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Chapter 71: The One Who Opens Up the North (2)

Crockta, who had been observing the scene, thought about the next essential step that he had to make. The Behemoth was basically an army with an infinite replenishment of supplies; there was no end to its source of power. Crockta had to block off the source supplying the mana, but how could he cut off the Behemoth’s connection to the forest’s energy?

He looked at the darkness that spread out beyond the forest like an abyss. The wall of darkness, which the Behemoth protected, was what separated the continent from the north. No one had ever made it past that wall of darkness.

“...there’s a beast that turned into a monster after devouring the thing buried here,” Shakhan’s words popped up in Crockta’s mind.

‘Was there something inside the darkness?’ wondered Crockta.

Right then, the Demon’s Mouth at his waist stirred.

“...!” Crockta was shocked to find the Demon’s Mouth was pulling him toward the darkness ahead.

Then Crockta looked back and saw Shakhan and the Behemoth battling each other, destroying the forest in the process. Countless arrows flew through the air and exploded upon making contact with the Behemoth’s body.

The Behemoth roared at Shakhan, “Geuoooooohhhh!”

It was a battle between two monsters who were giving it their all. Crockta could feel Shakhan’s determination as he struggled desperately against the Behemoth.

“The members of a group out on a hunt need to rely on each other to survive,” Shakhan’s voice came alive in Crockta’s mind again.

It was true. The three of them were a group now, and they relied on each other and entrusted each other with their lives.

Crockta met eyes with Shakhan for a split second. It was just a glance, but it was enough.

Crockta made up his mind. He ran toward the darkness that lurked with the unknown. As if it had been waiting for him, the darkness embraced him. It was like the time that the Demon’s Mouth had swallowed him. Crockta’s consciousness sank into the darkness.

***

When Crockta came to his senses, he was inside a cave—an endless tunnel without a beginning and an end. Crockta was dumbfounded. He had no idea where to go. Nevertheless, the Demon’s Mouth took the lead. It pulled him toward a certain direction as if urging him to go forward. Crockta felt uneasy that the Demon’s Mouth was responding to the darkness, but he couldn’t go back now. He pulled out his greatsword and walked in the direction that the belt was pulling him toward.

It was so dark inside that Crockta couldn’t see much, but he came across a huge chamber after a while. Crockta went inside and discovered a huge body that had collapsed at the center of the chamber. As he approached it, the stench of rotting flesh pierced his nose, and Crockta grasped his greatsword tightly.

He continued onward, drawing near enough to see that the body belonged to a beast that was as large as the Behemoth. However, the beast was motionless as if it was dead. Crockta immediately knew it was the evil beast from the legend that had turned the Behemoth into a monster.

Foul mana flowed out from the corpse. It was thicker and more potent than the Behemoth’s breath; it was an unfathomable darkness with no end in sight. This beast was undoubtedly the core of darkness that had created the Forest of Monsters. Crockta had to destroy that corpse. If he could destroy it, the Behemoth would lose its unlimited powers.

Crockta took a step further. The mana was pooled around the beast like a swamp. He felt like he was wading through water, as his every step was met with resistance. Nevertheless, he strode forward, and once he stood right in front of the beast, he realized the true extent of its size.

‘If this thing were to come alive and move again, horrendous things would happen. What is this creature?’ Crockta thought as he poked at the corpse with his greatsword.

It went inside smoothly without resistance, and fumes of mana streamed out from the cut that the greatsword had made. Crockta couldn’t help but cough because of the highly concentrated mana.

“What should I—?” he started to say.

Then he saw the Belt of Despair respond to his words.

“You are...?” Crockta uttered.

A child composed of darkness had suddenly appeared by Crockta’s side. It was the demon that he had met back when the Demon’s Mouth swallowed him.

The child didn’t mind Crockta though and just stared silently at the beast’s corpse. The demon, who was in the form of a child, appeared sad for some reason.

Crockta thought he could hear a voice coming from the demon, ‘How pitiful.’

The demon placed a hand on the corpse.

Then Crockta thought he heard another whisper, ‘Poor, Amon.’

The demon turned its head and looked at Crockta silently. Crockta looked back at it and gazed at the part of its face that should be its eyes. Then the demon nodded and disappeared. The steel teeth at Crockta’s waist began to chatter.

“What...?”

The Demon’s Mouth opened its jaws wide, expanding unnaturally wider and wider until its mouth was larger than Crockta’s body. It continued to grow until it was large enough to consume the entire chamber. Then it swallowed the corpse. With the huge beast inside its mouth, the Demon’s Mouth clamped its steel teeth shut with the sound of steel colliding. Like a boa constrictor that had swallowed its prey, the Demon’s Mouth pushed the corpse of the beast through its insides.

“...!”

The corpse was being absorbed by the Demon’s Mouth! The foul mana reeked everywhere. Crockta gnashed his teeth, and his body screamed from overexerting itself as he faced the daunting mana. His veins popped out from the strain, but he didn’t give up.

“Bul’taaaaaaarrrrr!’ shouted Crockta.

However, his battle cry didn’t last; it died out in the overwhelming silence of the pitch-black chamber.

