Praise the Orc! Chapter 175:

Chapter 175 – Olympus

The battle ended with the resistance’s victory .

The empire failed to win the south, which caused the region to be divided into different areas: the empire’s territory and the Free Cities Coalition, including Espada .

The emperor remained silent .

 

***

The incident triggered a huge storm in the real world .

The fight between Crockta and the imperial army became a hot topic, with the ratings record being broken every day . The videos were replayed during the day and night as they replaced Youvids’ top hits .

In the meantime, Laney, the famous youvidser, released a new video from secretly tracking Crockta . This time, it was a record of his struggles in the south .  Laney’s name was once again stamped onto the minds of the people .

Thanks to her, people found out the specific details of what happened .  These were the contents:

After conquering the north, Crockta returned to the continent and headed south .  He fought bandits and accidentally met a knight of Alaste .  Vigo’s earnest persuasion moved his heart and Crockta’s group headed to Alaste .

As a city known for its liveliness, Alaste gave him a warm welcome .  Crockta became friends with the bright and cheerful Alaste people, accepting the request to duel the empire .  Crockta fought against the genius of the empire, Adandator, and eventually won .

Alaste maintained its independence . Crockta became Alaste’s savior and there was a feast to rejoice in the victory .

He left Alaste with blessings and farewells .  It seemed like a happy ending .

However, the news exploded . After they left for the resort town, the empire broke its promise and destroyed Alaste .  It was a tragedy .  Crockta was saddened .  The empire wanted the entire south to submit, not just Alaste .  They invaded cities and captured the people, making them soldiers or serfs for the empire . The entire south moaned .

Crockta stood up for Alaste’s revenge, facing the wicked empire and his own enemies, the Heaven and Earth Clan .

The slaughter began .  He was constantly wielding his sword to save villages, residents, and cities, but he couldn’t do enough alone . In the end, most of the south was incorporated into the empire . Crockta left to join Espada’s resistance .

A frantic struggle followed .  Along the way, Crockta fought alone until he lost all his comrades . His attempts, while ignoring the risk to his own life, moved the hearts of the viewers .  The viewers only watched the heavily edited videos of the Heaven and Earth Clan, but through Laney, they were able to see the war from Crockta’s viewpoint .

Then there was a video of Crockta’s ‘final battle . ’

Laney didn’t illuminate Crockta alone from the viewpoint of the army . Rather, she should the overwhelming number of troops that Crockta faced from his side . It was a great army that no one dared face alone .

In front of them, Crockta emphasized his beliefs and raised the greatsword .  It was an incomprehensible sight and no one could imagine victory .

But he wasn’t alone .  The work he did, the path he took, his accomplishments had turned people into his allies .

First of all, Andre appeared . They thought he would attack Crockta, but he broke through the imperial army . People were enthusiastic .  It was followed by the ‘wine maniac’ Iron and the role playing group, F4 .

Then there were those reborn again due to Crockta, the ‘Rehabilitation Brothers . After that was Kenzo and the ‘Mountain of Sabres, Forest of Swords’ group, wearing red headbands . In addition, Crockta’s fanclub ‘He’s an Orc, yet still Praiseworthy . ’

Finally, the ‘Orc Users Brotherhood’ appeared, like a scene from a movie .  The battle became skewed and they eventually won .  If Crockta only emphasized the Marxist beliefs, he would’ve been scattered as a handful of ashes in this battle . But he practiced his own faith and the reckless fight resulted in his victory .

Once the edited video that showed Crockta’s struggle was released, his fanclub numbers soared . Now there was no one who didn’t know Crockta’s name .  Crockta wasn’t an already dead hero or a media star . He was a living hero who personally proved his path to other people .

They all praised Crockta .

Opinions differed on how the situation would change in the future . The Elder Lord community was hotter than ever .  The imperial army retreated and Rommel was captured .  When looking back on Crockta’s actions, Rommel had probably received the Concrete method . Without Rommel, the Heaven and Earth Clan couldn’t exert the same power .

The users looked forward to what the empire and Heaven and Earth Clan would do in the future .  But the situation went in an unexpected direction .

 

***

“Ah, Crockta . ”

“It is Tiyo!”

“Kyah, so cute!”

“Can I have a signature?”

“NPCs don’t know about signatures, fool . ”

“Crockta looks really scary . ”

The users started to flock to Espada .  The number of users in the south was reduced after the empire started their military domination, but as Crockta’s popularity peaked, more and more people came to see him .

