The Support Ate it All

I extended one hand forward with a pained expression.

“Tell my brother! That I’m sorrrryyyyy…!”

“…Stop it.”

Kwak Ji-cheol writhed in shame.

He had just created the most humiliating moment of his life.

And it had happened right in front of his classmates.

One way to move past this kind of situation would be to get angry, but he couldn’t do that with his lifesaver.

If we hadn’t shown up to help in time, or if I hadn’t had a recovery scroll, or if I had chosen to save it instead of using it…

Kwak Ji-cheol would’ve been as good as dead.

So he had no choice but to endure whatever his lifesaver dished out.

“Why stop when it’s so much fun? I plan to milk this until graduation. We’ve still got two and a half years to go.”

“…Just kill me already.”

“I can’t do that. Then I’d have to say sorry to your brother.”

“Pffft!”

Finally, Hong Yeon-hwa couldn’t hold back her laughter.

She turned away and her shoulders started shaking.

The others were barely holding back their own laughter as well.

Kwak Ji-cheol looked at them with somewhat gloomy eyes. Perhaps he foresaw that a difficult future was waiting ahead for him.

Then he let out a deep sigh and spoke.

“Anyway, I owe you a huge debt. I’ll make sure to repay it, no matter when.”

“Go ahead. I won’t turn it down.”

I’m the kind of person who gladly accepts anything given.

And isn’t the heaviest debt the one owed for your life?

Neither the Emerald Magic Tower nor the Kwak family would let this matter slide, so I expect both tangible and intangible rewards to come my way.

Since we didn’t have time to just joke around, I decided to stop teasing Kwak Ji-cheol here.

I then got to the point and explained the current situation and our objective to Park Na-ri and the others

“We’re about to go hunt the Alpha Ogre.”

“We, we’ll help too.”

“I’d appreciate the help, but are you sure?”

The Alpha Ogre was the most dangerous being on this deserted island.

Facing it means risking your life.

I didn’t want anyone offering to help just because they were caught up in the moment.

However, the four members of Park Na-ri’s group seemed to have made up their minds.

“Y-Yes, I’m sure. I want to help. I don’t want the others… to get hurt like Kwak Ji-cheol.”

“Meow.”

Though she spoke hesitantly, Park Na-ri clearly expressed her intentions.

Bum who had transformed into a cat chimed in with a sound of agreement.

I nodded my head.

“Alright then, let’s go.”

Our group, which had been six, grew to ten members and a cat.

As I led the way, I listed key information about the Alpha Ogre.

“Keep at least twice the usual distance when you fight.”

“The formation will break down immediately anyway, so think of it as a free-for-all.”

“Until the reinforcements arrive, we need to—”

“From the second phase onwards—”

We continued our briefing and strategy meeting as we pushed through the forest under the pouring rain.

At some point, I subtly raised one hand.

“……”

“……”

Everyone tensed up, and those with keen senses seemed to realize that something was ahead of us.

First, I signaled to Shin Byeong-cheol with a glance and he quickly started setting up traps and tossing chopsticks with precision.

The Emerald and Mother Nature’s group added earth magic to enhance the traps’ effect.

Meanwhile, as I had instructed earlier, Hong Yeon-hwa was carving a Fire Pillar magic circle in another spot.

But before we could finish our preparations completely,

Thud, thud, thud,

A heavy rhythmic stomping sound grew closer.

A low growl echoed.

Soon, it revealed itself.

It stood taller by two or three heads than a typical ogre and its large frame matched its height.

In its hand was not a club, but a large tree it had uprooted from somewhere.

Around its ankles were two Blood Fury syringes wrapped in chains. And both of them were empty of course.

Finally, we were face-to-face with the final boss monster of the midterm deserted island, the Alpha Ogre.

It glared at us with eyes full of hostility.

“Grrrrr…”

“Everyone, try to stay safe.”

I stood at the front line with Go Hyeon-woo, Baek Jun-seok, and Bum.

The next moment, the Alpha Ogre crouched slightly, then sprang forward like a coiled spring.

With its massive body leaping into the air, it felt almost unreal to see.

In an instant, it flew straight to the front line and brought down the tree in its hand.

Boom!

“Ugh.”

“Argh.”

“Grrr.”

The ground was torn up, and the three of us in the front line were flung in different directions.

We tried to handle it like we would against a normal berserk ogre, but we couldn’t withstand the force and were sent flying.

Go Hyeon-woo seemed relatively unscathed, while Bum and Baek Jun-seok were dazed and unable to come to their senses.

On the other hand, because I had accurately gauged the creature’s strength, I used the impact to propel myself backward.

After landing lightly at the rear, I gave the command.

“It’s coming. I’m going to knock you back, so don’t panic.”

“Huh? Oh.”

[Activated “Amplification”.]

[The rank of “Wind Force” has increased. (C+ -> A+)]

[Duration: 00:04:59]

[Cooldown: 00:29:59]

“Raaaargh—!”

The Alpha Ogre let out a roar and once again leaped forward before flying toward us in an instant.

But just before it could land,

Whoosh—

A wind imbued with physical force blew everyone away in all directions.

The tree trunk slammed down into the now-empty space.

Crash!

And the place where it landed was right in the middle of the trap set up by Shin Byeong-cheol and Park Na-ri’s group.

The chopsticks they had driven in were connected by threads of mana. They entangled the creature as vines and mud climbed up its legs.

While it twisted its body back and forth, trying to break free,

Bang—!

Seo Ye-in’s shot struck its body, which caused the Alpha’s head to jerk slightly backward.

When its face returned to its original position, blood streamed down from one of its eyes.

“Blinded. Nice.”

With one eye blinded, its field of vision would now have significant blind spots.

This alone made setting the trap worthwhile.

Meanwhile, Hong Yeon-hwa unleashed the Fire Pillar she had been preparing.

Whoosh!

A slender but vivid pillar of fire shot up and it reached as high as the rain clouds covering the sky.

It was a kind of signal fire, visible not only to the disciplinary committee but also to all the students across the deserted island.

For a while, Hong Yeon-hwa had to focus solely on maintaining the fire pillar rather than attacking the Alpha Ogre.

“Raaaargh!”

The trap had been somewhat effective against a regular ogre, but it wasn’t enough to hold down an Alpha for long.

When the creature twisted its body and took a step forward, the mana threads and vines snapped all at once.

The melee classes rushed in to attack the creature as it prepared to leap again.

I was among them.

[Inferno Fist]

[Overheat]

Whoosh,

The flames that had been burning on my fist were absorbed into my body, supplying a surge of immense energy.

I pushed off the ground and faced the Alpha Ogre head-on.

Swish!

“Grrrr.”

The creature hesitated as it was about to swing its log, and its one remaining eye locked directly onto me.

Then it quickly reached out, trying to grab me as I approached.

Its reaction speed was impressive, which was to be expected from a boss monster but,

My reaction speed isn’t lacking either.

Swish!

At the last second, I kicked off the ground and appeared beside its leg.

My index finger was frozen solid, like an icicle.

[Mysterious Yin Jade Demon Finger]

Thud,

I jabbed the demon finger into the creature’s calf and quickly retreated.

Even if it gets noticed, I have no choice but to use it.

Having already used the only recovery scroll I had on Kwak Ji-cheol, there would be no solution if anyone got hurt.

It was better to risk the demon finger being discovered than to have one of our party members fall.

And the chances of it being noticed are slim anyway.

The battle was in full swing and everyone was too distracted to notice. Besides, with Overheat activated, my speed accelerated tremendously.

Because of this, no one else would have seen me cast the demon finger technique. They would simply think I had dodged the Alpha Ogre’s attack and retreated.

And since the replay was also dead, the chances of getting caught later were low as well.

“Graaaah—!”

The Alpha Ogre spun like a windmill and started swinging the log in its hand wide.

However, its speed was a bit slower than before. This allowed Go Hyun-woo to leap into the air and unleash a sword strike.

A few long wounds were etched across the creature’s chest.

Its legs have stiffened.

Two Blood Fury Pills were already inside the Alpha Ogre.

With the blood in its body rampaging, the freezing process was slower. Still, it seemed like one of its legs was immobilized.

At the very least, it wouldn’t be able to leap around like a grasshopper anymore.

Boom!

I moved in close, unleashed a Spiral Explosion on its chest, and quickly withdrew again.

“Graaaah!”

The Alpha Ogre seemed to have decided to target someone easier than me.

It set its sights on Hong Yeon-hwa who was maintaining the Fire Pillar.

The fire magic made her an obvious target.

Even with its legs half-frozen, the creature charged at her with terrifying speed.

But I was able to aim my Wind Force at Hong Yeon-hwa and send her flying away long before the creature could reach her.

Whoosh—

Hong Yeon-hwa soared through the air before landing gracefully far from danger thanks to Wind Force.

She shot me a grateful look before reigniting the fading Fire Pillar.

“Grroar.”

The Alpha Ogre immediately whipped around.

Its next target was Shin Byeong-cheol who was the closest to it.

When their eyes met, Shin Byeong-cheol’s face turned pale.

“Graaaah!”

“Hey, hey, hey! Blow me out of here too! Quickly!”

He frantically called for Wind Force support, but I didn’t need to intervene.

Bum quickly jumped in, grabbed Shin Byeong-cheol by the scruff of his neck, and yanked him out of the Alpha’s reach.

After carrying him a short distance away, Bum spat him out onto the ground with a disgusted snort, as if Shin Byeong-cheol tasted awful.

Even as he rolled in the mud, Shin Byeong-cheol was all smiles. He was relieved to be alive.

“Oh my, our Bum is really—”

Thud.

Bum silenced him by pressing a paw over his mouth.

Seems like Bum didn’t want to hear it.

“Graaaah!”

The game of cat and mouse with the Alpha Ogre continued.

Everyone was focused on playing it safe and gradually accumulated damage on the creature.

Because the initial goal was just to pin the creature in place.

At least until reinforcements arrive.

And finally, it happened.

The area near the pillar of fire that Hong Yeon-hwa had conjured began to ripple and mana gathered on its own to form a large door.

The teleportation portal opened wide and students rushed out from inside it.

The first to be seen were Song Cheon-hye and the four members of the disciplinary committee.

As soon as Song Cheon-hye stepped out of the portal, she hurled a powerful lightning bolt.

Fzzzzzzt!

Just as planned, they used the Twin GPS and the pillar of fire Hong Yeon-hwa had created to locate this spot and then opened the portal using the [Twin Portal Scroll].

“We’re here. We’re not too late, right?”

“Yeah, you’re right on time.”

I quickly scanned the group that had poured out.

Including the four from the disciplinary committee and the other first-year members, there were ten in total.

It seemed they had brought everyone they could find.

“A lot of you have come.”