Overlord: Welcome the Birth of the King

Even though the ogre had eaten its fill, the remaining two human corpses were clearly of no use to the goblins.

"Huh?"

A goblin sitting at the outskirts of the camp, gnawing on a bone of some unknown beast, twitched its green, pointed ears warily and turned its head toward the bushes behind it.

The next moment—

The goblin's face twisted in terror as a black shadow burst out of the grass without warning.

Before the goblin could sound an alarm—

A swift iron sword descended from the sky, cleaving the goblin cleanly in two.

As green blood splattered through the air, Lyle's figure emerged from the shadows.

Fourfold Slash!

With a quick twist of his wrist, Lyle manipulated his sword deftly.

In an instant—

Four cold flashes of light flickered in the air.

The four goblins nearest to the outskirts didn't even have time to react before the iron sword pierced through them, sending them collapsing to the ground!

[Gained 27 experience points]

[Gained 31 experience points]

[Gained 22 experience points]

[Gained 25 experience points.]

[…]

Notifications from the status panel quickly appeared in Lyle's vision.

The "Fourfold Slash" technique unleashed four strikes in a single moment. While this move could reduce accuracy and slightly disperse power, it was still a signature skill of warrior leaders. Despite its drawbacks, it was undeniably formidable.

This was no mere game where injuries only reduced health points. In this real world, injuries impacted strength, and if a vital spot was hit, it could mean instant death—or worse.

Even though the distributed power of Lyle's strikes lessened their individual impact, the goblins were far too weak to resist his attacks.

In mere moments, five goblins lay dead. The rest, who had been feasting, finally noticed the danger.

"Gyaaah!"

"Gyaaahhh!!"

"Gyaaah—gyaaah!!"

A chorus of frightened screams erupted from the goblins.

Panicking, they dropped their food, scrambling in every direction to flee.

Cowardly by nature, the goblins clearly had no intention of teaming up to fight Lyle. Instead, they scattered at the first sign of trouble, desperate to escape.

What a shame!

If they had banded together and launched a coordinated attack, they might have posed some trouble for Lyle. But scattering like this? It was as good as offering themselves up for slaughter!

Lyle moved swiftly, his form flickering as he pursued them. Every swing of his sword claimed another goblin's life.

[Gained 25 experience points]

[…]

[Gained 29 experience points]

Notifications flashed continuously on the status panel.

"Human?!"

At last, the ogre took notice. Watching goblins fall one after another, it roared furiously and grabbed a massive wooden club that had been lying by the door of a low, shabby hut.

Boom! Boom!

The ogre's towering frame, over two meters tall, shook the ground with every heavy step.

Lyle, who had been keeping a close eye on the ogre, remained calm as it charged toward him. He didn't stop killing goblins; he only quickened his pace, determined to finish them off before engaging the larger foe.

Boom!

The giant club slammed into the ground with a heavy thud, sending up a cloud of dust.

Lyle sidestepped the ogre's swing with practiced ease, dispatching another goblin in the process.

[Gained 27 experience points]

"Food! Humans!"

The ogre roared in fury, swinging its massive club with wild force. Each swing stirred up gusts of wind as it passed.

Yet—

None of the attacks even came close to landing on Lyle.

After a brief exchange, Lyle confirmed one thing: his speed exceeded that of the ogre.

With that knowledge in hand, he grew even more confident and sped up his attacks.

"Gyaaah—"

"Gyaaah, gyaaah!"

The goblins' terrified cries filled the air.

In mere moments, all eighteen goblins in the small camp had been slaughtered by Lyle.

On the other side—

Perhaps due to the goblins being wiped out, or perhaps because of the large, festering wound on its chest, the ogre's movements slowed considerably. Its heavy breathing and lumbering steps betrayed its fatigue.

Huff… huff…

Gripping its club tightly, the ogre glared at Lyle with bloodshot eyes, filled with rage and a desire to rip him apart.

Feeling the intensity of the ogre's murderous gaze—

Lyle stood seven or eight meters away, smiling nonchalantly.

"Looks like it's just the two of us now."

He swung his iron sword, flicking the goblins' green blood off its blade. His tone was calm, but cold.

Based on his earlier observations, this ogre was indeed stronger than the two that had ambushed the Rock team before.

Even so—

Lyle had a clear speed advantage. Given the ogre's injury and sluggish movements, he could whittle it down with ease.

However—

Recalling the ogre's disgusting act of devouring human corpses, Lyle's eyes grew cold. He raised his sword, gripping it tightly with both hands.

With a sudden burst of speed, Lyle launched himself toward the ogre, covering the seven or eight meters in just a few strides.

"Food?!"

Startled and enraged, the ogre hadn't expected this small human to charge it head-on.

Thud!

Its thick, muscular arm, far larger than an average human's leg, tensed as it swung its massive club with full force toward Lyle.

"Die, human!" it bellowed.

The immense strength behind the swing caused the air to whistle as the club hurtled toward Lyle.

"Food? You're the one who's going to die!" Lyle's expression turned icy as he tightened his grip on the sword.

Quick Slash!

Clang!

The iron sword clashed against the giant wooden club with a resounding crash, creating a shockwave that flattened the grass around them.

Such strength…

The impact reverberated through Lyle's arms, causing them to go numb. Even his grip weakened slightly from the force of the blow.

"Quick Slash" was a Sword Saint skill, delivering 110% damage. Combined with his passive skill "Slash Damage (8%)," the total damage output reached 118%. With Lyle's physical attack stat at 93, the pure damage dealt was approximately 110 points—a level comparable to a fully leveled swordmaster.

In other words—

The damage Lyle inflicted was on par with, if not exceeding, the power wielded by gold-rank adventurers in this world.

Yet, astonishingly, the ogre's attack power was even greater than Lyle's!