Chapter 14: About Life (1)
Yi-An stayed over at Thompson’s place for a few days. Derek’s underlings preyed on Thompson’s family and threatened them at every turn, so Hoyt and Yi-An took turns guarding the house. Since they were staying together, Yi-An was able to receive hands-on training from Hoyt.
In the world of Elder Lord, skills were divided into multiple tiers.
Just as its name suggested, Common tier meant the player was of a common level. Uncommon meant that the player had surpassed others to some extent. After Uncommon was the Special tier and then the Rare tier. The highest and only known tier after Rare was the Essence tier. It meant the player had absorbed the essence of the skill.
Even those who didn’t play Elder Lord knew the famous high-ranker Choi Han-Sung, whose skill Battlefield Penetrating Eyes was revealed to be Essence tier.
Most players’ skill levels were of the Common and Uncommon tiers, and there were occasionally those of Special tiers.
However, Elder Lord was similar to reality, so even though everyone had unique abilities, it was hard for them to put in the effort to make their abilities special. As a result, most players focused on accumulating as many common skills as possible.
“Do you believe in talent?” asked Hoyt.
“I believe it to some extent,” responded Yi-An.
Yi-An had learned martial arts in the past and knew he was unusually strong. Even though his colleagues had put in a lot of effort, Yi-An knew he had a talent for violence and was able to easily surpass them.
People who had talent knew it.
Hoyt nodded. “Talent definitely exists, but keep in mind that having talent doesn’t mean that you are the strongest.”
“Are you talking about effort?”
“Effort is too light of a word.” Hoyt laughed. “Obsession.”
“...”
“We can be anything we want,” said Hoyt.
Yi-An understood what Hoyt meant, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it. Hoyt was basically telling him to put in a lot of work.
Yi-An had grown up in poverty as his parents’ business hadn’t done well. He had even inherited their debts after they passed away, and he had to enter battlefields to earn money. The fact that he’d had a harsher life than most people wasn’t something to show off.
He had killed people, again and again, for money.
His targets hadn’t always been evil. If Yi-An acknowledged Hoyt’s words, he felt as if he only had himself to blame for choosing a life on the battlefield instead of pursuing another path. He had always been tormented by a tinge of guilt in his heart.
Yi-An grumpily said, “Not everyone can do that.”
“Everyone…” Hoyt aimed his hammer at Yi-An while smiling. “I’m not talking about everyone right now.”
“Then…”
“I’m talking about you right now.”
Yi-An looked at Hoyt. Hoyt’s body, full of tattoos and scars, proved his experience over the past years.
“Are you everyone?” Hoyt asked.
“I’m…”
“Do you want to become a warrior?”
“Yes, I want to.”
“Not everyone can become a warrior because a warrior has to pursue the path no one else pursues.” Hoyt took a step back and raised his hammer with two hands. “Look closely.”
He took a deep breath.
Yi-An flinched. For a moment, it seemed the air was shaking.
He felt something coming from Hoyt’s body. It wasn’t like strength or energy; it was actually the opposite. Hoyt’s presence blurred. It seemed as if he was becoming a part of the world while also separating from it. Hoyt moved his hammer in slow motion. Within that motion, Yi-An witnessed a countercurrent that defied the laws of the world. The world was falling apart inside that small movement.
Yi-An almost dropped to his knees. He couldn’t believe his eyes. What he saw was the unattainable state that had only been achieved by ancient martial arts masters. It was the pinnacle state his instructor, Baek Han-Ho, had talked about. Although it was for a short moment, it felt like infinity.
Hoyt withdrew his hammer and regulated his breathing. He looked at Yi-An and grinned from ear to ear.
“Did you see?”
“Ah…”
“You really saw it. You amaze me. This is…” Hoyt put his hammer down. He had drops of sweat on his face.
Hoyt said, “When I was your age, there was a really talented orc. I was a slow learner. I couldn’t achieve what he was able to learn in one go even after practicing twenty or thirty times.
“You… Hoyt?”
“Yes. He was truly a genius. Through split decision-making, he would play with the enemy by using an uncanny technique. I could never reach his flash of wit. In despair, I asked the instructor what I should do to become strong like him.” Hoyt put a hand on his waist.
Yi-An handed over a towel.
Hoyt continued, “The instructor taught me a single swing. He said that was enough. He said I didn’t need anything else except for this blow no matter what skill the opponent used.”
