Chapter 34 : Chapter 34

Chapter 34 – Wild Instinct (4)

Liam always used to praise my silver tongue, saying, “You could’ve been a successful bard.”

He wasn’t wrong. I’d talked my way past Tom, the Arena manager, with sweet words before—and in plenty of other situations, I’d relied on wit rather than brute strength. It was one of my specialties. So, having fooled clever humans before, I thought dealing with orcs would be easy. But I’d overlooked one crucial fact.

“What’re you babbling about?! Too many words!”

Orcs did not do logic.

“Summarize in one sentence! Talk more, and I’ll banish you to the spirit world!”

F***.

***

Was it even possible to survive this situation with a single sentence? Not even a scholar from history could manage that. Not the Great Witch of the Sky Empire, who was said to have mastered all truths, not the legendary clown of the Free City who once stopped a war with his speech—none of them could.

“Summarize!”

Anyone—no matter how brilliant—would be struck dumb before this green bastard.

Orcs didn’t understand logic or persuasion. They solved everything through battle, and though they seemed naïve enough to be scammed easily, I realized something vital.

An orc can never be swindled—because words simply don’t work on them.

“You think I make empty threats?! Orcs do not bluff!”

I stared at the elder’s raised finger and felt genuine danger.

My instincts screamed—if he snapped his fingers, I’d be banished somewhere by some power I couldn’t comprehend.

I didn’t even know what being “banished to the spirit world” meant, but I could feel the truth in his tone.

If that finger moved—I was done for.

That much was clear.

So I thought as fast as I could.

And then—“I want the sword in your sacred ground. Who do I have to beat to get it?”

In an instant, I’d said the one thing that an orc most wanted to hear.

The elder froze for a moment, then looked at me with a solemn face…and a slow grin spread across his lips.

“Straight words without decoration—I like it!”

The elder burst into roaring laughter.

“Good! So the human wants the holy sword—the relic! You came here out of greed for it!”

“Yes.”

“It is precious to us! But if a human wins in fair combat, we would not deny him!

Your boldness pleases me! You remind me of our warriors!”

I had no idea if that was praise or an insult.

I forced a smile anyway.

By now, I’d fully picked up their speech patterns. There was no point in dressing things up anymore. If I couldn’t avoid it, I might as well lean into it.

“So, who do I fight? Hurry up and tell me, I’m dying of boredom.”

“Wahaha! A human whose blood boils for battle!”

The elder laughed again, booming like thunder. Then he slapped his knee—slap!—and the air itself shuddered. Not just the air. My Mana Heart trembled violently inside my chest.

That single motion had shaken the mana of the entire area.

Liam’s warning had been true—if the elder snapped his fingers, I’d really die.

I could feel the terrifying force in that vibration.

The elder bared his tusks and said,

“Human! You come to our land, wanting to take what is ours!”

“Yes.”

“Then you must follow our way!”

His eyes gleamed, and in those massive pupils, I saw my reflection.

“Human! Take the orc’s coming-of-age trial!”

“…Excuse me?”

“Pass it, and you shall have the relic you seek! Fail, and I’ll tear apart your soul and carve it into the younglings!”

He grinned wickedly, and his laughter rolled like thunder.

Then his tone changed—his enormous voice suddenly shrank to a low murmur, quiet yet echoing directly in my skull.

“I like your unusual soul.”

The words resonated inside my head rather than through my ears.

“Heir of the Steel Blood, you already carry three blades of iron within your spirit. If you cannot overcome this trial, I myself shall shred the soul of steel within you.”

“……”

“Endure the trial. Triumph, and you will find glory. Fail, and despair will consume you.”

My whole body wavered—vertigo surged through me.

The elder stared deep into me and whispered,

“This is the way of the orcs.”

***

The coming-of-age trial.

The ancient rite through which orcs proved themselves worthy of being called true warriors.

Those who passed received Ancestral Inheritance—the fragment of an ancestor’s soul—and were reborn far stronger than before.

Little was known about the orcs’ ceremony. Few people cared enough to study them; even learned historians ignored the subject. Only eccentric scholars, driven by strange curiosity, ever bothered.

When I heard the elder’s words, I actually felt relieved.

I’d been half expecting him to challenge me personally to a fight.

With orcs, there was no predicting anything—they didn’t do reason.

At this point, if one of the many orcs here suddenly challenged me just because he didn’t like my face, I wouldn’t even be surprised.

Honestly, I was already sick of this race.

I wanted to go back to my quiet village.

「A coming-of-age trial, hm? That’ll be a good experience.」

“You know about orc trials?”