“It is embarrassing . ”

“Because of my popularity…I’m sorry dot . Kahahat . ”

Tiyo laughed in a pleased manner .  As Crockta’s tracks were followed, the cute gnome Tiyo and beautiful dark elf Anor were noticed .  Inside Crockta’s fan club community, ‘He’s an Orc, yet still Praiseworthy’, there was a small part set aside for Tiyo and Anor .

Every time they moved, the users’ attention was focused on them .

“I would be several times more popular if my performance was shown . I missed the opportunity because Crockta acted alone dot!”

“Kulkulkul . I’m sorry . ”

The residents of Katalu were initially confused as they suddenly received the news that Crockta repelled the imperial army, then they cheered .  Tiyo and Anor were a bit upset about him leaving silently, but the result was good and everyone was rejoicing .

The empire showed no reaction yet . Due to this, the people of Katalu weren’t completely satisfied . It was an uneasy peace .  Still, the mood of the city was much brighter than before . Tiyo waved his hand towards the female fans .

“Is that guy doing well dot?”

“It is enough that he feels bad . ”

“Hrmm . I’m curious dot . ”

They were heading to the prison facility in Katalu’s militia barrack .  There was a person in custody who had decided to help them .

“Crockta! You’ve come?

“I am alive . Thank you . ”

“It is an honor!”

After finishing the war with the empire, Crockta received the respect of the Katalu militia .  He fought directly on the front lines, so the residents’ awe towards Crockta increased by several times .

“He is having lunch . Do you want to see him?”

“Of course . ”

Crockta headed to the prison in the basement .

Rommel was there .  He was sitting at a table inside the prison and eating lunch . He was imprisoned but it was just a gimmick . He wasn’t even wearing shackles .  Officially, he had received the Concrete method in Katalu’s prison .  And unofficially…

“You were right . ”

Rommel nodded .  He tried to negotiate with Crockta by telling him how to end Keynes and Luin .

It was all true .  When he said ‘completely’, it wasn’t a bluff .  Keynes and Luin were completely finished .

Crockta touched his chin and said skeptically, “I don’t know about those who have been cursed by the stars but…”

First of all, he kept up the pretense .  Pretending to be an NPC was getting harder . However, Crockta’s name was so well-known then it would be annoying if he exposed himself .  Tiyo and Anor, as well as his teacher Andre, were the only ones who knew he was cursed by the stars .

Crockta continued speaking, “According to Edgar, they have disappeared from the ‘Abyss of Stars . ’ He confirmed it with Robina . They also picked up the circumstances you described . ”

“It is all true . As your friends from the Rehabilitation Brothers said, they will disappear forever from this world . ”

Edgar .  The head of the Heaven and Earth branch in Maillard .

He was originally part of the Rehabilitation Brothers and joined Heaven and Earth after breaking up with Robina . A man who decided to accept Crockta as his brother after drinking together in Maillard .

He knew Crockta’s identity and betrayed him, but Crockta didn’t hate him .  He ended the connection by killing himself and warned Crockta to watch out for the Heaven and Earth Clan .  At that time, he refused to make any excuses to Crockta .

“We have strict rules in the ‘Abyss of Stars . ’ They have committed a serious crime . ” Rommel explained .

Crockta had heard about the Elder Lord doping from Ji Hayeon .

The Heaven and Earth Clan was doing it .

They put drugs into people, turning them semi-comatose and then connected them to Elder Lord through illegally modified capsules . The victims were injected with nutrients and forced to play Elder Lord .

They were able to maintain a high rate of assimilation due to the effect of the drugs . Because they couldn’t terminate their connection, they worked endlessly in Elder Lord .  The Heaven and Earth Clan made them subservient in such a way . Then the clan grew quickly due to the high assimilation rate of the clan members .

Keynes and Luin did this secretly so Rommel hadn’t known about it . However, Rommel had guessed and was convinced about the situation by Edgar not long ago .

This was their weakness, Rommel explained .

“……”

Crockta heard about their atrocities and evaluated them again . They weren’t clever game players . They were real garbage .  Rommel misunderstood the strange expression Crockta was making and added .

“You don’t have to be disappointed about them being eliminated so easily . The punishment from the ‘Abyss of Stars’ is more painful than anything you can do to them . ”

“I see . ”

“They will lose everything . ” Rommel said while calmly drinking his tea .

