Chapter 222
As if a meteor had fallen, a massive crater dozens of meters wide had formed—and at its center, someone was embedded deep within.
That person, buried so deeply his form was hard to make out, was Zeon.
Thud!
A massive figure landed in front of Zeon, who was half-buried in the ground.
It was Orca, the High Chieftain.
In Orca’s hand was a massive battle axe he hadn’t used until now.
It was his personal weapon—Terratan.
Terratan was an item Orca had obtained after conquering a dungeon.
No one knew what metal it was made of, but its durability far surpassed imagination.
Orca had never seen anything harder.
Dungeon items usually carried additional abilities—
Enhancing the wielder’s power or granting special skills.
Terratan had such an ability as well.
Mass amplification.
It could instantly increase both its own weight and the wielder’s mass by more than ten times.
Terratan alone weighed 150 kilograms.
Orca, nearly five meters tall, weighed over two tons.
That meant a combined mass of over 2,150 kilograms—
Amplified more than tenfold in an instant.
An increase in mass meant an increase in destructive power.
If the mass increased tenfold, the destructive force would grow even more—
Theoretically reaching ten to dozens of times greater impact.
The problem was that such immense force also inflicted heavy strain on the user.
The reason Orca hadn’t used Terratan until now was partly due to that backlash—
But more than anything, his pride wouldn’t allow it.
He believed his bare fists were enough to crush any enemy.
So he had sealed Terratan away in subspace.
He had never thought he’d need to use it.
But facing Zeon changed that.
Zeon was the strongest opponent Orca had ever encountered.
No enemy in his life had surpassed him.
Even the spotted ogre he had recently fought was like a child compared to Zeon.
Calling Zeon a nemesis—or a calamity to orcs—was no exaggeration.
Time and again, Orca had been knocked back and buried by Zeon’s sand attacks.
His tough body had prevented serious injury—
But his pride had been damaged.
So he seized a moment of Zeon’s carelessness and brought out Terratan.
Zeon, expecting another bare-handed attack, was struck directly by the axe.
The result of that miscalculation—
Was the crater.
The overwhelming mass-based strike had hit like a meteor, leaving Zeon embedded at its center.
Raising Terratan high, Orca spoke:
“Human, you are strong. But victory is mine. I will eat your heart and grow stronger.”
“Don’t go treating me like I’m already dead… ugh, my head… that hurts like hell.”
At that moment, Zeon—who had been lying motionless like a corpse—opened his eyes and spoke.
The instant he was struck, he had infused mana into his robe.
One of the Leviathan-hide robe’s abilities was hardening—
It became rigid to protect its wearer.
The Leviathan was an SS-rank creature.
Naturally, the durability of its hide was beyond imagination.
Thanks to that, Zeon had survived.
Though the impact had nearly paralyzed his entire body—
At least he was alive.
But the real problem was Terratan.
Whoosh!
The axe was already descending toward his chest at terrifying speed.
His body was numb—he couldn’t even move a finger.
There was no way to dodge by normal means.
But Zeon was a sand mage.
Swoooosh!
His body suddenly sank downward.
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the sand—
And Terratan struck the spot where he had been.
KWAANG!
Another massive crater formed, and sand rose like clouds, obscuring vision.
“Grrk…”
Orca’s eyes gleamed savagely.
All his senses sharpened to a razor’s edge.
Tsssss—
He felt the sand flowing beneath the ground.
Without hesitation, Orca swung Terratan.
KWAANG!
With a thunderous blast, another crater dozens of meters wide was created.
If Zeon had been below, he would have been crushed instantly.
There was no longer any trace of Zeon.
A smile crept onto Orca’s lips.
“Got you… human.”
Though it was a shame he couldn’t eat Zeon’s heart—
Killing the orcs’ greatest enemy was satisfaction enough.
Orca roared.
“UWOOOO! Victory is mine! Orc High Chieftain Orca has slain the Sand Demon!”
“KRRR!”
“Chwit! As expected of the High Chieftain!”
The orcs, emboldened by Orca’s shout, surged forward to attack the awakened.
Their morale soared—
While the awakened faltered.
That was how much Zeon’s presence had meant.
“The Sand Mage… is dead?”
“Damn it!”
Just hearing the news threw the awakened into disarray.
Those who faltered were cut down by the orcs.
“Aaagh!”
“Urgh!”
Cries of agony erupted across the battlefield.
Brielle dodged an orc’s attack and looked toward Orca.
Orca stood with Terratan raised high, reveling in victory.
‘Zeon… died? Just like that? No… that can’t be. He’s not someone who would die to a mere monster like that.’
