“Aaarrghhh!” Yi-An crumbled to the ground.

Instructor Lenox, an Orcrox warrior, was laughing at him.

“Measly men like you want to become warriors?”

“Uhhhh…”

Lenox grabbed Grom by the collar.

“How can men like you call themselves orcs and walk with your heads high!” Lenox yelled as he pushed his face right up to Grom’s. “Look at these weak arms and legs! One could believe you are a human, elf, or even a dwarf! Never an orc!”

Then he threw Grom onto the ground.

Grom rolled on the floor while breathing heavily. Orc warriors who were training nearby laughed at them in their characteristic grating voices.

When Yi-An and Grom first came to Lenox saying that they wanted to become warriors, Lenox had asked them, “Why do you want to become warriors?”

Yi-An and Grom had looked at each other before Grom said loudly, “We want to become stronger!”

Grom’s response had been a perfect textbook answer and truthful to some extent. After all, orcs were strong warriors who revered the strong and did not bow down to enemies.

Lenox’s eyes had widened upon hearing Grom’s answer just before he nodded. After that, he slugged them.

Now, they were getting beaten up.

“Why— Why are you hitting us…?”

Even though it was virtual reality, they could still experience pain. Physical sensations were based on assimilation rates, so pain always existed.

After the beating, Grom had tears in his eyes, and the other orc warriors roared with laughter at his tearful voice.

“Are you really crying right now? Are you really a man? You sissy!” Lenox chided.

Lenox raised his fist again, and Grom flinched. Seeing that, Lenox smirked and put down his fist. Then, he turned his head toward Yi-An.

Yi-An was tidying himself after getting up from the ground. He was shaking with pain that he hadn’t experienced for a while. He felt as if he had been beaten up, and even his teeth were chattering.

“Hey, you! Who are you?”

“Me?”

“Did you also come here to become strong?”

Yi-An felt a sense of déjà vu. Lenox’s appearance reminded him of his past instructor from when he was part of a foreign troop.

On their first day, the instructor had asked the recruits, “Why did you come here? For what reason do you jeopardize your lives?”

There had been numerous answers, but the instructor had kicked the soldiers in the stomach and laughed at every response they gave.

Then Yi-An responded, “To protect my younger sister.”

Yi-An’s parents were dead. He and his sister didn’t have any money, and they had inherited their parents’ debts. So, he had to protect his sister. The one asset he possessed was his body, which had been strengthened by martial arts training, and that was it. Thus, he decided to head to the battlefield with his life as collateral.

The instructor had nodded at Yi-An’s answer. Then he kicked Yi-An in the stomach, causing him to fall.

However, instead of laughing at him, the instructor had muttered softly, “Do it well.”

Yi-An stared at Lenox’s eyes while recalling that moment.

Lenox no longer seemed like a hideous monster in a game. He was a warrior and an instructor, a mentor to orc warriors. He wasn’t joking with them; he was facing them head-on.

Lenox wasn’t someone who would accept a cliché answer found in game tips.

“Yes, that’s right,” Yi-An responded to Lenox.

“I see.”

“I want to become stronger… to protect someone important to me.”

It was the truth. Yi-An had started playing the game to protect his sister as he knew that the battlefield was a world where the strong devoured the weak. Their battles were just proxies of politicians’ conflicts.

Lenox grinned at Yi-An’s answer and punched him in the gut.

“Ughh!” Yi-An withstood the pain by clenching his teeth.

He doubled over but was able to stay standing through the sheer force of his legs.

“Everyone, get up,” said Lenox.

Grom struggled to stand up, but he and Yi-An both stood up straight.

Lenox stared at Grom. “If you want to become strong, don’t cower.”

“Ye-Yes!”

“Stand up straight.”

Grom stood straight as a rod.

Lenox then gazed at Yi-An. “You want to protect someone important to you?”

“Yes.”

