《Evolution: Conqueror》 Chapter -1 - Known surviving Clans of the Orc lands and their Power rating. {1} Blood horn clan aka (Rulers of the white mountains). Overall Power rating: 2 million Type: War clan Consists of Orcs, goblins, lizard folk and is suspected to have a few surviving Ogres(not confirmed). Patriarch name: Unknown Race: Hobgoblin Level: Unknown Power rating: Unknown. {2} Shammob clan Overall Power rating: 1.08 million Type: War clan Consists of Mostly Orcs, Goblins and lizard folk, large number of Kobolds. Patriarch name: (---) Shammob Race: Orc Level: 3rd circle of evolution (Peak) Power rating: Unknown. {3} Greyeye clan Overall Power rating: 1 million Consists of only Orcs and goblins. Patriarch name: Kharag Greyeye Race: Orc Shaman (Mutated) Level: 3 circle of evolution (Peak) Power rating: 44222 {4} Dregu clan Overall power rating: 993000 Type: unknown Consists of Orcs, Goblins and some unknown races. Race: Orc Level: Unknown Power rating: unknown {5} Black moon clan Overall power rating: 1005000 (updated) Type: Undecided Consists of Orcs and Goblins. Patriarch name: Torug Black moon Race: Orc Power rating: 89500 Chapter -2 - The Alignment System (Explained) A creature''s general moral and personal attitudes are represented by its alignment: lawful good, neutral good, chaotic good, lawful neutral, neutral, chaotic neutral, lawful evil, neutral evil, or chaotic evil. Alignment is a tool for developing a character''s identity. It is not a straitjacket for restricting the character. Each alignment represents a broad range of personality types or personal philosophies, so two characters of the same alignment can still be quite different from each other. In addition, few people are completely consistent. Good vs. Evil Good characters and creatures protect innocent life. Evil characters and creatures debase or destroy innocent life, whether for fun or profit. "Good" implies altruism, respect for life, and a concern for the dignity of sentient beings. Good characters make personal sacrifices to help others. "Evil" implies hurting, oppressing, and killing others. Some evil creatures simply have no compassion for others and kill without qualms if doing so is convenient. Others actively pursue evil, killing for sport or out of duty to some evil deity or master. People who are neutral with respect to good and evil have compunctions against killing the innocent but lack the commitment to make sacrifices to protect or help others. Neutral people are committed to others by personal relationsh.i.p.s. Being good or evil can be a conscious choice. For most people, though, being good or evil is an attitude that one recognizes but does not choose. Being neutral on the good-evil axis usually represents a lack of commitment one way or the other, but for some it represents a positive commitment to a balanced view. While acknowledging that good and evil are objective states, not just opinions, these folk maintain that a balance between the two is the proper place for people, or at least for them. Animals and other creatures incapable of moral action are neutral rather than good or evil. Even deadly vipers and tigers that eat people are neutral because they lack the capacity for morally right or wrong behavior. Law vs. Chaos Lawful characters tell the truth, keep their word, respect authority, honor tradition, and judge those who fall short of their duties. Chaotic characters follow their consciences, resent being told what to do, favor new ideas over tradition, and do what they promise if they feel like it. "Law" implies honor, trustworthiness, obedience to authority, and reliability. On the downside, lawfulness can include close-mindedness, reactionary adherence to tradition, judgmentalness, and a lack of adaptability. Those who consciously promote lawfulness say that only lawful behavior creates a society in which people can depend on each other and make the right decisions in full confidence that others will act as they should. "Chaos" implies freedom, adaptability, and flexibility. On the downside, chaos can include recklessness, resentment toward legitimate authority, arbitrary actions, and irresponsibility. Those who promote chaotic behavior say that only unfettered personal freedom allows people to express themselves fully and lets society benefit from the potential that its individuals have within them. Someone who is neutral with respect to law and chaos has a normal respect for authority and feels neither a compulsion to obey nor a compulsion to rebel. She is honest but can be tempted into lying or deceiving others. Devotion to law or chaos may be a conscious choice, but more often it is a personality trait that is recognized rather than being chosen. Neutrality on the lawful-chaotic axis is usually simply a middle state, a state of not feeling compelled toward one side or the other. Some few such neutrals, however, espouse neutrality as superior to law or chaos, regarding each as an extreme with its own blind spots and drawbacks. Animals and other creatures incapable of moral action are neutral. Dogs may be obedient and cats free-spirited, but they do not have the moral capacity to be truly lawful or chaotic. Nine distinct alignments define all the possible combinations of the lawful-chaotic axis with the good-evil axis. Each alignment description below depicts a typical character of that alignment. Remember that individuals vary from this norm, and that a given character may act more or less in accord with his or her alignment from day to day. Use these descriptions as guidelines, not as scripts. The first six alignments, lawful good through chaotic neutral, are the standard alignments for player characters. The three evil alignments are for monsters and villains. Lawful Good, "Crusader" A lawful good character acts as a good person is expected or required to act. He combines a commitment to oppose evil with the discipline to fight relentlessly. He tells the truth, keeps his word, helps those in need, and speaks out against injustice. A lawful good character hates to see the guilty go unpunished. Lawful good is the best alignment you can be because it combines honor and compassion. Lawful good can be a dangerous alignment when it restricts freedom and criminalizes self-interest. Neutral Good, "Benefactor" A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing what is good without bias for or against order. Chaotic Good, "Rebel" A chaotic good character acts as his conscience directs him with little regard for what others expect of him. He makes his own way, but he''s kind and benevolent. He believes in goodness and right but has little use for laws and regulations. He hates it when people try to intimidate others and tell them what to do. He follows his own moral compass, which, although good, may not agree with that of society. Chaotic good is the best alignment you can be because it combines a good heart with a free spirit. Chaotic good can be a dangerous alignment when it disrupts the order of society and punishes those who do well for themselves. Lawful Neutral, "Judge" A lawful neutral character acts as law, tradition, or a personal code directs her. Order and organization are paramount to her. She may believe in personal order and live by a code or standard, or she may believe in order for all and favor a strong, organized government. Lawful neutral is the best alignment you can be because it means you are reliable and honorable without being a zealot. Lawful neutral can be a dangerous alignment when it seeks to eliminate all freedom, choice, and diversity in society. Neutral, "Undecided" A neutral character does what seems to be a good idea. She doesn''t feel strongly one way or the other when it comes to good vs. evil or law vs. chaos. Most neutral characters exhibit a lack of conviction or bias rather than a commitment to neutrality. Such a character thinks of good as better than evil-after all, she would rather have good neighbors and rulers than evil ones. Still, she''s not personally committed to upholding good in any abstract or universal way. Some neutral characters, on the other hand, commit themselves philosophically to neutrality. They see good, evil, law, and chaos as prejudices and dangerous extremes. They advocate the middle way of neutrality as the best, most balanced road in the long run, Usually, they could be referred to as lunatics. Neutral is the best alignment you can be because it means you act naturally, without prejudice or compulsion. Neutral can be a dangerous alignment when it represents apathy, indifference, and a lack of conviction. Chaotic Neutral, "Free Spirit" A chaotic neutral character follows his whims. He is an individualist first and last. He values his own liberty but doesn''t strive to protect others'' freedom. He avoids authority, resents restrictions, and challenges traditions. A chaotic neutral character does not intentionally disrupt organizations as part of a campaign of anarchy. To do so, he would have to be motivated either by good (and a d.e.s.i.r.e to liberate others) or evil (and a d.e.s.i.r.e to make those different from himself suffer). A chaotic neutral character may be unpredictable, but his behavior is not totally random. He is not as likely to jump off a bridge as to cross it. Chaotic neutral is the best alignment you can be because it represents true freedom from both society''s restrictions and a do-gooder''s zeal. Chaotic neutral can be a dangerous alignment when it seeks to eliminate all authority, harmony, and order in society. Lawful Evil, "Dominator" A lawful evil villain methodically takes what he wants within the limits of his code of conduct without regard for whom it hurts. He cares about tradition, loyalty, and order but not about freedom, dignity, or life. He plays by the rules but without mercy or compassion. He is comfortable in a hierarchy and would like to rule, but is willing to serve. He condemns others not according to their actions but according to race, religion, homeland, or social rank. He is loath to break laws or promises. Some lawful evil people and creatures commit themselves to evil with a zeal like that of a crusader committed to good. Beyond being willing to hurt others for their own ends, they take p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e in spreading evil as an end unto itself. They may also see doing evil as part of a duty to an evil deity or master. Lawful evil is sometimes called "diabolical," because devils are the epitome of lawful evil. Lawful evil creatures consider their alignment to be the best because it combines honor with a dedicated self-interest. Lawful evil is the most dangerous alignment because it represents methodical, intentional, and frequently successful evil. Neutral Evil, "Malefactor" A neutral evil villain does whatever she can get away with. She is out for herself, pure and simple. She sheds no tears for those she kills, whether for profit, sport, or convenience. She has no love of order and holds no illusion that following laws, traditions, or codes would make her any better or more noble. On the other hand, she doesn''t have the restless nature or love of conflict that a chaotic evil villain has. Some neutral evil villains hold up evil as an ideal, committing evil for its own sake. Most often, such villains are devoted to evil deities or secret societies. Neutral evil beings consider their alignment to be the best because they can advance themselves without regard for others. Neutral evil is the most dangerous alignment because it represents pure evil without honor and without variation. Chaotic Evil, "Destroyer" A chaotic evil character does whatever his greed, hatred, and l.u.s.t for destruction drive him to do. He is hot-tempered, vicious, arbitrarily violent, and unpredictable. If he is simply out for whatever he can get, he is ruthless and brutal. If he is committed to the spread of evil and chaos, he is even worse. Thankfully, his plans are haphazard, and any groups he joins or forms are poorly organized. Typically, chaotic evil people can be made to work together only by force, and their leader lasts only as long as he can thwart attempts to topple or assassinate him. Chaotic evil is sometimes called "demonic" because demons are the epitome of chaotic evil. Chaotic evil beings believe their alignment is the best because it combines self-interest and pure freedom. Chaotic evil is the most dangerous alignment because it represents the destruction not only of beauty and life but also of the order on which beauty and life depend. Chapter -3 - Alex stats page [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Spirit King Level: 35(Order of the fourth circle) Power rating: 85400+(2100)(2000)=89500 Alignment: Lawful Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief,The one Behind the veil, Blessed by the Abyss. Equipment: Eclipse(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Eyes of Cafo(accessories)] Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv2 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(3/3) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv2- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 50%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 10 secs. Racial skills: [Prey on](New) Lv 2- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Sigil(Unique)Lv 4{Updated}- A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 2/8. Effect: Personal: Adds 22% bonus to ones stats at level two. Horde: Adds 8% bonus to their base stats.] Spirit Pull(Unique){New}: Bring the will of the spirit world by allowing it to interfere with reality, pulling your targets towards you. Range: 20m Cool down: 15 minutes. Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours. Champion Skills: (2/3) [Wraith vision Lv1(0/10000): tapping into the power of the Abyss, Host has developed the ability to view the spiritual realm. Duration: 45 seconds Cool down time: 60 seconds Effects: * See the spiritual world *Unknown *Unknown] [Brand Lv 1(0/10000): Host taints the Target''s soul by forceful infusion of Abysmal mana. Slowly bringing the target under the hosts control. Requirements: *Target must be the same or below the Host''s level. *Must be within 10 meters and in a weakened state to start the process. Duration of corruption defers from target to target, depending on the quality of the Target''s soul and Evolution path. Maximum number of Corrupted: 2/3] Chapter 1 - PROLOGUE ROAR!!! WAH!! WAH!! WAH!! Deafening roars and cheers filled ears as I groggily woke up."Grr...!!Come on!!" A deep baritone could be heard not too far from me. WAH!!! WOW!! more cheers rang out. By the time I tried to sit up, a sharp pain was felt from my sides, "Ugh!...I know that feeling, definitely a broken rib again!" I grumble, reeling back in pain and My eyes shot open. "Haa!, you live Torug!...get up, for we shall finish this!!" WAW!!! "Great chieftain!!!" "Olog the Great!!" "Cough!...grr...What is this!!?" I queried, feeling quite shocked at the Green muscular arm that held my body up. Then what stood before me was rows of large green men with potruded fangs surrounded me and an even larger green Man while cheering for the larger male. "ORC!!!???" I unconciously exclaimed in shock, allowing me to notice my unnatural Deep Voice. Immediately, I was forced to my feet and pushed forward. At this time, what caught my attention was my perspective Of thing had changed. ''when did I get this tall??...transmigaration?!'' ''WAM!!'' "where you look at...Glob?!!" The opponent says as he sends me flying backwards with a punch. Thud!! "Ugh!..." I couldn''t help but grunt as soon as I landed. "Too weak!!" He said, circling around me with a sickening smirk on his rather ugly green face. ''what kind of situation is this, looks like I''m in some kind of duel but I don''t quite get the details.'' while he tried to think about his situation, a change occured as an Orc came running while shouting. "HuuMan!!...Huuman warriors!, they come!! strong!!" My opponent gave me one last condesending smirk before he roared. "ROOOOAR!!! Brothers we fight!!!" "WAAA!!! WOOO!!!"" "Olog the Great""" they cheered in support. SHUI!!Shui!!sou!!sou!! Arrow came raining down within the settlement, disrupting ''Olog''s ''speech?'' BBIIIIIIIIII A massive fireball landed between us destroying things around where everyone had gathered and an insestant ringing kept sounding within my ears, almost driving me crazy. My sight turned murky once more and everything shook for a while. Soon I could hear sounds off in the distance, it sounded like people were yelling, forcing me to hold my head in my hands as my eyesight gradually got better. Suddenly, a sudden pain blossomed on the sides of my head ''I probably hit my head on a stone or something. Then my head cleared as I started discerning what was going on around me. But what I saw left me more shocked and confused, Several hundred Humans and Orcs mixed up together in battle. The battlefield was a mess as Orc caused heavy damage in their patchwork equipment, giving them a Barbaric atmosphere. ''This!''... I remember heading out for a get together with my colleagues from the Office, how did I get here?. I looked down at my hand that were like nothing i''ve ever seen, the blood stains on my palm were now sticky. ''it seems the original body owner died during the Duel, not like anyone would know that, may his soul rest in perfect peace.'' I said sarcastically. "DIE ORC FILTH!!!" a brown haired male shouted as he swung his mace at me, heading straight for my head before I could dodge, His silver armor''s reflections triggered the memory of headlights shining before my eyes. DONG!!!My head recoiled backwards as the hit brought me back to my senses, before he could deliver the next hit, I acted on reflex and sent him a punch which was followed by a sicknening crunch as his c.h.e.s.t caved in. He had this incredulous look on his face as he looked at me with wide eyes. Though all this happened, the only thought in my mind was "I died?". Chapter 2 - CHAPTER 1: I MUST BE DOING SOMETHING WRONG. ''Ah! mother!...I have failed you'' I thought as I was struck by a wave of emotions, ''your unfilial son has failed to give you all the things I promised Ah!... to think he''s still alive while I''m...'' "Men...this one is acting strange" "just kill it!" "but we are meant to find Lord Cromwell''s daughter before the mages finish the spell" "pff, do you think you can rescue her?, leave that to the Captain and Sir Jethro" "Yea we aren''t first circle knights yet, lets just deal with this pig head" "Look it''s looking at us, do think it understands us?" A lanky looking knight said from the back of the group as his face went pale. His words increased their alertness by a bit, forcing their team to pause. they inspected me closely before the bearded knight who looked like their leader said, "Nah...it doesn''t, it''s not even a first cicle creature either...I don''t see any tattoos either, no need to waste a star pearl, just be careful of their brute strength" ''there is magic in this world?'' as I thought about this, something shocking appeared before my eyes. Level: 9 (-) Power rating: 800 __________ Name: Fred Moongret Level: 6 (-) Power rating: 440 ____________ Name: Anthonio Grey Level: 7 (-) By the time I was done looking at the blue screens beside their heads, I was already surrounded. "Look, I told you it was retarded!!...hahaha" the one named Fred said with a sneer. That look! That Look again!!! Suddenly reminded of the Accursed Director at the firm, a disgusting youth filled with l.u.s.t and arrogance!. Patrick Morel! Ever since I left the Gangster life in my later years, I decided to go legal while laying low before returning for my final revenge, but the ''Bastard'', Patrick used every form of oppression to attack me from the moment i walked through the office doors. Black mailed me to do his dirty work, and The company continued to ignore the whole situation as he came from a rich background and his presence in the firm was pretty much doing them a favor. Now seeing someone look at me in such manner brought up all the rage within me automatically as I subconsciously let out an earth shaking roar. ROOOOAR!!! I charged at him in Huge strides before throwing a punch, only to be obstructed by James''s shield, who followed up with a shield Bash that forced me two steps backwards before finally giving me a light cut across my c.h.e.s.t. This series of actions brought me back to reality, ''Yes, this isn''t earth anymore...and it''s kind of hard to control my emotions with this body.'' ''control...control...'' I kept chanting in my mind as I tried to calm down but the enemies won''t let me, Luckily a random Orc charged into the encirclement with a Club. He knocked up one of the Knights into the air. AAAAAH!!! "QASA!!!" "Why is it so strong??!!" another person was sent flying by another swing. "This guy is at the threshold of first circle" James yelled out with a small glowing pearl pointed to the orc. "SH*T!! we can''t handle the both of them!!!" THUD!! GROOWL!! The Orc followed up with a simple brutal kick to another knights c.h.e.s.t. CRACK!!! "what do we do? UGH!!!" Seeing all this gore wasn''t new to me but the amount of force and power contained within their strikes was what shocked me. BAM!! The fellow was soon shut up by the Orc''s club "RETREAT!!"James yelled decisely as the group scattered across the battlefield. In shock, I looked at the Orc who was also looking at me with a ''that''s how you do it face'' before running off. I checked his status in a daze... ______ Name: Urim Level: 9 (-) Power rating: 1200 _____________ Then it hit me, ''I don''t even know my own status!!'' "How do I do this?...Status?" ______ Name:Torug(Alex Radwell) Race: Orc Level: 9 (-) Power rating: 1330 Alignment: Chaotic Evil _____________ Although it looked simple enough, I was even more confused. According to the power rating, I should be more powerful than that Orc from earlier, but why do I feel am weaker. ''No! I must be doing something wrong!.'' with a look of determination, I looked around the battle field and made a rough estimate, the humans are about 2 times the number of orcs. Unlike what I can see from the orcs who charged head on, humans didn''t attack if there was a chance they could lose. They must have launched this attack, confident they could win against us. I remember them saying something about mages building up spells and that they were here for the Duke''s daughter. "Kwuhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" The One called Olog Roared from the distance but it still shook my heart. ''What is this??'' I furrowed my brows After settling my heart, before taking in a deep breath. Earlier, I behaved in a disgraceful manner, I possessed a powerful body, One that was confident enough to challenge Olog but I Basically embarrassed myself. I was still fighting like a Human from earth!!, that must have been the problem!. ''I have a lot to learn'' Was what I could think of. A human approached me stealthily and grabbed his axe handle with both hands, before swinging it with all his might. my ears picked up the sound as it sliced through the wind. "Fwooom!!!!" I dodged Sideways and watched as the axe passed by me before I grabbed his Neck as fast I could. "oohk-ook!" He choked and struggled to breath, I thought of something as I dodged his axe. ''Why can''t I incorporate human fighting techniques that I learned in my previous life into what I do when I battle? would it affect my power rating positively or negatively?.'' his axe flew farther away and hit the floor, half destroying where it landed. ''The amount of strength behind that attack was abnormal'' while thinking this, I inspected the arms of the Man as he continued to struggle. ''High innate strength??... no, no, if it was, he wouldn''t be struggling in my hands now...Perhaps it was a skill?..'' Unable to get anymore information, I cracked his neck, and the human fell over before I ran forward once again. ''I''m still not used to this Body...'' I scanned the battleground and soon found good ol'' fred running behind James, and For some reason, I couldn''t help but grin. I chased after them and rammed into them, but only Fred''s body flew into the air with his arm twisted in the wrong direction. James on the other blocked with his shield and was pushed back by several steps. ''AAAArrrrrgh!!!'' They couldn''t move from the shock as I had long noticed his trembling hands, so I walked past him and looked straight at the struggling Fred. _________________ James POV Dum!! Dum!! Dum!! I heard heavy footsteps from behind and quickly turned to observe the situation, only to find that my brother was already in the air before I could warn him. AAAArrrrrgh!!!! almost immediately I used one of the only two skills I had, , but I was still pushed back by nothing less than eight steps. It was at this moment I saw who the opponent was. Two metres tall green beast with thick braided beards at it''s jaws and a bleeding bald head. It was the same Orc we tried to kill earlier, only this time, its eyes were more intense and a malicious toothy Grin played at his mouth. I screamed within my mind as one question constantly played at my lips but I didn''t dare ask ''HOW?!!!!'' Ofcourse I was ignored as he walked towards the wailing Fred. Dum! Dum!Dum! "Grreeeuk...!!!" The Orc released and pur like sound, that showed it''s excitement. ''Vicious and petty'' was what I thought before I gained control of my body. Then I immediately use shield Bash but the Orc simply did a light spin on his heels before appearing behind me. "!!!!" Chapter 3 - 2: Quest Definitely, the strength of an orc is unimaginable . One swing with my fist brought about a bloodbath from normal humans . As expected, He couldn''t withstand the alarming strength and vitality of an orc. Crack!! In an instant, my whole body was bathed in blood as I crushed his skull with my fist. My breathing became rougher making it certain that I was receiving the influence of becoming a monster . After killing ''James, I lost the urge to toy with this wailing buffoon so I just ripped his arms apart and broke his neck. Instantly, the sound of hurried footsteps came from not to far away. "we''re retreating!" "! Retreat!" "We have the lady!!!!" "Release the signal!" a gruff voice ordered as a pale blue light shot into the sky. SCreeeeee!!! Screeeee! Following that, I saw something that left me a bit dumbfounded, ''Meteor strike?!'' I could hear the screams of the humans still trapped in the battlefield. AHHHHHHK ! ! AHHHK ! ! ! "Retreat!!, the mages released the spell" Soon, the hurried footsteps could be heard approaching closer. "it''s Probably better I hide" I quickly hid amongst the trees and tried to calm my breath. But, as soon as the group were passing, a man in a simple looking silver armor with a mixture of leather, halted his steps as though he spotted something. The rest stopped as well, "Is there a problem Lord Jethro?" Explosions continued to echo across the distance. BOOOM!! BOOM!!BOOM!! "You guys go on ahead, Captain finch..." The lord ''Jethro'' finally said as he continued to stare in my direction after looking at the ''Moongret'' brothers. [Ding! Evolution quest has been Obtained . ] [Reward: Evolution, New title and one random reward] Hearing this, I couldn''t help but laugh. ''In order to Evolve to a First order Being, I have to beat one?'' I mused as I slowly walked out from behind the tree. Immediately I stepped out, I could feel a pressure much more than what I felt from Olog. ________ Name: Jethro Moongret Level: 14(First Circle Order) Power rating: 3460(+300) ____________________ ''Yikes...So this feeling was what they called level suppression from those VR games.'' Thought before focusing on the name ''Moongret''. While I was musing with myself, Jethro finally spoke"So It was just a low leveled orc, well I''d expect nothing else from such trash from the branch family... haa I guess I''m supposed to avenge them by killing you, or what would people say about me." As soon as he finished speaking, The pressure coming from him increased once more as he approached with his Long sword. Seeing His appearances, I tightened my fist. Rushing in fast with a swing from his broad sword, I quickly increased the distance but my body felt heavier than a few minutes back. noticing the shield on the floor, I quickly grabbed it, Since I have a large frame, its also much easier to be targeted so I chose to use the shield for safety, since I had the habit of fighting face-to-face with Punches and kicks . Though my blood was presently boiling, I also kept my mind clear . Deflecting the Sword away, I advanced for a punch but he simply took a step back like he was toying with me. "Interesting... Your quite smart, You''d do well at the arena or perhaps I''ll take you to the mages, I''m sure Grandmaster Raph would enjoy studying what''s in your skull." His words seemed to remind me of something but I can''t remember what. his sword immediately pierced the air towards me leaving an after image . I could see him aiming for my joints as he was probably trying to catch me alive . So I pushed my body''s speed limit to use the kite shield to immediately press down the sword with speed and force. In his stance where he could correct the usage of his sword, he tried to change trajectory. I ignored the shield and aimed to deal a heavy blow by grabbing his neck. As if realizing my intent, he retreated three steps back. so I tried to manage a defensive posture, if he fiercely came after me I would be able to do something by guarding my vitals. with great speed his sword sliced my arms almost immediately. ''Hahahaha when was the last time I had this kind of fun'' I mused as I stared at his movements intently, ''Ah I must be making that hideous expression again'' If I think about it now, in the past, I had a Brother that always scolded for almost everything. The situation continued like this as he seemed to be studying me. he swung his sword emotionlessly and I continually made different forms of attack. Grrrrrr!! "Let''s end this" He said as he looked into the distance. Quickly raising his sword, I slashed furiously as I was Forced to block the sword surrounded by a mysterious force. Bending my arm in a odd angle while praying my bones would be strong enough to stop it for a second. Opportunity! With a cruel smile forming on my face, I opened my mouth and bit down of the part of his neck that was covered with leather. If I didnt use this timing well, then it will be that much more troublesome. Uuuugh! He stifled the sound of his screams as he completely abandoned his sword and began punching my torso, kicking my legs before he pulled out a dagger, I immediately bit deeper before using my remaining good arm to press him to his knees. Even still he continued to stab accross my upper body, It became a test of who would die faster!!, there was no mistake how enjoyable it was feeling the panic across his body. My heart began to beat faster. But, this time he stabbed my legs, so i was forced down on one knee while I pulled him down with me. ''why wasn''t he dying?!!...is it because he''s in the first circle?...this is definitely abnormal'' I soon felt that his body was slowly becoming sluggish . So I bit him with more force creating a deafening crunch. Crack!!! Though it was a brief moment, his body trembled . [Ding!!! Quest completed] as expected as soon as I hear the broken bone sounds, The quest was complete. Damn . . . Instantly, I could feel a strong pain burning on my c.h.e.s.t . Soon, it spread through my whole body. With that blurred conscious, I couldnt believe the pain. Chapter 4 - 3: First circle. Within Alex''s mind, everything was dark but the feeling of his muscle bulging keeps coming, the feeling of flowing water flowed silently within his body, till it deepened within his bone marrow automatically. ''what''s happening?!'' Alex questioned as his thought seemed to echo around him, willing himself to take a step and he immediately felt like he was stepping on wet tiles. Drip! Cloonnk! Then the sound of water dripping down in drops became prevalent, but despite trying to find it''s location, he couldn''t, within this pitch black space. After a long time, the energy that was refining itself in his body was now full to the extreme. a Boundary!. The pain of tearing muscles instantly increased, and at the same time, an itch that penetrated into the bone marrow also accompanied him. This terrible feeling made him once again feel better than death. Pop! "haha, it broke through?!...finally the pain stopped" Alex was surprised and relieved, He had completed the first step to being strong enough to protect himself, even if he himself felt a bit incredible, He was a little solemn as well. Know that from the Beginning when he was reborn to this world, he had just been struggling to survive and trying understand the situation around him. Generally speaking, even with this upgrade, He wasn''t feeling safe and satisfied yet. As soon as the refreshed feeling subsided, a transparent blue screen appeared in front of him within the dark space. [Ding! Evolution quest has been Completed . ] [Reward: Evolution, New title and one random reward] [Calculating possible Evolution Directions] ... [Four basic evolution pathways found] [Race: Orc] [Warrior Orc - 67% Compatibility Orc Shaman- 43% compatibility Lesser Orc(Balanced)- 52% Compatibility Great Orc- 77% Compatibility] [Warning! Once an Evolution pathway is chosen, it can''t be reversed! choose wisely.] After Carefully going through the notifications, as he happened to be somewhat of a slow reader, he let out a sigh with the blue screen Illuminating his face. Without much of a thought, he decided to look at the one with the highest compatibility. And from what he saw, he figured that the previous body owner''s previous actions and character contributed greatly to the choices made available to him. : A kind of Orcs known for their strength and Charisma, they are well respected within their respective Hordes as they sometimes tend to hold leadership positions. In the World of Luegad, this Creatures are renowned as dangerous, as the Tattoo became the symbol of Fear for their enemies. [Perks: 12% Boost in strength, 7% increase in agility, 5% increase in intelligence(-), 2% Increase in Leadership.] ''I finally understand where this feeling of D¨¦j¨¤ vu was coming from!'' Alex thought as he stared wide eyed at one word "Luegad". "It finally clicked, It turns out I had reincarnated into one of my favorite Novels!. but if I''m correct, then its definitely not a good thing to end up as an Orc!!!." He cried out breathlessly. After some thought, Alex sighed in a depressed manner, ''Great! , to think I was reborn into the worst possible race with the worst fate in this world haa~''. [Warning!] [Please choose quickly as failure to do so due to delay would lead to possible Evolution failure]. !!! He quickly selected the one with the highest compatibility as he didn''t want anything to cripple his growth with this world. He didn''t know how long it took. The Liquid that was circulating with his body finally. [Ding!] [You''ve Unlocked three skills] [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters. (2/2) uses before cool down Cool down: 6 secs Orc''s Charge(Common)Lv1- charge forward with the strength of a battering Ram for a 4 meter distance, causing 150% damage based on strength stats. Cast time: 2secs Cool down: 5 minutes. Sigil(Unique) Lv1 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers. Effect: Personal: Adds 5% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 2% bonus to their base stats.] [Ding!] Effects: Adds a skill, ''Savage'' that gives a temporary 2 minutes debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] [Calibrating Random reward...] [Ding!] [You have gained Ayasey''s Attention] [New title: Orhani (Unknown Soul)] [Yoln''s Reach(Sealed){1/8}] Weapon type: Battle axe Damage: 28-35 Effect 1: when in the Dark, attack speed increases by 0.4% every 4th attack. _______________________________________________________ At the moment the last Notification popped up, He suddenly opened his eyes. Only then did he find that He was still where he had fainted, but this time there was a Deep-black axe with a rough looking black handle with eerie blades. "Really?, This is Just Great, why would she notice me!!!, The ''Night Mother''... someone who stood at the pinnacle of this world...Haa well, overall, this isn''t a bad starting line". Alex spoke aloud with a long sigh before he calmed down once again. "Now I should have a clear understanding of My own strength, as the next step, I need to do is find out what time line I am in while making comparison to my knowledge from the Novel... after all, i''d be a fool to not use this Knowledge to ensure my survival." its just that, the story had been written from the perspective of the Humans. He had little knowledge about the Orc race. With this thoughts, he stood up while looking at Jethro''s corpse with a sneer before saying, "I must thank you, as you have thought me a valuable lesson today, that is to never underestimate any opponent in this world." Retracting his gaze while shaking his head, only then did he notice that his head now had hair growing out. he looked at his status while saying to himself, "I''m so glad the baldness is gone..." _______________ Name:Torug(Alex Radwell) Race: Great Orc Level: 11(Order of the First circle) Power rating: 2330 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Orc''s Charge(Common)Lv1- charge forward with the strength of a battering Ram for a 4 meter distance, causing 150% damage based on strength stats. Cast time: 2secs Cool down: 5 minutes. Racial skills: Sigil(Unique) Lv1 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive) Effect: Personal: Adds 5% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 2% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) _________________________________________ After observing his status, he soon noticed that there was a qualitative change in not just his race but his power rating as well. Then he looked at Jethro''s corpse again with a strange expression. From what he remembers, with each natural evolution, ones power rating is spiked by a certain number. Like how his power rating increased by 1000 at the first circle, when he becomes a second circle creature, it would be increase by a few thousands, ranging between ten thousand-ish. Your power rating at the begining is always important, Power ratings are mostly calculated with ones total stats equipments, Cultivation manuals practiced although they were rare and relics held in your possession but unfortunately, People of this world had no way to check, so they perform evolutions like headless flies. Even he has no way to see the broken down stats but luckily this body had a strong foundation and was already at the 1000+ mark before evolution. And as per normal, first circle opens two skills for other races unlike humans who had unlocked them from level 5 which honestly gave them a mastery advantage. "M...Moongret family" He muttered in a deep baritone as the reflection of fire danced over his sweaty skin. The reason he looked at the Jethro strangely was because the young man''s power rating was on the High side, So he guessed that he must had been someone the Clan put lots of efforts to nurture. And if he remembers correctly, this family was the first stepping stone for the Mc back in the story. That means, He was not entirely far from the Mc and since the clan still existed, the timeline was lingering in the period before the start of the story. According to the story, the incident that led to the initial decline of the clan was the fact that there was meant to be an alliance between the ''Moongrets'' and the ''Grics'' by marriage but when moving the bride, they got attacked by Orcs. After a rescue party was dispatched, they rescued lady Suffia of Gric but were rather late as she had been sullied by Orcs. The marriage was still held but her standing in the clan became rather strange, leading to her encounter with the Mc. thus ushering in the first heroine to his ''Harem''. Anyways, Now he was part of the Orc clan who had angered two great dukedoms and the Mc who finally finishes them off. "Haaaa...something must kill a man" He sighed with a bitter expression before resting the pitch black axe on his shoulder."At least I now know where I am" "Cilldean kingdom...Most definitely the orc lands at North of Thann''s End" He continued his deduction and couldn''t help but marvel at how in depth the Novel had been and how much he actually seemed to remember. "''salvation in Pride'' was it?...Queen Hawise salman should be the ruling monarch now" Alex mused as he walked towards the settlement. Chapter 5 - 4: Conflict 1 Alex''s POV As I approached the settlement or what was left of it, I noticed most of the Orc were still disoriented from the meteor shower. The main cave was partially destroyed and the earth had been scorched black. ''Meteor shower should have been a spell of a High order mage, so how come the mage didn''t just attack directly?...Hmm'' although he was within his thought, his steps never stopped. ''wait, this level of destruction doesn''t match the description in the book, unless it''s a spell scroll made by one but was only fueled by the mana of the low order mages, Lucky me...right, those guys aren''t moved so easily.'' "AAaaargh... those Huumans dare" a roar suddenly disrupted the silence. "Right, there''s still this guy" I turned to the Orc and noticed it was Olog, the somewhat Chubby Orc with thick arms and a ridiculously long braided Beard who used me as a punching bag when he just awakened here. "Honestly, I''m a little resentful, maybe I should just kill him and gain vengeance for the dead guy." "We must kill...grreuk the Huumans now!!" Olog roared with blood on his face as he pulled the others up. Seeing this, I couldn''t help but want to laugh because he was still staggering as he tried to intimidate others into doing what he wants. "AAARGH!!" He yelled again trying to keep himself awake as he shook his head furiously while smacking it, I turned to look at the condition of others. they were only about a dozen or so and he wants to go fight a those in the city??, I doubt this fool would even pass the human adventurers that hang out outside the walls. Soon an elderly looking green Orc with grey beards approached Olog warily, "We too few...we must Move Horde fi..." Olog cut him off by smacking the Orc rather heavily, but luckily Orcs have sturdy bodies but, ''This ...an intelligent Orc among the base Orcs? he has the making of a shaman then.'' "WE KILL...OLOG IS NO COWARD!!" Olog once again stated his stance. ''guess i''ll just kill him and migrate, I wonder how far the journey to degr would be..." I thought about what I should do as I thought about the Degr heraldic kingdom which was made by purely Orcs. As I mused with my own thoughts, Olog pushes the Elderly orc once more as he obviously wants to make an example of him. "guess I''m killing him" I said as I checked his status. __________ Name: Olog(Chieftain) Race: lesser Orc Power rating: 2386 ____________ ''Interesting, by order of Evolution, i''m at an advantage as the Intimidation passive would kick in'' I couldn''t help thinking as I suppressed a laugh. ''In a bigger Horde, with a Great Orc as chief, he would be a Guard at most.'' With this thought, I approached the scene. ________________________________________ Unknown POV "WE KILL...OLOG IS NO COWARD!!" Chieftain yelled but someone moved. Thud! Thud! ''Someone really moved, now Chieftain will be really angry'' I thought while looking for who would be so stupid at this moment only to find ''Brother?'' ''Yes it is indeed brother but why brother look different?'' Thud!! Thud!! Thud!! "OLGA!!" Brother shouted with malice while bringing down the black battle axe from his shoulders and pointed it at the Chieftain. His braided Beards tied into three knots, swayed in the air as he glared at Chiefain with a gleam in his now red eyes. _____________________________________ Olga slowly turned towards Alex with obvious fury but stiffened for a second after seeing him. He soon felt an unknown pressure from the orc who angered him, so he cautiously sized the Orc before saying, "Who are ...Torug?...Hahahaha". "Hahahaha" He laughed as he felt somewhat relieved, he then sized Alex up once more while thinking, ''Nothing changes, I beat him.'' "This time I kill you!! hmph" Was all he said with a snort as he picked up his Club and used the orc charge skill. Alex had been following his movement from the beginning, so he too charged with the skill as well. Boom!! The clash of raw muscles produced a deafening sound as both party''s shoulders collided. a mini shock wave spread out as Olga was pushed back by a step, giving Alex the chance to use the handle of his axe knock the chubby orc back by a few steps. ''My thoughts weren''t wrong, the superiority of my evolution path led to a decline on his power rating, I suspect it reduced by at least 20%, now with techniques, this is almost child''s play'' Alex thought as he put all his strength in his legs, immediately kicking Olga on his c.h.e.s.t, knocking him down as a grunt escaped his lungs. ''Meanwhile, Skills are activated by thoughts...hmm how convenient.'' He smiled darkly as he approached the fallen Olga who immediately swung the club in a wide arc before rolling away disgracefully to create distance between them. he struggled to stand up due to his big belly, taking the chance, Alex threw his axe with both hands as he charged after it. Voom! puchi!(sfx: skin penetration) BEM! BAM!! Alex followed with a few punches, ending it with an upper cut before pulling out the axe from the dazed Olga, causing him to bleed further. Due to the Shock, Olog instinctively dropped his club to block the wound but Alex also attacked at this moment cutting off that arm with a hard swing. AAAAARGH!!! "Olga submits!!!" Olga screamed as he stared wide eyed at his fallen arm. ''The axe throw could only pass the skin but not powerful enough to shatter bones, But it was enough to distract him for a second.'' Alex thought as he watched the writhing and wailing Olga. This soon sent a memory of an incident when he was still in the gang life, the bloody battle with a rival gang played in his mind. ''I guess I''m back to this bloody lifestyle'' He thought with a straight face as he calmed his breath. Olga noticed his momentary distraction and grabbed a fallen humans sword before trying to stab Alex. Seeing this scene made Alex freeze for a split second... Slash!(SFX: flesh cutting) But the expected pain didn''t come, standing before him was the very same orc who helped him before. __________________________________________________ Chapter 6 - 5: Conflict 2 I stared wide eyed at the very same orc that helped him before, The scar on his jaw and neck were the same. He looked at his bleeding hand as though he was shocked that he caught it. ROOAAAAGGRRRKKAAAR!!! Seeing his sneak attack fail, Olog suddenly Roared in such a way that it made one dizzy before running the other way. Everything happened so quickly, like it was rehearsed. ''that''s definitely a skill, must be his second skill besides the charge'' with that thought Alex immediately used ''Leap'' skill to close the distance while swinging my battle axe against his neck. Due to the sound from behind, he turned around to look only to open his eyes wide as he was chopped in half by the Landing Alex. ''I guess you''re the only Orc who would use a ''Charge'' to run away from someone'' Alex thought dismissively before turning to observe the other Orcs. From the look of things, they were only just recovering from the sound attack. ''I might as well add it to one of the perks of being a Great Orc among the first initial paths'' As he continued to make some considerations, he approached the Orc that saved him. Name: Urim(wounded) Race: Orc Level: 9 (-) Power rating: 1200 Relationship: Brother ________________ ''I was indeed correct, it''s the same one...oh there are some new information...huh??'' Alex finally noticed the last line on the status screen and couldn''t help but have a strange expression as he stared at this Orc. What surprised him wasn''t the fact that the Orc was his brother, he wouldn''t be surprised if 80% of the Orcs here were his brothers but what did make him feel strange was the Human like expressions this Orc was making, Pain, relief and awe. It was rather odd, in fact, his first thought was that he was someone like him but that doesn''t seem to be the case. ''Interesting, okay! i''ll keep him for m-'' "Hail Chieftain!!!" His thoughts were cut off when Urim suddenly yelled as he went on one knee. """Hail Chieftain!!"""The other orcs copied his movement as they were afraid alex would attack them as well. A strange gleam passed through the eyes of the elderly orc as he chanted with a hideous smile. [Ding!] [Due to being Acknowledged as a leader, Host ''Sigil'' is now Unlocked...please proceed with selecting tattoo style and location it shall be placed] ''Tattoo??'' The moment Alex thought of this because of the notification, a memory of himself on Earth surfaced within his mind as he soon had a dazed expression. ________________ "Yo Black, I heard you were bringing the recruits to get their tattoos today" Phillip held his tattoo equipments as he casually asked a man in a black fur coat that was leading a group into the shop. Black responded dryly, "It''s not like your blind..." Phillip on the other hand didn''t seem offended and continued as he dusted a sit for Black, "I heard there''s an outstanding recruit that would be taking over the Enforcer''s mantle... Tiger''s corpse isn''t even cold yet haa" "...." Phillip didn''t let up as he brought his face closer to"well?". "He''s the New ''Tiger''" Black lit a cigarette as he pointed at Black haired youth behind the group with a Bored expression. Alex raised his head as he stared at Phillip with an amiable smile. ________________________________________________________________ "haaa...."Alex sighed as he chose to use the same tattoo he had used in his last life, one that gave him mixed feelings and perhaps had defined who he was. As soon as he was done, the Image of a crouching tiger appeared in his upper left c.h.e.s.t and sleeve. [Sigil Chosen...Sigil(Unique) Lv1 Activated] [Effects Unlocked]: Personal: Adds 5% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 2% bonus to their base stats.] Seeing all this and the expression on the Elderly Orc''s face, Alex couldn''t help but find the situation funny. "Not what I planned but...Interesting all the same" He wouldn''t have unlocked the sigil without being acknowledged, which proves that his Evolution path was tied to Clan building. As if to confirm his guess, the blue screen appeared once more. [Ding] [Please Name your Horde...] "HAHA HAHA HAHA..." As soon as he was done laughing, Alex couldn''t help but thinking as he looked at the other Orcs like treasures ''This life will definitely be way more interesting''. "From this day forth, we shall be called The Black moon clan!!!" He finally said as the Orcs roared in support, after all Olga had never named them, this showed their Chieftain''s ambition. [Ding!] [Acknowledged...Black Moon clan] [Do you wish to use here as your initial settlement] ''No'' Alex declined without hesitation, after all this place might as well soon be crawling with soldiers. [Acknowledged] There were no more notifications. When he saw no more pop ups, he turned to the Orcs once more before saying "We rest tonight and leave tomorrow." "Grreuk..." Alex looked at the Elderly Orc meaningfully before heading towards another direction to gather his thoughts. ________ Name:Torug Blackmoon(Alex Radwell) Title: Chief, Savage Affiliation: Black Moon(Leader) Race: Great Orc Level: 11(Order of the First circle) Power rating: 2580 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Orc''s Charge(Common)Lv1- charge forward with the strength of a battering Ram for a 4 meter distance, causing 150% damage based on strength stats. Cast time: 2secs Cool down: 5 minutes. Racial skills: Sigil(Unique) Lv1 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive) Effect: Personal: Adds 5% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 2% bonus to their base stats.] Sigil Extra Bonus: +4% Charisma, +2% Strength, +2.5% Agility. Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) _______________________________________ "Not bad, if this is where I think it is...there should be a lake up ahead." He immediately picked up his pace and soon spotted the Lake. Although calling it a lake was an understatement, but it was understandable as the author had said the world was five times bigger than earth despite shaped like a flat rocky slate. He didn''t just come up with the name Black moon on the fly, but it was after some considerations, the name of this lake was Black moon due to it''s shape but the odd thing was how Black the water was. You wouldn''t even be able to tell if a creature was looking at you from within. So he named the Clan, Black moon as they had originated from here. Although they were leaving, he still planned to settle around this lake because of one reason. There was something hidden within this Lake that was Guarded by the Only creature that lives in it. with this thoughts, he approached the lake and washed his bloodied face before looking at his reflection. On the Lake''s surface, the reflection that stared back at him was a Muscular Dark Green Orc with thick black braided beards, it looked at him with blood red eyes which was a sign of his evolution as a short black hair sat on his head. a bone necklace hung around his neck with a scar that ran across his right eye. the ink black tattoo of a crouching tiger lying on his c.h.e.s.t and arm increased his charms as a smirk played on his lips. Overall, He looked rather Menacing. "Not a bad look for an Orc, Gangster Orc" Alex Mused as he looked up at the now setting sun. Chapter 7 - 6: Pointing Fingers Day 2 Nation: Cilldean Kingdom Ruler: Queen Hawise Salman Government: monarchy Race: Humans Population: 49,273,554 Territory: Moongret City: Thann''s End It was a city of wide avenues and small places to sit and eat, to relax as folk went about their day. There were the Massive structures in the centre, made up of the Moongret castle, Auction house and Arena. The rest was residential homes of noble and rich merchants, small lands here and there that gives you a chance to walk among nature or cultivate peacefully, main point is, it''s meant for the rich and powerful. Yet the best thing was the river that flowed through the centre, crossing the bridges, pausing just to look at the view every day was loved all the more. It''s as if there was no war going on at the kingdom borders or nobody noticed, too absorbed with other of enjoyment and ideas that locked the mind. All in all, this city was hailed by traveling merchants as the city of passion. Now within the Moongret Castle, a middle aged man in a black robe stood by the windows in a room filled with books and a gloomy air hung around the atmosphere. He stood there lost in thought as he waited for something patiently. Knock! knock! "come in" The middle aged man responded immediately, he turned towards the door, showing his scholarly face and the green diamond embedded on his forehead, signs of his status as a High human, while the green color showed he was a high leveled wind mage, at least a level above the Grand Order. "Yes" a solemn voice came from the other side of the door before it was then opened. "Greetings patriarch!" Another middle aged man dressing in full silver armor hastily said as he bowed slightly. The high human only gave him a glance before looking out the window once more, "skip the formalities and tell me, how was the mission go?!. was she alive?". "Yes Patriarch" "Good, she''s only useful that way. at least the alliance would still hold...is there anything else?". "Yes, two from the side branch were lost last night!, one was a rather promising knight." "Hmph!, of what use are you telling me this?, simply compensate the respective families..." The high human replied while waving dismissively. Suddenly remembering something else he said, "right where is Jethro?!, that is good seed". The man in armor was suddenly quiet. "Well?" The High human pressed for an answer. "we haven''t heard from him since last night". "...." The room suddenly became much colder. "What do you mean?, Explain from the begining" The high human''s tone finally changing as he asked with a rather threatening tone. ____________________________________ Meanwhile as soon as the morning came Alex approached the Elderly Orc as he watched the other Orcs talk excitedly about the matching tattoos while Some having a brawl of some sort. The old Orc on the other hand seemed to be using herbs to treat Urim''s hand and didn''t notice the approaching Alex until Urim spoke, "Brother!". "..." Alex could only awkwardly nod as he did not know how to deal with this human like orc, making Urim look at him with a confused expression. He quickly checked the Elder''s status. _____________ Name: Dabok Blackmoon Race: Orc Power rating: 1090 Relationship: Clan member. ______________ ''If i''m to guess, most of his stats would be in Intelligence and from the look of things, almost all the Orcs here seem to be Lv9...they must have been very active in this area.'' "How''s his hand?" Alex asked curiously. "He live, small wound for Orc" Dabok said with a teasing smile, shocking Alex, ''He can even joke around, this two...why are they so different?''. He decided to probe this Orc to see if there was any connection between him and the previous owner, "Dabok...can you write?." Hearing this, there was no reaction as to why Alex knew his name, which shows they indeed knew each other. "Why ask?, you know...I''m glad our plans finally succeeded but you change so much." Dabok responded as he scanned Alex from Head to toe. "Brother Strong!!" Urim chimed in, Alex didn''t say anything but his thoughts were spinning,'' so they had planned a coup together but this previous body owner died during the duel before I transmigrated into his body''. With this thought, Alex chose to play it safe as he didn''t know what else to do about it. "this you good!, Hahaha" Dabok concluded and didn''t say anything else, proceeding with his earlier actions on Urim''s palm. "We''ll leave in a few minutes" Alex said as he turned towards the direction of Jethro''s body, He then dragged it and hung it on a stake he prepared even though he felt disgusted by the sounds he was hearing. One thing about this action was that, he had read back then that this was the way the Degr kingdom handled their enemy''s corpses, as a way to taunt others and a sign of disrespect. By doing this, he hoped to divert the dukes attention to Degr, long enough for him to grow. Seeing his action, Dabok opened his eyes wide before yelling at the others with an Orc''s version of an amused smile. "Help the Chieftain!" """Ooooh!""" They immediately responded with vigor, finding it interesting. At this time Alex could only narrow his eyes at this Suspicious Elder Orc, He had only planned to do this to this Jethro, since he seemed important to the group that attacked them yesterday. But now watching all the Orcs getting busy, he was reminded of an incident where he had sent a gift to a rival gang''s boss, they had been fighting over a newly established dock just at the edges of the City, a hundred boxes containing the heads of his subordinates. ''Right, I don''t need to do things by myself anymore...but...this Dabok is definitely not simple.'' he thought as he looked at the Elderly orc once more before he joined the rest. ____________________________________ Thann''s End, Moongret Castle, "You disappoint me Frank, Gather some soldiers, I want you to wipe them out and bring back the bodies of our Moongrets." Charles said Icily as the green diamond on his forehead flashed. "Yes! patriach" The captain of the squad that led the soldiers yesterday accepted the solemnly despite being tired. Just as Frank was about stepping out, Charles added, "Also, you best not fail or else...hehehe Sir Alan is always in need of new specimens for his experiments. I''m sure you wouldn''t want to accidentally become one of them". "..."Frank silently stepped out of the study. Immediately, something stepped out of his shadows but Frank wasn''t surprised at all. "Unreasonable as always, Hey why don''t we go all out this time?" The dark shadow creature said as it formed the silhouette of a human male. Frank paused his steps within the dimly lit hallway for a second before saying, "Sure" He then continued walking away with his Dark brown hair swaying ever so lightly with his rhythmic steps. "hihihihihkikikhihihi" the creature soon laughed Creepily as it entered his shadow once more. Chapter 8 - 7: Alchemist!, Spotted. It''s been three days since the Blackmoon tribe migrated from their previous settlement and they had yet to find a ''suitable'' place to use as the foundation of their ''Horde''. Dabok has not said anything since the other day and Alex seemed rather cautious of this old Orc. His ''Brother'' Urim on the other hand stuck to him like glue and allowing Alex to Understand that this Orc wasn''t really liked by his tribe members due to his strange nature. Although Alex would hate to admit it but he found this Orc rather refreshing due to his human like nature even though, due to being a basic Orc his speech was still not smooth. During this three days, Alex had scanned the 14 Orcs and found that they were mostly Lv 9 except two that was still Lv 8 and 7 respectively. after some questioning, He found out that they were not aware of the concept of levels and that they only got stronger the more battles they partook in. Alex then gained a better understanding on how things were, From the human side, it was the same but only smaller, so they used mana nodes to gain power(Exp). Due to this, there''s a constant battle for resources between each nations and race. After confirming a few guesses, he came to believe that mana Nodes, which is usually mined to get mana stones, work as an alternative for Exp. So he decided to find a Mana Node or a settlement with one. Earlier today, He found a Magical beast that looked like a Boar, He then killed it in order to confirm if he could gain Exp from animals too. And he could, only that it felt significantly lesser than killing humans. Normally this should bother him but he believed he was too far gone to even be considering the thought, To top it off, He was now None human so he felt he should now do away with the pretence. Although, if he had been Given the Choice he would have chosen to be a magic beast as they had the highest potential. heck, even the novel''s villain was a magic beast. Their explosive growth begins from the order of the second circle, where they could then take human forms. Meanwhile, Orcs could be counted as a half-civilised race known for it''s savagery but also for respecting the code of honour and laws of war. They tended to organise in warbands, Tribes, sometimes joining forces with trolls, ogres or goblins forming massive Hordes. But according to the Hierarchy of power in this world, Only One Orc has succeeded in entering top ten and he also made an organised kingdom with a massive population of ''774, 586'' orcs, also known as the Great Horde. This Orc is also the only successful Orc from the great Orc path Alex knew of, this doesn''t mean that there weren''t others out there. It was only when the Degr Empire was nearly extinct. that the others began to appear, accusing the Human of No honor, then for the first time there was an alliance between the races tagged as ''Others'', but all this happened at Volume four of this Novel. ____________ ________ Presently, Alex was frowning while signalling his horde to be silent. they complied even though most of them had confused expressions. Not far from them, Alex could hear voices that sounded like shrieking children. "Krriki...Humans, kikiki" "Sssh..." "..." Upon Approaching them alone, Alex spotted a group of Goblins spying on what looked like a merchant team. The Merchant team was moving stealthily as Cart filled with goods was being dragged behind them. Upon watching closely, he deduced that this group was smuggling weapons into wherever they were going. Unfortunately for them, their team was too small to survive an Attack from this goblin team. But they might have someone powerful so Alex decided to watch. Boom! A miniature explosion took place, immediately creating chaos amongst the guarding adventurers. Alex pupils constricted, as he saw this scene... ''Alchemy!'' This was a rare class to evolve into and it was also difficult to be powerful. Now thinking, There was only one goblin that had this class and that was the Chief of Ironbark goblins, Lovan Ironbark Their'' Settlement, also known as Harun is a walled village somewhere in the Orc lands, located just outside of Cold Valley, Goblins here mine mana stones even though they had no idea what it was for, until the Cilldean army waged war against them with the help of some members of the Empires Golden army. apparently an Adventurer discovered a rich deposit of high-quality mana stones on this spot. He sold the news to a baron in the area, before heading off to Jurl Town, where he would lives the life of a rich and powerful townsman. ''I''m really lucky...'' Alex thought as he suddenly felt that this Goblins were pleasing to the eye. While he was lost in thought, the battle was still raging on as some goblins couldn''t help munching on some adventurers. At this time Urim had approached him from behind, "Gobs...Sssh!" Alex whispered, The rest soon drew closed while watching the commotion stealthily. Another Goblin threw another orange looking stone, causing another explosion that killed the last escaping man. When all was said and done, they carried the bodies away while completely ignoring the Load of weapons much to Alex''s delight. As soon as the Goblins were in the distance, Alex gave asked the Orc''s to take as much weapons as they could carry before returning to their camp. "I''ll be back...nobody leaves this place." Alex ordered as he prepared to leave but was stopped by Dabok''s question, "Here, Black moon land?". " No..." was all Alex answered with and Dabok did not impose further. ________________ FRANK''S POV... After three days of preparation was complete, The battlefield of some nights before now lay quiet, it was now a graveyard of the unburied. Their corpses impaled like kebabs, drying in the Sun. The sun shone and the winds blew, but now somewhere mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters would be waiting in vain. I watched this as I began to feel extremely gloomy, Unconsciously biting my lips, I thought of the several days I used to train or train with this men. ''All this for an alliance, for one woman...so many brothers died in one night.'' These men that were once boys who played in the yard with sticks and laughed at each other''s silly tales were now meat for the birds. About fifty men, Hanging on poles with now cold dead looks. Their eyes were as immobile as their limbs. Their souls had long departed to the celestial planes to walk with the ancestors in land of the Gods. ''Despite the rescue, to me ,The battle was lost, the enemy had won'' Unable to control my emotions, I could feel the shadow becoming restless so I ordered the men to bury our beloved brothers. Now camped a mile away from that cursed land in order to curb our feeling and plan the next Action. Chapter 9 - 8: Protagonist appears! Once again Alex found himself frowning deeply, He now knew that acting stealthily with this body was more taxing than usual, not to mention tracking sharp eared creatures. He could bet that if this goblins were the more intelligent sort, he would have been found by now. ''Anyway, As long as I follow this goblins it''s only a matter of time before I find their home.'' Alex thought as the goblins chat in an animated manner about their hunts and how they''d have to share it, while he nonchalantly carved another marking on a nearby tree. He watched them curiously through the army of trees. ''This is a lucky chance, the best I''ve seen in the last twenty years.'' he murmured. They don''t seem to have progressed much as he was soon reminded the description of the Ironbark tribe in the book. "They already had decent armor by the time they were introduced into the novel. which means they must have only just found this place, best I get them now that they are yet to settle in." Soon they approached something their destination, Goblins were moving from left to right, building hut in front of a cave-like structure which was obviously the place to mine mana stones. In all, the atmosphere look like a construction site from back on earth. He vaguely remembered that basic goblins weren''t smart enough to start this on their own, Unless... ''Unless Lovan is already on the First circle of evolution, but even how much intelligence would he have. I dare not imagine that he''s of the second circle!.'' Suddenly Alex felt worried. Alchemists can only be awakened as an evolution path by those who are acknowledged by the God of Alchemy ''Neah'', due to this reason, Alchemists were so few, added with fact that the God was tagged to be among the Evil God''s of the Devil faction even though he was one of the Neutral Gods, followers of the God''s Tagged with this, were to be seen as knaves who see goodness as weakness and callous cold deeds as strength. Their God proclaimed to be a devil, Yet this same men used the Excuse of ''all creation must be saved and disciplined'' to Enslave this people while shouting, '' we are prepared to fight on behalf of the defenceless and bring a healthy world into reality''. Alex went through his minor understanding of the world''s religion , He could only sigh as those who pray to the positive side of the divine force, also seemed to enjoy the false allure of cruelty and violence. One thing kept reminding himself was that, ''Not everything was as they seemed". with that thought, he left for his camp to make arrangements. ___________________ Meanwhile, As the day''s sun continued to shower the City of Thann''s End with its rays, the sky soon began to change, dark clouds began to gather when... Boom!! [SFx: Thunder] Crraaaaaaaaaaackkakakaka [SFX: more lightning] A commotion broke out in the streets of Thann''s end as people scrambled to get to their Homes. No one expected the sudden rain but Unknown to them, a certain soul had just transmigrated into this world. Within a room filled with Blue curtains containing the Emblem of small noble family, A young boy of fifteen years laid in his own pool of blood, this was Davis Fairchild, young master of The Fairchild household. As he laid there, his eyes opened with a jolt as he heard a rumble in his head as his body violently jerked before bouncing off the ground and falling back down. Boom! His head smashed onto something hard, causing him to grimace in pain. Ah! As he slowly opened his eyes, he could only see a dim, blurry background. In front of him, a silhouette was making weird gestures with his hand, as if it was performing a weird dance, Next to the silhouette was a window; lightning flashed outside, brightly illuminating the room as if it were day. "Oww¡­" Davis m.o.a.n.e.d as he tried to raise his hand to rub the back of his head, but his body wouldn''t move: a mixture of pain, itching, and numbness had left it paralyzed. It was as if his limbs didn''t belong to him; they firmly laid on the ground beside him like four wooden sticks. "Am I dead?" His mind was still chaotic. He had a flashback: while taking a stroll, he had accidentally bumped into a thief, who had been making an escape, so due to his sense of justice, he tried to grab unto what the thief held with his wet hands due to the rain, but then there was a flash of light and the sound of Thunder before he knew what had happened, he was here. he remembered a pungent smell of burnt flesh as he lost consciousness. His head was in a daze; it seemed like all his memories had turned to mush. So Davis opened his eyes as much as he could, trying to figure out what was going on around him. "Ohm yol valen zo rodel" *SFX: indistinct chanting* He heard the soft sound of a door closing. "Has The Night mother responded?" A m.a.t.u.r.e woman''s voice asked. "No, she remains silent." The familiar voice of the chanting silhouette answered, followed by silence. Davis found himself in a small bedroom. In front of him was a bed you would only see in most medieval movies. White light shone from the window to his right once more; light rain showers fell outside, and the roof of the building across was soaked through. He was someone who was born with innate strength but now his body suddenly felt weak and it was hard to stay awake. Suddenly, like a flood breaking out of a dam, a huge and complex wave of thoughts rampaged into his mind. He unconsciously g.r.o.a.n.e.d and gripped his forehead with his hands. Countless new memories swarmed into his brain. "What!? He... He''s still alive?" the man spoke, sounding shocked. He couldn''t think about anything else; still bearing a headache, he started exploring the memories that had just flowed into his brain while trying to leave the spot he laid as he could now move. ''Have I traveled to a different world?'' His new identity was a boy also named Davis from a small-Noble family. He was 15 years old and his Father was a Baron under Moongret Dukedom. He had a little sister called Jader. The life here filled with mysteries and magical phenomenon, the memories of his old family and his own appearance made it clear that this place was definitely not Earth. Davis was born with dark purple hair and eyes the color of the Abyss just like the rest of his new family. Their hair color was passed down from their father and eye color from their mother. He''d never heard of anyone born with these hair and eye colors on Earth. Furthermore, in Davis''s memories of history, the most powerful countries in the world were not the United States, or Russia. Instead, they were the Nisipurl Empire, Eudaraime Empire, Cilldean Empire and Cullbeg Kingdom. Right now, Davis was attending the best high school in the Empire, Salman Nobles Academy. It was the first year of school as he planned to be knight. During his return this school break, Davis stopped a group of slave traders with his Guards but ended up attacked in bed by this Devil worshipper and had actually died, just as he himself died in his world and ended up here. Still collecting his memories, Davis hit a formation set by his father in case of emergency. When the devil worshipper snapped out of his trance, his partner was screaming. " Let''s go!, forget the ritual!...he just alerted the Guards" She yelled as she was already at the opened window. "But... I can''t give up when I''m already this close." the man rejected but was interrupted by the sound of heavy footsteps. Without hesitation, the woman stabbed the man''s t.h.i.g.h with a dagger before blowing Davis a kiss and jumping off the Window, her voice still lingering in the air. "Stall them for me!" " You!! You B***h!!!" was all that could be said before the man turned towards Davis. Davis''s mind was still going through the memories and everything that was happening. Although he was attending a nobles'' academy, The present him didn''t have the original Davis''s skills. Unfortunately, there wasn''t anymore time to be lost in thought. The door was sent flying, as brown armored men rushed into the room, the black robed man turned pale as he didn''t expect them to get here so quickly as he turned towards the window. Davis finally saw the robed man''s appearance, Black messy hair, and with empty looking eyes as the sockets sank deep into his face, giving the impression that he had been sick for years. "Divine judgement!" a Booming voice came from the other side of the window as a Beam of white lightning struck onto the man who had just jumped out. "AAAARGH!" Davis was shocked, he wasn''t able to absorb most of the information from his memories until now. Outside the window was a Man with dark purple hair and a piercing gaze as he floated in the air. "To dare touch my son?!! hmph! seize him" """ Yes!"""" Immediately some Brown armored men, jumped out the same window while the rest turned back and left through the door. "Brother, are you Ok?" asked a young teenage girls voice sounded as a girl with the same color of hair entered the room. "Nope" G.r.o.a.n.e.d Davis, thoughtlessly. He was dragging himself to rest his back on the side of the wall, "Aah!!" Jader screamed as she ran to him, followed by a frowning woman that looked like the older version of Jader. Outside the window was an open space between two buildings; the Purple haired man could still be seen floating up there. ''So a world of Magic huh?!'' was his last thought before fainting. Chapter 10 - 9: Duel Pt 1 Just a little bit away from the camping site of his Orcs, the weather suddenly changed as Lightning continued to rumble wildly, Alex''s heart twisted and sunk with nerves as he stared at the sky. The white light enveloped his sight, coldly reminding of the Novels prologue, It was like he was reading out every word and they played out before his eyes. His breaths came in sharp pants and as he tried to gain control, but nothing was working. ''It hurts. It HURTS!'' He yelled in his head as he could not understand this horrible feeling he had, He had always been to apathetic about things or the one raining down pressure on others, He suddenly felt like a sword was now placed on his neck as it silently inched closer to break skin. he tried to breath calmly, but every time he looked up at the now dark sky, those cruel, horrible, necessary words he knew all to well were there. Words he had read long before this scene had began but never expected it this soon. Words he had subconsciously waited for with anxiety and worry, knowing, somehow, what might happen but never guessed its gravity. . Slowly, the panic and anxiety attack flowed away, but yet he still shook. his eyes, closed with clenched fists but were slowly opened. Trepidation swelled through him as he slowly raised his line of sight yet again to the happenings in the sky. ''The battle of Gods has began, and now the souls would slip in.'' That''s right, at this time a war had silently began amongst the gods, unbeknownst to the mortals. Every creature asides from the Human, Elf and dwarf felt an enormous pressure the moment the weather changed. On this day, 5 souls including the Protagonist, Davis would transmigrate into this world with different kinds of backgrounds and race. by which the antagonist''s right hand man was one of them, but all this was just one side of the impending chaos. Now the Battle of Gods would go on for several days, bringing up different kinds of natural disaster before the moment of truce at about two months from the first lightning. Then they began to select their champions, Each lesser God was entitled to three champions while the high God''s had two, leaving the two Arch Gods with only one. Ragol The Sun God was an Arch God that chose Davis while Ayaseh the Night mother the second Arch God had chosen a Beast man called Jetos the Tyrant. All other Gods fell on either side of the two like factions further increasing the chaos, it didn''t take long either for the neutral faction to be dragged into the chaos. __________ While thinking all this, His legs never stopped moving as he arrived at the camp, He noticed that the Orcs were still shaking from the earlier pressure. "Come, We''re leaving" He ordered with a scowl as he pulled his battle axe that had been stuck to a tree. The Level 7 Orc was forced to carry the Bag of weapons while the rest were only able to salvage a few great swords and axe before equipping them. ___________________ Two weeks prior Lovan, a Goblin Alchemist, had just arrived with his fellow clan members from a hunt, attempts to form new formulas for the Clan while he remained hidden, but Voru his old chieftain quickly brought to Hilo the clan''s shaman to satisfy her curiosity. Hilo then attempts to convince Lovan that the Mountain bloodhorn clan is squeezing to Ironbark territory, so they should join Bloodhorn but he opposed mostly because he felt lazy. Feeling frustrated and unsupported by Lovan, she attempts to kill him with Curse magic but accidentally triggered an explosion in the makeshift lab. The Mountain bloodhorn clan attacks the Ironbark clan at the same time resulting in chaos. Lovan immediately chose to escape without hesitation after crawling out of the wreckage with his purpose being to survive. Voru dies in battle while Blood horn chief who was now a Hobgoblin, calls Hilo an unsuitable Horn before crushing her under his hammer. Seeing this many escaped behind Lovan and For many moons, the Clan ran with tgeir new chief Lovan becoming an acting leader. they never knew when the Mountain Clan stopped chasing them, but they continued until they soon arrived at their present location. _________ Alex and the Blackmoon clan arrived in front the Ironbark territory with all their weapons and terrifying faces. The goblins were shocked and began scrambling around while shrieking hysterically. Immediately, a goblin with dirty brown skin color appeared as he was dressed in a torn black robe, probably something they must have robbed off some merchants. It was only now that Alex took note, that most of the goblins were somewhat dressed, then he turned to his orc and then himself. this had been one of the things bothering him for a while now but he told himself that monster don''t need to feel modest. But now... It looked like the goblins had some kind of tailoring skill although it was a bit crude. " Orc! what do you want" Lovan said in the loudest voice he could muster, Even though he was afraid right now. "are you the Chieftain...?" Alex asked while looking at the Goblins status. {Name: Lovan Ironbark} Race: Elite Goblin(Chief) Level: 15(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 2683 Relationship: None.} Lovan looked around him and replied with something that looked like a bitter laugh, "Yes". Seeing his status made Alex somewhat relieved as he was afraid that the Goblin was at second circle of evolution. And from the power rating along side other factors, Alex suspicion that this Goblin''s stats majored in Intelligence was finally confirmed. And so with this, he confidently said "I Torug Blackmoon, Chief of the Blackmoon clan challenges you to a trial of combat, witnessed under the oath the Night mother that Any who loses shall serve the other..." The more he spoke, the wind became violent, setting up a barrier around the both of them in a now spacious area. "W..wait!!" Lovan tried to stop him while being completely shocked, first by the intelligence of this Orc and the fact that he was doing this. This was something set for all creatures under the so called devil faction and can only be used twice in ones life. Dabok the Elderly Orc was even more shocked that Alex knew one of the sacred oaths. It must be known that there are several other oaths like this for different purposes, but not many people knew them. At most some might know about two or three and they all had limited number of uses. Perhaps Alex might be the only one who would remember about five or so, judging from the few that were openly used in the novel. It is said that most of this sacred oaths were scattered across the world, written in tomes or Religious scrolls. Lovan looked at the movement of the wind speechlessly, he couldn''t run as he usually would so he looked at Alex once more. Lovan pulls out a small leather pouch from within his tattered robe, it became the signal to begin fighting but none of them moved. Dabok became more focused as he watched the two, Alex had been surprising him continuously since he became Chief while Urim for some reason was smiling, perhaps he had blind trust in Alex''s prowess, since he beat Olog. At this time Lovan was rolling two blue colored marble like items as he wiped off sweat from his face nervously. Alex squinted, ''Another human like one'' was the thought that flashed through his mind as he notices him shivering and was confused, in the Novel, Lovan was never portrayed as a timid character. Suuii *SFX: something thrown* Alex immediately blocks with the blade of this Battle Axe. Clink! Frost appeared on its blade as well as the floor it landed. Seeing this, Alex frowned even more... ''This might be troublesome''. Chapter 11 - 10: Duel pt 2 At this time Lovan was rolling two blue colored marble like items as he wiped off sweat from his face nervously. Alex squinted, ''Another human like one'' was the thought that flashed through his mind as he notices him shivering and was confused, in the Novel, Lovan was never portrayed as a timid character. Suuii *SFX: something thrown* Alex immediately blocks with the blade of this Battle Axe. Clink! Frost appeared on its blade as well as the floor it landed. Seeing this, Alex frowned even more... ''This might be troublesome''. Clink! Clink! Clink! This action continued as Alex continued to block the attacks with a dead pan expression. '' What is this?...Is this really Lovan'' He thought as he watch the shivering goblin who continued to send more frost stones his way. Soon Alex decided to end the match as he couldn''t bear to watch this farce, In fact he was slightly mad that he had to use a sacred oath for this nonsense but that was when his entire body had him warning signs. With wide open eyes he activated ''Charge'' when he heard Lovan''s Voice, "Disintegrate". Immediately a blue coloured magic circle appeared beneath Alex''s feet activating the supposed useless frost stones scattered around him. Boom!!! Craaaaack!! Alex was automatically covered in an Ice sculpture but was immediately able to break through due to the timely activation of the charge skill, albeit with his lower half still stuck. As he broke out, another sound came accompanied by Lovan''s voice, Suuuuuiiii!!! " Inferno!" ''BOOM!'' He was sent flying like he was hit by a fire ball. Scrrrrrrr *SFX: sound of something being dragged on the floor* The entire area became silent as both the goblins and orc have never seen such a fighting method before. the goblins had initially given him the chief position only because he had been close to the old one, so they assumed he was strong. Dabok as well couldn''t help but stare wide eyed at the scene. Never had such power been seen on a goblin who had yet to enter the second circle before, because goblins were only able to fight against orcs after they get to the second circle, where they become hobgoblins in general with a boost in their respective professions. Soon the Goblins began to cheer while the Orc looked at each other in confusion only for Dabok to silently point at their respective Tattoos. at the same time Lovan was staring at the receding smoke with a frown. "Hehehehe....HAHAHAHAHA!!!!, so that''s how it is...hahaha, he needs a word as a trigger... now this is interesting, hahahaha..." Alex muttered between laughs as his body finally came into view, at the last minute before Fire rock hit him, he had sliced it with his Axe but the force still knocked him back. ''I can''t wait to see more'' He thought with a typical Orcish grin which showed how much excitement he was having. With this, he pulled the axe off the ground as he dashed at the Goblin but more Frost stones came his way as the Goblin finally used the Rare skill Alex had wanted to see. An earth wall appeared before him blocking his charge, Ideally he would have to run by either sides but... ''Transmutation'' This was what made Lovan unique, although to Alex, he wasn''t still using it to its best potential but yet it still attracted trouble because of his carelessness. "Don''t worry, you have me now..." Alex said with a sly smile, he used ''Leap'' above the earth wall and swung the Axe down rather viciously at the Goblin. Alex was aware of a major weakness of this rare skill, he had to be in contact with the object in question to be effective. the sight before him left Lovan surprised as he struggled to dodge, Unfortunately, the force of Alex''s body weight after the ''Leap'' knocked him slightly into the air. BAM! Alex sends him flying with a punch before using the final leap in his direction before it goes into cool down. Boom! He''s in the air again, but this time he seemed prepared "Krrrkkk...Concentration!!" He yelled as a He was soon covered by a strong glass like mana but Alex only smiled at this before bringing down his Battle Axe while he chanted with a Booming Voice, "By The Order of the Lord of Old, I smite Thee!!!..." BOOOOM!!! A blinding light spread through the area as well as the sound of breaking glass. everything happened in a flash from when Alex had charged at Lovan to this very instant. This was expected as Alex had cheated in a way, due to him wanting to end the duel quickly without hurting Lovan so he could push forward with his plan. He had used something that would only come to light mid novel. A sacred Order from the God of Knowledge, Melanos who was also known as the oldest of the Gods. ______ In the Novel, Sacred Oaths and Orders was a special kind of magic that was rarely known. they were mostly used to turn the tides of battle by borrowing magic from the world itself. Oaths are magical spells set by their respective Gods to help people without their direct interference. This way as long as one had the corresponding knowledge and is well versed with the idea of how it works, they could perform the spell. The only down side is that each individual have a set number of times they could use them in their life as the world energy affects your body with each use. Unlike Sacred Orders which were different, As long as one had the knowledge and practiced the way the Mana flow worked, then they can only get more proficient in them. each Order ranges from offensive to Defensive and support to miscellaneous. Most of this Oaths and Orders were either lost in the world or kept as a trump card by most influential families or kingdoms. ______ Thud! Thud! Thud! "Admit defeat" he said as he pointed his Battle axe at him while Towering over his tiny frame. Hearing his statement, Lovan could only sigh before saying, "Haa...I, Lovan Ironbark admits defeat... what''s mine is now yours". [Ding!] [Ayaseh is now even more interested in you...] [Possible location for settlement has been detected, do you wish to accept?!] [Y/N] Before he could respond he heard Lovan''s question, " What will become of my kin?" It was obvious he was worried about this from the beginning, so Alex wanted this his money bag to relax by saying, "your kin is my kin now" unaware of the toothy grin that was on his face. Chapter 12 - 11: Black Moon village [Ding!] [Ayaseh is now even more interested in you...] [Possible location for settlement has been detected, do you wish to accept?!] [Y/N] Before he could respond he heard Lovan''s question, "What will become of my kin?" It was obvious he was worried about this from the beginning, so Alex wanted this his money bag to relax by saying, "your kin is my kin now" unaware of the toothy grin that was on his face. ''Yes'' He thought without hesitation A huge drop of water fell from the sky in a some what grandiose fashion and sank into earth just few steps in front of him. An invincible wave pushed away everyone one in the vicinity and Ripples of light started to come out from the spot the water dropped, and a formless energy seemed to cover the surrounding 1 square kilometer area. In the next second, all of the trees, grass, and flowers appeared more healthy and neatly arranged, the earth quaked as everything had to make way, revealing flat and smooth ground in the immediate surrounding of the previous establishment. Buildings started to replace the ones already in use by the Goblins. There was now a thatched cottage seemed to be the [Village Hall] considering it''s size. There was another thatched cottage with smoke coming out from behind, might have been where Lovan had been working, might as well have thatched cottage called the [Medicine Shop]. Alex couldn''t hide his stupefied expression as he watched the now green themed settlement or should he say village. More so the others who had already began approaching, The goblins were the most shocked as they began going from one thatched house to another while shrieking incredulously. Then with a flash of light upon the everyone''s bodies, They proceeded to level up by one level with the Tattoo of A tiger Appearing boldly on the goblins. Majority of the Orcs passed out, So Alex figured they were undergoing Evolution. A few goblins too were on the floor so Alex was pleased with this. With everything going on like this, Alex felt he had to say something before he''s bombarded with questions, so he turned to Lovan and spoke with a solemn voice, "The gods approved of this Duel". Luckily the water drop fell from the sky, so it won''t seem strange. [Ding!] [Ayaseh is Amused...] This notification made Alex freeze for a second before his face turned dark. ''Tch...does she not have something to do? there should be a war going on amongst Gods, why is she still looking at me?!!!...she best not state me as her champion...that''d just make me the Antagonist automatically. but there''s not even the option to refuse, Ugh!!.'' Another notification disrupted his inner rambling, [Please name your village...] ''Black Moon village'' [is this your final choice?] [Y/N] ''yes'' [Please proceed to the village stats page...] [Ding!] Village Name: Black moon Level: Basic (0/3000) Village Territory: 33 square kilometers Residents: 78/1000 Soldiers: 0/300 Guards: 0/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. Very short and understandable was what Alex thought about this page, but then he noticed the Exp spot next to the basic and couldn''t help sinking into deep thought. ''How does the village earn exp?'' He finally asked the system as he approached the biggest Thatched house while signalling Lovan to approach. [Villages gain Experience from the mana in the surrounding over time and when you complete village missions.] Hearing this, Alex thought ''I see'' as he brought up the village stats to confirm. Level: Basic (3/3000) Village Area: 1 square kilometer Village Territory: 33 square kilometers Residents: 78/1000 Soldiers: 0/300 Guards: 0/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. when he saw that it had increased slightly he couldn''t help but wonder if this speed was fast or slow. [Ding!] ''So my choice had Been a good one, I have to see the mines now as the system stated wasted mana, I can''t help but worry about what this goblins have done.'' __________________ Alex Entered the Whitish greenThatched house with Lovan after ordering the goblins to move the cocoons of evolving individuals. It was comical watching a bunch of goblins try to carry one Orc but you can''t blame them, after all the bone density of Orcs were nothing to scoff at. Lovan was looking at the house''s body as though to find out the material and what it was made of, he couldn''t hide his curiosity. you could hear him muttering things like ''why is it like this?'' ''could this have been made of Orcs skin or maybe Goblin''. At this point, Alex had to stop him as his thoughts were becoming dangerous. the Goblin doesn''t seem to understand the concept of color or perhaps it does but doesn''t know why a house was green?. ''Gimme a break, me too I want to know...first that scheming old orc, now an overly curious researcher and alchemist.'' Although he complained, he hasn''t seen anything to make him doubt Dabok''s loyalty and from reading the Novel, he understands this Goblin''s character. "I won''t bother you too much, I''ll let you do what you do and if you need anything or have any questions ask me. if I can help I will." He said to draw the goblin''s attention. Within the House was a Rug made from a magic beast''s skin and two wooden seats on both sides and one at the other end of the room. not to far to it''s right was a small fireplace that lit up the hall. The interior had been built with a lot of Lee way for an orc to Freely move about without issues. At the middle of the hall, there were two green pillars that looked like they had been made by a bunch of green bamboos. the Seat at the end of the room looked more like a Bamboo throne decorated with snow white fur of what seemed like an oversized Wolf, the other four seats were the same but smaller.. Alex headed to the main seat in natural confident strides and sat down, only to be assaulted with a comfy feeling from the fur in a way you won''t expect from this kind of chair. Lovan approached him but remained standing, as he felt he needed to be told to seat. Once again Alex was impressed by the goblin''s intelligence. "You may sit..." He motioned with his left hand towards a chair in that direction. Snap!