It was the pinnacle blow.
“I believed him and repeated it like crazy. Everyone laughed at me and said that it was ridiculous, but I didn’t give up. I relentlessly went at it—doing it ten thousand times, a hundred thousand times, and beyond. Before I had come to the realization, I was already a warrior.”
Yi-An raised his sword. ‘Could I do the same thing as Hoyt?’
“You definitely have talent,” Hoyt said.
“Yes, sir.”
“That’s why I’m telling you this.”
“Yes…”
“Reach the pinnacle and surpass me.”
Yi-An’s martial arts skills had been stagnant. He used to continuously improve when he applied them on the battlefield as a soldier, but he hit a wall and couldn’t see past it. He thought he had reached his limit. Yet, he saw past it today... in the game.
[Congratulations! You have witnessed the pinnacle state of the highest skill level.]
[Through your high understanding of martial arts, you have experienced the true nature of the pinnacle state and trembled in response.]
[Even in the world of Elder Lord, only the truly powerful have managed to achieve this pinnacle state.]
[You have attained the title 'Pursuer of the Pinnacle'. Your ability to gain proficiency in all skills will be elevated until you reach the pinnacle state.]
[You have gained the skill Mind’s Eye (Special), which allows you to discern the true nature of your opponent.]
[You have gained 50 achievement points.]
[You have leveled up.]
[Status Window
Yi-An, Orc Apprentice Warrior
Title: Pursuer of the Pinnacle
Level: 7
Achievement Score: 380
Assimilation: 57%
Skills:
Orc’s Superhuman Strength (Uncommon)
Orc’s Vitality (Uncommon)
Orc’s Greatsword Technique (Uncommon)
Warrior’s Fighting Spirit (Uncommon)
Mind’s Eye (Special)]
Various message windows popped up, but Yi-An shook his head as if they were a bother. Things like that didn’t matter to Yi-An. His heart thumped. Yi-An wanted to quickly swing his sword and put his body to work, not just in the game but also in real life. He couldn’t believe what he had seen.
“I haven’t used so much strength in a while, so I’m tired,” Hoyt said.
“You are amazing.”
“I’m more impressed by you. You don’t seem like an apprentice. Most warriors only see it as a regular swing, but you were able to see the true nature behind it,” remarked Hoyt as he took a look at the sun.
He was able to estimate the time based on the sun’s location. Yi-An wasn’t able to figure it out no matter how hard he tried though.
“It’s time for Ray to get out of school,” commented Hoyt.
“I will go pick him up,” replied Yi-An.
“Please do so.”
Yi-An quickly headed toward Ray’s school. Only Ray, the eldest of Thompson’s kids, attended school. Unlike in real life, the school didn’t have an official curriculum provided by the country; it was more like a private academy run by a scholar. Even though Thompson’s financial situation was difficult, he sent Ray to school with the firm belief that children had to be educated. Moreover, Derek’s filthy hands couldn’t reach Ray at the school because Anail’s city guards were involved in protecting educational facilities.
On his way to the school, civilians recognized Yi-An due to his extended stay and also because orcs weren’t common in Anail.
Other species greeted him as he passed by.
“Hey man, are you no longer selling vegetables?”
“It was a part-time job,” replied Yi-An.
“That’s too bad.”
“Stella will sell fresh vegetables.”
“I don’t trust that woman.”
Yi-An cackled.
In Elder Lord, reputation was important like in real life. Yi-An had managed to build quite a reputation by selling all of the vegetables, protecting the esteemed Thompson family from the vicious loan sharks, and doing other positive activities. The NPCs were no longer discriminatory against him just because he was an orc.
Yi-An entered Ray’s academy with light footsteps, but the atmosphere was strange. The children were at the back of the classroom, standing in a circle. It was the sight of a typical children’s fight.
He saw a familiar face within the circle. It was Ray. However, Yi-An didn’t rush in to break up the fight and instead observed it closely. Ray and another kid were going at each other with all of their might. They were entangled together and rolling on the floor, tossing and turning. Punches were also exchanged.
Yi-An tapped on the shoulder of a kid watching the scene.
“Who… Aah!” The kid’s face lost color when he suddenly saw the orc’s menacing face.
Yi-An asked quietly, “Why are they fighting?”
“Um… Robin teased Ray that his dad ran away.”