“Right now, you can’t even protect yourself, let alone someone important to you,” Lenox said. Then he grinned. “Always remember this feeling of helplessness from today.”

[You are now an orc trainee!]

[Become a great orc warrior under Instructor Lenox’s guidance!]

[You gained 10 achievement points!]

These message windows popped up for Yi-An and Grom.

Then Lenox gestured at Yi-An and Grom to follow him. The three of them entered a large stone building erected beside the training ground.

“All orcs who desire to become warriors stop by here,” Lenox said.

He made a grand hand gesture, and lights lit up the dark interior of the building.

Lenox continued, “These are the great warriors who have been admitted to the Hall of Fame.”

The lit torches revealed multiple statues around them. The statues were several times the size of actual orcs, and their lifelike expressions were meticulously sculpted.

Yi-An was again impressed by the cultured civilization of the orcs. The statues were holding axes, halberds, iron maces, hammers, and morning stars. They were standing proud, each with a weapon in hand.

Lenox said, “Who do you wish to follow?”

A message window popped up.

[Pick your role model!]

[Orcs trust their intuition and soul.]

[Your future weapon depends on your current decision.]

[You can change your weapon later, but you will have to proceed with the weapon and skills you have chosen for the time being.]

It was now time for Yi-An to choose his weapon.

Yi-An scrutinized the statues. They stood in a circle and stared off into the center, seeming to be looking into each other’s eyes eerily.

Then Yi-An suddenly felt someone’s eyes boring into him and turned his head to look.

One statue with a huge greatsword was staring at him calmly. Although it was a replica made of stone, Yi-An’s heart thumped nervously.

However, there was something that surprised him even more. The statue was of a human.

“That human…?”

“Leyteno,” replied Lenox as he walked toward the statue.

“Like us, he walked the path of the warrior and was the sole human who became a brother of the orcs.”

“A human did that?”

“A long time ago, when humans betrayed us and broke the pact, Leyteno was furious at their hypocrisy and greed and fought with us. He was a warrior who knew honor. He was a true warrior who never compromised with injustice and never lost faith. His enemies’ blood stained the mountains whenever he swung his greatsword.”

Lenox held out his fist. Leyteno’s statue did not move an inch, but its lifelike aura gave the impression that it was about to bump fists with Lenox.

“We respectfully call him ‘Master of the Greatsword’.”

[You have selected Leyteno Pacrinche, Master of the Greatsword. He was a great warrior who became a brother of the orcs despite being human!]

[Your weapon is the greatsword.]

[You have acquired the skill: Greatsword Art (Common).]

[Status Window

Yi-An, Orc Apprentice Warrior

Level: 1

Achievement points: 10

Assimilation: 53%

Skills:

Orc’s Strength (Common)

Orc’s Recovery (Common)

Greatsword Art (Common)]

It was automatically assigned, but Yi-An wasn’t startled. He wanted to select Leyteno anyway.

Yi-An was a human, but he had selected the orc as his avatar. So, he felt a sense of camaraderie with Leyteno, who had become a brother of the orcs despite being human.

Moreover, Yi-An had previously learned swordsmanship from Baek Han-Ho.

[Based on your abilities, your proficiency in the Greatsword Art (Common) has increased. Once you gain further proficiency, your skill can be upgraded to Uncommon.]

How did this game know that he had previously learned swordsmanship? The system was extraordinarily intricate.

“Grom selected Gloin. Gloin was known to split mountains with his axe.”

“I like the axe.”

“Yes, the axe befits an orc warrior.” Lenox cackled as he was also carrying an axe on his back.

“Follow me.”

They exited the Hall of Fame and entered the arsenal where Lenox gave each of them their weapons.

[You have acquired a worn Greatsword (Common).]

It was difficult to carry the greatsword because it was so heavy.

Unlike most games, there was no inventory in Elder Lord. Developers got rid of the convenience in exchange for heightened realism.