{SFX: firewood burning in a fire} "So tell me, Your story Lovan ''black moon''." Alex said, emphasizing on the Black moon. Hearing this, Lovan who had been silently inspecting the chair was a bit astonished by the change of name but then he subconsciously traced his hand over the new tiger tattoo and couldn''t help having mixed feelings, but what''s done is done. So he began narrating from two weeks ago as he felt Alex wouldn''t be interested in his life story. When the goblin was done, Alex was now in deep thought. First was the, Grole spiders said to be deep within the mines so the goblins had been working on the outskirts and even then, the still lost a few goblins. This wasn''t mentioned in the novel, because when Lovan first appeared was in the war of Cold Valley, and By then the mines were already up and running. Grole spiders were magical beasts that operated in a matriarchal system, so before they get to the second circle where they gain human forms, their life''s were tied to their Queen. So the First option is to assassinate the Queen but that''s out of the question as we don''t even know the level of this Queen. [Ding!] [Obtained the Mission, ''For the Queen''!] [Deal with the Grole Queen...] [Rewards: Depends on your Actions...] Chapter 13 - 12: Differences... [Ding!] [Obtained the Mission, ''For the Queen''!] [Deal with the Grole Queen...] [Rewards: Depends on your Actions...] Seeing this, Alex had a strange expression as he saw the reward part. this clearly means that he has more than one option in dealing with the Queen. While he was musing with his thoughts, an almost brown skinned goblin in rough black clothes came into the Throne room in a shaky manner before looking around like he didn''t know what to do. Lovan''s face tensed as well when he set his eyes on this small Goblin, so Alex inspected this Goblin with the system. {Name: Haji Blackmoon} Race: Goblin Class: - Level: 4(-) Relationship: Lovan''s Son, Blackmoon clan member, Ironbark.} ______________ _____ With a little surprise he looked at Lovan with what he thought was a teasing expression. ''So the little alchemist still had time to set out to play huh'' ''hmm, and he seems to attach importance to family like Urim, right! does this have something to do with intelligence or is it something else?...I have to find out more...but why is this Goblin so brown and small, could it be because it''s still young?''. While Alex kept on having a one man discussion within his head, Lovan had hurriedly enquired on what brought the little Goblin here. Immediately, he sent it away like he was scared Alex would it him. "the others have awakened" The alchemist hurriedly said, not giving Alex the chance to ask about the little Goblin. This didn''t surprise Alex as he felt the Goblin didn''t trust him yet, after all he had just taken over his home in a somewhat forceful manner. "Let''s go and take a look" was all Alex said as he stood up and headed out once more. ___________________ When he was done, he breathed a sigh of relief as there were no Great orcs or Orc Hunter as those two would have been a major problem right now. Out of the now eleven evolved orcs, there were three lesser Orcs like Olog, one Orc Shaman which was Dabok while the remaining seven including Urim were Orc warriors. Overall he was pleased with this set up, the Orc warriors were now taller, though their body shapes remained the same, their bones became denser and even Dabok looked younger with less wrinkles. the Old Orc couldn''t stop grinning at this point, he kept on looking at Alex while repeatedly nodding his head. And they all had hair!, Although not that much yet but it was there. he never read about Orcs having hair in the novel and it was the first difference he had noticed between the things he had read. ''I need more research, what else could have changed or what else was different.'' the engines in His head spun furiously as he looked at the Goblins that evolved as well. When he was done, he couldn''t help but wonder why creating a settlement had made all this creatures evolve at the same time. Out of the twenty four Goblins that evolved, there were only four that evolved into something that system had tagged Tinkerers when the Novel called them ''Gobu''. This Goblins were more like Lesser Orcs whom might end up evolving into something that work as serfs in the Horde. their Evolution pathways come with the classes serf, Goblin farmer, Researcher or Engineer which is a major gamble as they could fall into any of this paths. ''Is it possible to influence their evolution by making them perform certain actions... like how the system said mine had been. but even still, they can''t select option like me or could they?...Haa, more questions'' He continued his inner monologue. The remaining twenty turned out to be Goblin warriors which was great, especially with the Grole spiders Quest. The new Evolved soon felt his presence and couldn''t help but awe at the Oppressive feeling he was giving them by just standing there. Unknown to them, due to them evolving, they were able sense the difference in their evolution path more than when they hadn''t taken the step. Alex then approached them while nodding his head in approval and they couldn''t help but feel the need to respect him, after all their evolution most likely had something to do with the mysterious duel. "We greet the Great Chieftain!!!" Urim was once again The first to yell, forcing the others to shout out the same words. Alex couldn''t help but smile as he stared at Urim before looking at the others. ''their intelligence has risen exponentially, ah how I look forward to the future.'' was his thought. _____ ___________________ Fairchild Mansion, Thann''s End City, it gave a calming feeling and had a slight chilly feeling to it, so anyone walking passed the Hall way of this area would feel a constant chill on their skin. There were tiny sized mana light stones everywhere one looked in the study, for lightning the place. this said Study room was right in the center of the Fairchild Mansion and was the most guarded place with not only Guards but Arrays as well, this is a place where no reasonable living human being would bother to come steal unless you were nothing short of a high human. The sky had darkened with the coming night, and the mana light stones lit up the study, giving a refreshing feeling to those inside. light leaked through the window in the side of the room. seeing this, the various staffs around the Mansion could not help but shake their heads. Davis, who had just transmigrate into the world and survived a dark ritual, was sitting in front of a Black veiled wooden table. There were magic books and maps unfolded in front of him, which he had been silently going through. Although he had arrived in this world three nights ago, the disorientation of his memories still gave him some headaches. he would sometimes get distracted as the scenes of from back on Earth and those of the body''s previous owner would continually flash randomly through his eyes. his brows knitted into a tight frown. He couldn''t control himself and clenched his fists. He wanted to scream out in anger, but he took a deep breath and held still for a while. After a long time, he finally managed to suppress the urge. This had been happening frequently for the past three days and his family had begun to worry. On the bright side, the muscle memory was still there so things were beginning to feel more natural. Retaining nothing from his original life, he traveled from a place where magic didn''t exist, and came to this world of magic, where foul demons and strange creatures freely roamed with human who had surpassed the level of mortals. This world was a place where one stood at the top by becoming stronger. The process of adapting overwhelmed Davis, such that he almost ended it all right there after finding out so many things, but when he looked at the expression of his new family, he couldn''t as he felt that it wasn''t the right thing. His mother had always preached kindness and he could feel the love this people showered him with. after merging the memory fragments that was left in this body, He had gained a basic linguistic ability. Otherwise, just with the weird pronunciations and grammar in this world, along with the completely different alphabet, which looked like a battle between of what looked like lighting bolts and dotted lines, not to mention those that had the shape of sword slashes, and this was just the ''basics''. In this place, he never dared to expose his real identity for various reasons. He could only become Davis Fairchild. Chapter 14 - 13: as time went on... While Davis was in the study, he was soon called by a young maid for dinner. Even before he entered the main hall, the amiable laughter and the sounds of talking could be heard. Other than his parents and younger Sister, Jader, there was a voice of an Elderly man he had never heard before. When he walked into the hall, everyone inside looked over in his direction. When the unfamiliar old man saw Davis, he practically jumped up from his seat. It was clear from his mannerisms that he was extremely Excited. The old man had short-clean blonde hair, arched brows, and a few wrinkles around his nose with a small golden gem on his fore head; all in all, he must have been a dashing young man. When compared with his father, the man exuded a less dominant aura, more of one with gentlemanly elegance and an amiable vibe. This man was the renowned Bishop Rodney ClearHeart, High priest of the Sun God, Ragol. Bishop Rodney was Cilldean Kingdom''s renowned number one monstrous genius, and also the strongest high human in the kingdom, someone that his father spoke of often, telling the previous body owner to make this man his goal. Watching as Davis walked in, an excited and shivering Bishop Rodney quickly took a few steps forward, calling out: "A good one!!" . Under normal circ.u.mstances, Bishop Rodney, as a Bishop and one of Cilldean kingdom''s big families, The ''Clear hearts'', He should not be here. This was because the ''Fairchild'' clan was not even close to the same level and he was someone who represented the Sun God in Cilldean. Davis looked at Bishop Rodney, he bowed slightly and said with pursed lips, "your eminence!." "good good good, a fine seed Lord Fairchild." Bishop Rodney patted Davis''s shoulder and returned to his seat. Bishop Rodney''s seat was lateral to his parents'' seat whereas Jader sat in the seat next to his mother, so he chose the seat next to Jader. Studying Davis opposite of him, Bishop Rodney nodded inwardly in satisfaction. From his first impression, the impression Davis gave him was not bad¡­ at least he showed none of the noble children''s unwarranted proud arrogance and impudence. The few of them continued to talk happily in the main hall with bouts of cheery laughter ringing out from time to time. At first, Davis acted a little reserved. However, as time wore on with the jokes and laughter, he gradually relaxed, "Big brother''s Academy competition some months ago, I wish you were there father." Jader recalled enthusiastically, " Big brother was praised endlessly saying Big brother is truly a talented genius, and not even the Academy''s Senior knights were his opponent!" This brought laughter out from everyone and Bishop Rodney couldn''t help Nodding his head, Davis soon felt a headache coming on as he laughed awkwardly. In the main hall, after the everyone left, Lord Fairchild asked Bishop Rodney, "your eminence, what do you think about Davis?" Bishop Rodney laughed, "this old man is pleased and it doesn''t look like he has any residual dark mana...if anything, his Aura is very pure." Lord Fairchild took a glance at the retreating Davis, and Su Yan said, "Then, in another few days, your Eminence, I will accompany him to make a trip to the Capital to take the Sacred Oath. If Young miss Clearheart agrees, then we will set down this marriage!" Bishop Rodney nodded, "then it''s decided, as Our Lord, sent us a prophecy of him being our savior, I had already chosen to take him as my first disciple...as for little Ella, leave that issue...she won''t be a problem". _______________________ After accompanying his parents for Dinner, Davis returned to his room and began to practice his swordsmanship, feeling a sense of urgency. yesterday after a few explanations from Jader, he noticed His mana had almost advanced into the second circle of evolution and the previous body owner hid it to himself. this confused Davis greatly but he didn''t have time to think about it as he now needed to strive for his battle experience to recover as soon as possible. a new term would start in a month, and there were eight months until next year''s annual Grand summoning. Thus, He had eight months to further enhance himself before the Summoning as there were usual spars between the younger generation. ________________ Fourteen days came and went. Once again, Fairchild Mansion was basked in a festive mood with a flurry of activities. This year, there were many more joyful occasions that it had when compared to previous years. Not only was it due to Davis being the Academy''s top Champion or because Davis had become the Arch Bishop Rodney''s first disciple but it was because Davis Fairchild and Camella Clearheart''s engagement ceremony was set! A day ago, the Lord, Davis and young miss Jader paid a visit to the Clear heart Mansion at the Capital city of Cilldean. the Clearheart patriarch was delighted, thus Fairchild and Clearheart had their children''s engagement and wedding plans set down. Listening to the cheerful hustle and bustle up and down Fairchild Mansion, Davis did not what to feel as everything felt like a blur to him. In roughly ten days, he was now one of the most influential younger generation member. At that time, when he took the sacred oath, his Mana density and the fact that he was about going through his second circle of evolution had been exposed!!. Making him the same level as the kingdom''s young geniuses, second only to the first princess who was already mid way passed her second circle of evolution. On the other hand, he was promoted to a Baron as though the Queen couldn''t wait to tie him to the kingdom, he was pretty sure that if the engagement didn''t take place, she would have given him one of her daughters, in fact, it was still a possibility. and Even though this happened, there was no reaction from Prime Minister Malik''s side. "Haaaa...." Davis sighed as he watched his mother and sister go through clothes with Beaming smiles. ____________________ Same day. Black moon village. Alex pursed his lips in a way that made it look like he was pouting, his protruding fangs quivered as his brows twitched. standing before him was an unknown Dog faced creature with an arrogant looking face claiming that he was a blacksmith. "So your saying that, you want to work for me?" Alex asked. "Yes" the kobold said. "And that you want me to beg for your services?"Alex asked again. " Yes, that is so" it answered while nodding seriously. Alex''s eyebrows twitched further as he looked at this fellow, "Were you perhaps hit in the head or something? No...I mean I have to ask, Are you Normal?" _______________ Four days Prior. Alex sat on huge Rock while planning his next moves, "No Matter how I see it, the best option is to make everyone evolves further". " Did you say something brother " Urim suddenly spoke from behind shocking Alex. Urim stood there with a Black fur cloth tied around his waist just like Alex and held a great sword in his hands. This fellow automatically made himself Alex''s personal guard since he thought him the best ways to use his skills. The fellow lucked out with a rare skill, [Whirlwind] as Alex had come to name it. it allows the user spin twice while waving his weapon in a chaotic manner, increases chances of beheading and has a knock back effect. Alex felt that it was possible to use it to block attacks too but he has no way to know yet, so he had been making the orcs and goblins spar often to acc.u.mulate experience and for him to understand their skills. The most intriguing so far was Dabok as his evolution was magic oriented, so Alex was very interested. "Chief!!!...We see Human Box in the valley" a Goblin in a rough black robe said as he approached, dragging the rest of the robes with his hands. "...a carriage you mean?..." Alex quickly understood and decided to see first, "Let''s go...". Chapter 15 - 14: Variant...Pt 1 Blackmoon village was located between Black moon lake and the cold valley, it''s territory encroached into a portion of the valley and the black moon lake, so Alex grouped the 20 goblin warriors into four teams and them proceeded to have them scout from the village gate to this two areas twice a day and report to him. This was how he found out that there were about three tribes in Blackmoon territory, with two out of them being Orc tribes and the last one being a Goblin tribe. Unlike the ominous Lake where no one dare to crossed or approach, the cold valleys was an entirely different matter. the valley connected the two neighboring nations and it was traversable, although that doesn''t make it the best of places as Crossing here was a thousand times more dangerous than going through the normal route. First was the harsh snowy weather that was around the same level of Antarctica, then the harassment from magic beasts made it worse. None of the nations used this route to lead their army over for battle even when the war started in the later years of the Novel. Which was why he was secretly shocked when he heard today that a carriage was passing through here, Alex watched the approaching caravan team, that crossed the cold valleys from Nisipurl Empire borders and could only shake his head. ''As expected, they aren''t anything good'' Alex thought inwardly, just looking at the twenty something cages being dragged by Cow like beasts, he matched their description with the group. In the Novel this group was known for two things and that was slave trading and Gladiators, the Black cow creatures where a testament to that as they were the only ones with the taming method of this carnivorous beast. Hidden amongst the rocks and trees, Alex reminded Urim to stay quiet by placing his index finger before his lips while making gestures with his eyes. He turned to the goblin team of five and repeated the same action before looking at the caravan once more. Some cages held goblins and Kobolds while some held orcs but the center most cage was abnormally huge and was made with a strange metal with no room to see what was within but a few small holes for ventilation. _____________________________ An Orc slave sat in his cage that had been at the back of the convoy. His hands were raw with blisters and the skin on his back ripped open by wh.i.p.s. The shackles around his ankles looked heavy, and after the thirty hours he''d been sat there to work no sleep had been permitted. The overseer says they could not rest since they too aren''t resting. From the Orc''s mannerism and intelligence shown in his eye, allows you to know that he had gone through his first evolution. Presently His thoughts had become random as the delirium set in and he lost track of where he was or the consequences for misbehaviour. At this time, he seemed to have noticed Alex watching them and turned in his direction. the latter was a little shocked but chose to play it cool. the Orc continued to stare for about twenty seconds until he spotted the tattoo on Alex''s shoulder, He released a sigh. Standing up abruptly he grabbed at the neck of the overseer riding next to his carriage, one punch made all the stronger by the adrenaline in his system. The man head was squashed like a water melon before dropping from his horse and the orc slave stepped back with a bunch of keys in his hand, bewildered and confused the other shadow fang''s men hurried over. In seconds the Orc was out of his cage, he tossed the keys into the next cage in a practised manner, the other overseers were soon there in force and they rained down blows on him until his blood soaked the Grass beneath him. but this was not without casualties, Shadow fangs men were scattered on the floors and soon more orcs were out of their cage. Soon about four dark hooded men charged at the fight scene from the front of the caravan in top speed, that was when Alex secretly approached the convoy. The Orc slave roared as he picked up a longsword. His body seemed to have swelled up, and the veins on his arms began to pop out and wriggle like worms. Due to overt congestion of blood, his skin emitted smoke as he continued his battlecry. "Rage?!" Alex squinted at the Orc, "A berserker huh?!". At the same time, one of the hooded men rolled forward and loaded a special bolt into his crossbow that had a few sparks on them. The special bolt struck the Orc and caused a stun, and the Orc immediately turned his head toward the hooded man who fired the bolt with red eyes. Apart from the first bolt, most of the other bolts missed him as the orc charged at him with the skill before using a horizontal slash at the end. The hooded man turned into Black gas and changed positions before loading another bolt on his crossbow. At this time Alex ordered the Goblins to use the frost bombs against the guards. The bombs sprayed frigid mana upon exploding, sending another frost bomb at the exposed hooded men. The man rolled back out of surprise but was still hit by some of the bomb. it gradually froze its way through the buckler and the layer of black leather armor, emitting white smoke as it froze the man''s left arm. The berserk Orc with bloodshot eyes charged in with his sword held high. He closed the five-meter gap with a single leap through the air and hacked at the man. _Clang!_ The sound of metal and earth striking one another broke out along with the earth parting way for a distance of one meter. he had separated the man from his lower body like hot knife through butter. Soon flame bombs came flying into the fray as the creature in the Massive cage roared and began to shake it''s cage furiously. It shook its cage as it attempted to body slam it, but the cage only tossed over. At the same time, With a , Alex joined the chaos with Urim following closely behind with a charge, the Goblins continued to cause chaos by throwing more Bombs. the Berserk orc counterattacked another hooded man''s attack and stabbed his back. A dark green fluid oozed out of the gaping wound. ''Dark elf!!'' Alex stare wide eyed as he gripped his battle axe after beheading a guard before chasing after the last dark hooded man, while viewing the latter''s stats. _________ {Name: Kyrin Dosefor} Class: Assassin Level: 17(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 4349 Relationship: None. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral} __________________________________ "hmm?... did he just notice me checking his stats?...is this an ability of a Variant? but he he Variant..." Alex wondered as he licked his lips, barely holding back his excitement. In the Novel, anything with the Variant title had more mana within them,making them more powerful than normal but that also means more Exp for him. How could he sit back and let this wonderful EXP slip through his fingers?. Chapter 16 - 15: Variant...pt 2 The Baleful aura made Alex gape in astonishment. The Variant suddenly became awkward as his body trembled, His eyes looked dazed like he was seeing something they couldn''t. Then five black robed people suddenly materialized next to the carriage, when Alex looked at their stats, he swallowed hard. They were all Variants ranging from Lv 16-19, with the strongest being Lv19, making them six Variants. Alex was not one who avoided fighting but perhaps besides the one in the Carriage, he was the only one who knew how strong variants could be. And what did he have?, a handful of goblins with a first circle order Orc and an almost tired out Berserker Orc who might become useless once his rage expires. While he arranged his thoughts the carriage door opened ever so slowly, misty smoke slowly rolled out of the carriage. a pair of boots appeared before everyone''s eyes. Thuk! {SFX: sounds of footsteps on wood}. Thuk! Thuk! A man appeared, pulling down his black hoodie. The man was a charmer, He had a twinkle in his eyes as he scanned all the non-humans in the area like he had just found a treasure. Soon, a voice more warm than sunlight on amber escaped his lips, "amazing, such fine specimens, such intelligence...just when I needed more test subjects". His words made Alex frown as he scanned through his memories for such a person, usually someone who talked like this would have been dead by now because of his voice and so on but everyone seemed to be smiling back and enjoying his words. _________ {Name: Simon Weiss} Class: Black Druid Level: 34(Order of the Third circle) Power rating: 21749 Relationsh.i.p.s: Shadow Fang(Major). Alignment: Diabolical} __________________________________ ''SH*T!!...why is it this mad man!!'' Seeing his name, made Alex almost blow his top. Simon Weiss, first appeared in the city of Conesta, when there was a rumor of a Treasure at sea, A sailor reported finding wreckage on a reef only 12 miles from Conesta. This sailor intended to explore this wreckage and promised treasure, beyond your wildest dreams. The reef had always been known to be a haven for pirates and the occasional sea monster, ''Kolark the Jarring'' and as such only those skilled in combat are being hired. Captain Herv?r was what the sailor was soon known as by the people, began offering a 1 percent share of whatever valuables were recovered, along with a flat payment of 16 gold to each who sign on. This created a stir as lots of Adventurers and Greedy folk appeared. But who knew that this was a scheme cooked up by Simon and that they were just going to offer themselves as sacrifices for this Black Druid to Evolve into the stage of metamorphosis. immediately, He became a deacon for the soon to be formed ''Blood Seed''. A cult filled with different races in a bid to take over the world and reform it, when they got stronger, they began to fight the temple of the Sun god which gradually twisted the ''Mc''s psych further. This Man had an air of power backed up with a twisted confidence that made him very creepy. He could tell you up was down and you''d follow him just to hear more of his ''sweet'' words. In that way his own face starts to look like a mask, controlled in order to give off the particular effect you wished to see, this had something to do with his class as it made him a valuable asset for the ''Black seed''. Alex observed his surrounding once more, only to find that only he and the berserker seemed fine. {Name:Torrelsav} Race: Orc Berserker Level: 17(Order of the First circle) Power rating: 3222 Alignment: Chaotic Neutral} __________________________________ There was only one way to break this effect, So Alex roared while knocking his axe on the ground. Bang!! ROOOOAR!!! Immediately, Everyone snapped out of their dazed state but unfortunately, Alex was now the Focus of this sick Man. Torrelsav looked at Alex as white smoke continued to flow out if his skin. his gamble had paid off, the moment he found out Alex was a Great orc, he chose to carry out his plan ahead of time. The magician suppressing their powers was the first he chose to kill which gave the others courage. But he didn''t think the man in the carriage would bother with them, after all, he had always been aloof. his Power of Rage was still active and all his attributes were boosted by 45%. His speed had dramatically increased but he still wasn''t confident, but now he saw that Alex could resist the Man''s influence, he was confident in running away at least. Simon''s eyes gleamed with interest as he stared at Alex like he had found his first love. Kyrin the Dark elf variant looked at this scene with jealousy in his eyes, so he charged towards the Alex and slashed six times!. Urim jumped in front of Alex and used his new skill , immediately picking up a storm but the Variant transformed into a Blackish green Mist to evade the Hurricane like attacks. Simon remained silent as he watched on. The other Variants began to move as Kyrin transformed back to his elf body but Rammed into by Alex''s charge skill, Knocking him onto the Huge cage. Bang! The Monster inside grabbed unto him by the neck as he felt the blood vessels in his body felt like they were exploding. His throat was flooding with fresh blood, but he reflectively sliced the Monster''s wrist with his dagger. Groooooowl!!!! it w.h.i.n.ed furiously, Before the elf could recover his footing, Alex kicked his feet while knocking him into the Air and swiping down with the Battle axe. Clang!! Kyrin managed to block with his second dagger but air was knocked out of his lungs, the force sinking him a few inches into the ground. He was frustrated. he just decided to prove that he was better than the Orc but ended up like this within seconds. Kyrin was surprised. He looked back, and his scalp couldn''t help tingling. The Shadow was another variant who was flung away by the Berserker Orc who had been engulfed by rage. As he was there, He was forced to turn into mist to retreat to another spot five meters away. Alex saw this coming and used leap before swinging the axe downward with the momentum of his jump. "just like in the Novel, Their weakest moment is when their body reforms." Alex said through clenched teeth, ''Sweet Sweet EXp''. . Face to face. Swish! Alex slashed with his yoln''s reach. a head Went flying. [Ding!] [You have leveled up] Alex saw this notification and couldn''t help smiling, without checking his status, he went back into battle. At this time, the other slaves were ganging up on different the overseers and the Black moon goblins were back to throwing alchemy stones. One Variant transformed back into his Elf form and collapsed to the ground looking dizzy, Alex immediately Leap over. he used the Back of the Axe to pull the Elf''s left Leg off the floor before stomping on his c.h.e.s.t heavily. Simon remained idle and even yawned from time to time. Screams upon Screams rang out in the background. An Elf swung his short sword at Torrelsav''s shoulder, drawing blood. The latter held Onto the Elf''s sword and grabbed his head but he simply turned into black mist drifting away. "Enough!!!" Simon said... Chapter 17 - 16: More villagers + "Enough!" Simon yelled as he looked at the last remaining variant with disdain, The baleful Mana came rushing like a flood, stopping everyone on their tracks. Alex could only frown as he thought of his old Boss, the gang leader in his old world. For some reason, you can''t just bring yourself to defy his order and Alex hated that feeling. the feeling of not being in control of his own body due to the words of another, now he''s getting the same feeling, only much worse as he couldn''t even lift a finger. Simon looked at the rest of the overseers and couldn''t stop the disgusted expression from appearing, He then snapped his fingers, Snap!!. Poof!!. The variant and overseers disintegrated into dust, giving the impression that they were never there. All this happened in about 15 seconds since his shout. Everyone froze in place, watching in mingled horror and anticipation as Simon Weiss suddenly turned towards them, well Alex in particular as his gaze alternated between his Orcish face and tattoo. with a grin he tried approaching Alex but paused before staring at the edge of the Carriage''s shadow. It was then it finally clicked, Alex had been wondering why he had been uneasy since he saw Simon''s name and he finally thought of it, Within the Novel, Simon was described as a monster that suffered due to him evolving into a Black druid. He had given up his body and became a monster that chose it''s shape by stealing the body of others, like a parasite. which was why he was so obsessed with experimenting to build the ultimate body which he would use for the ritual. All this, was why Simon had been so hard to kill, especially when he got to the stage of metamorphosis when he had merged with his grandfather''s Tome and the body of a high human mage. ____________________________________________ After Simon had assessed him again, he nodded his head like he had come to a decision. What had seemed to be a human, became cl.u.s.ters of jelly-like eggs the next second and began to vibrate and emit noise that was like a whale song. In a matter of seconds they became green colored Goo and vibrated fast before they emitted sparks of black. Then in the blink of an eye it prepared to lunge but suddenly paused. From the blob grew limbs until it looked like the human it was before it''s transformation as The whale noise stopped as well. "Consider today, your lucky day...you earned your right to be free" He suddenly said with a shrug before turning to enter the carriage before the carriage driver with dead eyes whipped the horses and zoomed off. Alex only reacted when the Carriage was in a distance, the other creatures let out a sight of relief as they plopped to the floor. Alex remained standing even with his shaky legs. He had to admit it, He was afraid even though he knew Simon would reject his body, he had felt fear and horror. ____________________________________ As everyone rejoiced, Alex had a slight frown on his face, He needed to get stronger fast. While he had this thought, Torrelsav The berserk Orc approached him, the Orc was visibly weaker and seemed to be trying to silently bear all his injuries. "I apologize for dragging you into this mess, I don''t know how to repay you" Torrelsav began speaking with an apology which surprised Alex once more but the latter quickly responded shamelessly. "It''s easy, serve me" The berserker Orc had an ''as expected'' expression and seemed to want to reject but Alex continued his sentence," for six purple moons and I''ll help you get stronger". In the world of Luegad, a phenomenon tended to happen for one night, on the last night of every two months. which is roughly every eighty days (40 days make a month in this world), On this day, the Magic would not only become more intense, but it would also provide all creatures, plants, and inorganic ores with a qualitative change which would make their body stronger to absorb more mana for one Night. And with the multiple increases in magic intensity, Alex imagined that it would be a day with 100% EXP buff. On the other hand, Torrelsav looked at Alex deeply before nodding his head as he thought in his mind ''It''s not like there''s anywhere I can go with those two''. Suddenly he felt he should warn Alex but he didn''t even know how to address him. Soon, all the slaves followed behind Urim as walked towards Alex as the latter observed them. ''Hmm, 15 first circle goblins, 10 first circle Kobolds, 13 first circle Orcs including Torrelsav and 2 first circle Half...orcs?''. Seeing the last two made him frown a little, Half orcs were majorly a taboo subject among orcs or any creature in luegad. Within tribes, they are seen as bad omen and are automatically killed or downgraded to slaves as soon as they were born. Although this twin Half-orc sisters didn''t bother Alex too much, it still made him worry about the response from the black moon tribe. He used the system to look at their stats, {Name: Gilgar} Race: Half-Orc Shaman Level: 14(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 3243 Alignment: Lunatic} _______________ {Name: Largash} Race: Half-Orc warrior Level: 13(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 3455 Relationsh.i.p.s: Daughter of Torrelsav, Shadow fang slave etc. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral} ______________________________________ Once Alex noticed the information in their relationsh.i.p.s, he understood a lot of things and couldn''t help looking at Torrelsav. ''another human-like Orc that''s tied down by sentiments...perhaps this makes them more trust worthy or dangerous'' with this thought, he remembered how he still didn''t know how to act around Dabok and couldn''t help sighing. The original five goblins that followed him here now stood behind him and were taking postures that would sample their tattoos to the others, it was this sight that reminded Alex how lucky he had been this time. ''I need to watch the kind of fights i jump into and not do it blindly.'' Urim then took the opportunity to explain the situation to Alex and apparently this creatures didn''t know the way back home, so they chose to follow him. ''just like that?...perhaps this was the same with Torrelsav earlier...haa'' Alex''s thought began to run rapidly as he brought their status collectively. It was then he noticed a Kobold blacksmith, which was surprising as it was a second circle evolution!!!. The Kobold arrogantly looked around like this didn''t concern him but he was obviously in the crowd that wished to follow him. "Lets go" Alex said as he headed back to the village, he just noticed that it had enough mana for an upgrade, so he want to use the system to awe this newcomers. As for Simon Weiss?, he wasn''t worried about him following as the Man doesn''t chase after something he had vomited, especially ants, if they meet in the future? so be it. Chapter 18 - 17: Goal Later that Day, Black Moon village, Within the Main Hall, Alex was on the throne as he enjoyed the warmth from the small fireplace while waiting . Soon Dabok and Lovan walked in together, the former took short glances at the Hall while nodding his head. Soon both parties were seated, To his left, the first seat was taken by the Old Orc Dabok and To his right was Lovan. He greeted them with a nod simply said, "Lovan, before I summarize the situation, I saw that you had almost finished building the fence ... good work." "Ah...y...Yes," Lovan fumbled a response while subconsciously standing up. "also, the others have gathered the meat like you requested and are still gathering the wood. Hearing his words, Alex did not respond and had taken the opportunity to look at the system that showed black moon village''s resources again. after going through them, he made some calculations in his mind, ''with this amount of wood should be enough to complete the fence and a few normal houses... hopefully they change as well during the upgrade as I imagined, that would help with the pace of things''. By the time he got back, the village had enough mana(Exp) to upgrade but he chose to wait till all this ''construction'' was done. After his thoughts were complete, He said to Lovan, " Have the warriors join them in gathering for now" For some reason, he wanted to end this first upgrade as quickly as possible so he could tackle the mine issue. with the addition of Torrelsav and the other first order creatures, he felt more confident in slowly whittling down the Grole spiders. As for the ''Dealing with the Queen'' Quest?, he would need to see her before making any decision. when he was done speaking, Alex turned to Dabok "Old Dabok, What do you think?." an amused expression appeared on his somewhat aged face, after he evolved, he became a bit younger than before, so he was really happy. He looked at Alex while adjusting the thick Black robe he now wore and said calmly, "Good, Chief Torug, I assume now you should have your sights on the surrounding Tribes?!" Alex smiled, "I indeed have my sights there but not for now, I''m more interested in the Mine..." Dabok frowned and said, "Mine?" " Yes Mine...the cave with the shiny rocks...your ''mission'' from a few days ago, how did it go?" Alex responded calmly, enunciating his words in order for the Orc to understand and learn. "Yes... I had placed the ''T..totems''? where you asked" Dabok answered curtly, frowning when he tried to pronounce totem. The Old Orc had earned a few skills when he became a shaman and making objects a totem was one of his skills. for example, He could pick a rock and use the skill while focusing on the rock, the Rock would then be marked, giving him control over it as he could trigger it to either buff allies within the totem''s range, and increase ones attributes for a period of 20 minutes or grant de-buffs to enemies within range as well. as for the amount, Alex felt that he still needed to study it. Alex was Elated when he heard this, it was a powerful skill if used correctly. So he had asked Dabok to make totems in strategic places around the village. He pondered for a moment, looking at the old Orc, and said seriously, "you have done well". "it is now time to improve the military strength of the territory." Dabok and Lovan looked at Alex with a confused expression as they couldn''t understand him. "I mean, we need more warriors and Shamans". Alex quickly corrected himself but he could still hear Lovan muttering," military strength ". Hearing this Dabok became excited, Alex simply smiled and said to him, "this task of gathering the warriors, I give to you and Urim." Dabok laughed, and said loudly, " Hahaha I will do it, Chief!" Alex nodded as he could understand why he was excited, after all the Orc hadn''t evolved for many years, he felt he would die soon and now he did, he was eager to test his strength. Alex was just happy the Orc didn''t come to challenge him as that would have been tiring, considering the timing. He turned to Lovan," Bring the new ones here". Lovan quickly rose to take his leave, saying loudly, "y..yes!!." the Old Orc took a look at the Exiting goblin and Alex continued, drawing his attention, "With this goals addressed, I would like to take this opportunity to talk to you about some long term goals, so that you have a good idea where we are going. I intend to build a kingdom like the Degr kingdom, no something more powerful ." The moment he mentioned this, Dabok looked at Alex in surprise before clenching his fist. the old Orc was lost in thought for a while before speaking with a deep voice, he looked very serious and all traces of his playful nature were gone, "Torug, is this because of my stories?... Orc King Siho is very ''D..an...Dangerous'', you just too weak". This shocked Alex as he doesn''t remember Dabok telling him any stories, but it explains a lot of things... From the look of things, Dabok seemed to have some connection with the Degr kingdom which was why he knew of the impaling and seemed more intelligent than normal. He must have told stories to Urim and the previous body''s owner, increasing his ambitions as well as Urim''s sense of brotherhood. With all this thought, he still responded calmly "that is why I said it was a ''long'' term Goal and to achieve this goal, we must build a strong power. one that would even attract the attention of the 700 Lordly houses. We are fortunate that our territory has an Advanced Mana Node." Alex adjusted himself to face Dabok with a crazed look as he imagined himself playing in the big leagues, and said to him, "Degr is too small, Cilldean is too small!, Dabok!...let me show you the world!!." Dabok looked at Alex, although he knew Alex hadn''t seen or had very little knowledge of the world, he couldn''t help but be compelled to believe him. After all the welp had changed, he could even use words to sway the gods like Siho''s generals could and create buildings from thin air. after some thoughts, he got up calmly, and said evenly, "I believe in your Honor Torug!" Alex nodded, looking around while patting Dabok''s shoulders. "we are done for today. The arrangements for your new ''mission'' should be discussed with Urim, where is he?!" Dabok had risen, and said with more determination, "We will do as you have asked!" When Dabok left, Alex assigned the new warriors to him and asked those in the serf pathway to follow Lovan. ********************************** Luegad year 1598. After four days of construction, the construction projects of the territories were nearing completion. The fence was completed , and the remaining wood was used to create more residences and had been completed. The massive Store house also entered the finishing stage, and would be completed today. Alex had helped in drying the meat and had no where to place it, after some enquiries he found out from the system that he should have a designated warehouse. once he does, he could place perishable foods in it without fear of it spoiling, but there was a catch...it had to be something acceptable by the system. This confused him, how would he know what was acceptable. so after two failed attempts, where even the citizens of Black moon village began to think their Chief was crazy, he was now on the third try. He increased the size of the building while placing it a few paces behind the Main Hall which was at the center of the village. Surprisingly, Over the past four days, forty three more immigrants had arrived, mostly Goblins and kobolds, thirteen warriors and thirty basic Goblins. this made him want to urgently level everyone up, hopefully those with Lv 9 would enter the first circle after this upgrade. Thinking of the development of the past few days, Alex paced towards the new warehouse.. At the door, Lovan was standing ordering some serfs while eagerly waiting for Alex''s decision, after all they didn''t know about the system and took it as their Chief being very picky. Seeing Alex, he laughed nervously and said excitedly while wiping his face with the edges of his oversized black robes, "Chief, come, come!" Looking at his expression, Alex felt helpless, as he could only smile and say, "Okay!". He must say that he was extremely proud of his Goblins as he found them to be very intelligent and dexterous when they were eager to learn. For example, after some ''Explanations'' to the goblin that had cloth making skills, he finally made something that Alex could comfortably wear, although it was a skirt like attire, it was enough to leave him his dignity. he and the other orcs except Dabok now had a Loose black ''skirt'' around their waist, and for some reason the goblin found it funny to attach three goblin skulls to the belt area. When Alex asked about it, she kept saying "as chief, as chief". In less than five minutes, all the construction was completed. it was now time, to awe this ''newbies''. Alex quickly gathered everyone Chapter 19 - 18: Village Upgrade. Black Moon village, Alex stood before the completed ware house with a stern expression as he watched his villagers approach his location. ''System, quickly scan the new building to confirm if it is eligible to be the village''s store house'' Tring!...[Approved], the system quickly responded, He quickly opened the village''s status page [Ding!] Village Name: Black moon Level: Basic (3966/3000) +1 Village Area: 1 square kilometre Village Territory: 33 square kilometres Residents: 151/1000 Soldiers: 60/300 Guards: 11/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. ___________________________________________ On the page, there was a new upgrade button that kept flashing, there was even extra exp that developed after a few days. With a Nod, he looked at the now gathered residents and brushed his hands over the short curly Afro like hair on his head. Almost all the black moon village residents who were in the Order of the first circle had black hair growing out of their head, and it''s length determines the time they joined the tribe. That was the trend now, even Torrelsav now had a few strands on his head. The Original Orcs, as Alex chose to call it, had more hair than anyone, which for some reason made the goblins and Kobolds feel awe. Of course their Hair still wasn''t as impressive as Alex''s, The moment he did, gasping sounds could be heard but Alex wore a stern expression and focus his gaze on them. The oppressive feeling made everyone quiet that instant. So Alex began his speech,"I''ve called you all today, to officially welcome you all personally into our Clan!!". There no response from the crowd so he continued,"I''m sure you all have heard of or aware of how this mark came to be and those of you who have yet to receive it must be wondering why you haven''t...well let me answer your question, it is because I had not acknowledged you as my people but from this day forth...". Alex paused to build up a little suspense before saying, "I shall take you all as my people, we will be one tribe, never to be broken!!" At the same time he said this, Black ink mysteriously crawled up their arms before moving all the way to their c.h.e.s.ts. "Waaaaa!!!" "Look, LOOK!!" Noise broke out in the crowd as soon as they saw this scene. Unlike the others, Torrelsav clearly felt the changes brought by the tattoo and couldn''t help thinking, ''So this is what the Elders and Chief had been...terrifying.'' ____________________________ Alex had no Idea that most Great Orcs are very selective of whom they grant their Sigil to as they had to bear the full brunt of the mana exhaustion despite the benefits they would receive in return. The number of bearers showed the symbol of power of every Great Orc, so you would never see any great Orc who would have his whole village having one, it was simply too extravagant. Presently, the reason for Alex''s case was because the system was actually bearing the cost as it had tied the mana cost to the village itself but all this was a story for another day. ___________________________________________ [Ding: Detecting Black moon Village upgrades conditions¡­] [Minimum population of 100 people; Population is over the limit and has met the requirements!] [Basic infrastructure required such as Village Hall, Resource storage, specialized workshops such as Smithy, Fabric station ...has met requirements!] [Proceeding with Upgrade...] Time seemed to have been frozen as a gentle yet strong wind passed through the village area in full force, The messy wooden fences straightened up and became much sturdier, the smooth earthen floors increased in space, the residential building changed to the green themed thatch cottages. A ripple of light came out from the ground and expanded from one kilometre to two. At the same time, Alex was bombarded with notifications upon notification... [Village hall is now the Lord''s Manor] [Black moon village is now a Basic Lv2 village, you have received three random rewards!] [System Warning!!!] [Goddess Ayaseh has blessed this land!] [Error!] [Divine Mana cannot be used to upgrade basic village] [Computing countermeasure...] [Divine Mana shall be used to erect Temple instead...] Immediately, the earth began to quake as a stone building crawled out into view behind the ''Lord''s Manor'', it gave a serene and solemn vibe but Alex was in panic. It was obvious the Goddess had just performed some kind of experiment. What he was worried about was that, this result would only attract her more!!. What he remembered from the Novel about this Goddess was that, She was the Only God that was born Naturally!, the rest evolved into their positions. The problem was that she had a naughty character, which was what Alex was worried about. Now this temple would just give her license to visit, destroying it wasn''t an option either,as that would just be making an ultra powerful enemy in an instant. Alex''s thoughts were reeling as he looked at the new building that was standing conspicuously in the village ''I guess i''ll just feign surprise and use a ''wait and see attitude'', perhaps enter the temple later tonight.'' [Temple complete...] ''Temple complete your head!! argh!!'' [Would you like to use the excess Exp(Mana) to upgrade your villagers?] [Yes or No] ''Yes'' With a glaring flash of light, Alex and the others leveled up while the ones Evolving passed out immediately. Alex was to lazy to talk to anyone and immediately headed to the Lords Manor, He was worried about what this Night goddess would want. Within the Lord''s manor became more spacious, the number of chairs below the throne increased to six from four and the Bamboo pillars became four. Alex skipped this part and headed for the inner chamber which was meant for him and proceeded to look over the remaining notifications. [Ding!] Village Name: Black moon Village Area: 2 square kilometre Village Territory: 44 square kilometres Residents: 151/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv 3= 200) Soldiers: 60/300 Guards: 11/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x30, Smithy, Basic Logging(poor), Farmland(78%), Advanced Mining Field(98%). [Do you wish to with draw your random rewards?] [Yes or No] ''Yes'' [Ding!] [Two Cultivation manuals, Black furred battle cloak, Jur''l(Great sword)] Chapter 20 - 19: Rewards... [Ding!] [Two Cultivation manuals, Black furred battle cloak, Jur''l(Great sword)] Seeing the items that now laid before him, Alex felt his blood boiling like crazy. He had been fretting on how to get a cultivation Manual, a way to increase his power rating more effectively besides evolving. Back in the Novel ''Heaven''s Fall'', this cultivation techniques were treated like National treasures, family heirlooms and so on, depending on its grade. Nations wedged war against each other for this same reason. This things were graded from 1-star cultivation technique to 8-stars, with 8-star techniques being the best. Unfortunately, an 8-star technique was only vaguely mentioned in the novel a few times and there were no named users. Even the protagonist only managed to luckily get his hands on 7-star technique, when he had lead an army against the Umbra House of shadows, and even that had been at latter part of the Novel. ''It''s just unfortunate that I couldn''t finish the book...haaa'' Alex sighed, his joy was that he was close to the ending of the book at least. he then inspected the manuals. The first one was [HEART MANTRA 3-star], Opening the book, Alex read its description out loud, "Using sacred utterances to first build up ones heart with mana, only then can the body be sound..." when he was done reading, he couldn''t help smiling, From what he could get here, There are a total of 7 levels in the ''HEART MANTRA]. Successfully practicing the first level adds 1000 points to your power rating. The following level adds 2000 points and the next being 3000 etc, so by the time you complete the full Mantra, you would have 28,000 points added to your base stats. This was why cultivation were highly sort after, Having even the simplest ones placed you on a different league!. For example, if one were to complete this mantra at the order of the first circle, you could hold your own against a normal third circle evolved who has no cultivation technique, although it might not guarantee your win, it at least you could guarantee your escape. And this was only a three star manual. Completing this in a short time was easier said than done though, So it''s best to practice cultivation along side evolution. While all this was going through Alex''s mind, he inspected the second one with a tinge of excitement in his eyes and couldn''t help frowning in confusion. For some reason, the system specifically wrote ''Bound to Alexander Radwell'', which was the name of his former self. So Alex observed this manual carefully, but he then found something else that was weird!, He couldn''t see a thing on this book!!!. ''System, could it be that you''re trying to play a prank here?'' Alex asked in shock but got no answer in return, so he rephrased his question. ''why is the book blank with nothing but ?'' [Any manual above the level of 5-stars would be bound to the host''s soul...] [It is Blank due to your Evolution Circle being too low to perceive what is written on it]. "T..this" Alex suddenly had mixed feelings, He felt happy to know the manual was above 5-star but aggrieved that he couldn''t use it yet. "So what circle of evolution do I need to be to perceive it''s content" [Minimum Level required- Order of the third circle.] ''hmm...how come this wasn''t a problem when Davis found the 7-star technique?'' Alex could only wonder but then he came to a conclusion,"Could this be an 8-star manual?!". But then he shot down that idea as well, ''No!...perhaps,it was because he was already at a high level then.'' "Haaa...I can only keep it aside for now." with that thought, he turned towards the Black furred cloak. ________________________________ [Black furred Tyrant Cloak] Defense rating: C+ +500 power rating. +5% charm. Intimidation(Passive skill): Releases an aura that reduces the basic stats of your enemies by 3%. Reduces basic stats by additional 20% If the Opponent is in a shocked state. Reduces basic stats by additional 13% if the Opponent is in a ''Fear state''. When Alex saw this details he put it on immediately, as he began to make calculations on the Cloak would be useful while looking at his personal stats, now he was wearing the cloak. ______________ Name:Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Great Orc Level: 14(Order of the First circle) Power rating: 4130 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul) Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Orc''s Charge(Common)Lv1- charge forward with the strength of a battering Ram for a 4 meter distance, causing 150% damage based on strength stats. Cast time: 2secs Cool down: 5 minutes. Racial skills: Sigil(Unique) Lv1 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive) Effect: Horde: Adds 2% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] ___________________________________ He noticed his power rating actually went up by 500, this made him really happy as he was now sure that not just stats and manuals increased power rating, equipment too had the possibility to do so as well. ''I should see if this was the same for the others too,perhaps gift this sword to Urim''. With that thought, Alex eyed the Black great sword before him... _____________________ [Jur''l(Great sword)] Weapon type: Damaged Magic Weapon. Damage: 18-22 +200 power rating Effect 1: Due to the amount of Ice mana Crystals used during it''s forging period, it developed a freezing effect that slows down opponents by 1% each successful strike. Effect can be stacked up to six times. Effect 2: When Effect has been stacked for up to two times, Opponent becomes affected by the Swords Frigid aura. Interrupts Opponents actions for 0.9 seconds after every 6 second for a duration of 18 seconds before it''s reset once again. This Sword was a failed copy of the original Jur''l, Made by Coltan The God of crafting in a bid to gain favour from the ruler of Seas, Goddess Milen but ultimately failed. _____________ "Hiss....Good sword!!" Alex drew cold breath as he looked at it''s effects, "and this was even a failed product!, I wonder what the Original is like...must be a Legendary weapon, Haa I can almost feel sorry for the Crafting God" "But I still feel, the Axe would be better as long as I unlock it''s seal further... luckily the sword adds to Ones power rating, I''ll just test my theory now...Urim''s the best candidate" He got up from the Bamboo bed while heading outside. ___________________________ "Once again Brother surprises me!" Urim thought with a toothy grin while admiring the village under the moonlight. "So much...I think he called it ''wonders?''" The moon shined down on Black moon village as though it was setting up a stage for a play, torches were lit across the houses even though it wasn''t really needed. Dabok said it would make the village look great, Urim couldn''t help but agree with him right now. Everyone was still up an about, Indistinct chatter could be heard from across the village as they all seemed happy, especially the new clan members. "It''s better than when Olog was Chieftain..." Urim murmured with a frown as he thought of the chubby Orc. While he was busy with his own thoughts, He suddenly felt an intimidating aura from behind... Chapter 21 - 20: Do you know who I am? Black Moon Village... Urim felt oppression, He lifted his head in confusion, needing to ascertain what the hell was coming from behind. He knew it was only his brother that could be in that direction as it was the Lord''s manor, but he had to make sure. He didn''t. But he wanted to. And so he did. it was then He saw it, heard its steps before it came into view. An Orc with short black hair, holding a battle axe and gretsword on each arm. He had a black cloth around his waist like a battle skirt, three goblin skulls stuck to it just above his nether region and a furry Black battle cloak over his shoulders, barely covering his arms as he showed off the weapons. "Urim!!...I have something for you" He said, but the one called remained in a daze as his mind still registered the Orc as a threat. It was only when the Orc got closer that Urim sigh in relief as he stared intently at the Orc before him, thunder-voiced, Red iris, condescending smirk and a monstrous aura, the Orc reclined on the tree just few steps in front of him, as he stared at him with silent precision, the rattle of the Beads made of Olog''s bones hanging around his neck immediately made him look past the fear. "Brother" Urim said with both relief and excitement, making Alex confused. "This sword is for you...use it well" Alex watched the orc''s expression with interest as he stretched out his hand to hand over ''Jur''l''. Urim received it with a solemn gaze as he alternated between the sword and Alex before resolutely tossing away his Old sword and began swinging it to get a feel of it. When he was done, he spoke firmly, "I will not fail you brother". "Good..." Alex said with a smile. Tsssssss.... A chilling wind soon blew across the village as all torches were snuffed out and the night became eerily quiet. Alex felt a chill down his spine as he turned to look at the temple in the distance. "Urim...no need to stand guard for today, go and discuss with Dabok, let him relay my instructions" Immediately, Alex gave out an order with a serious expression before heading towards the temple. Not long after he left, all the torches mysteriously came back on, when Urim saw this, he looked at Alex''s retreating back through a narrowed gaze. "I''ll get stronger brother, and I''ll protect you like you always did for me" those were the last words he said before heading towards Dabok''s location in big strides. _____________________________________________________ Alex stood before the bronze doors of the stony temple, sculptures of different women in different poses were made on the wall''s exterior, reminding Alex that he was about to meet a God!, one of the most powerful Gods in Luegad and it so happened to be the one that was the most unpredictable. With deep breaths, he placed his hands on the Bronze double door and slowly pushed open. ORhaaaaniiiii....ssssssss... An eerie voice came from within, saying ''Orhani(Unkown soul)'' repeatedly as it echoed within the massive interior of the temple. "You came...hihihihihihehehe" Clack!!(SFX) Light mysteriously appeared, almost blinding Alex before it died down to an acceptable range. Before him lay an empty Hall with nothing but an altar with a white marbled statue of a woman in her early twenties. she had a long hair and was dressed in a gown. it was sculpted in such a way that, it was looking straight at those who walked into the Hall. "Your staring" a voice whispered into his left ear and he immediately tried to turn but found nothing, so he faced the alter once more. but there was something different, a woman was sitting sideways with her legs crossed as she stared at the statue on the altar. Alex looked at her warily as he didn''t notice anyone else here before, as he went around her, It was her eyes more than anything that gave her away, even though she presently manifested with an olive skin and black hair. In the Novel, there was only one way to find the Goddess and her champion even though she shape shifted into something or someone else and that was her glowing Green eyes. Despite knowing this, He was mesmerized by the deep swirls of Green that colored her pupils. The black mascara on her half-opened eyelids added a smoky and dramatic look. With her green-colored eyes and long eyelashes, her eyes looked like a cat''s. The cat-like eyes seemed to look through the dark recesses that was usually hidden behind a mask, to one''s soul. Her feline features somehow matched her personality- silent and alert but almost unnoticed, filled with mischief and cunning. When her stare soon fell upon him, but he didn''t look away like others did, because he knew one secret, she hated it when people looked away. Immediately, he felt that she was looking at his very soul as she had a subtle frown on her face. "Poor thing...your soul is too fragmented, how are you still alive though?..., how were able to handle my divine mana so quickly, it was as if you were expecting it" She said. "..." "Ah right...Do you know who I am?" "Mother of the Night, Queen of Eternal Darkness, Whisperer of souls, The one who stands on the Moon, The great Overseer, M..." Alex began to list her titles but was soon cut off. "Yes yes yes ...But you haven''t answered my question, I said, do you know I am" She stated in an indifferent manner but her voice soon distorted at the end as her face warped with black tendrils that seemed like worms crawling underneath her skin, Her green eyes glowed nefariously with the darkness filling the Hall once more. Alex remained motionless not by choice but because of the Huge pressure that poured down on him, This reminded him of whom he was talking to!!!. this was a person who was born as a God to begin, if he was to say it in another way, it would be that she was the only true God in Luegad!!. Even the so called God of the sun Ragol, had been a mortal who had somehow evolved to an arch god!. This was how it played out when she chose the Antagonist, The latter had been in a cave at the time and found the Goddess recuperating from an earlier ambush. He acted arrogantly and tried to take advantage of her, but when she released her aura, the antagonist almost turned into meat paste. when he thought he would die, she asked him a question. And that was, ''Do you know who I am?''. In fact, she always asked this question whenever she appeared in the novel but no one seemed to know the answer. When the antagonist failed to answer, she made him her champion and cursed him so that his soul was always being gnawed at by creatures of the abyss, the only way to elevate the pain was to conquer!!. ''What kind of logic was that??!'' Alex scoffed in his mind. After thinking of all this, Alex decided to bite the bullet and said, "The one and only true Goddess, Ayaseh!". Ssssss.... Everything returned to normal as she stared at him wide eyed, obviously surprised and a deafening silence lingered in the Hall. Chapter 22 - 21: Misunderstandings? A premonitory chill traced its icy way down Alex''s spine. For a second he stood on gray Hall, under a gray roofs, in the midst of a gray silence that stretched thinner and thinner, like a balloon blown big, until the temptation to rupture it was too great to resist. her silence was the most terrifying part. Like before a bomb. Its a time for hope to grow or wither. It is a time for doubt to suddenly grow until its almost physical. As Alex scanned the Goddess''s face for a reaction the silence hung in the air like the suspended moment before a falling glass shatters on the ground. he expected her to scream, throw a fit or even pout, but she did none of those things. Instead she took a step back and magically manifested a throne made of shadows before quietly sitting down. Her face devoid of any emotion besides the initial widening of eye. Voices soon babbled happily like a mountain river across the grey walls, as though relishing on the situation. "SILENCE!!!!" Ayaseh suddenly roared as her voice distorted in the end, releasing a shock wave that spread across the hall but somehow managed to skip Alex. "You!..." She suddenly said, turning to Alex. It was word, but it contained myriad of emotions. "Who are you?..." she finally asked, watching Alex''s every action like a Hawk. Unfortunately, Alex was even more surprised about how the whole thing played out. ''Why the sudden change in attitude?!...maybe!, F*ck!!, wait!, perhaps I could use this to my advantage and escape the fate of being the Antagonist of the world for now.'' His thoughts raced as he cooked up a plan, One thing he was sure of was that, If he was chosen by Ayaseh as her champion at this moment, there would be a huge commotion that would attract the Sun God, Ragol. "I don''t really know who I am nor do I have any memory of how I came to be, but out of the few things I remember, you were one of them" Alex tried coming up with a somewhat vague excuse and left the rest to the Goddess''s imagination. "You mean...?" Ayaseh could barely hold herself as her imagination ran wild with possibilities. ''could he be a God born out of this world like me?, if so what happened to him?, why is his soul so fragmented?...'' ''It''s likely that''s the case!, despite being fragmented, it was enough to keep him alive and seems to be gradually healing, could it be why he could use my divine mana?'' ''is this how Ragol really evolved into an arch God directly?''Ayaseh was shocked as she felt it was possible, ''That thief!!...is this why he has been challenging me recently?! to bad, this soul is too fragmented to get any information from it!!''. Like this, the goddess continued to speculate in a rather strange direction, if Alex knew what she was thinking, He would probably die laughing. In a way, Alex didn''t lie when he said she was one of the things he remembered. Alex waited patiently, secretly reminiscing about times when he made report of took orders from his boss back on earth. "I see...we''ll meet again" Ayaseh finally said while waving her hand lightly, sending Alex out of the temple. ''what?'' was what Alex thought in confusion. He was now standing at about three metres away from the temple doors, At this time the village seemed serene with the occasional cricket sounds. Within the temple was now the opposite of the grey halls Alex had seen, it was now completely dark!. The darkness that now shrouded the place was far more than just the absence of light. It was thick and heavy, interlaced with the stench of death, and broken by the screaming silence of sorrow within the wall. "Now I understand...hahahaha!! Ragol, just you wait" a laughter broke out uproariously, It''s a sound she hasn''t heard in a thousand years and it''s a sound she would wait another thousand to hear. "Interesting!!!" __________________________________________________________ Cilldean Kingdom... The City of SpreyDower, Time flew by and the night passed. The city temperature hovered between twenty-six and twenty-seven degrees Celsius, so the weather was fairly warm. Whoosh! Simon Weiss stood up from the bathtub and took a stride forward, sending water droplets to the floor. he appeared a lot more energetic, after all, he just got a new body. Dark brown hair, 6.4 feet with a well toned body...a body of someone that was at the peak of the third circle order, only a step away from the Grand circle of changes in the swordsman path. Tap. Tap. Tap. He stepped on the floor barefooted in the bathroom, He stopped at the wooden door and let out a breath happily. He took the towel from a dark elf that was standing next to him and wiped himself down. In the last few days, he had met Dorian Moss and began making plans to head towards the sea and enter the circle of changes. but He felt that haste makes waste, so he merely chatted with the pirate and asked important matters about the circulating rumors. Simon tossed the used towel towards the dark elf while humming, he approached the clothes on the bed and picked up a shirt, after putting it on, he buttoned up before proceeding to complete his attire. He lifted his head to look at the door and looked like he muttered to himself, "it''s just unfortunate that the Orc was low in the evolution circle." "Hmph!, forget it!..you wouldn''t have been able to handle his body as you are now" a raspy voice sounded out like an old man. "WHAT??!!"Simon opened his eyes wide in disbelief as he approached the huge book on the chair with large strides. "that''s just one way to look at it...Perhaps, he might have even absorbed you instead" The voice appeared again, only this time, it sounded like a woman. Immediately, curiosity appeared in his eyes as he began to imagine himself dissecting the Orc to find what makes it tick. "Too bad, I need to head out at sea" He finally said. "Yes, yes, yes...that you must do..." several voices sang along... ____________________________________________________________________ The next morning, Alex turned his gaze to the small team of Goblins he had gathered to test the mine and started to move. The mine wasn''t to far from the mouth of the Valley so they moved slowly, He then noticed the massive cage from the other day was still there but the sides had been torn open with traces of Blood here and there. ''it escaped?'' Alex felt a headache all of a sudden, ''Best to ask torrelsav about what was in it''. Soon they approached the mine, it was well hidden by a blanket of trees and he could feel strong magic hidden within. There were only 10 or so Goblins in this team because he planned to only survey the outer region which was not too important, plus the defenses from the spiders here weren''t too strong. he walked over. The Goblins mining didn''t notice Alex''s group and were idly chatting with each other. "Ehem!" He cleared his throat as he got closer, causing them to shriek. He couldn''t blame them as the magic from the mine had dulled his presence. At this time, a goblin was rushing out of the mines entrance with a blue shiny rock in hand, panic was written all over his face. the moment he stepped out he saw Alex and became elated, he tried rushing in his direction but a web like lasso latched unto him and dragged him back into the mine. "ROOOOAR!!!!" Alex roared in anger, hoping to confuse whatever pulled the goblin in... but it ignored the roar and made away with the goblin. Alex immediately chased after the duo while increasing his alertness, his team of Goblins furiously chased after him. Chapter 23 - 22: Den of Groles Pt 1 The Mines, Alex looked around cautiously with the goblin team right behind him. There was just nothing right about the scene. Alex could see for himself. The ancient brown rocky walls of the mine were juxtaposed with tiny blue mana rocks that served as lightning for the place, giving the impression that they were the night stars. Although Going in now was risky, inside the mine could be any number of adversaries with any kind of level, Alex still chose to chase after whatever pulled the goblin. not because he cared about the goblin or anything but because of the blue rock held in the Goblin''s hands. this stone was something that had been built on the blood and bone of a high level magic beast, that was a mana core of a beast that had at least gotten to the second circle and must have taken human form. The moment they step into the darkness, the goblins began to shiver and could barely talk or continue making a racket. for some reason Though, Alex could hear the whispers of those whose lives were lost in this place, they remained cloistered in the mine dungeon Entrance and echo around the twisted rocks. "You must have So much to say..." Alex murmured as he soon spotted a Door of some sort. He checked on the symbols at the door. It was covered with dust, but he reached out to clean it off. Many memories flashed by him as he looked at them. When he looked at the symbols closely, he couldn''t help muttering a bit loudly,"English alphabets?" It said, "Den of Groles" ''could this be what the author referred to as Ancient text?...Aren''t you proud?...Lazy'' Alex had the urge to roll his eyes while thinking. He turned back to his ''team'', at some time this Goblins had picked up some of the small mana stones to play. ''seems like they''ve calmed down...'' Alex tried to push the gate but it didn''t budge besides releasing sand and dropping dust. He then looked around for an alternative and saw a rather big crack a meter above the Door. ''Looks like something even I can cross'' With a crooked smile, he picked up a Goblin in one arm and accurately tossed it through the crack. "O-OUCH¡­." The goblins voice came from the other side of the door but it made no sound of discomfort, so Alex picked up the rest and began tossing them. brief yells came from the other side of the door with some voicing their confusion. The last two began running away as their fear got the better of them... "Get back here!!" Alex smirked as he grabbed on of them by the head and then proceeded to toss him. He soon caught the other and used to jump towards the crack. When he landed, he rounded up the goblins who did not dare resist and continued their exploration. It was only now he understood that the mine was actually much bigger than he imagined but its was two times hotter than the other side of the door. [Ding!] [You have found a new location..."Den of Groles", add to system archives.] With raised brows, he looked at the notification before walking forward while observing his surrounding, He noticed there were a lot of spider webs accompanied by different kind of bones and such. Soon he spotted two silhouettes a huge spider that was about two meters, It had a human male upper body with eight eyes, it''s lower body was a spider''s with numerous green spots,The other seemed to be a pale woman with purple hair. Alex quickly used the system to look at the status of this two immediately after hiding... _________________________________________________ [Name: _____] Race: Grole spider(Male) Level: Lv 13 (Order of the first circle) Power rating: 5433 Relationship:- Alignment: Chaotic Neutral [Name: Jenetta Sewell Level: Lv 24 (Order of the second circle) Power rating: 11342 Relationsh.i.p.s: princess of the Sewell clan, Queen Candidate. Alignment: Lunatic ______________________________________________________________________ The half spider bowed to the human looking female while respectfully presenting the Blue mana core the goblin had in its hands. "You''ve done well" She said with a seductive smile on his face but the former only responded with a small bow while Jenetta proceeded to head deeper into the mines. Without much delay, The half spider turned towards the cocooned goblin in the distance. After being bitten, wrapped up with thread in a cocoon and kidnapped by the Grole spider It had fainted from the pain and shock¡­. it seemed to have awakened to feeling it''s body as it began to struggle with while being dragged on the ground. "Haaa..." Alex sighed as he weighed his options, He could just turn back now as there a lot of variables in this exploration...he didn''t understand, like Who was this Jennetta ?, Sewell clan, how many were they?, what was their strength?...the more he listed, the more convinced that he couldn''t go back empty handed like this. KKIRIRIRIIRIR!!!! With that thought an angry shriek brought him back to senses... Eight Black eyes were looking at him from above where he and the Goblins were hiding, The other spider that had been leaving with the other goblin also stopped and looked in their direction. "Just great..." Alex muttered with a frown. ________________________________________________ Meanwhile, News had reached the village, about how the Chief went into the mine. Dabok summoned Urim, Lovan and Torrelsav to the Main Hall immediately. "Brother gone for so long...Let me go in and find him!!" Urim''s angry roar could be heard by Lovan the moment he came in, struggling with his black robe. Urim had his fist clenched, Torrelsav soon arrived with the normal Black battle ''skirt'' the orcs were wearing. "Wait..." was all Dabok said to Urim before turning toward Torrelsav and Lovan, "What will you do?, will you Cooperate?" ""Of course"" They responded immediately after exchanging a glance and nodding. "Good..." Dabok turned to Urim with a nod of his own after getting their confirmation. "Lovan...prepare plenty Boom rocks for Urim and Torrelsav" He said while alternating his glance between the three of them. "Urim gather as many warriors as the number of your fingers and toes...then with him, you go find your brother" Dabok gave another order while scratching the short hair on his head, to which Urim only nodded solemnly before leaving with the other two. At the same time, Lovan''s son rushed into the Hall with an anxious face that made Dabok frown further. ___________________________________________________ Kiiiiiiiiiii!!!! ROOOOAAAAR!!! Both parties charged at each other. Booom!! Alex was pushed back by three steps while the Spider quickly recovered and charged again, the first Grole spider was also fast approaching. "Now!!!" screee!! Boom!!! Boom!!! The alchemy stone struck the ground surrounding the spider and caused small explosions, and the spider behind immediately turned its head toward the goblins before heading up the walls. beneath it''s face soon divided and sprayed strong acid, sending a green, gooey splash of acid at the goblins direction. Splash!!! Luckily it missed the goblins due to the distance, the one in front of Alex was still in the middle of it''s charge and tried to body slam him with one of its front legs raised like a sword. Alex rolled to the left barely dodging the spider''s attempt to slice him with it''s front leg as well. when it turned towards him, he kicked up some dust, temporally blinding it as it screeched anxiously. He immediately tried to Hack at it but barely dodged another acid spray from the green spotted Grole. Chapter 24 - 23: Den of Groles Pt 2 "HAHHHH!" Dark green fluid splashed out from the point of landing causing Some to splash onto his right foot, causing him to feel a burning sensation almost immediately. ''Luckily it wasn''t directly!'' With this thought Alex became even more focused as he observed the two Grole spiders. They were now cautiously circling them, the green spotted one remained in the distance while the one that fought him in close combat had yellow spots instead. ''could this be like a differentiation of class/evolution?'' Alex couldn''t help thinking, He looked at the Goblins and noticed they were trembling. ''In the first place, Orcs would have been a better choice...best, end this and return quickly.'' The yellow spotted Grole charge in with it''s arms wide open, aiming to grab Alex this time around. ROAR!!! Alex immediately used his title Berserk skill as he got into stance, hoping to end this quickly. ''Bum!Bum!'' Immediately, his heartbeat increased it''s pace by several times as his vision changed into blood red but became several times sharper, He could feel the raw power coursing through his bones forcing him release a barbaric roar as he kicked against the ground!! Boom! The Battle axe hacked at the Grole, cutting off the legs on one of its sides as he dodge it''s arms!!. "SCREEEEEeeeeeee!!!!!" A mournful scream left the yellow spotted spider''s mouth. The goblins seemed affected as they let out a cry before rushing out wildly, boosted by their chieftains actions!!. some pulled out their rusty weapons while those that lost theirs began tossing anything they could get their hands on. From the time he tested the skill before, His power rating would shoot up to around six thousand plus but what he was unaware of was that, it affected nearby units!!. "HAHAHAHA...I see!, I understand now! Hahaha" when Alex saw the Goblin''s actions, he couldn''t help but laugh wildly. His overly cautious nature from his Human life time was really limiting his Great Orc''s potential in some aspects. Swoosh!! Alex dodged a spider leg that had been trashing wildly before Hacking out said leg with precision and retreated two steps backwards in a swift and smooth motion. The Groles in their first circle were almost four meters tall, compared to Alex''s 2.7 meter height which was second to only Urim who was 3 meters in height. The Grole attacked with a punch this time hitting Alex squarely on his Jaws as his head was knocked to the side but he quickly recovered due to the berserk skill. He grabbed the retreating fist and pulled rather violently. CRACK!! A deafening sound of popping bones out of their sockets echoed out immediately as He used the spotted Spider''s momentary blankness to leap into the air as his legs produced a much more explosive power to launch him up. Gripping the Axe with both hands and swung downwards, slicing it in two. [+2980 EXP!!] "Die!" He released a Beastly roar as he spat on it''s corpse, he scanned his surroundings and found that the Goblins had killed the other Grole. Dark green fluid gushed out from it''s wounds. Some splashed onto goblins, and they could feel a burning sensation as they tried to blow some air onto it frantically. Alex was soon overtaken by a heavy feeling of weakness as released a Heavy sigh. He gasped for air while bearing the pain from his arms, his shoulder was slightly corroded by the acid but was showing signs of healing, even the cloak was done repairing itself which was good news. "We''re definitely not ready yet...this creatures are way stronger and organised than my initial thoughts!. I need more Orcs" Alex thought as he narrowed his eyes at the dead creatures. He took in a deep breath and looked at the doors once more. he noticed that it was locked on this side with a cross bar. This confirmed his thoughts, this mine was more than it seems and this spiders seems to have a thriving community. "best stick to the outskirts for now. How did Lovan do it??!!" Alex muttered as he looked towards the direction the lady left. He then approached the sprawled Goblins and began tossing them through the Entrance they came in from, only this time, it felt harder. At the End, He leaped onto the edges and studied the Entrance carefully before heading down with dull Thud!. As soon as he landed, Urim and the others were seen running towards them, this made Alex smile bitterly. "Brother" Urim said as he looked at Alex in confusion. "Lets go!" was all Alex responded with as he moved towards the Exit, refusing to show any weakness. Torrelsav was also there as he looked at Alex and the almost crawling goblins with interest before looking at the door. __________________________________ At the Main Hall Dabok looked at Haji and the Kobold before him with a frown, The little Goblin told him earlier about this Kobold that refused to work, so he sent for it. Alex had told him about this Kobold, He was told to support it as it was a good one but why did it refuse to work?. Dabok couldn''t understand it!. "Why you don''t work?" He asked. "Work?!!!why would I work!?when I receive no respect whatsoever!!" The kobold boldly said after rolling it''s eyes. Dabok was confused as he shocked, His face got even more Darker!, ''This little man know many w-words?!''. ____________________________________ Thann''s End, Moongret Castle, The Patriarch Charles Icily listened to Frank''s report,"So you''re saying this was probably done by the Degr Kingdom?". "Yes" Frank replied curtly as his shadow squimed a little as though it wanted to protest but Charles didn''t notice. "But that''s Unlikely, Why would they leave all the way from the North and somehow appear in the south?" Charles asked with a skeptical expression before getting off his chair while pacing around the room. "Could there be a treasure that could attract the Orc lord?, but then why didn''t he send any of his generals?" "Frank...Frank, do some digging, covertly!...Use the black guards this time, don''t attract anyone''s attention, do not tell anyone, not even my kinsmen!! we must get to the bottom of this" Charles concluded as the sun reflected on the gem laying on his forehead. Frank was a little surprised at the end of his sentence but he quickly recovered, "as you wish, my Lord!" He got up and approached the door, only to be stopped as soon as he touched the handle. "Right!" Charles said, "You should try get a wife soon...Hopefully, your child gains that ability of yours". Veins bulged at the side of Frank''s head as he thought with squinted eyes, ''Are you cussing me?!...who''d wish this for their kid!!! or are you setting sight on them now''. "You may leave!" Charles said, seemingly in a good mood, hopefully things turn out as he imagined. Frank on the other hand bowed before leaving, no one knew what he was thinking. ____________________________________________________________________ Chapter 25 - 24: Return Alex''s party arrived at the Lord''s Manor, as he could feel his strength gradually leaving him and his body began to feel like it was filled with Lead. ''I have to dismiss them as soon as possible, before one of them notices and decides to challenge me for the position of chief...After all, not all Orcs knew what Honor is.'' Alex made some plans as they followed him into the main Hall. "welcome back, My Chief." The one that greeted Alex the moment he entered the Hall was Dabok. But¡­ He did not look happy. Dabok, who always smiled widely and tended to drop dry jokes at Alex, had an ugly expression. It was even stiffened from how serious he looked. Something is fishy. Alex looked at the Nervous little Goblin and the haughty looking Kobold that was not far from Dabok and realized something fishy had happened. "Is there something wrong?"He finally asked as Dabok returned to glaring at the Kobold, he looked like he was restraining himself from crushing it. "It''s¡­" he tried to speak but was cut off by the Kobold "Hmph!...Little Chief, I Demand you show some respect!, why aren''t you bowing." Although it sounded tough but Alex noticed it''s shaky legs. This display made Alex frown as the Hall became tense, so he decided to look at it''s status. ''Ah...it''s the 2nd order blacksmith, but still...what as it been learning from the humans.!'' Alex thought for a brief moment and proceeded to the throne, He was dead tired. "three serfs and materials have been given to you, still I''m yet to see one product but you want me to bow to you?." Alex''s face hardened, as his eyes glowed red.''something is really wrong with this Kobold''. "yes" The kobold said curtly while putting up strong front. ''Haaa I don''t have time for this'' Alex let out a sighed inexplicably while signalling Urim with his eyes. KPAaa!!! [sfx: Slap] the Kobold fell to the ground as Alex''s eyes became cold, even though the side effects of the Savage title skill was slowly kicking in, the aura boost was still there. "Where do you think you are?!! you want me! to bow? Me!!!do you even know who you''re talking to?!" "was your head kicked by a donkey, Torrelsav!! what is this thing!?" Alex shouted at the Kobold before sending a question to the berserker Orc. "He used to be the slave warden''s pet, and lt also used that as leverage to act against the rest of us...". Hearing this, Alex felt raged for some reason, maybe it was still the de-buff to his intelligence still active but he turned to the Kobold that seemed to be searching for something on the ground. "Look at me!!...look...LOOK AT ME!!" Immediately, Urim raised it''s face by it''s ears, forcing his eyes to fall on Alex. The latter looked at him with a frown, "Do I look like this warden? and to think, I had plans for you...". "Look here, if by tomorrow, I don''t get the batch of short swords we talked about, hehe...get him out of my sight..." He ordered while rubbing his temple, one of the orcs pulled the Kobold out of the hall. Once they left, a deafening silence filled the Hall as Urim silently returned to his side. Alex had his eyes closed as he tried to calm down. "Have someone watch him tonight." "yes" Once that was acknowledged by Lovan, Alex brought his attention back to Dabok who seemed to be lost in thought. He asked calmly this time, "Any movement, from the three tribes around us?" ''I have to be careful with that skill''. "No" was all the elderly orc said. "Fine...have the Goblins begin to gather more wood and stones. the one''s mining should remain at the entrance and not venture to deep again...aside from that, you all can leave for now." """Yes, My chief"""" They all said, as Alex had corrected them on the whole ''Yes chieftain'' way addressing him. ________________________________________________________ The moment they all left, Alex pushed himself into the inner chambers and fell to the ground. "F*Ck!! can''t feel my legs, what is this?!" before falling into heavy sleep. ___________________________________________________ Towards midday the Next day, about twenty short swords lay in front of the lords manor as Alex inspected them. Attack: 5-11 Durability: 100/100 Condition: Good [Summary: A common short sword, it was made by the blacksmith Coyorn.] It wasn''t much but it was fine by him, after all his goal was for the goblins working under Coyorn, He wanted them to learn the skills, so they can evolve into blacksmiths. That way, if the Kobold doesn''t change, he''ll just kill him. "share it to the Goblin warriors, the rest would get theirs later" He finally said before thinking, ''I best start practicing with the Heart Mantra''. __________________________________________________________________________ Cilldean kingdom, Ruler: Queen Hawise Salman Culture: Humans Population: 49,273,554 Capital city: Rubia Sun God''s temple. Davis fairchild had just finished his training and was moving through the passage after the main hall, he began to wonder whether this quiet air tinctured with the scent of incense , candles and the the thick smell of these musty prayer books, metal polish and flowers had held any meaning for him so far. Everything seemed to hold the promise of discovery, of a scene already set, a task inevitable, inescapable. The brightly lit passage with it''s floor of encaustic tiles and its white-painted walls ran the whole west end of the church. He entered the first room on the left. Next to it with a connecting door was a small room that was about ten feet by eight. This was were the knights and paladins picked up missions, so he came to find a ''suitable'' quest for his monthly quest. even though Bishop Rodney said he was exempted for now, He felt he should do something anyway, no matter how little, to ease his mind. "hmm" "Did you hear? Kagol is pestering lady Jader again" Some junior Knights from the Academy began discussing, they had come to the Church as it was a norm for aspiring knights to hang out in the west side of the church from time to time. "Him again...I thought he was after lady rose before?" "yes but He seems to have changed targets and is trying to embrace the Clearheart''s fat t.h.i.g.hs through the ''Fairchild'' house. you know, with...Da..." the junior knight''s voice trailed off as he spotted Davis. "Tsk..." The latter clicked his tongue and soon headed out. ________________________________________________________________ Black Moon village, Towards the End of the day, "Hah¡­this is refreshing¡­" Alex said, stretching his body as a rythimic cra ka ka sound rang out from his body. He had just finished practicing the first level of the ''Heart Sutra'', permanently boosting his power rating by 1000. [Name:Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell)] Race: Great Orc Level: 14(Order of the First circle) Power rating: 4130+1000(5130) Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul)] when he was done admiring the boost in his status page, he began to think... ''it''s time to focus on internal affairs and build the governing system of the territory. if not, how can I boldly invade the surrounding villages at such a time'' Anytime Alex thought about the situation with the mine, he felt like his waist had been grabbed from behind as he was trying to move forward. so with that thought, he went outside the Lord''s Manor and as expected, Urim was standing there. "Urim" "Yes, Brother." Urim responded curiously. "Tell everyone to prepare for war and they should to prepare for future attacks...Call the others for me." Urim answered immediately, barely hiding his excitement, "YES!". Chapter 26 - 25: Expedition pt 1 Within the somewhat gloomy Hall of the Lord''s Manor, Alex sat on the Furred throne comfortably lost in thought as he patiently waited for those he invited. The Hall was lit by the small fire place by his right, despite it being the time of day when the sun was high in the sky, shining with all it''s glory, you could hardly tell as the Hall could be described as ''Dark and Cozy''. Six little dark furred sits lay beneath his throne and the strong scent of bamboo made the place smell fresh and clean, making Alex''s mind drift and relax. ''krip!...Krak!'' the small fireplace emitted such subtle sounds from time to time. ''Hmm, even with the cultivation method on the side, it''s still not enough!'' Alex thought as he absentmindedly adjusted to a more comfortable position. ''and then there''s the internal affairs too, so far Lovan and Dabok has been doing a good Job because we are still relatively considered a small sized tribe, but on the long run, it might be not so Ideal!.'' "it all boils down to the need for more people" A deep baritone voice leaked into the hall as he mumbled. "The majority of our Black moon tribe are Goblins and if I remember correctly, the general second circle of evolution for Goblins, is the Hobgoblin. They get only a minor boost in their respective initial class and one special trait which had more to do with their living environment than any other factors. I don''t know much about them beyond the third circle...ugh". ''The only solution would be to see with my very own eyes, what my ''Neighbors'' are like''. In the End, He could only come up with such a solution. As soon as He concluded, Urim entered the room with the Others who made little bows with their Heads but maintained silence, Probably wondering why they were called. "Have your sit..." Without wasting time, Alex responded simple before scanning their faces and ended at Urim who stood at his side like a shadow. "We have a serious problem". It was only one statement but it was enough to change the mood of everyone in the room, Everyone began wondering,''what could be wrong?''