It was like he said .  It was the punishment from reality, not Elder Lord . They would be put in prison and have their assets confiscated .

“Putting your old colleagues in hell, you aren’t a normal human being . ”

“Huhuhu . ”

Rommel laughed . When Crockta asked about why Rommel changed his mind, he replied,

‘Just, I don’t want to be hurt . ’

Rommel wasn’t playing Elder Lord due to the money paid to him, unlike the others in the Heaven and Earth Clan .  Rommel the ‘War Maestro’, he enjoyed playing Elder Lord itself .  He was in the Heaven and Earth Clan because it guaranteed him the position of commander, not because of anything else . Keynes and Luin weren’t worth more than that to him .

“It isn’t normal . I heard that a lot . But…” Rommel grinned .  “Looking back now, I think I was secretly angered by what they were doing . I am also an ordinary human . They have sinned, so they should pay the price . ”

Maybe this cold looking guy had sobered up when he was hit by Crockta’s punch .  The moment that Crockta was going to leave the prison… Rommel called out .

“Crockta . ”

“What is it?”

“You have a lot of friends . Warriors, necromancer and several humans…”

“There are a lot . ”

“So…”

“So?”

Rommel hesitated for a moment and sighed .  Then he opened his mouth again .  “Can I also be your friend?”

Crockta’s expression became strange .  He didn’t have any good feelings towards Rommel, as Rommel had destroyed Alaste and harassed the south .  However, Rommel was an ordinary user who didn’t know this world was another dimension .  For him, killing people was just part of the gameplay . He just played as a villain .

Crockta’s mind became complicated .  Crockta asked, “Why are you saying this all of a sudden?”

“I just admire you . ” Rommel raised his teacup to his mouth again . However, he realized that he already drank all the tea and put down the cup .  “I was once an enemy but I would like to continue to know you…”

“Pff . This sounds like a love confession dot . ” Tiyo interrupted from where he stood .  “It is funny but just nonsense dot . You only cooperated for a short time, yet you want to be friends with Crockta after killing innocent people? Hell no . ”

His words were decisive .  Rommel nodded . He knew that he was an unforgivable villain from the NPCs’ point of view .

Tiyo added, “If you want to be friends with Crockta, you should show it in your behavior dot . ”

“Behavior…”

“People are evaluated by their actions dot . You can never be close friends with Crockta using meaningless words . If you really have a change of heart, you need to prove it . ”

Crockta nodded in agreement . Tiyo’s words represented his heart .

“It is like Tiyo said . ”

“Look, I can tell Crockta’s heart without needing any words dot! This degree is needed to be his friend . ”

Tiyo raised his shoulders . Rommel laughed .

“I see . I understand . See you next time . ”

Crockta and Tiyo left the prison .  Rommel decided to stay here until the Heaven and Earth Clan were destroyed . It would be a while .

Crockta and Tiyo left the prison .  Their work was completed .

This time, it seemed like they could travel leisurely .

 

***

There were voices .

‘It was definitely her . She showed up . Death is back . ’

‘I’ll find her . i will find and stop her . Do whatever it takes . ’

‘It wasn’t an error? Was she alive?’

‘We need to stop her . For the sake of the world . ’

‘What does she want?’

‘The destruction of the world . ’

‘The destruction of the world . ’

‘The destruction of the world . ’

‘How do we stop it? I can hardly see her . It is suspicious . Is it really her?’

‘That guy, the orc who conquered the north . It is him . It is obvious . ’

‘Is he related?’

‘I understand . Orc! The orcs! She is going to use the orcs . This time, the orcs!’

‘It still isn’t certain . Orcs don’t believe in anyone . We can’t jump to conclusions . ’

‘They are orcs . The only thing they believe in is the forgotten **** . No one protects them, so she probably reached out . ’

‘Really, the orcs?’

‘Orcs . ’

‘Orc . ’

‘Orc . ’

‘Orc . ’

‘The orcs . ’

‘They are people we can’t manage anyway . ’

‘It doesn’t matter even if they disappear . ’

‘No one will trust those cheeky brats . ’

‘’The orcs . ’

‘The orcs and Crockta . ’

‘Cheeky brats . ’

The voices expressed their opinions .

‘No . ’

‘Get rid of them, get rid of her . ’

‘Protect the world . ’

‘Our world . ’

‘For the world . ’

That day .  A divine message was sent down again .

Every **** whispered the same thing .