「Of course. There’s nothing I don’t know, my young descendant.」

I shot him a look.

“Didn’t you not know you needed a medal to register for the Arena?”

「…I know everything from my own era.」

“There were Arenas back then too, weren’t there?”

「It’s unbecoming to get hung up on trivialities.」

Watching him shamelessly deflect, I thought—maybe being that brazen was part of becoming a Swordmaster. Perhaps the Karavan line’s true trait wasn’t just steel, but having a face made of it.

As I was having that useless thought, Liam said,

「Don’t get too relaxed. You’d better stay tense.」

“I should?”

「Why wouldn’t you?」

Simple enough reason.

“I already fought and beat an orc who passed his trial. Whatever this trial involves, if I beat someone who’s completed it, doesn’t that mean I can too?”

A straightforward logic. But Liam shook his head.

「No. You can say that only because you don’t know what the trial is.」

“…?”

「The orcs’ trial tests a warrior’s will—whether he can surpass fear and his own limits.」

A warrior’s will? Another one of those vague explanations. I stared at Liam until he continued.

「My young descendant, who have you fought so far?」

“Unwelcome guests at the manor, gladiators at the Arena, knights like Fetel, the Black Bride Seol Yoon, the orcs here…”

「Exactly. You’ve fought many battles.」

Listing them out, I realized I really had come a long way.

「But in this trial, you’ll face an enemy you’ve never fought before.」

“What do you mean?”

「Every foe you’ve faced until now was a being of reason—a thinking creature that wielded weapons and could meet you in a clash of minds and blades.」

Liam’s eyes turned sharp.

「This time, you’ll face a monster.」

“…A monster?”

「And in that battle, you must learn to fight not with reason—but with wild instinct. Fitting, isn’t it? It’s the same name as the sword you’re meant to eat next.」

Liam chuckled softly.

「You can look forward to it. It’ll be quite the experience.」

***

Wild Instinct. A word meaning raw, untamed nature—the essence of primal ferocity.

It didn’t sound like something that belonged beside swordsmanship.

When I thought of the memories contained in the blades I’d consumed—Needle, Fang, Twilight—they all fought with calculated precision, not savagery.

Their lives had passion, but their combat was always cold, disciplined.

To wield a sword forged of cold metal, one must also become cold—That was what I’d believed.

To always keep reason—that was the truth. It was an extension of my philosophy of doubt.

But Liam had said that wildness was just as vital.

The primal heat, the instinct of the beast.

Thinking about it, the orcs fought with precisely that—feral energy, unrestrained savagery.

Could wild instinct truly serve the sword? I couldn’t understand it. But then again, not everything I’d learned with the sword could be understood with logic.

Some things only made sense once I experienced them.

Maybe this would be another of those times.

With that thought, I stepped forward toward the orc elder.

Surrounded by countless orcs, I blended naturally into their ranks—less as a human, more as one of them.

The elder grinned, revealing his tusks, and placed a massive hand—like a cauldron lid—over my head.

“The orc’s coming-of-age trial proves oneself as a warrior!”

“……”

“Here, close to the sky—human, prove that you are worthy as a warrior! I, the shaman Sherdik, shall bestow the traditional trial!” As he spoke, the mana around me began to shudder violently.

My Mana Heart throbbed in resistance—an instinctive defense.

The Steel Heart awakened, fighting to protect me.

But the elder pressed harder, mocking its struggle.

Power surged through his palm, and my second heart abruptly stopped.

Then he whispered,

“Heir of Steel, face an indescribable terror and prove how unbreakable you truly are.”

Something slammed into me—and suddenly I was falling away.

When I opened my eyes, I was floating. It felt like swimming underwater.

Below me, I saw—my own body.

…What?

「He’s temporarily banished your spirit. Your soul and body have been separated.」

Liam’s voice echoed around me, though I couldn’t see him.

「You won’t be able to perceive me in this state. The gap between us is too vast.」

“……”

「Don’t bother looking for me. Focus on the battle ahead, my young descendant.」

His voice faded in and out, distant yet resonant.

Then—Boom.

A tremendous sound shook the air. The ground—no, the world—vibrated.

Following the sound, I turned my head—and saw a giant.

Its head rose above the clouds, its torso rivaling a mountain in size.

“What the hell…”

I stood there dumbfounded, until Liam’s voice reached me again.

「That is your trial.」

Boom. Boom—Each footstep thundered like an earthquake.

It didn’t sound like footsteps.

It sounded like the world was collapsing.

My mind went blank, overwhelmed by the sheer absurdity of it—until Liam’s calm voice cut through the noise.

「Draw your sword, my young descendant.」