Overlord: Welcome the Birth of the King

After the 'Sword Saint' leveled up to the max, his speed advantage became evident, far surpassing the ogres. However, the unfavorable terrain prevented him from increasing the distance. Instead, the gap between him and the ogres gradually decreased.

"Troublesome!"

Lyle's expression darkened as he heard the approaching footsteps from behind.

Although he was now stronger than any single ogre, he wasn't powerful enough to overwhelm them completely. If surrounded, his situation would quickly become dire.

"Mana is too low… only 8 points left. I need to save enough for a healing spell."

Lyle's face was serious, his mind racing as he zigzagged through the forest, weaving in an "S" pattern. He used the thick tree trunks to block the ogres chasing him from behind.

Boom!

A loud crash echoed from behind him.

Lyle paused momentarily and turned his head, his eyelids twitching in response.

The two leading ogres had uprooted a massive tree as thick as a barrel.

Boom!

With a mighty heave, the ogres hurled the tree forward, casting a huge shadow over Lyle.

Faced with this dangerous situation, Lyle's eyes twitched. He immediately turned around, crouched slightly, and raised his iron sword in front of him.

Bang!

The heavy tree smashed into his iron sword with a dull thud. The impact rippled through the sword, causing Lyle's face to pale from the force. Worse still, the elastic branches on the tree whipped around and struck him repeatedly.

His already tattered clothes were further shredded, and even his face now bore several fresh cuts.

[HP: 109/113]

Lyle staggered backward, wiping the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

Meanwhile, the four remaining ogres seized the opportunity to close the gap.

Lyle spat out some blood, his eyes gleaming fiercely. "Reality is nothing like anime—it's far more brutal."

He couldn't understand how these ogres had devised such a strategy. First, they used a small pack of goblins as bait, and now they were coordinating their attacks intelligently.

"They're not mindless beasts."

"Roar!"

"Human… food!"

"Rraaagh!"

Four ogres rushed forward, their faces grimy and savage. Without hesitation, they swung their massive wooden clubs down toward Lyle.

The deafening roars of the ogres rang out above him.

"Quick Slash!"

With cold determination flashing in his eyes, Lyle gripped his iron sword tightly and executed his strongest move.

With 120% attack power, the iron sword sliced through the air, emitting a sharp whistle. The tremendous force of the slash split the massive wooden clubs.

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

Boom!

The shattered pieces of wood flew outward from the impact.

The violent collision strained Lyle's hands. Blood dripped from his fingers, and his already damaged iron sword snapped under the immense pressure, flying out of his grasp.

Bang!

The broken sword hit the ground. Lyle took two steps back to stabilize himself, breathing heavily.

"Huff… Huff…"

Looking at his bleeding hands, Lyle gritted his teeth and smiled grimly.

He hadn't exactly won, but considering he was fighting four ogres simultaneously, the outcome wasn't too bad.

Luckily, the ogres were using makeshift wooden weapons from the forest. If they had iron weapons, things would've been much worse.

Ordinary human weapons were ineffective against the hulking ogres unless enhanced or custom-made magic weapons were used.

The four ogres stared dumbfounded at the stumps of their broken clubs. Their dull yellow eyes briefly reflected confusion before rage took over.

Bang!

They discarded their broken clubs and charged at Lyle with their massive fists raised.

Lyle stretched out his hand, summoning another iron sword from his inventory. He muttered a countdown under his breath.

"10… 9…"

One of the ogres swung its massive fist toward him.

Lyle raised his sword to block.

Bang!

A muffled thud resounded as the sword intercepted the blow.

Lyle stood his ground firmly, but his peripheral vision caught two other ogres approaching from the sides.

"8… 7…"

Without hesitation, Lyle stepped back to avoid being surrounded. He slashed toward the nearest ogre's fist, the blade cutting deeply.

Splurt!

Blood splattered as bones snapped audibly. The ogre let out a pained howl.

"6…"

Another ogre kicked at Lyle with brute force.

Lyle braced himself, raising his sword horizontally to block. At the same time, another ogre swung its fist toward him.

"5… 4…"

Facing yet another double assault, Lyle hastily summoned a second iron sword from his inventory and used it to block the punch coming from his left side.

Among the four ogres, one's arm was severed by Lyle's counterattack, and two others were deflected by his swords. However, he didn't have time to defend against the last one.

"3…"

Bang!

A massive fist struck Lyle's right shoulder, sending him flying backward. He crashed into a tree and finally came to a stop.

"2… 1…"

[HP: 71/113]

"Ugh!" Lyle leaned against the tree, coughing up blood. His blood-stained teeth gleamed as he grinned. "That hurt… but the cooldown is over."

'Quick Slash' had a ten-second cooldown.

The other skills he had, like 'Fourfold Slash,' could lower the ogres' health but weren't fatal, while 'Instant Reflex' wasn't effective when surrounded.

"Raaagh!"

The ogre that had just punched Lyle roared and charged at him again.

Seeing the ogre rushing forward, Lyle smiled coldly. His eyes were filled with murderous intent. "Time to die!"

Pushing off the tree behind him, Lyle leaned forward and charged at the ogre with his sword raised.

"Quick Slash!"

With a roar, Lyle swung his sword upward with all his might.

At 120% power, the iron sword cleaved cleanly through the charging ogre, bypassing its fists entirely.

Slash!

A fountain of green blood and mangled organs shot skyward.

The ogre collapsed in two bloody halves, its internal organs spilling onto the ground with a series of wet thuds.

[Gained: 310 Experience Points]

[EXP: 1581/5000]

The remaining three ogres froze at the sight of their slain companion. Even with their limited intelligence, fear flickered in their eyes.

Lyle raised his head and stared coldly at the remaining five ogres, including the two who had thrown trees earlier.

Taking advantage of their stunned state, he turned and vanished into the underbrush without a trace.