. Different thoughts flashed through their heads but none could come to a definite conclusion, luckily Alex continued with his words. "Our strength is severely lacking and a Bomb is sitting in our territory". "Who is Abomb?" Lovan asked curiously with Dabok and Torrelsav nodded lightly. "Huh? oh! a Bomb is not...I mean ''trouble''." Alex was short of words and could only change his words. He then proceeded to tell them what he saw in the mines and what he thought about the situation, after which he didn''t say word further but sat silently for his words to sink in. After a minute or so, Alex''s eyes looked sharper as he asked while looking at their faces, "So my people, what do you think we should do here...". Torrelsav soon had a look that said, "Should I answer it?". Dabok shrugs, eyeing Lovan with a puzzled look that said "Do you know?". frowning. Lovan gestures towards Torrelsav again, motioning for him to speak. For some reason, they seemed tensed making Alex nearly laugh, but He remained silent. Torrelsav, looked me in the eye and said one sentence. "We are still weak." he says in a firm voice, that didn''t follow his body language. ''I wonder why they are so tensed up for?'' Alex began to think without reacting to his word, the atmosphere chilled again. They felt Torrelsav had angered him with his words and began to eye him for not having wisdom. ''Who openly tells a Great orc, that they are weak!of all things'' was what Dabok and Lovan were thinking, especially Dabok who knew how prideful Torug was. (A/N: he''s thinking of the original body owner...you get what I mean...) Unaware of their thoughts, Alex soon thought of the reason they were so tensed!, ''Probably from the way I acted the other day with the arrogant kobold.'' "You''re right!, which is why we all need to get to work hard and increase our strengths and numbers...There are three tribes around us, I plan to take them for my self" Alex spoke clearly as though the tribes were already his. Dabok and Urim were the only ones who didn''t seem surprised, Torrelsav kept nodding as though to say ''as expected''. "But first, we need to train, every one of us...even our warriors" Alex scanned the room with a ghastly grin, perhaps he would stop if he saw his face or maybe he wouldn''t care but it made the people around him feel a chill down their spine. ''Perhaps, I have to give them a little motivation...'' With that thought Alex stood up and said,"anyone that evolves the second time before the Next purple moon will receive a reward from me". (A/N: In approximately three weeks.) And with those words, the competitive spirit within their Blood kicked in, majority of the Orc''s in ''Luegad'' always loved challenges for some reason. It got to a point that sometimes you question their rationality and this led to the House of victorious Sun abandoning Degr kingdom before leading to their inevitable downfall. The House of the Victorious Sun is the formal appellation of the house that is currently in the dominant position over all its peers in the ''Luegad''. This is a great honor and privilege, and all the Great Lords swear fealty personally to the Lord of the Victorious Sun. Alex dismissed them and asked for them to prepare for tomorrow as they would be heading out with the warriors to train. Of course, Dabok would be staying behind in the village on the first day while Lovan stays on the Next, which would go on like that for a while. Alex didn''t feel confident leaving Urim in charge, not to mention that the rascal might not even agree. Meanwhile, Torrelsav was still on his watch list for now till he has an appropriate post for him. _______________________________________________________________ Three figures walked down a wide track, quite leisurely, they seemed happy. One with thick long black hair locks covering its head with a bone piercing on the ears, her curvy body signifying she was female and her expression was happy because of the news the man next to her brought, she walked along the track with much familiarity, after all she had trod this turf many a time,over the past few days. The man or in this case Male Orc, the father of the two children, was happy to be going off into the forest, as he was told that it was to train to become stronger. He subtly tried to hide his grin as the scar below his jaw seemed to twitch. Luckily since he joined the tribe, he had grown some hair which made less menacing to his daughters who used to tease him. The hair had grown into a messy low cut but still matched the black battle skirt, a Tiger tattoo out in full display as he was rather buff. And the third Figure which was also female had messy black hair that lay like a messy waterfall, unlike other orcs, she shared a pale green skin and blue eyes with her sister, which made it obvious that they were half-Orcs. She was now looking forward to the future as she watched the smile on her father and Gilgar, her sister''s face. Torrelsav suddenly answered, "AGAIN...Yes you can go". His daughter, Gilgar was worried that they would be exempted from the ''training'' tomorrow because they were half orcs but He assured them that nothing like that would happen. Meanwhile, despite his confident demeanor, he was suddenly worried so he thought, ''I''ll go back later and beg the Chief, I hope he''ll listen''. ''Haa...Largash as usual is simply listening again, it always hard to know what she''s thinking, Just like her mother''. ''Haa...Mirth...'' Torrelsav soon let a sigh escape his lips as his mood changed. "...." " Chapter 27 - 26: Expedition Pt 2 The forest was ancient. The trees thick and old, roots that were twisted. It might once have been filled with bird-song and animals that roamed. But now it was ages past its former glory. It''s canopy was so dense that you could only see the occasional streak of sunlight that rarely touched the forest floor. Upon the forest floor lie trees of yesteryear, fallen in storms long forgotten. The seasons have been harsh, stripping away the bark and outer layers, yet rendering them all the more beautiful. They have the appearance of driftwood, twisting in patterns that reminds one of seaside waves; even the color of the moss is kelp-like. but this beautiful picture of serenity was soon distorted by a war cry that rang through the Forest. "Geuahahahah¨C!!!!" Vooom!! Swooosh!! Suuii!!! Several figures dash across trees with hurried steps. "GeUararaaaaa!!!!" Another war cry came like a call, followed by several others that answered this call. An Orc dubbed in a Black furred battle cloak suddenly came to a halt as he scanned the area with glowing red eyes, searching for his preys. And this was Alex!. All this actions was completely instinctual. When in the middle of the battle, the rabidly-boiling fighting spirit made him feel like he was an invincible warrior from some legends of the distant past, and it became harder to endure the rapidly-increasing madness without roaring out aloud. ____________________________________________________________ (30 minutes earlier) Alex and his warriors stepped out this morning at the break of dawn, his initial was to hunt for magic beasts with the others and level up, which was going to be slow but he didn''t have another option for the now. But who knew that they''d be attacked with traps by a creature that he didn''t expect to see, at least for now. He had never felt so much rage as he did at that moment when the goblin took it''s final breath within that trap. For some reason, He was angry!, He felt insulted, like his dignity had been trampled upon. but even then, He was calm, except it only lasted for a short while. the moment he saw the culprits, those reptilian humanoids with intelligent eyes but a comical face that was more reminiscent of a Newt than human-like. This particular Lizardman focused its stares only on Alex, or perhaps it just felt that way. Seeing its slightly crooked leer, he could tell it was now regarding them as their playthings. A Lizard man, a literal blend between man and lizard, it was all but a first circle order magic beast that evolved from a lizard. they had weak physical strength, but had sneaky characteristics that favored setting up traps and such.due to their weak physical strength, they tended to move in form of groups forming tribes and such. Where they began to show promise is when they enter the second order of evolution, but this thing before him was definitely not that. ''so what gave it, such confidence'' Alex thought but didn''t really care. it was like a vexing of the soul for what He felt was beyond what he had ever felt as a human, it was twisted and distorted but it was something strong. It burned so bad like fire lacing his veins and creeping up his spine, all He could feel was d.e.s.i.r.e; d.e.s.i.r.e to hate, d.e.s.i.r.e to destroy. He was intoxicated with emotion and had no intention of cubing it, the acidity of it was residing at the pit of his stomach waiting to be spat out of his mouth in the form of a roar!. And So he let it out... GROOOORAAAAAAAAR!!! Utter Fury!, was what you could feel, just by hearing it, He leaped before the closest adversary with his b.a.r.e fist as he smashed it jaws. He then followed up with three head butts before biting of it''s throat with a sickening crunch, at that time, all he felt was a warm feeling coming down my throat as he charged at his next victim. A system notification sounded out but he was too mad to care. He ran, b.a.r.e feet gliding through the cold grass. A swift wind blew across his face as the eerie glow of his blood red pupils as he glanced at the retreating Creature. he glanced up, his feet never missing a step as he pulled out his Battle axe and Adrenaline pushed its way into his veins filling him with the thrill of a hunt. He made a wide swing with a standard skill, sending the reptilian head flying. Suddenly, to his right, a tree shook and a white scale Lizard swooped down with it''s white opened maw. Alex stood his ground as he glared at the New challenger, He could almost smell the poison from those fangs. A simple side step was all it took to dodge this attack, He lifted his feet and stepped on the head of it''s crouching figure. "GRUaaaaaAAH!!!" He roared joyously once again, "KRuuuuuueeeeeeiiiik!!!" "GRUauahh!!!" His comrades responded in delight, as they attacked with more fervor, The lizard men seemed listless as they stared in Alex''s direction. Torrelsav and Urim felt their blood boil as they unconsciously began to compete in kills. Alex tingled from his head to his toes. flexing his feet above the white scaled Lizardman, He felt it could still put up a fight, so He soon wore the facial expression of a small child with an especially large Christmas present, except he had it on his Orc face, making it rather menacing but the expectation was as clear as day in his eyes. He lifted his feet and began smashing it down repeatedly as small explosive sound rung out. soon his feet was stained as it dripped down slowly. "Kkwe-Eck!!" a perplexed sound rung out behind him and he was attacked by three black scaled Lizardmen, they were much more buff than the rest. with a step forward, he slashed off the neck of the first assailant. After which he died on the spot, but there were still two more to go. He took a powerful swipe at the head of another. The head separated from the body and bounced away like a basketball. At this time, Alex was now much calmer as he watch this fellow. But the last Black scale was not even scared by the sight of it''s comrades falling in the blink of an eye, the remaining One focused solely on attacking him. Receiving the orders from the Chieftain, there were no other purpose for him other than to carry it out, this was the way of the Lizard men. "KUraarrararaa!!!!" "raaar!!" However, contrary to his expectations, he still couldn''t hit this green creature, even Alex went as far as to hit it''s head with the b.u.t.t of his battle axe, knocking it out temporally. "Kuuaaaah!!" The Last black Lizard man bellowed and ordered a retreat. Unfortunately Alex wanted his head, this led to the present Chase. Chapter 28 - 27: Expedition pt 3 The chase stretched on for over twenty five minutes as the Black Moon Clan massacred this Lizard men with Unrelenting Fervor . Alex at forefront of the charge with Urim not too far behind, slowly but surely, they trimmed down the enemy numbers. But soon Alex felt Uneasy, He had long since calmed down and was just farming Exp. He let the others run wild as this was a rare opportunity. But something felt off, This was a feeling that had saved him several times as a Gangster and he was one to never doubt it, ''better safe than sorry'', he used to say. "Halt!!!" He bellowed as he slowed down to a stop, Dried blood painted his face and his Cloak was long since stained as well. He looked around him cautiously and prepared to leave despite not seeing anything. "Brother, they are getting aw.. Urim voiced his concern but was cut off. "Ssssh!..." Torrelsav shushed him while placing his ears on the ground, Only now did Alex notice that the Area was too quiet. "I was too careless...pui" Alex said before spitting on the ground, This part of the forest was dark as there was almost no space between the leaves above but this posed little threat as they all had Night vision. What made Alex angry was the fact that, when he scanned around earlier with the system, he noticed a crowd had slowly gathered around them, ready to attack any minute. [Grey scaled Lizard man Lv 11] [Lesser Lizard man Lv 14] [Lizard man Lv 15] [Lizard man warrior Lv 12] [Lizard man Lv 14] Lizard men of different shapes and sizes with different evolution paths, At this point Alex had mixed feelings. On one hand, he was happy that he could grind but on another hand he was worried as this was an unfavorable situation. He couldn''t help thinking that this wasn''t Normal, Although he knew that Lizard men were cunning, they wouldn''t draw up such an elaborate trap. And judging from the fact that they weren''t attacking especially with the ''Chief'' of the Lizard men glaring daggers, there''s definitely a third party. In that frozen second between stand off and fighting I see their eyes flick from me to something behind their front line. their Newt-like faces were unreadable, but the ''Chief'' suddenly gave an invitational smirk. But before anything, the sound of heavy footsteps came from behind as the Lizard men gave respectful glances toward the approaching figure. Alex tightened the grip on his Battle Axe until they seemed to w.h.i.n.e, his muscles tensed as he sense danger from this approaching figure. "An Orc?" Alex muttered in surprise. Yes, what had appeared before them was an Orc!. It stood there between the trees, 3ft of hulking muscles with its brownish red eyes glaring at them. In it''s hand laid a sword that looked more like two blades of an helicopter merged into one. [Ding!] [NAME: Ghur] Race: Orc Hunter Level: 19(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 10,500 Relationsh.i.p.s: Blood Horn Clan Warrior, Executioner. Alignment: Chaotic Evil. _____________________________________________ ''Blood horn clan?...why does that sound familiar?but why did it have to be an Orc hunter, this guys are so troublesome. I''m sure this guy won''t be alone.'' Alex thought as he watched the scene, he looked at his clan members, there were a few casualties from the goblin side while a few were wounded, ''hmm? what''s wrong with Lovan? He doesn''t seem wounded but...''. Alex followed the trajectory of Lovan''s eyes and found that the Goblin was glaring at the Orc Hunter. The Orc stood there, a sort of irritation was on full display in his face," This aren''t the ones I asked you for, what part of, ignore any...Hmm?". He was about to go off ranting until his words got stuck in his throat, a look of surprise flashed through his eyes. "Who knew I''d find you here?, Little Goblin...Well, The Chief awaits you, right...were this ones part of your tribe? a lot sure got away, but why do I see Orcs here". The Orc hunter spoke casually with a sort of impetuousness. "AAAARgh!!" Lovan raged as he pulled out several alchemy stones from within his black robe, ready to hurl them out in anger, luckily Alex had already approached him and quickly stopped him. This was the first time, he had seen Lovan this angry, reminding him of how the Goblin had been portrayed at the latter part of the Novel, Bright green skin, witted and war-mongering.. Alex connected the dots and could only sigh in his heart. ''This guy sure has some good aggro skills'' Alex mused with himself as he looked at the Orc''s casual attitude and stance. It was obvious He wasn''t taking anyone here seriously and this irritated him, even Urim seemed to be itching for a fight. Alex watched as the Orc''s Bone earrings swayed along with the movement of his bald head. His eyes were on the small side, as if afraid to let the light in; his mouth was big and rigid with his tusk file to the point that you''d mistake them for daggers, showing his status as an Orc Hunter. perhaps evolving into one rids them of their lifetime of suspicion or sense of danger and develops a kind of superiority that radiates contempt. but It''s mouth was one of those mouths that only twitch upward when a deception is achieved. "hmm...Who are you?...who is he?!" he snarled at the poor lizard man, as though he was just seeing Alex. A small laugh escaped Alex''s lips, "Right!...Now I know why you irritated me so much, you''re just like Frost". ''Back on earth, The gangs would attack as a mob. In those days of fear and hatred there was no feigning honor like the Orcs do. Everyone wanted what they wanted and force was the accepted method. It was better to be a dog in a big group than a loner and many took that route - servitude over death. But not me though, I''d rather go down free and fighting if it''s not something I wanted or ignored, another person was Frost, He''d use everyone as a pawn just because it was amusing, Only showing up when it''s time for the last hit, just so you know who''s killing you. Now this guy is doing the same thing, he was probably searching for Lovan this whole time but chose to use the lizard Men...'' "Why are you still watching, Damn slaves!! Kill them but leave that one alive" He Ordered while pushing the lizard men to attack. They stepped forward with confidence. ''The Orc didn''t want me, he wanted Lovan. he was expecting easy pickings so he probably didn''t call his companion, Probably thinking that I''ll give Lovan up without a fight so he can kill me. either that or he just wants to test me out as I could see the slight wariness in his eyes when he looks at me.'' Alex''s thoughts were racing for ways out as he watched the Lizard men''s charge. "Everyone!!!, Gather up!!" Alex finally yelled but Urim did something different for the first time ever!. He went forward and intercepted the Lizard chief, They circled each other but stopped half way. The chief charged quickly, but Urim side stepped as he backed up. Missed. Urim charged in toward the exposed opponent. but the chief countered with his spear but Urim pushed it aside with his sword. He knew the next thrust would be to his c.h.e.s.t, so he used his new gauntlet to deflect the oncoming spear which bounced off the metal gauntlet. he used the opening to grab the opponent''s throat before plunging his sword into the b.a.r.e stomach of his adversary as it was the only place without scales. It spouted blood, and fell in slow motion with signs of it''s body freezing slowly. This action boosted their morale and shook the hearts of their enemies. "ROOAAAAAAAR!!" a battle cry escaped Alex''s lips as excitement raged within him. ''Leave none Alive!!!'' was all he thought as he saw a golden light wash over Urim!!. Chapter 29 - 28: Expedition Pt 4 Alex monitored the battle as he had ordered his men to form a circle around him, while giving reinforcement to the parts that needed it. the lizard folk charged in to saturate the battleground with more of their fresh blood despite the Black moon tribe trashing their kinsmen like a meat grinder. "They must really fear this guy or the power behind, considering they are fighting this way, against their cowardly instinct." Alex muttered as he turned to look at the Orc hunter once more. The lizard folk fought blindly with their eyes bloodshot, After the Chief''s death, they had been performing poorly, their death rate kept increasing but they charged anyways, and without effective communication or leadership their front-liners were becoming more and more disorganized and ineffectual. Chanting loudly, eyes focused, Gilgar released a curse as every lizard man within 15 meters visibly slowed down. "Hmmm Interesting, I need to find out more about their skills" Alex muttered to himself as he looked towards Largash. She hit a Lizard man on his head with her wooden staff, stunning him before using the same staff to perform a floor sweep, all the while wearing an unperturbed expression as she looked at Torrelsav and Gilgar from time to time. "Punta!" she cussed silently. The Orcs were all still in good shape and Alex watched as the groups level fluctuated repeatedly with the system before concluding "This can''t go on for long..." Urim soon used to approach the enemies ahead before using his most recent acquired skill, as Alex named it, Bodies went flying from the impact, some lucky ones died instantly. The unlucky ones were sent flying all the way before landing not to far from the goblins, only to be killed, being speared, gnawed at, or brutally massacred. Suddenly a bright red aura surged out across the ranks of the Black moon warriors, Torrelsav''s body bulged as he held two tomahawks on each hand, howling like a mad god of war. "He had gone Berserk again...No this time he went full Berserker mode unlike before." Alex looked shocked as he wondered what had happened. Torrelsav''s words thundered out, "YOU DARE!!" and stumped down at the ground , Dashing towards a grey scaled Lizard man. Slish!! Swiush!! He literally dissected the fellow while it was stunned and dashed immediately towards his next victim. His action seemed to have cleared up the Lizard folks thought process as they began to act panicky. Alex watched the Berserker in fascination, ''I guess I too better get to work''. "KILLLLL!" Alex roared, chasing after the Orc Hunter who had been trying to sneak away during the chaos. The Black moon tribe charged after their prey but still stuck together. perhaps they noticed fighting was a lot easier when they worked together or maybe it was something else. A shiver ran down Ghur''s spine as he saw the approaching Alex. He immediately waved his sword to halt Alex''s advance while using the momentary respite to look around. He was looking for something but Alex didn''t care, He used the Orc''s Charge to Ram Ghur, knocking him back a step and swung his Axe horizontally, trying to end the fight quickly. ________________________________________ Unknown POV At this time I was quick to pry an edged cutlass from a Lizard man''s hand and whipped around to clash Steel. I held the blade even, a perfect, undaunted horizon; Always leveled with my nose, just like father always said. I stalled The Orc''s strike just in time to save my Hunter, but watched a wretched, grin split the Orc''s lips as My blade shivered under the brutality of his compelling strength. "Alhama, I knew you were here, I just didn''t know where," he throatily crooned, pressing closer to My face. His Axe flashed as he brought it over his head and hummed a low, swift tune when he brought it down. Clang!! The sound of metal clashing rang out as I blocked his attack once more, Making my hands feel Numb. Before I could recover, I was kicked just below my c.h.e.s.t and all I could remember or feel was pain from where I was kicked and my back. Only now did I figure out that, I had been sent flying!!. Not entirely understanding what had happened, I tried to stand but only felt my strength leave me and my consciousness slowly eluded me as I watched the Orc chief chase after Ghur. ___________________________________________________________________________ "Ghur!! Have you no Honor!!?!" Alex''s mocking voice came from behind the running Hunter, the Latter''s eyes went wide in surprise as he turned back, He couldn''t believe it!, Alex was already hot on his trail with His shadow lying Unconscious not too far behind and it hadn''t even been five minutes. Actually, it never would have ended so quickly if not for the fact that Alex had been expecting the Alhama''s attack from the beginning and made some preparation. All the same, Ghur could only pick up the pace but unfortunately he only had two legs and wasn''t like Alex who would think of using to increase the distance. Before long Alex was right behind him, He pulled out a Bone dagger and threw it at Alex before charging behind it with his Blade. He knew that from this Orc Chief actions only one would walk away from this. Alex shuffled to the side, Dodging the Dagger before going into a stance and awaited in attack. Ghur charged with a mighty cry. Alex dodged to the side in one fluid move. His enemy swiveled in his direction with swinging his menacing blade rather wildly but also efficient forcing Alex a few steps back in order to dodge it. At this point, Alex was getting Disappointed. Besides Humans and other creature of higher standing, it was hard to find any with technique!. most just relied on instinct and Brute strength, Now he had to change that about his warriors. His opponent didn''t know what he thinking and swung his sword forward, only to be met by Alex''s Axe. Both weapons met in the air with a resounding ''clang''. Slowly, Ghur was tiring. ''If I am to die, I shall fight to the last breath and take you with me.'' With renewed vigor, he slashed his blade back and forth. wounds began to appear quickly. His opponent''s Axe was stained with blood. Ghur soon felt Despair, "It''s not supposed to be like this, You!...Who are you!? AAaargh!", He slashed wildly but it was useless. "Me?" Alex feigned deep thought before putting on a serious face, ''Yes! perhaps I can use this...I need more levels and hunting those beasts isn''t as effective as War or should I say skirmishes.'' Once he was done thinking, He grinned at the Breathless ''Hunter'' "I am Torug, Chief of the Black Moon Clan, Lovan is my kin. Remember it well." He stuck his Axe on a tree and charged with his b.a.r.e hands, He wanted to shame The Hunter and Embarrass him thoroughly as this was a sign of utter disrespect in Orcish tradition. At that Ghur''s expression froze. If hatred was visible, the air would have been scarlet. BAM!!, The first punch made contact to his jaw abruptly as he staggered backwards but then it continued. Bam! Boom! Bam! so much force in every blow. Alex rained blows onto Him as if he meant to smash him into the very earth and At some point He had dropped his weapon. Alex seemed like He didn''t just want the other dead, He wanted him smashed, obliterated, nothing left to bury. this went on for a while before Ghur tried to attack, He threw his body weight behind the fist that edged closer to Alex''s face and Luckily, it hit his jaw with such force blood pooled into his mouth. Pain erupted from the point of impact and He couldn''t help smiling,'' I guess I deserved that, but this guy is learning!, Best end it here.'' With His two hands He grasped Ghur''s head and brought His knee cap up to the Hunter''s nose, there was a blunt crack and He released his Green head. Crimson leaked from both his nostrils and his nose was twisted right. Ghur drew his fist back again and it ploughed into Alex''s stomach, it was like hitting a train head on. His guts smashed together, blood vessels bursting as Alex became even angrier, perhaps at the Hunter or himself, no one knows. He repaid this by punching Ghur''s jaw, His fist collided with all his body weight, sending him staggering backwards, He continued this battering until the Hunter fell to the floor. His c.h.e.s.t gently rose and sank with each shallow breath he drew in. He fell Unconscious and Alex stood up while muttering,"stupid, ouch...stupid. so careless". He cracked his neck calmly before looking down at Ghur. ''Hopefully, he goes back and do as I expect...that way, I''ll be getting more Exp. hmm... where was she again''. Quickly, He approached the Unconscious shadow Orc and lifted her over his shoulder before returning to where he could hear battle. Chapter 30 - 29: New system quest pt 1 Alex looked at his warriors, covered both in the blood of their enemies and themselves. Out of the 40+Goblin warriors He brought along, He lost about nine. This made him frown, but on the bright side, everyone else made it out with minor injuries. Aside from that, Almost everyone had leveled up to level 19 being the highest while Level 17 was the lowest. He himself was a few Exp away from Level 19, second only to Torrelsav. He clapped his Brother Urim on the shoulder while announcing, "remember my promise, when you Evolve once more, I have something for you, The first Two would be given positions of great honor!." He raised his voice at the end, "Let''s go back to the village for today". ''As they say, War is hugely profitable and I''m sure that they must feel it now.'' Everyone followed after Alex, just as they made it halfway Back, an ear piercing screech echoed from in front. Alex casually dropped the Alhama on the floor and readied his Axe as he cautiously said, "Get ready." The trees ahead trembled as something heavy stomped its way toward them. "Urim, Torrelsav, you two are to Halt whatever that is with me, everyone else prepare to support us from the back. And don''t die." Alex Ordered. A hulking horned humanoid came at them in strides. "Father, Is that Him?" Gilgar said with a trembling voice, if Orc''s could go pale, Alex believed she would look like that. An ogre twice the length of an average Orc appeared, carrying a tree sized club with spikes and something that looked like barbed vines were embedded on it in one hand. His other hand was resting on a nearby tree as he separated it for easier passage. It snarled at them in a furious manner. Alex inspected the monster. _______________________ Name: Obuntu Race: Deranged Ogre Level: Lv 27(Order of the second circle) Power Rating: 24,400 Relationship: Shadowfang Slave, Gladiator, ??? Blessings: Blessed by the God of mischief, Droll. ________________________________________ Looking at it''s stats, Alex connected two and two together when he remembered what Gilgar uttered earlier. ''This was the guy in the huge cage!''. There was only one way to define Ogres and that was, Ogres are brutish, slow and dumb. Their immense strength were renowned all over the world of ''Luegad''. Luckily, their race has a low fertility rate, or they would have brought immense chaos across the land. This one that had appeared before Alex was only at it''s second evolution and judging from the information under race, It must have undergone forced evolution and ended up this way. but even then, it''s aura could already oppress Alex, a Great orc slightly. A frown was plastered across Alex''s face as he had a stare down with this Mountainous fellow. His men were exhausted both physically and mentally, so he couldn''t see himself winning. His mind raced for a possible solution but came up empty handed, a deafening silence surrounded them like the calm before a storm. Suddenly, At this time a system notification popped up, [Ding!] [Quest Update] [Calming the Storm: Obuntu was a great warrior before he was kidnapped by the Shadow fangs, He had then experienced hell in the Hands of Simon Weiss''s experiments, He''s constantly tormented by the Noise in His head and wishes for peace. Reward: Random reward card(Rare), 20% Exp buff for Black moon territory(72 hours), System Upgrade (1).] When He read through it, He couldn''t say he wasn''t a little bit excited but the Ogre approached in a threatening manner as it looked at all his enemies, not giving him enough time to think nor get excited. The hulking figure of the ogre advanced inexorably on the group, it entered into melee range, its eyes narrowed and suddenly it snapped out one of its massive legs, kicking at Torrelsav who tried to circle around it. Not expecting a leg attack, He was caught unprepared, Luckily, Alex had been alert but had to use [Charge] to nullify the force of the blow. Urim hit the ogre from the side with his Great sword, leaving a wide gash on the ogre''s side and shifting its attention over to him. That wasn''t necessarily a good thing, so the smart Largash quickly ran straight at the ogre then jump-rolled past its columnar legs, twisting to her feet behind the monster she sent a [fireball] straight at the side of it''s face, stunning the brute as it roared. It swung a fist around with his aim being the Orc shaman, she dodged the Ogre''s flailing and retreated. The Ogre lifted it''s weapon and pounded it down against the earth with both hands , causing a force to spread from him like ripples. this sent everyone within 15 meters around him flying. "Kuhum!! kuhum!!" Alex coughed as he lifted himself up before squinting at Largash. copying her action, Lovan began circling the Orge as he threw alchemy stones at it, He even transmuted some bringing up different effects like slow, poisoning and so on. Only now, did Alex notice that this goblin had progressed since their last duel!!. Boom!! Booom!! The Kiting continued and Alex charged in with wide swing of his battle Axe while Urim and Torrelsav also attacked from it''s flanks. the Ogre kicked Urim away as soon as he recovered, banishing any form of air in his lungs for the time being as a small trail of blood chased after him. Torrelsav and Alex''s attacks got in, earning a scream from the Ogre. black chains appeared and tied down Obuntu as black veins began to squirm around it''s body. Obuntu screamed and began clawing at his own neck and arm, in a feeble attempt to get rid of the chains. "Attack with everything you got!!" Alex yelled. _____________________________________________ At the same time, somewhere on the sea coast, a 6.4 feet figure was dressed in a Loose white shirt with black pants and a red scarf around his neck had just boarded a boat heading out sea. He hummed as he approached the bow of the ship. "Mr Dorian, I believe you have everything ready as planned" "Yes Lord Simon, although it wasn''t easy, we have everything under control and they won''t suspect a thing" Dorian said with a flattering smile. "Excellent!" Simon said rather loudly as he looked out at sea. The gentle wind billowed the sails and the deck warmed in the afternoon light. The Ship skipped across the waves like a merry child in a field of daisies. "Interesting!" Simon spoke later in an amused manner. His Dark brown hair flew around in the wind, no one knew what he was thinking. Chapter 31 - 30: New system quest Pt 2 and completion Even from where Alex watched, he felt the aura of savagery radiating from Obuntu. He swallowed nervously for the first time since he came to this world as he could clearly see the Ogre''s power rating increase by the second. The ogre-ish face was contorted in rage, glaring around at the attackers with blood-red eyes. Screeching snarls like the sound of heavy gauge steel tearing apart, Alex could see that far too many sharp-edged tusks extended out and up from the jaw. Anyone who got too close to this war-machine was going to be... The ground shook as the Ogre struck the earth with a weighted club, just missing one of the Half orc sisters. The weapon looked like a massive temple column capped at the ends, but Alex had no doubt that anyone who took a direct hit from that would be scrapped. Alex watched as Torrelsav sprint toward the Orge in an attack run, jinking around strikes from the massive weapon and then savaging the giant with Rage-fueled attacks. Despite the tree-trunk size and reach of his ,He was unable to land a solid hit on any of the melee fighters. Clang!! Suddenly the Orge staggered, seemingly noticing something, it looked down and found black chains wrapping around it''s leg like a snake, The chains confined Obuntu''s movements to a small area. the Orge sent an attack at a Goblin, who dodged it A Hair''s Breadth before running directly towards Alex, rendering him speechless. The Black moon tribe had the clear advantage in this fight. an they were using the opportunity to attack mercilessly. They taunted, cussed him and dodged his clumsy attacks, kiting him until he was wrapped again by the chains. Once again, Alex looked at Gilgar with a somewhat surprised by her actions. He was begining to suspect if this two girls must have come from earth, their superb technical skill had left him impressed. With those thoughts, he added another gash on the Ogre''s body before changing positions once more. Obuntu howled and stamped down with his club, making use of another special skills. A wave rippled out through the earth, turning dirt to mud, slowing everyone''s movements. As Alex considered retreating, Obuntu howled again, he bellowed in guttural tones at his attackers "I won''t have it Simon!!!, I kill you!!" He howled like a wolf baying at the moon. sinking further and further into the depths of his insanity and rage. He became less intelligent and more bestial and savage as he continued to fight. Alex cursed under his breath. Angry and frustrated somewhat, He Roared in a challenging manner, attracting Obuntu''s attention Another red-flaming ball struck it''s face as soon as it changed targets and made him stagger. A demonic roar followed the explosion. "Everyone step back!!" He immediately pulled it''s club off it''s hand and used the clubs weight as a momentum to strike the Ogre to the ground with a swirling strike. Boom!! He then gave the Berserker a signal as he couldn''t feel his Left hand after letting go off the Club, perhaps he had popped a few blood vessels earlier with that move. the Ogre roared as it slowly lifted himself off the ground but it was too late, as Torrelsav had already pounced on him with his tomahawks, "Die!!". With an enraged, maybe insane expression, He slashed at it''s neck repeatedly before he swatted away in reflex. Urim charge forth against the Ogre, shaking it off balance as it tried to stand. Gilgar wasn''t slow either and used her skill that chained it up, this once again reduced the reaction time of the Ogre. The chains under Gilgar''s control shackled the Ogre''s limbs, giving people time to breath. It roared and screamed as if he was being burnt. It was a terrifying sight as madness and demonic ferocity washed across it''s face in waves. He opened his quest log and looked at the recent update before closing it again. "Obunta!" He shouted. The Ogre froze momentarily at the sound of his name, then roared at the ceiling. ''what does this mean? can he be saved or not...what is with this mixed signals'' Alex complained about the reaction in his mind as he panted heavily, The entire group was exhausted including him. He couldn''t even feel his hands, ''Best I kill him''. And so Alex decided enough was enough. He needed to get everyone back to the village immediately before something else comes up, he strode confidently toward Obunta, before stopping at the point midway, "Give me that spear" He said as he ordered the nearest Goblin. Everyone watched the ogre warily as it trashed about, Gilgar was panting more heavily now, obviously her mana were almost dried out. Alex dragged the spear along with his right hand as he approached the Ogre''s face. It''s frenzied eyes, devoid of any intelligence kept staring at Alex. without saying a word, Alex roared as he lifted the spear and stabbed it into the ogre''s eyes with deadly precision. But the Ogre wasn''t dead, instead it trashed about even more as Gilgar coughed up blood. Noticing this, Alex held the spear and placed his body weight on it while forcing it down to it brain. Slowly, it''s eyes was devoid of life and everywhere silent. Nobody moved an Inch until after a few seconds Urim fell on his b.u.t.t while breathing a sigh of relief. [Ding!] [Quest Update] [Calming the Storm: Obuntu was a great warrior before he was kidnapped by the Shadow fangs, He had then experienced hell in the Hands of Simon Weiss''s experiments, He''s constantly tormented by the Noise in His head and wishes peace. Requirements for completion: Grant him peace...(Completed).] [You have leveled up] [You have leveled up] [Ding!, you have completed one Achievement "First massacre"] [Goddess Ayaseh is intrigued] [You have met the requirements to Evolve further, you are advised to find a secure location to perform this Action.] [Present location is Unsuitable, please move] [You have Unlocked "Inventory"] [Reward: Random reward card(Rare) has been awarded,Please confirm] [20% Exp buff for Black moon territory(72 hours)is now active] ______________________________________________________ Rows of Notifications assaulted him, but he calmly read them and chose to only Evolve after the system''s upgrade. After all, there''s no way he''ll get to the Manor before 35 minutes. "Lets find somewhere else to camp!, we can''t rest here" He ordered as he looked at them, But was shocked to see that Torrelsav was undergoing evolution at this moment. He then ordered two Orcs to carry the cocoon as they all left the Area slowly. Chapter 32 - 31: Evolving ''It''s been an hour since the system went offline for an upgrade and for some reason, despite being surrounded by everyone, I''m reminded of that feeling again. The one that there all the time, that Everyday after work, I had to lie down on my comfortable couch, read books and watching talk shows just to forget myself- no communication, never had friends to begin with, if any they''d probably try to kill me after what I did to Boss.'' Alex thought as rested his back on a nearby tree, "hahahaa..." He let out a Hollow laugh,"Friends huh". He looks at Urim who was sitting not too far from him snoring loudly, shaking his head, he looked at Torrelsav''s cocoon that was being watched by his daughters and wondered. ''According to an Orc''s nature, there''s a probability that he would challenge me once he''s done. we''ll see.'' With that thought he looked at the tree-like club Obuntu was using, as it laid not too far from him. It took about six Orcs to carry it!!, it''s like it was made from metal but is obviously a tree. So Alex chose to carry it back, so He could ask Dabok about it and find out if they can use it to make weapons for their warriors. [Ding!] His thoughts were interrupted by a chime. [System Update complete] [New system features have been added, you are advised to get yourself acquainted with them.] [You have Unlocked "lottery","Shop" and System points] [System point would be the currency used in transacting with the system.] [You are now able use the Loyalty meter.] [You can also Earn points by Conquering and Expanding your territory] [Current system points: 0] [Present location is Unsuitable for Evolution, please move] [Please Note that you are yet to use you rewards, Please confirm] [20% Exp buff for Black moon territory(72 hours)is now active] ______________________________________________________ With this, Alex couldn''t help laughing for some reason, His laughing was like ripples in a still pond after a stone has been thrown in. It radiated outwards through the woods and the Black moon tribe who had up until that moment been quite silent. Now they too began to titter and soon the ripples of laughter became great waves of hilarity. Surprised, He looked at his people and began laughing again, Largash looked at him oddly. "Ow!" Alex didn''t care but winced when he had absentmindedly rested on his wounded left arm. On his arm there were great purple welts that will only deepen over time. Against my green skin they are grotesque. ''luckily I didn''t break any bones'' Alex sighed and reached for his chin as he scratched in thought. ''I look as beat up as I did in my early days of training, sparring with guys two heads taller and over twice my mass. gangsters and their stupid initiation ambush''. He then adjusted himself before lifting off the ground, He signaled for Urim to follow him. The silly fellow grudgingly dragged himself along, wondering what his brother was up to. Five minutes later After strolling for a bit, a system notification came up [Ding!] [Present Location can be used for your Evolution] [Do you wish to proceed] [Y/N] Before responding, Alex brought up his status Name:Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Great Orc Level: 20 (Evolve) Power rating: 9030 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul) Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) System points: 0 Skills: Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Orc''s Charge(Common)Lv1- charge forward with the strength of a battering Ram for a 4 meter distance, causing 150% damage based on strength stats. Cast time: 2secs Cool down: 5 minutes. Racial skills: Sigil(Unique) Lv1 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive) Effect: Personal: Adds 5% bonus to ones stats at level one Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] ___________________________________ Immediately He was done looking he clicked yes, a tingling sensation spread throughout his spine. This feeling was really uncomfortable. He was in that dark place again and wanted to rub his back hard on the floor in order to alleviate his discomfort. However, he couldn''t move. [Ding] [As this is your second Evolution, you next evolution would be Based on the three different bloodlines in your Body] [Orc Lord- 45%compatibility ] [Berserk Orc Lord- 62% compatibility] [Predatory Orc Lord(Dark)- 35% compatibility] Alex was now confused, He began cursing the Author for focusing on just humans when writing the Novel. But one thing he knew was that the path the Orc king of Degr used or had was Berserk Orc Tyrant as he was someone way above the circle of changes. So if his guess is not wrong, He must have used the Berserk orc lord bloodline during his second Evolution. ''It''s even the only one with high compatibility, the rest were below 50%'' With that in mind Alex looked at the Third option and ignored the Generic option. Predatory Orc Lord(Dark)- An Orc seen only at ancient times, They were the ones who were the true masters of war as they hunted down their prey through any means, whether through battle skills or Magic, they charge through enemy lines hunting down their targets while paving way for their people. Due to their Dark nature, they took less damage and could heal during combat. Seeing this description, Alex was hooked, He looked at the line with Damage reduction and regeneration several times before quickly selecting this option. A strong force invaded and began corroding his body like he was soaking in liquid Acid. This force quickly seeped into his skin and continuously rushed all over his body in a berserk manner. His heart began to beat wildly like a battle drum and echoes of a war song rang out in his ear, the whole situation was mystical and this surprised Alex. Crack!! Kruk!! krrrrr!! The awakening of the bloodline was the second step to evolution and was actually awakening a bloodline in the body as the dominant bloodline. The flushed out the Unneeded ones and purified the one he selected, making this extremely easy compared to what others go through. His blood felt like they were boiling and his heart beats was becoming rhythmic as they went it tune with the war drum. Dum! Dum! Dum! ''Why is it even more painful than the other?'' This his thoughts before the tingling sensation in his spine spread to his brain, it felt a thousand ants were crawling over his brain. His sweat pores expanded and closed while his breathing became even more erratic. Unable to bear any longer, He let out a Roar, RAAAAAAAAAWWWWWR!!!! Chapter 33 - 32: Second Circle Mura Clan had resided next to the Black moon lake for several years, They were an Orc tribe that lived under the rule of Nazu. She held her people with an iron grip, her fighting prowess as one who had gone through evolution twice was known by the two surrounding tribes, making her the strongest in the Area, but what really gave her an advantage was her wits. Over the past one month, she had been informed of a new Goblin tribe that was trying to settle down next to the Black moon Lake but she wasn''t really bothered, after all as long as she can fight and Enjoy the resources of the forest, she had no problems with the new neighbors. But then they began cutting down trees, hunted magic beasts to the point that any other magic beast felt threatened to approach the area. Now to hunt, Nazu had to go in deeper into the forest which was riddled by lizard folk traps. All this made her angry, She planned to approach and challenge their Chieftain but when she got there, the things she saw made her doubt her eyes. Almost all of them had gone through evolution before, which would make them eligible to be Chiefs in some small tribes!. Their building were neatly arranged and the magic in the air was bountiful, this made her jealous!. She wanted it all, So she was going to take it, but she was not stupid to think she could take it alone, so for the first time, she reached out to the other two powers in the vicinity. It turns out, that they had been bothered about this neighbor as well, so they readily agreed to meet. ____________________________ Sitting on a tree trunk not too far from her village with four Orc''s behind her, She watch the other two chief argue about the plans of this new neighbor. On her left was the Chief of another Orc village named Mako, He was a typical orc of 2.8 metres in height, had a brownish-green skin with a loin cloth around his waist. He yelled continuously to express his point, probably felt he could impress her with his ''Intelligence'', on the other side was a Goblin with brown loin cloth as well. Looking at the both of them and herself, she shook her head as she remembered how their neighbors looked in black ''fancy'' clothing, she grew more envious and increased her resolve to capture that place. Her Red hair swayed as She then told everyone her opinion. "I think they intend to capture our lands!" The others looked at her, even their people looked at her, waiting for her to continue. "Look at how they have been expanding, with this speed they would soon want our land. so what do we do?". "Fight or run?" She continued after a pause, "Nazu does not Run! so what say you Mako?" "Orc fight!!not Run"Mako accepted blindly, just as she thought he would, this was the reason she asked him first because she knows that the Goblin was too cunning and might suspect something. Now it was two against one, if he still wanted to oppose, he''ll have to beat Nazu in a fight. The Goblins that followed their chief looked at him, after all, they could immediately become prisoners or dead bodies depending on his decision. Quickly, the tension rises. "Well, Kou will fight this fight with you" Having said that, everyone relaxed as their expressions loosen. Now, then. "What are you planning on doing?" Kou asked Nazu. "Isn''t it obvious. Look for a chance, and charge right in!" Mako interjected, "We kill their Chief together during the Chaos!" Nazu supported the idea as she looked at Kou. She suspects their Chief was really strong, to have all those strong men serve under him, so she plans use this fools to test the waters. "You two are still not interested in becoming my subordinates?" Nazu asked once again with a smirk, making her look like she was mocking them. "this again?...No" Kou decisively said, how could he be under a woman, he thought. Mako didn''t say anything besides laughing, he too felt the same way towards this female Chief. "even if I can fulfill your wishes?"She added, "What are you saying?" Kou asked, slightly annoyed. Nazu squinted her eyes without speaking further on the matter, after a while she just said "I see¡­" _____________________________________________________ Meanwhile, Alex finally woke up even though he doesn''t remember passing out. He laid where he was wondering why it felt like he was surrounded by walls but he then guessed this was his cocoon, so he clawed out of it immediately, allowing a cold chilling gas to spread around him. When he was out, he found out that he was in the main hall back in Black moon village. ''perhaps they brought me back''. Then he noticed something, His black hair was longer now, practically falling to cover his face and his tusk seemed stronger, his skin was a much healthier looking green than before, he could literally feel power in his veins as his heart kept beating hard. Dum! Dum! [Ding! due to your increase in evolution, you Sigil has been upgraded please add another for you and your vassals.] He first chose to ignore it for now and Then opened his stats to check for any other changes. [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell)] Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 13300 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv1- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 40%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 12 secs. Racial skills: [Prey on](New) Lv 1- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Once marked as prey, the victim get a Debuff that increases the chances of their minds being affected along with a 7% reduction in their overall stats. Sigil(Unique) Lv 2 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 0/5. Effect: Personal: Adds 10% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 4% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Mitigate Lv1(Passive)- Reduces damage taken by 10% during combat. Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] "Excellent" He said as a deep baritone escaped his lips. Chapter 34 - 33: Using the Card While Alex was busy admiring his status page, Urim heard sounds from outside and looked in, only to spot Alex as elation flashed through his face. "Brother!" He said excitedly. "Yo" Alex responded casually as he stood up. As if on cue Lovan and Dabok came in as well, ""congratulations My Chief"" They said in sync, genuinely happy by his progress. Alex looked at the bowing duo, amused ''Their wordings are getting smoother''. As that thought flashed through his mind, he responded while approaching the throne,"Thank you". It was then the fire place illuminated it''s light on Alex fully, although half was covered in the shadows, every muscle on his torso was flowing from the light into the dark. He was like a living work of art, his green skin so tempting to touch; every move giving away his strength. His eyes were locked onto the light from outside as someone came in. Lovan edged closer until he could see his face, illuminated by the fire, serious like he''d never seen him before. this awakened him from his daze as the Atmosphere in the Hall changed, when He turned around, He saw the reason why. Torrelsav had walked in!. According to their Orcish nature, Alex might be feeling very territorial at this stage of evolution. the sight of someone at the same level as him might cause problems. Even Dabok let out a sigh at this moment. Earlier, He had told Torrelsav to wait for sometime before showing up but it looks like this fellow had other thoughts in mind. He didn''t change much but his hair grew out as well and his tusk became longer just like Alex''s, His muscles became even more defined. Dressed in his black battle skirt he came in, Torrelsav wanted to see what kind of Orc Alex really was, now that Alex just completed an Evolution would be a very s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e moment, so his true nature would surface. But When He stepped into the Hall, He could feel sweat drench his skin, throbbing in his own eyes, ringing screams vibrating in his ears, and the thumping of his heart against my c.h.e.s.t. All this just from staring at those red glowing eyes that stared at him from behind that long hair. His fingers curled into a fist, nails digging into his green palm. He didn''t even know that he had stopped breathing. Alex simply stood there, staring at Torrelsav, not because of anything but he had found something interesting. He could smell his fear, just by standing there. It seemed to be one the perks of his evolution, He could smell it and he knew the Orc was afraid. The silence in the room made the others shift uncomfortably. Fear engulfed him for the first in many years, knocking all other thoughts aside. making it drastically exhausted. "I see you evolved as well splendid" Alex spoke calmly, finally breaking the tensed atmosphere. Torrelsav as well felt like he had been brought back from his daze and responded quickly by going down on one knee, "Yes, My Chief!!" Alex nodded,''That was dangerous, initially he had a strong impulse to attack Torrelsav, for some reason he felt it was a challenge but he quickly restrained such thoughts''. While shaking his head, He sat on the Throne very slowly as he felt he might damage everything, He was having a hard time restraining his strength. Luckily he made it, He then chose to stop looking at Torrelsav for now and scanned the others. Aside from Dabok, the other two were close to evolving as well. "What about the Blacksmith?". "Everything is proceeding nicely" Dabok said with a toothy grin before bring a steel sword forward and showed it to Alex. [Coyorn Steel sword] Attack: 10-15 Durability: 100/100 Condition: Excellent [Summary: A common short sword, it was made by the blacksmith Coyorn.] After inspecting it Alex nodded, this was obviously better than the last batch, "How much has he made and how many more can we squeeze out of him?". "Of this type?, he made ten...the rest are the same like the first ones. so..." Dabok paused and looked at Lovan with a look that said ''help me please!''. Alex guessed that he must be having problems with the numbers that he thought them before so he helped," sixty?," "No...more than" He answered with an awkward grin. "Alright that fair, i''ll find the exact number later" Although Alex was saying this, His face was gloating as though saying ''you better go back and practice again before trying to show off''. "Torrelsav, you and Dabok should take out the warriors again...the only Goblin village next to us, I want it...when you come back, I''ll have your reward ready." He suddenly said, shocking the others except Urim who didn''t seem bothered. Torrelsav looked at Alex solemnly and thought ''This is a test'' before responding, "Yes." "Urim" "Yes brother" Urim looked at Alex with sparkly eyes. "You go too, I feel you''re close to evolving as well" At Alex''s words, they all turned to look at Urim curiously, trying to see or feel what Alex was talking about. "Yes" Urim laughed excitedly, there is nothing but an impish glee on his face, the kind that feels like the icing on cakes and splashing in the sea. All it takes is for his thoughts to turn to the idea of being helpful to Alex and the excitement switch is well and truly on. It''s as if there''s always a trail of gunpowder in his veins and that was the only match, letting it spark, everything else didn''t really matter. Alex looked at his expression helplessly, He really didn''t know what the original owner did for Urim but he wasn''t complaining about having such a companion. After some conclusion, Alex dismissed them as he excitedly opened his new inventory. He brought out the Random reward card(Rare) and chose to use it. [Ding! Congratulations, you have received basic territorial platform (Aegis shield-Medium)] [The level of your territory is unable to use this Platform presently] [Minimum required level is Basic level 3 village]. When Alex saw this notification, he frowned and opened the village stats. [Ding!] Village Name: Black moon Level: Basic Lv2 (3266/5000) Village Area: 2 square kilometre Residents: 148/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv 3= 200) Soldiers: 57/300 Guards: 10/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x34, Smithy, Basic Logging(poor), Farmland(83%), Advanced Mining Field(97%). _____________________________________ Seeing it, He could only sigh. Luckily his wait wouldn''t be that long, He just need to deal with the surrounding tribes. With that, he turned to the option for his second sigil and began to wonder what to use this time. The tiger tattoo gave him boost in strength and agility, what does he need now the most?. No! What then? Perhaps, flexibility?...there were some techniques he couldn''t perform due to the lack of enough flexibility. but it feels wasteful to use a whole sigil for just flexibility, what creatures had flexibility and could help with magic power or other aspects. ''all I have to do was imagine it and the system would analyze and distribute the attributes accordingly.'' Chapter 35 - 34: Brutal Berserker 1 Chief Kou the Timid, the Goblin, Not too far from Black moon lake, At the center of the area close to the outer Forest, majorly called Laboni by the sentient creatures that lived there, meaning ''Solemn''. This was all due to a legend of a beautiful woman who had the the tail of an Ox, she was usually sited in the Area during the year 1400s, so it was concluded that she lived in the area. it was said that despite her being extremely powerful, She didn''t like Chaos or disorder and would stop at nothing to destroy whoever creates one. Over the years, she had slowly disappeared but no one tries to create a nuisance, well that was until today. A small village surrounded by trees laid there, controlled by Goblins as they busied themselves. Countless messy houses filled the area, sticking out awkwardly. Despite that, they continued to work quietly with practiced efficiency. However, today, troubling news reached them. Warriors from their new neighbor was advancing to their direction. The village chief, Kou, upon hearing these news, quickly issued orders. "Prepare for battle! We''ll crush them!". Kou said this like, he was full of confidence. He then assured his people saying, Had they fought on the lands of their enemies, perhaps it might have been different, but now they came to them, especially considering they had them outnumbered. So this battle would be on their terms. If they set ambushes and proceed carefully, they were sure to win. They relaxed a bit hearing this from the Chief. While sending some to prepare for battle, he also sent a few Goblins out for reconnaissance in order to investigate the Invaders. After all, Knowing the size of the enemy is a must. "There is no way we will lose!" Kou kept muttering out loud but his heart was heavy as several thoughts rang out in his head, ''WHY?!! why us?!...I don''t think we have offended them...or could there be something?''. What he made him afraid was because he heard Orcs were in the group, "Those accursed Orcs again!". Had they attacked the Mura clan, then it would''ve made some sense, after all they were the ones that posed the most threat¡­ but why them?. And thus the question slowly grew into unease that tormented him. And this fears soon to came true, as it was just confirmed by the reconnaissance team. Ten orcs!!, This was enough to breeze through 75% of the village on a normal day!. "Why!¡­" he yelled subconsciously, The only one in his village who could put up a good fight was him as he was a first order shaman, but the rest were low level goblins. Although he tended to put a tough front when he stood before Nazu, it was because he had already established that she would not do anything to him because she couldn''t be bothered with him and because of the villages location which was kind of s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e. Now from the description, the enemy sent 10 orcs that had all evolved once, along with other evolved Goblins that numbered around 40, How could he not be indignant about the matter. The orcs were indeed a race bursting with life, renown for their reproductive abilities and battle prowess. How could he, a Goblin hold back 10 evolved versions of this same creature while trying to stop the other goblins that was the same level as him, it was simply unthinkable. ''How did their chief do it?, Do I surrender?, would those two help me?'' He continued to pace around his village while watching his people busy themselves with the traps he instructed them to set. Making them feel confident with his presence. "It couldn''t have been that this chief had a special way of evolving his people¡­" Kou once again began contemplating, The mere thought evoked Awe, fear and greed in his heart. "What to do??..." "What could I do to escape from this predicament?" If they fight now, defeat is inevitable. They don''t have a chance at all, This was the disparity between quality and quantity. In the end he decided to call for reinforcements. And thus he sent one of his subordinates, "Go to Mura clan and tell them about the approaching enemy, Tell her, that if she can help us this time...I will join her". "Yes!!" Although the Goblin seemed confused, he complied. Upon receiving the orders from the Chief, left for the Mura clan. Taking with him 15 goblins. The goblins gathered with paled faces as they stated at the distant figures, their previous confidence was lost, leaving them listless as they came to understand that, Compared to before, their numbers meant nothing in this battle. However, time doesn''t wait for anyone and the Invaders had begun their advance till the enemy were just standing not too far from the village but something interesting happened, Nazu and a few of her Orcs secretly entered the village from a different area. So Kou met Her, after all, she was their only hope, He thought but just as She appeared in his field of vision, She said "Swear your loyalty to me! If you do, Then we can talk" Very straight forward as always, Kou looked at her like he was having an internal struggle but in the end Knelt down in subservience. For the sake of his people, He had to. "Good..." __________________________________________ .Meanwhile, Torrelsav had arrived within the periphery of the goblin village and began to survey its surrounding. He had evolved into what he felt was called a Brutal Berserker, Strength without a blemish and a never ending rage playing at the back of ones mind. This gives him the constant urge to fight and Torrelsav felt like Alex had noticed this point before sending him out. His perception speed is a hundred times better than before, so he could feel the changes within the village. When they were about attacking, He noticed the Aura of someone within that wasn''t any weaker than him appear, so he chose to be on the side of caution. He noticed Urim had also become much more vigilant compared to the blank look he had throughout the journey. At that moment, He noticed some people approaching them from within the village. It was a group of Orcs and a Goblin following not too far behind. Leading them was a female Orc, that had dark flaming red hair, She wasn''t like most females that competed with the males by getting buff but she was somewhat slender but thic, Her muscles weren''t hard, neither were they soft. she scanned them for a second, Unlike her, Torrelsav had spent year in the Arena, so he could somehow gauge people''s strength. She was Obviously the one with a second circle Aura and a speed type too. "Who''s the chief?" She asked suddenly. She flexed her wrists a bit, like she was trying to get them to relax, It was then Torrelsav noticed her weapon. It was a Sword that was only the length of her forearm, she Pulled it from it''s sheathe and held it in reverse grip. Before anyone could answer, She somehow grew hazy and At that moment, she disappeared from her spot. *Clang!* Torrelsav managed to block the attack on time with a frown, Just before She landed a hit square on the top of Urim''s Head. Urim''s eyes were wide open as he looked at Torrelsav''s hands, before nodding silently and stepped back while signaling the others to step back. "So it was you?...so why was he holding such a fancy sword?" She said casually before leaking the blades of her weapon. Torrelsav look at his right hand, He felt no pain nor took any damage but the hand kept shaking due to the vibrating response he got from his Axe. ''really¡­'' ''That wasn''t just speed; it must have been this skill that The Chief usually mentioned''. ''How interesting''. ''I was planning on being cautious, but this completely took me by surprise, I can''t let go of this chance'' Torrelsav thought of this before looking at his daughters standing in the crowd. After that, He blurred out of everyone''s vision... *Klang!!, kwan!!, CLINK!!, Claaan!!, Clang!!!* Strange sounds resounded in the surrounding. What is this?, this was the question in everyone''s mind. They moved so fast that, others could not see. Soon they appeared once again, "Good Good HAHAHA!!!" Nazu laughed with Joy, she hasn''t had this much fun in years. She smiled as she stood in a weird stance. Her left leg was in front of her right and she held the sword in reverse grip behind her while c.a.r.e.s.sing the blade with her left hand. At this point, her eyes were glowing yellow in excitement. Torrelsav''s expression wasn''t any different as his blood was in full throttle, but soon he spoke to clarify something when he saw her odd expression,"I am not the Chief, I''m here for the village on his command". "You''re not?!Interesting...but I can''t ha..." Her voice expressed her surprise as she wished to continue but was cut short by a roar. "ROAR!!!...Nazu!!I am here to save you HAHAHA" A group of Orcs charged in from behind the tree line, """GROOOAR!!!""""They roared as they rushed over. _________________________________________________________________________ Black moon village, ''Lets use the Dragon...He he!!" A deep baritone voice rang out. Chapter 36 - 35: Brutal Berserker 2 Black moon village, ''Lets use the Dragon...He he!!" A deep baritone voice rang out. As soon as Alex''s voice rang out, The system went in conjecture with his thoughts. [Affirmative!!..] He suddenly felt an Itch, like ants were crawling across from his left arm where the tiger tattoo was and crawled over his shoulder to spread down his back till he could see the dragon claws by his right side. [Ding!...Process complete] [Passive skill Mitigation has increased] [10%->30%] [Overall 5% increase in all stats] [New skill: Intimidating Roar- Sends a sound attack when Host uses skill while roaring, spreads a fear effect with an 8% chance to cause internal injuries to enemies while giving a Dread debuff, reducing their stats by 20%.] Crack!!! Crack!! Several bone breaking sounds spread across the Hall, Alex''s bone adjusted themselves further for some reason, catching him completely off-guard. His black hair grew further by a few inches and his height increased, his sense of balance returned as he quickly stood up and his mind felt clearer. If he could see his eyes right now, he''d find that his iris had become golden color from his usual red ones. "Isn''t this effect a bit too much?, aren''t you looking down on the tiger too much?" Alex complained a bit, not actually because of the effects but because, He got reminded of the Honorary title of His gang''s Boss, "Dragon" and his was "Tiger" representing his status as the Executioner. "Well I killed him, so that should make me the Dragon now I guess" Alex consoled himself while reminiscing. "Is it possible to see the spread sheet of my stats?" [Yes] [Strength- 240 Agility- 220 Stamina- 325 Will-193 Dexterity-155 Leadership-60 Spirit- 80 (Poor)] __________________________ "Can you show a comparison with an average, second order Orc?" [Strength- 150 Agility- 100 Stamina- 200 Dexterity-80 Intelligence-100] [Please Note that this can Differ from person to person] After going through this, Alex came to understand something "I see". ____________________________________________________ Laboni, Leveling the ground in their wake, the new orc army advanced in the forest. Trample them! Kill! Kill them! While lifting their voices, they advanced. There was not a single normal thought in their minds, besides their chieftain''s Order Suddenly, Mako who was watching his warriors attack felt an aura stronger than he had ever felt before. He turned to this aura, it was the Orc fighting Nazu, He had medium length messy black hair that made Mako jealous as he subconsciously touched his own head with gritted teeth. The head decided this guy must be killed, He totally forgot about the aura that he felt, even if he remembered, he wouldn''t care. After all he brought a fifty Orc warriors with him, Calling for a subordinate, he ordered that they must kill this Orc. Now, all he had to do was wait. He couldn''t help smiling when he saw the Goblins and Orcs of his enemies hurdle together while Isolating that revolting Orc. For a monster, Torrelsav''s rather buff build gave an intimidating feel but, his presence radiated composure and unblemished strength. Mako had close to two hundred warriors stationed in his village but he confidently brought along this number. "Fear not! Show them the power of our Black moon tribe" Urim''s voice suddenly rang out The Goblins screamed as their morale increased once more from hearing Urim''s cry, a strange feeling welling up within them, perhaps it was pride or perhaps it was something else. Gilgar made her way to the outer ring of the formation they took with Urim standing at the center where Alex took during their fight with the lizard folk. If Alex was here, He might have laughed at the scene. Dabok remained silent from the beginning as he stood next to Urim, watching this curiously. "Haa!!" Gilgar yelled as she struck the b.u.t.t of her staff unto the earth, A black ripple spread around them till it hit about 25 meters. All her people, became much more active like they had been injected with chicken blood while the Orcs that approached gradually became tired. All it took was three goblins to take down an orc swiftly, One charges with the new steel swords and targets the Orcs legs in order to make an opening for the other two to stab his heart or slit his throat, depending on who gets the opening first before rushing back to the formation immediately. A strange gleam crossed the eyes of the Old Orc, and he picked up a rock. With a slight shake of this hand, the rock''s shape changed and formed a small statue which he then proceeded to smack unto the ground. DUM!! another ripple spread out and began to glow with a black light repeatedly like a heartbeat, This further increased their killing efficiency. Although they were Unaware of this but they have been influenced by Alex in how he uses his skills in unorthodox ways. All this was noticed by Mako and Nazu from their respective stand points. "Sha...Sha...Shaman!!...Kill the shaman." Mako screamed hyterically, Nazu narrowed her eyes as she became even more curious about this chief that could have all this. It had to be known that, each of the two shaman''s were powerful in their own way and It was common knowledge that No two shaman''s liked to stay in one tribe, as they tended to kill each other. At the same, Torrelsav who had been casually deflecting the Orc''s attacks, heard Mako''s word. He subconsciously activated his new innate skill and a sickening grin appeared on his face, different from how he was before. The Red aura around him grew tangible as he used another skill he learnt and immediately closed the distance between him and Mako, "What did you say?!!!" His voice resonated in the forest, Shocking Nazu. _____________________________________ Blackmoon village, "Chi Chi chief!!, Haji says the other villages have moved!!" Lovan came rushing in anxiously but Alex was rather surprised by what he heard. "Haji? your little Son?...Is what he said the truth" Alex asked, Hearing Alex''s words, Lovan answered with an embarrassed expression, "Ye...Yes!" "I see, They are working together, an Alliance?" "Aaa...alliance?" Lovan asked, curious again. "Yes, an alliance is when different groups work together because of mutual benefit, you remember what group is right?" Alex explained, "Like a tribe?" "yes..." "What do we do about out kin?" Lovan was really worried about this point, so he asked immediately. "Hmm...I''ll go see what is happening, they''ll be Fine, they have your alchemy stones." Quickly dismissing Lovan, He began to think ''who would have come up with such an Idea?, Interesting... I''ll head there when I''m done with the Shadow Orc''. With that thought he headed behind the Lord''s manor, and a female shadow orc was tied to a wooden stake appeared in front of him. "Alhama(Shadow), pardon my Hospitality but we could only make do with this". He said, drawing her attention to him but there was no other reaction. ''Right...probably doesn''t even understand the meaning of the word Hospitality.'' Alex saw her expression and couldn''t help lamenting. ''show me her status'' _______________________ [Name: Moz Race: Alhama (Shadow orc) Gender: Female Level: 18 (Order of the first circle) Power rating: 9400 Alignment: Chaotic neutral Relationship: Blood horn clan member, Ghur''s shadow. ________________________ Chapter 37 - 36: Brutal Berserker 3 Urim looked at the battlefield and noticed that The odds were clearly against them. Without ever tiring, the enemy orcs continuously attacked. Goblins from the village they were to off to his brother, rushed out to attack them rather viciously. The goblins, on the other hand, were slowly being killed off on by one. ''Brother, I have failed you'' Urim lamented in his heart. They only needed to regain their formation and break through the encirclement, but doing so would mean abandoning the goblins who lack the necessary mobility as a few had already lost their limbs. They kept losing ground, making organized movements difficult to perform. Torrelsav was stuck battling Mako and a few of his ''Elites'', Kou the shaman attacked from distance, slowing down the former''s performance. Carrying an aura of strength around him, he was clearly world above the common second order orcs, so they gave him special attention. Nazu remained motionless as she watched the battlefield. Pointing his spear at Torrelsav, Mako felt exhilarated. He would be deemed powerful, if he had this Opponents skull. His spear began emitting an aura. An ominous grey aura rose from his body, it gave one the feeling of disgust and irritation. Suddenly, a deafening roar escaped Torrelsav''s lips as he turned on Battle frenzy but this time he added his berserk skill. That roar assaulted Mako and his men, it forced them to freeze for a few seconds. "What was that?" Nazu looked on with wide eyes, this wasn''t a skill but it felt powerful nonetheless.. In their daze, Torrelsav''s mowed down an orc close to him. That became the signal to resume the battle. Somehow from the beginning of the battle, he felt that he couldn''t exact his full force but now However, he finally could go wild!!!. Advancing at full speed, He crashed into the orc group with his charge skill. The orcs readied themselves for the sudden attack , but they simply could not react in time to the speed at which his charge skill work. ''they are being encircled...!!I''ll leave with them first'' Torrelsav thought as he glanced at Largarsh fighting an Orc warrior with her staff. even Dabok had ran out of mana with this 30 minutes of constantly fueling the totem he made. Torrelsav was clear more than anyone else, that he couldn''t finish Mako''s group within a short time with their hit and run tactics, so he chose to retreat for now.. With those thoughts, Torrelsav leapt two consecutive times towards the direction of the Black moon tribe, completely stunning Mako who had been frozen for a bit. As soon as he landed, his momentum knocked back his surrounding stands firmly on the ground, and slowly prepares himself. Seeing his actions, the orcs were at a loss. ''Should they chase or not?'', their expression said as they looked at Mako. With his blazing red eyes, he had a solemn expression. He turned to Urim who was now breathing like a enraged bull, signalling him with his eyes before once again looking at the twin half Orc women. When he was done, the red aura suddenly sprang up as he lifted his tomahawks. Sensing danger, a few orcs tried to run away. But it was far too late. He smashed his feet on the ground leaving a web like crack that extended towards them. As soon as it got to them, a red gas shot out of the cracks, sending the unfortunate ones into the air. Bang!!! This was one of his new skills, that he had not been able to use, except in this state. Those struck were immediately thrown in the air, screaming as they came falling hard. However, the terror of the skill was not this, the terror was the follow up attack. He sped through the distance that had this cracks with unimaginable speed while Accurately slashing them down. ''I''m beginning to understand it...so this is why the Chieftain sent me here''. . Urim looked shocked and clenched his fist, their Morale was boosted once again "Arrrgh!!". He charged without thinking, following behind Torrelsav. What had happened, Mako did not know, Fl.u.s.tered, he finally looked around. Somewhere in the distance, he noticed Nazu remained motionless, seemingly lost in thought. "Nazu!! Why aren''t you helping?!!" Mako yelled, Reverberating from the depth of his stomach, barely suppressing his rage. And having zero interest in what he was saying, she stared simply gave him a cursory glance before turning to watch the Berserker. Her men un-moving as she gave no orders, besides she had already forgotten about her newly acquired subordinate. And to the orc, "Hmph!!" Mako snorted as his orcs trembled, but not of fear. "Bring my warriors here, I will burn that village to the ground!!!¡¹ After relaying his orders, he Howled with all his strength, before releasing his aura, He then tossed away the spear. What others didn''t know was that, he wasn''t a warrior but a shaman that chose the pathway of the dead,unlike others. How long had he lurked within the shadow of this Nazu, slowly absorbing the power of death, while constantly building his power. But that was not needed anymore, Now he was going to take everything for himself. As he controlled his magic, he turned the Dead into zombies, as they stiffly rose from the ground. he knew, he was no longer going to have peace with this people ever again. so he is going to kill them all. directing his magical energy into the air, He slowly expanded the reach of his magic. After observing Mako''s actions,Nazu sensed danger, "You! How could you!!¡­Do you know what you are doing with that accursed power?!!...you will only bring trouble to yourself" Mako''s eyes Flashed, and he roared,"As long as I kill you all, Everything will be fine". As soon as he was done speaking, He ordered the zombies to attack. More casualties appeared among the black moon tribe as they charge towards their village, Meanwhile, their enemies were increasing. "Nazu...I think you should come as my woman now, or I dunno what I would do". "You wish" Nazu replied, ordering her people to get ready to retreat. "Forget it, your dead body is fine too" Mako finally said. "You!!" Nazu''s eyes almost popped out from anger after hearing Mako''s words. "Huh?... why are you angry?" Her eyes almost shot fire from anger and Her appearance now was so frightening and fearsome, that the Orcs from her territory all instinctively backed off. "DIE!" She launched the first strike, Her body becoming a momentary blur. ''CLANG!'' her sword landed with an incredible impact but was blocked by a black dome shape spell. "Kuk.." In fact, she nearly let go of her sword. Now Her eyes showed her madness, and she was absolutely crazy with madness right now. But because of this, her rage in battle also rose. ''So annoying.''Mako thought, as he knew her well. Looking at her, He allowed the dome to Explode, forcing her back by several meters before ordering some zombies to attack. It was then, Nazu noticed the amount of mana coming out of the Bracelet, hanging on Mako''s wrist. "Just die." Mako yelled, shooting a black beam at her. This time she opted to dodge and called out to her people but... BANG! She flew back 10m, and landed on the ground Mako didn''t stop there, He ordered his undead to attack her specifically but she stood back up like a demon, and started laughing giving a somewhat dreadful vibe,Mako squinted his eyes in disp.l.e.a.s.u.r.e. He clearly hated this about her, after all he had been watching her for years. But the charge he expected didn''t come, Instead she... "She retreated?" Mako was stunned as He watched her and her warriors run. "...." Chapter 38 - 37: Loss Black moon village, Alex is resting against the wooden pillar with a face of utter nonchalance, He quietly stared down at the Female Orc tied beneath the pillar. He silently watched her actions without saying a word, making her Uncomfortable. It was all normal tactics he had employed before, now he was curious how it would perform on an Orc. As if he were merely waiting for a bus on a spring day, He yawned casually before casually brushing his jaws with his hand. as relaxed as his face was, He had been using the intimidation skill since he saw her status earlier. "What do you want?!!" She finally says with a frown. "Good. Why don''t you start with how many hunter''s and Alhamas does your clan have?" Without wasting time, Alex began asking questions, He squatted down with a toothy grin while looking her in the eye. "Hmm,you have a good eye, would be a shame to lose it." Wide eyed, her black pupils swiveled to look at this Orc before her, for an inexplicable reason, she felt fear from his casual words but her mouth remained shut. "didn''t think you''ll be forth coming from the beginning, after all, your a shadow." He continued his dialogue without care before picking up a thick Rod that He had prepared for this interrogation. Alex calmly weighed it with his hand before looking up again,"should be just right!..." "..." Seeing her expression and his action brought back some memories from his past life, Her silence weren''t helping matters either. "Moz, you''re not making this easy for me..." Shocked, She looked at him in surprise because, She remembers that she never stated her name till this very moment. "Who are you?!" Ignoring her question Alex asked, "are you comfortable in the Blood horn clan?" "From the way Ghur abandoned you, I''m sure your standing isn''t that great." He continues as he watched her every action. ''If only there''s a way for the system to allow me enslave them peacefully...haa" [Such actions can only be taken when your territory is at the minimum level of Basic Level 3] With that, Alex open the Territory Tab to see how much Exp was left till this Level. This was the second thing that makes him look forward to that Level. [Ding!] Village Name: Black moon Village Area: 2 square kilometre Village Territory: 44 square kilometres Loyalty: 86% Residents: 148/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv 3= 200) Soldiers: 45/300 Guards: 8/50 Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley. Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village stone wall, Wooden Residential buildings x30, Smithy, Basic Logging(Low), Farmland(83%), Advanced Mining Field(96%). ________________________________________________________________________ ''Still a long way, might as well just go with it'' After making some calculations in his mind, He looked at Moz before shrugging. He walks up to her thinking, ''When was the last time I had to do this kind of dirty work, I guess I can use this chance to test the limit of an Orc''s body, even though she''s on the weak side of things''. "Now back to my first question, sorry for the Delay, we can get started now" As he spoke those words, His eyes released a faint golden color as He lifted up this metal. WHAM!! He struck the side of her knee with extreme force. Aaargh!!! "Sssh...Sssh...Sssh, Wow it''s still intact!." He shushed her, "Now I think you get the Idea of what''s about to happen, Are you sure you don''t want to talk now?". "Mmmmph..." Moz glared at Alex as she struggled to remain quiet, the blood vessels in her neck bulged. "how many hunter''s and Alhamas does your clan have?" Indifference rested on his face,despite seeing the glare, He seemed so focused doodling something on the ground with the rod. "..." "I don''t get it!!!" Alex said while standing abruptly. Wham!! WAM!! He began striking several joints repeatedly without stop until... [Ding!!] [New Hidden quest unlocked!..."Touching the threads of fate".] [Summary: After a failed raid, your men urgently retreated. but along with their retreat, they also brought back a deadly enemy. Destroy this enemy at all cost!... Objective- Kill Mako the ''Bloody''. Reward: Skill upgrade card x4 ,random equipment card x1, Epic Character Exp card and 1000 system points.] __________________________________ "Huh??!!" While standing as though he was frozen in time, He read the new quest details. "What the hell happened?!" Alex suddenly yelled in shock, He couldn''t be bothered with the female shadow orc anymore as he read through the notification once more. He noticed that there was something different about this quest, First, was the color of it''s title that was highlighted purple. Secondly, the reward were all new kinds of items except the Equipment card, the system points obviously came with the recent upgrade. Finally, for system to be this generous, then this wouldn''t be simple. ''They failed? and Mako that vicious character is...'' Alex thought of this enemy and couldn''t help sighing "Haaa". Alex remembers this character, He was someone who had clawed his way from the very bottom by sacrificing his tribe to a god under the Night mother''s faction. He also caused a lot of trouble for the ''Nisipurl'' Kingdom with his Undead army even before he became a Champion and ruler of dark Nation. He then went into hiding and was accepted by the ''Great House Gorvhard, Also known as the House of Esos, A member of the six great houses that were at the Apex of the lordly houses, known for its power over ghosts and the mysteries of the dead. Their leader, the Great Lady Narna Gorvhard, allied with House Pelesi and used the then champion Mako the ''bloody'' as a secret weapon to spearhead an attack during conflict with Umbral House and Farrante. It was at this point Mako really made his debut, but now the system asked Alex to kill such a character!!, How could he not be worried!!. ''Wait!...No!He shouldn''t be that powerful now!...it should be doable and I could use this chance to steal his fate by taking his chance to join the big league but...Lets complete this first before thinking about that.'' Alex thought as his eyes gleamed with excitement before looking at the groaning Orc beside him. After staring for a while he said,"we''ll continue this later..."He walked away with big strides, after all there was preparations to be made. __________________________________ Alex quickly went to Lovan and asked him to gather the workers in the village, They began digging trenches and began cutting trees to make barricades some distance from the village. Alex suspected that they would be coming from the village where they went to raid, but he chose to make some defenses around the village just in case. The hustle and bustle began make the Black moon tribe tense but no one had the courage to ask, Lovan chose to ask once they were done because Alex looked lost in thought. He kept staring in the direction of Laboni, as though he was waiting for someone. Soon Torrelsav and Co appear from behind the tree line, looking quite terrible as Urim and Largash helped the Berserker up, Dabok had a frown plastered on his face. Alex couldn''t help sighing when he saw their expression, their numbers had reduced as many were lost in the battle. Alex quietly looked to the sky and thought in his heart, ''When you think about it, this is probably our first loss since we made the tribe...'' Chapter 39 - 38: Goddess Again Alex silently watched them settle down, Dabok silently walked up to Alex without saying a word. Torrelsav had guilty expression on his face but Alex didn''t feel he had any reason to blame him. The moment he found Mako''s name within the quests description, He understood that, That fellow was the variable that caused their raid to fail. So he only said a few words, "What happened?". Quickly, Torrelsav explained the situation while the others looked on with worried expressions. The other who had been working got agitated as well, including the few pregnant goblins. Dabok watched Alex''s expression without saying a word. "I see...you guys go in and rest for now." At the end that was all Alex could say, no matter how he looked at it, that seemed to be the best option for now. After all, they''ll need every capable hands right now and He also saw that the main reason he sent them had been achieved. They were mostly a step away from breaking into the 2nd circle, with Dabok being the lowest level at Level 17. As he was thinking, He felt the same sensation he felt on the night Ayaseh visited . [Detecting divine mana signature...] [Owner Detected: Ayaseh has descended, please proceed to the Temple] ''Why is she here again?!'' He watched the group return to their Quarters and it just occurred to him that Urim had been living in the small room on the left side of the Manor. ''Why didn''t he take a full house for himself, I''m sure no one would compete with him'' This was Alex''s thoughts as He couldn''t help looking at Urim''s retreating back strangely with a wry smile creeping up, making him look a tad bit ugly. One of Torrelsav''s daughters kept looking back at him like she had something to say but changed her mind, Unfortunately Alex didn''t see this, since he was already walking to the temple with confident strides. Dabok on the other hand began to wonder if this was the ''God'' Alex normally mentions as He stared at the carvings on the temple door. He watched the doors open to show a pitch black interior, welcoming Alex in. Seeing this scene, He couldn''t stop his mind from wondering, ''to increase my power, do I follow you?'', his question was directed to no one in particular, He just stood there in a daze but after a while, he also retreated for now, hoping Alex would have a solution to the approaching crisis. ________________________________________________________ What spread before Him was a familiar scenery he had once seen before, Once again, He was within this pitch black Hall, Whispers and silent wails on the walls but no sign of the Goddess "Olhani...!" An eerie whisper traveled to his ears as he became more vigilant, the white marbled statue at the center of the Hall had an eerie green glow within it''s eyes. It stiffly turned its head and the moment it locked eyes with Alex, The entire hall lit up with grey colors. Goddess Ayaseh lounged lazily upon an throne made of shadows, Alex could faintly see arms attempting to claw their way out of the throne. This time she took the form of a woman you would normally see in Greece, Her iconic green eyes looked at Alex teasingly. "you''ve gotten quite handsome, haven''t you?" She said as she scanned him from up to down, full hair that swayed as though it had a life of it''s own, like several shadows trying to make themselves known. Huh? Alex on the other hand, had his head filled with question marks but couldn''t help but wonder, ''could this be her real form?'' One thing that made Ayaseh a mystery was because the author never let her show up twice with the same appearance. The mother of the night raised an eyebrow at his shocked expression but she found something interesting, ''His soul is definitely healing as I had suspected and He evolved so quickly...hehe I wonder what Ragol would think.'' Unbridled curiosity flashed through her eyes as she asked cryptically while putting thoughts of the stupid sun God on the side, "and? are things going well?". "depends on what you are referring to." The Shadows by her feet was now more active. Her pure white toga squirmed for a second before relaxing again. The goddess soon emanated a dignified and coercing aura befitting that of the ruler of the Abyss. ''was she satisfied with my answer? or was she not?'' Her two Green eyes narrowed themselves into a slit like a snake''s. she folded her hands together, resting her perfectly sculpted chin over it as she stared at Him. "I''ve been to Coga...I suspect your old enemy is making a move with Mileesi". "what are you talking about?" Alex asked, ''She went to the Heavenly Sun kingdom? The mysterious realm that Ragol resides in? and what''s this about the goddess of fate?...'' ''Right!!... the misunderstanding, was she probing to see if I got back my ''memories''. As if satisfied with herself, the goddess''s face twisted into a smile just like a little girl who''s enjoying herself. "Forget it..." She said with a smile as she mischievously looked up at the roof like she was imagining something. Seeing her smile like that, Alex felt wary..."what are you scheming?". "nothing Really¡­ as of now," she chuckled. "Hey why don''t you become my champion." Oh no! "I don''t think...I don''t think I can" Alex cautiously said. "Eh??. how vexing, to think the first person I ask would reject me... Why?!." Sound of high-pitched laughter resounded across the walls, The goddess suddenly scowled and glared at it. ''Whats the deal with this walls...is it only like this when she comes around or is this thing usually just lying in my territory?'' "ha ha ha¡­ well I just wanted to offer assistance, because the Enemy approaching has become a champion". ''What?! Mako?! Already?!'', A scowl spread across his face as he thought about it. ''He must have sacrificed his clan'' "why don''t you consider my offer?!" She urged once more. Alex squinted at her words, ''what is she scheming?!. Why is she so fixated on me to the point of being polite, if she really wanted to, she could do it like in the novel where she forced it upon the antagonist.'' ''Unless, She can''t force me!!! but why?!'' His brain worked at an accelerated rate but he still chose the side of caution, yes killing Mako would easier because of the hierarchy amongst gods but once he becomes her champion, the world would be alerted and that would be asking for trouble. not just because of the war of Gods or even Davis Fairchild, the situation would put him before the lordly houses earlier than needed. Ultimately, the cons outweigh the pros. "I''m sorry, but my answer remains No" He finally said. " you wouldn''t mind if you lost all you have here? is that what you''re saying?" her gaze was sharp, piercing through me into my very core. "O¡­of course not, I will solve this problem." "ahahaha, Interesting... truly a sight to behold." when those words entered His ears, He couldn''t help but feel relieved. ''She didn''t get angry''. "I look forward to seeing how you solve this problem, The danger approaching is going to be tough." declared the goddess with an expressionless face. "If You do win, perhaps I could strike a deal with you" Her Voice echoed as Alex was flung out of the temple. Alex stared at the doors with a solemn expression. Chapter 40 - 39: Preparation 1 Nazu POV That beast, Mako could attack us at any time, and yet the situation inside the village doesn''t look favorable. our defenses are rather poor, Many of the Orcs in the village are dissatisfied and feel tensed by situation. Even if I hate to admit it, I have been very dissatisfied with the village since I saw our new neighbors. I asked Raal to investigate the situation at Mako and Kou''s village, and From their investigation, I found out that Mako had killed everyone for a Shaman ritual. Who knew that he was actually a Shaman!?. ''Perhaps, I should submit to the Black moon tribe?, Surely, I can rely on him to accept me and my people?'' My thoughts were all over the place as I looked for Joga, but he was no where to be found. ''No, I can''t go to him just like that...He might want to make me his sow'' I frowned at the thought as I began to wonder what kind of Orc the Black moon Chief was. ''Then I will prove that I Nazu am a powerful warrior and would not just be anybody''s sow'' I made a conclusion before another thought came once again, ''What if He is a powerful warrior, then we have strong children? but Nazu don''t want to be a common sow''!!... I''ll...'' "My Chief, Problem!" ______________________ Black Moon village, Two days after the failed raid and the Goddesses visit, Alex wore a constant scowl since that meeting with the Goddess. He began to wonder about what could be the reason for her words concerning the Goddess of fate and Ragol the Sun God. He went through the possible reasons, Normally he would have gotten an Idea from the Novel he read but the timeline he was in was only at the early stages where the author revolved around Davis and his academy life. Besides that, the next major event that might actually affect him was to come on the Next purple moon when the Beast men (A/N: People who evolved from magic beast) in the kingdom of Cullbeg Assassinated the Son of the ''Mad'' king, King Bodda Grimbald. His Son who was murdered was a Halfling the king adored, He ended up dead in the palace study as he had been mistaken for the king. This was like the match that lit up the fires of war across Luegad as the situation was already tensed at this point, subsequently the King of Eudaraime, the second largest kingdom in the world, King Martin scolfied was framed as the culprit by the schemes of the Great house of Umbra to create chaos in the territory of the house of victorious Sun. King Bodda Grimbald Launched a full scale attack two months after his son''s death, earning himself the title of ''Mad'' king. Honestly, thinking about all this Now, Alex suddenly felt tired. ''This world haaa...'' He looked at the Temple one more time before going to inspect how far the Goblin serfs had gone. when He got there, he was impressed while thinking, ''Goblins get smarter as they evolve. A single class up can make a huge difference. Things with change with their second evolution as Hobgoblin, with their improved intelligence and better dexterity added with their rapid birth rate, it''s only a matter of time before I get a stable population with able hands, anyway in this way, I can also strengthen my army. As for the village, Lovan has proven that I can rely on him, so I''ll be leaving the protection of the village in his and Dabok''s hands when I''m out conquering new lands. He needs tools so he can start making potions as well, perhaps he can also level up that way. Infact there''s a more pressing issue that needs to be addressed!, Mako''s Undead. They are going to be a good leveling experience but the issue of safety and Mako being a champion now, this is much earlier than it was supposed to be, could be a butterfly effect because of something I did?... I''m going off topic again''. "Raa raaa" "Krikkkii" "Chief!!" Alex responded with a Nod before going back to his thoughts, ''I need more men, warriors to increase my fighting force and that village is my only option, do I go there? No not the best time to leave the village, I can''t afford an internal dispute now.'' "Then there''s the issue of fighting techniques" He suddenly remembered this as he stopped his steps abruptly, ''I had noticed this issue before and so I had started to train them but I had to put a stop to it because of the expedition, but now that there''s a crisis, I''ll have to start that training again. This is better than them being idle and fighting carelessly.'' ''there''s also the problem of scouting, since I recalled everyone back in preparation, I''ll need to go out scouting, But they are to head northwest and make a beeline to laboni, Then Tomorrow, I''ll have the scouting party go south from here to see what''s going on in that village since Urim was sure that their Chief had survived, hopefully we''ll get some useful information.'' Earlier today Alex had ordered Urim to take out everyone that were close to levelling up to hunt as much food as possible, After all It''s imperative that they bolster their forces as soon as possible and have a good amount of meat, luckily theirs the storehouse from system, so there''s no need to worry about it spoiling. Then he had the free goblins dig holes around the village, creating pitfalls just in front of the Stone wall. It was only the height of an average Orc carrying another on his shoulder, so he wanted to increase the height further for his enemies with the pitfalls directly in front. Like this He gathered the remaining three new warrior Goblins to form a scouting party. The ditches and pitfalls were still only 65% done by the time He had returned. Evening arrived and Urim''s hunting party returned. There were a lot of unfamiliar people following behind him. Seeing this Alex began laughing hysterically for the first since he got the Quest. "My Chief" said Urim At those words, The full squad kneeled, and Alex took a look at their stats. [Name: Urim Race: Guardian Orc Level: Lv 20(Order of the second circle) Power Rating: 10,400 Relationship: Black moon Guardian warrior, Blood Brother to the Black moon Chief Alignment: Chaotic Neutral His figure was now a head taller than Alex with a thicker muscle mass and weight, His hair were now shoulder length with a thick beard on his jaws making him look more wild. Name: Gilgar Black moon} Race: Half-Orc Shaman Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10243 Relationsh.i.p.s: Daughter of Torrelsav, Black moon member Alignment: Chaotic Neutral} _______________ {Name: Largash Black moon} Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10455 Relationsh.i.p.s: Daughter of Torrelsav, Black moon member Alignment: Lunatic} The other three remaining Orcs were The generic orc warriors with two being Orc Hunters, a variation from the warrior path with the last being an Orc champion which was strange as Alex found out that he had no blessings. ''Do I have to try something like giving him my blessing?!'' Alex mused as it was just a fleeting thought. He looked up at the now Hobgoblins numbering a pitiful 13 which was rather heart breaking for Alex, They still had their Goblin looks except they were now taller with longer hair, making them less ugly. The tallest one being a 5.4 in height and the shortest being a 5.2. Their general stats looked like this [Name: Level: Lv 20(Order of the second circle) Power Rating: ranging from 8000-8500 Relationship: Black moon member Alignment: - Blessings: none] Goblins of the second circle, have a chance to change class at this point which makes them enviable. they were still generally weaker than Orcs but were more dexterous. With this sight, Alex mused once more, ''Looks good, I guess I''ll have to wait for the next generation before thinking of any long term wars'' Chapter 41 - 40: Preparation 2 Mako twitched his brow and stared in disbelief at the Bronze bracelet that gave out a hollow grey light in front of him. It seemed that he couldn''t believe his eyes, but ignoring it wouldn''t change the fact. The truth was so clear that no excuses came to his mind. He needs more? ''Just how much will you eat?!!!'' Although, Mako sacrificed his village and the laboni village just to earn himself the title of champion for an unknown God, He only got half the abilities he was promised but what left Mako anxious, was that the mysterious God still wished for more and along side a part of his soul. If he does this, he was promised the power that would leave others with unprecedented fear. In fact he could feel it, the more massacre he performed the closer he felt he was to the third circle of evolution. The Necromancer began to tremble with excitement as he imagined himself stronger and how his master would react if he sacrificed that village of high leveled goblins and Orc. But He was annoyed by how slow his un-dead soldiers were, Now they numbered five hundred and sixty four. which he felt was inadequate to destroy that village unless he could get his hands on higher leveled bodies. And that was when he thought of Nazu, Mako was a Banished member of one of the five largest clans in the Orc Country of Degr, the ''Grey-back'' clan. This family was one that leading clans with their powerful reserve of great warriors, consisting of mainly Berserker s like the Great Orc King. However, Mako believed in something else and that was the use of ones intellect than brawn. The Greybacks frowned upon this welp''s cowardly acts during battles and to top it off, Mako had no strengths as a young Orc. The Clan basked in glory for a long time and ignored this disgrace until Mako found this bronze bracelet. He began experimenting until he heard the voice from the same item, In an attempt to test more theories, He found out that it was linked to necromancy which was frowned upon in the whole of Luegad but He didn''t care, in fact he began to wonder what was so wrong that everyone chose to ignore this form of power. He continued this way until he evolved for the second time but was found out by the Clan head. Filled with fear, He attempted to kill his patriarch but failed miserably. Due to his actions impressing their Clans guest who had been covered in a Grey robe, He was spared but also Banished with a mission. And that was for him to take ownership of the Black moon lake''s region with his own strength. He was sent here to establish some achievements in order to rise abruptly to a towering position in the ''Grey-back'' clan and be accepted by the mysterious Guest. However, this wonderful dream seemed to be drifting further away from him when he arrived. After he took over an Orc clan with his necromancy and instilled fear in them, He led them to attack the neighboring villages as he took in the Orcs and killed the rest, but all that came to an end when he met Nazu. A powerful Female Chieftain warrior, She almost defeated him at the expense of her men, so she chose to call a truce at the end. Mako had hastily agreed as he knew he didn''t have the abilities to counter hers completely, so he bid his time, as he continued to secretly build up his strengths. But then he found something fascinating, Her bloodline after her second evolution was actually an ancient Orc bloodline that was connected to the guardian of the Legend of the Laboni territory, the one the forest still feared till this day. He began trying to find ways to conquer her but she wasn''t easy. If he could just get a hold of her body, then he''ll hold his first powerful corpse. Due to the sensitivity of the Nazu''s Bloodline identity, He chose to act cautiously. In a country where strength were used as a basis in status, Mako''s abilities wouldn''t be underestimated if he had her under his control. In a Similar way, getting the creatures of that village would be great. Suddenly, he thought about Torrelsav and Urim''s battle, he couldn''t help l.i.c.k.i.n.g his lips. In the conflict a few days ago, it showed that he was the typical low EQ and high IQ, having no consideration for the feelings of others, He abruptly chose to cancel his years of planning, all in a fit of rage. When it comes to waiting for the right time, patience is a must but he obviously lacks this. ______________________________________________ After organizing the newly evolved, He immediately invited Dabok, Lovan and Torrelsav to the manor. Now the only important figures that hadn''t evolved was Dabok and Lovan, but Alex wasn''t worried as he was almost certain that after this battle, everybody should at least evolve if things go well. The three came in with Dabok and Lovan looking the same, Torrelsav braided the sides of his hair, giving him a more piercing look in his eyes, This made Alex smile. Everyone seemed rather restless, including Alex as he felt Uneasy. Although, He thinks this is more of a problem of character. Orcs and Goblins are known to prefer striking to waiting. "Yesterday, I thought of having the everyone do a mock battle, yourselves included." Alex spoke firmly without room for argument, even the ending of his words sounded rather menacing but that was just because of the nature of his new evolution. He then proceeded to explain, With the five of them in the Hall, Each of them are to take five goblins with three hobgoblins under them, totaling to 8 warriors under each of their lead. Torrelsav''s daughters would be exempted as he had a different fighting style for those two. Everyone are to be first equipped with wooden weapons, No use of skills as he wants to improve their motor skills and use of dexterity, The two half-lings would lead the excess Hobgoblins into combat. He then led all the warriors to an open space on the south of the village, Then after confirming that everyone was ready, He decided that Torrelsav and Urim would be the ones starting. The two parties readily agreed with Urim being particularly excited, He was a head taller than Torrelsav after his evolution, perhaps that boosted his confidence. With all the preparation in place, Alex gave the signal to start. "Start!" At that, Urim''s team who had painted their faces with mud gathered into a circular formation as they ran. For a ''Guardian'' Orc, He seemed to prefer striking than defending but that formation hey used in charging got Alex laughing hard as they charged madly. What was weird, was that Torrelsav used the same formation but remained motionless. ''A berserker that prioritized defense over madly attacking and a guardian who charged madly instead of protecting'' Alex thought as he didn''t know if he should be amused or worried but he chose to see how it played out. "For the Chief!!!" Urim roared, making Alex cringe a bit. Spurred by the prospect of pleasing their chief, Urim lead his horde and charged toward his foe with more vigor. BAM!! Thud!! and... Both parties tumbled over each other rather comically with only Urim barely escaping as he looked at his ''squad'' strangely, Alex had his face turn black as he saw this, His eyes twitched as Lovan even had his jaws unhinged. The hobgoblins still behaved like Goblins and ended up messing up the whole situation. "This...!!" Alex suddenly had a bad premonition as he turned to look at his other Hobgoblin ''Warriors''. Chapter 42 - 41: Preparation 3 Black Moon territory, Just at the edges of the treeline, Nazu''s heart shook with surprise. Outside the once small village walls, laid a rough new stone wall. It wasn''t the size that bothered her, It was how solid the structure was, not too high, not too low, just thick. There were no weapons out on display, but she''s been a warrior long enough to know what a trap was. She remained squatting a while longer, recollecting her thoughts. "My Chieftain,...do you really want to do this?" A big bellied Orc nervously looked at the wall while asking. "We don''t have a choice Raal, Do you think our village can protect us from those things?" She responded rather sharply, partly because she was irritated, the other was because she hadn''t slept for days. She became Uneasy when she found out that Mako and his undead would only arrive after a day and a half, so She took all her people and led them here as their defense isn''t really ideal. And so planned to take a gamble by coming to black moon village, only to be shocked by the amount of changes the village had already undergone. Haaa!! ah!! huff!!Huff!!huff!! Gruff!! While she intended to continue her words, some strange sounds broke her line of thought. "Ho...Hobgoblin!!" Raal quietly exclaimed as his flesh shook, to think this was his true nature outside combat would make you question your sanity when you see him battle. Yes this fellow was Nazu''s right hand man, he could even be said to be her most loyal and strongest warrior when he''s not being a coward. Despite his cowardly ravings, Nazu didn''t respond as she tried to understand what this Hobgoblins were doing. They seemed to be running around the village while chanting loudly, ''A ritual?'' She wondered, before choosing to silently watch. The Hobgoblin did this twice around the village over the last two hours before charging through the gates in a wild dash. "RAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" They yelled as they dashed in like their lives depended on it, It was then a loud baritone voice rang out in the whole village. "The last one, will have their hair removed!!" It was this that reminded Nazu of something, ''how come the males here has hair, unlike other orcs and goblins''. "What does this mean?" Nazu absentmindedly muttered out loud, startling Raal. "What?" He asked not understanding her. "I mean...His words, is their hair a weakness or something?Why does it sound so precious" She continued, trying to explain. _________________ Honestly, one cannot blame Nazu as she had always had her hair unlike the male counterparts of Black moon village who suddenly gained this new feature that so clearly adds to their handsomeness. As a matter of fact, Alex had only noticed earlier today how important his people see their hair when Dabok mentioned it. It had even become a way for the females to accept a mate, as Black moon developed a belief that the longer your hair is shows how strong you are as a warrior. Till date Alex''s hair is the longest and so he is believed to be the strongest, followed by Torrelsav and then Urim etc, So it had become a trend without Alex realizing it. So with this new knowledge which he found humorous, He developed an interesting threat while forcing them to perform exercises in order for them to get used to their bodies. He had ignored this fact since He and the others as Orcs didn''t change much in shape but to the Goblins, this was a major change for them. After having them Run for hours, He then ordereded them to collectively pick up their short swords. then he made them perform the basic slash, cut and Pierce repeatedly while having Dabok order the Kobold, to make a standard sword. Meanwhile the other, Goblins were paired and thought series of attack patterns that would help them support each other during combat. The remaining Orcs were brought out of the village by Alex, Of course Urim, Torrelsav and the Halflings followed closely behind. The other villagers looked at the action with interest. As He lead everyone through the gate, He noticed Haji, Lovan''s little son was all grown up. This reminded him of the fast growth rate of Goblins into a.d.u.l.thood. Although once in a.d.u.l.thood, this slows down till it matches with the human''s. Orcs, Ogres, Trolls, Satyr and minatours shared similar traits, only differing by a slight difference. The Author had once explained this phenomenon as something altered by the God of time''s daughter, Angolria during the first war of Gods. This was way before Ragol ancended into Godhood, infact the present calendar only began counting since his Ancension. Anyway, Alex noticed the whole place was abuzz without the tensed atmosphere of the past three days and couldn''t help smiling wryly. ''Best to always keep them active then.'' He thought, before nodding at the Goblin with a smile. _______________ At the same time Alex stepped out of the gate, Nazu noticed them. Shocked by the group that stepped out of the village she docked behind a tree once more with Raal and the others being a step slower. She Noticed that the groups aura wasn''t much different from her, which means they were all of the second circle. In fact, She noticed Alex who was leading them had an even more powerful Aura that made her feel danger, coupled with the way he dressed with the Black furred cloak and Black battle skirt. His black hair was let loose and the three Goblin skulls used to adorn his belt made him look wild and vicious as his gold colored eyes portrayed a vicious light. Behind him was Torrelsav that she had met some days prior and on the left side was Urim whom was a head taller than Alex and Torrelsav. He''s hair was black as well coupled with a full rough beard growing beneath his jaws, due to The fact that the Great sword Alex gifted him had mysteriously increased in size to match his new size, it was extremely eye catchy, so Nazu quickly matched his picture with the orc she had mistaken for the leader back then. The group were all dressed in the same black battle skirt and had matching tattoos, so She came to a conclusion. ''They must be the Guards for their Chief!'' With that thought, She began to Access Alex once more. He scanned the Orcs one by one before speaking, "We''ll use here for training, so I want....". But before he could finish, His senses as a predator picked up on some auras and scents coming from the tree line. It didn''t take long for Urim and Torrelsav to pick this up too, which impressed him. "Oh? visitors?!!" The group all turned to the position Alex was facing. When Nazu heard this casual comment, She was shocked. At this moment, She felt like dangerous Magic beast had locked onto her. Chapter 43 - 42: News "Oh? visitors?!" said Alex as he scanned the group as they stepped out of the treeline, the one leading them was a dark red haired Orc female with slight gold highlight that was barely noticeable without Alex''s enhanced vision. She had gold pupils like Alex so he concluded that the female was obviously someone with a special bloodline or race and was probably the leader, not just because of her looks but also because of her stats, but what was surprising was that, 75% of her group was at the second circle of evolution. She had little on her besides some bandage looking clothes that wrapped her b.r.e.a.s.ts and some kind of battle skirt, obviously a rip-off of the ones used in Black moon village. She had short sword hanging in it''s sheathe at her lower back, which was an even stranger weapon of choice for an Orc. Another thing that surprised him was the fact that this female''s name was written in Gold within the system, which was a first for him. As he watched on, her groups number kept increasing in such a way that Alex''s expression became serious and the others became much serious. [Name: Nazu Redmane] Race: Royal Orc Duelist Level: 22(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 12570 Relationsh.i.p.s: daughter of Toro ''the Cruel'' and The One eyed Haran, Chieftain of Govan. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral/Lunatic ] Looking at her stats, Alex''s eyes were glued to the relationship portion. The name One eyed Haran was very eye catchy because he knew her. She was an Orc General under the king of Degr and a Powerful Dark Shaman that would later spread fear during the time of Chaos. She had one sacred order under her belt and the amount of Dark magic she controls made her a troublesome opponent for the protagonist, Davis during the battle between Cilldean and Degr had followed his father to battle in a bid to avoid the Queen''s absurd request. It was stated that Lord Fairchild, Davis''s father had been the one who murdered the dark shaman''s mate, He also happens to be the reason she lost her child and had left her one eyed, so He was obviously her first target for revenge. After a successful ambush, Lord Fairchild was bedridden and Davis was enraged, resulting in him leading a team of paladins to attack an Orc camp but he still missed Haran. In summary, this one eyed Haran was an important character in the Novel that helped with his growth and she was a Badass. Who knew her supposed, dead kid was alive and had been used as an undead by Mako. ''Haa what a twist'' Alex sighed in his heart and couldn''t help but feel a little sympathy for Haran. But now wasn''t the time for sympathy, a hundred and twenty eight Orcs were standing in front of Alex and it felt surreal, seeing all these muscles...Orcs in one place. Since he transmigrated, this was the first time seeing this many Orcs. Ninety six were at the second circle while the rest were at the first order of evolution!. Alex suddenly became worried even though his expression didn''t change, He hoped they weren''t here to fight because if they were then everything will just get complicated. After his earlier words, Alex hadn''t spoken and neither did Nazu speak, so the whole atmosphere became deathly silent. Unknown to Alex, Nazu was having her own thoughts. Her gaze was completely locked onto Alex as she walked forward. ''So strong!, perhaps if he wants me, I don''t mi... No,No,No what was I thinking just now?'' ''Go with the plan, Go with the plan, Go with the plan'' Finally shaking off the distracting thoughts, She looked at Torrelsav that she was ''acquainted'' with but he was watching her warily. So she decided to speak, "I come bringing grave news". Alex heard this and was relieved but he still kept his Guards up without saying anything. "As your people already told you, An enemy has appeared and is swallowing the surrounding villages. He is an Orc with no honor as he practices the act of dedicating our kind, even in death. He evolved into the one rejected by all, He is a ''Necromancer''." She paused, as though waiting for Alex to digest her words. Alex on the other hand simply Nodded before stating "All this I know, Tell me what you found. I don''t believe you came here just for this" Although he could already guess where all this was heading, he still chose to ask, in hopes of getting any new information. "Currently, there are over 500 undead in his horde. He led them to my village the day before but we had fled ahead of time because of the poor defenses. As of now, they will be en-route toward this village, which is but a day away from my village." Shit! Alex''s heart quivered, but paid meticulous attention not to let it show as he continued to inquire. "a day, I see...So what are your plans" Alex asked as his eyes flashed dangerously with folded arms but his mind had a different reaction entirely, ''Shit! It''s too early! So He won''t even give me time to prepare?, the Hobgoblins aren''t even ready yet!! but...if I can integrate this Orcs into my village it would be for the best, unfortunately I can''t make the suggestion or it would put me in a weaker position and make me seem desperate...'' ''But that doesn''t mean I would just sit and wait here doing nothing''. Nazu fell into a deep thought as She looked at the village walls. ''How do I do this without looking weak to my people and this Chief.'' After carefully weighing her options, She boldly asked, "I want us to work together to take down this threat..." "In what way, would we be working together" Alex counter asked, leaving her speechless. Before she could think of something to respond, Alex decided to that it was the best time to say this, "Why don''t you join my Clan?!" Subconsciously, Nazu wanted to agree but she had a feeling that, if she did, she would lose the respect and Honor she had gathered for years. So she chose to continue with what she had initially thought as She kept thinking, ''Since when did you start to hesitate so much''. "Then, allow me to see if you are worthy..."She solemnly said while drawing her short sword. Alex smiled, ''Smart girl''. He slowly raised his battle Axe as it mysteriously appeared in his hand. Obviously he brought it out from the inventory but others didn''t know that. Nazu and her people thought Alex was probably some kind of Shaman. He stared at Nazu without a word, but the next moment, He dash forward abruptly, and used reckless charge Midway, increasing his speed by 40%, the axe in his hand was swift like thunder as he chopped down towards her!. Surprisingly while he was in motion, Nazu seemed to have expected this attack long ago as she twisted at the same time toward the ground but never went down because she blurred out of his weapon range. "Interesting" with this thought, His eyes flashed as he subconsciously registered her as prey. Immediately her expression changed, holding her sword in reverse grip she stared at Alex before looking at the previous spot she was standing. "as I thought, very dangerous." She said, the floor had a deep gash and the edges had signs of burns. What she didn''t know was that, the attack would have been worse if Alex had completed the skill, as it was meant to do 200% more damage. Looking at Nazu in front of him, Alex nodded in appreciation. The previous blow was deliberately exposed but at the same time, it was like a sneak attack as he was testing her reflex. "So, do you want to continue?!" At this moment, Alex was also interested in the duel, so without waiting for her words, He once again launches an attack with reckless charge as the 10 seconds cool down was over. She also dashed forward before becoming a blur and appearing behind him, blatantly copying Alex''s earlier attack method, she chopped down. It was just a simple Chop, but it was savage, you could hear the sound of the wind... it was a multiple attack skill that consisted of 5 hits, all this was released towards his Back. He swayed left and decisively chose to use leap on the same spot after taking a step back. "Boom!!!" Nazu was knocked up into the air but she managed to flip, landing on her feet as she took a low posture. Her heart was in chaos as it continued to beat faster by the second. ''That cloak is rather sturdy!!!''. "Really interesting...!hahaha!!!" Alex said aloud with a laugh, this was his first opponent that used techniques and didn''t mind using things she saw. not to mention one of her attacks had landed on his cloak before he had reacted. And so he wanted to speak about it but Nazu went for another strike as She stabbed forward again after spinning on her heels, and Alex dodged to the side suddenly as he expected, avoiding the attack. Immediately though, Nazu switched sword to her left hand and waved it backwards as she dashed passed him. At the same time, Alex suddenly stopped His steps and rushed forward, He grabbed her wrist but she flicked the short sword upwards, forcing Alex to look up but he stopped himself mid action as his senses sent him warnings. He looked back at Nazu just in time to see her take a big step towards him with her right hand formed into a fist, glowing she swung it towards Alex''s Head. Not good!!! "ROOOAAAR!!". Chapter 44 - 43: Mine ROOOAAAR!!! Alex let out a roar as he twisted his body in response while he pulled the arm within his grasp to offset her balance, barely avoiding the strike to his head. but even still, the impact was horrifying as blood slowly trickled down his ears due to the loud sound. but to think that she still raised her fist once again without a hint of concern for Herself. "Hahahaha!!!" She laughed maniacally. """"YEA!!!"""Her people cheered PAK!! Her fist landed in his palm as it suddenly felt numb but he still held onto her hand, a grin plastered on his face, ''right!! aren''t we all Monsters!!?''. With that thought, Alex pulled her towards himself and lifted her off the ground, to which she responded with an elbow to his shoulder. This would have probably affected any other orc because of the amount of force she used but it wasn''t much for Alex who has the mitigation passive. And so with that momentum, He smacked her down on the earth, depriving her of whatever air was left within her lungs, she let out a yell before she began coughing and gasping for air. ""YAAAAHH!!!"" Black moon village cheered for Alex immediately, people within the village had already approached because of the disturbance. Just as Nazu managed to calm down, Alex spoke," you fight well" making her stunned momentarily at the unexpected compliment, he then clenched his fists and made a pose as though he was about to punch. "Well? now what?...will you submit?" Alex continued while thinking, ''I hope this stops here, It''s obvious her people are worried and might attack to save her'', Then he couldn''t help thinking, ''will my people want to do that for me?''. "I submit...haa" Nazu finally spoke while letting out a sigh. ''It''s not so bad losing this way...'' with that thought, she suddenly became conscious of their position as her mind sneakily went to her earlier thoughts. "Hey!! what is your name warrior!!" Alex''s voice tore through her chaotic thoughts, He was already standing with his arms stretched. "Nazu" She said, grabbing the arm and getting up to her feet. "well then, Nazu, I welcome you and your people to my lands", Immediately he said this words, a stinging pain spread across her left arm as she heard the screams of everyone she came with. The tiger tattoo automatically appeared on her arms and she could immediately feel the effects, Then Her golden colored eyes turned toward the Orc standing before her in bewilderment as one thought came to her mind. ''A Sigil!!??He''s a great Orc?!!'' She immediately grabbed onto his hand with a excitement visible on her face as she said, "Mine!!" Shocked, Alex could only stare wide eyed as he tried to understand what was going on, at the same time, Dabok quickly cuts in saying, "Nazu!!, you can''t just Claim the Chief". "Then who wishes to compete?!, I fight" She snarled as she looked at the surrounding women of black moon village, "The Halflings?" She could only conclude this way as she couldn''t find any other female Orc and they had been standing within Alex''s group. "Grrrr!" Gilgar began to growl the second she heard the word ''Halflings'' but Largash didn''t stop her this time, Her mind seemed to preoccupied by something else. Torrelsav''s eyes flashed as he looked at Nazu, Honestly he had been trying to find a way to get his daughters close to Alex, That he could ensure that no one would want to shun them. Alex noticed everything was about to turn into something else, so he had to stop them from fighting over him like some meat in the market. "Enough!!"He yelled, Alex knows that Nazu''s evolution had something to do with royalty and so she would have the same mentality as most Royal Orc female.They''ll only mate with one who had beaten them in combat. As soon as They heard his shout, everyone became silent. They all stared at him, in order to hear what he was going to say, "Nazu, I know by right I can lay claim to you as Mine, not the other way around" He said, as she looked up at him, closing and opening her mouth but no words came out, He was right after all, "But no is not the time for this, We need to prepare and make plans to welcome the Enemy...so This would be discussed at a later date". Dabok quickly let out a sigh of relief as he had been worried a rejection might make Nazu lead her people away, In fact Alex had thought of it but dismissed the thought, After all he knew they didn''t have anywhere else for now. but he chose not to reject her outright because of two reasons. "Fine" She snarled reluctantly and went into deep thought as she wondered why Alex wasn''t excited like imagined. "good, Now everyone come in, there is much to do, Nazu do you have a blacksmith amongst your people?!" Alex asked, He looked at the Red haired Orc that was in a bad mood and couldn''t help chuckling a bit. "Blacksmith?" She asked confused but Dabok quickly cuts in "Iron worker!" "yes I do but..." She replied and was about to ask why he was asking but stopped half way as realisation donned on her, "What do you want to make". But Alex only smiled and said,"Bring him first" "I''m here!!" a shrill voice called out from behind as rather tired looking Orc appeared, His skin color was leaning towards the brown side and he was rather buff, combining the voice with this look was rather confusing as the others except Alex and Nazu kept looking behind for who had spoken. Hearing his voice would make you think he was female, which was weird for an Orc but that explains why he''d pick black smithing as his path. [Name: Raz] Race: Orc Blacksmith Level: 14(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 6570 Relationsh.i.p.s: Blacksmith of Govan. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral] "M...my... My Chief" Raz stuttered, This was the first time approaching Alex and he felt that the aura was too intense but quickly calmed down. The others were shocked hearing the voice again from this buff Orc. "What''s your name?" Alex asked even though he already knew. "Raz" "Good, there''s something you need to do for me" Alex began to speak as they walked into the village. __________________ Meanwhile, ''Just mixing them won''t do.'' Mako thought as he looked at the zombie that looked like the mixture of a lizard folk and Goblin. He rubbed his chin. ''the speed has not changed.''. ''maybe if I carve out the flesh.'' He thought while eyeing a blade not too far from him, ''but there''s no time'' The Orcs that he got from Alex''s village had robust frames and thick tusks, So it would take a long time to carve off the flesh. "Now I''m even more eager to get their bodies, I wonder what the chief is like" Mako quickly moved his steps and left the Bodies he had been messing around with. He then ordereded the undead to begin moving once more But, they were now more aggressive. _______________________________ Chapter 45 - 44: So it begins... Same day, Somewhere in the skies, out of the knowledge of mortals, an alliance of the gods were holding a meeting once again in the confines of ''Amogrid''(palace of Eternal slumber), Where the Gods of Old planned and battled against the ''Yohohari''(World eater). Looking at it''s Dark surrounding, You would notice shadows that seemed uncountable, standing motionless in the background. Tiny green stars acted as lightening for this mysterious palace and Dark shadow-like furnitures were within this massive place. Several figures could be seen arguing over something before a huge empty throne made of shadows. Since the last war of Gods, this was the first time this halls were used. there were presently 9 Gods within this Alliance, created not by choice but due to circ.u.mstance. The only surviving founding member besides the alliance leader was ''Horjen'', Goddess of mystery and ruler of the unknown. for one with such title, She was dressed entirely in white, wearing a crown of thorns and held a black scepter, the tip of which had a glowing green flames that looked like the stars above their head. while smiling at the sight before her, She eyed the man complaining in the background but remained silent. Meanwhile, Droll the God mischief turned to the side and suddenly burst into laughter while holding his stomach, sprawling on the floor. He looked like a teenager with aqua blue hair and matching eyes, His black robe had holes in several places like a beehive but he didn''t seem to care. "Enough. Why are you even here, if you are just going to laugh at others misfortune." An elderly dwarve berated Droll with a serious look, but the latter seemed to find his serious look even funny as he looked stunned at him for a second before he began laughing harder. The dwarve had spiky grey hair with a red bulgy nose, his attire was obviously not his size either as it spread beneath his seat. "Goltan how could Milen do this to you?" asked another goddess who had a scowl plastered on her face, unconcerned about Droll''s red face. "haa I tried to pro..., recruit her but she said she would not join us unless the leader comes herself." Goltan, the crafting God smiled wryly while responding. "I see. Well, there''s no helping it then." Carx the God of travlers sighed as well. "Hold on, hold on. are they still at it?" Droll could not help asking."it''s been three centuries" "Are you all just going to pretend that one of my champions wasn''t just hunted down by the mistress of fate and Ragol''s deranged minions, what is this supposed to be? isn''t this bullying a bit too much?!" a powerful voice disrupted the discussions with a rather indignant tone, the owner of the voice had a wrinkled face with pointed ears. a red gem laid on his forehead and his black hair and green robes rustled like he was standing in a storm. This was the God of storms, ''Bolten''. "Calm down, No need to go into battle mode...your lucky the battle freak isn''t here" Horjen interjected. That was when someone forced it''s way through the barrier, and did a double-take noticing Bolten in full on battle mode. "what do you think your doing?" She asked with raised eye brows and silence filled the Hall. "¡­" "it can''t be!" Droll lost his cool seeing this person, it couldn''t be helped as he wasn''t the only one who was shocked by the new arrival. The one who came in was none other than the leader of the Alliance herself, the Night mother, queen of the Abyss, the ruler of the palace of Eternal slumber, Ayaseh. It had to be said that since the creation of this Alliance, this was the first time she came for a meeting even though they were held in her palace. Horjen was the first to speak, "Why don''t you ever use doors". She was the only one who could speak casually with this Archgod , so she tried to ease the tension. "Of what use is that, when I can just enter with the snap of my fingers, plus I own the place" She casually stated, the shadow throne wriggled about oddly when she got closer to it. If she didn''t know better, someone would probably think that she ever used the place. Eventually, Droll couldn''t stop himself from asking. "I say, how come you came today?" "Right?" Even Goltan asked in curiosity. Neah remained silent, He was an average looking man with glasses, He was dressed in a red attire with a note book in hand as he scribbled away. Droll eyed him a bit and Goltan was sure it was only a matter of time before he plays a prank again. "Ragol is taking big steps" Ayaseh stated and Bolten quickly added,"that is exactly what I was saying, they killed one of my champions" When all is said and done, Ayaseh felt that this guy had too many champions in her opinion and they were overly arrogant. "Ah..., it''s only a matter of time before they start doing more, in fact, I''m sure you all know that he''s grooming his own champion." She said in a solemn tone while her throne floated closer to them. "that just means you have to choose yours quickly," Goltan said. "and we need Milen on our side." "what about him?." Horjen asked, she remembers Ayaseh spoke about a candidate the last time they spoke. "I offered, he refused!" she said curtly, "!!!" Neah finally paid attention "What?!" Horjen stared wide eyed. "Someone actually refused you?!...is he still alive?"Droll asked while suppressing a laugh. "Who is this imbecile?!" Goltan exclaimed "Don''t worry, with the crisis he''s facing, it''s only a matter of time before he prays for help" Ayaseh said confidently while conjuring a mirror to appear in the center of the hall. "Eh?!! isn''t this..." Droll''s voice trailed off. ___________ Dawn sent shimmering rays over the surrounding, bestowing a golden path from the treeline to the walls. Nazu blinked toward the sun and couldn''t help feeling ironic that she had never took time to admire her surrounding on a normal day until today that might not let her see tomorrow, yet she was glad. She let the moment sink in, soothe her from her core right out to where the nascent rays touched her skin as she thought, ''Today I might die a warriors death!''. With that thought, a baritone countered as though it had read her mind, "No Nazu, today is a good day that usher in new opportunities!". Startled, she looked sharply at the figure that owned this voice. It was the mysterious Chief that was called ''Torug''. After a long meeting at the great Hall yesterday, This Chief mysteriously disappeared with her black Smith and the bearded One, greatly confusing Nazu as she was left with nothing to do but watch the training of the warriors with a bored expression. Now just as he went, He mysteriously appeared before her again as she fought the impulse to ask questions. Meanwhile, Alex had a different thought as he looked at this red haired Orc girl. She had the Expression of one who was ready to die and he felt like he had to change that mindset. "What do you mean?" Nazu finally responded after a long time. "I know you are not afraid of dying but you also worry about how you would die, so you are probably thinking about dying a warriors death." Alex spoke clearly, enunciating his words as he stared at the treeline further ahead. They were standing on the thick walls, watching the surrounding, oddly enough the people in the village didn''t seem all worried with all the training the day before, as they had done a lot of venting. this was the difference between them and humans. Alex brought out his battle Axe while smiling at Nazu, He said," Often times it is not numbers that wins the victory, but those who fare forward with the most vigor." With those words Nazu became even more confused and looked deeply at him saying, "What do you mean?". Hearing her question stunned Alex for a bit before he let out an Unrestrained Laugh, "Hahahahaha What I''m saying my dear Nazu, is, let loose and enjoy the fight, beat everything that stands In our way!!!" His voice boomed through the wind as the sound of shuffling came from behind the treeline, and as if on cue, the Undead came into view. Spotting the grey robed Orc behind the horde of undead, he said "And so it begins", His voice sounded deeper as he could barely hold back the instinctive growl. _______________________________ Chapter 46 - 45: Besieged Two days after Black moon started her preparations, the battle would finally begin. And just as Alex guessed, Mako had increased the number of his undead army and Nazu''s news was already outdated. During the days Mako had been hunting within the forest, and the undead in his hand had not reduced. Instead, it had gotten more and more. At this point, the undead that he had amounted to more than 800 if not 900. Now Mako was so confident that he left his undead and stood at the very front of the army with a condescending gaze. behind him stood an undead army that was a mixture of several creatures including Magic beast that were even in the second circle, like the satyr and a few Nagas, obviously after one more evolution, they would have completed their human transformation. Mako looked at his army and felt even more confident, he then said, "Nazu What do you think?, I''ll give you one more chance...come to me as mine and I''ll spare you. I will even give you power!!" Nazu turned her head and took a glance at the Black moon warriors that was forming not too far behind them. Her eyes couldn''t help but turn red with battle intent as she snarled, "don''t talk nonsense with me, your too ugly." Everyone burst out laughing with a few subconsciously rubbing their fingers through their growing hair. well except for those that only joined the day before. Hearing her words Alex too, couldn''t help but laugh. Infact, he had been the one who asked her to try and anger him in order to mess up his control over the undead but, ''This woman was too straight forward but it might just work out!''. Mako''s expression stiffened for a bit as he heard this, He looked at the people on the wall and noticed those who had hairs, even Urim was absentmindedly scratching his chin but Mako saw it differently. But he quickly calmed down, He noticed that they were acting differently from how he expected them to. He thought that they would charge out and fight to the death but no one moved till now, the gates were closed tightly too. But when he thought about it, he felt This was also a normal thing. After all his Undead numbered 1031 while they probably had a fighting strength of 300 at most. With a difference of more than double, it wasn''t a mystery why they would be scared to fight, so He thought. Mako didn''t care about this as he commanded his undead to charge forward. But at this moment, Mako was suddenly stunned as he turned to his bracelet and said, "What do you mean you want his soul?" While he asked, he turned to look at Alex immediately. Nazu and the others followed Mako''s gaze and saw that he was looking at Alex. Urim frowned and said, " Brother, Should I go and kill him for you?!!." ''Kill your head!!'' Alex glared at him immediately, well he could have done that if He didn''t see what he just saw. On Mako''s left hand, He had long rows of runes that would obviously increase the amount and lethality of his Mana. Alex never imagined that, Mako had already gotten this thing!!. This was a job well done gift from the Thing inside his bracelet! but it had another function in the Novel, it allowed that being to possess Mako''s body. According to what had happened, It had taken over Mako''s body during the time of his death but he was quickly dealt with by Davis and the support of Ragol. Then this dropped the clue on what might happen in volume six, which he didn''t have the luxury of reading due to his sudden death. Nazu was also clueless, at this time, due to Alex''s reaction, "for now, we''ll focus on getting rid of his undead soldiers." ''just f**king great!!, Alex your in deep Sh*t this time, how did he unlock that function at this time?! no wonder the system was somewhat generous.'' Mako frowned as well as he looked at the hole that was dug all over the place. After a while, he shook his head and said, "Attack!!" He said as he urged his undead to go forward without moving a step. Alex looked at the enemy, they were composed of Different kinds of undead. This scene made him feel a bit excited. He really wanted to see how much experience points this undead monsters gave. The first and second row of undead were fell into the holes, paving a way for those behind. Faced with the charge of the enemy, Alex waved his axe and shout, "attack!". Everyone began tossing alchemy stones without care. Booom!! Boom!! Boom !!. Mako played along and had his undead attack wildly. he still could ignore such number of casualty. Alex on the other hand looked at his people''s stats with the system and found that their exp was shooting up exponentially and couldn''t help but join in the fun. Alex stared at what was happening, he just noticed that those that didn''t get their head smashed, got up again as long as Mako acted. Right! what was the true dread about necromancers?, this was it!. but Alex could only go with this for now, in order to whittle down their numbers without feeding the enemy more bodies. Lovan and the serf goblins had worked over night to make this stones. In fact Alex had Raz make a light metal containers for putting more stones together, then he had Dabok use his totem magic on these metals. As soon as they get to a certain range to the gate, he would make the totem point explode by overloading it with Mana, which in turn, is magnified by the alchemy stones. With this thought, Alex gave Dabok the signal. BOOOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOOM!! Explosions rang out more intensely almost making them fall from the wall. Mako fell down with disbelief written on his face. Golden light flashed upon Dabok immediately and he got to Level 20, a white cocoon mysteriously appeared, wrapping itself around him. Black moon villagers weren''t surprised by this, instead they seemed even more excited. Nazu and her villagers were shocked to the point of confusion while thinking, ''Since when had evolution been so easy?!!''. What Black moon village didn''t know was that, due to their connection to Alex as his people, they didn''t get bottle necks, unlike other places where you might even lvl 20 and still not trigger the evolution process. So it was perfectly natural for the others to be shocked. While Mako stared in shock and confusion because of the sound earlier, a grey light washed over him from the bracelet, making him calm down. He stood up and quickly pushed his magic to create undead again. His hand moved. Swoosh!! Alex honestly wasn''t expecting the Mage to recover so quickly. He looked at the bracelet more seriously. Mako felt as though his c.h.e.s.t was filled up by something and so he let out an angry roar!!. Alex''s heart was suddenly angered as his blood translated this as a challenge to his brain, He took a deep breath and let out an even louder Roar. GuuraaaaaaaAaAAAAAH!!! One must know that, at this time the Alchemy stones were finished and the materials Lovan had stucked up were done as well, So everywhere was extremely quiet. Thud!! Alex jumped down and stood directly in front of the gate, releasing low growls as his eyes shined gold. Chapter 47 - 46: the Charge 1 At the same time, Within the palace of Eternal slumber, Droll shot to his feet in excitement. "He really did it!!, why does the method of this fake necromancer seem familiar??" He said with his eyes wide open, totally not caring about his image. The alchemist on the other hand seemed to be interested in something else as he continued to scribble away with much fervor. Goltan had a solemn expression as he looked at the screen and at the goddess of mystery that was next to Ayaseh. The latter noticed this and simply shrugged. "Ah!! Don''t tell me that is the bracelet that holds that Lich King Alger''t?!!!" Seemingly unaware of the elephant in the room, Droll exclaimed once again before noticing everyone''s solemn gazes, well everyone except Neah. "Goltan, I thought you ''took'' care of it?!!" Bolten scowled while Droll looked at him with a sheepish expression before he facepalmed, ''Its already over three centuries and he''s still this impulsive'', Droll thought, forgeting he was the one who had leaked the beans in the first place. "What Lich King?" Ayaseh asked curiously, while everyone looked at Horjen for help. "It was during the period you were recuperating after the fight with world eater, skull face tried making a God to replace your authority with the help of Ragol who gave him a piece of your aura. well long story short, it went rogue..." she explained as her voice continued to get lower the more she spoke. "Oh no, she''s doing it again" Droll commented "Ah!! that THIEF!!" Ayaseh yelled with so much hatred that her voice distorted, her hair and eyes glowed Darkish Green. "Haiis... another rampage" Goltan sighed dramatically. "Calm your Anger!! Calm your Anger!" Carx chanted and it seemed to have worked as the atmosphere calmed down once again. "I know it''s not time yet" Ayaseh said noticing Horjen''s look,"So what happened?!!" "He became a thorn in everyone''s side, Ragol as usual denied having a hand in this, no one could fight him as you were asleep. Skull face got thrown into the void as punishment, hopefully the world eater eats him. Luegad launched a crusade against the Lich but were unable to stop him, Ragol alongside Goltan and a few others joined hands but only managed to seal his conciousness as we couldn''t find his soul, destroying it would just give it a chance to..." Droll narrated with a monotonous voice but was cut off by Carx, "What do you mean by a few others and what''s with that tone?!!". "Tsk tsk tsk tsk" Goltan clicked his tongue repeatedly while shaking his head. "At the end of the day, we all here were publicly used by Ragol to..." Droll ignored Carx and continued but was cut off this time by Ayaseh, "Alright I know the rest" Goltan asked with an astonished expression, "Do you think he would..." Droll Chimed,"wait, why are they jumping down the walls?" "At least they aren''t as cowardly as those humans" Bolten said arrogantly. ''You were once one of those cowardly bunch'' Droll suddenly eyed this fellow with a speechless expression. ___________________ Mako looked at the scene before and couldn''t help the killing intent welling up within him. ''Such a magnificent body'' He thought, genuine envy was what he felt at this moment. Out of the three spells he had been given by the bracelet, ''Bone prison'' was the one he had a lot of mastery on. unfortunately there was a problem, His range was limited to 30meters which was not even half of the 300meters between him and this menacing Orc. Thud!! Several sounds rang out as Urim jumped down from the fence without hesitation, Nazu followed behind without missing a beat. Grriiiiiiiiii!!! Someone forced the thick wooden gates open as the other members of Black moon village slowly stepped with a few cracking their neck and knuckles. Alex remained unmoved as he stared at Mako, totally ignoring the renewed undead that was slowly approaching. Automatically Mako had been registered by his instinct as prey so his [Prey on] skill was presently active but he didn''t care. His feet dug into the ground as he placed his strength in his legs, like an arrow set to be fired off its bow. Low growls leaked out of his lips and for the first time since his transmigration, he was going to stop restraining his instincts and allow it become a Co-pilot. He felt This was the only way he could make complete use of this his body. Unsurprisingly, the others were itching to fight as well, their blood had long since been boiling to the point of it being unsettling ever since Alex released that wild roar...They wished to fight with their Chief. Although Alex was unaware of the full capabilities of the great orc path, It was still subtly at work without his knowledge but all this would be understood in time. The Villager noticed the change in Alex''s aura and was somewhat affected too, Silence reigned supreme as the only noise in the area was the shuffle and growls of the undead. Boom!! """ROOOAAAR!!!""""" Alex shot out like an Arrow, while roaring wildly, his people responded in kind as they shot after him. Thwark!!! Smack!! Thwark!! He weaved across the undead as he slashed off a few heads, creating bloody trail of black blood. The lucky ones were finished off by those behind him. The goblin undead were smacked out of the way by Alex as he shrugged them off like it was nothing. A zombie Orc opened it''s wretched mouth to take a bite but had it''s neck grabbed by Alex, who in turn spinned on his heel lightly before cutting down the foot of another. He brought back the axe and smashed the head of the orc in his hand while violently crushing the downed orc with his feet. Everything happened so smoothly that it looked so effortless, He took a short second to see how his people were handling the undead and was ready to retreat immediately without hesitation. Surprisingly, they seemed to have it easy dealing with them, He began to wonder if he had been worried for nothing. But then he remembered who they were battling, Mako ''the Bloody''. He wasn''t someone easy, for one thing that made him an annoying opponent besides the fact that he was a champion, it was his cunning nature. He knocked down an undead with a classic Spartan kick while finishing off with his battle Axe, before he could pull it out of it''s rotten flesh, another Orc corpse approached from the ground as it crawled towards him. without wasting time, he placed a foot on it''s back before pulling off its arms rather violently. dragging his Axe out of the former, before he slashed off the head of this armless corpse. "Isn''t this too easy?" He wondered. He looked at his prey again, Mako remained on the same spot with no change in expression. ''So unlike him''. With that thought Alex suddenly had a bad premonition but it appeared to late as a goblin corpse exploded just as it arrived at the corner of his eye. BOOOM!!! Chapter 48 - 47: The Charge 2 ''Ah! F*ck, I knew it''d be like this.'' Alex''s suspicion earlier had come true and He knew that if he was hit directly by this attack, even if he wouldn''t die, He wouldn''t be able to escape the following attacks. Bam! Alex launched off the ground with the use of his leap skill, the explosion hit the area, where Alex was standing a second ago, spreading rotten flesh and black blood around. There were other Goblin corpses rushing to that spot but were knocked back by that attack. Luckily, He was a bit further away from his men and so they weren''t affected as he was the prime target. The loud sound attracted the attention of the whole battleground, allowing him the chance to issue a warning,"The undead can explode". He was worried they''d need him to explain, but they seemed to understand what he meant as they began fighting much more cautiously. Nazu on the other hand was close on his tail, she fought with anger and disgust evident on her face. She recognized a few of the zombies here, as she had met them in one or two occasions, so she was very pissed with Mako''s actions for some reason. it lacked ''Honor''. Alex speedily activated the second portion of before it went on cool down. with the direction being where Mako was standing. landing on his feet, he broke into a sprint as he advanced further towards Mako. He slashed off heads, after which closed the gap with a ferocious and unyielding expression, By using his superior strength and Agility as a great Orc, Alex finally seemed to grab the upper hand¡­Tactically avoiding the Goblin undead as he Noticed Mako seemed not to have enough control to make the bigger ones explode. Until of course, the air around Alex rippled slightly with an invisible aura which made him smile. He was finally 73 meters away from Mako who was surrounded by 6 Second circle Undead Orcs , With a roar Alex said "My turn!!." And saying this, He increased his speed. During this entire charge, He had come to understand something about his skill [Prey On], It didn''t have to mark only one person as prey, It was depended entirely on him. He could conclude that a full army was his prey and it would still count, this in turn places the skills Debuff on them. Earlier when he had picked Mako as a prey, His mind had been easily affected by fear before he mysteriously gained composure, which was Most likely due to the bracelet. Pang! As soon as Alex got into range, he activated [Reckless Charge] And suddenly appeared before Mako, as if he had teleported. Qwang! Although He still had the speed boost and the 200% increase in Damage, when he attacked a translucent grey shield blocked his attack in a timely manner but was now filled with cracks. With one strike, Alex had almost completely shattered the shield. "WHAT??!!" Mako exclaimed, as this was the first time he experienced such. Unfortunately Alex wasn''t done, as his Axe in hand had been knocked upwards, He used the momentum to spin around and Unleash another strike. Mako decisively exploded the shields mana outwards, Knocking Alex back. The latter managed to land on his feet as Nazu raced passed him screaming "Punta!!!" (A/N: just think of it as a way The orcs and goblins in luegad call someone a ''bastard'' or son of a B***ch.) Mako conjured a bone spear, blocking her rapid attacks before pushing her forward and bringing up a Bone prison to trap her within. "Finished?" He asked, before saying,"Now wait quietly, once I am done here, we''ll have a good time", He then licked his lips in a perverted manner and then broke into a fit of laughter. Alex snorted as he once again used reckless charge. "you won''t have an easy death." Mako suddenly cussed as he made another shield which led to them re-enacting what had happened a minute ago. Only this time Alex smiled, according to what he remembered in the Novel, Mako can only use this shield twice a day before it could recharge. But it seems the present Mako isn''t yet aware of this rule, even if he was, he would had still done the same. He didn''t have a choice as he didn''t expect Alex could still perform that skill within a short time. As He knocked Alex back again, He lifted up the spear in order to throw it when the area behind him suddenly rippled. Shocked he tried to make another shield but failed as he watched the dagger plunge into his neck, venomously. PUCHI!! Silence filled the battlefield, Mako suddenly dropped with a thud!!, followed by the undead that had been battling. The bone prison collapsed but Nazu remained standing in shock as she stared at the one who had appeared. But no one was as shocked as Urim right now, after all he remembered this face, he was even the one who had helped tie her behind the Lords manor. That''s right, The one who had attacked was Moz, the Shadow Orc. She stood there like a ramrod as she tried to calm her beating heart, Her short brown hair swayed in the wind as she looked at her own hands, Shocked that she had been the deciding factor for victory. The bruises on her body didn''t slight her in the eyes of the others but made her look like she had fought a long battle. ______________________________________________________ Moz still felt like this was a dream,The night before the attack, Alex had offered her a deal after a long round of torture. He claimed to be already aware of the situation within the Blood horn clan, that there was no need for her to feel the way she was feeling. He also said that the reason her type of orc were looked down upon, was because of how weak they were in an open battle and that no one knew how to use her. Even the Hunter she shadowed treated her like a disposable Item, so why did she even bother. This, she couldn''t refute his words and so chose to stay quiet. Alex then said as he untied her,"I can tell you that, Blood horn might not know how powerful your type is but I know more than anything, just how dangerous ''Assassins'' are." When he was done he added," Your free now, If you want to learn you can join us in this place or return to your old place. it''s your choice". Honestly, she had been hoping to die here than return back, after all she had seen Ghur shamefully escape with his tail behind his legs, so he was bound to kill her. But now that she had the option to stay here and even be of use, how could she not be tempted, especially now that she''s interested in what this ''Assassin'' was. So she asked, "can you really show me how to be strong?" To which Alex simply smiled. Back to the present, everyone had begun celebrating except Alex. The system didn''t notify him that the quest was completed, which only meant one thing. GUOOOOOOO!!!!! A powerful gray light flew out from within Mako''s corpse. Boom! A shocking explosion sounded out as if everything would instantly be torn apart. A berserk and twisted killing intent suddenly descended, and the sky was instantly dyed a blood-red color. Everyone of them felt as if their bodies and souls had been frozen, and they felt an instinctual terror. The first to recover was Alex as he yelled, "Retreat!!!" Chapter 49 - 48: Quest Update. Boom! A massive explosion sounded out as a powerful shock wave blasted the surrounding area. Countless rocks flew everywhere as Alex stared in shock. There was a massive crater that was hundreds of meters wide beneath Mako''s body, with the crack that was so loud that Alex was taken aback sounded out. Crack! Craack!! His body began to expand and his skin seemed to retreat into his body, The destructive power was quite shocking. Watching the scene, Nazu repeatedly snarled as she nervously approached the slowly retreating Alex as he watched. She stared at the body in shock and cautiously called out to Alex, "Chief, will you fight?". Alex heard her question and couldn''t help chuckling darkly, escaping wasn''t an option as he was most definitely targeted by this entity, so how far could he run. ''In fact, I suspect this guy''s just a paper tiger as the system didn''t update the quest...'' And as if to refute his words, [Ding!!] [Hidden quest Updated!..."Touching the threads of fate".] [Summary: After defending your village alongside your people, Mako the ''Bloody'' was defeated through a well planned assassination. Unfortunately, He had succeeded in unlocking the second seal of the Banshee''s tears. Due to his death, Lich King Alger''t wishes for a new vessel and has chosen to use your body as the main property for his resurrection. Objective- Survive for 5 minutes. Reward: Skill upgrade card x4 ,Random equipment card x1, Epic Character Exp card and 1200 system points, Rare signature Mount(Tier 4), Village upgrade card x1(Epic)] ''Just great, I have a feeling this would be the longest 5 minutes of my life in both worlds'' Alex cussed repeatedly as he tried to think, He subconsciously tightened the grip on his battle Axe. His silence was misinterpreted by Nazu, not that he had the luxury to care about that now, ''He wishes to fight to the end!!?, Then I''ll stay''. Immediately, Alex noticed her and couldn''t help getting slightly annoyed as he told everyone to retreat. but then she was here because she wished to help so he couldn''t blame her, so He said "Lead our kin further away, if I fall, take them away and don''t look back". ''Not like I''ll let myself die though'' He thought as he looked at the 5 minutes stated by the system. Nazu looked at him in shock and wanted to protest when she saw Alex''s strong gaze as he nodded at her one more time. She seemed to understand something and said "Don''t fall" before leaving without saying anything further. He could only look at her with raised eyebrows, Urim was seen rushing towards him from the gates but was stopped by Nazu who said something to him before moving away. Urim he stood there for a while, changing glances between Mako''s body and Alex. After a few long seconds, He Howled from a distance while using his right fist to slam his c.h.e.s.t, "UUuuoooo!!!". With a slight thought, Alex understood immediately as a scene like this had been depicted in the Novel. This gesture meant, He had seen his Honor and will carry it on, It was first seen at the ''Nispurlian'' battle of Blood cliff against Degr kingdom. It had been a really touching scene but... ''This...are you cursing me!!??'' Alex fumed but Ultimately returned the gesture without howling, He didn''t have time for this, He needed to be focused. Finally, Urim left after staring at Alex''s cloaked back for a while, as if to etch the scene to memory. Not long after, the Land beneath Alex started change into the color black as it surround a 900 meter distance with black smoke oozing out. ''This...'' Alex''s pupils dilated, a Domain!!a powerful at that, this was something only someone in the stage of metamorphosis(5th circle) at least would use it as it was a powerful trump card that helped in their battle. He used the system to scan Mako''s body and indeed he was right. [Name: Alger''t] Race: Lich King Level: 38(stage of metamorphosis {weakened}) Power rating: 107300 Relationsh.i.p.s: Accursed, bringer of strife, The one who abandoned fate. Alignment: Evil] One thought came to Alex''s mind, incredibly terrifying. Even the ''evil'' was depicted in blood red characters. But He calmed down, Although this was troublesome, he noticed some oddities.''That power rating seems off''. It looked like something a late stage third circle would have, even someone at mid stage with rare rated equipment could have that power rating. this didn''t change the fact that the present him couldn''t even handle someone of this power rating. But he felt that if he could understand the reason, it might help him with this quest. ''well that means it''s a paper tiger, but a paper tiger I can''t beat'' He sighed. Seventeen seconds later was all it took for Mako''s body to complete it''s changes, there was now six black orbs floating behind the grey robed skeleton in front of him. it''s suddenly lit up with a red flame as it locked onto Alex. "Insufferable swine!!, you dare hinder me Alger''t?" A booming voice echoed as it''s eyes flashed inexplicably. Under a dark blue sky and black clouds, Alex sighed as he looked at the sky, ''for the life of me, this guy must''ve been really irritating''. But His eyes soon focused as he released a terrifying aura that could cause anyone to feel shocked, unfortunately it was nothing compared to the Lich he was opposing. "And who is Alger''t?" Alex asked as he decided to stall for five minutes, even when he didn''t know why the system said as such. "You dare mention my name?" The Lich asked sounding astonished. "Er you just mentioned your name but you don''t want others to use it?? ok how am I supposed to address you?"Alex retorted, testing the extent of it''s patience. Alger''t looked at the Orc before him and stretched out a hand, pressing it forward against the air. The black transparent orbs rushed forward as Alex struggled to dodge them, they brought with them a massive force as they slammed towards the ground. Boom! Boom! Boom¡­ Dust and sand were thrown into the air. After everything settled, Alex looked at the craters in the ground and frowned. Gulp... ''Aren''t you supposed to be a Necromancer?, just give me some undead to fight Ah!, what is this!!?''. Although Alex continued complaining, He felt somewhat excited. Situations like this one were his life was hanging on the balance was always something he liked, where his heart continued to beat as fast as it could, reminding him that he was alive. With another wave of it''s hands, The orbs floated back. Only now did Alex Understand that, those orbs were what made up the bracelet and he seemed to have gained minor control over what was used to seal him. ''The Divine are really capable, you seal something and leave it lying around?.'' Alex mused while cautiously looking at the Lich in front of him. The system had thought it useful to place a time at the side of his view and now it was reading 3 minutes 48 seconds, giving him a lot of hope. But he knew how much could change in a second, not to mention 3 plus minutes. "Serve me..." The Lich spoke once again. Chapter 50 - 49: Curse You!! "Serve me..." The Lich spoke once again. Alex suddenly felt speechless, ''weren''t you the one trying to kill me a few seconds ago''. He could only swallow those words as he weighed his options, ''This was supposed to be the one who opened the way for the Next boss after the Fall of glorious Sun Arc in the Novel''. Alex Racked his brain trying to think of how to use this information to salvage his predicament. Running away at this point would only be courting death as he remembered the speed of those Orbs. He already missed that chance. At the end, he could only bullshit his way through this. "I don''t think I am worthy of such opportunity" He quickly said. "Hmm? you''re intelligent, much more than the other One, good, good, good." Alger''t said, repeatedly saying good before continuing with what he had to say, "You think you had a choice? I say you are worthy then you are worthy". "I Alger''t will make you a powerful existence, one that would make kingdom cower in fear at the mere mention of your name, as long as I decide that you are my person I would make..." Alger''t spoke as the red glow within their sockets continued to flash brighter whenever he raised his voice but Alex stopped him before he could continue bragging. "Sorry to interrupt but..." Alex dragged out the sentence as he eyed the timer. 2 minutes 29 seconds... "Speak!" Alger''t spoke with slight impatience. "I believe before you can do All this you have mentioned, I will first have to fully unlock the seal". Alex said in a hesitant manner while feigning worry. "...." There was deafening silence after he said this, Alger''t scrutinized this strange Orc, after all he spoke clearly and seemed to intelligent for his species. He suddenly had the urge to dissect him and study what makes him tick but their is no need for that, once he gains control of it''s body and soul, all it''s secrets would be known to him. Immediately, Alger''t''s eyes glowed fiercely as though he was trying to make holes in Alex''s Head. ''It''s just unfortunate that I can''t use much power, any more than this and it would alert those...'' Alger''t felt disgusted at the thought of those so called Divine, the true problems of this world, ''they are nothing like Him'' He thought as he tried to recollect the face of... It was just then as his mind lingered at the thought of divines that he sensed it, an aura of the Divine laid in the village. The Aura was one so familiar, it was the one he had been made to replace!!, cursed by the Divine for their own designs. _____________________ Centuries ago Alger''t was but a simple farmer, living his mundane life with content. It was so ordinary and peaceful, No nobles in his village, friendly neighbors and a happy family. Time went on as everyone became familiar with the duo, living conditions also got better until the people started noticing missing people. The hunter suspected that this incident had to be connected with the Doctor and his apprentice but people denied this possibility, Alger''t included. It kept going on for months until people began to live in fear, the Doctor was once again called into question but was soon forgotten again. This went on until the day Alger''t went to see the Doctor, He had been arguing with his apprentice, Simon. They argued about something the apprentice was doing but Alger''t didn''t take it to heart until he heard sounds of fighting. By the time he rushed in, The Doctor was dead with his Apprentice Simon Weiss standing over him while l.i.c.k.i.n.g his bloodied fingers. "Ah Alger''t, haven''t you heard about knocking?" He said "hmm? hahaha who knew that what I had been searching for would walk right to me when I least expect". Before Alger''t could give any response, he suddenly woke up to himself being sacrificed on a strange Alter. Simon performed several odd gestures before painting his n.a.k.e.d body with blood and Drew a strange symbol on Alger''t. "wuwuwuwu!" Alger''t tried to beg for his life but found that he had lost his ability to speak, His tongue had been cut off. But before he could even register this in mind, he saw it! a phantom image, The image of Malphos who was later known as the fallen God!. Blue eyes that were cold and indifferent looked down at him a mortal man but a strange sense of excitement could be felt. Hair as Black as Night with pale white skin but the odd thing was, He looked like a walking corpse. He ignored Alger''t and turned to the evil apprentice, "Mortal, you have done well... what do you wish for as a reward?". "I wish to live forever in order to serve you, My Lord" Simon said, barely holding back his excitement. "Hmph... Aren''t you greedy one, don''t think you can deceive me, Take this, whether you find the secret to immortality or not depends on you. but know this, the day you lose your faith, so will lose everything" Malphos arrogantly said as he tossed a book at Simon. Once he was done speaking, He and Alger''t disappeared from sight. That was the moment his real suffering began, Malphos performed several experiment on him and his soul, till the newly ascended Sun God, Ragol came to visit Malphos in that Dark place. He handed a piece Ayaseh''s authority to Malphos and promised that if he succeeds he would help him with the secrets on how to evolve from a lesser God to ''Something else''. Malphos was elated and became even crueler in his doings... ___________________ "AH!!!" Alger''t suddenly screamed, as his slowly became unstable... Memories he had long forgotten as he locked them away in his mind surfaced with new found vigor... His Aura continued to shoot as he turned to the one standing before him. ''Another servant to the Divine!'' "Curse you!!!" He yelled as his domain began to expand at a great pace. the sky darkened as lighting continued to flash across the sky. "Rise!" An ethereal voice rang out as the Earth began to shake, At this time Alex was already dashing away. "Rise my Eternal Army!" "Destroy everything, We shall wash the world with blood and sing praises to Yohohari!!" Alger''t continued to shout despite the Orbs now trying to pressure him and suppress his power, a fierce battle was taking place between the both of them. Alger''t wants to summon as many Undead as possible, in order to give them free reign, they would continue to destroy everything and feast on everything even if he would be once again trapped within the bracelet. At least, He would have made contribution to the cause of his Lord and Master. "Hahahahahaha!!" Alger''t''s hysterical laughter rang out from a distance. Alex ran while using all the skills in his disposal to gain distance, such a chance had appeared as Alger''t seemed distracted, how could he not use it?!. But as he increased distance, He received a notification from the system. [Ding!!] [Unregistered life forms with Divine mana have been detected beneath Black moon territory, As they are trying to manifest in your territory, your authorization is needed, do you wish to grant them permission?] [Yes or No?] Alex was unaware of the reason behind Alger''t''s sudden outburst but he was happy about one thing. Chapter 51 - 50: Speculation Three minutes ago AMOGRID(PALACE OF ETERNAL SLUMBER) A group of people sat in different positions with a thick black table at their center, a projection screen hung up in the sky as they watched the images portrayed intently. At this point, Bolten was trying to bore a hole through Goltan''s head. Soon Droll''s voice rang out in a confused manner, "on a serious note, how did you lose the bracelet?... because, if I remember correctly, you''re the most meticulous of us all...so how?". "Hmph, not when it comes to Milen" Bolten scoffed. "Eh?!!!!" Droll screams before eying Goltan in mock shock. Snap!!{Sfx} Ayaseh could be seen scowling with gritted teeth. "Oh Oh... you just had to mention her name?" Droll spoke apprehensively but he couldn''t hide the excitement within his eyes. "Seriously... it''s been 600 years!" Bolten defended before changing topic, "anyway I think his dead" he said while pointing at Alex in the projection. "I don''t know why he didn''t just run away?" Carx chimed. Bolten looked at this fellow with a sneer, "Like you always do?". "T-a-c-t-i-c-a-l retreat..." Carx spelled without even flinching while everyone g.r.o.a.n.e.d in response. Droll stated flatly before tossing something at the scribbling Neah who grunted and turned the other before scribbling away once again. "It''s interesting how you do that all the time" "Was it 500 years ago, or was it 700 years ago? Bolten tried to remind them of an incident, "if he hadn''t run away, perhaps we would still be in control of the central Mana Node in the now kingdom ''Eudaraime'', I lost a precious champion that Day" "Good riddance to that Pillock" Horjen blurted out suddenly before covering her mouth with her hand. "I''m sorry, my condolences". "Anyway, Ayaseh... Dear, I don''t think he has much time left". Horjen spoke casually while looking at the screen. Suddenly Goltan stood up abruptly while pointing at the screen, unable to form words at this point but everyone followed his line of sight. On the projection, Alger''t had unleashed his full power. "to think, he had amassed that much power!!" Horjen, this Goddess of mystery was the first to recover. "When did he start serving, the world eater?" Carx was unable to stay calm, just thinking about that monstrosity returning, made him feel like running away. And then a person enters the room. The man or Shadow kneeled. a messenger!. "speak" Ayaseh said The messenger was about to reply when from the distance a booming voice came, "It''s time you lot select your champions or it would be seen as you lot ignoring the treaty." "Brat! where are your manners." Bolten roared, his Council robe swayed furiously, power emanated from him, and sparks of lightning can be seen dancing on his fingertips. But no response came... only silence. "the Nerve..." Droll clicked his tongue, even he was upset at this action. He had just been about to peer at Neah''s scribblings, hoping to be enlightened again but the young buffoon startled the alchemist. "To think a lesser God, can act arrogantly towards us now" Carx muttered. "Don''t worry, I dont think he''d be acting like that for a while..." Ayaseh said cryptically but her face didn''t show any emotions after all the messenger wasn''t wrong. AMOGRID and Zan even though they are allies, they also have been conflict. presently Zan were playing the neutral party for the upcoming war against the Ragol and the Von''d. ''just me huh?'' Ayaseh thought with a momentary frown. "They are neutral in this matter they said, but why do they even seem more anxious than we are." Droll complained. While they have non-aggression treaty with Von''d, and they both enjoyed peace for the last 400 years, till Ragol started acting up again, not like they were the ones who caused it. "You need to choose someone, Ayaseh" Horjen advised. "You don''t have to remind me "Ayaseh said annoyed as the shadows squirmed furiously as wails cried out from everywhere. Horjen just sighed. "Imm.a.t.u.r.e as always despite being the oldest" Goltan mused. Then he said "Recently I discovered an interesting person or should I say magic beast, may...'' Ayaseh held up her hand. "I understand." she said gritting her teeth and pale in her face, shadows continued to groan. For some reason she was extremely unwilling, perhaps because she felt that Alex was a key to understand herself, or because she felt they were related somehow. But with the way things are now, she can''t help unless he prayed. If she moved on her own, it most definitely would be used as an excuse to attack, starting the war early. Suddenly, "WHAT!!???" Goltan exclaimed again, in the projection, Alger''t was performing a large summoning with too much Divine mana than he should have presently. But what really shocked everyone was what followed later, All his Divine mana was seized mysteriously and the village began to change. "Hahaha he did it again!" Ayaseh laughed out loud as a grin was etched on her face. Everyone subconsciously turned to her with a look that said ''explain''. "Fine, this is why I''m so interested in him being my champion" She said as she adjusted in her seat. "He seems to be able to directly use Divine mana" She says. "we can see that already!" Droll deadpanned. "Let me finish!" Her Voice distorted as she eyed This embodiment of mischief who suddenly flashed behind Neah. Bolten watched this with contempt... "Lemme start with this, How do you think Ragol was able to become an Archgod at the same level as me without being like me?". Everyone kept looking at each other but no one had an idea, it had always been a mystery. "I believe, like me who appeared to govern the Abyss and rule darkness, there was another who was to govern the light". Ayaseh continued while everyone Nodded in agreement, most of them had this suspicion but had no way to confirm it. "when I met him, I couldn''t read his soul, it was chaotic and fragmented, he had no memories to booth... Obviously had been tampered with, but he was able to remember me." Ayaseh narrated as she stood up from the throne. "He remembered you?" Horjen asked. "Yes..., you know no mortal knows off my real name but he did". She stated with a tinge of joy at the end but no one noticed, not even she. "And for reasons unknown, I had always felt a connection with him before I began watching him..." "So you suspect, that he must have been the one to govern the light" Goltan seemed to have come to an understanding. "But Ragol had somehow stolen his divinity and power?!" Bolten shouted while slamming his fist on the table, his eyes wide open in fury. "Ragol''s a theif, hahahaha...to think the God who apparently stands for righteousness, was a theif all along! hahahahahaha, Rich, simply Rich" Droll laughed while rolling on the black marbled floor. "Calm down, we are still speculating" Carx worriedly said. "how did you become a God with your nature?" Bolten couldn''t help asking this elven God. "I lived long enough?" He counter asked. "I think that''s why he has been rejecting you!" Neah spoke for the second time since the beginning of this gathering before going back to scribbling. "Yes I agree, if it were me I''d do the same" Horjen could only agree. "What do we do then? I feel that we need him somehow" Ayaseh said with an annoyed. "Curses!! Did Ragol do something to the sun again?! how come she''s so expressive today?! ugh!!" Droll mindlessly said but was hit by a black tentacle made of shadows. it literally smacked him in the face, knocking him off his seat. No one seemed to have noticed as they continued to discuss, before Ayaseh said," I Know what to do..." disappearing from sight. _________________________________ [Ding!!] [Unregistered life forms with Divine mana have been detected beneath Black moon territory, As they are trying to manifest in your territory, your authorization is needed, do you wish to grant them permission?] [Yes or No?] "Yes!!" [Siphoned energy will now be used to upgrade Host''s territory] [Territory upgraded from Basic level 2 to intermediate Level 1] [Conditions for further upgrade have not been met...Excess energy will now be distributed to residents of the territory...] [Ding!] Town Name: Black moon Level: Intermediate Lv1 (15000/15000) Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 323/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv 3= 200) Soldiers: 154/300 Guards: 6/50 Sub territory: 1(Mura village) Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley, Laboni region(23%). Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x56, Smithy, Basic Logging(Fair), Farmland(73%), Advanced Mining Field(92%), Barracks (incomplete), Training Field (incomplete), Town Hall (Incomplete) Breeding house (incomplete). _____________________________________ "Perfect! just enough!" Alex made bee line into the new town gates. He pulled out a card from his inventory and crushed it, Mana surged to the center of the town and a humming blue Orb sat on a platform before releasing the man outward with flare, creating a barrier between the town and the outside world. The quest had long been completed but he didn''t see anything else happening to the Lich, "Could it be that the system had been wrong?". He looked at the notification again, Ding!!] [Hidden quest completed!..."Touching the threads of fate".] [Summary: After defending your village alongside your people, Mako the ''Bloody'' was defeated through a well planned assassination. Unfortunately, He had succeeded in unlocking the second seal of the Banshee''s tears. Due to his death, Lich King Alger''t wishes for a new vessel and has chosen to use your body as the main property for his resurrection. Objective- Survive for 5 minutes.¡Ì Reward: Skill upgrade card x4 ,Random equipment card x1, Epic Character Exp card and 1200 system points, Rare signature Mount(Tier 4), Village upgrade card x1(Epic) have all been placed in your inventory.] Nothing there could save him from this situation, it''s only a matter of time before the Lich figure out that there''s something off. In fact he was pretty sure that the Lich really wanted to take down this place for some reason. "Do I really have to beg someone for my life in this life as well?" Alex muttered as he pushed back the memory that had tried to surface. It was then he felt it as his head whipped towards the temple in the distance. [Ding!] [Goddess Ayaseh has arrived!]