After "Sword Saint" reached its maximum level, even though Saelran's speed far surpassed that of the orcs, the distance between them did not widen because of the unfavorable terrain. Instead, it slowly decreased.
"This is troublesome."
Saelran's expression darkened as he listened to the chaos behind him.
Although he was stronger than a single orc, he was not strong enough to defeat all of them. If he was surrounded, the situation would turn dire.
"My mana is too low, only eight points left. I have to reserve a slot for a healing spell."
His face was grim as he quickly weighed his options, weaving through the forest in an S-shaped pattern while using the dense trees as cover to slow down the orcs chasing him.
Boom!
Suddenly, a loud impact echoed from behind.
Saelran stopped and quickly turned his head, his eyes widening in shock.
The two orcs at the front had actually uprooted a tree as thick as a bucket from the ground.
Boom!
The massive tree thrown by the two orcs cast a large shadow over Saelran's head.
Seeing this, Saelran's eyelids twitched violently. Without hesitation, he pushed off the ground to build momentum, then immediately leapt to the right.
Bang!
The thrown tree struck the path where Saelran had been standing just moments ago, producing a deep, heavy crash.
The violent impact sent dirt flying everywhere, draining the color from Saelran's face.
Even worse, the branches of the sturdy trunk were propelled forward by the impact, slamming into Saelran, shredding his already torn clothes and leaving cuts on his face.
『HP: 109/113』
For a moment, Saelran's ears rang and his vision turned white, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
Thud, thud.
Taking advantage of the opening, the other four orcs surged forward.
"Pah!"
Saelran forced himself to stand while spitting out the dirt that had entered his mouth, his eyes hardening.
"As expected, an alternate version of the real world is not as gentle as a game."
Regardless of how these orcs had planned the ambush and even used a small goblin colony as bait, he could no longer see them as mindless monsters.
"Ah-hoo!"
"Human, food!"
"Roar!"
"Wah-hoo!"
The four orcs charging ahead, their yellow faces twisted with merciless ferocity, glared at Saelran with wild eyes as they swung their giant wooden clubs.
Four tremendous impacts crashed down toward Saelran.
"Rapid Slash!"
Saelran's eyes flashed coldly as he tightened his grip on his iron sword and unleashed his strongest attack at the four descending clubs.
The 120 % attack boost caused his sword to slice through the air with a sharp hiss, and the powerful strike cut through the massive wooden clubs one after another.
Crack, crack, crack, crack.
Clang!
The broken wooden clubs were sent flying from the impact.
Saelran's hands felt as if they were splitting open, blood streaming out. His worn-out iron sword could not withstand such a clash.
Bang!
The iron sword shattered and was knocked away.
The force of both sides clashing exploded outward. Saelran staggered back two steps before steadying himself.
"Huff, huff."
He panted, staring at his blood-covered hands and the broken iron sword he still held, then grinned.
He could not run.
Whether he liked it or not, he had to fight. Even if it was one against six, he needed to carve out an opening.
Fortunately, these orcs were using clubs made from sturdy forest trees they found randomly. If they were using iron weapons, it would have been a disaster.
Ordinary human weapons could never match the size of orcs, unless they were magical weapons that automatically adjusted to the wielder's size.
The four orcs stared blankly at the broken clubs in their hands. Their dark yellow pupils were quickly replaced with rage.
Bang!
They threw the broken clubs aside and charged at Saelran, swinging their massive fists.
Saelran extended his empty hand.
An iron sword appeared in his grasp as he silently shouted, "Ten!"
"Nine!"
Two massive yellow fists, each the size of a soccer ball, slammed toward him. Saelran quickly raised his sword to block.
Bang!
A heavy thud echoed.
Saelran stood firm, glanced sideways, then twisted his body and dodged to the side.
A fist struck the spot where he had just been standing.
"Eight!"
"Seven!"
Two more orcs came from both sides.
Saelran narrowed his eyes and quickly retreated to avoid being surrounded, slashing at the nearest orc's fist with his steel sword.
Crack!
Blood and flesh splattered.
The sound of breaking bones mixed with the orc's pained scream.
"Six!"
At the same moment, another orc lifted his leg and kicked violently.
Saelran raised his steel sword horizontally in front of his chest to block the kick, also keeping an eye on the second orc's incoming punch.
"Five!"
"Four!"
Facing another barrage of attacks, Saelran could only release one hand, pull another iron sword from his inventory, and block the strike coming toward his left shoulder.
Four orcs attacked. One backed off because of the injury Saelran had inflicted. Two were blocked by the two iron swords. But Saelran could not stop the final orc.
"Three!"
Thud!
The orc's fist slammed into Saelran before he could fully brace himself.
The impact felt like a hammer striking his ribs, forcing the air from his lungs. Pain surged across his side, sharp and immediate, and his vision shook for a brief instant.
The sheer force was too much for him to endure with his extremely low physical defense.
Bang.
The iron sword in his right hand was flung away.
Saelran was hurled back by the impact and crashed into a large tree.
"Two!"
"One!"
『HP: 71/113』
"Pfft!"
Leaned against the tree, Saelran spat blood, his teeth stained red.
His body screamed in protest, but his mind stayed cold. Saelran tightened his grip on his sword, ignoring the throbbing ache spreading through his chest.
"Damn it. But I'm ready."
"Rapid Slash" had a ten-second cooldown.
As for martial techniques, "Light Consecutive Slash" reduced his attack power. It could injure an orc, but killing one was nearly impossible. And "Instant Reflection" was too ineffective when surrounded.
Whoosh!
The orc who had knocked Saelran back charged again, swinging its massive fist.
Seeing the orc rushing toward him, Saelran grinned, his eyes icy cold.
"Die!"
He pushed off the trunk behind him, leaning forward, and with explosive strength from his legs, he gripped his iron sword tightly and charged.
"Rapid Slash!"
Saelran roared, swinging his sword upward with overwhelming force.
The 120% attack boost burst forth instantly.
With no wooden club to block it, the orc was left with only its two fists. It could not defend against the sharp iron sword.
Splat!
A surge of green blood and fragments of ruptured organs flew into the air.
The charging orc was split entirely in half by Saelran's upward slash.
Splat, splat.
A mass of crushed organs spilled onto the ground as the two halves collapsed with heavy thuds.
『Gained 310 experience points!』
[Experience Points: 1581/500]
The three remaining orcs, who had been preparing to attack, were overwhelmed with fear despite their low intelligence.
Saelran glanced at the three orcs in front of him and the two orcs who had thrown the tree earlier and were now rushing toward him.
Before they could react, he gave them a middle finger, turned around and disappeared into the bushes.