The greatsword was ridiculously large even in comparison to an orc’s hefty size; it appeared almost laughable for Yi-An to carry it.

Grom also struggled with his weapon and staggered under the weight of the axe.

He whispered, “No wonder they say an orc’s life is hell. Damn, even the weapons are absurdly big.”

“Yeah.”

Yi-An swung his sword in the air. The orcs’ natural strength was evident in the way he wielded the sword.

“I can see that you twerps are enjoying your weapons,” Lenox said while laughing. “However, will you still enjoy them after hearing what I have to say?”

“Huh?”

“Take your weapons to the training grounds right now and start swinging.”

They stood at the training ground where numerous orcs were training with their weapons. There was a high ratio of axe and halberd wielders, followed by those with hammers and iron maces. Not many orcs who were holding a greatsword like Yi-An though.

The orcs at the training ground stared at Grom and Yi-An as if they were a spectacle.

“Observe my stance,” Lenox said.

He grabbed Grom’s axe and did a demonstration. It was a clean downward blow. Lenox repeated the technique. Then he demonstrated a two-handed slash with Yi-An’s greatsword.

“Repeat this.”

“How many times?”

“Until you are satisfied.”

“Huh…?”

Lenox cackled. “Once you are satisfied with yourself, come to me.”

After Lenox left, the nearby orcs laughed loudly at the dumbfounded Grom and Yi-An.

“Lol, he’s doing it again.”

“Hey newbies, let me tell you something!”

“Yes?”

“Instructor Lenox has never been satisfied.”

“Then how…”

“You need to make it up somehow.”

The orcs laughed uproariously.

“Lenox’s new sheep, stay alive!”

“Hahahaha!”

Grom sighed. He raised his axe, took a few small swings, and then stopped.

“Yi-An-ssi.”

“Yes?”

“Are you going to continue today?”

“Yes.”

“I’m tired, so I’m going to log out for a bit and look for a strategy. Being an orc is more difficult than I expected.”

“Understood.”

“Then enjoy the game. I will hit you up later.”

Grom started to fade away after logging out.

Suddenly, Yi-An felt conscious of the other orcs. How would they perceive the phenomenon of this orc fading away without warning?

Nearby orcs clicked their tongues when they saw Grom disappear.

“What, did he have the curse of the stars?”

They asked Yi-An as well, “You too?”

“Huh?”

“Have you been cursed by the stars as well?”

A help message popped up as Yi-An contemplated his answer.

[In the world of Elder Lord, players have received the ‘curse of the stars’.]

[They are at times summoned by the star of the abyss. They are forced to wander the earth without the ability to die due to the curse of the stars.]

[If those who are cursed by the stars build accomplishments, they can receive ‘God’s forgiveness’ and be liberated from the curse. However, if they are unable to, they are forever fated to suffer in the abyss.]

[If NPCs find out you have received the curse of the stars, you might be discriminated against.]

[Whichever path you take in the world of Elder Lord, it’s your choice.]

Yi-An understood perfectly. The developers created the concept of the ‘curse of the stars’ to explain players logging out or resurrecting after dying. He nodded approvingly at the developers’ meticulousness.

Yi-An replied honestly, “Yes, I have been cursed by the stars.”

“I see.”

The orcs fell silent.

In Elder Lord, NPCs seemed to dislike players, who—in their mind—had been cursed by the stars.

Yi-An didn’t care though.

He just picked up his greatsword again and recollected the slash that Lenox demonstrated. Lenox was truly an astounding warrior since he could wield a sword at that level even though it wasn’t his designated weapon.

Elder Lord wasn’t simply a game anymore. It was a new world.

Now, Yi-An was an apprentice orc, who was cursed by the stars and struggling to become a warrior.

“Ahhhhhh!”

“I’m alive!”

“Bul-tar!”

Yi-An’s heart swelled with fighting spirit when he heard the other orcs shout while practicing their skills.

Then Yi-An swung his sword.