Lin Seok stood frozen, his heart pounding in his chest, the image of the first group of Ranked Pillars—now nothing more than a mangled mess of blood and bone—still fresh in his mind.

His mind couldn’t help but go spiral, consumed by the gravity of what had just happened.

He had lost comrades, people he fought beside for years, in mere seconds. And now, with only fourteen left, the burden weighed heavily on him.

The battlefield was eerily still for a moment, the orcs standing in the distance, as though savoring their recent victory.

Their laughter echoed through the streets, mocking the Pillars and sending chills down Lin Seok’s spine.

They hadn’t just defeated the Pillars; they had annihilated them with terrifying efficiency.

And then, he saw it—the orc, a hulking figure towering over the battlefield, with a child clutched in his enormous hand.

The child was plump, his round face streaked with tears and snot. He was trembling in fear, his small voice barely audible as he whimpered for his mother.

Lin Seok’s breath caught in his throat. “No…” he whispered under his breath. “They wouldn’t… they wouldn’t hurt the children.”

The other Pillars stirred, their attention drawn to the orc as well. The tension in the air was palpable, thick with dread.

One of the Pillars, a woman named Hyejin, who had been silent until now, broke the quiet. “Seok, you still think they won’t hurt the kids?” Her voice was sharp, filled with disbelief and accusation. “Look at them! They’re monsters!”

Lin Seok shook his head, his hands trembling. “Orcs… orcs have a code. They don’t kill children. It’s—” He struggled to find the words, to hold onto the shred of hope he still had. “It’s not their way.”

Hyejin scoffed, her eyes narrowing. “And you’re willing to gamble the lives of innocent children on that?”

“They’re using them as bait!” Lin Seok shouted, frustration bubbling up inside him. “If we rush in, we’ll end up like Jihoon and the others! Dead! They’re waiting for us to make a mistake!”

Another Pillar, Minjae, slammed his fist into the wall beside him, the brick crumbling under the force of the impact. “What if you’re wrong, Seok?! What if they kill that kid right now?! Are you willing to stand here and do nothing?”

Lin Seok clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms. He looked at the orc holding the child, his mind racing.

He could feel the weight of their eyes on him, waiting for his decision, but doubt gnawed at his insides.

What if he was wrong? What if they did kill the child? But if they rushed in…

“We can’t just charge in blindly!” Lin Seok barked, his voice hoarse. “That’s exactly what they want! We have to be smarter than that.”

Hyejin’s face twisted with anger. “Smarter? Smarter? Jihoon’s dead because of your ‘smart’ tactics, Seok! How many more have to die before you realize that this isn’t a game?”

Minjae stepped forward, his face red with fury. “You think you’re the only one who knows what’s going on? You think we’re idiots? We can see the trap, too! But we can’t just stand here and do nothing! What kind of Pillars are we if we let children die?!”

Lin Seok opened his mouth to retort, but the words caught in his throat. He couldn’t argue with that. He couldn’t ignore the fact that children’s lives were at stake, and doing nothing went against everything he believed in. But rushing in blindly…

“We need a plan,” Lin Seok muttered, his voice cracking. “If we charge now, we’ll all—”

His words were cut short by a horrifying sound.

Whoosh.

The orc holding the child raised its arm, and before anyone could react, hurled the fat child into the air.

The boy’s scream pierced the battlefield, his cry of “Mommy!” echoing as he flew helplessly through the air.

His small, round body twisted in the sky, and in that split second, everything seemed to slow down.

Lin Seok’s heart stopped.

Squash.

The child’s body hit the ground with a sickening thud, and in an instant, his small frame exploded into a cloud of blood and mist, painting the ground red.

For a moment, there was only silence. The world stood still.

Then chaos erupted.

Hyejin screamed, her face contorted in horror. “No! No! Oh God, no!” She turned on Lin Seok, her voice dripping with venom. “You let this happen! You let that child die!”

Minjae’s face twisted with rage as he pointed a shaking finger at Lin Seok. “This is your fault! You could have stopped them, but you didn’t! You let that kid die!”

The remaining Pillars surrounded him, their faces full of anger, fear, and grief. “It’s on you, Seok!” someone shouted from behind him. “You let those monsters kill that kid!”

Lin Seok stumbled backward, his breath coming in ragged gasps. His vision blurred, and for a moment, all he could see was the blood. The blood on the ground. The blood on his hands.

“I—” His voice trembled. “I didn’t…”

But they weren’t listening. They were already moving.

“Go!” Hyejin shouted, her voice full of fury. “We can’t let them kill any more kids!”

The fourteen remaining Pillars charged, their weapons raised, and Lin Seok could only watch in horror as they sprinted toward the orcs, rage and desperation driving them forward.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Explosions rocked the battlefield as the Pillars unleashed their magic, fireballs, and lightning crackling through the air.

The orcs, however, were prepared. They raised their massive weapons and use them as shields, deflecting the attacks with ease.

Even as the ground shook from the force of the Pillars’ assault, the orcs stood firm, laughing.

Hyejin hurled a bolt of fire at the nearest orc, but it bounced off his thick armor, barely singeing his skin.

“Damn it!” she screamed, frustration and panic evident in her voice. “Why aren’t they going down?!” Continue your adventure with mvl

The orcs retaliated.

With a roar, one of the orcs swung his club, smashing it into the ground.

“Lok’tar Ogaaaaaaar!!”

The shockwave knocked two of the Pillars off their feet, sending them crashing into the rubble.

Hyejin barely managed to stay on her feet, but the others were struggling.

Lin Seok could only watch in horror as the battle raged on.

The Pillars were outmatched, their attacks doing little to slow the orcs down. And the orcs knew it.

They were toying with them, playing with their food before delivering the killing blow.

“Stop! You’re too tired!” Lin Seok shouted, but his voice was drowned out by the chaos.

It didn’t take long for the orcs to overpower them.

One by one, the remaining Pillars fell, their bodies battered and broken.

Only six were left standing, their energy nearly spent, and their attacks growing weaker with each passing second.

Lin Seok’s heart sank as he looked at his phone. The higher-ranked Pillars were still twenty minutes away. “We need to hold out,” he muttered under his breath. “We need to delay them—”

“We’re helpless!” Hyejin cried, her voice filled with despair. “They’re going to kill all the kids, and we can’t stop them!”

Lin Seok’s chest tightened, and he felt the weight of their impending failure pressing down on him.

“That leader… it’s because of him!”

He said as he looked at the Volk, leading the Orcs.

He didn’t know what to do. His mind was a blur of panic and confusion, and nothing made sense anymore.

Suddenly, a voice cut through the chaos.

“You just need to take out the leader, right?”

Lin Seok whipped around, his eyes widening.

Standing behind him was a teenager, his face calm and composed amidst the carnage.

“What…?” Lin Seok stammered, his heart racing. “Who are you?”

The teenager’s eyes gleamed with confidence as he stepped forward, his gaze locked on Volk, the orc leader. “Let me handle it.”

Lin Seok stared at him, disbelief and hope warring in his mind.

Could this kid really make a difference?

Could he stop the orcs?

He had no other choice.

“Go,” Lin Seok whispered, his voice barely audible.

He had no hope for the kid but, since he looked confident, why not let him try.

After all, a lot of heroic and unexplainable things lately, and this kid was always a part of it even though he’s new.

And with that, the teenager charged toward the orc leader.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep