CHAPTER 164……………………………………….
Giant
Hog was an object.
That’s how he had always been treated.
From the mother who gave birth to him with difficulty, to the father who didn’t care whether he was his own child.
At the corner of the harbor, where the heads and guts of fish were discarded, the newborn cried desperately.
The fisherman who saved him sold him to a slave trader, claiming he had caught a “big fish.”
There was always demand for children, but strangely, Hog never sold.
Maybe it was because he was bigger than the other kids, or maybe because he looked ugly.
The slave trader handed the bigger, stronger Hog over to the guild.
At the guild, Hog worked as a pack carrier.
It didn’t matter if he couldn’t read or stammered when he spoke.
All that mattered was that he could carry heavy loads.
Hog took pride in his usefulness and always gave his best.
He didn’t know that the guild called him “the cow that understands words.”
When Hog was about to reach adulthood, they tempted him with a mark and lent him money.
Innocent Hog borrowed the money without suspicion and received the mark.
The mark was a mess, and the interest on the loan skyrocketed before he could blink.
From then on, they no longer whispered behind his back.
They treated him like a beast, openly, in front of him.
Every single day.
Carrying loads was all there was to life.
There was no time to sleep.
No time even to think of running away.
It wasn’t until he was falsely accused, taking the blame for the guild master’s son, that he was sent to Ice Rock.
On the transport wagon leaving Norgil, Hog was genuinely happy.
Not out of vindication, but simply because he was finally leaving that miserable place by any means.
When he met Esrik and Ronan, and arrived at the Guardians to become a member, he finally felt a true sense of belonging.
Hog repaired the broken fortress, held shields with his comrades, and blocked Snowworms. For the first time, he truly felt alive.
That’s why he wanted to carve his own mark.
He wanted to repay everyone who gave him a sense of belonging.
Even if it was just to protect one person behind him.
So, he had carved his third and fourth marks, leading to this moment.
A new mark, following .
.
He didn’t care about principles or theory.
Hog had no interest in such things.
He was simply grateful that he could now be with his comrades and be of help.
Kwaaang— Kwaaang—!
He swung his fists with all his might.
“Uoooooo—!”
Hearing his roar echo back, his heart pounded faster.
The sturdy iron gates, which seemed unmovable, were denting.
“What are you staring at like an idiot!”
A deep voice rang in his ears.
“Throw spears! Roll rocks! Pour molten metal or oil and set it on fire if you have to!”
“Th-the spears! Throw them, quickly!”
“Block it! Th-the rocks…!”
The soldiers on the walls began to move busily at those commands.
Spears and rocks flew in from both sides.
But the angles were wrong, so none reached beyond Hog’s back.
Even if they touched him, his skin, hardened by , couldn’t be scratched.
Ignoring everything, Hog swung again.
Kwaaang—!
The iron twisted with a scream, spiderweb-like cracks spreading across the center.
It was the same part weakened by Hagen’s .
Hog didn’t miss the gap created by the distortion.
“Uwaaaa—!”
He roared again and grabbed the gate with both hands.
His fingers sank into the iron.
The giant’s muscles swelled even further, and his thick arms trembled violently.
Finally, the iron gate in his grasp screamed as it gave way.
He pulled with all his strength.
Drdrdrdrdr—
As the gate tore off, part of the wall collapsed under the force.
Amid falling stones and iron plates, Hog lifted the torn gate like a shield and charged inside.
Thud, thud, thud.
After a few steps, dozens of imperial soldiers stood with long spears.
But even the tips of their spears couldn’t reach Hog’s waist.
The imperial soldiers looked at him in shock and disbelief.
“Uaaah, aaah—!”
Hog swung the gate, scattering the surrounding soldiers.
Hooouu—
No matter how well-trained, no imperial army could stop a giant wielding a castle gate.
“P-puh, pheuh?!“
“Kkyaaah?!”
“Gah?!”
Dozens of imperial soldiers were swept away by the twisted gate.
Some were fortunate to be flung aside.
Others were torn apart, unable even to scream, meeting instant death.
“L-lieutenant!”
“Damn it…!”
“Th-that insane monster…!”
Among them was the aide of General Berkel, protector of Eisenwald.
Confident with triple chains, he tried to strike with a mana-infused sword, only to be ripped apart himself.
“G-eneral!”
“General Berkel!”
“H-how…?!”
Even trained imperial soldiers could think of nothing against the giant before them.
The overwhelming strength difference.
