Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

"Why the hell are you here!?" Grayson yelled, finally snapping back to reality after the initial shock.

But there was no time for Justin to respond. The stone giant, which had regained its footing, was already preparing its next attack.

"Damn it!"

"Get back!"

Justin quickly intervened before anyone could be hurt.

"Double enhancement—Black Missile."

Just as the panicked pioneers began to back away, Justin fired another projectile. The black orb, crackling with dark energy, slammed into the stone giant with explosive force.

Boom!

"Grrraaaa!"

Thud!

The stone giant, unable to withstand the increased power, toppled over. If it weren't for its unnaturally high endurance, the attack would have pierced right through it.

The pioneers widened their eyes, speechless at the sheer firepower they had just witnessed.

"Let's talk later. For now, focus on taking this thing down," Justin ordered.

"Thanks, but it's no use! We've been hitting it nonstop, and it's barely scratched!" Grayson replied, frustration clear in his voice.

"You don't have any secret weapons up your sleeve?" Justin asked.

"None!"

"Well, that's something to be proud of," Justin muttered, clicking his tongue as he watched the stone giant struggle to get back up.

He knew that if he kept firing his enhanced Black Missiles, he could eventually bring the giant down. But that would use up all of his remaining double-enhanced attacks for the day.

It's still too early in the day to waste such a valuable resource, Justin thought to himself.

With a plan forming in his mind, he turned to Rachel.

"Rachel, you'll have to step in this time."

"Are you sure? I'm not confident in my attack power," she replied hesitantly.

"Don't worry about that," Justin reassured her with a smile, pointing at the fallen stone giant.

"That thing will make up for your lack of offense."

"Hmm, I guess you're right," she said with a nod.

"Raaaaaa!"

As they spoke, the stone giant rose again, letting out a furious roar. Its Moai-like face, usually devoid of emotion, twisted in rage.

"Grrraaaa!"

Whoosh!

"Huh!?"

"No!"

Suddenly, the giant's previously slow movements turned into a whirlwind as it swung its massive arm. The sheer power behind the attack shocked Damian, who immediately rushed forward.

Boom!

"Ugh!"

"...!?"

With a thunderous crash, the stone giant's hand shattered against an invisible barrier. It was as if it had struck a wall of steel.

Damian stared in disbelief at the person standing in front of him.

"You...!?"

"Wow, the stronger the opponent, the greater the rebound force," Rachel said with a bright smile, tapping her shield.

Damian quickly pieced the situation together.

She didn't counterattack with her flail—she blocked it and used the shield's rebound to knock the giant back.

A shield-based counter skill. It wasn't uncommon for warrior classes to have skills like this, but usually, the best they could do was deflect an attack or push an enemy back slightly.

The only class Damian knew of that could deal such a powerful counterattack just by blocking was the Einherjar.

"Einherjar!" Damian exclaimed.

"Huh? How'd you figure that out?" she asked with a grin.

"Look in front of you!" Damian shouted, his voice filled with urgency.

The stone giant had already begun to rise again, this time with its fist clenched.

Before Rachel could fully react, the giant's massive fist was almost upon her.

Boom!

"Ugh!"

But once again, the stone giant's attack ended in failure. Its other arm shattered just like the first, and the giant collapsed to the ground, twitching in agony.

Rachel sighed in relief, patting her chest as she furrowed her brow.

"That was close. Almost got into some real trouble there."

"Are you kidding me...!?" Grayson muttered in disbelief.

It was hard to believe what he had just witnessed. The giant that had taken dozens of pioneers to even scratch had been crippled so easily—and she hadn't even attacked. She had simply blocked its strikes.

"Stop standing around and move," Justin called out, pushing past the dumbfounded pioneers as he approached the fallen stone giant.

Its dark, oily blood flowed like crude oil, confirming that it was no longer capable of fighting.

Satisfied that the threat was neutralized, Justin turned around and shouted,

"Zachary, stop just standing there! Come over here and finish this thing off!"

"Huh? Me?" Zachary asked, surprised.

"Yeah! This is the perfect chance to gain some experience points!"

"Wait, hold on! What are you doing?" Damian asked, stepping forward with a bewildered expression.

Justin casually gestured with his chin, as if to say it was obvious.

"One of our guys is low on experience, so we're letting him finish it off."

"Wait, what!?" Damian sputtered.

"Oh, sorry. Am I claiming too much for being your savior?" Justin replied, feigning innocence.

Damian fell silent.

If Justin hadn't stepped in when he did, at least one of them would have died. Calling him their savior wasn't an exaggeration.

And it was clear that Justin's group had done most of the work in taking down the stone giant. What right did he have to argue about who deserved the final blow?

"...Do whatever you want," Damian said, sighing as he stepped aside.

Moments later, Zachary raised his blade and decapitated the stone giant with a swift strike.

"Damn, its skin was tougher than I thought. If I didn't have this greatsword, I would've wasted the chance you gave me," Zachary said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

In his hands was the greatsword of the Orc Warchief that Justin had defeated during the third wave. It was a unique-grade weapon, but since no one in the group had specialized in greatswords, it had been left unused in the corner of the castle.

Good thing I brought it, just in case, Justin thought.

At this point, it was the only weapon capable of cutting through the stone giant's tough hide. If Zachary hadn't brought it, there would've been no way for him to finish the job.

"How much did your level go up?" Justin asked.