... Chapter 52 - 51: I agree but [Ding!] [Goddess Ayaseh has arrived!] Without hesitation Alex dashed into the temple, He pushed open the heavy doors and walked in, only to be welcomed by absolute darkness. Nonetheless He chose to continue forward until the Darkness squirmed. Clank! The temple halls were lit up by Grey lights, Beneath the white Marbled statue who seemed to have changed its facial features to match the one the Goddess felt like having today, The Goddess sat upright on her throne as her eyes continued to shine like a child excited to see a favorite family member who came to visit. It gave off the feeling of warmth, excitement, curiosity and intrigue. but what was most prominent was... Relief. Alex was confused but he walked closer before giving a bow saying, "It''s an honor for the Night Mother to visit at such a Time". "There''s no need to bow if you don''t mean it" Ayaseh said, Her body warped from her throne like a pack of shadow demons and dashed forward. in less than a second, she stood before Alex as she stared fixedly into his eyes which resulted in Alex flinching while attempting to take a step back. But he found his body unresponsive as he now stared at the glowing green pools before him. "You must have been in so much pain" She said before a sigh escaped her lips, She casually walked around him with her fingers trailing across his tattoos. Only then did Alex notice that he was missing his cloak. "I understand that you find it strange or unsuitable to act as my champion but I ask that you reconsider" Ayaseh once again made her request, Like Alex suspected, she couldn''t force him for some reason, which was also one of the reasons she went with her conclusion. [Ding!] [The Goddess of the Night, Ayaseh has requested that you become her champion. Do you accept?] [Yes or No?] As soon as Alex heard her words, He initially wanted to reject once again but became hesitant. Seeing that he wanted to speak, she cut him off, "Before you reject me, Let me say this...I know that you might have some of your memories and feel wrong about this, You chose to bid your time while building up your power slowly, I''ve seen how you have been slowly increasing your people''s faith in you but this time around you don''t have much of a choice. Ragol and his Alliance have most likely noticed Alger''t''s Mana spike and have already set their sights here." "He might not be directly able to see anything because of his lack of any temples in the vicinity but it''s only a matter of time before his minions from the church come here. I can help you but I can''t help you Without you being my champion so you can pray for my assistance". Alex was even more bewildered, ''gathering faith?, bidding time?...I have no such thoughts as I only wish to live through the subsequent scenes from the Novel''s plot.'' ''Or could this be what the system was actually doing all along? How I''ve never wondered about the systems history? I just felt it was natural but.. I''ll think about it later...'' BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOO... A series of explosions brought him out of his thoughts as the whole place rocked like an earthquake was happening, "Accursed Divine!!" Alger''t''s booming voice could be heard from outside, "I can smell you from a mile away, what did you do B**ch!!". His voice sounded crazier the more he spoke, Ayaseh frowned at this but chose to keep silent in order to let Alex think. ''She''s right, this is problem''. Alex looked at her, suddenly feeling indecisive which was not his style, He started noticing all his flaws since he came to this life. perhaps it was just his revenge that had been a kind of anchor, He didn''t even feel anger when he died because he had completed his vengeance when he killed the Boss so life felt mediocre. but here?, he just wanted to live!. She silently stared back, no one said a word, she had already said enough, although she looked calm, she was excited, something she had not felt since the initial part of her awareness. She wouldn''t be alone anymore, Her kind, She had always felt like the odd one out, others had lived lives before they became Gods, but she was one from the beginning, one with multiple authorities, which was why Ragol seemed so interested in her. ''Thief'' She thought, suddenly feeling angry. This was why she''d rather have him who she felt a connection to from the beginning than a random who might actually be of more harm than Good. Champions were like a direct line to a God, which was why Bolten had been furious. This Champions can also be corrupted, which in turn could affect his or her Pantheon "I can agree but on one condition" Alex finally spoke, this attracted her full attention, completely cutting off the random thoughts as she appeared on the throne. "I''m listening" She said. "Hide me..." Alex stated, "Hide me for at least one year, so I can build enough power to compete with the others". Surprised, Ayaseh thought about it and felt it was reasonable. From the very beginning she had never had a champion because she hated that feeling of being connected to someone, no matter how little it was. Now that she found someone that she could actually stand as they had some kind of resonance from the beginning. He would be the major target of the enemy Alliance and Honestly, His present level is nothing compared to the Champions of others, not even Neah''s and his an alchemist. "..." Ayaseh looked at Alex again but the latter didn''t seem too bothered, after all he''s joining the game later than others. BOOM! BOOM! BOO... The Lich was still busy in the background... "very well...I can do that, I would cloak the surrounding area for you but you would have to take care of any that might accidentally stumble onto this Area." She stated clearly, indirectly saying that she won''t stand guard. Alex Nodded calmly while accepting the systems query "Thank you". Immediately, a connection was established between them albeit barely noticeable but felt. Ayaseh suddenly saw a thin green thread connecting them, Shock was the only thing she felt. ''He established a connection without the ceremony? I knew it!'' Although all this was going on in her mind, she acted like it was normal so Alex didn''t notice anything strange. He was too busy feeling the changes, according to the systems, it was this period that his body was meant to clean all the impurities but he didn''t have any to begin with, so instead his levels were being boosted. Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 27(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 20400 (2000+1000) Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Blessed Champion. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Relationship: Chief of Black moon village, One blessed by the Abyss. Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv1- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 40%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 12 secs. Racial skills: [Prey on](New) Lv 1- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Present amount of Exp that can be stored : 2080/5000. Targets deemed as prey by the user receive a certain amount of de-buff depending on the kind of fear they''re feeling. This ranges from Slow, confusion, Dizziness and stuns. A 3-8% reduction in stats which increases or reduces over time, depending on the emotions of the victim. Sigil(Unique) Lv 2 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 0/5. Effect: Personal: Adds 10% bonus to ones stats at level one Horde: Adds 4% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Mitigate Lv2(Passive)- Reduces damage taken by 13% during combat. Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Power of the Abyss(NEW): Shroud Lv1(NEW): releases a Dark fog into the surrounding area over time. It reduces vision and reaction time of enemies. Cast time: 30 secs. Cool down: 30 minutes. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] [Host is still going through changes, so this information is susceptible to change anytime.] His physical features had little changes as well, his Black hair became longer and his Tattoos became Much darker with a small green light flash passed them in a barely noticeable manner, His Golden Iris had a tinge of green in them as well. Immediately, Alex went down on one knee as he suddenly prayed without missing a beat after all, the system just notified him that Alger''t had chipped off 40% power from the Aegis, "Oh great mother, Ruler of the Moon and controller of the Abyss. I beseech you, come fight for your people, Rid this day of this scourge and you will be exalted". His actions shocked Ayaseh as well, She suddenly felt the way he prayed was odd even though it wasn''t much different from the way her believers did. But now wasn''t the time to be picky, She acknowledged it and conjured an Avatar, after all, her appearing personally was prohibited at the moment. Her Avatar was made to be at the same level as the problem, the stage of metamorphosis. ______________________ Outside the Aegis, Alger''t continued to assault the the barrier with the Orbs. If his Mana hadn''t been forcefully taken he wouldn''t have to waste time smashing this barrier. Suddenly, He felt something appear above him. It was a woman who reeked of divinity, without any questions he attacked with the Orbs but was soon lifted off the ground by a shadow. Both parties soon disappeared as the sky cleared the dark clouds away. "that''s it?" Alex couldn''t help mumbling as he watched from inside the village. Chapter 53 - 52: Greta Ballantyne Somewhere at the borders of Cilldean and Nispurl lay the lost city of wood elves, surrounded by mountains and sparse trees. This was the only place with winter all year round, ever since the Fall ''kraak'' city of Hope centuries ago. Once a land of dreams, where the Wood elves embraced life and Nature was now reduced to ruins. What happened?, no one knows, everyone sent to investigate mysteriously disappeared and was soon forgotten, Its strange windy climate and cold temperature left it less desirable by the years, soon Tagged as one of the 12 mysteries of Luegad. There was even a saying that even Gods spit on this place when they pass by. Now for the first time in centuries, the calmness of this place was disturbed. A black haired woman with green eyes suddenly appeared in the sky before tossing something towards the ground. It dropped with a loud thud! and a grunt was heard along side the sound of clattering bones. Ayaseh hovered in the air as she looked around,''This is perfect, if I can make him release more of his Aura here, then they''ll come search here directly.'' With a plan in mind, she turned her attention to the Lich as She looked at him with chilly eyes,"Don''t pretend to be Dead, I''m sure you know who I am". As if to respond to her words, the bones began rearranging themselves before a masculine voice rang out, "The one who shall be Damned, enjoy your peace while you c..." Before He could finish his monologue, Ayaseh waved her left hand making the now shrunken bracelet hover toward her. "W...WHAT are you doing!!" Alger''t yelled with his obviously shaken voice, He tried to pry it off her hands with his Magic and failed miserably but soon released his domain again. The snow beneath his feet turned black and the weather changed, His Life force pressured the surrounding but didn''t bother the Goddess, after all she had seen worse when she first fought the world eater. As though she was pulling something out of the bracelet, she exerted little force before a translucent looking man was pulled out. ''There!...I should give him a quick death since you helped me so easily'' Ayaseh thought casually. Alger''ts soul was out for all to see, perhaps the others would have had an easy time like this if she hadn''t been in slumber. but because he had depleted most of his energy, He couldn''t even resist. Ayaseh stared at him silently, before squeezing her fist, turning Alger''t into light fragments that soon dissipated. Like that, no questions asked, no explanation, she just erased his soul. No other God had that kind of power over souls, which was also part of the reason why she was always targeted. Now She had seen all she needed to see and she was very pissed. Obviously with what she saw, she was even more certain that, it was through this way Ragol ascended but he probably isn''t too sure about the details, so he''s trying to replicate it. "Bastard" Ayaseh cussed through gritted teeth, Despite knowing the truth, she couldn''t care less about Alger''t. With a thought her Avatar disappeared once again. What She didn''t know was that, someone had seen all that transpired. A green haired woman, dressed in a black robe, she had black claw like nails and had a bounce in her steps as though she was excited. Her fifty something year old appearance created a mismatch feeling with her action but she couldn''t be bothered. She made her way to the spot Alger''t had disappeared and searched the snow for a while. Soon she found the bracelet that had been used to trap Alger''t for many years. "Who knew I would get such a treasure, best head back now before the others notice." She said muttering to herself. If Alex was here, He would have probably recognized this woman or at least her features . This was Greta Ballantyne, a Loathsome woman as Alex would describe her, She was obsessed with the word immortality and would do anything to achieve it. worse part was, she felt she was always right, no matter what anyone said!. She brought terror during the year 1208- 1345, as a Dryad, she was long lived, added with her present level of Evolution. She remained unsatisfied till this day. During the 1300s she joined a cult called Al''varux, which could be translated as ''The hand''. Seventy nine years ago, their members researched and crafted a powerful Mirror chamber and began studying the cosmos through this Chamber, Soon they unintentionally made contact with the creature dreaded by the Gods themselves. Under it''s influence, this people who have all come together under the search for Immortality began The second corruption, they crafted a magical circle beneath several cities and atop several mountains across the world, their plans? no one knows till this day. This magic cirlces slowly siphoned the magical energies of the lands, and as that energy flows to the magic circles, it is possible for some to tap it but ultimately, all that power was going to the outsider. It was only when it was close to being fully charged, almost ready to open a portal to the great void through which the outsider will once again rain it''s terror to conquer the world. As it grew in strength, a portion of its power flows into the world, corrupting and twisting the land about it. This was soon noticed by The then King Ur Malachi, who relayed this information to the eight great sorcerers. When it first appeared in his capital city, its emanations began releasing uncanny forces trapped within certain geological features (hot springs, mines etc.). This turned them into focal points for arcane power fields that wizards, Alchemists, Druids and sorcerers can tap energies from to build their power, it was soon called Mana Nodes. The size and shape of a node and the area from which it''s power can be drawn depends on what it is. The field around a fault-line may be narrow, but extended in a line for miles. The field around a large mine may be circular and miles across. Around a cl.u.s.ter of hot springs, the field may be multi-lobed, but small. Drawing on a node directly back then often caused after-sickness. The greater the power used, the worse the after-sickness will be, and the longer it will last. Mighty adepts may only suffer mild effects, but novices, or adepts drawing on a more powerful node, may be rendered helpless for hours. Mana Nodes were then widely regarded as dangerous, if not downright evil. Anyone approaching one is liable to be stopped by clerics or druids, or even concerned citizens who live nearby. This went on for years until the whole situation lead to a race against time, Greta who had already become an Elder in ''the hand'' as at 1341, was one who was Adept in runes and Arcane magic, she placed magical runes on the body of their soldiers, making it entirely difficult for the Men of The towers. Luckily, the incident was brought to a close by Japhath, A renowned Necromancer!. Subsequent events showed that the Hand and it''s members were eradicated. It also brought about the reign of the 700 lordly houses. _________________________ She held onto the bracelet, admiring it for a few seconds before it disappeared into thin air. She then walked away with brisk steps, heading deeper into this mystery land. Chapter 54 - 53: Aftermath Cilldean kingdom, Ruler: Queen Hawise Salman Government: monarchy Culture: Humans Population: 49,273,554 Capital city: Rubia Sun God''s Temple, Grand cathedral, Conference Hall. "A warning!!!" A middle aged Man yelled from a distance as he frantically ran down the marbled hallway. "By Lord Ragol, Axiom calm down!!" A Bald headed man dressed in thick white robes yelled. This was the legendary Moonlight Robes that was said to have been stolen from The Night Mother herself and blessed by Ragol before being handed to the Archbishop of Sun God temple. Whether this was true, was yet to be verified as tales of old have long been distorted to it''s present point. But the fact remained that this robe was mysterious, it has been intact for centuries. Presently, the Archbishop was having a discussion with the three High priests of Cilldean. These individuals were all powerful in not just their individual strength but background, they came from some of the big families in the kingdom, namely Clearheart, Rosen and Molkan respectively, with Clearheart being the strongest, although the Rosen had the highest number of people who had been Archbishops. Axiom struggled to catch his breath before speaking once more, "the Oracle received a message!". Archbishop Constantine Kwin looked calmly without any obvious changes on his face. The others who had been shocked, calmed down as well. "What were the contents of the message" He said as he now had a solemn expression, his baby blue eyes was rather striking. Although he didn''t become one of the somewhat rare high humans, he still remained powerful as he developed this gem like eyes instead, which granted him some eye powers but no one knew it''s abilities except him and his dead enemies. Seeing no changes in their expression as he had his head bowed, Axiom poured out all the information in one breath, "She said that...T...The Evil one has chosen a champion and we''re to investigate on his or her identity. Also an ancient Evil has appeared at the forbidden land of hope." "Is that All?" Constantine asked. "Y...Yes!" Axiom responded while wondering why the Archbishop seemed so angry today. "you can leave" Axiom bowed once more before leaving nervously, There was silence in the room as they watched him leave. "We can''t move the Sacred Knights now, Roderick is still chasing after those storm worshipers". Rosen spoke first as he smiled bitterly. "Curses!! D*mn cultists..." Molkan complained. "Don''t let it get to you, after all their God is pretty much the creator of Unrest."Rodney Clearheart quipped as he tried ease the tension. "Now, Now, we are not allowed to profane the Divine" Constantine said off handedly without placing much thought. "What are we to do in this situation?" Molkan rested his face on his palm, He was clearly tired especially with the constant clash recently. "I guess we''ll just have to use the youngsters to check the status of the forbidden land." Constantine said with a sigh. "What?!!!" Rosen quickly agreed, "Your right, they seem to have too much time and energy on their hands" Rodney still didn''t speak, he thought about it and felt they didn''t have a choice. The Archbishop then continued, "only those who have gone through the second evolution would go, One of you would go with them but only observe the situation From the sidelines" "I''ll go." Clearheart volunteered almost immediately. Clearly not surprised, Molkan scoffed before saying, "Hmph!...That aside, are we not going to talk about the Aura spike at the South? that thing was almost as strong as the Archbishop and clearly had a domain as well". Hearing this, the Archbishop stood up from his chair and turned to look out the window as he stared at the afternoon sun," I think it''s all connected, the same Aura was soon felt in the direction of the forbidden land, now Our Divine master mentioned an ancient Evil." "It''s all connected, I suspect that the Champion of Evil would probably be the one behind this, so I asked one of you to follow the investigation team." He turned to Rodney, who''s blonde hair was basking in the sunlight, "Let this be the chance to temper our champion". "I was thinking the same" Clearheart stated as he stood up to leave but the Archbishop''s voice came from behind, "You too, do some digging... Hopefully this doesn''t force us to call those old monsters at the Tower." Rodney continued his steps without a word before disappearing from sight. ______________________ Black moon village Alex watched as the villagers ran to and fro, gathering resources. He then lifted the Log that had been in front of him as his muscles bulged in protest. This was the Molten steel tree, Alex had found it strange that a tree acted like metal, this reminded him of the one they got from the Ogre. He, Urim and Torrelsav had to join hands to cut it down all morning. Soon he exacted great effort to bring it to the Location he had designated for the Town Hall. Due to the urgent need to use the Divine mana, the system had skipped the process for population and buildings, Directly upgrading the village. Now they needed to urgently build this structures and find more people before the final upgrade. Catching his breath, he brought up the territory tab and studied it again. [Ding!] Level: Intermediate Lv1 (15000/15000) Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 323/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv intermediate Lv2= 1500) Soldiers: 154/300 Guards: 6/50 Sub territory: Basic Lv 1(Mura village) Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley, Laboni region(23%). Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x56, Smithy, Basic Logging(Fair), Farmland(73%), Advanced Mining Field(92%), Barracks (incomplete), Training Field (incomplete), Town Hall (Incomplete) Breeding house (incomplete). "I only have three hundred plus villagers, the only way to get more people now is to Annex the tribes in Laboni region." Alex muttered while closing the Tab. As soon as Ayaseh left with Alger''t, the Villagers ran back to the village with Nazu leading them. At that time, Alex had been on the Wall thinking, he honestly wasn''t expecting them early. Him being alive left them in awe, after all they all felt that dreadful aura. soon new houses were built in place for the new members, although it lacked finesse like the other green bamboo houses that were made by the system. The goblins had tried to remake it and Alex had to admit that, ''it was a nice try''. The number of farms had increased, as well as the amount of food needed, even though it was not yet an immediate issue. He needed to make a dedicated hunting party, Luckily Nazu brought potatoes from her area. Alex only regretted that, there wasn''t any fish in Black moon lake, if not that would have been heavenly. The Mine was still not fully active and the Kobold blacksmith, Coyorn was dead. He tried escaping and was directly killed by Dabok. Moz was still by Alex''s side, she decided to become a glorified bodyguard, much to Urim''s distress. For some reason they didn''t like each other. Nazu on the other hand was already being treated as the queen of some sort, But Alex is too lazy to bother with that as he sent her and Moz out with some Hobgoblins to scout earlier today. Haji, Lovan''s son soon ran to Alex and announced, "Momen has returned from the forest". Alex heard his words and couldn''t help finding the whole thing funny, He had not yet proposed Marriage but his people were already giving her the position. ''It''s like they believe with utmost certainty that I would take her!'' According to Dabok who had been giving him advise, He said ''It''s only natural for her to be the one for you, what?! don''t tell me you have someone you have your sights on in the village?, well if you do, then you can have them both, but then they''ll have to fight to decide who...'' He kept mumbling as Alex walked away with a sigh... Chapter 55 - 54: Aftermath 2 Nazu and the agility type Hobgoblins approached Alex who was now standing in front of the Lord''s manor gate. Standing behind him was Urim with a bored expression as he yawn rather loudly. Nazu''s eyes glowed with joy and was about to say something when Alex cut her off with the words "Lets head inside, the rest of you can go rest, call Dabok". "Hm" There was a grunt from the Hobgoblins, signifying that they understood, Nazu narrowed her eyes intently at Alex before following him inside the Hall. Just like the village, The lord''s manor had some changes as well. The building was a beautiful mix mash of stone and green bamboo, it had a natural scent that lingered in the air, making one calmer once you enter the Hall. The small fire place in the left corner of the hall, remained there but was a tad bit bigger to match the increase in the hall''s size. The Throne was also covered in black fur but it''s feet now attached another set of black wolf furs and the head of a dire wolf as a foot stool. The number of Bamboo pillars increased as well as the number of seats beneath the throne. They were a total of twelve now, six on each side and they were arranged in a semi circular shape facing each other. A wide fur rug trailed from the first seats below to the throne platform, making you wonder what animal was killed to make such item. Black as night, it matched the throne and chairs but contrasted the green bamboo pillars. Nazu took it all in, luckily this was the first time in here, so he didn''t have to explain, the others were somewhat used to seeing this changes after the last upgrade. Alex sat on the throne and subconsciously touched the beard on his face while looking at Urim who just followed and stood behind him. He raised an eyebrow when the latter performed the same action before scratching his bearded face. Nazu continuously turned around admiring the place, the small torches attached to the walls lightly lit up the surrounding but didn''t affect the solemn vibe the hall was giving. She then went to the first right seat next to Alex and casually sat down, saying "good" repeatedly with a grin. Again Haji comes running passed Dabok who was now following behind, He looked at the now m.a.t.u.r.ed goblin curiously for a second before laughing out loud, no one knew what he was thinking. His attention was now brought to the hall as he inspected it before nodding his head. Dabok had evolved during the war, When Alex looked at his stats he was surprised to find that he didn''t go through the generic shaman pathway but branch out into something else. [Name: Dabok Blackmoon] Race: Orc (Cursemancer) Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10444 This once again confirmed Alex theory of how evolution is affected by one''s prior actions, Urim as a guardian, Torrelsav as a brutal berserker now Dabok as a Cursemancer. "My Chief" Dabok greeted as he bowed slightly, his speech much more fluent. Alex nodded in response before turning to look at the Goblin that had somehow turned himself into a messenger. "My Chief, T...The" He tried to think of words but failed, so resorted to gestures that Alex tried to understand, ''Hmm? disappear? ah!''. Thinking of something, Alex asked, "Haji, what is it, is Moz back?". "Yes My Chief!!" He answered obviously relieved. "go bring her here" Alex added while feeling amused, Haji immediately exits the hall with quick steps. "Lets wait" Alex said as he once again began to go through his inventory, it didn''t take long for the shadow orc to arrive. She went down on one knee and said, "Greetings My chief, I have news". A sharp glint flash through Alex''s eyes as he sat up, honestly he was impressed with this Orc as she was very good at adapting but he couldn''t make conclusions yet. "Speak" "There are two villages close to us, one big and one small but..." "go on" Her reports were quite detailed which made Alex nod in appreciation, Nazu then spoke up saying two big villages laid in the direction she went, but they were too busy fighting each other to bother with us. Alex agreed with her thought process but they were the ones closer to them than the other wing, At such a close distance, if it wasn''t the woods blocking the view, they would have discovered each other long ago. The tribe ten kilometers away from them is a small-sized tribe with more than 150 Orc with about 60 warriors. The big sized tribe had about 450 with close to 200 Goblin warriors, 15 kilometers away from it is a tribe with two hundred goblins and Orcs, with 80 or 90 warriors and the final one had 300 people with at most 90 something warriors. As for the Black moon, they only have 154 fighters. Counting the wounded, 60 out of that 154. The wounded are not suitable for battle at present, so the number they can dispatch is only more than 80. However, they also have an advantage here, that is, we have lots of powerful people, Alex, Nazu, Torrelsav, Urim, Dabok are all very powerful, and they can play decisive roles at the critical moment, so Alex had no plans to avoid the battle this time. He planned to Annex those four tribes before fighting a decisive battle with whoever wins amongst the two massive ones in the end. He began discussing his plans with the others, Urim suggested we wait for the wounded to heal, which Alex agreed with after all he planned to perform the attack during the next purple moon for more experience. His intention is to evolve the third time before using the character card to upgrade, if that day would be anything like he imagined, after all the author was very descriptive. According to him, it was a very active night with monsters and humans alike striving for better opportunities to aid with their evolution. Obviously the Monsters had the advantage due to most of them having night vision. Alex wasn''t worried about being attacked that day as the Aegis still had power, it would protect the town while he and his warriors go plunder to their hearts content. "we should train the grown ones too" Dabok suggested, he was referring to the children who were now a.d.u.l.ts like Haji. Moz was already standing with her arm folded she nodded in agreement, Alex''s finger drummed for a while as he thought about it as well. Honestly, he had not thought of them as he had been so focused on gathering more already made warriors. He then said, "Call all the newly grown, let me see!". "Yes hehe" Urim said rushing out with a mischievous grin, Alex could only laugh shaking his head. that fellow developed a new ''joy'' for ''training'' people recently. Chapter 56 - 55: Lets play... a few minutes later, fourteen a.d.u.l.t goblins and two kobold stood before Alex. These were the most recent addition to the a.d.u.l.ts of the Black moon tribe. Alex couldn''t help feeling a little bit disappointed as the numbers were quite little, Funnily Dabok believed that another 8 would m.a.t.u.r.e into a.d.u.l.ts by next week. This just strengthened his resolve, to Annex the surrounding villages and tribes faster. "Have Torrelsav see me once the hunting party returns." "Ok" Dabok responded with a nod as he tried to guess what Alex had in mind. Alex on the other hand was thinking about how his recent rewards would help his present situation. He opened his inventory as the others continued to make suggestions. [Skill upgrade card x4 , Random equipment card x1, Epic Character Exp card and 1200 system points, Rare signature Mount(Tier 4), Village upgrade card x1(Epic).] The skill upgrade cards would help in boosting his skill levels, while he already knew he couldn''t place his hope on the Random equipment card which was always more of a 50/50 gamble. He won''t be using the Character card until his third circle evolution. Alex shifted his gaze, ''The rare mount is probably the best choice but it''s too slow, Moreover the breeding house isn''t completed yet... perhaps I''ll have them increase the pace. but it''s still too slow and I don''t even know what species of mount I would get.'' ''The village upgrade is out of it for now...I guess I''ll have them focus on the breeding house, according to the system, any creature place there for 360 hours, it would be registered as a copy for production. As long as the requested materials are met, it would produce copy or should I say clone, the time needed and success is dependent on the original. But even still, the copy comes out with only 50-70% abilities of the original.'' Rubbing his temples he muttered, "it all boils down to gambling again". "My Chief, Chieftain?, with our bl..b..Blackshmith...is dead so there hasn''t been any new short swords made for the Goblins" Dabok called out, attracting Alex''s attention before stating out his observation. "What happened to the goblins learning under Coyorn?" Alex asked with a frown, it would be indeed troublesome if they weren''t able to learn anything from the Kobold. "They l...Learned but still make mistakes, so I stopped them" He responded while trying his best to use the terms Alex had been teaching during earlier times, Nazu and Moz looked at them weirdly. Alex on the other hand couldn''t help smiling at the sight, so he said, "No, let them make mistakes, I''m sure their proficiency would increase with more practice." "Profishansee?!" "Haa?!!" "Hahahahahaha, No no ''proFICIency" Alex said with a laugh, "Think of it as how good you are at something, like how you practice with the sword to get better at it and..." "My Chief!!" Torrelsav''s voice rang out as the Berserker entered the hall with confident strides,"You asked for me". With this words he observed the changes in the hall, along with the expressions the others had. Nazu and the others seemed disappointed while Alex said, "Yes, how did the hunt go". "It went well My Chief" Torrelsav said as he began reminiscing about the hunt. Alex Nodded before saying,"Good, now, I called you for two things. One, I wished to give you your reward for your earlier achievements". With that, Alex immediately selected him as a vassal. The surrounding wind picked up and sizzling sounds came from his tiger tattoo before a dragon crawled out from the tigers body, spreading all the way from his arm to his back. thick black colour of the tattoos was what could be said to be as Black as the night. Feeling the surge of power within, He could barely hold back his excitement, Without hesitation, he went down on one knee and bowed his head with respect. How could he not know what Alex had done?, if You think about it from the human side, it was like a king granting someone Noble status. With this, he would be able to protect his daughters in the tribe, as no one would dare slight him especially now that he was considered the Chief''s person. At the same time, Alex did the same for Urim who was standing behind him. ""Thank you my Chief!!, we shall fight for your Honor!!!."" Soon two warriors could be seen on one knee as they shouted from the bottom of their heart. "Rise..." Alex offhandedly said as he observed the changes in their status. Now their power rating had a 15% increase and he found that, it could be improved with the increase an the skill level. Presently, His sigil was only level two with a 4% base stats increase, but somehow their power rating increased with 15% which was the overall summary of the ones base stats. "Torrelsav, Take them and add them to your hunting party from now on...let me know once they enter the first circle" Alex decided to shift the topic before the awkward silence sets in. "Yes" He said before leading them outside with a serious expression. Alex looked at the others before giving out a series of orders and dismissed the meeting. Everyone stepped out of the Hall but... "Nazu" Alex called out, She stopped her steps in surprise before heading back towards Alex. The latter stepped down from the throne and walked towards her, he looked down at her face and noticed the confused expression. "Don''t think I don''t know what you are doing" He said, a threatening grin made its way to his face. "I''ve said it before, I choose. not you, not my people, so stop what you are doing, perhaps, If you earn more honor during the coming war..." He let his words trail away at the end without any further words, He''s goldish green Iris flashed in tempting delight as he looked at her eyes. No further words were said as they both stood there looking at each other, at first she was surprised by his words but when he gave her a challenge, she understood him, He was not rejecting her but Also not accepting her, He wanted everything to be within his terms, he wanted control!. Unconsciously, a smile slowly made it''s way to her face but she still didn''t say a word before turning towards the door while thinking, ''Fine, I''ll play with you... Always knows how to make things interesting''. Although Alex clearly didn''t say he would agree to marry her, She still took note of his words. Alex stared at her departing back thinking, ''Lets see the full strength of your bloodline, Daughter of Haran''. As soon as she left, he returned to his throne to decide what skills to level up. Chapter 57 - 56: Slight improvements Alex sat on his furred throne, a scowl laid on his face as he stared intently at his status page. [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 27(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 17800 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Blessed by the abyss. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv1 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(2/2) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv1- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 40%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 12 secs. [Prey on](New) Lv 1- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Present amount of Exp that can be stored : 4200/5000. Sigil(Unique) Lv 2 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 2/5. Effect: Personal: Adds 14% bonus to ones stats at level two. Horde: Adds 4% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Mitigate Lv1(Passive)- Reduces damage taken by 10% during combat. Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours.] _____________________________ Presently he has four Skill upgrade cards, so he spent one on , increasing the percentage to 15%. Another one was then used on , which increased the number of uses before it goes into cool down. Another was used on , reducing the cool down time to 10 secs and the speed boost the to 50%. Finally, took the last one, this increased the amount of Exp he could store. When he tapped the skill, it expanded to show a diagram of himself and how much exp he could inject into each part including his p*nis. He spent about five minutes eyeing that section before looking at his legs. He noticed the amount of Exp needed for his right foot wasn''t as much as the one needed for his left, the same thing applied for his arms. His heart needed the most, a whopping 10000 exp just to increase it to level one. If he succeeds he gets a skill called, it heightens his senses and reaction time by 30%, the flow of Mana within his body would become smoother. This lasts for 20secs at level one. The brain would have been the most expensive but it was presently greyed out. He calmly distributed exp to his legs, balancing both of them at level two before placing the excess into his right hand even though it wasn''t enough to increase it''s level. When he was done with that, he crushed the Random equipment card, causing a white light to flash brightly. A pair of bone earrings fell on his l.a.p, shaped like fangs with one having a small gold dot at it center and the other with a black dot. He then looked at the attributes, after all, even if he felt it was cool looking, it would be useless if it wasn''t useful to him. [Eyes of Cafo](Growth item) Introduction: An item refined from the bones of Grey eyed leopards. just like their predecessor, They are one and the same but also not the same. Effects: +5% movement speed. +4% Armor penetration. +2% Attack speed. +4.2% Crit chance. This Skill can only be initiated by the male counterpart.(Can be upgraded) cool down: 45mins] ______________________ Reading the description, he was a bit speechless. He could see the strategic value of this but he was unsure on what to do with it. Luckily he was the only one who could see their description while the others could only figure it out through muddy waters unless he explained it to them like in Urim''s case with the sword. "Perhaps I would be able to pass information with this later, it''s best to give it to Moz" Alex decided quickly, as it''s usefulness would be fully exhibited with this shadow Orc. ''I can also keep an eye on her with this''. Grey eyed leopard beast men were an Assassin race that originated from southern Cullbeg and were also the tool used in Assassinating the mad king''s Half-ling son. ''To think this had been made from their kind, their faces if we meet in the future would be interesting to see.'' Alex tossed away the casual thought and headed outside the Hall. ___________________ [[Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 27(Order of the second circle) Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Blessed by the abyss. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv2 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(3/3) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv2- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 50%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 10 secs. Racial skills: [Prey on](New) Lv 2- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Present amount of Exp that can be stored : 0/10000. Sigil(Unique) Lv 2 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 2/5. Effect: Personal: Adds 14% bonus to ones stats at level two. Horde: Adds 4% bonus to their base stats.] Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Mitigate Lv2(Passive)- Reduces damage taken by 35% during combat. (15% base +20%) Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours _________________________ Alex continued admiring the earrings and finally understood how to differentiate them. The one with the black spot was for the female counterpart while the gold spotted one was for him. Now he understands why grey eyed leopard Beast men worked in pairs back in the Novel. A pair of second circle Grey eyed leopards could effortlessly take on a mid level 3rd circle opponent and they could very well hold their own against a peak 3rd circle or even a newly evolved grand circle. He''s guessing they have telepathic connection too as their was never any instances of them speaking during their several attacks. ''If only the Novel let us know how things were in the perspective of monsters as well haais. I can only keep on guessing.'' Alex sighed inwardly before pressing down the earring''s pin through his ear lobe, He casually cleaned the blood off. now the gold piece layed comfortably on his left ear, he barely felt this little pain with his Mitigate passive. While he performed All this actions, his feet never stopped. his destination?. The Breeding house... He needed to inspect the progress before using the mount summon card. Chapter 58 - 57: This Meat seems good... Pak!! Pak!! Pak!! Alex made his way to the Breeding house site which wasn''t too far from the Manor. He had selected this place due to his plans of making Orc and Hobgoblin copies later on in the future, when the population would have been boosted up. Then the new arrivals of the Clones wouldn''t be suspicious. The site was just between the temple and the Storehouse, it''s westside was the Manor while the opposite side had the site for the barracks. All this had been due to Alex''s considerations. A few Goblin kids were being chased away from the site, this made Alex chuckle wryly. For the Breeding house design, He just had them make it in a rectangular shape and had the walls crisscrossed with bamboos, Palm leaves were used for the roof. This was just the skeleton, He knew that the system would reshape and design it accordingly. While watching them, he brought up his territory stats. [Ding!] Town Name: Black moon Level: Intermediate Lv1 (15000/15000) Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 323/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv intermediate Lv2= 1500) Soldiers: 154/300 Guards: 6/50 Sub territory: Basic Lv 1(Mura village) Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x56, Smithy, Basic Logging(Fair), Farmland(73%), Advanced Mining Field(92%), Barracks (21%), Training Field (33%), Town Hall (12%) Breeding house (75%). ____________ Since it''d take a while before the building is completed, he decided to go look for Urim. He felt it was time to share this cultivation manual with this brother of his. It didn''t take much to find the big guy because he was ''Training'' the strength type Hobgoblins. That''s right Alex had separated the Hobgoblins into three categories, so he''d be able to at least direct the line in which they''d evolve. Presently, There was the strength, Agility and those that seemed to lean more towards dexterity. The strength type relied on brute Force while the Agility type worked with speed, the last one had nimble fingers and great flexibility, they were also the most intelligent ones of the bunch, so Alex had hope of them becoming mages in the end but this was also the group that produced the industrious once, so who knows?. Watching them Train gave him complicating emotions, He remembered when he and his mother had been living in a wood cottage, surrounded by the woods. She would wake him up as a child and have him train everyday, She would push him to the point he''d be cussing and then come treat his wounds while crying at night, Her Long black hair had been cut short due to constantly being on the move, Her black eyes would always look at Alex with p... "Krrr...look!, The Chief is here!!!" "OOOH!!" Different exclamations of the villagers disrupted his thoughts, their eyes filled with awe and admiration. "Brother!...HAHA" Urim called with a laugh as his huge frame made it''s way to Alex. When he got close to him, Alex patted his shoulders rather forcefully but the sheepish grin never left Urim''s face. Finally, Alex couldn''t help rolling his eyes and said, "come" before heading towards the lake. On reaching there, He stared intently at the blackmoon lake, hoping to catch a glimpse of the creature that laid beneath but there was nothing. Urim silently stood by his side without uttering a word, he would look at the sky and then the lake before randomly scratching his beard. Alex looked at the big guy and couldn''t help sneering before smacking at his neck playfully, "Is it interesting to watch?". Urim dodge with a grin, this was how he was with Urim once they were alone, they would always act seriously outside but Alex always found the fellow funny. He then remembered back when he had just come to this world and Urim acted smugly towards him while killing some humans. "Hmph!". He was about to hand him the manual but remembered that Urim might not actually be able to read, In fact, most if not all the villagers had no way of reading texts. ''I think i''ll teach them how to read and write''. With that thought, he decided to guide Urim through it. _______________________________________ Meanwhile, Torrelsav lead half of the warriors in the first circle as well as those who had not been able to evolve yet while Nazu took the other half as they were to go in two different direction as a hunting party. Presently, Torrelsav''s team numbered a little over thirty and had headed to the west, closing in on the location of Mako''s village. Their hunting parties were to hunt for food and other useful items for the village, like weapons, any material that looked important were to be brought back to the village to be sorted out. Within the forest, He divided his team further into several teams to search for prey. Once a team finds the prey, they will send out a low roar to inform others. This is the signal agreed on as he made sure each team would be lead by a first order Orc. when the Other teams hear this, they were to immediately close in on the creature. When they formed an encirclement around the prey, they would slowly shrink the encirclement, and then kill it. This was a method that had been thought out by their great Chief, the number of people who died during hunting had greatly reduced and it came as a surprise to them. It didn''t take long for them to master this method, but unfortunately they were still lacking weapons. So the Orc''s mostly had clubs or rusted weapons, Torrelsav still had the tomahawks he had gotten from the slavers. Soon a Bison with silver horns, which basically shows that it was of the first circle, just a step away from the second circle, ''Minotaur''. Unfortunately, it had met this party today. The creature seemed to have been absorbing earthen mana, which makes it even more difficult to deal with. It''s defense would be tough and due to it''s nature of running widly, it''d be rather troublesome. It''s imposing body, that was made up of 420kg of meat, made it look like a small tank. If it had been humans that met it, then even a second circle human would have a hard time. Torrelsav calmly observed the Bison from a distance. then he picked up his pace and entered it''s attack range, a few Orcs joined him, holding various weapons. He intended to test the waters first but this fellows were too eager, so he chose to have a head-to-head confrontation with the creature. Immediately the lazy and bored expression the Bison had as he grazed was nowhere to be seen, Alertness filled it''s face as it noticed the approaching opponents. without warning, it charged as the earth beneath it rumbled along. Facing the impending collision of the bison, Torrelsav grunted as he yelled at the Bison''s victim, "Dodge!" The Orc respond almost immediately but something strange happened, a mound appeared beneath the feet that held the Orc''s balance, catching him off balance. Bang!! Like a broken kite, He flew backwards. with a successful attack, the Bison dragged it''s hind legs on the ground repeatedly. It faced Torrelsav with blood red eyes and a white mist escaped it''s mouth and nose. With this, Torrelsav became sure that this beast had awakened it''s intelligence which shows that it only lacked time to Evolve. "don''t move, this beast is for me to kill" He said calmly while flexing the Tomahawks in his hands, after a few seconds, both parties charged at each other. When they were about to collide, Torrelsav moved aside with a small step, and then the weapon in his right hand slashed towards the bison''s neck without hesitation. "Ouuuuuh!."it cried out in pain. It turned around and rushed towards him again, completely ignoring the newly earned wound. Seeing it rushing towards him again, he also stared at it and rushed forward. When he was about to collide with it, he jumped to the side and used at it''s side, it''s hind legs shifted due to the impact dangerously. BANG!!! It stumbled to keep it''s balance but surprisingly, It didn''t forget to place a short wall-like thing in front of Torrelsav''s attack route. Never the less, Torrelsav hadn''t dodged the wall but jumped over the blockade effortlessly before rushing towards the Bison. He caught up with it when he was about to turn around, then raised his tomahawks and slammed it against it''s head. It turned around just to be hit with Torrelsav''s weapon, Under this action, the power of this blow, the Bison was knocked out on the spot. Looking at the creature that was fainted beneath his feet, Torrelsav smiled "This meat seems good." Chapter 59 - 58: A Gods Fall It was late in the evening when The hunting parties returned, the meat were stored in the storehouse and Alex ordered for them to have a feast tonight, the moment he saw First circle Bison. Dabok had been excited to see the first circle beast, according to him, it would improve the body of the young ones and a few a.d.u.l.ts even. As soon as he heard this, Alex decided that they would have dinner at the semi town center tonight. Anything that increases the quality of his people is much appreciated. It''s just unfortunate that the area they lived didn''t have much of these evolved beasts, it was both a blessing and a disappointment, but he didn''t have to worry too much. As long as he takes over the surrounding region, it''d all belong to him in the end. kpa! Snap! "Hahaha..." laughter and the constant chatter made Alex smile, Due to being the one who caught such a fine beast, Torrelsav was especially happy tonight, He was topless and was being pestered by Gilgar with Booze in hand. Today Alex found out that, they had a special way of making alchohol with a Fruit called ''Droll''s bead''. According to the legend, the God of mischief had found it funny to give a quest to a Kobold who had repeatedly pestered him for assistance, He gave it this tree seeds, saying if he could succeed in planting a thousand of this tree, then he will grant h a reward. But what was weird was, He only gave out 99 seeds!!, the Kobold died before he could finish the quest. But on the bright side, this trees were now a popular thing amongst the monster faction and they had been planting them in his village!. Alex had a wry smile on his face as he looked at the so called Droll''s bead in his hand, it looked like a mixture of a watermelon and a coconut, a hole had been pierced into it and that''s where you drink it''s content from. Although it tastes sweet, it felt like someone was giving you a light slap on your cheeks repeatedly. this was the second one he was taking, just to satisfy his curiosity on how strong this could be. And honestly, at the third mouthful of this second fruit, Alex was already tipsy. ''If this is this effective on a monster body, how would a human react to it'' He mused as he twirled the fruit in a rather slow manner, soon he felt a gaze and turned in the direction he felt it from. Sitting in that direction was Nazu who was caught spying on him, She had a tranquil gaze even though she had been caught, the burn fire illuminated her facial features and he couldn''t help wondering what she was thinking. Soon her line of sight changed to something next to him and so he looked there as well, standing next to him was Moz who had appeared at some point, she looked at everything happening with interest. Seeing this, Alex looked back at Nazu and couldn''t help the playful expression that slowly appeared on his face. But Nazu simply turned to the burn fire again while she kept nodding, determination could be seen in her gaze. Alex began to wonder what could be going on in her head. Largash, the oldest Daughter of Torrelsav on the other hand was thinking, She had seen the whole exchange and couldn''t help looking at Moz and Nazu. Although, Nazu had openly laid claim on the Chief, the first day she appeared, she didn''t take it to heart. She had other ideas in mind, She knew the Chief more than Nazu and could tell that you won''t get his attention without any achievements, so without that Largash had stayed quiet about what she felt for her savior. In fact, She had many reasons to become The Chief''s woman. As she thought about this things, she looked at Nazu again and advised herself once more, ''I would need more power to be the first woman...'' She thought of the close battle Nazu had with the Chief and felt that if she was placed in that position, even though the Chief didn''t go all out, she won''t be able to do that much. "..." As she was in her own thoughts, she was elbowed by someone, upon turning to this person, she found out it was Gilgar. Seeing Largash blankly staring at her, Gilgar went for another series of elbowing with a cheeky grin. her braided hair swayed along with her actions, "drink...!" Largash said as she lifted the Fruit in her hand and forced it tnto the mouth of this sister of hers. Lovan wobbled across the surrounding people and suddenly slipped, only to be caught by a someone. "waaah!!!" They bellowed before a series of laughter echoed along, he almost tripped into the burn fire. Alex was sweating bullets at the sight but luckily he had been caught, Alex had the intention of helping this fellow evolve to the second circle, considering he was the only one left in his inner circle. He signalled for Haji to take his father away, seeing the retreating duo, he began to wonder what happened to Haji''s mother. The Orcs from Nazu''s village began singing war songs and soon the others joined in as the lyrics didn''t seem hard, in fact, Alex got infected and began singing as well. soon they were stomping their feet, munching on meat and gulping mouthfuls of Drinks. """"Hahahahah!!!!"""" """To the Chief!!!!""" "For Black moon!!" Alex added, the moonlight shone on them as the whole tension from the days before slowly drifted away. Goblins sang along with their shrill voices but no one seemed to mind, Alex soon felt tired and walked towards the Manor after saying goodbye. it Didn''t take long for him to arrive on his bed, he laid down on the soft furred bamboo bed with a bounce. Feeling dizzy for a bit, he slowly drifted off to sleep. ____________ In a white mansion, a man dashed in from the front door holding a gun while looking around warily. After looking out through the windows he called out. "Himiko! it''s time!!" "Alright I''ll go get Alex" a woman replied hurriedly but had a firm tone. "No go get it, I''ll get Alex" the man said before dashing upstairs into a room by the stairs. "hey Alex, Alex my boy" his voice called out. "mmm...huh? Dad?" a groggy childish voice muttered slowly in surprise as he struggled with sleep. "come on, Get up quickly" The masculine voice called out again before shaking the black haired kid laying on the bed and lifted him. He got downstairs and saw Himiko with two small bags and a backpack. "They''ll be here soon.. let''s go" The Man said as she only nodded like she was expecting it. She said as they exited the back door, "I take that it failed then". only an awkward silence hovered in the air as he didn''t respond, The child was already wide awake, staring at his parents in confusion but didn''t say anything. Soon they arrived at the boatyard deep in the woods, They got onto the speed boat as the man quickly untied the boat after placing the 4 year old child on the boat. Himiko quickly held onto him, The Man struggled to start the boat up as a gunshot rang out causing Alex to cry out. "MR RADWELL I''LL FIND YOU!" a voice rang out from the boatyard as the speed boat sailed off, "What are you doing?! quickly get the other one ready!!" BOOOM!! The other boat exploded as Mr Radwell turned "What?" She asked with a steel face. "You still planted the explosives?" He asked in disbelief. "So? came in handy didn''t it?" She replied in a matter of fact tone, Frank said no more as he steered the boat. "Where are we going?" Himiko then asked. "Japan" Frank answered curtly but Himiko had a smile blossom on her face even though she didn''t say a word. ____________________ [Ding!] [God of the Veil, Mayos has fallen...] As Alex dreamt, a system notification woke him up abruptly as a surprised look appeared on his face. he dashed outside and sure enough, it was raining blood!. Anytime a God died in Luegad, it would rain blood, Alex couldn''t help frowning as this didn''t bode well for the whole situation of things but it would have happened in end. This meant one thing, "The Gods have began moving." Chapter 60 - 59: Rare signature mount Summoning card North Cullbeg, Cliff of Divine promise, In the sky above this land, Thousands of miles above, once stood the Divine kingdom of Lord Mayos but what laid there now was flames and ruins that rained down from the sky. Looking up from the city of Mirrors, it looked like the sky was on fire as blood rained from above. Panic set in as flaming rocks began raining down on them as well, the People cried out to their God, Mayos, some to Ragol, a few prayed to the God of travel to save them, shield them from this catastrophe. But no answer came even when the first Rock hit the Earth. BOOOOM!!!!! An explosion rang out as the first stone hit the floor, the force and impact set other chain of events in motion, screams and wailing could be heard everywhere as the citizens of Cullbeg tried to escape in different directions. Swoosh!!! Bolten appeared like a storm as he stared in Horror at the sight before him. "How could this be?". "A neutral God has fallen" Droll said with a rare seriousness, it was unknown when he had appeared. "You two are the last people who should be appearing there, leave quickly" Horjen''s voice could be heard in their mind, startling them for a second before they relaxed. The moment they understood her words and disappeared without asking questions, after all, Goddess of mystery had never failed in her advices. Both parties disappeared just as they came but someone had seen them, He stared at where they had been with gritted teeth before leaving as well. No one cared about the people below, and so ushered in the history that Alex had come to know as the city of broken mirrors in the Novel. _______________________________ The Blood rain continued till the next morning and the ground was now painted red. Alex looked at the Villagers taking cover from one place to another while going about their work. Goblins could be seen with wide leafs above their head as they shuttled from one place to another, making it comical. The Breeding house was finally completed, Alex walked towards it with a straight face as he didn''t even want to imagine himself wearing a green Leaf on his head. "Greet Chief" "Chief!" Different salutes could be heard as he nodded his head in response. "Leave me first" The others quickly left with some making, "oh!" or "kikikk" sounds. Alex looked at the Breeding house with a nod before saying, "Do you find this appropriate for the use?". The Breeding house gave out a warehouse vibe with how spacious it was, there was a separate room at the opposite side from the door. [Scanning....] A kind of sonar echo out of his body and escaped to his surrounding before coming back, it repeated twice just like the other times so Alex was pretty much used to it. [Scanning complete] [Contain basic requirements] [Eligibility: 100%] [Proceed with the necessary Alteration...] The building began shaking but Alex was unmoved, their were different cracking sounds and space seemed to shift minutely. [Please provide the Base Creature for Breeding] [First Breeding would be done for free] [The Necessary materials would be stated along with each after first Use.] After a series of Notification, the system went silent once more. Alex could only sigh, the system had refused to answer any of his questions and seemed to always want to conserve it''s energy to speak, only appearing when important messages come up. This made him believe that it''s either incomplete, damaged or as some systems would say, I don''t have enough rights to know but only time would tell. But right now all Alex wants to do was to hasten the pace of his plans. He decided that the first attack should be during the Purple Moon in 4 days because of the exp boost. He looked at the blue colored card in his hand with focus as he prayed for the mount to be something useful. Plak!! He crushed the card as Mana around seemed to surge viscously in circles just in front him, He could barely open his eyes as he shielded them with his hands. Swooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!! Awoooooooo!!! A terrifying howl rang out soon after as a Wolf almost twice the size of a normal dire wolf. it was 8 feet long and looked like it weighed 600 pounds, it was as tall as a human male, long tusked jaws that look like they could snap an iron bar. it had a whitish black fur with goldish brown eyes that inspected it''s surrounding with caution. It stood there looking a bit confused for a second before turning towards Alex, whitish smoke seemed to escape it''s mouth as he sized Alex up. Alex put his palm in front of him and stood there as he studied this fascinating beast. [Rare signature mount summon complete...] [Summoned Alpha Ghost wolf] That was all the information the system said, no further explanation like where it came from or the like. It looked at Alex for a while before approaching him with what Alex felt were hesitant steps, before it placed it''s forehead gently on Alex''s stretched out palm. not long after their skin touched and he stroked it''s fur a little, it ran backwards in a playful manner, it''s tail swooshing left and right furiously. [Alpha Ghost wolf ] Level: 17 (First circle order of evolution) Power rating: 8000 Relationship: Torug''s Mount Skills: Stealth: blends itself and it''s rider with it''s surrounding for 45 seconds but gains a 40% slow debuff. loses stealth upon being attacked or upon attacking. Cool down: 45 seconds. Haste: Increases movement speed by 70% for 8 seconds. Cool down: 20 seconds. Pounce: Pounces on target within 15 meters while dealing 40% damage on target, 100% true damage when used in a sneak attack.] _______________________ Alex was satisfied with this, if he could get a raid team with this skills, He couldn''t help laughing loudly,, "Hahahaha". Then he remembered if he this mount in the Breeding house, the others would come with only 60-70% of the original, he couldn''t help being somewhat disappointed, ''but this is good too'' With that thought, He selected his mount and found he could only breed twenty with this free first use, he could only laugh wryly. [Ding!] [Choice confirmed] [Time of completion, 66 hours] The lively wolf seemed to be in some kind of Stasis as it''s body drifted slowly into the inner chamber of the Breeding house. Alex looked at the wolf while scratching his beard before looking at the timer, "that''s a day and 26 hours...hmm". "Might as well spend this system points...Hmm?" He opened the lottery tab and found it was grey, this was the first opening the tab since it was unlocked so he was somewhat surprised. "Is there a particular reason for this?" He asked the system. [you are short of 300 system points, You need 1500 system points to use the available lottery] Alex complained as he looked at the Dice in front of him, "isn''t that too expensive for something that has to do with chance?" [that is because of the 100% guarantee that you would be getting something] For some reason, Alex still found it shady "...." Without saying anything further, He left the Breeding house. Chapter 61 - 60: Aether... A day and a half went like the wind, Alex sat by the lakeside, staring into the lake that seemed like an endless Abyss. The sound of construction could still be heard from the village as the Goblins became more adept in the craft. The hunting parties were still going at it, they hunted meat to store in the store house since there won''t be any chance to do so once the start their battles. crr... crr...crr... The sound of footsteps moving across the Stony river bank came from behind, it seemed light but steady so Alex didn''t bother to look back to know it was the shadow Orc, the Goblins were too disorderly to act like that. As soon as she stood a step behind him, she saluted "My Chief". He turned to her slightly and nodded in response before getting up to his feet, He didn''t have the cloak on today and was just topless with the Black battle skirt. The skulls used to adorn his belt were in full display, alongside the fang necklace from the system which matched with the earring in an odd way. He turned to Moz who seemed to be more interested in his sigils than his face. Her short black hair were now braided at the sides making her gaze seem sharper, the Dark brown pools looked from left to right without any remorse as this was normal between Orcs. If it were some Chiefs, they''d flex their muscles and offer their children or to make her a sow. Alex had no problem with her actions but he said, "have this..." while he stretched out his hands. On his palm lay the other piece of the , Moz looked at the item before looking at his face and then looked at the item once more. She repeated this action twice before taking it off his hand silently. On both ears, she had an earring that seemed to have been made from the spine of a small animal, it covered the edges of her ears, leaving only the ear lobe free. Now she added the Eye of Cafo, by placing it on her left earlobe before cleaning the tiny trace of blood. She didn''t ask any questions, so Alex had no idea what she was thinking, but when she looked at him, her eyes always lingered at his own earring. Alex wasn''t bothered by all this and chose to continue speaking as he gazed at the lake, "Always keep it with you, make sure you don''t lose it" Moz Nodded seriously to show she understood, She wanted to ask something but Alex''s voice cut off her train of thought, "No need to think too much Moz, Always try to be like this lake." Feeling that she''d understand him, he didn''t elaborate and Moz on the other hand didn''t ask before leaving, She kept looking back at the lake from time to time. Not long after she left, Dabok and Urim came, they had a funny look on their faces. "Brother... You..." Urim spoke first but didn''t know how to express what he was feeling but Dabok came to the rescue, "Is she the one you chose at the end?" "No, I have not chosen anyone" Alex answered with a shake of his head, This two seemed to be more into this topic this days, Dabok believes that He should have an heir in case something like that Alger''t situation, As always Urim supported the reasoning. After all most Chiefs would have done so by now with several women and even human slaves. "But I''ll choose soon, After War." He added in the end, after all the matter won''t rest until he picks one person. "Hahahahaha!!!" Urim broke into raucous laughter but shut up at Alex''s next words. "Urim, you choose too" Urim only shrugged with a ''it can''t be helped'' expression, making Alex gawk at the Orc. ''I say, aren''t you too human-like? who teaches you these expressions!!''. Dabok touched his chin in amus.e.m.e.nt and then frowned, His hair and beard didn''t increase after his second evolution like the others, Alex had felt that was probably because most of his evolution was actually used to make the body somewhat younger, In fact his old Beard was gone. When they all calmed down, Alex said "follow me" before heading towards the Breeding house. The system notification just came in, announcing the completion of a successful breeding. It didn''t take long to enter the Dark breeding house, but a second later, the lights mysteriously appeared, shocking Dabok and Urim. But what was even more shocking was, "BROTHER!!" Urim growled while rushing to stand in front of Alex, His greatsword had long been unsheathed. A dark glowing light could be seen on Dabok''s finger tips as he cautiously gazed at what laid before him. Alex nodded at their actions, this showed that they were always on Alert despite the goofy atmosphere from earlier, but that didn''t stop Alex from what he did next. Pak! He smacked the back of Urim''s head casually, even though he was a head taller than him. "Relax" He said while walking out from behind Urim, Then the Wolves were on full display. When the Alpha Ghost wolf saw Alex, it immediately rushed towards him with wagging tails but Alex stopped it when it was 4m away from him. "Old Dabok, this are My Black moon village''s Wolv...." Alex explained, while he spoke the Ghost wolf already got closer to him and licked his side, making him stop his speech. Eyeing the Creature, Dabok''s voice could be heard from behind, "But...How!!" He approached Alex with quick stride but the wolf growled threateningly. "Hey, they are my people, your people" He warned, the Wolf seemed to understand and stared blankly for a second before circling around Dabok and Urim once. When done, it returned to Alex''s side. Alex then faced Dabok saying, "They''re a gift for the Goddess, but we have to sacrifice something to get something." "What did you sacrifice to get them" Dabok asked immediately, shocked evident in his eyes. In all his years, He hasn''t seen something like this and he could clearly feel how strong this animals were. Alex was tongue tied for a second before choosing to breed more wolves and see what the system would request. [Alpha Ghost wolf: 1ml of Aether, 1st level of Evolution rank bones numbering the number of wolves needed] The moment he saw the requirement he couldn''t help frowning, the bone part is easy as that matter would be solved with the more land he conquers but the Aether would be a problem for now. Aether is pretty much liquified mana, that would appear at the later stages of the Novel, it''s a kind of power source processed from Mana stones. Alex remembers the process but right now his mine is indisposed till he''s able to get more warriors. ''So war first before anything'' Alex grimaced, He was thinking he could add more wolves and breeze through the war but he''s stuck with this number first. Chapter 62 - 61: Tests & Glorious Sun Nazu''s POV ''Chief Torug...A strange Orc he is'' I thought solemnly as I looked at the Twenty and one Wolves before me. "Urim, Torrelsav, Nazu, Moz... come, make your choice" Torug said as he rested on the Wolf he called Alpha, clearly that creature had far more intelligence than the others. Dabok the Old oaf shifted repeatedly where he stood as he eyed Torug''s twinkling gold eyes, Amus.e.m.e.nt played on his expression but my thoughts were elsewhere... ''They were very much different from the ones the Blood horn riders had, and they weren''t this many. but still, this made them formidable!.'' I approached the wolves like he asked, The Wolves watched us curiously as they even sniffed. Urim stroked his beard without moving from his initial spot. It didn''t take long for Moz to pick a blackish brown Wolf, it gave off the feeling like it wasn''t there but I can clearly see it. Torrelsav also made his pick, it was a full brown furred wolf that kept nudging at him. I was still at a loss, "Do I?" My voice trailed off as I noticed Wolf laying down at the far back of it''s Pack, it''s fur were almost as whitish black as Alpha but leaned towards blue instead. ''I want this one, it''s color is close to The Chief''s...hehehe''. I thought of how I would look riding it next to My ''Beloved'' as the white skinned called it. I subconsciously stroked it''s fur, as it alternated looking between Torug and myself before closing it''s eyes in delight. When I was done, Urim laughed out loud saying, "I told you, she would pick it!". My beloved looked in amus.e.m.e.nt and for some reason I was confused about what to think till he spoke to me, "The Chief had picked it for you long before..." Hearing this I looked at Him and he said with a grin, "I wanted to see what you would do with it". ''I will earn my right, just you wait'' and as though he could hear thoughts, He said "I''ll be waiting". Alex sighed in his heart, ''haaa, your expression is too Honest''. He watched her lead her stroked her mount while glaring at him and couldn''t help thinking, ''Do I need to make saddles, best test this today and make corrections before the purple moon.'' When his Inner circle fighters chose their mounts, He looked at the rowdy villagers and warriors before selecting sixteen Orcs to pick the remaining wolves. And so his raiders Unit, which was to also act as scouts as well, was fully formed. Tapping Alpha gently, The Wolf rose to it''s feet slowly as Alex mounted his back. Without hesitation, Urim did the same as the others awkwardly followed. ''What a Brother!...'' Alex thought with a laugh. He kicked the Wolf''s sides lightly like it was a Horse and it began moving slowly, ''There doesn''t seem to be any issues with weight but steering would be a problem...'' Alex mused, ''They''d need Armor too, no unless this things can be made today then using the mount during the raid in two days would not be feasible''. While in thought, Alpha continued it''s motion towards the gate, ''luckily it''s still mid day so I can do all the testing before heading to the leather workers. we are lacking resources, perhaps it''s time to explore the Valley.'' A ruckus broke out from behind Alex as the others exclaimed for various reasons, He couldn''t help turning abruptly to investigate, some kind of competition between Nazu and Moz had begun, Urim was the only one following him closely but from his muscles you could see that he was a bit tensed. Torrelsav wobbled from side to side and couldn''t help sweating a little bit. Same thing with the other Orcs, causing the Villagers to laugh in amus.e.m.e.nt. Perhaps Alex would have been like that if he didn''t know horse riding and besides with the connection he had with Alpha, what could go wrong?. Slowly Alex began increasing the pace of Alpha''s movement, just to see who would fall first. by the time exited the village, Alpha was already on a low Sprint and a few Orcs fell, remounted, chased after the group as they ran around the town. ''No problem with transportation but for battle?, I''m not sure we might need saddles... perhaps Raz c...'' Alex''s thought process was cut short by Urim''s exhilarated laughter. After going around till everyone got more comfortable with riding, Alex decided to go back into the village to discuss with Raz and the other Crafters after a mock battle. The Wolves barely made a sound in full Sprint, and made no sound during stealth, like they had a special sound canceller. Alpha would go into stealth when Alex says it out, this shocked the others to the core but they soon followed suite with Nazu leading this time. Several ideas came to mind with this wolves joining his deck of cards. The people at the gate were scared when the people approaching the village suddenly disappeared from sight. Unfortunately, Alex found a problem, when any of the riders used stealth, the others lose sight of him or her, this might cause problems during raids but luckily it seems the wolves can tell where the other was. ''I also have to worry about the enemy using this against us later...''. ___________________________________ There is the power of the throne, and then there is true power. The Lordly Houses have long held the true power in this part of the world. Six major lordly houses held true power in Luegad, as well as a host of lesser houses and their rulers. The control over Luegad is dabbled in webs of alliances and politics. Each nation is ruled by its official sovereign, whether a king or an empress, who proclaims laws, declares war or peace, and establishes taxes. The practical work of enforcing those laws, raising armies for war, collecting taxes, and so on, falls to this houses¡ª¨Cand with that comes most of the practical power of the nation. Houses may span national borders; think of the great European dynasties, such as the Hapsburgs. Six Great Houses stand apart, and each aspires to be named the House of the Victorious Sun, which rules all the others. The size and strength of the Great Houses is such that they can annihilate most Minor Houses that cross them, or reward those that bend to their will. They are lions and demons in a flock of goats and lambs. All the lords and ladies, both of the Great Houses and the Minor Houses, owe fealty to the Lord of the Victorious Sun, and are required by oath to be true to his or her commands. The House of the Victorious Sun, you might say is the formal appellation of the house that is currently in the dominant position over all its peers. This is a great honor and privilege, and all the Great Lords swear fealty personally to the Lord of the Victorious Sun. Every year during the summer solstice Festival, the Great Houses gather at the Tomb of the First House for the Festival of the Victorious Sun. At noon on the solstice, the Rite of Victory is performed. During this ceremony, the five current Great Lords may stand and proclaim for one of them to be elevated to the Lord of the Victorious Sun. If three Great Lords agree, that house ascends and becomes the House of the Victorious Sun. The previous house with that honor takes the vacated Great House''s position. Typically, the next ruler is decided well before the votes are cast, as each house has been working relentlessly towards strengthening their position and claim through military might, subterfuge and assassination, control of resources, and often sheer financial power. In other cases, the Rite of Victory comes down to the very last hour as each ,house maneuvers and schemes. Most years, especially in times of peace and order, no change takes place at the Festival. Some Houses of the Victorious Sun have ruled uninterrupted for as many as thirty to forty years. In more turbulent periods, however, the title has changed as many as nine times in a single decade. Now in the Kingdom of Cochland, Capital city of Alton, The Patriarch of the present House of Victorious Sun, House of Huldra, sat on his throne with a scowl that could crack a nut. "The Gods have began moving" His booming voice reverberated across the Hall, Marcus Huldra is a big man in his middle ages, long ago had he crossed the threshold of being a high human, He was one of the few powerful ones of this world, sitting at the stage of metamorphosis or as the laymen called it, ''The fifth circle of Order''. Dabbed in a golden robe, adorned with black highlighted buttons here and there, a drawing of the families sigil hung on his c.h.e.s.t, the great Huldra. His pitch black hair combed backwards and his frigid blue eyes threatened to spit fire at the bowing adviser. "To think, you had me wait!!...I''m sure Vigil had began moving too" He roared, For 37 years they had held the position of victorious Sun with the help of his strength alone, their military might were rather formidable but not the strongest. Vigil Maloch, Patriarch of the house of Maloch and also holder of Umbra position, they held the most powerful military might. Rumors say that Vigil is about to break the shackles of the Grand circle and step into the stage of metamorphosis. Marcus had initially planned to assassinate him before he succeeded but his Advisor advised him against this move. With the help of the Blood rain, Vigil succeeded, now he had every tendency to compete for his position this coming summer. "Lord Ragol above, one who serves the night mother as the occupier of house victorious sun?, curse the day I let this happen. I think it''s time we take them out of this game...the Gods have begun moving, there''s not much time...I can redeem myself" Marcus quickly rose from his throne, exposing his 2m height and bulky body. He glared at his Advisor one more time before leaving the hall with quick strides, Unknown to him, a dangerous glint flashed through the Advisor''s eyes as he watched Marcus leave. Chapter 63 - 62: Final day Same Day, Nation: Cilldean Kingdom Ruler: Queen Hawise Salman Government: monarchy Race: Humans Population: 49,273,554 Territory: Moongret City: Thann''s End Charles glared at the Knight known as Frank, "You continue to fail me Franklyn, you are yet to tell me what Degr Orcs were doing in our lands, now some days ago, A mysterious mana fluctuation was felt from the same area?!!". "My lord, This..." Frank tried explain but felt short of words, He struggled to find words to say until Charles lost his patience. "Speak Dammit!!" Unable to control his anger, He cussed in a way that was unbecoming of a Lord and High Human. "You know what? never mind, Have you made preparation for the Delegates from the Capital?". Hearing his question, Frank immediately reacted, after all he was more than ready to switch topics, in fact, He was already beginning to regret becoming this Man''s confidant. "Yes, it''s been taken care of, My lord". "And what is Sulfia doing? best hide that embarrassment I''m afraid." Charles added with a voice filled with absolute contempt and disgust. "The Lady has been informed on what to do and not do". "Lady? HAHAHAHA hilarious, Lady...hahaha more like a ''SOW'', hahahaha!!"Charles mocked, Frank couldn''t help but wonder if this was how all high humans behaved. He could only frown as he chase after his patriarch. "Let me tell you a secret, Frank, are you aware that this delegates were actually sent by the Sun God''s temple. I hear the Sun God''s champion would be among them, can you imagine?! hahaha!!" Charles said as he took a right turn in the hallways. "I''m aware, your grace." Frank almost rolled his eyes as he answered in a monotonous manner. Charles on the other hand, wore a solemn expression "Perhaps this could be an opportunity, I hear He lacks a concubine ". "Indeed, your Grace" "Very well, get me Regina" Charles ordered with a bit of flair as he spinned on his heel before sitting on a sofa. With a Salute, Frank left Charles frowning as He began thinking. After moving for quite a distance, He muttered ''Eccentric Bastard...What''s up with the mood swing''. "Hihihihihi" a low cackle sounded beneath his feet, "why so salty? hikikikik". "Not now!!" Frank growled. "This is a perfect opportunity to put the Moongret clan in a bind..." Hearing this "What do you mean, why speak cryptically". "hihihihihihi...we''ll see, it''s not time yet. Just wait patiently kihihihihi" Shadow spoke as it''s voice slowly drifted to ''sleep'', Frank paused for a second before he continued his steps. ____________________________________________________ The final day before the next purple moon, Blackmoon territory, shua!! shua!! shua!! It didn''t take long for her and her wolf to go into stealth. The others headed back to perform their respective assignments, Alex had been able to get the goblins to make saddle-like items and Raz to make spears with the Iron-like trees for the Goblins. Spears as their primary weapon and the short sword as the secondary weapon. Aside from Raz, the Clan now had two knew people that evolved in the industrious path, one tailor and one Blacksmith or Iron worker as the system explained. Honestly, Alex couldn''t tell the difference but who was he to argue. Alex had Lovan complete the buildings the town was owing the system, he needed it done to perform the next upgrade. while He instructed Lovan, Alex couldn''t help thinking ''It''s almost time for the protagonist to show up at Thann''s End, I just hope the Night mother fulfil her own end of the bargain.'' ''He should be like me now, at the second circle. I wonder how strong he''d be...''Alex mused as he scratched the side of his head. Since he didn''t have much to do than to wait for the raid, he decided to brush up his axe techniques in the open space behind his manor. Urim seemed to love riding and has been riding continuously almost all day, He followed Torrelsav and his hunting party earlier, so Alex had no sparring partner today. Alpha phased out of stealth and tilted it''s head in confusion as it tried to find who Alex was fighting, It soon got bored and went back into stealth while lurking around. Alex could only shake his head and laugh before continuing his practice. Once he was done, He sat down to recollect things he had read that could help him presently. Aside from the surrounding small and medium Orc clans around the two big ones at the opposite side of the town were going to be a headache. He only hoped they wouldn''t get noticed as they tried to gather more numbers. ''It''s about time for Nispurl''s civil war...''Alex soon recollected something before brushing it off, He then thought of something else, ''I need to find Cilldean''s supply chain later, the amount of resources I could get from just one of those would be tremendous help...Luckily our region is still far from beast men territories.'' "My Chief!, Hoo...hooman!!"A goblin soon announces from the other side of the Manor as Alex walked towards the entrance, "Hoomans!!, at valley!!..." "Oh??Alpha!!" Alex yells as Alpha phased out of stealth immediately with a bark, Alex lightly jumps unto it''s back and directs it towards the valley with full speed. ___________________________________________ "SIMON that bastard!!" A middle aged man roared in anger. Another man quickly interjects with a rather bored tone "Calm down Boss...". "Don''t give me that attitude right now, cos I''m sure it''s that lazy attitude of yours that made you let Simon leave your sight!" Boss roared with a glare. Twelve riders rode passed the valley''s mouth and soon found the abandoned cages. They inspected the surrounding with incredulous expressions, wild animals had long feasted on the guards and their weapons were missing. "what do you think happened?" The one called Boss offered no response but soon ordered, "Check the surrounding, do you see Simon''s carriage?". A few minutes later, "Nothing boss..." "Then we continue forward, we can only know what happened when we see that Creep...Hiaaa" The middle aged Boss said as he urged his horse forward. Unknown to them, An Orc watched from a distance. Alex followed them with his eyes while c.a.r.e.s.sing Alpha''s side. ''Fun-fact, Alpha really hates human'' Alex thought with a laugh before resuming a serious expression. He watched them till they left his sight before returning to the village. "Best have them clear this before, it attracts unwanted attention..." Chapter 64 - 63: Its time... [A/N: so this morning I was listening to-> Ain''t no devil by Andrea Wasse at the beginning of this chapter and it went so well with it, you could try it hue hue hue] Black Moon village, It was a very dark night, about three hours before midnight, Alex solemnly stepped out of the Lord''s Manor. He was struck by the strange, deserted feeling of the town''s atmosphere. Taking a few steps, He surveyed his surrounding before walking towards the town''s square and still found nothing but silence. He turned towards the west, yet he found nothing but silence till he noticed before him, at the foot of the temple''s statue, the villagers stood silently for the first time, Dabok stood at the fore front with a torch: a long torch with n.a.k.e.d flames. The villagers were in a bowing position, Dabok with the torch was bending forward too. It was a dark, weird group, Alex lingered on his feet, watching. He could not see what they were doing. But he could guess what everyone was doing, seeing them crouching down like that; over and Over. Only now did Alex remember, this world, every creature hoped for something to believe in, and the closest thing to God they know was the goddess their chief always spoke of. The one who gave them this town, protection, miracles. They were just at the foot of Ayaseh''s statue, the torch-flames weirdly flickering as the torch-bearer moved with every bow. seeing this scene, Alex could only sigh before approaching Dabok. Feeling his presence, Dabok looked at Alex with a smile before handing over the torch to him. Without a word, Alex accepted it. The moment the torch entered his hands, The dark clouds in the sky faded, allowing the rays of the violet moon to shower on them slowly. Gasps escaped the crowd, Alex looked at the temple and then at the sky. He was not a superstitious guy but he couldn''t help being swayed at the moment as a the wind slowly c.a.r.e.s.sed their bodies. All Alex could say was, "It''s time..." """"Awoooooooo""""" The wolves howled in the background. ____________________________________________________________ Hkork stepped into the rain and the purple moon shone over his tribesmen. In seconds his fur coat were bedraggled and skin wet. Instead of running for cover his mouth curved into the most delicious smile. This was providence. His prayers were answered. He had planned to attack the new tribe before they began to compete for power but the Sker tribe were always in the way, But this time is different, Sker is injured, wounded by the lizard folk, so Hkork felt he could go out and end this new tribe. perhaps I could get some new sows, after all The opponent''s strength seemed below theirs the last time he checked, and they have just migrated here. The opponent may not have discovered them yet. Even if they have already discovered them, the opponent doesn''t know their details, so they can...Hit the opponent by surprise. Those were his thoughts. After discussing strategy and tactics with Baki his strongest warrior, He finally made a bold decision, which was to take the tribe today and take the wounded Sker in one night, hopefully he might just evolve. So he thought as he quickly rallied his men. __________________________________________________________ In order to make everything go as planned, Alex chose to use the riders and create chaos while the footmen come from behind and finish them off. The riders would then continue on to the next village while repeating the same movement, Nazu would move with the footmen. After crossing a distance of ten kilometers, they rushed to the territory of the Hkork tribe, the opposite party looked like they had already received the news or were preparing to launch an attack, Alex suspected the latter, after all it was the night of the Purple moon. When the sentinels saw an enemy approaching, they used a whistle made of wood to blow a specific sound. After hearing this sound, the large troop gathering to go out hunting immediately prepared for defense. "How efficient?" Alex muttered before giving an Order, "Stealth!!". According to Orc culture, the offensive party will not take the initiative to attack unguarded camps. They will often push forward with great fanfare to let the opponent''s sentry find out and leave enough time for the opponent to prepare. Of course, there were also special cases too, where there''s great enmity between both parties?, such actions could be overlooked. Although Alex was yet to find any sort of government within this region, He''s sure there''s one, so he had to follow the rule because there are many disadvantages to going against it, well at least until he becomes the strongest party in this lands. Firstly, the victim will retaliate wildly against your tribe. Even if they lose the battle, they will not choose to surrender. In this way, you cannot replenish your troops in time. Secondly, the leader who gave the order will be despised by everyone, even the members of his own tribe. In the Orc Lands where they respect the strong, people respect and admire the strong, and at the same time they extremely hate those who only perform sneak attacks, bully women and children. This was the law in the Orc lands. Everyone silently abides by it, and no one dares to go beyond it. It is precisely because of the existence of this special law that wars between tribes have always been the kind of frontal. All this had been broken down for him by Dabok. That kind of frontal fight was what Alex loved, a battle between iron and blood made him feel passionate, and there was inexhaustible power all over his body, and there was a supreme p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e of having everything under control. Although he argued that such means wouldn''t work with Humans. SWOOOSH!! A fireball was now hovering within the palms of the Chief, lightening flashed in the sky as Alex and his men got closer. Immediately, the fireball was tossed in between both parties but seeing no reaction, the chief remained alert. When the distance between the two groups shortened to 50 meters, the riders used at the same time, Alex rushed forward with his battle Axe. The enemies were scattered as the wolves also came out of stealth, the flame torches at the entrance were tossed into the village as a result. Despite the shock, there was no nonsense between the two sides. Both sides roared and began killing each other with abbadon. Alex quickly arrived before the enemy Chief, an Orc that was on the slimmer side, He was a meter plus, almost two meters. Alex did not hesitate at all when he was a few meters away from the opponent, he switched the axe to his left hand and then he slashed at the opponent''s neck fiercely. The enemy dodged by bending down before using to bash Alpha on it''s side. Alpha was pushed some meters away before he conjured a fireball to shoot at Alex. Alex quickly used , jumping off Alpha''s back while heading at the enemies location. with a Boom! The sorcerer was Knocked up but apparently changed to wind, gliding into the distance. "haa haa haa" Hkork breathed heavily, it seems the escape skill took a toll on him. Another brawny Orc appeared from the side but Alpha charge at him. Seeing how powerful Alex was, the enemy Chief did not dare to fight him again, so he could only run. Alex used the second before it went on cool down, the axe in his right hand drew an arc, downwards at the fleeing Chief, after all that was the only way to end this battle quickly. Seeing Alex''s actions, Hkork could only conjure lightning to greet the enemy, he planned to trade a blow for blow. Lightening streaked from the sky and landed directly on Alex, who landed at the same time, slashing across Hkork''s c.h.e.s.t and knocking him into the air. Luckily, His body was able to mitigate the attack as he used to follow up his attack. With the passive, reducing Hkork''s attack and the mitigate passive, He could shrug off this attack, after all the Orc didn''t have any wand or item to boost his magic attack. Hkork was sent flying but was very much alive, albeit weakened. Alex quickly rushed towards the opponent and smashed down. Hkork could only roll away before standing up to dodge the Axe once again. He then drifted away like the wind once more, gaining some distance between him and Alex, tossing out fireballs in desperation. KURAAAAAAAAAAA!!!hahahaha!!! Alex roared, the enemy''s defeat is basically set in stone as he lightly dodged the attacks. his agility greatly increased after expending exp on his feet. With off cool down, He charged, not giving the opponent any chance to breathe at all. a bigger fireball appeared but Alex simply dodged by bending down, struggling and breathing heavily was all Hkork could do. By default, Orc''s would have lower mana, added to the fact that he had no tools, he would never be able to win a direct confrontation. Usually Baki fights while he attacks from behind but.... Using the escape skill once more, Hkork could not stand properly and Alex finally bent his knee to use to close the distance. CRAAACKLE!!!! Lightning struck were he was standing, just as he leaped away, after using the last spell he could no longer move and Alex dropped in front of him, sending him into the air. Alex didn''t waste time, He cleave upwards, directly dividing Hkork into two. After killing the Orc, He lifted the corpse and roared, saying "Your Chief is dead." Seeing that, the warriors who were still fighting put down their weapons one after another, waiting for Alex''s order. """HAIL!!!TORUG!!!""" """HAIL THE GODDESS!!!""" The battle only took less than eight minutes from the beginning to the end. At some point, the rear had already joined up with them as Alex could see Nazu had been battling the one the system tagged ''Baki''. Although the battle was very short, the casualties were also terrifying. Black moon''s side killed six Orcs and wounded fourteen Orcs. On his own end, three riders died, while six were lightly injured in this battle. He quickly selected a few people to lead the new villagers and items back under Moz''s lead. He was then ready to attack the next tribe, Nazu chose to follow the riders in attacking as Alex selected new riders to lead the three wolves back with Moz. He wasn''t too worried with the next one because, the enemy chief was already injured. As long as he can quickly kill him, then it would be his victory. "Alpha come!!" He yelled as his mount dashed in his direction, with a light jump, he mounted Alpha. the others followed closely behind with only raging fire under the rain. ___________________ [Name: Hkork Mudflame] Race: Orc Sorcerer Level: 24(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 9570 Relationsh.i.p.s: Chieftain of Mudflame tribe. Alignment: Lunatic ] [Name: Baki Mudflame] Race: Orc guardian Level: 23(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10370 Relationsh.i.p.s: Hkork village''s guardian. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral] Chapter 65 - 64: The Repugnant Orc After riding for about four hours, they finally saw the outline of the Tribe''s settlement, a journey that may have taken days on foot. Due to the full moon being at it''s peak now, the wolves were exceptionally active and fast. This gave Alex more confidence in his next plan, according to the reports, It was snowy in this parts due to White mountain. True to it''s name, the mountain was totally covered in snow, you could only make out a few stony exteriors on some parts but the winds weren''t friendly either. "Luckily I didn''t have any archers" He muttered as the wind blew his hair rather strongly. Moz had explained the other day that, Up above on the other side of this mountain, His future enemy, the Blood horn tribe resided there with the ever present snow storm acting as a natural barrier. Sker tribe on the other hand was situated at the base of White mountain, Although still snowy, it was not as developed as the Blood horn tribe. The mountain lay in the distance like a ridiculous white camel hump or perhaps the nose of a slumbering giant turned to rock. He looked down coldly at the Tribe below, stylishly making their presence known. Soon a burn fire was lit at the center of their camp and he could hear the sounds of yelling, Obviously the sentry had spotted them. ____________________________________________________________________ Unknown POV, Emerging from the blinding white snow storm came wolves, seemingly immune to the bitter wind that cut into the skin of their prey, blanching their skin. At first they were little more than silhouettes and their growling was almost carried away in the howling wind. But as they neared their fur became discernible, thick and wintry in whatever hue their fur had been before, soon riders could be seen on their back. The wolf pack stood still in the distance as a their riders accessed what layed before them. An Orc with full black hair and golden-green eyes, gave an order, to which the wolves and riders alike responded In barks and grunts, spreading wide, sending some to circle around, cutting off any means of escape. Some foolish goblin slaves broke from the terrified huddle and made for the woods, in an instant the pack bore down, gnashing and ripping. When the goblins moved no more as the feast began, crimson spreading garishly onto the otherwise pristine blanket of white. The wolves moved under the purple moon, coordinated, but rarely in company. Their target seemed prearranged and all that matters is a confirmed kill. Standing still on the spot was the golden eyed rider and the wolf that had the biggest size. they both watched the attacks of their companions with cold calculated eyes. It''s my job to investigate what had been happening with the promised goods, to meet Sker face to face and send reports to our side. I''ve been given enchantments to pass as one of them, but I''ll never get used to those golden eyes or cruel smile. These d*mn creatures get excited by all the wrong things and drool inappropriately. They laugh at things that freeze my blood and talk like they own the world already. They don''t though. We humans are the true owners of this world. I looked at the wounded Sker, The Orc sat in the semi-shadow, his heart a steady rhythm. He seemed not to know what fear was, despite his wounded body. Luckily I quickly went into stealth or I might have been implicated. Sker didn''t seem to care, He expected this, in fact when I think about it, He must have expected the attack as well and he looked like he liked it that way. Believing himself to be at the top of the food chain, his warped version of serenity. Every movement he made was slow, deliberate. Killing was such sweet p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e to him that I think he felt it had to be savored, to hurry was bad form to him, like eating fine food too fast. I can never understand this monsters, I have to survive this to make my report, after all, this isn''t part of my pay. Adjusting my position, I climbed the mountain slowly as I slipped into a tree''s shadow. I soon got a perfect view of the battlefield. ''Petos above!! watch over this servant!'' Quickly praying to the lord of Thieves, I could have sworn that the golden eyed rider''s wolf had been staring at me for a second. Sker held onto his bone Axe as He approached the entrance, His first victim walked into the open and his tongue licked his tusks. Wham!! Thud!! He had murdered his own man, blinded by blood l.u.s.t. Then he turned to a red haired rider, "A sow, how pleasant." His gruff voice rang out in the battlefield. He closed his eyes, imagining her blood seemed to almost overload his senses. His red eyes followed her path, but she looked like she felt something, as her bloodied face turned to Sker, obviously those weren''t Hers. Just how many did she kill so far, She turned to the Golden eyed rider with her equally golden irises, "perhaps they are related?" I mused, Do they even understand the prospect of kinship?. There was no movement from the golden eyed rider, I presume he''s the leader. Such terrifying presence, much more intimidating than Sker!, "To think she''s not the leader". AWOOOOOOOOO!!! A huge Orc appears from another corner with a great sword in hand, He was covered in blood, along side his Wolf. He looked at the red haired Orc for a moment and grinned before riding towards their leader, His aura wasn''t any weaker than Sker. Sker seemed to have noticed this and turned wary. His usually arrogant tone was nowhere to be seen, "So you came to attack, you coward. You come while I''m injured and Asleep, you sneak into my lands uninvited. You are so pathetic. Though it will take a while to get back to normal, to feel the strength I had before..." Sker''s gruff voice rang out in the battlefield as he tries to gain the moral high ground based on the rules of the Orc lands. Honestly, Sker has always been an anomaly amongst this monsters, there were times I would mistake him for a human. Alex watched this Orc with a cold expression but he was feeling incredulous by how eloquent it was, It even spoke as despicably as humans would. Black moon riders had clearly made their presence known and His tribesmen sounded the alarm for over five minutes as their men got ready. "I even ordered my people to only kill a few till the leader shows up but..." He''s obviously afraid, but that doesn''t matter anymore, His warriors are looking at him in disgust and hatred. "I might as well do them a favor". Urim looked at Alex with a confused expression as he sheathed his Great sword. "Nazu!!, remember our deal" was all Alex said when... She turned into a golden flash for a millisecond before appearing before Sker with a, "Hehehe!!" [Name: Sker "The Repugnant"] Race: Grey Orc warrior. Level: 23(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 12280 Relationsh.i.p.s: White mountain tribe''s Chief, Slave master. Alignment: Chaotic Evil.] Chapter 66 - 65: If I said I want you dead, you should lay down and... "You!!!Guraaaaaah!!" Sker roars in indignation as he charges forward at Alex with a war hammer. Alex remained unmoved but Urim rode his wolf and blocked in front of Alex subconsciously, but Sker was intercepted immediately by Nazu who appeared by his side with a snort. Wide eyed, Sker could only come to a halt while spinning around with his War hammer. Swooooosh!! Swoosh!! slooosh!! The sound of the wind blowing across her ears as she dodge before redirecting the last two hits, Clang!! clang!! with this opening, She dived in for an attack but her senses began giving her warning signs. Boom!! Sker stomped the ground with force as a shockwave spread out with him as the center, at the last minute Nazu blinked out of the attack range. Their exchange was rather brief, it took a span of 7-8 seconds in reality. Sker had lost all his previous arrogance as he looked at Nazu seriously, She stood about 12 meters away from him with a sneer as she licked the blades of her short sword with a mocking smile. Sker looked at the blade as cold sweat broke out from his skin, He touched his side where he had just been cut and knew he was in big trouble. Even if he manages to win, he still had two others to worry about besides the leader of this two. He scanned his surrounding with a scowl, the wind blew snow into the air as the wind seemed to wail on his behalf. "Grant me this day, the power to crush my enemies as the..." His gruff voice echoed in the surrounding as the wind became increasingly violent with each word. "Sacred Oath?!!!" Alex was shocked for a second before attempting to give out an order to Nazu, but a stranger''s voice rang out "Stop him!". Roooooar!!! Awooooo!!! The wolves became restless as a creature that closely resembled a Jaguar back on earth suddenly charged out from the west, followed closely behind by a blue eyed bear!!!. "The world bear me witness for" Sker increased the pace of his chant but his attempt was futile, the Jaguar pounced on him with a growl. the landing ''jaguar'' slashed across his c.h.e.s.t, drawing blood but Sker''s will to live surprised everyone once again. He took a step back as he pulled a wooden pillar from the side, muscles bulging as he knocked back the ''jaguar''. Alex jumped down from Alpha with his Axe as he spotted the Grey falcon in the sky, It''s wings spanned for 10 meters, so he used the system immediately. ____________________________________ [Name: Clovea Greyeye Race: Dryad (Shape shifter) Level: 24(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 12899 Relationship: Champion of Etix (Goddess of the Earth) __________________________________ While He went through this information, Nazu was enraged!, her chance to earn achievement was being snatched in front of her. "Guaraaaaaaa My prey!!!" with a roar, She blinked right in between the recovering ''jaguar'' and the charging Sker. PKAK!! she kicked the ''jaguar'', before charging at the wounded at full speed, Facing the Sker was about using, she snorted before using a mimicked version of Alex''s leap to lift off the ground. This enabled her to lightly leap over Sker, not missing the chance, She grabbed his stunned head with a backward grip and used her short sword to attempt slitting his throat. "Gualololu", Sker tried talking but blood seemed to be stuck in his throat. "You Beast!!, you dare touch me??!!" The ''jaguar'' suddenly queried arrogantly before charging at Nazu, The bear on the other hand, finally arrived, and was just in time to hear the ''Jaguar''s words, It proceeded to smack both Nazu and Sker with full strength, sending them flying. The whole scene was in Chaos, the wind didn''t seem to be calming down and looked like it would soon become a mini snow storm soon. The ''Jaguar'' wasn''t done as it charged at the dazed Nazu with a snarl. Boom!!! At some point, Alex had used leap and directly landed just before the jaguar''s charge could be completed, his landing tossed her in the air. All the jaguar could see was a big green palm heading towards it''s face in full speed, before it knew what next, it was being smashed to the ground repeatedly as a golden green light flashed within the snow storm, creating an illusion of a golden line swooping up and down. The Bear appeared once again, swiping down with even greater force. Alex only dodged to the side before retaliating with a right upper cut that had been supported with him momentarily using , this added more force and damage as the Bear wailed, staggering backwards. Alex threw the now unconscious Jaguar aside before charging at the Bear. With the hardened bones of an Orc, Alex head-butted the Bear''s snout, knocking it down before mounting it and raining down blows. After a few seconds He roared at something in the sky, "I dare you Clovea!!!". Alex was absolutely pissed, here he was after meticulous planning to leave an impression on the tribesmen he was trying to Annex. Only for a bunch of randoms to appear from nowhere. " hehehe To think you dare touched my People" Alex chuckled darkly, a Grey eagle flew down with the same glaring blue eyes like the other two. As soon as it landed, the sound of bones cracking could be heard, after a few seconds, a Grey haired lady was standing in place of the Eagle, She had a healthy tanned skin but forearm and feet looked like a mixture of flesh and leaves, but somehow it wasn''t repulsive. She silently watched Alex, at some point, the Bear and Jaguar had reverted back to human form, even though they were still unconscious. It was a young man and a teenage girl with the same features as Clovea, both were in the second circle, albeit the teenage girl seemed to have only just evolved. that being level 20 while the young man ''Bear'' was level 22. Unconcerned about her actions, Alex slowly approached the struggling Sker, Nazu was already up with gritted teeth, like she wanted to pounce on the young Dryads. Looking at Sker continuously vomit blood and yet continued to struggle for an escape. Alex could only be impressed as he wondered where the arrogant warrior at the beginning went to. "When I want you dead, You should just lay down and accept it Gladly" he spelled the sentence, word for word as he repeatedly stomping on Sker''s head till at some point, a sickening crunch could be heard and it was followed by the system''s exp notification. Although he could have still left him for his subordinates to kill, He chose to continue with this action. He was painting an impression for the Dryads, even though he was sparing them, he wanted to know that, it''s just as easy for him to change his mind. plus he wasn''t ready to create enemies with a goddess right now, even if it''s a lesser God much less one at the intermediate level. "Great Chief, How do I address you?" Clovea finally spoke, but she didn''t take any step closer, so as not to trigger him. She couldn''t let her siblings get hurt further. "Torug...Torug Blackmoon" Alex said coldly while cracking his neck, He slowly stepped away from the dead Sker. "Ah, so it''s Chief Torug... Forgive my rudeness but can I ask a question?" Clovea continued speaking. "Ask..." "Then...How do you know the language of the Dryads?, have you had a relationship with one? how did you get my name??" Clovea asked questions after question in rapid succession. At this point, Alex was stunned, He had no idea that he had been speaking something different from the traditional language of the Orc lands. Then his thoughts went back to how he understood the humans when he first transmigrated and could only conclude that it was the system that had some kind of auto translator. ''Best be cautious about this in the future'' Alex couldn''t help thinking before he responded to Clovea with a menacing, "That''s a lot of questions for a question", making the whole atmosphere tense. Luckily, as though on cue, Alpha could be seen approaching Alex as it dragged something bloody along with him. Grrrrrrrrrrr..... "Argh!! let me go, F*CK!!...Sh*t Sh*t!!!Lord Petos Ah!!" Chapter 67 - 66: We Move!!! "Let me go you damn beast!!...Ack!!! by the Gods" The bloodied man screamed as he was being pulled by Alpha. Thud Thud Thud... Heavy Footsteps could be heard approaching him slowly. Alex looked at this man with curious eyes, ''how did a human get this far out?'' this were his thoughts as he lifted the human up till their eyes met. Alex scrutinized this fellow and felt he was rather pitiful but he couldn''t be bothered with that. The human long noticed Alex and felt himself being lifted up, He decided to stay still, perhaps he would live through this ordeal. "Are you seriously playing Dead?" Alex couldn''t help asking with a sneer. and Urim''s racous laughter could be heard from behind. The human visibly flinched at the question but remained silent, Alex found it funny and chose to drop the human, due to Alex''s height, the fall felt rather hard, leading the man into a coughing fit. "Sc.u.m!!" Clovea''s voice came from behind, it was laced with venom and hatred. For a minute Alex thought she was referring to him as his whole countenance changed, but when he turned around, he found that she was actually looking at the Human!. So Alex remained silent as the Dryad approached the human with gritted teeth, He was curious about what she would do. Talons grew out in place of her nails as she stabbed the Man''s t.h.i.g.hs and dragged it down. AAAARGH!!!! A horrible Shriek could be heard across the surrounding, as he squirmed like salted worm, Unfortunately, he couldn''t leave the spot he laid because Alpha was pressing him down with a paw. This confirmed Alex''s guess about the Ghost wolves hating Humans. Clovea finally came to her senses as she turned a bit pale while whipping her head in Alex''s direction, According to Orc rules, her actions could be interpreted as a challenge in some cases, so Alex could understand where her fear was coming from. Honestly, the more Alex learnt about Orc lands rules from Dabok, the more he understood that Orcs were simple, yet complicated at the same time, just that most things boils down to violence. Alex sighed in his heart as he gave her a light glare. He then asked the Human a question as he looked at the Man''s details provided by the system. ________________ [Name: Mark Sankreed Race: Human(Thief) Power rating: 7939 Relationship: Member of the Black purse, sixth Son of house Sankreed Alignment: Neutral Evil.] _______________ "What is your name, human?" Alex asked while going through the Man''s details as he tried to recollect his thoughts. ''I don''t know any house known as Sankreed, Perhaps it fell at the earliest part of the book?''. "M...ma...ma..Markukuku...MARK!" He was barely able to state his name with all the pain he was feeling. ''With this amount of bleeding, a human on Earth would already be dead...how mystical, I wonder'' Alex looked the man in the eyes for a second and flashed a grin, Mark wasn''t in the right state of mind to even notice that. ''No, there are too many variables... plus it''s still about 5 hours before the purple moon comes to an end, and things would only get tougher during this period.'' Alex removed any thoughts on using Mark. "What are you doing this far out in the Orc lands?." He asked but Mark remained silent. "He belongs to a sick group known as the Black purse, They mostly deal with smuggling and slave trade. Sker had been working with them for weapons, They would kidnap our people and deliver them to this Bastard!!!and..." Clovea turned out to be the one who answered his question and Alex finally understood what brought the Dryads here and why Sker was injured. Alex understood the whole gist of things as he had performed similar trades in his last life, "You speak human?". The reason he asked this was so He could know if the system made him answer with the same language he was addressed with or it just made people hear different languages at the same time. "Yes" She said. Alex simply nodded after hearing her words, ''So it''s the former''. He looked at the now awakened Dryads as they silently walked behind Clovea, visibly ashamed by their Loss, He then looked at Clovea saying, "I see, you are here for your people... You can go into the village, take them and leave immediately, I have no use for them." She seemed like she wanted to say something but finally restrained herself, She nodded in thanks and ran into the village. _______ Alex turned to look at Mark and found that he seemed to be Hallucinating as his eyes lost focus. This made Alex narrow his eyes at the man, ''could it be that Alpha has venom or could it be because of the Dryad?...guess I''ll find out later.'' "Mark... What''s the situation like in your lands?" Alex spoke in wonder, He knows about the ''Black purse'', It''s the Underground power that was created by the Nispurlian second prince to expand his funds and influence but he didn''t know they had their reach within the ''Orc lands'' and Perhaps it had gotten to the ''winter slate''. "...." Mark seemed to far gone, Alex signaled Alpha to continue what he wanted to do. Crunch! grrrrrrrrrrr!! Didn''t take long for the other idle wolves to rush in for a piece, they struggled in between barks and bites as Alex watched silently. Soon Clovea was seen leading a group of people out of the village with a dead body on the Bear kid''s shoulder. He watched them move North East, but it was possible they went in that direction to confuse him. A minute later, He called an Orc Rider and had him trail them in stealth with his wolf. Torrelsav approached Alex while eyeing Mark get devoured, the other Blackmoon Orcs were laughing excitedly at the wolves Antics. "My Chief, The village has a total of 124 members, the ones that can still fight are left with only 48 Orcs" after giving his report, He waited for Alex''s response. Alex didn''t seem to have any emotion about this number, He only watched the wolves mess around after their meal for a minute before turning to Torrelsav saying, "Good... Should be enough to take care of the 200 goblin warriors don''t you think?". To answer him, the Latter only grinned with excitement in his eyes, Urim''s Laughter came from behind and Nazu''s golden irises watched Alex from a distance. """"Hahahahaha!!!""" The other Blackmoon Orcs joined the laughter without even knowing why they were laughing. ''Goblins breed fast, so this tribe would just have to act as a grinding spot for me and my warriors. it will also be used to send a warning before anyone gets any funny ideas about attacking me for any reason at all.'' "Have the strongest Sker tribesman watch this place till we return, let''s go Hunting...Phewie!!" Alex ordered before calling Alpha over with a whistle. Several whistles rang out as the other Riders mounted their wolves, the newly annexed Orcs would follow them on foot, Alex plans to use this chance to establish prestige within their minds. There was clear excitement within the Blackmoon people, everyone wanted to prove themselves at this point. "My Chief, Don''t you think someone could snatch this people?" Torrelsav expressed his worry. Alex answered with a malicious grin on his face, "oh I hope they do, that way I''ll have a reason to take their own too". Chapter 68 - 67: Raiding the Goblin village. Bright green skin, dull-witted, war-mongering. This was how Human described this little creatures within the Novel, But Living amongst them had made Alex understand that, It wasn''t entirely the case. They easily learned things when thought, but that didn''t matter. All Alex could see before him was experience points... TAATATATAAA!!! {SFX: paws beating on the lightly snowed ground}. There was no need to stop as the goblin village was situated down hill, so they had long been spotted. Kriikiiiikeee kii kikikiki Several screeching voices could be heard from up hill, as the some goblins already charged out like they wanted to prove a point. Alex couldn''t be bothered with them as they didn''t have a single Hobgoblins among them, He then ordered the rest, "Kill everything!" Urim let out an unrestrained laugh and followed after Alex, "hahahahaha" "haaaaaaa!" The others issued a war cry and charged, Nazu was right behind Alex, She gritted her teeth from effort to remain silent, her hunched form on her wolf exuded an animosity that was like acid - burning, slicing, potent. Her eyes glowed under the night sky, She barely suppressed her excitement and anxiousness as she didn''t wish to ride passed Alex, No, that could be interpreted as a challenge. The moment the got close to the enemy goblins, Alex roared as he sliced a goblin in half, she swung around at the enemies and mentally snapped, Her roar followed right after Alex''s, ROOOOOOAR!!!!! Goblins screamed in pain clutching their grievous wounds as the wolves and their riders delivered bites or slashes of deaths into their little army. The black moon tribe charged defiantly in face of throwns rocks with their proud back straight. The attack carried on at a fast pace. "Fire!" The chief looking goblin screeched as he ordered in a strange tongue, suddenly they unleashed waves of stones destroying earth and bruising a few unlucky men. The purple moon rays beat down on them furiously as the cold wave continued unaffected at such chaos. the goblins furiously tried to gain the advantage with a pitiful struggle. a few goblins ran in anguish as they scattered in different directions, they screamed until they rested into nothingness. The battle continued. The raiders broke into the village and scattered around, killing everything in sight, it didn''t take long for a fire to start as it began to spread quickly. Notifications upon Notifications rang out in Alex''s head, even those who just lost their home a few hours ago were venting it out on the goblins. This was Alex''s plan besides the whole leveling, He had noticed majority of his people were young, with only few experiencing this raid and the like. "Aaaaaarkkii" His battle axe dug into the goblin''s head as it''s scream was short-lived. [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 28(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 21300 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) __________________________________________________________________ Palace of Eternal Slumber, The mood within the halls was a dark one, it drew out such powerful tastes of malicious intent that left one bitter and dry of all emotions. "To think a Neutral god would be murdered, they are obviously trying to implicate us and push the neutrals to their side.", a deep voice rumbled out from the far end of the table. "who would be so cruel and vile-" Carx frowned with a sad voice. "Cruel? Vile? How can you even count this as cruel and vile?" Goltan cried out, his voice failing as I struggle to accept what was happening presently. "oh I forget that, you''re not that old...during the last war, there were things that were far more cruel and vile." "Pure", Carx counters weakly. "Deep, long lasting and unperturbed by the many ripples in the river of time. Like white..." he says, his fingers absentmindedly stroking a translucent wing that radiates a blinding dazzle. Bolten scoff at this, while cautiously eyeing Ayaseh''s reactions carefully. He was obviously aware of the complete phrase Carx was trying to recite, so he asked directly, "Do you mean to say that death is light as you associate it with a shade that represents so...?" Giving him a hint of a smile that was not a smile on her face, Ayaseh finishes sarcastically, "After all you must pass through the darkness to be able to appreciate the light more." "But this light, I must extinguish!!". No one said anything but they knew about the light she was referring to, but no one had a good relationship with Ragol anyways. Horjen, who had been silent all along finally spoke, "Ayaseh, the plan is already in motion...but I doubt your champion would be able to catch up." A project came up, showing a bunch of teenagers being led by a blonde haired boy as they fought again a herd of lizard folk under the purple moonlight. "Ragol''s boy is already in the third circle of evolution, it''s only a matter of time before Ragol get''s information on your champion, they are presently not too far from Thann''s End." "For now, lets focus on preparation for what is to come. I have already made arrangements for a suitable distraction, right, We''ll have to invite ...Mi...Mi" Ayaseh spoke but had a face that looked like she ate a fly. "You wish to invite Milen?!!!" Droll yelled in disbelief, He looked around him and found he wasn''t the only one shocked. "Not just her, Etix too..." Goltan looked wide eyed before yelling, "Oh!! I see what your trying to do!!" The others nodded as well before Neah squeezed out a few words, "But It''s still not certain they would want to join us with out present predicament". "Yes, we are on the losing side for now..."Bolten sighed bitterly. ___________________________________________________________________ Nispurl kingdom, Hibe City, Now the Valley was only used by the members of the Underworld. Presently in a One story wooden house that laid stealthily by the city gates, the moon rays fell lazily from charcoal-colored sky as black cloaked man sprinted through the darkening streets, his long hair tied in a tight braid and tucked beneath his black hood. He knocked on the wooden door four times in a particular rhythm, within a few minutes, there was another knock, but from inside this time. "We shall place the world in our purse." The hooded man said in a rough voice, obviously tired from his journey. Klak! {SFX: opening door} The hooded man silently entered the now open doors without a question, He navigated his way through the halls with great familiarity and soon found the stairs. Upon climbing it, He approached the only room on this floor with closed doors and Knocked. "Report..." Someone said from within. "Congratulations my lord, I see you had a wonderful breakthrough tonight." "Enough with your pleasantries, speak" Although he sounded harsh in his words, the hooded man could almost see the smile his lord had through the closed doors. "It''s been over two hours since I got any news from our spy" "oh?" The man behind the doors muttered casually, "Send someone to go find that big oaf Sker, He''s getting arrogant by the day". "Yes!" Chapter 69 - 68: Dragons and Tigers? The morning fades in like a scene from bad theatre production. The cast rode bloodied Wolves as they lead other green creatures about, they project their excited voices as far as they could, barely holding back their excitement. ''Twilight melted away, majestic sunrise, red orange glow seeping over the horizon as if the light itself was being poured from a molten sun. Powerful rays flood over the landscape lighting every blade of grass, shining from each leaf... Those were the words the author used to describe every morning after the purple moon...'' Alex mused as he looked at the sky, He remembered how they always teased the author of not having any other word to describe such mornings. "Well it does leave an impression..." He muttered, as he looked at the ferocious looks of his people. They had vented out whatever needed to be vented out and now they were returning home. Most of his inner circle have leveled passed Level twenty five with this night raid alone. Nazu on the other hand, had been glaring at him throughout the return trip and he couldn''t help finding it funny, He had made sure to block most her chances in earning a major achievement. But surprisingly she hadn''t complained, perhaps she had taken it as a challenge or something, of course Alex never planned to make it easy and he wasn''t the only one trying to thwart her actions, even Largash seemed out to get her for some reason. Now they were only a few minutes away from Black moon town, Alex could spot villagers clearing the corpses of first circle magical beasts that looked like they had killed each other, He couldn''t help but grin at the free food that came and sacrificed themselves at their doorstep. Increasing Alpha''s pace, He made his way to the town gates, eager to get a report on what had happened. The others tried to keep up as much as possible, after all they had seen what Alex had seen. ______ ""''"My Chief!""''Everyone quickly saluted, Alex could only nod as he dismounted in front of Dabok, Alpha on the other hand couldn''t be bothered with what was going on and began to loiter around in an idle manner. "What happened" Alex asked while motion towards the corpses with his jaw. Dabok was all smiles as he said, "Something here must have attracted them, but they ended up fighting each other, it was like they were competing for land". "So they all died?" Alex couldn''t help asking in shock but Dabok''s face seemed to change drastically, if he were human, he would have a face mixed with excitement and fear. "No something beat them all in the end, it evolved, right here and then before killing the rest." "What?...What kind of magic beast would that be, that would be that powerful at the second circle of evolution?" Alex was dumbfounded, normally magic beast had it rough, after they evolve into the second circle of evolution, they experience weakness for a short while due to them not being used to their human like body, it''s only after a day or two that they usually recover. Alex wouldn''t be silly as to think it was a dragon, after all, there was only records of one being alive and it was hibernating at this time. Even if it was a new born dragon, they would already be in the third circle at least from birth. "It looked like that at first" He said while pointing at Alex''s tiger tattoo. "WHAT?!!" Alex''s surprised shout made the others stop what they were doing and looked at him but he didn''t care at this point. He felt like someone was joking with him, There were no records of tigers in the Novel at all or could it be something that had been influenced by him and the system?... "It looked like that" Dabok motioned with his jaw, He felt confused but answered again. Alex quickly calmed down, ''it seems like I''m really mentally exhausted, why lose my cool over nothing...'' "Old Dabok has done well getting the people to clear the surrounding, we''ll continue our discussion in the Manor later" He quickly said this before turning towards the fighters that had followed him back, "Everyone, get some rest" "Lovan, count all our new members and bring it to me later" After giving out this task to the only who was good with numbers, he quickly retreated in order to get some rest and ask the system some questions. _______________________ To the south of Thann''s end, At the out skirts of the Orc lands, Frank, a knight under the Moongret family and a squad of fifteen other knights were to escort the Holy knights in training. in translation, They were to escort 8 kids to the place suspected to be where the champion of the ''Evil'' God appeared. Now however.... They found a huge deposit of Mana crystals and Aether, so they chose to return with those first before going further, but they forgot to ask the owner of the house first. A swarm of eight eyed bees emerged from the unknown almost instantly covered the empty area outside the cave. These creatures were known for two things, how they literally suck out Mana from ones body and their fear for fire. "What do we do now?" she cried, Davis looked at this companion with a sigh, if she wasn''t the best healer, he wouldn''t have agreed to bring her along. Romanus, who was running in the front, turned his head and yelled at the knights behind him. These bees were not very fast with the liquified mana in their system but the occasional ones without this condition was very fast. However, their number could not help but make one''s scalp go numb. "These types of missions are just sending us to our deaths!" a knight cried as he dashed away in break neck speed "Aaaargh!" "This is crazy" Carl cried out as he stared at the now empty husk of a knight that dropped on the floor. "Don''t stop moving" Davis yelled. As they ran, they looked back at the insect swarming behind them from time to time and did not forget to let out a curse or two. Frank who acted as the rear guard, had long disappeared from sight. Perhaps he had died, but Davis couldn''t be bothered with him right now. He had already lifted up Joan into his arms and silently prayed, "Oh heavenly Father, grant me speed, that I may protect your people" "What are you doing??!? do you want to die?" Everyone knows that once you activate your Mana, it''s like a beacon to this things, so they didn''t understand why Davis would this at a time like this but... "Here!" Davis yelled before tossing Joan towards Rudy and dashing in another direction, leaving the others speechless. Chapter 70 - 69: News Alex couldn''t help frowning as he had just listened to Dabok''s story about the final hours of the purple moon. From what he heard, the tiger Magic beast evolved into the second circle of evolution and already gained it''s humanoid form, it stared at Blackmoon village for a long while before heading back into the tree line. "What does that mean?" He couldn''t help but wonder as he sat on his throne. it didn''t take long for him to throw the issue to the back of his mind. "System, Open My territory information" [Ding!] Town Name: Black moon Level: Intermediate Lv1 (15000/15000) Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 728/1500 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv intermediate Lv2= 1500) Soldiers: 291/300 Guards: 5/50 Vassals: 2/5 (New) Sub territory: Basic Lv 1(Mura village)Camp settlement Lv3(Sker Tribe settlement), Basic Lv 2(Hkork Village). Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley, White mountains, Laboni region(37%). Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x56, Smithy, Basic Logging(Fair), Farmland(63%), Advanced Mining Field(91%), Barracks (incomplete), Training Field (incomplete), Town Hall (complete) Breeding house (complete). Looking at the town''s updated information, He Nodded before glancing at the fireplace while muttering in deep thought, "I''m still behind on population, but not for long..." ''For now I should have them complete the Barracks and training field, who knows what surprises I might get. Now let me see...'' [Ding!] [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 28(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 21300 Alignment: Chaotic Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Alex looked at the improvements before his eyes went to what brought him to this page... [Prey on](New) Lv 2- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Present amount of Exp that can be stored : 10000/10000. The Amount of usable Exp was full, so he decided to use on his heart to get the skill. [Ding] You have unlocked a new skill... Lv 1: This heightens one''s senses and reaction time by 30%, as well as the flow of Mana within One''s body becomes smoother for faster circulation. Lasts 20 seconds Cooldown time: 60 minutes With this out of the way, Alex calmly began practicing the second stage of the heart Sutra for the next few hours until Haji made his way into the Hall with a Salute. "Hohoho...Look at you" Alex couldn''t help being surprised as this fellow was the only little goblin he had been clear about how he grew up, now he had an odd sense of satisfaction when he found out that the little goblin had now become an a.d.u.l.t in the first circle of evolution already. Race: Goblin Scout Level: 11(Order of the first circle) Power rating: 2041 Relationsh.i.p.s: Lovan''s son. Alignment: Neutral.] The little guy had Short black hair with a cheeky grin on his face that made one want to kick him, Perhaps he was happy with his Chief''s actions, no longer was his skin brown, it had become a healthy green. "Good, Good, Good... Continue in this manner and you''ll be able to make your father proud!" Alex added while thinking, ''Do goblins even care about such things?''. "So what brought you here?" "My chief, a Rider has just returned and requests to see you..." Haji spoke quickly as his cheeky grin disappeared without trace, this earned him a nod from Alex. ''This... he''s learning and improvising quite quickly, not just him, the whole village.'' Alex had been observing the changes with his clan members as soon as they join. Even when he thought them English in order to make it into the Clan''s own language, for several reasons, they were catching up fast and even knew where and when to use what they learned. "I see, have him come here" After hearing Alex, Haji left with a nod, his battle skirt swayed with the pieces of the Metal tree used to provide protection in certain areas, his short sword was hanging behind him in it''s sheathe. "Raz seems to be doing a good work..." He couldn''t help praising the new Blacksmith as he could see the changes in the gear he has been making. Squeeeeeeee! An Orc Rider opened the doors to the Hall gently, as if he was afraid of making a sound but unknowingly made sound loud because of how slow he was opening it. ''Probably his first time in the Hall'' Alex thought. Seeing that he had failed terribly, he rushed into the room, afraid to anger Alex. "M...My Chief" He saluted nervously making it hard for Alex to hold back his chuckle. This was the first time he was seeing a nervous Orc. In order to save the poor guy from his embarrassment, Alex chose to change topic, "were you able to find their place?" "Yes My Chief" the Orc answered immediately before proceeding to describe his entire journey. "You mean you found Humans on your way back?!" Alex couldn''t help raising his voice, his guess had been correct, Humans were using Sker and probably came to find out what happened to the other human as well. "were you seen?..." That was the most important question right now. "No..." "Good, You can go" Alex ordered as he began thinking, the dryads were located a few kilometers from White mountain, which Humans were afraid of exploring, so they resorted to using Sker. ''Best leave the Dryads for now and take care of the mines...'' He mused as he eyed the system interface. "System, how did a tiger appear in Luegad?" [In order for the sigil to be active, the creature needs to be existing on this world''s material plane.] "How were you able to make it happen?" [...] "Typical" was all Alex could say...''I should try finding it later, are there only one of it in this world?''. With that thought, Alex headed towards where he usually finds Lovan. ________ Cullbeg kingdom Rosenvug City, Simon Weiss had arrived at the docks a few days ago and had managed to enter the city quite easily. perhaps due to the fact that one of the top five lordly houses residing here, they had been experiencing a long period of peace, this resulted in their lackl.u.s.ter security system. He had managed to find another fine specimen three days ago and he just had to have it, especially because the other was slightly damaged during his evolution into the third circle. He now had blonde colored hair with green eyes, he was on the slender side as usual but it was obvious the body seemed to have practiced Martial arts. After days of observation and practice, he could proudly say he was this ''Anthony Bash'', a squad leader of the House Zonfid. As he walked around the Barracks, his spiritual perception was triggered as he subconsciously looked at the stairs that lead underground. after a few Simon retracted his gaze and pretended not to notice anything amiss. He naturally looked elsewhere. After exploring the Barracks, he returned to the sparring ground. Soon it was almost evening, so he had dinner with the others before leaving with his squad to patrol, and like the original body, he snuck away as usual. The cold wind blew through the trees as the fire in the street lamps swayed. Simon, who had arrived at the location of Anthony''s lover, suddenly heard faint singing from afar. The voice was ethereal, like a woman humming and singing slowly, relating her inner thoughts. This made him involuntarily recall the past. He recalled his mother who had long passed away centuries ago, and the days when he was a bullied child. Indescribable grief surged from the bottom of his heart, but his eyes flashed grey for a second and everything went back to normal. He waited for a few seconds before he suddenly frowned. This time, he didn''t hear anything. it was as if that melodious voice seemed to have never happened. Simon Weiss narrowed his eyes, placed his hands in his pocket and began walking backwards. soon there was sound of coughing, so he approached it, only to find a woman dressed in a grey shirt and leather pants, coughing up blood repeatedly. "there you are..." Simon said in a deep voice as a delightful smile spread across his face. Chapter 71 - 70: See how I play with you It''s been a few days since the purple moon and Alex has been making preparation in order to explore the mine. Lovan has been working non-stop in making Alchemy stones and to be honest, Alex was impressed because he found out that the goblin could level up like this too and it wouldn''t be long now before he becomes a second order creature. The Barracks would be finished today and the new members of the clan were being instructed on how to expand the wall. The training ground had been completed yesterday and he found out that they could get exp there too albeit slower. This was perfect for the young ones and Alex intends making training compulsory from now on. In fact, he has begun to think of new tradition and culture to set up within the clan, in order to make them different from the others in the Orc lands. Even if he was unaware of the major happenings in the Orc lands, he was of course aware of the power of uniqueness. it could either make you or ruin you, This could attract people willing to join the clan and open way for progress amongst the other creatures or it could lead to you being ostracized by the others or completely ignored. Alex was trying his best to avoid the latter outcome as he was preparing for a way to get the other clans to acknowledge their existence and spread his renown, this was why he is very mindful of the kind of habits and behaviors his people developed. Acknowledgement opens the way for many things, such as trade and alliances, Dabok has increased to his pestering over the idea of marriage since I mentioned alliance, He claims that the fact that Alex had no wife would open way for trouble. But Alex didn''t understand but he wasn''t ready to gamble with it, so he wishes to use this mine expedition to settle the matter with Nazu. Alex also had Torrelsav patrol the new acquired lands in case anyone tries to lay claim over his ''property''. He was even considering laying down subsidiary villages as soon as their numbers hit a two thousand mark. News of his Blackmoon tribe and riders had spread as he received a visitor today, funny enough the visitor is from the other side of white mountain, someone who was enemies with the blood horn clan. His name is Malu, He is a goblin who happens to be the advisor of Knap greyeye, from the Grey eye clan. Apparently the buffoon of an Orc was gathering the orc tribes under the pretense of saving and joining hands to quell the advance of the blood horn tribe while raiding the Goron plains in the process, completely blinding those orcs with greed, and the orc clans which were spread throughout the northern parts of the Orc lands, were now preparing to raid Goron''s plain. The validity of the orcs uniting to attack Goron''s plain, especially up north; was something that would attract the attention of the Degr kingdom and the Berserker king. this Knap is really bold and ambitious but rather stupid to Alex. ''It''s almost like he is asking for permission to be killed!, well say no more!!, I''ll help you'' While Alex thought of this, the Goblin advisor felt it was necessary to continue speaking, in order to cloud his judgement. "If you attack Goron''s plain together with us, I guarantee that you would earn your worth in gold and beauties, we would take care of the blood horn clan for you" the Goblin advisor said with a cunning light flashing across his eyes. ''A tempting proposal for a regular Orc but...do they think I''m stupid?'' Alex couldn''t help wondering. Alex felt it was ridiculous, ''did this goblin think I didn''t see how he has been eying my place since I met you at the gate?'' Obviously, this Greyeye clan was using the bait of all those human villages scattered around Goron''s plains and Alex could bet his hand that the Greyeye clan won''t partake in the raid directly, they were obviously trying to weaken the surrounding clans and hit Blood horn while they were at it. But the main point was that, those human villages were under the protection of the Degr kingdom and Alex was sure Knap greyeye knew about this information as well. "We raid the human villages in the plain, secure food and weapons to fight the Blood horn clan." ''It''s not a bad plan, hehe, in the end I''ll be the one to benefit from this'' Alex sneered in his mind but showed a greedy expression. The bald goblin with the grey tunic felt he had achieved his goal but he didn''t feel satisfied and has been dreaming of getting one of the wolves for the Chief, but he doesn''t know how to make this request as Alex has been responsive from the beginning. ''Does this fool know the concept of evolution?... none of his guards were of the second circle and Urim alone can literally decimate this team'' Alex couldn''t help rolling his eyes inwardly as he saw the Goblin''s obvious expressions. ''perhaps a show of force would make them take me a little more seriously'' Alex mused but ultimately felt it wasn''t time yet as it would take months for the raid to begin and he didn''t want to be the target of this raid yet without annexing the two big sized clans behind him. Luckily the Goblin advised himself and requested to take his leave, this gave Alex a new understanding of the Advisor and felt it would be a troublesome fellow. Killing it now is not an option as it would literally be pointing the finger towards him. ''But that changes when they are crossing the White mountains'' Alex stroked his beard as he watched the now departing Greyeye squad. Moz mysteriously appeared next to Alex and the latter didn''t feel surprised, instead he said, "Do it when he crosses the white mountains, make it look nasty" She said nothing but silently went into stealth, Alex definitely can''t afford to have the Orc lands attracting the notice of the Degr kingdom now. ''the best option is to fast forward the attack on the Blood horn clan in order to keep them busy while I raid the mine'' Alex made calculations in his mind and looked at Urim, "Have you successfully Cultivated the heart Sutra''s first level?". "Yes" He answered and Alex couldn''t help nodding. ''That explains the slow heart beat and slight increase in power rating''. "Gather 20 Orcs or Hobgoblins and 10 goblins, we are going to the mine immediately. call the others here, there''s much to discuss". "Do I send for him?" Urim became excited at the thought of going to look for Torrelsav. "No need, speaking of which, don''t think I don''t know what you are doing with his daughter Gilgar" Alex jokingly threatened. "HAHAHA, no need to be Jealous brother" The big orc''s laughter caused a slight rumble in the hall. "Quickly get her off her father''s hands before he beats you to a pulp for it" "This...no one can take a mate this year until..." Alex was surprised, ''could it be another tradition that I''m not aware of?''. "Until what?" Urim spoke with a serious expression, "Until the Chief chooses his mate". This left Alex stunned for a second before he took a decorative skull to stone the laughing Orc. "Look at this Guy, you dare play with me?! See how I play with you!!" Chapter 72 - 71: Oath Breaker...Dead Moz POV It''s the fifteenth hours of the day and the Sun was already out blazing, I glare at it for a second before urging Von forward. ''Von, a silly name for my silly wolf'' I thought as I stroked it''s fur. Torug wants me to kill ''Malu'' the smelly Goblin, the oath breaker. There was a time when he worked for blood horn but killed his kin and fled. He has that smell, the smell of everyone who has killed their kin. He still has that oily voice, and his back remained hunched after that strike from Ghur, his beady black eyes and false smile watches you like a wolf might observe it''s prey. ''He''s not a wolf though, Von is many times better'' I mused as I couldn''t help stroking his fur once again. I can''t help it... Malu broke passed Sker''s ruined ground and ordered his people to search for anything good. watching them silently, I couldn''t help growling, ''Orcs without honor, how can they serve one so weak''. ''Kill them now...no no no, Torug wants it to be after they cross the white mountains, control impulse, control impulse he always said...What is impulse? hmm...'' They began moving again and I rode after them, ''So slow...so slow''. ''The Chief said always remain hidden, patience is key for a shadow Orc but why does this Gob make me so angry!'' Hmph... ''ah so slow...'' "Stupid Orc!!"Malu broke out from his thoughts with a shout. Hmm?? "Just you wait, Malu will have it all Hmph" He continued, before forcefully adjusting his tunic. ''Ah up to no good again, You''ll have it all...'' I couldn''t stop my smile, as I remembered the way I killed Mako. ''Mako, a strange Orc but strong'' _____________________ ''Perhaps he was the one raising them'' I couldn''t help thinking, Torug would have thought the same but... doesn''t matter, we are at the white mountains. ____________________ 25th hour of the day and the Sun is even more hotter than the other day, could the sky be angry today?. ''Malu is now crossing the Blood horn Land, all white mountain is Blood horn Land...kill him now?'' I wonder, ''No, when he goes down...Torug said after White mountain'' ''After, After... Patience is key, Patience is key...'' _____________ 27th Hour of the day, ''Ah Malu!! Coward'' I lamented as I spotted the band of Orcs and goblins at the bottom of white mountain, He had more men. ''Kill him now!!'' I thought as I jumped off Von while going into the Shadows myself. _____________ """"Uuuoooo"""" the army at the bottom of white mountain yelled as they saw Malu and his team. Malu cackled with pride and the Orcs with him arrogantly beat their C.h.e.s.t. Shua!!! Chink!!! Moz suddenly appeared from Malu''s shadow, this shocked the latter greatly as he recognized Moz!. "Kiiiii Blood horn!!!" Malu screamed before his throat was slit. The action was performed cleanly, just as Alex had thought her places to Target for a quick kill. Splash!!!!! Glurglurglur!! "Oath Breaker!!" She yelled, Her short black hair swayed due to the strong winds before dashing back up the mountain and disappearing from sight with the Bloody short sword. The shocked guards and Army finally recovered as they roared and all gave chase, blindly stepping into blood horn territory. Moz on the other hand didn''t immediately go into the Shadows, but ran towards the Blood horn hunting grounds, making sure to leave a trail. Satisfied, she mounted Von who had accompanied her as usual and headed to Blackmoon Land. Unknown to her, Alex had luckily seen her last actions through the earring. ________________ Some Hours earlier, Lovan POV, Blackmoon ''town'' "Move it here!" I yelled at the goblin serfs before continuing to count the Boom rocks," one hundred, one hundred and onety one...Eh? ". "Punta!!!... you want to kill us" I couldn''t help yelling at the stupid Gob that tossed a rock amongst the boom rocks, and just as I was about to smack him with said rock... "Lovan!! I see you" the Giant Orc comes yelling. "I see you Urim" I finally said, completely forgetting the foolish Gob. Urim eyes my ''Workshop'' as my Chief called it, a fine name I must say. "The Chief has called for a meeting...we are taking the mines today or perhaps tomorrow." He says with a serious expression. Hearing this, I couldn''t help saying as I looked at my precious Boom rocks,"So it''s time, I fear that it would not be enough". Urim remained silent as he continued to look at me, No matter, the great Chief has just given me a new idea, Liquid fire!!, sadly it would have to wait until I return. "Let us go" I finally said to the unmoving Giant. "We will first go get the Elder..." He said, to which I agreed without any problem but I couldn''t help asking, "Do you know where he is". Urim looked at me with a bit of surprise before saying, "He remains in front of the ''temple'', trying to understand the Goddess?". ''Yes the ''Goddess''...I don''t get it, a strange one our Chief... but..'' I couldn''t help but shudder as I remembered our first duel. "Why does she not speak with us like she does with the Chief". "I don''t...know" He said as we continued to walk. Kpa Kpa Kpa... The Goblins continued to hammer away in the background, ''I say, ever since the Chief had Raz make those ''nails'' with the metal tree, I have not had any peace.'' I glare at the Gob, who in turn accidentally strikes his thumb. Satisfied with the result, I asked Urim..."Does that make our Chief a shaman?" Unfortunately the Big one just Laughs, hurting my ears "Brother? a shaman? hahahaha, No no no, Brother is so much more..." He casually said with his voice sounding rather dangerous at the end of his sentence. I couldn''t help staring for a second before thinking, ''Right, they are brothers''. ___________ Cullbeg kingdom Rosenvug City, A few security personnel in light brown leather uniforms opened a door and entered a one storey building that was a few steps away from the city tavern, but All of them reached out to cover their mouths. There was a strong stench of blood inside! "Officer, I''ve no idea what happened. Other tenants said that it seems like there''s was a fight last night and then there was a lot of blood here this morning, that they can even smell it from next door." a scrawny old man spoke in a distressed tone, that was the landlord, He was dressed in silk, from top to bottom as he looked around in fear, unwilling to stay in the room for another second. the brown-haired, brown-eyed police officer that looked like he was in charge of this team waved his hand and said, "Wait outside. We will questions you later." As he spoke, he cast his gaze towards the wooden door of the bedroom with worry. That was the corpse of squad leader Anthony Bach lying on the ground in his own pool of blood, next to him is his secret lover... ''By the Gods...what happened'' Chapter 73 - 72: Love rivals & Plans Nazu''s POV I walked towards the crowd of Goblins. The soldiers, seeing Me, immediately opened a path for me, allowing me to walk through effortlessly. When I stepped out from the crowd, I saw a HobGoblin fly past the Training Field right into the crowd Goblins, overlapping with each other as they g.r.o.a.n.e.d. Torrelsav rode past on his wolf, holding his tomahawks in his hands as he inspected them for any injuries. "Largash!" He hissed, "what''s wrong with you today". The Halfling had no change in expression despite hearing her father''s accusation. She must have been practicing the use of a sword, but I remember she used the staff previously. Looking at the Short sword in her hands for a second, it soon went ablaze. She curled her lips in Glee, Perhaps she finally succeeded. So it was only such a trick hmph. Looks like She was playing with these little ones. Tearing her gaze away from her father, The Halfling looked at me from the other side and frowned, She actually frowned at me, Hahahaha So this was the blue eyed peac.o.c.k who was spreading her tail as she liked. A smile subconsciously spread across my face. "waaaaah!!! Largash is so strong" a few Goblin warriors praised while Largash reached out her hands and sheathed her sword. "Do you think she would be able to mate the chief?!. another mutters before he''s quickly shut up by a brown skinned goblin. "Ssssh... Nazu" It whispers, but I''m too angry to care at this point. ''So that''s what she is doing!!'' ''No I can''t lose...'' I clenched my teeth in anger, seeing this, largash coldly used her Jaws to point at me in a minute motion, the little twitch by her little Halfling tusks exposed her intention to battle. "good, I was itching for a fight as well" A sour voice filled with anger and indignation could be heard from my lips. I stepped into the sparring ring with short strides and she did the same, Her father finally noticed the change in atmosphere and couldn''t help frowning. "Hahahaha, Torrelsav, you have returned?, perfect! our Chief had called for a meeting." Urim''s obnoxiously loud voice was soon heard from behind as he came from the side of the training field, He never fails to attract attention. His calculating eyes observed us for a second before he returned to his dumb looking self again. This Big oaf again, He pretends to be stupid but he doesn''t fool me... Not since that day. When he was done with Torrelsav, they both headed towards the Manor, I remained there staring at the Halfling as she did the same until Urim''s voice came from behind. "aren''t you coming?" He said, I could almost see the teasing smile in his eyes even though he had a solemn expression, in the endI looked at the Halfling one more time before I followed him stubbornly, ignoring the chatter behind. "Do you know what the chief wishes to discuss?" Torrelsav finally asked as I followed behind, for some reason I really upset, perhaps because of what has been happening this days. "There is no need to think about it too much." Urim replied with those words, strict and austere, with not a single trace of the emotions he showed at the training field, "It''s concerning the mine". "Has he decided to go in again?" Again? could it be that the mine is dangerous? no I''ve seen the goblins heading there before or... "Yes, we might have to go with him, everything is left for brother to decide in the end" His face looked serious as he said those words. Hearing his words, Torrelsav said with a sigh as he had an expression I''ve seen on the old One''s face most of the time, "we still don''t know what he saw down there". Urim stroked his beard and replied with confusion," He called them Grole spiders", He looked at me for a second before facing forward once again. I think he might really have a grudge against me because of that time haaa... "Never heard of it..." Torrelsav had a confused look spread across his face. What really are those mines?!! to think I''ve been in this village for this long and still barely know nothing!! "I need to change that..." I muttered. "Hmm?Did you say something?" Urim asked. "No" I answered curtly while he only looked at me suspiciously for a while before saying, "Okay". ''this fellow...'' when we were about entering the Chief''s compound I said, " I said fight me and let''s settle this". Torrelsav looks confused but Urim grinned slyly as his said "That I will do". After a short pause he continued,"But when we are done." ''I knew it, He really had a grudge to settle with me...hehehe this is good too, I can use the chance to gain his support'' I made a few plans as we stepped into the Hall. Urim pushed open the wooden doors and we were greeted with the sight of Dabok seated on the first seat on the right and Lovan on the left, at the center of the Hall, Torug sat majestically on his Throne, surrounded by skull and Wolf fur. The fire place provided lightening to the somewhat dim Hall while allowing us view the Chief in all his glory. His gold colored eyes watched us with his usual calculating gaze. ""We greet you my Chief"" Me and Torrelsav quickly saluted, I noticed that torrelsav''s body became tensed like every other time he enters the Chief''s sight, only for it to relax over time. ''That''s the power of my mate'' I thought as I unconsciously licked my lips, ''ah this is becoming a habit!''. I squirm uncomfortably for a minute before finally had my seat, My mind totally skipped the part when he responded to our salutes. Urim resumed his place behind the Chief, I couldn''t find the one called Moz but I ignored this thought as Torug began speaking. "Since everyone is here, shall we begin?" Cullbeg kingdom Rosenvug City, Zonfid East district, 43 Sonia Ozil street, a mid c.h.e.s.ted and fair lady stared angrily at the mirror across her. A trendy blue gown was worn over her body...She had fair smooth skin, waterfall-like dirty blonde hair, and blue eyes. She looked as pitiful as a kitten beaten by the rain. It made one want to protect her involuntarily. that is until you hear the interesting curses escaping her mouth at this moment as she stared at the strange book on the bedside table and back at the mirror. "Yes yes, it''s a powerful body but to think I''m stuck in it for the next two months...Ugh!!" She says while gnashing her teeth at the end of her sentence. You might be wondering what''s going on but... "Now now Simon, On the bright side you finally infiltrated the Zonfid house" an elderly voice came from the book or better known as a grimoire. "Indeed...It would have taken much longer in that peasant" a sultry voice came next before another perverted sounding one came along, "Well I do find this one rather attractive, too bad, too bad". "What are you sighing for?" As the voices began to bicker, the lady stared at herself while tilting her head to side for a bit and said softly, "yes she''s indeed beautiful, I''m almost tempted to break her". A sigh could be heard from behind, "first it''s time for phase two of the plan, although she''s part of the Zonfid house, She''s only at the lower level of their inner circle... there''s Much to do" the voice took a much darker and distorted turn when it was saying the latter part of the sentence. Out of habit, Simon or better yet Helene bit her lower lip and headed to the window facing the streets, where she observed the people present. Then, she lowered her head again and picked up a letter with an amused smile. "I think it''s time we had a little chat with the one who ordered ''me'' killed, luckily I find this body''s power rather interesting...Tell me what do you think about me singing?". A series of groans could be heard echoing in the room. Chapter 74 - 73: Intimidation Dabok''s POV Hearing Torug speak about the actions he took against the Grey eye tribe left me speechless, I took a while looking at him as the others praised his foresight. Thinking about the first time I met him, I remember finding him a thorn in the eye as he was dragged back by the orc warriors, the little fellow was still fighting despite his situation and you couldn''t help but praise his stupidity. It was when I found out the reason for his fighting that I began to admire this small Orc, apparently the warriors wished to feast on his sickly brother Urim at the time and He wouldn''t have it. He fought back the older orcs till the old chief took note of the commotion. Jogug, The chief at the time, was one who I had sworn to follow, the exiled son of Buggug Skull Dagger, General of the great Degr Kingdom. He had lost in a sacred duel against a Cat Halfling girl for the right of passage at the outer reaches of the upper north. Due to his injury, he dropped from the Grand circle to the First circle and due to the importance of this duel, he was punished by the Berserker king himself. In frustration, Jogug and all we the loyal ones came to settle close to the Human city called Thann''s end. Seeing Torug fighting and protecting his brother, reminded him of his own brother, Zur The Broken. He took in the young ones and named them, Torug and Urim, in the way of his old clan. as one of the learned, I was asked to teach them and they were raised like his sons. But that did not last, a human merchant ship was raided by Olog''s hunting party who had gone in a different direction than the one set by the tribe. This made our existence known to the humans and we were attacked in the dead of the night''s embrace. Jogug died in this clash, making Olog the strongest in the tribe, being a young orc, he became drunk with power and remained impulsive as the strength of the clan continued to dwindle by the day. The grown Torug hated him but wasn''t strong enough, so we made plans upon plans till Olog attacked a ''carriage'' because of he saw the women inside. This only made the humans aware of our new hiding place and in a fit of anger, Torug challenged Olog for the chance of ruler ship and... He lost. Luckily the humans attacked once again but we somehow sur... "Dabok...Dabok!!" Torug''s voice echoed in my ears and it brought me out of my memories, ah silly old me, I forgot about the ''meeting''. "Yes my chief!" I quickly said, even though we are close, I can''t make his prestige look bad. the others watched the scene silently but surprisingly He said, "What troubles you?" I looked at him blankly for a second before laughing wryly, "don''t worry about it for now" I said, I wouldn''t be stupid to ''nothing'' at this time and luckily Torug seemed to understand as he simply nodded to continue speaking. "We will go to the mines by first light tomorrow and Lovan, make sure you do the needful" "My chief, I think we should do something about those two, to make sure they remain busy" Torrelsav suggests and Torug looked at him with interest as he adjusted on his throne. "And how do you wish to make that happen?" "I wish for my ''daughters'' to take some warriors to cause problems with both tribes, your action with the Grey eye tribe allowed me to understand that this method can be used again". "The Halfling girl?!!" Nazu shrieks unconsciously. "WHAT??!!!" Torrelsav asks as his aura begins rising. ''I see, he intends to earn his daughters achievements but this makes Nazu feel threatened...'' I looked at Torug in deep thought as those two are about to tear each others throat. "ENOUGH!!! Do I look so little in your eyes?!!" Torug roared as his eyes glowed, suddenly I felt like a mountain was placed on my shoulders, Nazu and Torrelsav fell to their knees, shock was evident on their face. Only Urim remained unfazed as even Lovan looked like he was unable to breathe, this is the first time I had seen Torug give off this pressure that was much too similar to the Berserker king. "forgive me, My chief!!!" The both of them spoke with a bit of struggle and the pressure disappeared like it was never there. "You will not disrespect me!" Torug says as silence ensued. "Nazu, let this be the last time I hear you use such words to address my people, now go prepare for tomorrow." "we will do as Torrelsav has suggested, Dabok you will be in charge of the tribe while I''m away and Lovan...you know what to do" He looked meaningfully at Lovan as he said the last sentence. "You are dismissed" with a loud sigh, I got up to leave as soon as the others crossed the door but... "Dabok, you old Orc!! where are you going?!" _________________________________________ Thann''s End, City Mortuary. Davis stood in front of a row of coffins as he looked straight ahead with reddened eyes. In front of him were the coffins containing his comrades and the Moongret soldiers. Embedded on the coffins were some simple words. The frequent booming of thunder outside caused the gloomy atmosphere to intensify. "I don''t understand!" He said, "I did every...I did everything to, How could they die?!!!" An elder dressed in a long black robe looked at the youth and said in a deep voice, "Let it go, Fairchild. what''s happened has happened". "No, no, no!" Davis, whose hair had become brownish-purple due to his horrible experiences for the passed few days, shook his head repeatedly. He took a step back with every word, and finally let out a ear-piercing roar as the temperature in the room began to heat up, his hair floated in the air and his eyes turned orange. Thump! The elder stamped down his foot with a boom and said, "Do you wish for the whole city to burn?" His actions mysteriously canceled out Davis''s abilities effortlessly. "But Why? Why? I had those creatures chasing after me..." Davis reasoned, unable to understand what happened to his friends, shaking his head. "It can''t be those things, I clearly saw sword marks and..." The elder closed his eyes, as if he didn''t want to speak further. "your not ready to know of this things..." "After you have calmed down, you can try entering the grand circle of evolution, then you would have enough authority to discuss this." Davis took several steps forward anger as the thought of threatening the man with a sword crossed his mind but he returned his shivering right hand to the side. Some seconds later... A shadow came from the dark part of the room and the Elder said, "Bishop Clearheart, Is this really necessary?" But the shadow simply replied."Hamen, this is all within the lord''s will". Chapter 75 - 74: as the day went by... Alex''s POV "What worries you old friend?" I asked The Elderly Orc but this only made him bring out a toothy grin until he laughed like he remembered something, "Hahahaha, you finally called me that after so long." I watched him silently, unaware of what to respond with, luckily Moz entered the hall. "You did well" I said, She stopped her steps for a second before continuing towards me, her short black hair swayed with her steps, I always wondered how an Orc could have such light steps without even trying. once she got to the foot of my throne, She saluted and gave her report, "I knew you wouldn''t fail, you can go rest now... from tomorrow, while I''m away, you are to protect Dabok from the shadows, do you understand?". "Yes my chief" hearing her response, I couldn''t help thinking, ''At least this way I can see what is happening outside, from time to time.'' "You can leave" We silently watched the shadow Orc exit the hall before I began speaking again, "What really bothers you?" "Forget it, Torug, it is nothing serious...I only thought of the old Chief Jogug, Haais"Dabok said with a small sigh, even Urim sighed but my head is filled with question marks. In the end I didn''t bring up the question and chose to be silent at this point. "Haaais... I''ll leave now but I will say this, You have honored him, like a son to a father, so don''t worry to much" After saying all this, he left and Urim did the same, leaving all alone in my confusion. "Could it really be our father????" ________________________ Within a healthy green bamboo house that layed Near the edge of the eastern wall, a family of three was having their dinner. Torrelsav''s POV blurp, blurp, blurp!!! The stonehare meat bubbled with the soup within the pot as I took a few scoops into my plate, before tearing a bit of meat as well. "mfffff!!!" I took in deep breaths, taking in the sweet scent of my meal and I couldn''t help laughing "Hahaha". "You seem to be in a good mood father" Gilgar asks curiously as she took a sip from her soup, this question attracted Largash''s attention as well. "Indeed" I say, taking big bites off my meat, I spared no effort to explain further but I know this will only make my girls more interested, "Ah so tasty...". "Well???!!!" It didn''t take long for Gilgar''s black dreadlocks to block my vision as her big blue eyes watched me closely, her curiosity has always been the strongest. after staring blankly for a second I turn the other way, so that my back would be facing her. Who knew that Largash would already be standing there, trying to suppress an amused smile, Her messy black hair was now drooped down her back and shoulders like a wild water fall. Haaa my beloved Mirth, this our daughter would be the death of me. "spill it father" Largash says curtly while folding her arms and raising her chin up, I remember Mirth used to do this as well...no I won''t spoil my mood today. A toothy grin spread itself across my face as I rose to my feet, looking down at my daughters as I said, "I will be following the Chief to the mine tomorrow". "We are coming!" Largash said rather firmly this time, this only confirmed my suspicions. "No need, He has chosen those who will go with but...I have a way for you to earn more achievements" Looking into my daughters eyes but She looked away, hahahaha She really looked away, Largash never looks away. Gilgar looks confused but that is understandable, "Don''t think I don''t know what you have been doing, that won''t work, it didn''t work for Nazu did it?, what you need now is achievements, let him see what you are capable of". "you mean?" She looks hesitant to ask but she asked in the end, "How did you know?". "Do you think I''m blind?, or do you think the others are stupid? Nazu has long grown wary of you and you know you can''t fight her, at least not yet...so you don''t need to go about this head on" I spoke while heading back to my meal, Gilgar looks like she wanted to run away, ''eh? has she done something bad again?!'' "Gilgar come back here!!!" I yell but...she''s still running. I looked at Largash for answers but she coughs and avert her eyes again, ''eh? what''s going on here?'' "So father, how do I get this achievements?" She''s changing the subject?! even more suspicion grew in my heart as continued to stare blankly. "Father?" _______________________________________________ Black moon Alchemy room, Lovan POV, "You Gob!!, what are you doing?!! why are you trying to add more?!!" I yelled at a Goblin serf for the one hundred and twenty oneth time this ''afternoon''. My robe long burnt in the arms because of this Gobs, "Ah!! get out!!yes you!! why are you pointing at him, for the...both of you get out before I" "Pa..." Haji enters from outside with a curious expression, "oh my Gob, always good to see you" I say while rubbing my ''temples'' like the chief usually does, ''ah very soothing''. When I was done I pulled Haji to my side and said, "Here, count the boom rocks, two hundred like our Chief asked, you confirm, you have always been good with noombers" "Numbers Pa..." "yes yes yes, see? that''s what I was saying" I couldn''t help feeling good in my c.h.e.s.t looking at my Gob all grown up, ah he''s counting!, so ''smaat''. While indulging in my own thoughts I picked up the washed bison skin used in recording the liquid fire but my peace is disturbed once again. THUM! THUM! THUM!! heavy footsteps rushed in from outside, "HAHAHAHA LOVAN!!LOVAN!! look" Raz rushes in with a small shell?. "What is that?" I asked pointing at the shell he was showing me. Raz didn''t answer again but brought out an even bigger shell, "Ah?" "Tsk tsk tsk, this is a cup, the chief asked me to make them for the Goblins to hold your boom rocks...This big one will be left here, He said it should always be full" Raz explained and I couldn''t help looking inside this ''cup''. "will this small one hold this two hundred?" I asked. "It''s one hundred and ninety eight Pa." Haji corrected me but, "what?!! it''s not two hundred?" "yes" Raz cuts in," It should only hold about ten inside the small one, the remaining cups are in my place...remember to cover it like this when you fill it up." and with that he left BUT! i didn''t care because it''s not two hundred, by the moon!. "Don''t worry, first make two more and I''ll take some Gobs to pick up the cups" Haji says while scratching his short hair. ''no wonder, he looked taller than me'' I thought while eying him suspiciously. "yes, yes, you do that" Chapter 76 - 75: Janetta Sewell Unknown POV Once again I begin to question my very existence as I watched my Kin move around this little kingdom we call home. We stay in what the light skinned or should I say Humans call a cavern, the outer parts along with several other parts of this place suddenly began to produce this strange shiny rocks and filled us with energy. So we began to grow, we used this rocks to build our home on the roof of the cavern, From below it looked more like cl.u.s.ters of crystals and rocks, but when your like us who could climb across walls and step on roofs like the flat ground below, then it all makes sense. With The palace at the very center overlooking the rest, and it''s many pointed structures built like towers giving it the look of an eccentric crown. Most us were either servants or soldiers, well you could say almost everyone. The other class of us spider folk were those who were able to evolve into Elites and to do so, is like scaling the sky even though I have never seen one, only memories. Our kind has never been a favored race, To evolve depended on luck, as the rules placed on us were rather troublesome because of our nature. When one is ready to evolve, they needed to go hunt for a prey with some measure of intelligence, we then feast on them while triggering our evolution process in order to assimilate the creatures memories to increase our own intelligence and genes. The one youo take determines the kind of elite you become. For example, most of the elites who managed to evolve recently were only able to find the little green creatures, they all ended up as guards for the palace but I was lucky or should I say unlucky?. During my time, I had been able to assimilate the memories of human, granting me intelligence that rivalled even mother''s. This made me a queen candidate automatically and granted me the Sewell family name, but I was not alone, there were twenty three others like me but only four lived through the years. Some I killed while some were killed by the other living candidates. Each of us unlocked an ability at the time of Evolution and mine sometimes allow me to view the interior of other creatures troubled lives, and the exposure of these secrets usually allows me get to understand them better in whatever I was planning. But, as The Apostle in that human''s memory said, "we see in part, and know in part"... Luckily, it has been what kept me alive for as long as I could remember. Unfortunately, this assimilation is not without any problems, sometimes you lose your personality, if I ever had one, In all, something must be lost, like Zessa who has been unable to turn back to our spider form, too bad Selliqei killed her, Perhaps all this should fill me with guilt and shame like the memories I got made me understand, but it doesn''t. Deep down, We''re the same beings we were thousands of years ago, even though we have evolved to live in small groups of kith and kin after years of running from other spider folk or abominable creatures. We aren''t wired to care, no matter how the dying queen pretends to, I know deep down, if she had to chance to sacrifice us to live longer, she would. I''m not unkind, but this world is set up like that. Now the one with the highest chances to become the next Queen is Selliqei Sewell, the thoughtless, whimsical, tyrannical, dictator, quarrelsome, glum, teasing, heartless, sour, bully, antisocial, crazy, ill tempered, almost mad queen candidate. She would definitely kill the rest of us soon, I have to get rid of her even though I don''t wish for the throne, I know it''s the only way for me to evolve but I can''t imagine myself, stuck in one place with nothing to do besides giving birth to thousands upon thousands, only to watch them kill each other over and over again, even then the possibility of dying like that is...No there has to be another way to evolve in the outside world, perhaps with the other spider folk. Fortune favors the bold, no matter how dangerous the elders claim the outside world is, I have to see for myself. But now Selliqei, should be taken care of, The worst flaw anyone can have is that of self-deception. Selliqei is like that, makes me wonder the kind of creature she assimilated with. She acted on impulse and then created the reason for her actions after the fact. If she was feeling good he did good(bad) things, if she was feeling negative in any way she still did bad things. she felt like her ''good'' deeds meant she was a ''good'' person of some kind and her bad deeds were justified. In truth she never thought before she acted or spoke, she never stopped to ask herself if her response was the right one. Whatever she said was almost never true, or at least it was only "true" for her. That''s why this kingdom will fall apart if she becomes queen, I doubt she understands the responsibility of being the queen and what it entails, She just wants the power that comes along with the title. "Janetta!!" someone called my name, when I turned to look, I found that it was an Elite guard from the palace, I watched him solemnly as you can never be to careful this days, "What is it?". "The queen is dead..." He said warily and as if to confirm his words, all Spider folk suddenly felt inexplicable sadness as they all began to cry out and wail but my mind was already filled with worry. ''What will become of us?'' _________________________________________________________ Grey eye tribe, Far west of White Mountain, Durzol Greyeye''s POV A string of curses unraveled from my father''s tongue, like yarn unfurling, he advanced to his lord''s manor as his greenish grey skin that had long been enchanted by the shaman, shimmered lightly with hot anger within his dark, cold eyes. Every step he took rattled his bone necklace and struck my heart. He tried control his anger but, I''m sure the death of Malu was like a slap to his face, the yells and hisses of the creatures around, all seemed inaudible to me right now as I was struck down by a massive pressure. All I could do is feel, Feel the cold ground pressed against my form, the heat from the pain, and the sound of my heart beating like a war drum that would signal my end. ''would father kill me?''. His eyes exposed his inner struggles, and I prayed to my ancestors to protect me at this time, or for the to accept me and take me home. I closed my eyes waiting for the pain but... "Get up Durzol, curse be the day, I kill my own blood...Blood horn tribe, good, good, good. I''m not angry at you, Durzol, but I am at myself, I should have expected this." Father said as he managed to control his anger. Quickly I stood up and so did the others who had fallen like me, but I once again went on my knees and said, "what would you have me do father?". ____________________________________________________________ At the same time, Black moon town, Mine Entrance, "Lets us go!!" Alex''s voice boomed as he stepped into the Mines. Chapter 77 - 76: The prophecy... Alex''s POV, Entering the familiar mines brought me a slight sense of nostalgia and it reminded me of how much I''ve grown since the last time I was here. without any problems we jumped into the den Groles effortlessly, the familiar system prompt came up, informing me that I had stepped into the ''Den of Groles''. everyone was silent and I could only here the sound of our breathing. This time I had brought with me 20 Orcs and 30 Hobgoblins. Alert to our surrounding, we look above us, to the left or right, after all I had carefully explained to the best of my knowledge, the abilities of these spiders. We walked across the cavern where we were ambushed the last time but nothing happened, we made a turn to the left in order to head in deeper and still there was nothing, not even a tiny. I began to feel uneasy and even the others were beginning to feel the same way too. ''what''s happening?, or could something have happened to the spiders?'' I couldn''t help wondering when my mind suddenly flashed back to the memory of the queen candidate. ''Hmm'' "Brother, something doesn''t feel right" Urim says as he looked around warily, at some point he had already unsheathed his sword. Torrelsav wasn''t any different but we pressed on further, to get more information about this mine. Not long after walking for another 300 meters, the wall began to narrow. The Mana crystal deposit was much denser in this parts. to walk further, we had to move in a line of twos as we proceeded further. I could even feel the wind coming from the other side of this path, ''Then it only means the other side is extremely spacious''. The further we walked along this path, it felt like we were heading downward and the Mana density felt higher due to the Mana crystals... "Skkkkkrrrrrreeeeeeeee" a horrifying screech could be heard from the distance and that was when we saw it, a huge castle built upside down on the roof of this place with Mana crystals, there were several towers around this castle. spiders of different shapes and sizes were making their way to the Castle at this moment. Seeing their numbers, I became even more certain that the situation wouldn''t be so simple, if not it wouldn''t have taken Lovan so long to get to where he was in the Novel, even though in the end he wasn''t able to enjoy the fruits of his labor. "Scriii, kruuuu" different sounds could be heard in the distance. Worried gazes could be seen on the Hobgoblins and a few Orcs, but before I could say anything further a roar sounded out. Graaaawww!! "Find her!!!! NOW!" a female voice followed after. Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du!!! The spiders quickly spread out in search of this person and without hesitation I ordered, "Retreat!!!". Ashamed?? what was there to be ashamed of? The others didn''t even bat an eyelid and began to retreat, I decided to remain behind to cover the rear but Urim chose to stay with me as well. It didn''t take long for the others to retreat further before the familiar purple haired woman from last time appeared in front of me, albeit disheveled with an injury on her shoulder. if she wasn''t bleeding out purple blood, I would have mistaken her for a human. Just as we spotted her, she spotted us too and then something shocking happened. her eyes rolled backwards like she was searching for something in her head and she began to speak...in English. Her voice became strange and somewhat ethereal, "When the time comes that the world turns to summer, an assassination shall bring a rise in Chaos and depravity, the young one shall mark the clash of titans. ------------------- When the sky is colored brightly at night, a man of gold shall bring the rise of a new evil and a cursed age. ------------------- When the moment comes that wolves howl together, A king shall bring an age of lawlessness and a shift in power. ------------------- When the time comes that what''s shrouded is revealed, an act of deceit shall cause the rise of a God and a world of darkness." Bang!! She fainted and I couldn''t help looking at her strangely but I quickly recovered, I could understand most of what she said as I am aware of a few of the events she mentioned but the latter part of... Should I call it a ''prophecy'', left me rather confused but now wasn''t the time to think of this. Urim placed his hand on my shoulder and urged me to leave, I nodded while looking at her stats once again. [Name: Jenetta Sewell Race: Elite Grole spider(Female) Level: Lv 24 (Order of the second circle) Power rating: 12342 Relationsh.i.p.s: princess of the Sewell clan, Queen Candidate. Alignment: Lunatic] When I looked at it now, I noticed Her power rating seems to have increased compared to the last time and I thought about everything I have seen to this point. ''Perhaps she would be the key to Conquering this mine'' With that thought, I lifted her up to my shoulder and sprinted alongside Urim. _____________ At the same time, within temple designed with marbled floors and walls, A man dressed white continuously bowed towards the statue of reading elderly man. This was the temple of records, A place known to all but only accessible to it''s priests. They worship ''Melanos'' the God of knowledge, the one worshipped as the All-knowing and the very first neutral God. Some believe He came from the very first Humans and evolved into a God while others say that he is the very first God, but all this didn''t matter because right now when the priest finished his worship, he walked out of the prayer hall with a frantic expression. Quickly he found a scribe to write down the prophecy which they had received and sent it to the Archbishop who was in retreat. And if Alex were to see the contents of this letter, he would be shocked to find that it was exactly the same as the words Janetta had spoken. Just that this priest wasn''t knowledgeable enough to understand the words, but he was sure the Archbishop would understand. Dear Master Griffith, May the The Herald of Fortune be with you, Although I would prefer not to disturb you at such a time but this was a matter of great importance. As you are the last of the Elders who understands this great language, I could only humbly request that you render your assistance to us one more time. These are the words that we were shown, {When the time comes that the world turns to summer, an assassination shall bring a rise in Chaos and depravity, the young one shall mark the clash of titans. When the sky is colored brightly at night, a man of gold shall bring the rise of a new evil and a cursed age. When the moment comes that wolves howl together, A king shall bring an age of lawlessness and a shift in power. When the time comes that what''s shrouded is revealed, an act of deceit shall cause the rise of a God and a world of darkness} Please I would appreciate it if you could see to it as quickly as possible. Yours sincerely, Bishop Alarick. Chapter 78 - 77: Retorquebit Alex''s POV I sat within the throne hall with a slight frown etched on my face as I looked between the holographic screen before me and the unconscious purple haired woman tied to one of the central bamboo pillars of the Hall. The dim Hall and the silent atmosphere gave the whole situation a grim vibe. [Side Quest ] Due to the severe lack of man power on our side, we were once again unable to Conquer the mine. But our journey isn''t completely fruitless as Janetta Sewell holds the key to this mission. Requirement: Find out how to use this chance Reward: 100sp ] ''For the first time in a while, the system issues on its rare quests.'' "Brother, I still think we should kill this... human" Urim''s voice cut off my thought process, I actually forgot there were others here. Without responding, I looked at Torrelsav''s curious expression and Nazu''s distant gaze, like she was lost in thought, well she''s been like that since we returned. Dabok was the only one who remained unperturbed, either he didn''t care or he trusts that I would do what is best. I''m pretty sure it''s the latter, Lovan wasn''t here either. "Torrelsav, do you think so as well?" I asked suddenly, catching him off guard. He looked at the others and said slowly while thinking, "No, I think we should ask her about that place... and, maybe find out why she was chased...it could bring an unexpected surprise." ''It seems, his time as a gladiator had allowed the human''s behaviors rub off on him, he''s always been one with a good foundation'' while musing I turned to lecture Urim, "I have always told, think Two steps ahead, no ten steps... don''t just look at the present and fill your thoughts with protecting me, I have big plans for you Urim." When I was done, He looked like he wished to say something but I chose to look at the others and explain my thoughts, "and I will have you know that, She''s not human..." They looked carefully at her once again and I continued speaking," Why don''t you say something if you are already awake, no need to continue acting." It didn''t take long before she lifted up her head and stared at me with her pitch black eyes. the whites from earlier in the day were gone, now all that remained were eerie black eyes staring back at me. Urim tensed up, including Torrelsav and Nazu were the same albeit slightly milder, only me and Dabok looked at her silently. Torrelsav''s voice came across, as he said to no one in particular ,"No need to worry, they tied her up already." "Hahaha, that won''t hold her...Right? Ja-ne-tta" I chuckled for a second while adjusting on my throne, before asking her with a playful tone, in order to get her somewhat worried, Luckily she''s an intelligent creature and not like those ones I met before. "You... You speak the word of Groles?" She asked in ''Skaldish''(Central human tongue) and I remembered the translation thing, when I looked at the others, they were looking at me strangely once again and Old Dabok was now observing me whilst scratching the top of his head. But why could she speak it? or did she think that, Skaldish is the language used by everyone outside? or she just preferred to use it... Taking note this time, I focused while deciding to respond in Skaldish as well, "I am Capable of many things..." and It worked, so I only have to focus in deciding what I wished to speak out with, without the system auto translating them for me. The purple haired woman simply gave a silent nod before exerting a stronger force to loose her bindings, once she was done, she got to her feet and stood silently. ''eh what now'' I couldn''t help thinking as I looked at this...''do I still call her a beast kin or something else''. While I was busy with my inner musing, she suddenly asked a question, "how do you know my name?". I looked at the others and found out that they couldn''t understand her words at all. Urim''s hand was still groping the hilt of his great sword, ''isn''t this response a bit too slow?''