch appeared from behind.
It was Yumina.
He waved the torch and shouted to the captives.
“Come this way!”
“Kin?! Elves…!”
The captives were taken aback and confused.
However, soon the captives, who had been roaring, started fleeing toward Yumina.
[How dare you!! Where do you think you’re running off to! You are our prisoners!]
The orc chieftain, who was about to run towards them with an angry shout.
Thud.
From somewhere, a cluster of arrows with a gleam in them aimed at him.
The chieftain barely managed to block the surprise attack, growling in response.
[Grroar! How dare you!]
Indeed, he was a chieftain.
He was nothing like the ordinary orcs.
In fact, it was evident that he was not ordinary at all, as a sharp blue light emanated from his sword.
It was the sound of a monster using mana.
However, instead of responding, Irina, with a divine arrow, shot again.
The man effortlessly blocked the arrow with his iron shield, causing a small explosion but nothing more.
[Tsk, do you think you can face me with just a puny bow like that?]
A smirk appeared on the chieftain’s face.
From Noble mtl dot com
Did she really think she could target him with just that bow!
It was almost laughable.
The bow in Irina’s hand, reflected in the orc chieftain’s eyes, looked quite peculiar for a bow.
Although its power seemed unusual, that was all there was to it.
After all, an elf’s bow was just about as powerful as it could get.
The fact that he had just blocked it was proof of that.
“If I kill you, that bow will be mine. It’ll make a decent trophy.”
Although the casualties were significant, it didn’t matter.
In the end, they were a tribe of war.
If one dies, they just have another offspring.
Orcs were a combat race capable of becoming competent warriors within two or three months of birth.
“If the talk is long, it’s a way to urge action.”
However, being confident of victory was the same for Irina.
She aimed at the man, pulling the bowstring.
[Ha! Return those words in full…!!]
Ping!
At that moment, an arrow was shot.
[Is that all!]
The proud orc chieftain raised his shield again.
Thud!
The arrow was once again blocked by the shield.
The momentum was quite fierce, but that was all.
A hint of mockery appeared in the man’s eyes.
‘Hmph, as expected. Arrows are just arrows after all.’
Then, another sound of wind reached the orc chieftain’s ear.
A very faint sound of wind.
Only then did he realize.
The man’s eyes widened.
‘It’s not just one arrow, but two…!’
They were aimed at his head.
Instinctively, he raised his shield to block, but the arrow shattered the shield and pierced through, lodging itself in the chieftain’s forehead.
[Crack…!]
Irina lowered the bow she had been aiming.
The situation was already over.
The man, standing in place, muttered the final question in a voice that trembled as he did not come out.
[…H-how could a mere arrow break through a shield.]
Irina, glaring at the shocked orc chieftain, spoke.
“You. You kept blocking the same way. Not even realizing the shield was so worn out it couldn’t block anymore.”
[Oh, so you managed to figure that out in the meantime…?]
But it was possible.
Irina was known for her exceptional archery skills among the elves.
Her sniping was so sharp that it appeared almost divine to humans.
[This is absurd, unbelievable….]
Thump.
With those words, the man fell onto the white snow.
The once white snow began to soak in red.
“Sigh.”
One who had been watching from above watched this scene unfold.
He let out a sigh of relief.
“Zion has already taken care of the remaining orcs, so it seems there won’t be any more issues.”
The situation was resolved.
He had meticulously counted every single orc.
There were no survivors.
“Anyway, it’s fortunate.”
However, not everything was going well.
[Squeak….]
The sound of weak whimpers from the young wolves.
The once robust wolves, now limping, approached Yumina.
Yumina was taken aback.
“Ah…! Noah! W-Were you hurt?”
The other young wolves were fine.
They had been rowdy, but Zion had taken care of them.
It was only Noah who was injured.
Yumina cautiously examined his bloodied leg.
But then,
Her widened eyes narrowed once again.
Why was he acting like this?
“…Noah.”
Noah looked up at Yumina with his large eyes.
[Squeak…?]
“You shouldn’t pretend to be hurt when you’re not really in pain. This isn’t even your blood, are you pretending to be hurt on purpose?”
[……!]
At her words, Noah’s eyes widened.
He swiftly ran off into the snowy landscape.
“Oh, what’s this now.”
Han, who had been watching the scene while simmering with anger, burst out.
I didn’t expect him to go as far as pretending to be hurt.
There was no one else but the wolves, not a single human around.
“…Then what about this bandage that I bought already?”
