Overlord: Welcome the Birth of the King

Crack!

Crack—!

As the struggle continued, the blade of the iron sword gradually sank into the thick wooden club.

The ogre's weapon was at a clear disadvantage. Under Lyle's relentless attack, the iron sword finally broke through, cutting the club in two.

The severed end of the club flew through the air, landing on the ground some distance away, raising a cloud of dust.

The ogre stared at its broken weapon with a ferocious expression, its face filled with confusion and shock. It even took a step back in disbelief.

Despite its intelligence being only slightly better than that of a goblin, it couldn't comprehend why this seemingly weak human—who should have been nothing more than food—was stronger than it.

While the ogre stood dumbfounded, its eyes flicked toward the treasure chest lying open in the middle of the camp.

Lyle's eyes gleamed sharply. Ignoring the numbness spreading through his arm, he gripped the sword tightly, pointed it upward, and charged forward with all his might.

Thud!

The iron sword pierced through the ogre's decaying chest, driven by both momentum and strength, and sank deep into its left heart.

"Pain… pain… ARRRGH!"

The excruciating pain drove the ogre into a frenzy. "Food! Human food!"

Despite the critical hit, the ogre still had enough strength to lift its massive hands and swipe at Lyle's chest.

At such close range, Lyle barely had any chance to evade.

But—

Instant Reflex!

A faint blue light enveloped Lyle's entire body.

The next moment!

Lyle's body moved as if rewinding through time. Under the flicker of blue light, he quickly retreated, returning to the position he had launched his attack from.

Bang!

The ogre's massive hands clashed together, creating a muffled thud, but they caught nothing.

As Lyle kept retreating with the help of the "Instant Reflex" skill, his sword was pulled out of the ogre's body, causing a torrent of blood to gush from the wound.

The immense pain drove the ogre into wild, beastly howls and heavy, ragged breaths.

Even though its heart was pierced, the ogre's formidable vitality kept it from dying immediately. It staggered forward, trying to grab Lyle once more, but ultimately, it fell to the ground with a resounding crash.

Boom!

Dust flew into the air.

Yet, even after falling, the ogre continued to twitch and struggle faintly.

Watching this, Lyle didn't approach to finish it off. He wasn't about to repeat the mistake that the Rock team leader, Dosari, had made.

"Even food can fight back. So now, you can die." Lyle gazed coldly at the struggling ogre.

The battle was over, and Lyle felt a sense of relief.

Hiss—

Lyle drew in a sharp breath as pain and numbness surged through his palms and arms. At the same time, he felt a swelling sensation spreading throughout his body.

This was clearly the side effect of using the "Instant Reflex" skill.

The "Instant Reflex" combat technique allowed the user to instantly return to their previous posture after an attack, restoring balance and stability.

It was highly effective for dodging enemy attacks.

However, this unnatural and forced recovery put significant strain on the user's body.

Lyle glanced at his status panel. His health hadn't decreased.

A thought crossed his mind.

"It seems the physical strain caused by 'Instant Reflex' doesn't reduce health… or perhaps the damage isn't severe enough to register as lost health."

Buzz—

[Gained 320 Experience points]

The notification popped up on the status panel.

"Is it dead?"

Lyle's gaze shifted from the ogre's corpse back to the panel.

[EXP: 1271/1500.]

After taking down a small group of goblins and an ogre, his experience points had increased significantly.

Taking a short rest, Lyle flexed his arms, now less numb, and approached the corpses of the ogre and goblins. He proceeded to cut off their ears as proof of the kills.

At the same time, he began searching the small camp.

As a player, he wouldn't forget to loot for spoils of war.

Unfortunately, after a thorough search, all he found were piles of bones and rotting meat. There was nothing valuable in the goblin camp.

Lyle wasn't particularly disappointed. He hadn't expected to find anything precious.

Approaching the two remaining human corpses, Lyle fell silent for a moment before sighing and turning away.

He didn't bother digging graves to bury the bodies—it would serve no purpose.

Not only would it waste energy, but in a forest like this, wild beasts could easily sniff out the corpses and dig them up.

Unless he burned them to ashes, there was no way to prevent scavengers from finding the bodies.

However, lighting a fire in the dark forest was too risky. It would attract attention and expose Lyle to great danger.

After all, the real threat in this area wasn't just goblins and stray ogres—it was the ogre tribes, who ruled this part of the forest.

As night fell, the dense canopy of trees blocked out the moonlight, leaving the entire forest in darkness. Occasional howls from wild beasts echoed, making the atmosphere tense.

In such conditions, human vision became extremely limited.

Without skills like "Night Vision" or specialized night gear, Lyle wasn't about to act recklessly.

He found a relatively thick tree, climbed up, and pulled out a sturdy black cloak from his inventory to cover himself before settling against the trunk.

To be honest, it wasn't comfortable.

The branches were hard and prickly, and the constant sounds of insects and beasts kept his nerves on edge.

"This could be considered finding joy in suffering."

Wrapped in the black cloak, Lyle looked up through the branches at the starlit sky and bright moon.

The eastern region of the Forest of Tob was mostly plagued by goblins and ogres. After his battle with the ogre, Lyle had a clearer understanding of their combat style and strength.

They were troublesome foes, but not insurmountable threats.

Thus, while he remained vigilant, he wasn't overly worried.

Instead, he calmly admired the moon of this other world.

"Compared to the mundane life in my previous world, this life of danger and power… it gives me a strange sense of security."

"At least I know what I need to do each day and what challenges lie ahead."

This thought crossed Lyle's mind.

However, as soon as he recalled the upcoming encounter with the 'Great Tomb of Nazarick,' the pleasant feeling he had vanished instantly.