“Bul’taaaaaaaaaarrrrrrr!” he roared again, louder this time as he endured the pain.

After wrestling with the mana for a long time, Crockta opened his eyes. ‘How much time has passed?’

He looked at his surroundings, but there was nothing around him—not the corpse of the giant beast or the enormous mouth that had swallowed it. Crockta was standing by himself in the wide space.

He looked down at the belt at his waist and was surprised to find that the belt had changed. Spike-like horns had sprouted above its teeth. The belt looked like a demon’s skull thrusting its head forward.

A message window popped up.

[The Belt of Despair (Hero) has evolved.]

[You cannot handle the belt’s power yet. The belt’s power will be limited.]

[The demon is now asleep.]

Crockta felt an unknown strength surging within him. After that, the scenery changed again.

***

Crockta found himself standing in the Forest of Monsters again.

“Geuooooohhhh!”

Hearing the Behemoth’s roar brought Crockta to his senses. When he turned around, Shakhan and the Behemoth were still fighting. It seemed that Tiyo was back in the game, as iridescent magic lights were busily striking the Behemoth. Crockta, eager to join in, charged into the battle.

Another one of Shakhan’s arrows struck the Behemoth, causing a piece of its flesh to fall off. The Behemoth flinched and writhed in pain. Mana rose from the wound, but the wound didn’t heal immediately as the previous wounds. Then Tiyo’s General compounded the damage by striking that same spot where the flesh had fallen off.

The Behemoth’s body shook as it stomped around, appearing flustered. After the Demon’s Mouth swallowed that corpse, the Behemoth no longer had access to unlimited mana.

They could win now.

Crockta burned with fighting spirit.

[Combative Spirit (Essence) has been activated to the maximum level.]

[Your assimilation rate is increasing.]

Crockta kicked at the earth and leaped onto the Behemoth. He landed on the Behemoth’s tail and leaped once more. His goal was to get on the Behemoth’s back. Crockta continued to propel himself upward and eventually landed on the Behemoth’s back. Then he tightened his grip on the Ogre Slayer. Using his weight and the force of gravity, he thrust his greatsword deeply into the middle of the Behemoth’s back, driving the greatsword in right up to its hilt.

The Behemoth convulsed, and blood splattered on Crockta’s face. Crockta grabbed the Ogre Slayer and jerked it in all directions, digging and cutting deeper into the wound. The Behemoth cried out in pain, and its cry shook the entire forest. The Behemoth, now greatly agitated, opened its mouth and gathered all of the forest’s mana by sucking in all of the life around him. The Behemoth was once more preparing its breath of darkness, and it was aiming at the enemy in front of him, Shakhan.

Crockta looked at Shakhan directly while clinging onto the Behemoth’s back. Meanwhile, Shakhan refused to look away from the Behemoth. He pulled his bowstring again. When Shakhan’s and Crockta’s eyes met, Shakhan grinned from ear to ear.

“Geuoooooooooohhhhhh!” roared the Behemoth.

The pitch-black breath erased Crockta’s view of Shakhan’s face. Everything in Crockta’s field of vision was swallowed by the darkness. This breath was larger and more powerful than before. The Behemoth was wringing its last bit of strength to destroy everything in front of it.

Right then, Crockta saw a dot of light rise out of the corner of his eye. The light flew straight toward the Behemoth and the darkness it contained. Crockta watched the light pierce the core of darkness. It was a clean puncture.

Then, the body of the Behemoth that Crockta had been hanging onto collapsed. This was the final moment of the Behemoth, the monster that had dominated the Forest of Monsters and separated the northern region from the continent.

Crockta fell from the Behemoth’s back, and the impact sent him rolling across the ground. He was unconscious for some time before he regained his senses. After that, he pulled out his greatsword, which had been lodged deep inside the Behemoth’s back. It dripped with the corpse’s blood.

Crockta then ran around in search of Shakahn.

“Shakhan!” shouted Crockta.

He discovered Shakhan amid the rubble. When Crockta approached him, Shakhan’s eyes looked at him, but his gaze was weak.

“Did...you...see...?” asked Shakhan with a grin.

Crockta nodded. “It was the best hunt.”

“Cough, ahem! Yes, I am a Shakhan after all...”

Crockta placed a hand over Shakhan’s cheek. He couldn’t tell Shakhan to stop talking or to take care of himself. The lower part of Shakhan’s body was all gone from below the stomach. The manticore’s mana tried to heal his body, but its effects gradually dissipated as the mana was exhausted.

Shakhan looked off into the distance with a wistful look on his face. “I did it, my sons... Karina...”

Then he turned his head and said to Crockta with a grin, “Orc warriors... and gnomes... aren’t half bad.”

Crockta nodded. Life was gradually fading from Shakhan’s eyes, and his focus drifted to a distant place. Death was imminent.

‘What is he looking at?’ wondered Crockta inwardly.

After that, he decided to ask, “What’s your name?”

Crockta wanted to remember Shakhan’s real name.

Shakhan smiled as he whispered, “Shakhan.”

Then his head went slack. The last Shakhan hunter met his final moment as a nameless Shakhan. He had endured many years of pain to wreak vengeance for his family. It was the death of a great man.