. "Why were you chased?" I counter asked. "Selliqei wanted to be queen now that the queen was dead, so she needs to kill the other queen candidates before the great mourning, I am the last one... without doing that her position is forever unstable"as she narrated, she subconsciously made hand gestures similar to that of a priest and then with a scowl on her face she said," I thought I was strong enough to get her but she caught me off guard right after my battle with Eth''us". While listening to her, I came up with a plan or should I say a rough sketch appeared in my mind, but that was enough to complete the quest... [Ding] "If I go by your words, does that mean you can beat her in a fair fight?" I asked the most important question that was going to be the key to everything. "..." ''That''s not the answer I was expecting'' I thought in disappointment until I heard her next words, " I would need to make preparations first, although we are both elites, but I know that she''s at the peak of our circle, which is why she wants me dead, to reduce the chances of her missing Queen path..." "Repeat what you said just now" I asked while unconsciously raising my voice, seriously I could feel my eyes glowing at this time. The others had long been forgotten in the discussion but they patiently listened, which was remarkable for orcs honestly but I can''t be bothered. "which is why she..." "Not that, you said she''s only at the peak of your circle...which means if you were to be taken to the peak or higher, You chances of winning are higher yes?"I explained as my baritoned voice sent ripples in the room. "Yes but the paths to the next circle has long been cut off, we are only aware of the Queen''s path and even that is incomplete!" She explains, clearly agitated and it is making the others tensed, perhaps they think a fight would break out. So I quickly calmed down as well, only now am I reminded of just how hard it is to evolve for the aboriginal people of this world. The suffering of finding the correct path in which one uses Mana to change or evolve your body. First you need the resources and the necessary knowledge or information in order to increase the chances of success. every race had multiple sets of rules that render them incapable of using completely, you can only use it for reference if you wish to be a pioneer of your own Evolution path or you follow the existing ones. Now I understand just how much of an advantage the system had given me and my people. Take Dabok for example, from what I learnt, he had lived for fifty plus years and was already on his last leg and still hadn''t evolved once but that simply change by him being under my banner. With this thoughts, I looked at the purple haired woman whose eyes were back to normal, as she calmly looked at me, waiting, waiting for me to give her hope, hope of the future, a timely aid but... ''Unfortunately, there''s no free lunch in this world, don''t worry, I will use you well'', "What if I told you that, that I can help you with this problem..." I finally spoke as I relaxed on my chair, surprisingly, she became vigilant. "What do I need to do?" Her resolute words ushered in silence to the Hall. I wished to make a dramatic statement but Janetta''s shadow rippled for a second and Moz appeared while whispering suddenly to her ears... "You!" A malevolent Grin appears on my face as only one thought rang through my head ''Perfect''. Chapter 79 - 78: Battle of Felridge Hold 1 Gilgar''s Pov Two hours earlier before the departure of Alex''s team. I walked around the house excitedly before spotting the sleeping Largash. "Ugh! Ash," I mumble with a grunt, staring down at her pale green face. "Huh?" She struggles to open her eyes as her hair lay scattered all over the place. "Come on," I say in a snappy voice. "You have to get up." Immediately she open her eyes wide and quickly grabbed her sword in an alert manner. "haa... There''s nothing" I said with a sigh, can''t say I blame her though, considering how we grew up. "Haaaaa..." She sat up straight, smacking her head into something hard. I ignore the sight, it''s always like this every morning since we came to the Black moon tribe. "What are you doing?" I sputter, shocked as she almost fell once again. well, she has always been slow in the mornings for some reason, although Papa says she got it from our mother, I can''t help but worry. "Trying to get up," she responds with a grunt before holding the back of her head for a second, and then with a small smile, I yanked her along. earning me a scream from her mouth, "Did you forget?" Hearing my question, she looked blank for a second before realization appeared on her face, "Quick let''s go". We ran out of the house and made our way through the town while I messed with the Goblins, I couldn''t help the laugh that escaped my lips as I watched the little goblin rant from behind. It didn''t take long for us to reach the town square as I saw Papa matching out with the Chief and his group. The brown fur cloak really suits him but the Chief''s cloak still remains the best, rumor has it that it was gifted to him by the Goddess. I couldn''t help looking at the ''temple'' subconsciously and when I returned to look at the group, my eyes locked with Urim''s. He grinned like an idiot and I couldn''t help face palming at his antics, "Papa" Largash''s voice brought me back from my inner thoughts as I was totally unaware of his approach. He looks at us with a smile but I can see the worry in his eyes, "You have to be careful out there, remember what the Chief always says...There is no shame in wanting to live, Your safety first, revenge can come later, do you understand?." "Mm" "Yes" Then he looked at me for a second before saying, "watch over your sister, you know how stubborn she gets, your the eldest". I couldn''t help grinning at this but this only made Largash roll her eyes. With those words He ran after the Chief. After watching for a few seconds, we left to make some preparations. After that we went to Lovan and collected ''twenty three'' of his boom rocks even though he argued that it was twenty, he even called me ''stupid'' for saying otherwise. But I can''t hate him, he''s one of the few in this town that doesn''t care that we are Halflings, if you looked passed the obvious pale green skin and small tusks, you would think we were human women. Once done we went to the training field, and decided to go with a hundred Hobgoblins and Orcs, fifty of both. Luckily everything went smoothly, after all Urim came the day before to ''Explain'' what was going to happen today. A smile crept up my face as I recalled the scene. ''Ah I must have that annoying look those Noble women had when visiting the slaves...'' "What are you thinking of again" Largash asks staring at me as we walked towards the gates. "Nothing" I lied and she looked at me like I had grown a tree on my face but still said nothing. A few hours later, "Do you really want to be with the Chief?" I suddenly asked and Largash raised a brow. Our warriors, in their battle skirts matched in a disorderly manner and were a short distance behind, so I took the chance to ask. "Why do you ask?" "You know, with everything you are doing and now Papa''s going out of his way to help you, I wanted to be sure you knew what you are doing" I explained while watching her expressions, "Do you like him?". Hearing my last question, she sighed and said, "It has nothing to do with like or anything like that Gilgar" But her answer made me even more confused, "Then why? why go so far..." "Strength" She said. "what?" "Before anything, we are Orcs first Gilgar and what do Orcs look for in a mate?" "..." "To me, no one is stronger than the Chief, Torug, his intelligence could rival that of Humans and above all, he is blessed by the Goddess." She says with a firm look on her face," I know that I would be a better me with the Chief" "..." Speechless, I looked at my sister," Won''t you regret it?" Then She laughed out loud and said, "Oh sister, when have I ever regretted anything". Though she said that, I couldn''t help finding something wrong, ''why is she so talkative today, normally, she would ignore most of this questions, especially anyone concerning her ''plans''. '' Then It hit me. I spoke with firmness in my voice as I asked her, "Your Scared". Her laughter paused along with her steps for a second before she continued and said, "Pff scared ..." There it is again, she denied, if it''s a lie, she would ignore me, "No Ash, you are...it''s the first we are out to do something like this without Papa, so your scared". "..." She stopped her steps entirely and held her head with both arms as she squatted down. Shocked for a second, I quickly ordered the others. "Stop!!! we rest!!" They looked at us weirdly before they began to scatter while resting on trees, going about their business. Seeing that no one approached, I walked towards Largash and wrapped my arms around her without saying anything. She... She was shaking and I didn''t even know what to say about it, so did the next best and remained silent. Perhaps this was what made us different from the other Orcs who feel excitement rather than fear at the mere mention of war. I looked at the unworried faces of the orcs and goblins, some even began to wrestle and I couldn''t help feeling envious. Perhaps being half human really wasn''t a good thing as our emotions visibly becomes a burden at worst times. ''now''s not the time for such thoughts, Gilgar'' I thought to myself as I looked at Ash once again, ''Now we need to cheer her up''. "Hey" I called out to her and she raised her face from her hands to look at me, before she could get a good look, I grabbed onto her cheeks and began to pull. "Ow ow ow!!!" she exclaims as she struggled to get free, then she ended up falling when I let go. """"Hahahaha"""" the warriors laughed in the background and I grinned at my fallen sister. "What are you doing??!!" She complained with a threatening gaze, like she wanted to pounce on me. "What would you do if Nazu saw you like this?" I asked with the intention of riling her up. "What?" "What would you do?" I asked again. "Hmph... your comparing me to that Orc? All she''s got is her brawn going for her". "but you won''t see her hugging her head on the ground because of..." I poked a bit further but got mercilessly pounced on and pounded by her light fists that made me laugh instead of cry. "grrr....gruff..." the Warriors grunt, losing interest. Then with a firm tone I said, "This battle is for you, I fight for you, I see you suffer, confused, your aura one of fear and doubt. This makes me sad, people cannot follow you unless they trust you as you trust them and it is this little things that father sent you over to learn; Nazu has earned the heart and loyalty of her people and I believe father is trying to help you do the same. I will warn you dear sister, that the battles can be hard. Battles can break you and leave you for dead just to see if you can get up again. Battles can teach through lessons that are cruel, but if that is the only way to help you then your path is set. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, is mother used to say and know that I have your back. Ultimately, your safety is won no matter how terrible the path, be brave, I''m never far, do you understand what I am trying to say sister?" "What did Papa always tell us that mother wanted to understand?" "we are forever" Largash answers weakly. "Yes, come rain" I stood up and stretched my hand towards her, "come shine" ""we are forever"" Chapter 80 - 79: Battle of Felridge hold pt 2 Bhok Bone Carver POV I never liked even odds. Playing fair was for idiots. I placed my boys in strategic positions, each with a different weapon, and waited. I wouldn''t take part myself, after all I am more of an order giver and as the son of the chief, who dares question my orders. "I''ll get as much achievements and honor from those Dregu slaves" I couldn''t help whispering in excitement. When that little puta Omub makes his way back from his supply at the battlefront, alone and armed with a few men, we''d attack in force. Nothing fatal, but painful none the less. "His head would fetch me enough achievements over my brothers, Bhok, killer of the great Omub the Gruesome...kikiki" "Little chief, there are some figures ahead" the lizard folk slave whispers to my ears and I couldn''t hold excitement, ''kikikiki Ulam did not lie!''. "Kill them" I ordered. _______________________________________________________________ Largash POV, Felridge Hold Periphery, Old Igurg territory(vassal of Dregu), Under the chill of the mist that spreads over this somewhat medium length grass field, Gilgar fumbles with her boom rock container before searching around her never ending pockets. ''I still ask till why she has so many pockets on her battle skirt in the first place when you easily forget where you put stuff.'' I grumbled inwardly before thinking of the scene earlier today, ''Ah I suddenly feel like finding a hole to bury myself.'' We''ve been on the move for the most of the morning and the present hour make it the fifteenth, luckily I think we''re close to the Shammob tribe. It didn''t take long to spot the fallen settlement of Igurg, this was the ''landmark'' the chief talked about and the closest place to the battlefront of the ''big two''. "Big two" I mutter while lost in thought, "He''s always had a way with words, and it''s not surprising that this one sounds strange, much better than the other one...what was it again?". "What are you mumbling about?" Gilgar asked with raised brows as her pale blue eyes stare into mine, but she''s soon distracted again by what she was searching for... "We are here" I said as I watched this sister of mine, deep her hands into the black furred material used in making our tops. It was made to wrap around our c.h.e.s.ts and was strapped rather tightly, funny enough it was comfortable and convenient as it didn''t bother with ones fighting. It also provides just about enough defense for the Black moon women, according to Papa, the design came from the chief and was said to be the easiest to make for the goblin serfs, I wonder what animal''s fur was used. "Aha!"Gilgar''s excited voice broke me off from my inner ramblings, "found it". "Sssh! found what?" I asked. "I don''t know what it''s called but Elder Dabok says, when we get here and make camp, I should spread it around the camp." She explains as she rolls six small rocks in her palm and grins widely till her small tusks were out sunbathing. "hmm...well get on with it?" "huh? we are staying here now? won''t we look at the battlefront first, not even once?" She asks but then starts to w.h.i.n.e at the end. With a helpless groan, I was about to agree but...the unthinkable happened, It seems like we had been the ones to walk into an ambush instead. Without waiting any orders we all fell down in the midst of the grass and began to crawls towards each other while trying to find the enemy but... Nothing. The mist wasn''t helping but I''m sure the enemy wasn''t having it easy either, So I get up on my knees and peer into the swirling white, tinged with the muddy green of the field. A violent noise cracks into the startled air, accompanied by startled voices and I don''t need to look to know what happened. Gilgar had tossed out a boom rock and it hit so hard, that it was fatal. Too bad we weren''t out of danger... I can''t use my flame magic here as it would only draw the enemies attention. ''wait! draw their attention?!!''. In that moment the quiet had become like icy drips onto already cold mist. we all stopped, ears straining. I turned around sharply, eyes taking in every detail, seeing things I''d never had the chance to notice before. There were so many places the enemy could hide within this abandoned village. Luckily we were close to each other and the enemy didn''t seem to own any ranged weapon, so I explained my thoughts to my sister but... "No, too dangerous!!I won''t allow it" She somehow whispered a scream as I felt like she was shouting at me. "Gilgar, that the only way to get them out of cover..." I tried to reason with her but she remained there with a frown etched to her face like it was meant to be that way, if I didn''t know her all my life, I could have sworn that was her default expression. But this won''t do, so I went for another approach... "you!...what did you promise me, a few hours ago" I queried and she visibly flinched before trying to ignore me again but, without waiting for her response, I dashed in a different direction. ''we have to know their numbers'' I thought as I unsheathed my short sword before imbuing it with magic, which covered it completely in flames. "There!!!" a low roar came from behind the wall on my right and an orc with a Warhammer stepped out with a slow sprint towards me. Ignoring it, I continued running. "what are you all doing? get it!!!get me that sword!!" the same voice rang out again, only this time it seemed rushed for some reason. The enemy numbers began to increase as I made my way through the mist. Booom!!! Boom!! ''Luckily sister didn''t disappoint...'' I couldn''t help smiling as I continued to run. More screamed in pain clutching their grievous wounds as the boom rocks flew like death''s arrows into the small army. The mist remained unchanged with high defiance in the face of such ferocious bombardment. a giant creature of close to 4 and a half meters lumbered around slowly at a snail pace while wailing loudly. "Fire!" Gilgar ordered loudly as the boom rocks unleashed waves of death destroying walls and burning orcs alike. The mist swayed around us gently as it continued unaffected at such chaos. all of a sudden, swoo!! swoo!! swoo!! could be heard as I took cover, "Arrows!!!"I yelled while dodging an arrow that flew towards me, "ugh I can barely see a thing, how do you even shoot arrows in such conditions." both sides fired furiously at each other, trying to gain the advantage. the enemy screamed until they couldn''t, until they rested into nothingness. It was from my hiding place, I finally saw their numbers... They were about a hundred like us, no wonder the battle was intense and they have ranged weapons in the end... ''best return to Gilgar'' was what I thought as I retraced my steps to where the boom rocks were coming from. As I made my way through the mist, I hear footsteps and quickly pulled out my sword to stab the approaching figure. "Wait wait waaaaait!!" Gilgar''s voice came from the other side, accompanied by a few Hobgoblins. "What are you doing?...I told you to wait" I asked, feeling happy and irritated at the same time. "Hehehe, got worried...plus we are running out of Boom rocks" "..." "..." This wasn''t good, I need to think of something... "Hey, remember how the chief always go for the leaders in battle and father asked" Gilgar says slowly but we finished the sentence together, ""And He said that''s the easiest way to win any battle"" "If it doesn''t work, then there''s someone even more important than the one we caught" I finished the chief''s words while lost in thought but Gilgar''s mischievous laughter came again, "hehehe...want to play a game?" Meanwhile the battle was still on... Chapter 81 - 80: Battle of Felridge hold (End) Bhok Bone Carver POV "No No No this are not Omub''s warriors!!"I yelled out in frustration. "Little Chief, it''s is better you retreat while we hold them back." A Kobold I could not remember his name offered. ''Tch...I''ll be mocked by my brothers for sure'' was all I thought of as I observed the battle once again. The plain was littered with wounded fighters, carnage and blood. Red and gray were the only colors of what was once a vast, rich plain, which has now become the stage of a ruthless battle. "Aaaargh!!" a goblin Archer wailed right before it''s death. This scene strengthened my heart in order to run away, "I''m leaving!!... Better be anywhere but here!!Bhok can''t die, Bhok with never die" The air which would normally be rich with scents from the grass is now glowing red with fire and thick with smoke, ash and embers, there''s no coming back from this, Igurg is gone. the two groups fight each other with complete hatred, but it''s clear who will win. Our wounded were too spread around the already destroyed village and the faces of the warriors were grim with horror and gloom, but they force themselves to fight nonetheless, ''that''s what you are meant for after all'' I thought as I crawled passed a ruined wall. BOOOM!!! An explosion happened not too far from me and I was smacked against a wall, only for the wall to crash as well!. Dru dud dud! "Ugh, kuhu kuhu!" My throat burned sharply as I couldn''t help coughing furiously. With the rush of victory coursing through their bodies the enemy side fights even harder and with more tenacity. My useless warriors began to ignore Gurik''s words, Some succ.u.mbed to hysteria and are barely able to force their bodies in motion, while others just wish all this was over as they went on their knees... "Kriiii Kriii!!!!" "Up!! Fight!! fight for little Chief!!" Gurik''s roar fell on deaf ears and I don''t think anyone sees me! ''crawl crawl crawl'' I mumble, ''How disgraceful, an Orc like me!!... crawling away from battle''. "Bhok does not care" I muttered slowly as I crawled away even faster. It''s clear debris, rubble and bodies have taken the place of grass, shrubs and trees. "Aaaargh!!" Gurik''s wail came shortly after and I couldn''t help looking. "a Halfling?!!!" My voice came out in shock, much louder than intended. Her short body stabbed Gurik repeatedly with a short sword and her pale blue eyes seemed to glow. ''w... when did the Dregu get such a warrior'' The Halfling killed Gurik like he was a little Gob!. ''Crawl...Crawl'' I crawled faster into the most when I heard a voice. "Ah! another one" I looked at where the voice came from and another Halfling with a stick smacked it towards my head. "Wait, wait, wait!!" with a scream, I dodged her attacks twice but, "Stay still" She kicked me and...KPAH!!!. _____________________ Gigar''s POV, Felridge Hold Periphery, "Is this really an Orc??" I asked Largash doubtfully as we dragged the unconscious Orc back to the other prisoners. For some reason, Largash felt it was much better to capture them alive and take them back to the tribe. "He is..." She said while rolling her eyes but I still doubted it, as the picture of the young orc crawling around in circles appeared in my mind. ''No no not possible''. He was dressed in rich Bison furs and even had a Long sword attached behind him, like some kind of powerful warrior. but his height and smoothness of his skin gave away his age, added with his actions earlier... "..." For some reason, I felt like kicking him as the Hobgoblins tied them up. We lost twenty three warriors, 14 Orcs and 9 Hobgoblins. "I fear the Chief would be angry this Time" I spoke my thoughts as I watched Largash frown. "That is why we are capturing them alive" She says. "Too bad the leader died" Largash raises an eyebrow at my comment, "Hmm? He would have been useless anyway, too weak". "..." Speechless, the scene of my sister dashing into battle with a flaming short sword and battling the Orc warrior to the ground made me envious, then I looked at the young Orc and the Wooden staff in my hands for a second. "Haais" I sighed. Largash looked at me strangely for a second before helping a HobGoblin tie a lizard folk up, "What''s wrong?". "Nothing...do we still return today?" "Yes...we are out of Boom rocks already and we haven''t even reached the battle field, hopefully we can replenish before the Chief returns... Although I''m sure they''d take a few days, judging from the supplies father took." She explains as she exerted more force on the thick vines. "oh... your doing okay, you know" Looking at the expression the warriors had, I couldn''t help saying this out loud but like I thought, she remained silent. I could only roll my eyes while thinking, ''Typical''. "We rest for an hour, then we shall return". "It shall be done" a short haired Orc says respectfully before heading towards the other warriors to relay the order. Looking at the scene, I mimicked his actions by beating my c.h.e.s.t with my fist and pumping said through my nose, "it shall be don...hahahaha Look at you". "You know someone said, one of this days your eyes might just fall off with all the rolling they''ve been doing" I teased. "who?" she asked, rendering me speechless for a second, "Secret". "Tch... I''m sure no one said anything like that" "Eh?" Once again I''m speechless and I couldn''t help face palming myself. "What??" "Go away!" "What?!" "Go away, you... I''m ashamed of you" I finally added. _________________________________ Rosenvug City, Zonfid East district, Blue crest avenue, Wailing Betty Inn, Helene Caronte aka Simon Weiss, stepped into the inn with a small smile on her face. During this period, the damage he had brought to the house of Tombante around the New city of Hoctis by the Zonfid house hold had finally attracted the attention of the House of glorious sun. The hidden battles between Lords had resulted in the death of many, Several had died in the line of duty, and Although Zonfid was winning, they had suffered a severe blow. Helene and her crew avoided this attack while hunting down a Tombante Assassin while waiting for an opportunity to attack their Port in Hoctis. After the Lord of Zonfid house sent an Owled letter, declaring their goal for this battle, achieved, they returned to Rosenvug to rest since it was over. After that, Helene deliberately engaged in battle. Acting passionate, and fervent in declaring her Loyalty. praised by the top dogs of the organization, she was called for a secret meeting at Blue crest. Without a doubt, her goal of infiltrating the inner circle of Zonfid house had been 90% achieved. Of course, in order to avoid any connection with the death of her past identity, she also made preparations by directing the investigation to another ''Culprit''. In this silent war, Helene had found out about the inner workings of the organization and although each member had their identities hidden, they all knew who they were working for. As she walked into the Inn, she suddenly saw a familiar face. It was a middle-aged man wearing a formal suit, a bow tie, and glasses. He looked rather refined...but ''Of course it''s him'' "Helene, it''s been a while." He greeted while raising his two eye brows. "Lord Finn" After a few seconds, Helene asked in mock surprise. Lord Finn smiled and said, "forgive my actions the other day, I had to make certain confirmations" "Small matter, small matter" Helene says lightly as she calmly sat opposite him, inwardly, She laughed with glee. Chapter 82 - 81: Green energy Largash''s POV After walking for about two hours, we made it to the forest outskirts, that separated us from the attention of the big two. within the forest, I and my other tribe warriors escorted the prisoners through this world of wood and leaf. The forest hummed with life all around me. I twirl about, gazing up at the canopy, searching for the birds that sing sweetly. The sun breaks through the cracks, lighting up the dirt path ahead of me, decorated with outgrown roots, wildflowers and fallen leaves that crunch beneath my b.a.r.e feet. I walked on, taking in the fragrance of minty grass and the damp earth. Each breathe is like water, fresh and cleansing, flowing freely into my lungs. ''Speaking of water, I suddenly feel thirsty'' with that thought, I grabbed the half filled water flask hanging by the sides of my battle skirt. Unfortunately, the peace didn''t last long, because... "Aaaargh!! what?!! let me down!! Untie me, you filthy Dregu swines!!" the unconscious young Orc finally awakened after three full hours. ''Weak!'' I muttered and ignored the fool. "Un-hand me!!" He yells, and his voice being rather unpleasant to hear made me cringe. "Who is in charge?!!, No need to hide Obum!!!" He continues. Seeing that he was being ignored, He roared, "Is the Great Obum the gruesome afraid to face me?". "Big words from a small Orc" Gilgar stated curtly as she rolled her eyes. "What?!!"He attempts to retort as he struggled to turn from the Orc warriors shoulders. "little Chief, I don''t think they are from the Dregu" another prisoner says, it was the brown scaled lizard folk from before. "What??!" Shocked once again, He began to struggle fiercely as he yelled," Who are you all?? who is your leader??". Listening to their conversation, I heard something interesting, so I ordered the Orc, "Skarv, Why don''t you let the little Chief down" "Gruff" Skarv snorts heavily while smacking the ''little Chief'' onto the ground like a log of wood, even I was surprised. "Ugh!!!, Huh huh" He g.r.o.a.n.e.d from the initial fall and dramatically rolled a bit further from Skarv before trying to run but he seemed to have forgotten he was tied up and ended up falling again. """"Hahahaha"""" the warriors began laughing, I was also amused. "Don''t laugh!!Argh!! show me your leader!!" "a Halfling?!!" He says with a shocked expression but in my anger I kicked him by the Jaws. "Uaaah!!!"screaming as he fell backwards, he looked like he was still in shock, because of me being a Halfling. Calmly walking around him as he recovers, I observed his every action and finally noticed that he was dressed rather luxuriously. Perhaps, being used to seeing the fancy ways the Black moon tribe''s clothes were made, I had overlooked this. "So you were the true leader behind the ambush, and that trap was set for this Obum the Gruesome of the Dregu tribe" "Un-hand me this instant, I am Bhok, son of the great Chief of Shammob, the third strongest in the Orc lands!...If..." He began to tell like I was dead or something. Gbam!! "ugh!!" In spite, I kicked the clueless fellow by his ribs, I couldn''t Stand the arrogant look on his face, it''s ugly to see on a bald Orc. "Shut up, it just means there are two stronger than him, what''s there to be proud of" I say. Gilgar chimed in while palming her face, "I almost feel ashamed for his father". "Stupid..." "Yes very stupid, Skarv" We continued mocking him. "Are you saying you are useless? eh Bhok?" "You...!" He tried speaking but I cut him off, there''s not much time left for the day, "Enough, Skarv take this fool, we are returning to the village now, I''m sure the Chief would have use for him". Skarv grins weirdly before saying "Okay" as he cracked his knuckles. "What? what are you trying to do?" Bhok yells, looking genuinely scared. gbak!!! Surprisingly, Skarv knocked him out with a punch to the head and I couldn''t help cringing, Gilgar could be heard laughing not to far ahead. "Hahahaha, I think he fainted from the fear rather than the actual hit...hahaha" clutching her stomach while laughing loudly. ____________________________ Blackmoon Town, Main Hall(Throne room), Alex''s POV Seated alone in the Hall, I calmly felt my body reactions. Ever since I heard that prophecy, a strange energy has been moving silently across my body. Observing it, I found that I could slowly control, So I willed it towards the palm of my hands and a pale green flame appeared. I watched it closely and connected it to the energy that entered my body when I accepted to be Ayaseh''s champion. Even stranger, the system was yet to have a reaction to it. So I chose to personally explore and experiment on this energy. although it was in the form of a flame, it was cold but my palm didn''t feel uncomfortable. "Strange" I muttered unconsciously as the flame flickered in front of me. At this time, a shadow beneath my throne rippled silently as Moz made an appearance. Materializing in front, she saluted,"My Chief". "..." "Are you really going through with it?"She asked. Hearing her question, I said with a sigh as I stood up from the throne, "It''s only natural, as she is the only one Capable of reaching that place, initially I wanted to have you go but I changed my mind". "are..." "Speak" "Are you perhaps disappointed...Did I fail you My Chief?"Moz seemed to struggle with herself while asking that question. Hearing her question, I couldn''t help staring for a second, "..." "Hahaha, no! far From it...I have a better mission for you, a very important mission" As I spoke, her eyes seemed to shine brightly. "Your task is going to be the most important in this game" Stroking my Beard, a grin was plastered on my face, ''Things will become more interesting, very soon''. kpa kpa kpa... The sound of the wood snapping at the fireplace echoed across the Hall. ___________________________ By Night fall, I watched the warriors train within the training field as they suffered under Urim''s fierce training. Alpha laid by my side as I absentmindedly stroked his Fur, Raz had completed the iron plating for my leather gauntlets and has proceeded in upgrading the ones used by the other warriors. There''s still no news from Torrelsav''s daughters, so we''ll be setting off in the morning tomorrow in order to find them. "My Chief" Dabok came from behind with a Salute. Seeing his expression, I could almost guess his next sentence. "Old Dabok, with that expression on your face, you could scare a ''Vrom'' beast from afar" with a small laugh, I teased the old Orc. "..." He snorted coldly and turned the other way, "I''m afraid, It''s time you settle this matter...we are having more relations with outside tribes this days and it would soon be a problem" "..." "We received news that Greyeye will be here in two days for a ''friendly'' visit" Dabok continued. "Is this news reliable?" I asked. Dabok remained silent for a few seconds as he stared at the training field, "Yes, One of the Hobgoblin scouts was informed by a Greyeye clan''s envoy". "I suspect, He has been to white mountain"He added. Understanding his thoughts, I said calmly,"Understood, have Nazu come see me...and have Lovan, start transmuting the Totems". "As you will..." He says as he walked away, "Do you think this Janetta, will really be able to steal it?" "..." Hearing his question, I chose to remain silent, after all, what I took was a gamble. "I understand, let''s hope for the best then" Dabok says with nostalgia all over his face before leaving. It didn''t take long but Haji came this time causing Alpha to growl in complaint. "My Chief, The warriors have returned with a gift?" The Goblin stated with an expression filled with confusion. This made me ruffle his hair while shaking my head, "Let''s go". Chapter 83 - 82: Tales of a treasure pt 1 Alex''s POV I walked to the town''s entrance with Haji following closely behind, The sisters immediately saluted with solemn expressions. I responded with a nod while questioning them with my eyes, ''they are?''. "On our way to the front lines, we ran into an ambush..." She then reported everything that happened, it didn''t take long for Urim and Torrelsav to appear. And they heard what happened, Torrelsav''s facial expression isn''t looking good, he''s been glaring at the one Largash referred to as little Chief. _________ [Name: Bhok(Bone Carver)Shammob Race: Orc Level: Lv 8 (-) Power rating: 700 Relationsh.i.p.s: Fourth Son of Chief Shammob, Fool of the Shammob tribe. Title: Village idiot ___________ For some reason, seeing his stats made me feel Nostalgia. It''s been a long time since I saw such low stats. Besides the Orcs with him who were at the middle or peak of the first circle of evolution, the rest, such as the Lizard folk and Kobold were not even level eight. Relationship was mostly Shammob Slave. "Urim what do you think of this one?" I asked while pointing at Bhok with my Jaws, the poor fellow was scared still like the other low level creatures, they were suffering from the level suppression. Orcs were war creatures, so there''s no need to hide ones aura. In fact, it''s something to be flaunted or you could easily be looked down upon. "Weak, but... doesn''t stop him from knowing about his Papa''s village" for some reason, He made his voice more menacing than usual. But hearing his words made me grin while feeling proud, ''Good, He''s using his head more and more''. "Yes yes yes He must know a lot about the wonderful place, don''t you Bhok?" I say, smiling, Honestly I don''t know what my smile looked like but who cares at this point. I approached the young Orc and patted his Shoulders with slight force but He fell. ''How scared must you be? are you really an Orc? forget it, he''s doing really good by not sullying himself already.'' "Y.. Yes" He managed to squeeze out after a few minutes. "Good" I smiled while placing my arms around his shoulders, if you knew nothing and saw us, perhaps you would think we were good friends or relatives, "Okay Urim, why don''t you show him around the ''training field'' for a while and Torrelsav, take the others to the Barracks. I''m sure you need to ''Persuade'' them a little." ''Forgive me you all, I''m sure He needs to vent his anger for a bit...bear with it'' I say a silent prayer for them as watched them leave in different directions while the prisoners had the warriors escorting them behind Torrelsav. After seeing them off with my eyes, I turned to the two who led this mission and said, "How Many did you lose?". They both frowned and seemed to prepare themselves before speaking. in fact Gilgar went as far as holding her sisters arm. ''seriously, am I that scary?'' I couldn''t help thinking. "We lost twenty three warriors, 14 Orcs and 9 Hobgoblins" Largash finally made the report. Hearing her words, I frowned but couldn''t blame her. It was an unknown terrain and an ambush, added with the fog, which the opponent was probably used to. "It must have been a hard fight, Hope you learnt from this experience and won''t move without scouts next time" After saying that, I continued after a short pause "considering the prisoners of war you brought back, you did well and deserve a reward, go home and think about what you want, as long as it''s something I can do, I''ll do it" ""Thank you My Chief""The duo excitedly responded, but I was already headed back to the Lord''s Manor. _____________________ It was already dark outside and as usual a slightly muscular female Orc came in to light up the Torches within the Hall. Dabok says that he had been training a few females on this kind of work, especially those who weren''t dexterous for tailoring like the female goblins. That doesn''t mean there aren''t any Orc females who could do that kind of work, some gather materials like herbs Lovan requested or Potato from Nazu''s old territory and then exchange them for more meat during the burn fire gathering at night. When the orc was done, she left as quickly as she came, without saying a word. Just as she was leaving, She ran into Nazu at the entrance and gave an awkward bow before leaving. Seeing all this, I couldn''t help but marvel at how different the situation and tradition of the orc lands varied from how it was portrayed in the Novel. ''Barbaric savages without any iota of culture or intelligence'' Those were the words, the only one who had a decent amount of reputation and respect was the berserk king of Degr and all the people under him. But living here amongst them, I have began to understand and feel that, the author was just being too biased. The actions and performance of different orcs I''ve met so far, not even mentioning those in my tribe, the blood horn clan''s ambition, Greyeye''s scheming and so on, these aren''t the actions of ''mindless savages ''. "My Chief" Nazu''s salute broke me off from my inner musing. "Yes, your here..." as I said this, I sat up slowly while watching her. Her full red hair and golden eyes were on full display under the flames. This is a strong female Orc that felt she could claim me but failed miserably, she must feel some resentment as I''ve been tossing her around. I looked at her and watched her status silently. [Name: Nazu Redmane] Race: Royal Orc Duelist Level: 23(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 13100 Relationsh.i.p.s: daughter of Toro ''the Cruel'' and The One eyed Haran, Former Chief of Govan, warrior of Blackmoon tribe. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral/Lunatic ] I can''t say that I am not interested in her bloodline, also I plan to exploit her relationship with One eyed Haran in the future, perhaps I''ll be able to poach that Boss character. I''ll try stay away from her father though, although I can''t say if he''s still alive, I''m sure he''s a loyalist. As I''ve come to realize that the Novel isn''t entirely accurate, as some things were written based on the author''s thoughts. Although it was written as though Toro was dead, it might not be so...''argh, I wish I could have finished the book at least before I died, especially with the new volume coming out. '' While having such thoughts, I motioned for Nazu to approach me and that she did, even though she looked at me strangely for a second, I ignored it and tried to sound as indifferent as possible. "It is the month of Callus, is it not?" "Yes" "Very well" I suddenly said while standing up, I stretched my hands and held her chin while saying, "You shall be mine on the night of this months purple moon...Be prepared". Her eyes go wide and I quickly made my escape by walking to my Chambers, My heart was beating louder but I can''t tell if it was due to excitement or something else. Although I know I sounded rude but that''s under human standards, here I''ll be considered strange and I might have someone riding over my head soon if I don''t use such methods. while thinking of this I went to the courtyard behind the Manor, there was a connecting door to it from my Chambers. Stepping passed the door, I met Urim and the shaken Bhok, surely his experience at the training field must have really been an ''eye opener''. The black tattoos on his body were out in full display as he placed his hands on his knees while sitting on the floor. "So your finally going to do it hehe" Urim''s voice called out as he noticed me approaching, ''Old Dabok must have blabbed again''. Seeing my silence the big oaf continued, "won''t be long now, the village will have little Torugs running around...ah I can''t wait to see"He stood up while covering his face with his right palm and chortled loudly, you could even hear a slight whistle mid laughter. "perhaps I might have a chat with Torrelsav tomorrow morning, ah what fine tales I have for him... maybe we could even have a drink" I spoke loudly like I was lost in thought, as expected the fool froze up. But then He grinned, " Did you know, that our friend Bhok was a good story teller?". "oh?" I acted surprised and Urim nodded with his annoying grin as he approached Bhok, "Bhok the ''great'' Bone Carver, told me a lot of interesting things about the Shammobs, he spoke of a wonderful treasure..." "Do tell" I said as I squatted in front of our new ''friend'' Bhok. Chapter 84 - 83: Tales of a treasure pt 2 Alex''s POV, It was the following morning and I sat within my inner Chambers musing about the treasure I heard about last night, Bhok mentioned a Tablet with strange words written on it. His father the Chief, uses the tablet to study powerful word magic. This pricked my interest and so I began making plans on how I can get my hands on it. If my guess is correct, then what''s recorded on it, is most likely sacred orders, numbering two or three from what Bhok mentioned. but again, he might be exaggerating. putting that aside, this morning I continued my quest to understand this green energy and then a thought came to me, "why don''t I ask Ayaseh directly?, as her champion, I have a direct connection to her". After making a decision, I tried to recollect the scene of how the antagonist prayed to her, back in the book but I found that, it was inconsistent. So I decided that I will come up with my own way or wordings. "Great mother of the Moon, guardian of the abyss, protector of souls, witness me in my time of need. Sustain me with your power so I might make the right choice. I plead this of you in your divine presence, grant me guidance as...". "took you long enough" a female voice suddenly cut me off and I could only open my eyes. a smoky green transparent figure had appeared within my Chambers and judging from it''s shape, it was obviously female. Who else could it be, besides Ayaseh herself. She took her time looking around as I said, "didn''t know you were expecting my prayers, if I did, I would have prayed a long time ago." Hearing my words, she said nothing and sat on the only bamboo chair in the room. "I didn''t know, your kind could supply faith... recently I have been receiving this odd amount of faith and which was never there before, now I know it from your territory" Amused, nodded for a while before turning towards me with a ''well?'' expression. Without wasting time, I went straight to the point, after all it''s the way she liked to do things, "your power, the dark green energy... I''ve tried to use and study it but to know avail. I wanted to know if I am getting something wrong". "hmm, that''s strange... you should be able to use it, after all you haven''t had any problems using Divine energy before." She muttered thoughtfully,"unless you can only use neutral Divine energy? even still..." She stayed silent for a while before grumbling something about not doing this before and then said, "First you have to understand what falls Under my authority" "Darkness, Souls?" I questioned even though I knew that was the answer. "yes and Dominance" "Dominance?"I asked and She responded with a teasing tone, "Yes, control over those tainted". Her words then reminded me of what happened to the novel''s antagonist, who was forced to be her champion. luckily she''s not the kind that abuses this power, in fact I can say that not many Gods might know about it. I intended asking about how to use this power but she cut me off saying, "the effects and uses of a God''s Divine Mana or grace differs from person to person, so in most cases, you have to come up with your own style or you learn from your predecessor. in your case, You''re the first sooo... Good luck" With that, she laughed loudly like some cartoon villain before disappearing, leaving me with a dumbfounded expression. "Brother, Moz says she has done what you asked and...if she should bring it into the village" Urim''s voice came from the other side of the door. "Finally... we''ll go to her" I responded while opening my door. I had asked the shadow Orc to get something ''special'' from the Greyeye clan, considering Greyeye was on white mountain...''looks like she found one''. As soon as I stepped out of the Manor, I yelled "Alpha!". and almost immediately a slight commotion broke out from the direction of the storages. Awooo!! Amused, I waited for a bit and with a timely jump, I mounted the Ghost wolf without pause. Urim was the same, everyones proficiency in riding the wolves has seen significant improvements over time. Looking at Urim''s wolf that looked somewhat bigger than alpha now, I couldn''t help thinking ''Suits him''. A small competition broke out between the wolves as they ran out of the village but it didn''t last long, we soon spotted Moz on her wolf, waiting ahead while stroking it''s fur. "My Chief..." She saluted. "was there any complications?" I asked. "A small one but it''s taken care of" She responded with a small smile. ''She''s getting more and more expressive now, but why smile over someone''s death?...'' I couldn''t help laughing in my mind while having such thoughts. "where is he?" I finally added. "not too far ahead, it took me a long time to find someone close to Malu and the Chief like you asked but..." hearing her pause, I couldn''t help inquiring, "But what?". "One was Greyeye Little Chief, too strong for me, the other was this Greyeye slave master...weak". Now I understand, looks like the Greyeye clan isn''t so simple and this slave master should be very important in the clan. While we discussed, we didn''t stop our movement. "My Chief, this Slave master might be a problem...what do you need him for?"Urim finally spoke as he had come to understand the whole situation. "We need to know more about Greyeye, we know Blood horn clan but not Greyeye clan, now that the two of them are suspected to be discussing...we need to know more" I explained as he was going to see it anyways. Not long after, we were amongst trees and had just crossed the tree line. below what looked like a mutated pine tree, the body of a fat Hobgoblin was tied up and stuffed in the mouth. Dressed in an attire that looked like the skin of blue scaled python. that creature is a first circle magic beast and this fatty had it on so casually. That means, the Greyeye clan must either have a relationship with humans or they have a good Crafter, obviously this one wasn''t enchanted like I had initially thought, it only delivered basic defense. but even still, that meant a lot...I suspect they might be more economically advanced than my Blackmoon clan. While in thought, Urim and Moz dismounted quickly. The sound alerted the fatty and he was startled, Embarrassed he yelled at Moz "You!! Filthy swine!, do you know what you are doing?!!!". Bam! Urim slapped the fool from the side and he froze immediately after having a tooth knocked out. I watched all this from above Alpha and then chose to add pressure by having Alpha move closer while growling threateningly. I then looked at his stats, [Name: Brogg ''the Slaver'' Greyeye] Race: Hobgoblin warrior Level: 21(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 9200 Relationsh.i.p.s: Slave master of the Greyeye clan, Blood horn clan traitor, Oath breaker of the blood horn clan. Alignment: Neutral Evil ] Looking at his stats, I turned to Moz for a second and couldn''t help laughing, "good good good... this is just perfect, Oath Breaker." Hearing my words, Brogg froze... Chapter 85 - 84: Tales of a treasure pt 3 Alex''s POV, "Aaaargh!! Really that''s everything I know!" Brogg''s pitiful wail spread across the forest as he tried to send his words across to me. we''ve been busy with this little Brogg for an hour plus now and I find that this guy can sure take a beating, even though we were only hitting him without the intent to kill. "So you are saying, Your Chief Greyeye went to white mountain to invite Blood horn Chief to his feast, prepared for his son''s successful second evolution?, and he intends to use this chance to kill the Blood Horn''s Chief by challenging him to battle during the feast?" I asked, going from word to word like I was talking to an idiot... putting aside if his words were reliable, the second part of the story made me speechless. I couldn''t help asking skeptically, "And you are also saying, that he wants me to join hands with him, by using my ''enmity'' with the Blood horn Chief?". "Ptui... yes!" With a spit, Brogg ejected the blood in his mouth while responding. The moment he said yes, Moz and Urim sneered, "Brother, He might want to use it to push the blame onto you..." Moz also added a few words with a nod, "true, there''s also the chance that it''s a diversion and they are working together". Honestly I had thought about these things the moment I heard Brogg''s words earlier but...I don''t remember announcing anything or having an open fight with them yet. And then I remember, the Hunter from before, who I humiliated. I raise an eyebrow while thinking,''he must have told his Chief, quite some interesting stories huh?''. So Greyeye himself wants to personally invite me for a feast, because of his son broke through to the second circle of evolution... ''They celebrate that?, if so, won''t my Black moon clan have a party all the time? another thing learned today''. "We will know what to do, when we see Greyeye" I tell them before turning towards Moz, "you''ve done well this time Moz and I''ll grant you a fitting reward". "wait, I can join you, no I don''t mind being your slave"Brogg hysterically says while struggling with his bindings, he obviously knows he has outlived his usefulness and was anxious about his fate. "Foul thing, why interrupt the Chief, what kind of slave would you..." Urim slaps him with the back of his hand before grabbing his bald head with a bored expression. it looked like he was holding a coconut from where I was standing... "I suspect your brother might have the bloodline of an Ogre sometimes"Moz says next to me and I looked at her blankly. ''Did she just tell a joke?, but why does she look so serious?'' I wondered, but it honestly feels like a waste to just kill him, after all I need some one on the inside of Greyeye clan more than ever. And then it hit me, the goddess mentioned tainting ones soul and I know she did it only twice in the Novel but with different effects, ''What kind of effects would I get? and how do I see the soul?''. I walked towards Brogg and said,"You would do anything right?", at the same time, I controlled the green energy to my eyes and... [Ding!] [Wraith vision Lv1(0/10000): tapping into the power of the Abyss, Host has developed the ability to view the spiritual realm. Duration: 45 seconds Cool down time: 60 seconds Effects: * See the spiritual world *Unknown *Unknown *Unknown] [Ding!] [Ayaseh is amazed by your achievement] "So that''s how it is!" I unknowingly exclaimed and Brogg got more agitated saying, "h..how wah...what i..is?". I got excited, I felt like a child who had found a new toy but I somehow knew, that with my current level, I can only make 3 of such skills. Even still, I couldn''t help thinking of the possibilities!... Looking at Brogg, I found that he was transparent with a fist sized bluish black ball, just at the center of his c.h.e.s.t. I turned to look at Moz and found hers, only difference was that it had a thick shadowy aura, that obviously had something to do with her element as a shadow Orc. Urim''s soul was... just Blueish but was almost twice as thick. ''What does that mean?'',with this thought I turned to Brogg again and I could see that my eyes were glowing green with a tinge of gold, He looked at me with horror and the others felt the same way too, but I wanted to try something else... "Well...looks like you''ll be my very first lab rat" "Labu?...Aaaargh!!" ____________________________ Blackmoon Town, Largash''s POV, I came home with hurried steps after the news I had just heard, it didn''t take long for me to find father having a little chat with my sister. "Father!...Have you heard?" I asked impatiently but father calmly turns to me saying, " Heard what?". "The Chief, has set a date to take ''Nazu'', for some reason I spat the name with more venom than intended, but who cares, I hated her. "What??!!" Gilgar screams. "Sit down", Father says, "and no, I have not". Upset, I couldn''t help but complain, "almost every little Gob sings about it with glee". "Well, I don''t see the problem, the Chief can have as many wives...do they call it wife here?, anyways, he can have as many as he wants." Gilgar responded nonchalantly before sitting down again. ''Yes she''s right, I can''t refute her words, I haven''t lost yet'' hope appeared in my heart once again, I had been going with the human style of having one wife but even then, some had concubines. I calmed down, Father was watching my expression but calmed down after a while. "Pa!..."I said. "Oh no" he exclaims. "What?" "hahahaha" Gilgar breaks into a laughing fit. "What?!!"I asked again. "you only call me that when you want something..." Father explained. "..." I suddenly became speechless after being seen through. "Okay, let''s hear it" "..." "if you don''t say it now, I might change my mind about listening" "wait" I could only concede, "Chief Torug asked us to think of a reward, and if he is able to fulfil it, he would" "Don''t tell me..." Gilgar quickly catches on to my thoughts. "Yes, Father, I was wondering if it would be appropriate?" "..." Father watched me for a minute before sighing, "you mentioning such a topic in it''s self, is inappropriate. it would be better to ask for something else." "...but" "No, let me finish... you do your best to enter his attention while you leave the rest to father" He says before getting up to leave. I could only watch silently, as I began to feel guilty, for what? I don''t know... "Why do you seem to be in a hurry about this matter?"Gilgar suddenly asked a question while taking a bite from the boiled potato on the table. With a sigh, I silently approached the table and sat down. "I want to be the one who bears the first child, that way, we''ll have a steady foundation in the tribe". "..." "Don''t look at me like that, you know... despite how nicely we are treated here, don''t forget about the others out there, some would try to even kill us... only by being next to someone as strong as Torug, can there be guarantee" I finally spoke about what was really in my mind. "and Urim" "What??!!" "Urim... he''s strong too" "are we still talking about the same strength?" I looked at my sister speechlessly. "You!" She points at me while her mouth opens and closes like a fish out of water, "...you know that''s not what I meant?". "Really?"I responded sarcastically while she gritted her teeth, her small tusks moved visibly due to the actions of the mouth. "see how I take care of you!" ___________________ Meanwhile, Alex''s POV, [Ding!] [New skill Unlocked] Chapter 86 - 85: Tales of a treasure pt 4 Torug''s POV(Alex), [Ding!] [New skill Unlocked] Looking at the notification in front of me, I couldn''t help smiling to myself. although the others might see my actions as sadistic, I didn''t care. ''After hours of testing, I finally made another skill'' I opened the notification quickly for the full description. [Brand Lv 1(0/10000): Host taints the Target''s soul by forceful infusion of Abysmal mana. Slowly bringing the target under the hosts control. Requirements: *Target must be the same or below the Host''s level. *Must be within 10 meters and in a weakened state to start the process. Duration of corruption defers from target to target, depending on the quality of the Target''s soul and Evolution path. Maximum number of Corrupted: 1/3] It was completely understandable but the number of people that I could corrupt was really small, luckily it could be leveled. I then looked at the full interface, starting with my status... [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Level: 29(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 22100 Alignment: Lawful Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak) Skills: [Leap(Uncommon)Lv2 - Apply force to ones legs and Jump through the distance of 16 meters.(3/3) uses before cool down Cast time: Instant. Cool down: 6 secs Reckless Charge(Rare)Lv2- charge forward, increasing one''s speed by 50%, next attack causes 200% damage based on strength stats and reduces chances of being slowed or snared. Cast time: Instant Cool down: 10 secs. Racial skills: [Prey on](New) Lv 2- after making successful kill, you can choose to use gathered Exp(mana) to level or build up things other than the Host''s evolution tree. i.e you can choose to inject a certain amount of exp to skill, or your body parts. Present amount of Exp that can be stored 0/10000. Sigil(Unique) Lv 2 - A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 2/5. Effect: Personal: Adds 14% bonus to ones stats at level two. Intimidation(-): A natural Suppressive aura against creatures of a lower evolution realm. (Passive) Mitigate Lv2(Passive)- Reduces damage taken by 35% during combat. Predatory Instinct(Passive): Increases User''s Damage +10% when attacking someone deemed as a prey. Savage(Title skill): grants a temporary 2 minutes sanity debuff for 15% damage when activated. Side effects- Lowers intelligence by 50% when active 70% weakness after use for 13 hours. Champion Skills: (2/3) [Wraith vision Lv1(0/10000): tapping into the power of the Abyss, Host has developed the ability to view the spiritual realm. Duration: 45 seconds Cool down time: 60 seconds * See the spiritual world *Unknown *Unknown *Unknown] [Brand Lv 1(0/10000): Host taints the Target''s soul by forceful infusion of Abysmal mana. Slowly bringing the target under the hosts control. Requirements: *Target must be the same or below the Host''s level. *Must be within 10 meters and in a weakened state to start the process. Duration of corruption defers from target to target, depending on the quality of the Target''s soul and Evolution path. First thing I noticed was that, there were a few changes on my status page. Apparently creating these skills had given me a lot of Exp and I''m almost at level 30. Even successful corruption gives Exp, ''now I''m really looking like an Evil Boss'' I mused, then the next thing I noticed was my alignment had changed from the usual chaotic evil to Lawful Evil. I scratched behind my ears while thinking, ''So I wasn''t wrong in my earlier conjecture, it''s changeable.'' the next strange thing on the user interface was a greyed out quest, [''For the Queen''!] [Deal with the Grole Queen...] [Rewards: Depends on your Actions...] It should have been cancelled, considering the queen is dead but it only looked like it was paused. ''That reminds me, Janetta should be on her way back now but no news yet'' With that thought, I decided to put inspecting my tabs on hold and spoke to Urim. "Urim, take Brogg...we are going to Govan" I pointed at the unconscious Hobgoblin, but then I noticed the timer by the side of his face. it Said a day and four hours remaining for a complete corruption. "Are we going to kill him?" Moz asks. "No, if all goes well, he would be of great help to help to us" I replied with a grin before jumping into Alpha''s back. ''I''ve been thinking of going to Govan for a while now'' Govan was Nazu''s old territory and is also the area that has been supplying us with wild potatoes. Aside from hiding Brogg there, I intend inspecting the place to see if it''s still useable, after all with the way we''re progressing, we would have to start expanding soon. And that direction is the most ideal, as I have 3 spots in the Laboni region. As we ran through the forest and made a bee line towards Govan, it took us almost Two hours to get there. Now the place was overrun by weeds and bones of the dead. Most of the houses were destroyed but I only needed one to keep Brogg, after all Greyeye would be at the village tomorrow, can''t take any chances. Once I''m done with Greyeye, I''ll go to the periphery of Thann''s end to see if I can find a trace of Janetta. While having such thoughts, we entered Govan but then we saw something rather interesting. Grrrrrrr The Wolves began to growl and Urim spoke through gritted teeth, "Humans..." "..." Yes, a group of Humans were presently in Govan and they seemed to have made it their base of operations for what seemed to be balmost a week now. The leather coated humans around the burn fire were shocked by our appearance, they had been trying to make lunch. I quickly inspected them and found that, they were all at the first circle of evolution, except their leader who was in the second circle. Another thing worth noting was that, they were all members of Black purse, the same as the guy that was killed at Sker''s village. ''Investigation party?'' [Name: Cail Ridge Race: Human(Rogue) Level: 27(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 18999+1000(Equipment Bonus) Relationship: Member of the Black purse, vice leader of Black purse (Thann''s end Branch). Alignment: Chaotic Neutral.] "Lo...Lord Cail!! Orcs!!" a short looking man yells, obviously shaken from me and Urim''s aura, Moz''s aura has always been subtle and hard to pick, added with the fact that, they hadn''t looked at her yet. The so called Cail, remained silent while looking at me, but I couldn''t see any fear, there was only caution. I became curious, what''s giving him confidence in facing two second circle Orcs and soon the answer to my question came. "Lord Shev isn''t back yet, what do we do?" "No use panicking, we can only buy some time, where''s Eva... you speak Orcish, ask them what they want!" Cail orders and openly told me there plans, I could only touch my nose subtly. I already know what you want to do and you still expect me to follow up with your play?, Most likely this Shev is somewhat stronger, if not more powerful. ''I''ll just end it now'' "Moz, watch Brogg" I urged Alpha forward while saying. "..." Although she was silent, she nodded. I then turned to Urim and teased, "It has been a long time since I stretched, do you think you can compete with me? who kills the fastest?" "hehehe...I won''t fall for that trick" Urim says before charging with his wolf howling. "Eh? what does he mean by that?" I asked Moz who shrugged, Alpha grunts aggressively, obviously eager to kill these humans. I said with a laugh, as I urged Alpha forward, "might as well get them Exp" . Chapter 87 - 86: Tales of a treasure pt 5 Cail''s POV, I watched the Orcs riders in front of me and couldn''t help being shocked by their presence alone, this is the first time I''ve seen wolves of this size. Orc Riders I am aware of, hail from Degr kingdom and then the other is from the white mountains. Both parties were rare Calvary units and the mounts were different, one rides the Furlkuva and the other rides the Blood horned Bison. The Furlkuva is a hard shelled reptilian creature, that fed on flesh and the Blood horned Bison were known for their iconic blood red Horns that created a minor blood shield around it''s body for a short time. But... This, This is the first time I''ve seen such animals!... ''Perhaps if we could catch such an exquisite creature...Shev is not here yet, I can''t take the two of them...their aura fluctuations, made it clear that they''re already at the second circle of evolution and then there''s the female Orc... with those looks...no no I must stall for time!''. "No use panicking, we can only buy some time, where''s Eva... you speak Orcish, ask them what they want!" I ordered for Eva and sent a secret signal to Shev but before Eva could even speak, the bigger orc suddenly charged with a thundering roar that shook my ear drums, the one that looked like the leader wasn''t far behind. Immediately, I was filled with dread and I seemed to have been thrown into an Icy pool. Quickly, I suppressed the feeling with my body''s Mana, by sending minute fluctuations from my head to toe but, the lingering fear remained. I traced the source of this fear while unsheathing my sword, and that was when I locked eyes with it. Wild Black hair with a Body of green, at some point, he had unmounted his Wolf and was charging at me. I quickly picked up the continuous cross bow by my side with confidence in my enchanted bolts, I fired the first shot and it only bent it''s body slightly after it''s initial surprise. The screams of my men Echoed around but I couldn''t be bothered right now, some how I knew that, if I looked away for one second... I''m dead. Although I wasn''t used to frontal battles, it didn''t mean I was weak either... Fui fui fui All three shots were dodged but it still left layers of ice on it''s body and he finally noticed, I only have two more shots and I am confident that I will make this Shot... that was what I thought as I pushed Mana into the cross bow. Vhum! Those were the next sounds I heard as the Orc blocked the first shot with his axe and caught the other with his hands. with a smile on my face I dropped the cross bow and picked up my sword. ''He actually caught it...'' I couldn''t help laughing in my mind as I watched the frost energy spread across his hand. But then, it did something that wiped the smile off my face... a green looking flame burnt away the frost within seconds and he said to me in our human tongue, "Is that it?". One of my men tried to perform a sneak attack but was soon attacked by the Orc''s wolf from behind, soon the sound of bones cracking came and the poor lad''s voice disappeared. ''would that be my fate?''. The suppressed feeling came again, in an even stronger force, as it had been like a constant struggle. But then, how could I give up without even trying?...I can''t lose here... With that thought I dashed forward with light steps, ''I had become too comfortable with Shev around, that I always forget how it had always been at the beginning!''. But... When I was but 10 meters away, it charged at me with an abnormal burst of speed and I quickly pushed my Mana while implementing . He ran through me without any damage and I appeared behind him, ready to unleash an attack. It''s unfortunate that Shadow counter has a short usage time and had to be timed for it to work well. It was a rare skill that I had been born with even before my first evolution but despite that, it had a huge toll on the body and I could only use it for a limited number of times. As I tried to stab him from behind, he suddenly flung his axe backwards and the earth beneath us cracked along with his movement, drawing a semi circle on the ground, luckily I used shadow counter again on reflex and barely dodged the attack. Without wasting anytime, I stabbed as soon as I appeared but he turned his heel and I was hit with the back of his hand, before I could recover, he tried to grab me, but I quickly retreated. This didn''t stop him for long, as he followed up with a vertical swing, forcing me to use shadow counter once again. Unfortunately he was prepared, as soon as my body became visible, I was hit with the b.u.t.t of his battle axe and He said, " Do you think I''m stupid?". ''I know your not stupid, but this was the shortcoming of this so Called rare skill'' I thought of this while wiping the blood from my mouth, ''Great, my nose is bleeding too and my head...No Escape!''. I quickly looked around for an escape route and the monster said to me, "You could try". A sadistic grin was on his face and it was then I noticed that I was already surrounded, ''He never took me seriously!, why is it so different from other Orcs...wait! He hasn''t killed me yet, Perhaps I could strike a deal with it, luckily it speaks Skaldish''.(A/N: human language) "What do I call you?" I asked but instead he says, "Tell me about this Shev". Torug''s POV, I watched Moz tie Call up with high proficiency and couldn''t help being amazed, I looked at the unconscious Brogg within one of the ruined houses and shook my head. Alpha laid on the floor while I rested on his side, "Moz be quick, we have a ''Shev'' to catch". "Brother, can we trust the words of that human?" Urim asked while eying his great sword weirdly. ''I need to change that weapon for him and give it to someone that would appreciate the size, it''s too small for him''. ''I noticed, majority of the time, he was using fist and kicks... but, I enjoyed that fight...I wonder what ''Shev'' would offer''. Although I was having this thoughts, my mind was thinking about what I had sent Janetta to do, ''perhaps I could use this ''Shev'' guy'' I thought of that while eyeing the ''brand'' skill on my interface. "Okay, hide him next to Brogg... We''ll wait for ''Shev'' ". I say as I watched the other wolves feed on the human corpses, for some reason, I felt indifferent to the whole thing and thought of how I usually used the meat grinder and the like to get rid of evidence... ''can it count as the same?'' Urim was watching the scene as well and couldn''t help asking, "would we really be able to make more wolves if the spider woman succeeds?". "Again! yes! Urim...if she succeeds, although she is taking longer than expected" I answered while rolling my eyes at him, I wasn''t bothered with Moz''s presence, as she has seen us act like this more than once. "He''s here" Moz says rather casually, as an oppressive aura approached with full speed. Chapter 88 - 87: Im curious Shev''s POV I, Shev Ransden, otherwise known as Ransden the snake, had never in all my Thirty five years, cared for another. If I had not been paid by that fellow, why do I have to suffer like this?. After making my way towards the white mountains, it hadn''t been up to 40 minutes, I received Cail''s distress signal. ''I have to go back?'' I frowned while staring at the long road behind me, "What could have possibly gone wrong?" "Damn it All!!, I won''t bother making the trip today...This better be important", While complaining, I Increased my speed as my abnormal reflex kicked in. no matter how I jumped or ran within the forest, I always found my balance. Yes, the reason I was called Ransden the snake, is simply because of two reasons... I was one of the lucky ones born with two skills, One I called the and the other I call . allows me to see Heat signatures with my left eye. Indeed, the reason I was abandoned as a child was because of this same eyes, My right eye was brown while the left eye remained pale green. We were too poor to have me inspected at the mages tower and my parents were to afraid to even have... In that moment the quiet had become like icy drips onto already cold skin. I stopped, ears straining. ''I''m sure this is the camp'', I had this thought, until I saw the mangled bodies. on the other side, at about a 100 meters ahead, a black haired Orc with golden irises, rested on an abnormally huge wolf. He stared at me with interest and suddenly, I had a feeling that I had become a prey. Before I could register the feeling, another one came from the side, topless with a series of Black tattoos on his arm and left c.h.e.s.t. He looked at me for a second and turned to the Golden eyed orc while speaking with disappointment, "Brother, He doesn''t look strong". The golden eyed Orc shook his head and said with a grin, "No, He''s very strong, just watch". Although I understand the Orcish language, I didn''t understand what he meant by ''Just watch''. It was at this moment, I was filled with intense horror and disgust. Above all, shock. Shocked at how swiftly it managed to startle and paralyze me. A violent disturbance of the mind, emotions. It had caused phenomenal devastation. As anyone would have realized by now, this was a well-plotted ambush and was highly diabolic. an Unimaginable damage could come from this attack, and for the first time, I felt misery that surpassed description...But. My body once again moved on it''s own, dodging the malicious attack... Only one thought, remained true in my head, ''Since when do Orcs use sneak attacks''. Torug''s POV, ''Ah! beautiful strike!, She just keeps getting better and better'' While I laughed internally, I couldn''t help feeling surprised by how ''Shev'' was still able to dodge the strike. Then I couldn''t help recalling his stats, [Name: Shev Ransden (Ransden the Snake) Race: Human(Aura Seeker) Level: 29(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 22113+2000(Equipment Bonus) Relationship: Member of the Black purse, Black purse executioner(Thann''s end Branch). Alignment: Chaotic Neutral.] ''He''s only a step away from the third circle, this would be a good learning experience for all of us, best have them fight him one after the other.'' With this thought I turned to Moz who was looking at Shev with venom, She''s the lowest level amongst us, so let her try her best first. "Shev yes?, here''s the thing... I''m sure you are aware of your situation" I spoke slowly while mentally ordering alpha, to have the wolves circle 150 meters around us. They might not be able to kill him at once, but they could slow and injure him. He finally noticed our complete numbers, ''ah God bless the system for the stealth, too bad he seemed to be able to spot Moz before. "and I know you are a smart man...So!" I interlocked my fingers and stood 10 meters from him, "I''ll strike a deal with you, after all, am an Orc of my word". "You could fight all of us at the same time, or?!, I''ll have you fight three of us, one at a time for fifteen minutes each!, if you can live through it, I''ll let you go" I explained in a calm manner. "And if I end up killing anyone of you?" He asks, while eying the wolves. Hearing his question, I couldn''t help laughing out loud, it sounded rather malicious but I couldn''t help it. " It means He or she is weak, I won''t take account, you have my word". He looked around, probably gauging our individual strength. after a while, he gritted his teeth and said, "I accept your deal!". As soon as he said those words, the wolves howled to the sky, making him flinch. "Very well" with that I explained my thoughts to the others and they agreed immediately, Urim was really itching for a fight, so they ended up arguing on who would go first. "Moz would go first" I stated curtly, Urim grunted slightly but I didn''t even bother to scold him, I simply said to no one in particular but I''m sure Moz would understand what I meant, "I''m curious to see how you would do in a frontal battle". "She would be your first opponent" I said to Shev while picking up the repeating cross bow, to inspect. it was masterfully crafted repeating crossbow that had been remarkably constructed of excellent ironoak(A/N: a type of metal tree, found in the Orc lands). Its string is made from superior grass fiber, it''s an extremely rare material around these parts of the world. The limbs have been decorated with ornate golden details and end in points shaped like dragon heads. The stock is wrapped in linen and decorated with intricate thread work. The wide quiver is made from woven natural fibres and is supposed to be worn around the archer''s back. The outer side has been decorated with gilded linings, which may be of greater significance to the archer than to others. In the hands of a novice archer this bow is capable of firing arrows up to 22 meters while still retaining lethal power. No wonder it was so troublesome, if not for my , this would have been lethal. ''I might as well gift it to one of Torrelsav''s daughters'' I quickly store it in my inventory and brought my attention to the impending battle. Both parties remained standing at about 20 meters apart, Moz was almost a head taller than him. None of them seemed ready to take action but I could tell that Shev was feeling impatient. ''that''s good'' I thought. While I was thinking to myself, the battle begun. Shev ran forward and I could feel the Mana within him, turn chaotic. I quickly used and found something interesting, there''s something attached to his soul. it looked like a leech but not quite the same... "Hehe, are you having fun" I muttered to myself while I began to come up with a plan. Chapter 89 - 88:. Minor situation? Moz''s POV ''A chance!, a chance to prove myself and not abandoned in the corner like before'' Memories of my experience in Blood horn tribe surfaced for a second but was cut off by the sound of the humans footsteps. He ran towards me and I couldn''t help bringing my guards up, The Chief called him strong, so he definitely must be. The slender fingers I used to hate, hovered over my Short sword''s hilt. ''Avoid every attack and look for an opening, make sure the attack counts, if you are not sure of the hit, don''t try it'' Chief Torug''s nonchalant voice lingered in my ears, That was the path My Chief chose for me... I looked for the enemies weapon but found none, he rushed at me to attack with his fist and a frown appeared on my face, I believe that, if I attacked him with a weapon , I will be seen as one without honor. ''What are you doing?'' Torug''s voice came again, ''I am only sparring with you, that''s why I am without a weapon, but even at that, because your enemy has no weapon, does it mean you must do the same?''. ''You, Moz, you''re are a shadow Orc... do you think you have the same luxury as others? do you think you are allowed to take hits?, look here, you have no need for Honor, mercy to the enemy is to harm your own self'' ''You''re allowed to be despicable, your only honor is when you complete the missions I set out for you and when you are alive, looking down at your enemies.'' Series of instructions that I had received long ago while sparring with Torug, kept replaying in my head. The Human soon appeared in front of me and a strong wind followed after. The he punched straight at my face, my eyes widened in shock...''Fast!''. I moved my face to the side while taking a step forward, the Chief always did this. Perhaps shocked, He jumped backwards and stepped on the ground forcefully. Boom! Dust rose from the floor and flew straight to my face, forced to shield my eyes, I could feel him approaching. It''s something, I had developed recently. subconsciously, I lifted my leg and sent a kick to the side of his face but again, he moved to the side like the ground moved him there. He once again continued his attack and I chose to cut off his hand... Clang!!! It felt like I had hit something hard and I couldn''t help being surprised that it was arm. An invisible energy that could be felt but not seen, wrapped around his arms as he paused and looked at me once again, after that he looked at Urim and then Chief Torug. The frown on his face could probably crack a Sun at the center of his brows, but something else was on my mind, ''can I wrap the shadows around my sword or even my body?''. Too bad I didn''t have time to ponder as the human warrior, yes I finally acknowledged him as a warrior, He roared while trying to grab my neck. His speed increased by several folds compared to before and I instinctively wanted to jump back and disappear from his path, out of fear, I did what he did before, I rushed out to surround myself with the familiar shadow energy and something surprising happened!. He passed through me with speed and I looked at my surrounding, it was different from when I used to jump into the shadows...it looked like a different world altogether, everything was dark and the trees were white. the human looked like a a whitish creature and so did Urim, but for some reason, Chief was glowing green. With this opportunity, I decided to dive into the human warrior''s shadow. He kept looking around, trying to find something and I couldn''t help but feel that, this was the time to attack. with that thought, I jumped out behind him to deliver a blow but surprisingly he immediately turned behind and reached for my neck. "That''s enough, time''s up" Chief Torug''s voice broke through the forest, "Urim your next, Congratulations Moz". "Human, I''ll allow you rest" Urim''s voice came next and the human warrior sat down without any hesitation. "Oh? so you understand our tongue?...Moz, what''s the problem? why are you like that?" Although I was praised, I couldn''t help feeling down, ''I''m still weak''. "Moz!!" a loud shout broke me out from my inner thoughts and I subconsciously answer, " My Chief!". "Why is your body like that?, are you having trouble getting used to...?" "Urim stop, Moz relax, your body is only feeling s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e right now, don''t panic!" Perhaps sensing my distress, the Chief spoke to me, my surrounding kept flashing between the normal one and that Shadow world. Over and over again, I struggled to gain control, ''there''s no use panicking now, right?''