Han had already paid 500 points for the bandage.
“…Well.”
After a moment of contemplation, he let out a brief sigh.
He decided to think positively.
“There will be a time when it’s needed.”
***
Ding-
The awaited message popped up.
[Congratulations!]
[First Special Side Story Event, ‘Encounter’, has been successfully resolved!]
[As a reward for clearing the first side story event, you can now officially transition to being a deity (異蹟).]
A reward, huh.
What could it possibly be?
Han eagerly awaited the next message with eyes full of anticipation.
[The purchase of the first architectural modeling is now available!]
[Please check for new items in the store!]
“……?”
Huh.
Architectural modeling?
Han’s expression turned strange as he faced unexpected content.
“Just a moment, System. What was that?”
[From now on, the purchase of ‘Architectural Structures’ is available.]
“Uh….”
At those words, Han blinked for a moment in surprise.
Architectural structures.
“Could it be installation-type facilities? Like that Infinite Tower from last time?”
[That’s correct.]
“……!”
Eyes widened,
Instinctively startled, Han hurriedly entered the store window.
“Can you show me what’s been updated right now in the store window? What’s new?”
[I will show you.]
Intermediate Store
▷Small Castle Wall: 100pt
•A solid 3m tall stone wall designed for defense.
A defensive specialist facility aimed at safely protecting multiple residents within the area. Installation consumes 100 points at regular intervals.
▷Castle Ballista: 3,000pt
•A powerful large ballista designed for siege defense.
A defensive specialist facility that can be installed on the castle wall, requiring special large arrows for operation.
•Large ballista arrows automatically reload at a rate of 5 shots every 24 hours.
▷Stone Castle Gate: 500pt
•A solid 3m tall wooden gate designed for entry and exit.
Can be opened and closed by pulling a latch, and at times can be locked with a bar to securely defend against enemy intrusion.
Current points owned: 4,700pt
“Wow…!”
Oh my goodness! His eyes widened as soon as he saw them.
Each of the newly added products was a hit!
Plus, not just one but a whopping three of them!
Outstanding defense facilities that one cannot easily overlook.
Even one of them was a real ‘city wall’.
It was the defensive structure that Han had been longing for so long.
It was indeed convincing enough to justify a true act of divine intervention.
Such items, haven’t they been entirely absent until now?
But gradually, he came to his senses.
To be precise, it could also be called a doubt.
“But why did the city wall appear only now? It would have been better if it had appeared earlier anyway if it was going to be like this, right?”
Actually, it was a belated remark, but there had been several difficult times due to the absence of the city wall.
There were many moments of imminent danger.
It was the same during the ant era.
When faced with those fierce Mega-Jo Ant fellows, he almost lost his life.
Thanks to the appearance of the Golem, the crisis was averted, but it would have been really dangerous if not for that.
Of course, there was a city wall based on mushroom bricks.
However, mushrooms were too soft and elastic.
To put it simply, it was fluffy.
If it collided with a monster’s bulky physique, the city wall would collapse like a pile of sand.
Of course, it was easy to restore, but one could not expect excellent defense capabilities.
The system’s response to Han’s question was as follows.
[There was a hidden condition.]
“A condition?”
[Yes. Most special events of the race gods are unlocked based on various conditions and situations. For the event ‘Encounter,’ the minimum condition for the appearance of defensive specialized facilities is to encounter at least two ‘Encounter’ events and meet five or more residents.]
Two or more ‘Encounter’ events.
Five or more residents.
Han’s expression subtly changed upon hearing that.
…There was such a condition?
It was a fact he had no idea about.
“I don’t quite understand. Why are there such conditions?”
[It is for the gradual growth of the race gods. In general, when the conditions up to the second ‘Encounter’ are unlocked, most gods end up nurturing a large number of followers.]
“Does that matter?”
[Handling these items with a small number of followers is challenging. Sometimes, structures that can be dealt with only when there are many rather than just one are created.]
“Ah….”
As soon as they said that, Han began to understand slowly.
Indeed, that was the case.
From the city wall to the bastion and ballista, even to the city gate.
All of these were things that could not be handled by a small number of followers alone.
“So, thanks to the increasing number of elves, it was unlocked, right?”
[That’s correct.]
“…Well, it’s a bit of a stretch to say that only three elves built the city wall.”
[Now that you have officially nurtured multiple elves, you have entered the ranks of the race gods in earnest.]
Yes. That’s right.
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God cannot exist alone.
It was a way to shine brighter due to the presence of many believers and followers.