While others accepted Zeon’s death—
Brielle did not.
She and Zeon were bound by a High Elf’s oath.
An invisible thread connected them.
That was how she knew—
Zeon was still alive.
If he had died, that connection would have been severed.
‘Zeon is alive.’
At that moment—
Whoooong!
A wind began to blow from somewhere.
Her throat suddenly felt dry.
The wind carried sand with it.
A yellow sandstorm quickly spread across the area.
At first, it seemed like a natural wind…
But both the orcs and the awakened knew—
This wind was anything but natural.
Their instincts told them.
‘The Sand Mage…’
‘He’s still alive.’
The awakened regained their courage, while the orcs’ morale plummeted instantly.
Orca’s expression hardened.
“…You’re still alive? Sand Demon!”
He tightened his grip on Terratan.
Though it was unexpected, Orca was confident he could still kill him.
With Terratan, he could split any monster in two.
“Where are you, Sand Mage?! Stop hiding like a coward and show yourself!”
Orca shouted, but Zeon did not respond.
Instead, the sandstorm grew stronger—denser.
Whoooong!
It felt as if the entire world was being swallowed by yellow sand.
Even so, Orca remained calm.
A force field around his body protected him from the raging storm.
No matter how fierce the sandstorm became, it shouldn’t have been able to harm him.
Grrrrk—
Yet despite his massive two-ton body, he was slowly pushed backward.
Only then did Orca realize—
Something was wrong.
The sandstorm was far more violent and razor-sharp than he had anticipated.
Pipipip!
Sand pierced through the barrier and carved cuts into his skin like blades.
Ordinarily, such wounds wouldn’t even make Orca blink—
But as time passed, his tension steadily rose.
He knew Zeon wouldn’t attack him with something this trivial.
Orca roared,
“What is this?! Show yourself, human! I’ll split you in half with Terratan!”
“Sand Storm.”
At that moment, Zeon’s low voice echoed from within the storm.
Just as Orca turned to swing Terratan toward the sound—
His massive body was suddenly yanked upward, as if uprooted.
His two-ton frame was lifted dozens of meters into the air like a leaf.
“KUUUROOOO!”
Orca roared, regaining his balance midair.
He struggled to escape the sandstorm Zeon had created—
But with no footing at all, escaping was far from easy.
Whooong! Whoosh!
Orca swung Terratan wildly in every direction.
But no matter how powerful the axe was, it couldn’t cut through the storm itself.
Pipipip!
Even then, his skin continued to be sliced apart like it was being cut by countless blades.
At this rate, even his powerful body wouldn’t hold.
Meanwhile, the sandstorm began to shrink.
It no longer spread across a wide area—
Instead, it concentrated entirely around Orca.
It wasn’t weakening.
It was compressing.
And the more it compressed, the more its power multiplied.
Orca realized—
It was time to use the skill he had kept hidden until now.
He raised Terratan high into the sky.
“KUUUROOO! A strike that collapses the heavens!”
Gathering all his fighting spirit into Terratan, he unleashed his ultimate attack.
It was nothing more than a simple swing of the axe.
No technique. No embellishment.
But Orca knew—
Sometimes simplicity held greater power than any complex skill.
Terratan, with tenfold mass.
His overwhelming physique.
His fighting spirit.
He poured everything into that single strike.
He didn’t think about the consequences.
His entire focus was on destroying both Zeon—
And the crushing sandstorm surrounding him.
Flash!
A blinding light burst from Terratan.
At the same time, the sandstorm pressing in on him split in two.
Orca was certain—
That Zeon, beyond the storm, had been split apart as well.
He declared his victory.
“I win.”
“…Who said you won?”
“What?”
At Zeon’s voice from beyond the sand, chills ran down Orca’s entire body.
In that instant, the divided sandstorm fused back together.
GAAAAANG!
The storm spun violently.
Now compressed to barely contain Orca, its power had multiplied several times over.
But Zeon knew—
Even this wouldn’t be enough to kill an S-rank monster like Orca.
So he used another weapon.
His superheated gauntlet.
Fwoooosh!
An intense, scorching flame infused the sandstorm.
Inside, it became a hell of extreme heat.
Within it, Orca’s body began to roast.
His immense fighting spirit—
His diamond-like body—
Neither mattered anymore.
The flame-infused sandstorm cooked him from the inside out.
“KRAAAAGH!”
Orca let out a desperate scream.
GAAAAANG!
The violently spinning, superheated sandstorm swallowed even his final cry.
Moments later—
Silence fell over the battlefield.