Crockta softly closed Shakhan’s eyelids.

“Crockta, are you okay?!” Tiyo came running toward Crockta.

Tiyo was in tatters due to getting swept away by the Behemoth’s breath, but he had survived. Then he noticed Shakhan and fell silent. Tiyo consoled the speechless Crockta by wrapping his arm around Crockta’s shoulder.

[You have completed the quest of opening up the northern region.]

[The northern region is open now.]

[The dark mana blocking the northern region from the continent will gradually disappear.]

[It will take ten years for the northern region to become fully open.]

[It will take fifty years until every trace of mana is removed.]

[The name of the hero who has opened up the northern region will spread all over the continent.]

[The name of orc warrior Crockta, who has opened up the northern region...]

Crockta, who had been reading the message window, suddenly spoke up, “No.”

The message window surprisingly halted its output in response.

“The person who opened up the northern region is Shakhan,” said Crockta sternly, “Great hunter Shakhan.”

The system was silent for a while, then a message popped up.

[We respect your will.]

[The name of the great hunter Shakhan—the person who opened up the northern region and the last descendant of the Shakhan tribe—will shake up the continent.]

[The whole continent will remember his name.]

[ A hidden class ‘Hunter Shakhan’ will be released to players. If they fulfill the hidden requirements, they will be given the opportunity to change their class to the hidden class ‘Hunter Shakhan.’]

[The person who opened up the northern region is Shakhan.]

[The great hunter Shakhan.]

Crockta nodded.

[We will continue to observe your progress.]

***

“Ah, who the fuck is it? Who is it?!”

Inside the Elder Saga Corporation’s system control room that managed the core system Albino, chief executive Park Ju-Jin was shouting like a madman.

“Ah! Why?! Who raised the assimilation rate to ninety percent?!” he screamed.

“The system is unlocked now!” said a researcher.

“The lock is...” chimed in another researcher.

“I heard it. Shut up!” Park Ju-Jin was throwing a hysterical outburst.

Earlier, Albino had temporarily blocked system access. Albino’s answer was the same as last time.

—A player has temporarily exceeded an assimilation rate of ninety percent. To protect the system and the player, system access will be blocked momentarily.

Park Ju-Jin threw a bunch of papers in a fit of rage, causing the researchers to run away.

“Find that little shit!” screamed Park Ju-Jin.

***

Zankus downed his liquor. The flames of the bonfire danced and cast a shadow on his face. He was sharing the fire with travelers he had met while hunting. The travelers handed beef jerky to Zankus, who expressed gratitude with a nod.

Zankus couldn’t help but overhear the travelers’ conversation.

“I heard the north is open now thanks to a hunter?”

“Yeah. I heard he was the last descendant of the Shakhan tribe.”

“He hunted down the monster that had been blocking the north.”

Zankus’ eyebrows twitched. The travelers, feeling the intensity of his gaze, raised their heads.

“Why, do you know something about it?” asked one of the travelers.

He seemed to be a friendly and polite guy since he was willing to initiate a conversation with a scary-looking orc he had run into by chance. The traveler knew that despite their appearances, orcs had a thoughtful side to them.

“You said a descendant of the Shakhan tribe hunted down the monster?” asked Zankus.

“That’s what I heard,” said the traveler.

“What happened to the hunter?” asked Zankus.

Under Zankus’ blazing gaze, the man slurred his words as he stated, “They said he died with the monster...”

Zankus’ face fell. He looked off into space with a crestfallen look. “Is that so... So, he succeeded but died... That guy...”

“Did you know him?” asked the traveler.

“At one point.” Zankus had a sentimental gaze as he reminisced about his time with Shakhan.

Shakhan had been the most talented hunter Zankus had ever known. Even though the Shakhan tribe had been humans, they had been tougher than orcs. They had been the embodiment of tenacity. The Shakhans had been hunters who used whatever means necessary to hunt down their target. Zankus had aspired to become like Shakhan, so he had chased after Shakhan, and before he knew it, he was praised as a hunter who could even shoot down the sun. Yet, Zankus still felt like he was far off from reaching Shakhan’s level.

He had heard that Shakhan had ventured into the Forest of Monsters, but it was still surprising to hear that he had achieved such an impossible feat.

“His name was Shakhan too. He was such a great man,” said the traveler.

“He was indeed,” replied Zankus. Then he said suddenly, “No.”

“Huh?”

“His real name isn’t Shakhan,” replied Zankus.

“Then...?” questioned the traveler.

Zankus swayed his bottle of liquor. He stared at the liquid’s trembling surface and recalled the first time he had met Shakhan. Zankus had been a spirited young orc, and he had looked down on Shakhan, who was a human. Yet, Zankus had ended up rolling across the ground in defeat after receiving a stern lesson from Shakhan. In awe, Zankus had asked Shakhan for his name, but Shakhan had dodged the question in embarrassment. It turned out that he had such a ridiculous name that no one would believe it was the name of one of the greatest hunters in history.

The travelers all looked at Zankus with expectant eyes.

With a smile, Zankus opened his mouth and said, “His real name is...”