The size that forced them to look up until their necks hurt.
“I-I’ve… never trained for this…”
“S-surrender… we surrender…”
“Please… spare us…”
Under the giant shadow, the imperial soldiers lowered their weapons and kneeled one by one.
Hog breathed heavily and surveyed the area.
…No commander?
While he glanced around,
Clang—!
Berkel leaped off the wall with his spear in hand.
Seeing Hog smash the gate with his bare hands, Berkel abandoned the defense.
A defense assumes the gate is intact and the walls secure.
With the gate already destroyed, he judged it impossible to hold off the enemy’s main force.
So Berkel chose not defense… but attack.
Hoooh.
He threw his spear immediately upon leaving the wall.
A blonde, blue-eyed man on horseback.
The one at the front, standing proudly at the center of his troops.
The one who had never once lost his composed smile…
…He was clearly the commander of this army.
Berkel’s judgment was correct.
The thrown spear flew perfectly straight.
But it was deflected by the knight’s sword, the one with a prosthetic arm.
Could Berkel subdue that knight and strike the commander in one go?
Even thinking about it was a luxury.
Sling.
Berkel drew his sword and activated all the magic in his marks.
to enhance physical abilities.
to strengthen his legs for lightning-fast movement.
to enhance his nervous system for extreme reactions.
Finally, to push his body beyond limits.
Kwaang—!
Among the Quad Chain knights, very few had marks as efficient as Berkel’s.
With desperate determination, he launched himself off the ground.
The earth dented as he shot forward like an arrow.
The knight tried to react, but Berkel’s enhanced body was unstoppable.
…Got it!
Berkel seized the blonde man from the side.
Before anyone else could intervene.
Hoooh.
He thrust his sword at him.
Thanks to the layered magic, Berkel saw the world in slow motion.
The sword was still piercing.
“…?!”
He thought he missed, but the man’s blue eyes locked on him.
Too late.
Watching with your eyes wouldn’t stop the sword…
…?
The man’s lips moved.
“Fi… re… bal… l…?”
The moment Berkel understood the word from his lips.
Fwoooom—!
Flames erupted before his eyes.
“Wh-what?!”
The arm holding the sword was blown away by the heat.
As vision returned to normal, a burning pain surged from face to chest.
…?
Even in his distant mind, Berkel couldn’t comprehend it.
The iron armor he wore was a superior artifact, far above what regular soldiers got.
Its durability was unmatched.
Yet fire pierced it…
This being’s magical level far exceeded anything he could estimate.
He could never let him live…!
Berkel gritted his teeth, tightened his grip, and gathered all remaining strength for a final strike.
Hooong.
But the man was already too far to reach with his sword.
“Ugh…”
Berkel collapsed.
Through blurred vision, he saw the silhouette of the man.
…Ah.
At the edge of life, Berkel sensed that this man would become a great threat to the Empire… to Prince Calix.
…Your Highness.
He worried for the Empire and the First Prince.
And finally… closed his eyes.
I quietly looked down at the fallen general.
“…A formidable warrior.”
“Indeed.”
I nodded at Gardner’s words.
He had judged to switch to offense as soon as the gate broke.
Charging with reckless loyalty, backed by skill.
Completely different from the noble fools we’d faced.
“If all the imperial soldiers we meet are like this, it won’t be easy.”
“Yet it seemed like he toppled them effortlessly?”
“That’s me.”
I joked, and Hagen and Gardner gave me annoyed looks.
“Still, it was thanks to him that the imperial soldiers lost morale.”
“Right. Seeing that, who would want to fight?”
Hagen and Gardner laughed as they watched the giant inside the castle, Hog, trying to pull the gate back into place.
Creeeak, the gate made a loud metallic sound and fell off.
Hog tried to reattach it, but his huge frame only caused surrounding walls to crumble.
We watched and giggled.
The mark is always active.
Mana continuously accumulates, increasing strength.
So, is used to solidify the body and prevent physical collapse from excess mana.
works on the same principle.
A mark cannot carry magic other than the original form it was carved for.
Even only boosted the body’s natural healing, dynamic magic like wasn’t possible.
But it continuously accumulates mana while the body is intact.
was carved to release that mana.
Body enlargement.
By growing and shrinking, all stored mana could be used—an ideal choice.
Of course…
“‘The bigger I get, the more I can protect, right?’”
It was Hog’s pure choice.
“…An excellent choice, indeed.”
We laughed watching Hog awkwardly stand before the half-destroyed gate.