“Hmmm…”
Ray had willpower. Although they were initially landing similar blows, Ray now overpowered Robin. Ray mounted Robin and began swinging punches at his face. Robin curled his body while wrapping his arms around his face to ward off the blows. Ray’s punches landed directly on Robin’s guard.
Yi-An intervened, “Stop, stop.”
At the sound of the orc’s loud and ringing voice, the kids split like Moses parting the Red Sea. Ray stopped what he was doing with hesitation.
“You shouldn’t fight.” Yi-An pulled the two kids apart.
Ray panted with anger as Robin took a step back with a bloody nose.
“If you keep talking shit like that, I will kill you,” declared Ray to Robin with malice-filled eyes.
Robin didn’t lose his nerve and retorted, “It’s true. You don’t have a dad anymore.”
“This bastard!”
Ray tried to go at Robin again, but Yi-An stopped him in his tracks.
Ray struggled in Yi-An’s arms as he screamed, “Ahjussi! Didn’t you hear what that little shit said? I’m going to kill him!” [1].
Yi-An was in a dilemma. He also beat up people until they were half-dead when they insulted his family, so he couldn’t chide Ray by saying violence was never okay because he understood what Ray felt. Moreover, relying on one’s fists was more natural than relying on the law in Elder Lord. Yi-An didn’t want to assure Ray with unrealistically idealistic stories. Humans had to develop survival techniques that best suited the world they lived in.
So, Yi-An just nodded. “The outcome is clear, so you should stop. Do you still want to fight?”
Ray seemed ready to charge at any moment, but Robin didn’t seem to want to fight anymore. He silently wiped his nosebleed with his sleeve. Yi-An disbanded the group of kids and headed back home with Ray. Although Yi-An had raised his sister Yi-Yoo like his daughter, he hadn’t experienced situations like this because she was a girl. At most, she had fought verbally with a friend and then the two tearfully made up.
“Ahjussi, I want to learn how to wield the sword, so I can become strong like you.”
“Why?”
“If I become strong, I can kill guys like him.”
Yi-An chuckled. “You want to kill people?”
“Yes.”
“Isn’t that too much?”
“They make me so angry.”
“Ray, you can’t just kill people because they make you angry.”
“...”
“If everyone did that, someone who is stronger than you could appear and kill you just ‘cause they don’t like you.”
“Then I can just die like a man.”
Yi-An stared at Ray, who then looked away as if he knew he was being stubborn.
“That’s not what it means to be a man.”
“...”
“Ray, you shouldn’t talk lightly about death.” Yi-An patted Ray, who was silent.
Yi-An thought that the world of Elder Lord suited him better than the real world. He had learned murder techniques from Baek Han-Ho that were passed on in secret, and he had lived on the battlefield where death was frequent. However, that knowledge didn’t have a place in the world that he currently lived in. He ran a cafe, but he knew more about battles, murder, and matters of life and death than coffee beans.
Yi-An scratched his head. There were many thoughts running rampant in his mind.
Suddenly, a group of men appeared and surrounded Yi-An and Ray.
“Hello, orc, we meet again.” Yi-An could recognize them.
They were Derek’s underlings who had trespassed into Thompson’s home.
“It’s a different story now since that monster isn’t here,” one of them said.
Derek’s underlings were all holding weapons. Their intent was clear.
Yi-An hid Ray behind him and gripped the handle of his sword. He assessed the fighting prowess of each of the men. If they were the same group of guys from earlier, Yi-An would be able to oppose them and let Ray escape. However, there was one guy who was watching everyone from behind that caught Yi-An’s attention. He stuck out like a sore thumb.
The middle-aged man with a beard stared at Yi-An with a bored face. He was clad in expensive clothing with a sword on his waist and emanated an intense aura that felt sharp, as if it could cut.
“Are you a colleague of Hoyt’s…?” a low and hoarse voice rang out as the middle-aged man stepped forward in front of his crew.
His whole body radiated fierceness.
Yi-An tensed up. This man was stronger than him.
“I’m Derek, young lad.”
Yi-An’s stomach tightened as he listened. He had to endure the pain. Derek’s aura alone made him feel as if he had already been stabbed multiple times by Derek’s sword.
Yi-An looked up at Derek’s indifferent face.
Derek tilted his head as he said, “The interest on Thompson’s loan has increased… I need to take your body to make up for it.”
1. Ahjussi is used to refer to older men ☜
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