"I stopped at level 24. I barely landed the finishing blow without doing much else, so this is kind of unbelievable..." Zachary muttered, still looking a bit overwhelmed by the massive level increase. It was his first time experiencing such a leap in progress.

"It makes sense. That was no ordinary monster—far more powerful than anything you've faced before. Especially considering you were at a much lower level," Justin reassured him.

"That's true," Zachary admitted.

"Oh, by the way, Rachel, how much did your level go up?" Justin turned to Rachel.

"I went up by four levels. This is great!" she said with a wide smile.

Unlike Zachary, who still seemed a bit dazed, Rachel was thoroughly enjoying the rewards. After all, the experience needed to level up after the second class transition was enormous, so it was understandable she felt satisfied.

On the other hand, Nathan, who had gained no experience, looked a bit disappointed.

"I should've at least sent some Hobgoblins to help out when she was fighting," Nathan sighed.

"Don't be silly. Unless it was the Wyvern we left back at the castle, the Hobgoblins would've just been squashed like flies. They probably wouldn't have given you much experience anyway," Justin said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Nathan sighed, giving in.

As they were talking, someone approached them. It was the Paladin, Damian, who had been leading the fight against the stone giant earlier. He lowered his head respectfully.

"Earlier, I didn't have the chance to properly thank you. Thank you for your help," Damian said in a polite tone.

"No worries. It's understandable when things are hectic," Justin replied casually.

"I never expected to meet you here of all places. I guess this must be fate," Damian continued.

"Huh?" Justin tilted his head in confusion. Damian's words made it sound like they had met before, but Justin couldn't remember him at all.

After racking his brain and still coming up empty, Justin decided to be honest.

"Have we met before?"

"...."

Damian's smile froze on his face. A heavy silence settled between them for a moment.

It was Zachary who finally broke the awkwardness.

"It's him. Remember? The Paladin from the Black Tower. He was with 세연 back then...."

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"Oh!" Justin exclaimed, slapping his knee.

Now he remembered. Damian was one of the two leaders who had surrounded Grayson on the way to the Black Tower.

"Now I remember. You're that Paladin, right? Damian, was it?"

"Yes, that's right," Damian nodded, relief washing over his face.

It must've been awkward for him to bring up their past encounter, only for Justin to not remember. But from Justin's perspective, calling it an "encounter" was a bit of a stretch.

It wasn't exactly a friendly meeting back then, Justin thought to himself. Damian and 홍세연 had been pressing Grayson until Justin intervened, forcing them to back off. It wasn't fate—it was more like a clash of interests. For Damian to label it as fate now was a bit of a stretch.

He must really need an alliance right now, Justin mused.

As expected, Damian soon made the offer.

"Since we've met again like this, how about we travel together for the quest? That way, if we encounter more dangerous monsters like earlier, we can help each other out."

"Are you proposing an alliance?" Justin asked, though he already knew the answer.@@novelbin@@

"To be honest, yes. With eight other competitors still out there, there's no reason for us to waste time fighting each other," Damian said, trying to sound composed, but Justin could hear the tension in his voice.

Damian's smile was stiff, and his gestures were shaky, as if he were trying to appear calm but failing miserably. It was like watching someone act in a play for the first time, struggling to make it look natural.

Is he seriously trying to play hardball here? Justin held back a laugh. Leaders didn't have the luxury of sending someone else to handle negotiations. Even if it didn't suit them, they had to do it themselves. Still, despite the awkward delivery, the offer itself was one Justin had been hoping for.

"It's not a bad offer," Justin said.

"Really?" Damian's lips twitched into what was likely meant to be a smile. He was clearly trying hard not to show how relieved he was.

"I was just thinking that it might be a good idea to reduce the number of competitors. It'll be exhausting to stay on guard against all nine of them," Justin added.

"So, we have a deal?" Damian's smile broadened, though he was still trying to hide his excitement.

"Yeah, we've got a deal. Let's make the most of this journey together," Justin said, offering his hand.

Damian shook it, his grin now fully visible. But Justin wasn't finished yet.

"By the way, since we're allies now, I have a favor to ask."

"A favor?" Damian's expression tensed slightly.

"Yeah. Could you bring Grayson over? It's been a while since I last saw him, and I'd like to catch up."

Damian's smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a tight-lipped expression. It was as if Justin had struck a nerve.

After a long moment of hesitation, Damian finally nodded.

"...Alright. I'll call him over. Please wait a moment."

"I never thought I'd be so happy to see your face since the Black Tower incident!" Grayson exclaimed, practically beaming as he approached Justin.

His expression was one of pure relief, as if he had just been rescued from hell.

Justin gestured for his companions to give them some space and then spoke in a quiet voice.

"I didn't expect to see you here either. What the hell happened?"

"Ask me anything. I'll tell you everything," Grayson replied quickly, almost too eager to please.

"I'm curious about a lot of things, but let's start with why you're working under Damian."

Justin was also curious as to why Grayson hadn't tried to block their meeting or at least insist on talking in a more public place. If Grayson didn't fully trust Damian, he would've done something to prevent any private conversation.

It seemed like Damian, though the leader, didn't have enough power to impose his will on Grayson.

"It doesn't look like you were conquered, so what, are you working as a mercenary for him?"

"No, not exactly. Damian's the leader, but we willingly joined him," Grayson clarified.

"We? You're not the only one under him?" Justin asked, surprised.

Grayson's expression grew serious as he explained.

"A little while ago, ten territories—including mine—formed an alliance. Damian isn't just a leader; he's the head of that coalition."

"...!"