... "Moz, can you hear me?" Chief Torug asked again. "What?" I asked rather listlessly. "Is this the first time she has ever used this ability?", the human warrior suddenly asked with a frown. "What do you know?" The human continued to speak, "let her stop trying to control it!, it''s not something to be forced!, give the body time to get used to it." Urim walked towards him, like he was going to do something, but the human says while pointing at his green eye, "No need to look at me like that, I have had the same experience...". "Urim" "Brother?" "Let him be" "W..." "Leave it" "..." "Are you sure of what you are saying?" Torug asked seriously while looking down at the man, "I''ll have you know that, If what you say is wrong... I''ll make sure the dead would feel more alive than..." "Although there''s nothing wrong with what I said, I did leave out one thing" "Speak" "..." "remember you have my word, I said we won''t kill you" Torug looked at his face and said with a small laugh. "Fine, have her continue to place herself in whatever state she was in, until she''s confident in her control" "That''s it?" "Yes" Nodding his head with a laugh that didn''t sound like one, Chief Torug only replied with, "we''ll see, unfortunately, you''ll have to remain here until there are some changes". "..." "Do as he said" He said to me and I finally let go, as the darkness enveloped me. After so long, there was a change in the shadow world, it was like there was a strange wind that just blew in. And suddenly, Two small white eyes appeared and began to observe me from their narrow sockets. A small nose rests below and a lazy smile reveals the small sharp canines. Short bent ears sit on each side of its small, round face, a hair that looked like over grown bison fur, brown as the earth itself. Its slender body is slightly hunched over, but that didn''t hide the fact that she''s female, her body is covered in smooth skin but what was weird was the chains that wrapped around her hands and feet. After what felt like ages, She stopped screaming and began to take heavy breath. Gaining some clarity, She looked at me again and looked like she was about to say something but soon looked at somewhere far away in the shadow world. Perhaps seeing something, She turned to me and stretched her hand towards me, out of fear I closed my eyes. "Brother, She''s back and she looks..." Urim walked towards me as I opened my eyes. "..." I was back at the ruined village, it looked like only a few seconds had passed but everything I had experienced was real. I was confused, ''Could the legend be true?, in this region, the powerful creature, Laboni, used to live here but no one knows what happened to it.'' Recalling the scene from earlier, ''She matches the description, with the white eyes and beauty but, how come she''s trapped in the shadow world?'' With that thought, I tried to go back once again but something I had never experienced before, happened. "The shadows rejected me?" I muttered. Chapter 90 - 89: Explosive Entrance (A/N: so before you read this chapter, I''d like you to listen to this song on repeat in the background, that''s what I was listening to while writing this..."Th3 Darp x Godmode- Samuria) Torug''s POV, I watched Moz silently as she kept muttering incoherent words while looking visibly shaken. Urim tried questioning further but I stopped him and chose to wait patiently. But then, a system prompt gave me a rather shocking message. [Ding!] [Your surbodinate Janetta Sewell has triggered a Hidden Quest] [Changing Fate 1(ongoing): By stealing Aether from the Moongret safe house, you have reduced the chances of Davis Fairchild earning his first power up and affected the plans of the Radiant Sun Church. Requirements: *The Aether arrives at Blackmoon Town before Greyeye''s visit. *Help Janetta Sewell escapes Alive. Reward: ??? As soon as I read the details, I couldn''t help laughing out loud. ''You could do this too? here I thought I couldn''t disrupt the protagonists action'' I continued musing while laughing wildly, at the same time, Shev''s figure just happened to appear in my line of sight. My predatory instinct kicked in and I could feel my eyes heat up once again. considering my mood just improved, I said to him with a grin, "Run". Perhaps understanding his situation, he didn''t even ask or say anything, he simply turned towards Thann''s end and ran. Looking at him run made me laugh even harder, I looked at Urim and Moz before saying with a grin, " my gamble has paid off, come" "Alpha!" I called for my wolf and he responded with a bark, apart from Dabok, Urim and Moz were the only ones aware of the plan to steal the Aether from the Moongret family. In fact, I wasn''t too sure they had it yet. I just felt that, since Janetta could easily pass off as a human, she would be able to enter Thann''s end without a problem. While thinking, I had already mounted Alpha and charged towards Thann''s end. "Brother! are we letting him go?" Urim''s voice came from behind as he followed closely with his wolf. "Go? when have I ever been that easy?" I said sarcastically and He grinned, Moz still seemed out of it but she still followed closely. "Shev! you better run faster!" I yelled in a teasing manner before stroking Alpha saying, "Go". With my order, the wolves used haste and closed the distance. "t...this, this was not what we agreed!!" He yells back as he desperately dashes through the trees. Alpha goes in for the kill but Shev performed a strange movement before somehow dashing up a tree, he continued to escape that way, jumping from tree to tree. "I said I wouldn''t kill you!, I didn''t say anything about what happens after" I say but continued after watching Urim rush forward with his wolf, "Careful though, accidents do happen". As soon as the words left my mouth, Urim slashed the tree Shev was about to land on but the Warrior used his Aura to push himself off the falling tree, with a roll, he continued his run. Alpha tries to take a bite off the desperate man but he acted like he had eyes all over his body and jumped out of the way. Unfortunately, Moz had been waiting for him and he got bashed by the charging wolf. It didn''t take long for us to surround him again, before he could recover I closed the gap with my reckless charge and grabbed his head, Immediately I initiated Branding while trying to peel off the leech attached to his soul. But I couldn''t help frowning later when I noticed it wasn''t working, ''He''s exhausted so it shouldn''t be an issue of... Unless''. I carefully looked at his soul and sneered, "You don''t want to come off?, then I''ll just taint it all!". Immediately, the blackish green aura began to change the color and everything about his soul. Shev on the other hand, had long since began screaming in agony. Ten minutes later, He was passed out and I succeeded. "Moz, what''s wrong?"I finally asked seriously. "..." She looked at me for a bit before narrating everything that happened. "Have you tried again?" I asked while Urim had a frown on his face, the story about seeing this legendary beast was incredible but her abilities was what mattered right now. After a short three seconds, her hands began to ripple with the familiar shadows surrounding her. I let out the breath I didn''t know I was holding. "Carry Shev back to Govan but don''t try entering the shadow world, we''ll return soon". "But...let me go with you, my..." She tries negotiating and I could tell what she was worried about. "Don''t worry, you do this and wait for us..." I say while eyeing the direction of Thann''s end, I don''t know the situation with Janetta and I''m not entirely sure about Moz''s situation, it''s best not to take her with us. Before she could say another word, I ordered Alpha to move and Urim followed immediately without hesitation. __________________________ At the same time within Thann''s end, alarms were blaring and soldiers ran across the stoney streets. A purple haired woman could be seen controlling a supply carriage recklessly, people ran off the road to avoid injury but properties were damaged. Not long after she left, a purple haired young man was seen leading some elite soldiers while chasing after the deranged woman. Within the supply carriage were rows of tightly locked containers, within them you could see a transparent blue liquid. She whipped the horses wildly as she charged for the gates. "Seize her!!" Some knights tried cutting off her route but she did something that had never been seen before. after directing the Horses to dodge towards an alley, the carriage itself was late and almost toppled over, surprisingly, she swayed to the side while spreading out her arms and gritting her teeth, from her palm came a silky substance that stuck to the side of the carriage and a wall. Shocked by this scene, the knights crashed into each other and she successfully made the turn. At locations that had Archers on buildings, she would jump off the carriage to take them down before returning to the carriage. someone suggested using magic, but because they were unaware of what was within the carriage, this idea was rejected. The narrowly oval shaped carriage dashed forward and soon crossed the closing gates. Janetta had long since webbed the Aether to the carriage floor, so she wasn''t worried about her maneuvers. Her purple was disheveled and she already had a sword injury at her side that was rapidly healing. She was still lost in excitement about the adventure she had just experienced and couldn''t help marveling at Torug''s accurate description, although there was an element of luck. "Woman!! don''t force me to do this!" "This Boy again!"Janetta bit her lip while looking at the path ahead, she had just stolen the carriage without making plans on how to get it to Blackmoon Town safely. Now she began regretting her impulse. Soon the purple haired youth appeared at the side of the carriage with his horse, he drew a bow and tried killing one of the carriage''s horse. When Janetta saw this, She panicked and clawed both horses from behind, forcing them to charge wildly. this made Davis miss his shot, as the arrow only landed on the wooden drivers sit. That''s right, the purple haired youth was Davis Fairchild, He gritted his teeth in anger and could only continue chasing. The next he heard was an explosive sound and then both he and his horse were knocked up, the backside of the supply carriage was knocked up as well and a strong force spread a ripple effect, knocking back the following Knights. After a few seconds, Chaos ensued, both horses and men were wounded. Then Davis felt his head grabbed, before he was smashed to the ground repeatedly till his head was bleeding and he coughed blood. Janetta looked behind from the still speeding carriage and couldn''t help exclaiming in shock, "Torug?!!". Chapter 91 - 90: Fail... (A/N: Try listening to Heilung-krigsgaldr on repeat for this chapter) Some minutes earlier, Torug''s POV, Not long after I left Govan with Urim, I noticed a new icon in my vision. It looked like a green health bar, but for what, I had no idea. After a few seconds, the green bar began shrinking at varying speeds and I began to suspect this had something to do with the quest. A strong sense of urgency set in and I became restless, the others felt it as well. "Bro..." Urim tried asking but I cut him off, "We need to hurry". ''If my calculations are correct, then it would take about 20+ minutes for the carriage or whatever the system is projecting to...'' I frowned, ''its not that simple, something else could happen and I won''t even get to Thann''s end within an hour''. ''Do I have to use a Sacred order? no too risky... Right!'' My frown relaxed, ''might as well...'' I decided to ask the goddess for help and began to pray inwardly, ''protector of souls, witness me in my time of need. Great guardian of the abyss grant me ...'' "Careful Torug, This might become a Habit for me" A sultry voice came from my side as I found myself somewhere else entirely. Surrounded by a vast plain, an Enchanting Moon could be spotted in the distance, like it was resting on the earth. The floor below looked like it could devour light itself... Not long after spotting all these things, something flashed behind me and began tracing it''s fingers over my tattoos, "Hmm... strange animals..., I see you have began using the Abysmal mana as you call it". "I.." I tried speaking but was cut off again, "Careful though, the Abyss isn''t as simple as you might think" "When you gaze into the Abyss, the Abyss gazes back"She states eerily before giggling and flashing towards the direction of the Moon. "Don''t worry, I shall grant your request...I knew Your wish the moment you prayed to me" Her laughter could be heard in the distance. The world seemed to twist and I was back on Alpha''s back, dashing towards Thann''s end. 30 meters ahead of us, we saw a strange Black door appear with eerie vibes, it projected fear to the wolves but I quickly calmed Alpha down by stroking it''s and said, "Don''t worry, Go!" It hesitated for a second and rushed forward, I teased Urim who happened to have slowed down, "Who knew the Great warrior, Urim would be afraid!". "Who says I''m afraid?!" He roared while charging with his wolf. "Good, I shall not have a coward for a brother!" I said with a laugh, "The Goddess is on our side". With that, We Charged in. On the other side of the door, we arrived at a treeline, staring at a walked city or town at the distance. Thann''s end, a popular business hub built with a panorama of the surrounding land. From the towers that stood amongst the walls, watchers were on high alert and ready to take action. Steadfast walls were built for defence in an age that was defined by jealousy, greed and the love of power as much as honour, nobility and loyalty to the crown. Now though, A blaring sound kept ringing out from within the city and it attracted the wolves attention, they growled lowly but my attention were at the gates. It didn''t take long for a Speeding carriage to burst out from the closing gates, mounted knights chased after it with reckless abadon. The Moongret flag waving in the distance allowed me to notice the watchers preparing to fire their arrows. On the carriage driver''s seat, I could spot Janetta Sewell trying to fight off her pursuers. "Urim, we''ll help her" I say while going into stealth with Alpha, With a nod, Urim did the same and we rushed forward. We broke out of the treeline and charged at the knights, then I noticed a particularly eye catching one with Purple hair. ''Davis Fairchild?!'' A dark thought came to me when I confirmed that it was the protagonist, ''How much would fate change, if I killed him now''. Without hesitation, I chose to confirm this with my own hands. I urged Alpha to use and when I was finally within the 16 meter range, I Leaped off Alpha''s back and landed in between the Carriage and Davis A chaotic ripple effect spread out with me as the center and I grabbed Davis who had been sent into the air by his head. I smashed it to the ground three times, hoping to crack his skull but as expected it didn''t happen. Surprisingly, despite the successful ambush, he didn''t drop his sword and succeeded in cutting my arm. I threw him to the ground on reflex, the recovered knights charged forward. "Save Ser Davis!" a Knight with an accent yells and rode his horse towards me. From behind, Urim steps in front of me, charging at both horse and man before lifting them up together, tossing them at those behind. With a grin, I looked at the downed Davis while bringing out my axe for an Execution. [Name: Davis Fairchild Race: Human Guardian Knight (Champion) Level: 30(Order of the Third circle) [Incomplete]. Power rating: 23444+3000(Equipment Bonus) Alignment: Lawful Good.] When I looked at his stats, I was shocked by the incomplete next to his level and then it hit me, ''The human age restriction on Evolution?, aren''t I lucky, I believe he should still be in his teens now and hasn''t been recognized as a.d.u.l.t by the world''. ''Humans and elves sure have it hard'' While musing I approached the young Hero, ready to cut but... Clink! I blocked an arrow aimed at my head, I looked at that direction. A man holding a bow, stood on the wall like a rod without thinking too much, a name came to mind, ''Frank''. He was another impressionable Character. With a frown, I glared at him and Davis. The latter seemed to have recovered somewhat but was still bleeding profusely, He began to mutter some words and a gold colored light wrapped around him as his wounds began to recover. I couldn''t help growling at him, as I used reckless charge to attack him. my intent was to use the short boost in damage to slice him in half, ''Things are beginning to get troublesome''. Unable to move, Davis could only stare wide eyed as I got closer to him, the sound of an arrow leaving it''s bow was heard but I chose to take the blow just to kill him. Urim''s roar could be heard as he smashed a knight''s head with a rock. The arrow was ruthless as it pierced my shoulder, but my Axe succeeded...or that''s what I thought, until a transparent bubble broke, taking the blow for him. ''F"cking plot armor'' without hesitation, I retreated while glaring. "Alpha" My voice had a tinge of anger as I pulled out the arrow and Urim mounted his wolf while glaring at Frank on the wall. The knights were to scared to approach and we left immediately. Frank looked like he had no intention of chasing and Davis was too scared to move, probably traumatized. ''Good for you'' I spat, I already begun making plans on how to infiltrate the city...He won''t be safe for long. We chased after the carriage, luckily she wasn''t stupid enough to take it directly to our territory. Once we spotted her, I ordered her to stop and quickly placed the Aether in my inventory. "Hop on" I said to her with a frown, while glaring at Thann''s end once again before moving. We rushed for the valley first, to throw off any spy before making a bee line towards Govan. Chapter 92 - 91: Return Laboni region, Govan village ruins, Torug''s POV, We soon spotted Moz at the distance, she sat on a tree trunk while resting on her wolf''s side. It''s ears twitched from time to time and it didn''t take long for them to take note of our presence. "It doesn''t work here" She says quickly after saluting, I could tell she was anxious from the way she sounded. "Did you try walking further to try?"I ask but she only stood there silently while biting her lip from time to time, I could almost hear the retort ''you said I should stay here'' from her body language. I could only shake my head and say, "We''ll return to the tribe immediately, we''ll take them...we can''t keep them here anymore, Urim, you wouldn''t mind carrying two of the humans right?" The latter part of the sentence were spoken lightly as I raised a brow at the big guy. He looked at me speechlessly and looked like he was about to say something, unfortunately he looked at Janetta behind me and grunted, before dismounting. He casually dragged the unconscious Shev and the squirming Cail out of the broken down hut. He tossed Shev onto the wolves back like clothes before re-tying Cail in an odd manner, soon he was taken care of as well. We left Govan and headed towards Blackmoon Town. "haa... I''m hungry", I unknowingly spoke with the human tongue while dismounting Alpha and Janetta looked at me weirdly before saying, "You eat?". "..." I honestly didn''t know what I should say or feel right now. ______ Once we were done, we headed towards the burn fire for dinner. Urim practically ran there with a laugh. "How about now?" I suddenly asked. "It works again" Moz replied with a look of confusion, I couldn''t help nodding before saying, "Let''s eat first, can''t think on an empty stomach". """My Chief!!!""" before I was done speaking, the people began to hail and salute as soon as they spotted my arrival. Janetta followed closely with a rather rigid expression, Dabok questions me with his eyes and I nodded with a grin. The old Orc laughed while looking at the sky, he must be in cloud nine at the moment. But can you blame him?, the Breeding house would be an important factor to the development of the tribe. Urim grabbed a drink from the main keg and lifted his stone carved cup in the air, a little bit of the cups content spilled over his head but he didn''t seem to care, "For Blackmoon!" He yells... The crowd responded excitedly, ''this is nice'' I thought with a smile. Nazu was nowhere to be found, Urim began to tell tales of our attack on the human Knights and the others would exclaim in awe from time to time... "Sss" I frowned while hissing a bit, some one touch my injured shoulder, when I looked at who, Janetta asked in confusion, "are you not going to take care of that?" I narrowed my eyes at this purple haired lady and began to suspect that the human she assimilated with might be related to the Fairchild family. Without a word I took off my Cloak and surprisingly Haji came from nowhere to collect it, ''such a thoughtful fellow, looks like he noticed the injury earlier''. I wordlessly Poured my drink onto the wound, it began to sting in such a way that I began to think of colorful ways to kill Frank. Looks like it''s started, they''re already working towards making him a pawn and to think it was directed by his ''God''. Presently, Frank is secretly working for Bishop Rodney Clearheart and he would be the one to lead Davis to the location the Moongret family was hiding Suffia Gric, this would then lead to Davis''s first Massacre in the name of ''Righteousness''. "How did you let a minor human arrow get to you?, The old Chief thought you better than that" Dabok''s voice came from the side while eyeing the wound. The Burn fire was still as bright as ever and the Villagers continued without noticing anything. "Old Dabok, There was someone I really had to kill" I said with a bitter laugh. "Did you get him?" "No" "..." He looked at me silently for while and then took a sip from his drink saying, "You''ll get him next time". "I don''t think I want to kill him anymore" "..." "I have an even better idea" I said slowly while observing the green Abysmal mana in my palm. "Okay but we need to focus on Greyeye, He''ll be here tomorrow...be careful with that old Orc" He warned me at the end of his sentence. I take a bite off my Broth while saying "I know". "Your plans for her?" Dabok asks with a somewhat l.e.w.d smile and I was shocked, this was the first time I''m seeing him with such an expression. ''Haaa he''s an Orc after all'' I silently consoled myself as a loud laughter escaped my lips, attracting everyones attention, soon they all joined me. "Hmph!" Dabok snorted in mock anger before saying slowly, "You''ve grown". "..." ___________________ Cullbeg kingdom Rosenvug City, Zonfid East district, 43 Sonia Ozil street, Helene Caronte (Simon Weiss) POV, With a long cream regal dress sitting on a chair in a dark corner. I bowed my head and prayed in a nervous voice, "Almighty Malphos" "He who lays behind the veil" "I pray for your attention. "I pray for you to listen." ¡­ "Speak Vermin" a hoarse voice bounced around in my head. "The young Lord of the Zonfid house has returned from the borders and I have succeeded in gaining his in..." "I am not interested in your daily activities Simon, no I should say Helene..."I could hear his contempt, "What I want to know is, when shall it be done". "In two months..." "Don''t forget, it''s almost time for the competition for the glorious sun... You would do well to have the Zonfid house in our pockets before then, you made the right choice with this body...at least, it''s better than the one you had 80 years ago." "I will not fail...I will do my best to hasten your resurrection, Lord Malphos". "Of course, you have to be quick, it won''t be long before the Date Weaver and that back stabber Ragol, begin making big moves and Once the keeper of souls falls, It will make things easier...I will be the one to snatch her authority, Ragol will regret double crossing me!!" The fallen God Malphos roared and I couldn''t help vomiting blood, immediately the connection was gone once again. ¡­ ¡­ Once I was done cleaning myself, I looked at the flesh eating Grimoire before s.u.c.k.i.n.g it back into my body. Standing before the door, I took a deep breath, extended my right hand which was covered in a white veiled glove, and released the lock with a determined heart. I followed the streets and headed towards the military barracks. I watched the clueless citizens shuffling around and thought, "I''d rather die than be mediocre once again..." Chapter 93 - 92: Ranged weapon...? Blackmoon Town, Lord''s Manor, Torug''s Inner Chambers, Torug''s POV, ''It''s already day time?'' I looked out the window while opening my eyes, I had woken up at about four hours ago and as usual, practiced the ''Heart Sutra''. This time I felt a difference and I know, it won''t be long before I can breakthrough the second stage. At that point, I would become a true elite. Standing up from my bed, I hissed as the arrow wound stung me once again. last night, Dabok had wrapped it with some herb and cloth, Sadly, it''s really itchy... luckily my regeneration isn''t half bad, the wound would probably close up in a few days, which was remarkable. as I looked at the cloak, I decided against putting it on for now because of the wound but I''ll definitely use it to cover the wound for Greyeye just in case. With that, I thought about the different scenarios that could play out with Greyeye''s visit. ''I need to hear him first to be certain but I''m sure it''ll lead to a change on how we are seen in the orc lands''. ''Good thing we''ve got the Aether now, we''ll use the wolves for intimidation'' I made calculations as I headed out the Manor but when I got to the Hall, Janetta was there, sleeping. ''no one prepared a place for her to stay? or did she just come here?... Right, she doesn''t understand our language yet''. I continued outside without disturbing her, ''ill think of a way to help her later''. ''Strange'' I thought, "How long have you been there?" "I don''t know but I''m sure it felt like days... Quick, come show me, I couldn''t sleep all night...do you know what this means?" Dabok excitedly says as he turned towards the Breeding house with quick steps, it was just behind the Manor so I didn''t see the need to rush like this. "having a powerful creature as mount, is a symbol of status in the Orc lands... with the few we had before, it wouldn''t mean much but when the numbers become double of the previous numbers we had...then our status has changed" He spoke with excitement and you could almost see roll out of him. "Any more than that, we can be compared to the Blood horn clan, located on white mountain" He laughed out loud and his voice got louder at the end. "..." I wanted to say something but He cut me off, "Come, quickly". ''Who are you?'' I thought in complaint, ''we are already at the entrance and you still want to hurry?''. We stepped into the Familiar dimly lit Warehouse and even I felt a slight rush of excitement, the hunters had been hunting down wolves for a long time now so we had enough bones to make about 40+ wolves more. And one wolves needed only 1ml of Aether to be bred, meanwhile, we have been able to steal 7 litres of Aether, that''s 7000 wolves... Thinking of that, I couldn''t help laughing, too bad the bones might not be able to keep up. After all, We''ll need to give them time to upgrade to the first circle. ''Do I have to rear them?'' while thinking, I quickly brought up the UI for the Breeding house to confirm. [Ghost wolf: 1ml of Aether, 1st level of Evolution rank bones numbering the number of wolves needed] Before I began the process, I decided to experiment and see if I could clone myself... [Invalid...] ''as expected'' I thought sadly before trying Dabok. [Invalid... please upgrade the Breeding house first] This time the system added an explanation but ''does that mean it''s possible to clone me?''. No response... Shaking my head, I placed the item needed for the cloning on the ground. Luckily, the Breeding house had recorded all the data on Alpha, so I didn''t have to bring him over. [Analysis complete...] [How do you wish to proceed?] ''use everything'' [Starting sequence...] [Time needed: 143 hours 59 minutes 06 seconds.] The items on the ground were enveloped by blue light and soon disappeared. Dabok had an incredulous expression since the moment I brought everything out from my inventory, perhaps he was too shocked to ask or something else. "Dabok, we shall return in four days...the Goddess has accepted our offer" I finally spoke to the old Orc. "o... okay" Shortly after, we stepped out of the Breeding house. He stood there in a daze as he alternated looking between me and the Breeding house. Shaking my head with a laugh, I turned to leave only for me to hear people exclaim. I turned towards the training ground and found Urim with a make shift bow. "My Chief" Urim saluted with a grin, He passes me the bow and I looked at it, it was crudely made with wood and animal tendons but the maker obviously had the right idea. "Who made this?"The fool proudly beat his c.h.e.s.t with an expression that had the words ''praise me'' written all over it. I can''t blame him though, he saw the bow from a distance and he did what he could with the little knowledge he had, he''s a genius. "Good good good" I said while patting his shoulder, I had to praise his effort at least, he obviously recognizes its strategic use. "But you made mistakes..."I quickly explained a few things from what I could remember, "Keep trying when you are free until you get it". "S..sure" He said absentmindedly, as he rotated the bow severally to pick up on the things I mentioned. I looked around at the observing crowd and couldn''t help laughing, then I spotted the Halfling girls and beckoned them over. ""My Chief"'''' "I have something for you... Have you thought of your reward?" I asked with a slight nod. "No..."Largash says and I could only nod, ''perhaps it''s a problem of limited imagination'' I thought with a laugh before bringing out the cross bow. I took a bolt and loaded it in, before aiming at the wooden dummy I had them make. With a loud thud, it struck the wood... I won''t say I was a good aim but at least it touched the dummy. I coughed lightly before handing over everything to Largash, "Here take it as your reward...I''ll think of something for your sister". "Thank you" She said in a daze as she admired her new weapon. "As you practice with it, Find Lovan, to see if he can make something like that as well". "..." She nodded silently before returning to look at the crossbow again, her sister rolled her eyes while shaking her head. I found their actions funny but I have to go continue practicing the ''heart Sutra'' while waiting for Greyeye. _______________ The moment I opened the Manor door, a threatening screech came from within as a figure flashed from the chair to the ceiling. I was speechless, My action must have scared the spider. A laugh escaped my lips as I continued walking to the throne. She quietly came down with a web while wearing an embarrassed expression, I chose not to say anything about what just happened and closed my eyes to cultivate. Unfortunately, the scene replayed in my head and I thought about the kind of expression she''d have when doing all that and I laughed out loud. The poor lass could only snort angrily on her chair, this made me laugh further while wiping an imaginary tear. Chapter 94 - 93: Population increase! Torug''s POV, I stayed silent within the Manor while practicing the Heart Sutra. Janetta had left for somewhere out of embarrassment and luckily no one came to disturb me. Unfortunately, when there was no improvement on the Cultivation of heart Sutra, I knew I was done for today''s practice. ''now what?'' I suddenly asked myself, I couldn''t help but think about the many things that would be happening all over Luegad. Two major event that happened at the beginning of the Novel, have already been seen. First was the Battle of Gods, but in actuality, it was more of skirmish. this allowed Entrance of foreign souls into the world without being noticed by the Gods. But that brings the question, ''how did I enter this world without attracting their attention?''. Then the second major event was the blood rain and the city of broken mirrors. The death of a neutral God during the truce would be a serious problem, which is why I know that, despite how Ayaseh acts like she''s carefree, she and her alliance must be having a hard time. Now there''s also the issue of what Moz had seen in her ''shadow world'', someone was siphoning the power of a legendary creature and if I am to make a conjecture, it most be related to the monster lying at the bottom of Blackmoon lake. ''would this affect my plans in any way?, obviously this wasn''t mentioned in the book because the author was unaware of such events'', with this line of thought, I gently stroked my beards while staring at the now dying fire at the fireplace. [Ding!] [(Brogg) Branding completion has reached 25% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. A notification that brought me both happiness and confusion at the same time, came up. I read the sentence carefully, I can take possession?, although it''s for short time, it''s still incredible. My imagination began to run wild as I stood up from my throne, ''no let''s try it from here and see...'' I focused on the Branding skill, and a faint green orb appeared in front of me, I stretched my hands and held it in my palm. It looked illusionary but I could feel it in my palm, this should be Brogg''s soul. With this in my hands, I felt I could kill him if I wanted but I couldn''t for now, since the Branding wasn''t complete...that would change over time though. What was interesting was that, holding this, I could see his situation and it gave me a sense of deja Vu, like I was playing a video game... I watched the Hobgoblin look around in confusion and began to struggle with the bindings he had on. ''This is perfect, with this I could spy on the Greyeye clan and to top it off, I don''t have to be bored anymore... what happens when the Branding completes 100%?, how long will possession last then?'' While having such thoughts, I couldn''t help trying out the possession. Soon, the feeling of ants crawling over my brain came and almost immediately, I was watching the back of the Manor. I quickly released my control over him and found that I was back in the hall. The timer on my UI shows [2 minutes 39 seconds remaining]. ''This is wonderful, it''s not wasted immediately after use, then does it reset?'' once again, I took control of Brogg once again and decided to wait till the timer finished. Luckily I could look at the system interface from his body as well, which meant, my initial thought was correct, the system is bound to my soul. When the time was up, I found out that I was already on the Throne, I looked at the UI and saw a new line... [Cool down time: 1 hours 59 minutes] ''Is this good or bad?'' I wondered, added with all that, I found that I can actually slow down or stop the degree at which my Abysmal mana was spreading. ''If so, why can''t I accelerate it?'' I tapped the arms of the throne with my index finger, ''could it be the level or proficiency?''. "Moz" I suddenly called out to the shadow Orc, hidden behind the Throne. "My Chief!" She says in a low voice. "Take Brogg back to the Greyeye clan borders, that should keep em busy for a while. when you get not too far from the tribe, ask him about what happened to him, if he remembers, bring him back...if he says something else, continue your journey. also, stay away from the white mountain route, so that you don''t bump into Greyeye." I say, She nodded with a determined expression before leaving, I couldn''t help but wonder what she was thinking. Earlier, I had used the passive portion of the Branding skill to make Brogg believe that he had been taken by the Blood horn clan but managed to escape, I only hope it works. After She left I observed Shev''s situation before turning back into the Manor, the guy was only burning up but wasn''t in danger... perhaps it''s part of the process, I couldn''t tell as I didn''t observe Brogg very well. My plan is to have Shev stay here till he enters a 100% on the Branding skill. he''ll be my eyes and ears in Thann''s end, while observing Cail for me, I won''t waste the last space from branding on him. Once I was done, I went in search of Dabok to discuss expanding the walls, there''s too much space from the North, west and south. Blackmoon lake lay at the East and I really don''t want to wake the beast yet, until I find the cursed object at... "My Chief!" a HobGoblin guarding the Temple saluted, Dabok decided to build a house next to the temple and moved in, the Hobgoblin take turns guarding it. I honestly didn''t see the use for that but who am I to burst the old man''s bubble. "Come, I think it''s time to expand the wall" I said and the old Orc nodded seriously, " yes, especially with the amount of new borns in the village, soon this space won''t be enough". Hearing his words I was shocked and quickly brought up the territory interface. [Ding!] Level: Intermediate Lv1 (15000/15000) Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 988/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv intermediate Lv2= 1500) Soldiers: 367/300 Guards: 21/50 Sub territory: Basic Lv 1(Mura village), Govan (Damaged) Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley, Laboni region(23%). Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Village wall, Wooden Residential buildings x56, Smithy, Basic Logging(Fair), Farmland(78%), Advanced Mining Field(92%), Barracks (complete), Training Field (complete), Town Hall (complete) Breeding house (complete). I noticed back then, that majority of the women we brought back were pregnant but I must have somehow forgotten about it. now we''re talking about an increase of almost 300 in the population and I''m sure not all of them have delivered yet but this just reminds me of how this creatures tend to breed. ''Where are the children then? wait, most would still be weak at this point, so not seeing them running around is understandable, but this just means we have an even greater reason to expand!...who knows what will happen after two months!'' I made more plans as I nodded to Dabok''s words. Suddenly, Alpha could be seen approaching as he circled around me twice before bringing it''s face closer, I could only smile wryly while running my hands under it''s Jaws playfully. "My Chief!!" Haji''s running figure appeared in my line of sight. "My Chief!, there are Orcs riders approaching the gate...Twe...Twe.. Twenty of them" He finally managed to say, both me and Dabok looked at each other for a second before heading towards the gates. Chapter 95 - 94: Grey eye Torug''s POV, I walked calmly to the gate, while Dabok followed behind. Alpha lingered around as he followed closely as well. Soon I spotted a group just outside the gate, different expressions were on their faces but they were really in awe as they looked at the well proportioned walls. Unfortunately, I wasn''t interested in their faces, I checked their stats and found that, out of the twenty, there was only five elites at the second circle of evolution, while the rest were at the first circle. as for the leader of the group, Greyeye himself... He was almost at the end of the third circle which ends at level 35, which means he''s almost at the Grand stage of another minor Evolution (4th circle). If he''s already at this level, what level is the Blood horn clan Chief... Shouldn''t be far off. He was a dark green Orc with a somewhat brown screen, He wasn''t overly muscular in build either but the grey colored eyes in his head gave off pressure. according to Brogg, that''s where their specialty came from, to become a chief in their clan, one must first awaken this eyes. Each generation of the Greyeye clan chiefs all developed unique abilities from their respective eyes and this guy was no different, the annoying thing was that not many from his clan even knew what his ability was except his son, who is yet to awaken his eyes. Dressed in an unknown animal fur, he had a necklace made of bones on his neck and the accessories on his biceps were the same. He was the only one mounted on Massive Bear, and watched me from on top it with a curious gaze. He looked at me, then my tribe, Alpha and then me again. [Name: Kharag Greyeye Race: Mutated Orc Shaman Level: 34(Order of the third circle) Relationship: Chief of the Greyeye clan, Father of ... Alignment: Lawful Evil.] Seeing his stats, I now understood that the eyes, was actually a mutation. ''Strong'' I thought, while feeling a sense of urgency, ''What kind of strength does the other Chiefs in the orc lands have?'' I wondered. It''s like I''m meeting a real Chief for the first time, a cunning one at that. we silently stayed like that for a while, inspecting each other''s situation... "Brother" Urim spoke as soon as he arrived but paused, before I could speak, Kharag spoke suddenly to Urim, "You must be the Chief! Chief Torug, your achievements have long since spread across the orc lands". He quickly unmounted from the Bear''s back and walked towards us, judging from the weapon at the Bear''s side, he must be a spear user. ''Trying to sow discord, because you heard how he addressed me?'' I couldn''t help laughing in my mind. "Kharag Chieftain, this here is Chief Torug" Dabok interjected, trying to diffuse any form of tension. With a few short steps, Kharag stopped some meters in front of me and the others and said, "I apologise for my behavior before". ''obviously he''s trying to show a stronger front for whatever request he wants to ask later but ''will I let you?''. "No worries, No worries...come in" I say, he looked at me blankly for a second before returning to normal again, "thank you". as I headed back into the village with everyone, I signalled Haji to proceed with the plan while saying to him, "tell everyone to meet us at the Manor" Acknowledging my words, He left with a nod and soon disappeared. The Greyeye clans people continued to look around in shock and they spotted the other wolves scattered around the town. "..." Seeing Kharag''s serious expression, I smiled subtly and it didn''t take long for us to arrive at the Manor''s entrance. The size of the lush green Bamboo looking building change Kharag''s expression once again. "Kharag, My House might not be big as yours, so I suggest you leave some men here and come in with your elites" Lies, the throne hall could house them but Kharag is already getting wary, he would feel more comfortable with having a back up plan in case something happens inside. as expected, he''s expression eased a bit but he remained vigilant, although he could feel my aura, it''s not as accurate as the system...so someone like him would remain cautious. I waited for him to make arrangements before leading him in. Urim seemed to be itching for a fight for some reason but I trust he won''t do anything to affect my future plans. "Welcome to my home, Kharag" I say with a laugh as I casually and arrogantly sat on my throne. I will be treated as equals, I don''t want to fight you yet doesn''t mean you can ride over my head. Soon everyone came in, Kharag sat to my right, behind him were his 5 elites. To my left was the already seated Dabok, Nazu and Lovan entered at the same time, Torrelsav came in with his braided hair and exposed tattoos. Kharag spotted it and then looked at Urim''s before staring intently at me, I simply sat here like I didn''t notice any of these. When they all did their salutes, they looked at Kharag in a quizzical manner. So I made a quick introduction and then said to the Grey eyed Orc, "So what brings you to my lands." at this time, Bhok came in and greeted before sitting at the last chair on the right. one of my key ch.i.p.s had arrived. "Bhok? Son of Shammob" "Chieftain Kharag" the cowardly orc quickly responded. "Your father still owes me that fight, when will he be concluding that feud" Kharag continued, while we watched them chat silently. "It''s only a matter of time before we take care of those Dregu slaves, now with the Help of Chieftain Torug..." ''Kuhum!'' I coughed lightly, "An alliance with the Shammobs?" Kharag asked but directed the question towards me this time. With a serious expression, I said, "I won''t call it an Alliance yet..." "..." "Now can we discuss the reason for your visit?" "I came bringing an invitation to my son''s Banquet..." he says with a meaningful gaze. The hall became somewhat noisy as the others whispered amongst themselves. "When is it?" "In four days" He said. Hearing his words, a sigh escaped my lips with a bitter expression. "Is there a problem?" I didn''t respond but Bhok spoke instead, "it''s the day that he would join my father in battle, against the Dregus". "I see" a slight killing intent flashed out of existence as quickly as it came. All this were all in the plan, no matter the date he mentioned, it would have still been the same outcome. I must avoid that Banquet at all costs, especially now that I have Brogg under my control. Who knows what he and Blood horn had planned. "It''s a pity" I finally say, "I''ll make arrangements for gifts". "Another reason I came was for the same topic you discussed with Malu" He looked at my face while saying that. "Oh? I said I would await your arrangements, how is the little thing" I laughed loudly in the end. "Dead" "What??!" as though on cue, the others exclaimed in shock and my face almost began twitching, luckily I controlled myself before asking, "What happened?" "Killed on white mountain, suffering the fate of an Oath Breaker..cut in multiple parts" Chapter 96 - 95: Trade? Torug''s POV, After discussing and listening to Kharag''s plans to ''liberate'' us from the oppression of the Blood horn clan, I almost wanted him on my side. He''s intelligence and scheming makes me who had once been human, impressed. presently, He doesn''t seem to have any ideas that contradicts my own plans, so he''s fine for now. Now I intend warming up my way into the eyes of old Shammob, Bhoks father. Once again, I find myself staring at this pitch black lake once again. I believe presently, I''m the only one who knows what is really below this lake, not even the Gods... The lake some how blocks their sensing and I have been thinking on how to use this for my advantage. [Ding!] [(Brogg) Branding completion has reached 30% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. - Possession time available : 4 minutes] "..." I looked at the message carefully and couldn''t help being surprised. [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 50% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. "The minutes don''t add up, so how is it calculated?" I muttered while looking at the interface. "Were you speaking to me?" Moz suddenly shows up, apparently, she had arrived a minute ago but I was too preoccupied to notice. ''Dangerous... she''s getting better at sneaking around...is that a good thing or a bad thing?'' I looked at the shadow Orc curiously before asking, "No, but have you had any problems entering the shadows since that day?." "Yes, but it was when I went to Govan" She says with a worried expression, ''that''s definitely disturbing, I might have to investigate further... especially now that I know, I can get benefits in making changes in the world''s fate''. "don''t worry to much, it''s not your fault... I''ll fig..." "Brother!!" Urim comes in with hurried footsteps, interrupting my speech. He has gotten comfortable with Moz and doesn''t bother putting on airs ''but seriously can you at least let a man..'' "It''s ready!" He says with a grin. "it''s ready?" I asked rather dully, took a few seconds to get out of my head. "Oh! good good" "let''s go" Inspecting it for a while, I had Haji call Bhok over. it didn''t take long for the cowardly orc to appear before our sights, he made an awkward Salute and stepped to the side. I had Raz make this happen, the Wagon was actually on the big side when it came to size and was somewhat heavy. luckily the Bison is also a magic beast, according to Largash''s description, the route wasn''t too complicated, the only problem might be the forest where you could be harassed by beasts. So I will be sending in more warriors this time, the easiest way to approach the Shammobs right now was weapons trade, I will then use my riders as a show of force. there by slowly increasing Bhok''s prestige in his clan, enough for him to steal this treasure. "Raz you have out done yourself this time" I said, making the Chubby orc grin with repeated nods. Nazu finally appeared in front of me, perhaps her curiousity took over or something as she was just staring at the wagon, from one end to the other. Even though I wished to say something, I chose to hold back until later, I turned to Bhok and said, "Don''t disappoint me...or" I let the sentence longer in the air and left the rest for his imagination. "Yes!" he responds with cold sweat on his face. Urim walks up to him and places his hand on the poor guy''s shoulder while lifting his bushy brows twice. It was almost comical, as that alone made Bhok flinch, perhaps thinking of the ''training'' he had with Urim. "Do well and I''ll make you Chief of those lands" I finally added and everyone looked at me in shock. ''What? I''m only making him a vassal in a way''. With a light cough, I turned to Urim, "You and Torrelsav will lead the group tomorrow..." After getting a confirmation, I turned to leave and remembered something, "Nazu". Surprised, she looked at me and I walked towards the Manor...from the footsteps following behind me, I know she was following me. ''I think we''ll make more wagons and if possible, smaller types''. Once inside the Hall, I spotted the muscular female Orc again, replacing the fire wood in the fire place. ''so that was her, I had thought it was a system setting'' I almost face palmed myself but held back the urge. "My Chief" she says and I nodded, "leave us" I said in a low tone and she left with brisk steps. Sitting down on the throne, I turned to look at Nazu. Name: Nazu Redmane] Race: Royal Orc Duelist Level: 24(Order of the second circle) Relationsh.i.p.s: daughter of Toro ''the Cruel'' and The One eyed Haran, Former Chief of Govan, warrior of Blackmoon tribe. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral/Lunatic ] ''Her level increased, she has been busy... Feeling pressured? I doubt it... let''s hear it from the horses mouth''. "What have you been up to this days?, it''s like you are avoiding me, are you afraid?" "No!, I..." she quickly denies but soon went mute, looking embarrassed?. Confused, I studied the Orc carefully, her golden Irises darted all over the hall like she was looking for where to hide. ''What the?'' "..." When I was about to yell at her for answers, Moz''s voice silently traveled to my ears. "She must have gone to cleanse herself". ''Cleanse what now?'' I frowned but waited to see if Moz would continue, luckily she did "It happens once in two months, like what you would see in the human..." ''wait! like... it''s... don''t tell me'' Speechless, I took a deep breath and said, "Are you ok now?" with my voice sounding strange even to me, ''how come I never thought of that, perhaps I''m thinking too much but I''d rather not delve into that topic right now, I mean they could mean something else.'' "Yes" She relaxed. "Good, you can go now" I said, she quickly left and Moz came out of stealth while staring at the door. "Moz" I called out, I had promised to reward her once upon a time and I have finally decided on what to give. I stood up and walked up to her solemnly, while placing my hands on her shoulder. "...." I quickly gave her the sigils, just like I did Urim and Torrelsav, officially making her my Vassal. Feeling the changes, she went on one knee and said, "Thank you for your trust" ''Trust?'', while I thought of that, tattoos appeared on several positions on her body, added with the fact that there was a lot of skin exposed due to the Black moon female clothing style, she looked Badass. as though I was appreciating my work, I nodded in satisfaction. Chapter 97 - 96: System points? Torug''s POV, Lord''s Manor, Within my inner chamber, I continued to practice the Heart Sutra till I was once again unable to continue. It was already evening by the time I was done and the Villagers were going to have dinner soon. Some females had already taken a portion of the meal to the pregnant members of the Black moon clan. ''Black Moon clan'' I thought with a laugh, that was what Kharag Greyeye called us. this goes to show that we are slowly integrating with the Orc lands. [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 45% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. - Possession time available : 7 minutes ...] [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 61% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. - Possession time available : 12 minutes ...] ''Right'' This notification has been bouncing back and forth for hours, that means, the Branding effect has gotten to the creature attached to his soul and that thing is trying to fight it off. "As if" I let out a dark chuckle as my steps led me towards my back yard, a makeshift prison had been made there, calling it a hostage cell would be more fitting though. A HobGoblin was watching the prisoners and I could hear Cail screaming. "Let me out!!, I don''t know what is going on with this..."I loud gasp was heard before, "By the Gods, he''s eyes are rolling backwards...let...Let me out!!". unfortunately for him, no one could understand him besides me, and, well Janetta of course. I signal the Hobgoblin to keep quiet before approaching the cell, "They can''t understand you" I said while opening the door rather sharply. He looked shocked at my sudden appearance and I couldn''t help teasing, "Missed me?". He was visibly shaken as he crawled to a corner, he has lost weight from being starved. apparently, he tried escaping twice but was caught by Urim and Torrelsav respectively. He got beaten badly each time as well and to top it off, Urim says he has too much energy and decided to starve him. And that''s what reduced him to this...''I can''t even find the word for it''. I turned to look at the convulsing Shev with my Wraith vision, and as expected, the leech like thing was trying to pull itself out. Surprisingly, the Abysmal mana has been busy and I began to spot a mutation going on. Perhaps, I''m about to have a Variant under my control. With such thoughts, I grabbed Shev''s neck and used a second time on him, to test a speculation of mine and to see what effect it would have on him. He began to struggle with an almost non existent strength, the creature within him was writhing in agony and an audible screech could be heard. I controlled the Mana and made it stab directly at the leach repeatedly, the screeching became louder and Cail continued to cower in the corner of the cell, all the while covering his ears and shaking his head furiously. A liquid formed mana began to spill out from the creature and onto Shev''s soul bead, I wrapped it all together, forming a cacoon around the Bead and surprisingly, I got notifications. [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 65% - you can now passively suggest ideas to the target. [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 73% [Ding!] [(Shev) Branding completion has reached 80% [100%] [Branding complete] [(Shev) Branding 100% - you can actively take control of the Target''s thought process. - Possession time available : 2 hours 15 minutes] [Duration increases as the skill level progresses] And then there was silence, Shev was now unconscious but I was to busy staring at my own hands and my thoughts were long gone. ''What was that creature? It''s death increased the speed of my Branding. if I could get one, Branding Davis might not be totally impossible'' A grin was now etched on my face and I looked at Cail, he flinched again while looking at me like some monster. ''Monster? is that not what I am?'' For some reason I found it funny and so I laughed. A while later, I looked at Shev curiously or rather, I looked at his soul bead and noticed it''s changes. Firstly, it was bigger but still smaller than Urim''s. ''Definitely a Variant, but how much changed?'' I wondered, I guess I have to wait till he recovers a bit to continue. [Ding!] [+500 system points] [You have gained new title, ''The one Behind the veil''] [The one behind the Veil : increase your evolution circle to view. ( ) Effects: Unknown.] ''Great, another thing I can''t use yet... Luckily, I got system points, which means I can finally use the lottery option ones'' I looked at the shivering Cail one more time before stepping outside, the Hobgoblin looked scared and kept eyeing the cell suspiciously. I quickly looked at his stats for his name and said "Gruk , go get them food from the others." "!!" although he was shocked for a second, it looked like he was more shocked about the concept of giving prisoners food than the fact that his Chief knew his name. "Yes my chief" without delay, he left to complete the task. Meanwhile, I was excited about the lottery and began to think about what I could possibly get. Too bad life had a different plan for me, "Brother...we have a problem". That sentence alone, changed my mood completely. _____________________________ Thann''s End, Moongret castle, The Study, Frank''s POV, "That''s absurd!, the only human''s with purple hair, is the Fairchild family! and you say she was helped by a ''Great'' Orc?" Charles voice went higher with each word and I had to stop myself from slapping him. "My Lord, this was something that was seen by all" I said. "Has the Fairchild family given any explanation?" he asks while standing up from his chair. "They claim to have no idea about this woman" "Do they think they are untouchable because of their son''s present status?" Charles says with a laugh before sipping from his tea, a minute later he says, "Fine, let''s play along with them...after all, our dear Davis Fairchild, is the Lord''s champion after all... Despite the fact that he was bested by a lower circled orc" . "Yes..." I supported his words rigidly as always. "Make sure to keep them in the dark, about what was in that carriage" "Of course my Lord" Charles got up and walked towards the window, he looked at the somewhat dark sky "Bring me, Bess" "..." I saluted before stepping out, I could almost guess what this so called high human wanted to do, he''s most likely going to try and make a connection between his grand daughter, Bess and Davis. Walking through the silent Hallway, I couldn''t help muttering "Pig". _____________________ Radiant Sun Cathedral, Thann''s End Branch, Davis''s POV, With a wary heart, I kneeled before the image of our father and God. A sadness like no other washed over me, as I thought about what happened the other day. The Images, flashed across my face, every single time I closed my eyes. since then, I couldn''t sleep and now I can only hope... "Father, forgive for I have sinned" "I had doubted you and questioned my Faith" "I..." The sound of footsteps interrupted my prayers and I turned to look at who was approaching, but her words came first. "Do you want to know what happened to your friends?" I turned around sharply and... "YOU!!!" I yell... Chapter 98 - 97: A slap? Blackmoon Town Entrance, Torug''s POV, Watching Urim and Torrelsav lead the other riders out of the village, with a Hobgoblin driving the wagon filled with sword''s and axes at the center of the group. I mind couldn''t help returning to what had happened last night. *Flash Back* "Brother... we have a problem" Urim says. "what happened?". "One of our Hobgoblin warriors from the hunting party is yet to return" Urim spoke with gritted teeth but I began to wonder how he was left behind in the first place. Perhaps seeing my expression, he decided to explain. "His name is Duma, has one with child, so he tends to go out to get potatoes or something else that is edible and easy to consume besides meat for her" He narrated as I turned back towards the throne room, but this time I didn''t sit on the throne, but sat on the normal chairs on the right. I gestured for him to sit opposite me as he continued, "Today was the same as well, only, he is three hours later than usual, the guards at the gate can confirm it..." "Calm down brother, although this is the first time this is happening... you must never let yourself get agitated and unstable, move your breath in the way the heart Sutra showed us" I noticed his agitation and quickly say, I''ve always known that this brother of mine, was an emotional Orc, which was strange. Emotional, but it''s better than that of the humans...it was hard to explain as it was hard to predict when it usually shows up for him. Could it be because of the child? perhaps something really happened when my he and this body''s previous owner were little. "what do you think?" I finally asked. After being silent for a while, he looked into my eyes and said, "it''s too strange and suspicious, Kharag Greyeye just left and one of our people go missing..." "we are not sure he''s missing yet" I countered and Urim looked stomped for words before saying," then do you think he ran away?... impossible" "Urim, speculations and trying to understand the motive behind people''s actions might be good but if you depend on that all the time, you won''t know how you died" I lectured him once again and asked, "So when you are not sure about something, what do you do?" "..." he thought for a second before responding with more of a question than an answer, "find out?". "Yes brother, you seek to find out it''s secrets, if you don''t see it? dig deeper... but You don''t want to alert your enemies...Moz" "My Chief" a shadow detached itself from my shadow while responding to my call. "I think the three of us will have to go on another little trip" I said as I took off my Cloak, no time to act like a Chief tonight. Then I felt something in my blood, this only happens when Torrelsav is around,. "Make that four of us". "?..." the two of them looked at me confused, right on time, there was a knock on the Thick doors. Urim silently opened the doors to find Torrelsav there, both of them were surprised to see each other. "Torrelsav, I will listen to what you have to say but first, we have work to do" I ordered. "As you wish" He said. ''As you wish huh, feels like ages ago since I heard such human like phrase'' "Lead the way to his house" I said in deep baritone before calling out to my mount, "Alpha" a bark came from not too far away and He was here, before he attempted to lick, I quickly jumped into his back before c.a.r.e.s.sing his sides. The others called out their wolves and we dashed in the direction of the Hobgoblin''s house. As soon as we got there, I told Urim to bring any of the warriors personal properties and give it to Alpha to sniff. Once this was done, I caught a glimpse of the pregnant goblin, it looked like it''s child would drop out at any second. ''As expected of goblins, very fast but...'' With such thoughts, I ordered Alpha to search for the scent and follow up. it took twenty minutes of moving in the general direction of Govan but the scent was quickly found, surprised Urim said "we could actually do that?". Moz and Torrelsav were surprised as well, the former even affectionately moved her hands through her Wolf''s fur, her eyes almost spewing light out. The nights moon shined on us directly and our tattoos gave off a greenish glow. I frowned, ''This was something new...but what does it mean?''. Luckily the Wolf''s stealth could still cover us. Alpha diverted from the path to Govan and was heading towards white mountains direction. When we came to a stop, we found a corpse. A confirmation from the angry Urim, we understood that this was Duma. ''All sign shows that they had been...'' "Torture?" Torrelsav said in shock, despite the culprit''s attempt to make it look like a wild animal attack, we could still find signs of torture, even his hair was cut. Moz had a frown etched on her face, just like everyone else. "The question is, what did they want to know for them to go so far?"I said but no one answered. "Alpha, can you pick up another scent?" The wolf began sniffing around for a while and looked lost, the feedback I received in my mind was that, there was a lot and they moved in different directions. ''That''s strange'' My greatest suspicions are on Kharag and I still don''t know know his abilities yet. "Let''s head back, bring him along...we can''t leave our dead in such miserable state." I said with a sigh. "Brother, if I find out who did this, I''m going to ..." Urim was raging and didn''t know how to express it. "what did I tell you earlier tonight?" I asked. "But...!" "Yes... you are not wrong my dear Urim, we will destroy this creature and we will enjoy every bit of it" This time I was angry, no it was better to say that the predator in me was furious, this was a slap to my face and I am dying to retaliate. ______________ Presently, In the Throne hall, I was still in my own thoughts, trying to come up with plans and trying to make sense of what happened last night. The prime suspect for now remains the Greyeye clan and I could also guess their motives. "The wolves" I muttered darkly. "Moz, I want you to go with them..." I suddenly said, somehow, I could always feel her presence and I know she was doing it deliberately. "..." "When you see something strange, use your shadow energy to touch that" I pointed at the earring I have her, I''m finally teaching her how to show me what she sees actively. Surprised, She subconsciously touched the earring before nodding her head and leaving with a determined expression. No long talks or flattery... With her Exit, I finally opened the Lottery tab. __________ Chapter 99 - 98: Lottery and a new Mystery? Torug''s POV, Black moon clan, Throne hall Sitting on my throne, I numbly stared at the lottery tab. There was only one available option there with the name [Soul cards], the rest were grayed with question marks. Apparently this method is like the card game from earth, where they spread out cards while facing them downwards and you''re told to pick one, the one you pick is the only thing you get. ''then what''s the chances of me getting nothing?, I''m afraid this is to make less reliant on this lottery'' I mused while reading through. First of all, the method of getting system points hasn''t really been established yet and now the lottery feels ... I quickly select the option and found neat rows of Black cards, spread across my view. they were about forty cards, arranged neatly in five lines, each line has eight cards. ''all these, and I can only pick one?'' I couldn''t help complaining on my heart, not to mention that I could get nothing too. It took me a while to stop my grumbling while consoling myself saying, "At least I get to be the one who picks the card". All the cards were pitch black, without any difference, same shape and size. Honestly it made one feel pressured. I was never one who would remain indecisive about such things, so I picked up the card at the very center of it all. it began to glow in my hands and suddenly fell apart like loose sand before disappearing. "okay?" there was an awkward silence and when I began to feel like I had picked up an empty card... [Ding!] [Your prize has been received and placed in your inventory] [Please confirm] I quickly opened my inventory and found, my Axe, Aether, a gray battle skirt and, "there you are" It was a purple (epic) pill with x5 next to it, I quickly tapped on it to get it''s characteristics. The name was Evolution pill(Great), it had a smooth body and looked like a tiny bead. [Evolution pill (Epic)- This is a pill that had once been popular amongst royalty in Lost planes of Methabet, it was used in breaking through the evolution circle by one step, with little to no side effects. Due to the materials used in making it, it can only be taken once in ones lifetime. Quality: Great (Far from perfect) Quantity: 5 ] At some point, while I was reading it''s description, a grin was already glued on my face. Amongst the top clans that I was aware of in the orc lands, they were in that position because of they people with high evolution circles. My black moon clan has only been surviving from the eye sight of this big clans, only because, they are yet to tell our actual strength. But even then, someone is already eyeing my wealth and people, it''s only a matter of time before things get ugly. Our tribe doesn''t have a single 3rd circle and that makes us a middle level clan at best, but this changes everything. I eyed the pill and the character upgrade card in my inventory with a sickening laugh... "You seem to be in a good mood" Janetta''s voice came from the door, she rested on the side with her arms folded. "Did you get it done?" I asked... "Yes...you didn''t tell me there was a power house residing in the church" She answered curtly before adding a few more words that confused me. "Power house? the priest overseeing that branch should be at the 3rd circ...Unless..."I wanted to tease her but then it hit me, Davis Fairchild is the Champion of Ragol and should definitely have at least one Bishop guardian. ''how did I not think of this before? and if my guess is correct...it would be Bishop Rodney, that sick two faced...'' I began to think about it but Janetta''s voice broke me out of my thoughts. "unless what?" She asked. "Forget it" Luckily, spiders have strong senses, added with her uniqueness, if it was someone else that went, they wouldn''t know how they died, "it''s good that you succeeded" Considering this, my plans of integrating the spider folks into my clan was further confirmed to be the right move, "I have always wanted to ask, what are your plans after you kill Selliqei?". "I..." "If I remember correctly, you said that there''s no more queen candidates" "..." "you know you can never leave without a queen" "...So what are you trying to say" She finally asked with a serious expression. "Swear full allegiance to me, swear an Oath and I will make your problems all go away" I spoke slowly while getting up from my throne, with each word, I got closer to her and when I got to the center of the Hall, I spread my arms wide. I could feel my eyes heat up, which means they were glowing again. "..." She looked at me silently for a second before coming closer to where I was standing, "How?..." There was confusion written all over her face but I could tell she wanted to believe my words, a hideous grin spread across my face but I''ve stopped caring. "What if I told you that, I had a to make you evolve into the third circle right now" I asked. "That''s impossible, the method to do that has been lost for centuries, the ..." She countered with a dejected expression, somewhat disappointed even. She was like an open book, her face tells me everything. "that''s why I said you should become mine" She blushed and I realized my wordings were somewhat strange but you can''t cry over spilled milk, "I will make you evolve and also keep you away from the fate of having to become that". Well that''s what the Breeding house is there for... "I..." She was at a loss but her expression soon changed, it was filled with determination and she then said, "I swear to..." "uh uh" I quickly stopped her while waving my index finger, "No, swear it...swear a Sacred oath". Her facial expression changed to a frown, It can''t be helped, although she seems trust worthy, She isn''t an Orc or goblin who would have a despicable life if they betray their chieftain, the only way to do that is if you had someone who was ready to give you refuge or you overthrow your Chief with strength. She was a spider folk, so the approach had to be different. "I, Janetta Sewell, daughter of Queen Bokia Sewell, swear it this day, before the sight of the sky and earth..." Her voice was firm and slow but it held an unknown power, the hall became windy and the sky became dark... This wasn''t a Sacred oath, no this was something worse...but I didn''t stop her, better for me anyway. "I name, Torug Blackmoon as my liege!" the sound of thunder could be heard outside and a system prompt appeared before me. [Ding!] [Janetta Sewell has requested of the world, to name you her eternal liege] [Do you accept?] ''oh? I accept'' the moment I accepted in my mind, I could hear a loud sound like the clanging of chain locks. then I could feel Janetta in front of me even without looking, it felt like branding but it different, it was a mysterious feeling. [Ding!] ''Engraved?'' [Luegad has given up rights on the one called Janetta Sewell] ''...'' [Soul link has been established] [Shared vision with Janetta Sewell is unlocked] [Possession is now possible, duration Unlimited] [As long as you are Alive, the one called Janetta Sewell will remain] [You are now able to summon Janetta Sewell at will] [The Breeding of...] ''??? what''s with all this notifications'' I quickly got tired of reading them, so I turned it off before turning to look at Janetta who seemed to have passed out at some point, ''was she trying so hard to prove her loyalty? I don''t think so, I also don''t think she has any idea what she had gotten herself into either'' I expected her to ask me for the sacred oaths chant but she did this...Now I''m curious about the one she had assimilated with, things aren''t so simple as I had initially thought. Unable to guess what she was thinking, I sighed before approaching her and fed her the pill I had just gotten from the lottery. Chapter 100 - 99: Offer?? Urim''s POV, ''Hmm'' I looked intently at my sword and continued trying to adjust it''s size, but it has proven difficult as always. at times I did it unconsciously but Torug says it''s not something the sword was supposed to be capable of doing and so he suspected that it''s skill of mine. This made me curious, although brother has promised to give me a different weapon later, it would be great if I could succeed. The sound of the moving wagon filled the background, accompanied by the footsteps of the wolves. Unfortunately for me, Torrelsav brought Gilgar and her sister along, so She chose to ride with me, despite her father''s odd gaze, on the other her sister was riding with her father. Aside from this two, Nazu''s Murku(right hand man), ''Raal'' was here. ''Hmm'' Gilgar is getting restless again ...The Halfling girl would look around from time to time, try to stand on my little wolf''s back while resting her arms on my shoulders but I remained focused on my ''favorite'' sword, I''m definitely not aware of the gaze Torrelsav is giving me. "What are you doing?" She finally asked with a curious tone, I suddenly felt a shiver down my spine...''Ah Torrelsav again, Gilgar you would be the death of me''. Honestly, I would have taken her as my own by now, if not for me wanting to wait till Torug... "You''ve been staring at the sword" She added, a sigh escaped my lips unconsciously. "Nothing..." I say. "No way!" "..." can you be quiet? your father is riding right next to us you know?. A grunt came from my right, it was Raal, he seemed to have a problem with the small bamboo in his hand. "I can''t believe I ran out of wine" he turned the odd shaped bamboo and shook it a bit, "it''s really finished". Then He turned to eye the wolf under him, "I know you did it..." It shook it''s head furiously but this apparently confirmed Raal''s suspicion. And so, a strange argument began between Rider and Wolf. Bhok wasn''t far behind either, he was riding with an Orc Rider while a few of his men would be walking themselves. Gilgar broke out in a laughing fit, so did everyone on this trip, me on the other hand was glad that everyone''s focus had shifted from me. It didn''t take long for us to get to the edge of our Blackmoon territory, the symbol of a moon was carved onto the final tree before being smeared with dark coal. Even without the mark, I could oddly feel when we leave it''s boundaries and I''m sure it''s the same for the others. The journey continued without any delay, Luckily we got some information about the situation of the war. Apparently, there''s a cease fire between the two sides as they try to recuperate for a while, this was why brother felt it was a good chance. According to him, this situation won''t last long and someone will mess things up. Anyway, I think he is right... Brother is always right, giving them weapons will be like a gift from the sky but I also feel it''s not so simple as ... "Urim, isn''t that...?" Gilgar''s surprised voice suddenly came from behind me and I looked at that direction, Torrelsav rode his wolf closer and everyone one became alert. In front of us, was the group that had left our town a day before. That''s right, Kharag Greyeye seemed to have been waiting for us here. I raised my right hand, ordering everyone to stop. Gilgar and Largash came down from, My and Torrelsav''s wolves. When they came down, Me and Torrelsav, wordlessly approached the Greyeye Chief, who was sitting beside his sleeping Bear. "your here?!" He looked surprised but I knew it was fake, then the death of our tortured Hobgoblin Hunter resurfaced in my mind. ''He''s definitely related to it'' My heart grew cold but I suppressed my anger, Brother''s word kept ringing in my head till I was able to put away the stray thought. "Chief Kharag, what brings you to this parts" I finally said with a laugh as Torrelsav waited for me to speak. Instead of replying me, he looked at the wolves we were riding greedily and then at the Wagon. His men had cleared an area and set up camp not to far amongst the tall grass. that''s why we didn''t notice them before. "Ah I am still going around with my invitation" he says, "If only Malu wasn''t dead, I wouldn''t have to do this..." "you could have sent your son though" Torrelsav muttered nonchalantly but Kharag pretended not to hear. "Very well, we will be on our way" I immediately dissolved any room for an argument. Immediately I ordered the group to keep moving, ''I better keep away from them as much as possible until I return''. After gaining a little distance from Kharag, I heard him shout, "Urim yes? why don''t you come over to my clan!!... you won''t have much of a future standing behind your brother!! He won''t let you ever surpass him". Hearing his words, I almost slipped into Blind rage as I had thoughts of charging at him. That was a slap to my brother and clan, the anger wasn''t mine alone as anger began to build up amongst us. "Urim...calm down" Moz''s voice suddenly sounded in my ears and not long after, Torrelsav advised the same. ''I almost did what Brother advised me to always avoid...'' I quickly performed the Heart Sutra while looking at Kharag, but then...''why is Moz here?''. Forget it, we''ll find out later... With a loud voice, I replied "I''m sorry but I''ll have to decline, I wish you safe travels." He kept on smiling but was now looking beside me and not at me. a look of delight flashed through his eyes but I quickly left with the others. ________________ Meanwhile, Blackmoon Town, Throne Hall, Torug''s POV, "Good, good, good" I repeatedly said as my vision returned to the view of the Hall, at some point, I had cracked the armrest of my throne but my mind was preoccupied with what I had just seen. "Twice... Kharag, twice...I guess it''s time I returned the favor or you''ll soon feel that you can use my head to drink wine!" with those words coming out of my mouth in a dark manner, I stood up from my throne and looked at the unconscious Janetta. ''He must feel I''m unaware of...but why doesn''t he attack directly? why does it seem like he''s trying to provoke me into starting something and this also confirmed my suspicions as he was obviously not aware of me and Urim''s relationship before...'' Lost in thought I subconsciously called for Alpha, before heading for the gate. "It''s time I breakthrough to the next circle of evolution, before I use the upgrade card... one pill will be left for emergencies" Without any warning, I rode out of the town, "it''s time I visited the valley". Chapter 101 - 100: Cold Valley Torug''s POV, Cold valley, I travelled for almost an hour through the woods and finally spotted the familiar valley entrance. and I''m immediately met by a ''wonderful'' world. Rocks and thick snow cover virtually every surface you can see, which makes traversing this landscape tricky and dangerous. The valley right seemed calm but... Whether this is true or just appearances remains to be seen, but I for one know that this place is dangerous and yet I remained hopeful. A sense of excitement takes hold of me but I calmed down quickly, I know why I am here. I came here to find a place called ''The crypt'' by the Author for two reasons, leveling up to the third circle and other is to get an item from there. It had been something found by one of the foreign souls of this world, during a smuggling run. To top it off, it was close to this side of the entrance. The only reason I have left it out here for so long was because I wanted to meet that ''person'' but I can''t wait anymore, the main storyline is only at it''s beginning stages and it would take longer to start hearing news of those guys. Without wasting time, I had already stepped into the valley and immediately, the snow storm embraced us like a wife welcoming her man after the days work. Just like white mountain, neither the snow or it''s storm ever crossed a certain range. Alpha''s ears twitched like he heard something, so I quickly dismounted and tried to look in that direction, I may have been having things go my way with the planning and so on but now that I''m out here in unknown terrain, it''s not the moment to throw caution in the wind. Shivering a little, I couldn''t help grumbling, even with the fur cloak, I had little to no other thing covering my body. Far away, I soon saw silhouettes of the most bizarre looking creatures. While they seem curious and amicable, for now I decided I would simply keep my distance. There are traces of crawling creatures, enormous creatures, and what you think might be sliding creatures of some sort. It didn''t take long for one of the creatures that looked like a snake, to try and swallow up another creature. It had a Blueish white skin and something around it''s neck that looked like it was wrapped in Barb wires. The creature it swallowed didn''t take it lightly either and quickly surrounded it''s body in flames... watching this a thought came to my mind, ''magic beasts'' I quickly mounted Alpha and used stealth to cross the area while heading deeper into the valley, I''d rather not get entangled in that mess. Their battle might attract the attention of a higher level fierce beast, those who lost the chance of taking human form, creatures like Alpha... after a twenty minutes walk, I spotted a rocky hill, it looked rough and Alpha might have problems climbing it but I can. I dismounted immediately and quickly began to climb, along the way, I had stepped on a loose rock and almost fell down, Alpha began barking worriedly as it paced back and forth. "I''m okay!! now quiet" I said with a laugh. At the top, I got a better look at the valley and couldn''t help musing and then I remembered how the Author exaggerated, saying the valley looked like a giant footprint. Then the temptation to climb up the valley''s side just to confirm, came. "Nah, another time" I muttered while climbing down, the moment my feet touched the ground, Alpha came over and began to lick... I couldn''t help laughing, "Ok stop, your a wolf remember? Ugh my Cloak!" Looking at him and his restless tail behind him, I could only sigh ''now you look more like a big dog than a wolf''. ''But then again, was it not the same family?'' For some reason I found it funny. After this slight pause, adjusting my arm guards and so on, we proceeded further in our search for ''the Crypt''. _________________________ Urim''s POV Feldridge, As soon as we arrived at Feldridge, I ordered for everyone to rest and make camp. The wolves were allowed to go hunt for themselves and I wasn''t worried, they always know how to find their way back. Sitting in front of a fire, everyone was silent. Torrelsav, Gilgar, Largash, Bhok, Raal and of course Moz. No one said anything, just awkward silence and me taking Forceful bites from my meat. "I want to kill him!" I finally say, my voice filled with venom but I didn''t care as I took another bite, imagining that I was biting Kharag. "..." Torrelsav remained silent while smiling. Moz on the other hand said, "I think the Chief had his suspicions, that''s why he asked me to follow... He said, if I see anything strange, I should let him know... it''s like he knew something strange would happen." "Did you tell him yet? I don''t think I saw you do anything like that" Torrelsav asks. "Don''t worry, he saw everything...he...he has a way of seeing things through my eyes" she replies hesitantly. "As expected of the Chief" Gilgar chimes while Largash had a strange expression that made me look at her strangely. Then I remembered something and said, "I think Kharag saw you". "I felt the same way too" "Then we need to be cautious on this trip" Torrelsav added once again and at this time, Bhok says, "Why don''t we just finish the journey today?" But Gilgar laughed with a sneer,"obviously your not the one walking, so you wouldn''t know but look at your people...if we do as you say, will we have the strength to fight after?". No one said anything after that till we finished our meal. The wolves returned with more meat and we decided to eat it as we couldn''t dry it because of the fog, we were already having a hard time keeping the fire up. Bhok was left surrounded by wolves just in case he tried to escape but he didn''t know that, if not he wouldn''t be sleeping so peacefully now. After all that, everyone began to relax and I took the chance to stand guard to think. Gilgar tried to ''join'' me but I firmly refused, later she went to bed with her sister, angry. ''I wonder how Brother does it, always thinking of something to do or planning something...to help him, I need to learn'', while having this thoughts, I subconsciously sighed while memories of the past came to mind. ''Brother had dragged my tired body across snow back then, Where was that?'' I couldn''t help wondering, I remember I was injured and so was he, we were running from something and he when my injury got worse he... "When are you going to tell me about what is going on with you and my daughter?" Torrelsav''s question pulled me out of my head. _________________________ Torug''s POV, Cold Valley, I finally found it! The so called crypt'' was actually still a cave now and it looked rather odd. I dismounted Alpha immediately and studied the entrance, I could already see some dried bones. When I got closer, the mouth of the cave became a welcoming blue eye... Chapter 102 - 101: Memories pt 1 Torug''s POV, "Was I hallucinating?"I couldn''t help but wonder, the massive eye disappeared as quickly as it came. Warily, I approached the entrance...''there was no signs of that in the Novel, is it because I came earlier?''. I pushed my hand into the entrance and it passed through without any problems, I looked at my hand and then looked at the entrance before decisively walking through it. "Strange..." I muttered while looking at the entrance again, Alpha tried to approach but couldn''t pass through, in the end he began to throw a tantrum as he paced in front of the entrance. "Hey... Alpha, just wait for me ok? don''t let anyone in" I could only say this but it calmed him down, he looked around cautiously before nodding repeatedly and lying at the side of the entrance...who knows what it was thinking. Once he was settled, I looked inside the cave warily but found nothing but a small blue pool. That was all I needed for a smile to spread on my face. This was the entrance, although it looked like a pool, it was actually a portal to the ''crypt''. The person that found it in the Novel, was actually planning to take a bath but that didn''t go as planned, as he was taken there. Quickly, I took off my fur cloak and tried stepping out of the cave but found out that I couldn''t. I found this suspicious but tried tossing the cloak towards Alpha, it passed through unimpeded and landed on the wolf. For some reason Alpha snorted and looked the other way. Without any further thoughts, I dived into the pool. I was very sure I was swimming downwards but I found myself swimming out of another crystal blue pool. It''s just that, this time, the location I had appeared was very strange. there were lush green grasses and weeds all over the place, Transparent looking trees with pale blue leaves, a blue light seemed to bounce around within the trees. But even stranger was the strong sense of familiarity. I solemnly stepped out of the pool and found that, this place must have been a battle ground. Skeletons everywhere, Orcs, humans, some looked like Goblins but Orcs made up the most corpses. Most of the surrounding were just as the author explained, starting from the trees and plants but they was no mention of it being a battle ground. Without much of a choice, I moved towards what looked like a ruined village up ahead. a calm breeze c.a.r.e.s.sed my torso and my steps were the loudest sound in here. When I arrived at the village entrance, an Orc skeleton was hanged up the wall with a battle axe, as it''s bony hands looked like he was struggling to pull it out...A strange feeling began to swell within me and I recognized it well, it was rage!. As soon as I began to wonder why I was feeling this way, an scene flashed across my mind and it wasn''t mine...no to be precise, it was this body''s memory. I was soon standing next to a village gate, talking to an a.d.u.l.t Orc with a bald head and braided beards, tied to the end of the braid was an animal fang. but what caught my attention was that, my perspective was from a height that was much closer to the ground, like that of a child. ''yup, Same green skin'' The Orc with braided beards said something to me with a grin before heading outside, from the look of things, I was excited by the things he said but that didn''t last long. The moment the orc stepped outside the gates, he was speaking to the guard who seemed respectful. A second later, he looked shocked and quickly pushed the guard away, only to be sent flying by a powerful force. the little me, turned to look but found that the orc from earlier was nailed to the village wall by a battle axe. He struggled aimlessly to pull out the Axe but was soon shot in the head with an arrow, From a distance, a huge number of orcs and goblins, along with some human slaves were charging towards the village. Before I could make heads or tails of what was happening, I was looking at the Orc skeleton on the wall with an arrow in it''s skull. ''could this be where, my body and Urim came from?'' I quietly tried to calm down the rising rage and continued walking into the village. The gates had long fallen, so I had an easy time getting in. inside the village had a lot of old burnt houses and corpses everywhere, the place I was looking for or should I say, the main ''crypt'' lay beneath an Altar. To what God exactly?, it was never mentioned. I began searching for the altar while exploring the village, the setting of this place was quite modernized compared to other orc settlements I''ve seen...it could almost rival Blackmoon Town in a way. Stone buildings that had been smoothened, seemed to signify status and the other buildings were made of wood...well, that must have been how it looked before but now all that remains was... "..." At this moment, I was staring at a corpse that looked awfully familiar and yet so foreign, no to be more precise, it was the bone necklace around it''s neck. "Alkamana(Mother)...!" Rage was everywhere with no where to release and images began to flash through my mind, A female Orc warrior with thick black dreads adorned with tiny bones at it''s tips, She wore a black leather armor that covered her upper torso and a grey furred battle skirt, this very bone necklace was the same one she had on. Right now she was returning with a group of Orc warriors, who seemed to be dragging a behemoth. She alone pulled a creature that looked like the child of this creature, a grin etched on her face as soon as she spotted my small frame in the distance. A few smaller Orc ran from behind to look at this creatures...one of them looked very much like Urim. The female Orc warrior laughed at something that was said, then she looked in my direction and urged me to come. The scene change again and we were by a river, she tossed a spear at me with a taunting grin as she pointed at some fishes only for me to jump into the river recklessly before she was talking, without hesitation, she jumped after me. Once again, the scene change again to what looked like a battle that seemed to be happening the same day as what I had seen at the very beginning. it looked like I was hiding as I watched as She slayed several Orc warriors on the enemy side before a buff male orc appeared, he looked like the present Urim without the messy hair. He urged her to take some warriors and leave while pointing in my direction, she looked hesitant to leave him behind. He held her by the neck before having their foreheads meet, he did not speak but she nodded before heading towards me. "Vargan, Ugarth...get your brother and come" She suddenly said while moving in another direction. Then I was looking at the skeleton once again. Chapter 103 - 102: Memories pt 2 Torug''s POV, When I finally calmed down, I buried the skeleton of my mother in this world with a solemn expression. a gentle breeze spread across the village and I could only get back to my feet, in order to find the altar. I still couldn''t remember a lot, including my father''s. He seemed to have had multiple wives with my mother being the only warrior amongst them, I now know how me and Urim are connected. "My half Brother huh" I muttered with a silent laugh while exploring the village further, Mother had taken us away and sent us to hide before running back to my father the Chief...looks like she met something or someone along the way, Urim followed behind her, and I chased after him but none of us could remember what happened. The other one with us, I don''t know what happened to him. Another thing that bugged me was the fact that, inside the village, I couldn''t find any of the enemy''s dead. ''What happened really...'' Since I came to this world, I''ve never been this bothered about this body''s passed as much as I am now... Soon I was standing in front of a huge patch of blue Grass and a huge transparent tree laid at it''s center with a blue energy circling within, it even went up to the leaves and flowed out like a light blue fog. It didn''t hinder sight but it made it hard for one to breathe, on my left hand side was the path my mother took us to hide. Standing at the edge of the fog, I was torn between going further to find the altar or first following the path to see if I could unlock more memories. Without dwelling on it too much, I turned left and headed straight down the path. I have to get to the root of all this, at least I can find out whom I owe my vengeance. Soon I was at the end of the path, which was shorter than I remembered, there was now a cliff in front of me with pitch black below. It looked like falling here would be the fastest way to the Abyss. ''So this place is like a separate but smaller realm, and it''s Mana is unstable with signs of disintegrating'' the thought of this place being gone forever made me uncomfortable...this could be regarded as my true home in this world... Then a thought came to me, ''If that is true, something held this place till that person came and took the treasure...his race remained unknown but he was able to make some waves against the Degr kingdom and the author speculated that he was human''. There are so many inconsistencies with the Novel and what is happening in reality. was the one who found the treasure really human? Feeling a bit annoyed, I turned back and was about to leave when I decided to pick a rock. Next thing, I tossed it into the darkness and waited. Nothing... ''That deep?'' genuinely surprised, I left for the foggy area. With the amount of Mana here, how could they not have evolved into higher circles? that means the ones who attacked were as powerful as the ones in the village While thinking, I arrived at the blue grass area and took a deep breath. I searched for a long while and found nothing until I let out the breath I was holding, it was at that moment, something extraordinary happened. A Bronze altar appeared before my eyes with the symbol of a palm grabbing at something, it was old with traces of dry blood scattered around it. This only made me more cautious, is this even the real altar?. I watched it for close to 5 minutes without any motion, even the Mana in the surrounding began to dig into my flesh. I quickly took my Axe from my inventory and approached the altar. [Ding!] ''Ah I have never missed this sound as much as I feel right now''. [You have found the White Bone clan''s trial grounds] [Sensing a link between Host and this place...] [Note that further actions may lead to unforeseen results...] "What?..." This was the first time the system warned me about changing something, despite changing Fate it did not bring such a warning before, so what''s different now. Whatever remains here must have a great impact on this world, could this be what brought the calamity to my family? or could it... ''Wait... White Bone clan?, was that my family name?'' So many questions but so little answers, looks like I didn''t even have much of a choice as me turning back now would be plain stupid... [You have made your choice...] Immediately the whole place began to shake... _________________ Meanwhile, Black moon Town, Dabok''s POV, "are you sure it was the chief that was evolving?" I asked Lovan again as we headed to the throne hall. "Yes, the White ball was like before but bigger" He says, apparently this morning, Haji went to find the Chief but found a cacoon. I found it strange but I had to confirm all the same. Soon we were in the Hall and indeed, there was a cacoon there. ''What''s going on?'' the moment I asked this question in my mind, there was the sound of a crack. ''Was it completed?'' I couldn''t help wondering, Torug spent the whole day inside yesterday, looks like he was evolving. How could he do it so carelessly, the higher the circle, the greater chances of it being a failure... Another sound was heard... ''Oh great Night mother, protect your champion'' I prayed while using my fingers to draw the moon on my c.h.e.s.t. Immediately the door opened, attracting our attention. Nazu walked in but became shocked, she approached quickly with delight in her eyes. She didn''t ask any questions but began to sniff around the cacoon. "What are..." I was going to ask what she was doing but I noticed she was frowning. "Where is the Chief" she asks. "What you mean" Lovan asked in shock, yes her question was shocking, is this not the Chief in front of... ''Wait I suspected as much...'' realization donned on me and I turned towards Torug''s Inner Chambers but found nothing. Seeing me return, they both frowned. "Where''s Moz" I asked but another crack rang out again and it became much more frequent, forming a kind of tune, soon a hand stretched out dramatically before what looked like blades pushed out of the cacoon. We all slowly retreated as a very dangerous aura could be felt coming from inside. More blade like things struck out and soon a purple haired Janetta''s face came out with a sticky fluid all over her. After a minute, A half human half spider stood up from the white cacoon. Eight bladed legs with a n.a.k.e.d upper Body of the one called Janetta Sewell, but felt stronger at the Same time. Her eyes were completely White and She looked like she was in a daze. She stretched seductively with a cacophony of cracking bones following along, her legs shrank at a visible rate before forming human legs. Standing before us was the Janetta Sewell we knew, she took a deep breath with a look of enjoyment and let out a loud screech that shook not just us but the entire Manor. Chapter 104 - 103: Memories pt 3 Torug''s POV, The tremors on the floor made it hard for me to keep my balance, several rotten and bony hands shot out from the earth. a jarring sound could be heard in the distance, as a white stoney platform broke out from the ground. it looked like a hooded figure staring at it''s palms quietly, in between it''s hands, someone sat on a white throne and he or she was staring at me. ''I guess that''s where I''ll have to go'' I thought solemnly as I silently watched the first undead creature approach me. ''Although everything seemed different from what was supposed to happen, I just have to keep pushing forward, if not for anything...I must get answers''. [Undead orc warrior] was all I saw when I tried checking the undead''s stats. this only deepened my frown but I still took that second step. As though, they all received an order, all of the undead within this glass forest began charging at me. with a laugh, I held my axe facing downwards as I used to dash forward in the direction of the White platform. The closest undead at the end of my charge was sliced in two, the fabric of it''s clothes hovered in the air for a second and I recognized it''s symbol. It was the very same one the people that attacked the village had on their clothes. But I couldn''t dwell on the topic as a few goblin bones dived at me with daggers. ''I must not get entangled with them for too long'' these was my thoughts as I Leaped into the air. Unfortunately, I felt something heading my way and it''s big...I quickly turned to look and found a huge orc with rotten flesh, it punched straight at me with the force he used in approaching. Although I managed to block the attack on time, my hands went numb and I was sent flying like a broken kite. When my body hit the floor, I continued to roll till my feet got a bit of balance once again. Without wasting time I used my leap skill once again as the rotten stench seemed to have gotten closer once again. And just as I left, an explosion rang out as the place I was just standing got destroyed with spider web like cracks on the earth. ''Stats'' I thought and my pupils dilated. [Toro] "!!!" the word shocked wasn''t enough to describe how I felt at this moment. Toro, this was a general of Degr kingdom and a member of the loyalist faction. Him being here only meant one thing, the Degr kingdom had a hand in what happened here. In the Novel, his location was unknown and all you could ever get were stories about his past exploits. Who knew that he met a strange fate here...At the same time, this was Nazu''s father... So the other one was really... Immediately, while landing on the ground, I used the last leap by kicking the sides of a glass tree and was propelled forward towards the platform. ''I''m definitely not his opponent...'' with the speed gained from leap, I dashed forward with my legs on the ground once I began losing a bit of speed. almost losing my balance, my axe scr.a.p.ed the earth while producing Sparks. any undead that appeared was beheaded, sliced or smashed. After twenty minutes of constant running, leaping and killing my way out of that mess, I was out of the tree line. My breathing already became rough but it didn''t take long to see the dense number of undead chasing after me. the sight made my scalp tingle, In fact, there''s a few blocking in front, humans, Goblins, lizard folk, Kobolds and so on, at the same time I have noticed several other flags, symbols belonging to different clans. Besides Toro, I met a few other strong ones, this allowed me come to a conclusion that, what ever was protected was enough to make these people form an Alliance but I can also say that, everyone who attacked must have died here as well. This then created a new problem for me, what was it? What could have been so strong that it could take them all down and still make them undead. The answer must be the same person sitting on the throne ahead. A sudden growl was heard next to me as I acted on reflex, swinging my axe to the side and beheading it. the one in front of me was grabbed and smashed against a pillar, it slid down like a rag doll as it''s light escaped it''s body and entered mine, just like the others. I was really close to leveling up and this was the only good thing I have noticed so far, with that thought, I came to a halt as soon as I got to the plat-form''s staircase. And as suspected, they seemed wary of approaching, in fact, the strong ones had stopped chasing at the treeline. "Chance" was all I muttered as I pounced on the stragglers. with each kill I felt full and colder within, so I raised more hell for them. Whenever I stepped too far from the stairs, they would get wild and rush at me but when I return, they would become meek. Once I understood the pattern, I began to grind calmly, after another forty plus minutes... [Ding] [Level up] Race: Predatory Orc Lord Level: 30(Upgradeable) Power rating: 24600 Alignment: Lawful Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief, The one Behind the veil, Blessed by the Abyss. Relationsh.i.p.s: Chief of Black moon clan, Son of Bor and Uloth, Brother of Vargan and ...] Looking at my stats page, it felt strange to finally see a relationship tab... and this also made it possible to view something like a loyalty meter. [Do you wish to evolve now? it is advised that Host finds a much suitable location before we begin] The system dropped a timely advise that reminded me of my present situation. ''hold on for now... let''s finish this, at least I''ve completed on Goal'' I climbed up the stairs solemn and alert. The air around the platform gave me a nostalgic feeling and made me feel safe, this only Increased my vigilance. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of an elderly Orc. He sat on the throne and looked like he was in a daze, perhaps hearing my steps he raised his head and sniffed the air before breaking into a wild laughter but ended up coughing. It was then I understood that he was blind, After taking a while to calm down, his aged face grinned and said, "if it isn''t my daughter''s Son" "!!!" it felt like I had been struck by lightning and different scenes began to play in my head. all of them had an Orc with bone earrings and a nose piercing, he wore dark rugged robes. In every scene he would laugh and say, if it isn''t my daughter''s Son... always like he was laying emphasis at that very point, ''My daughter''s Son'', you could almost taste the pride around him. The phrase continued to sound in my head like a broken record and ended at his angry figure that rushed towards me and Urim, who held our fallen mother. At some point, I was already kneeling in front of this old Orc, tears that was mine and not mine fell from my eyes all the same. ''Curses...D*mn it all'' I thought. "I always feared that you would come, Have you been well?" He continued to say. That question, same as it has always been, ''If isn''t my daughter''s Son, come tell me, Have you been well?''. "..." the old Orc could only sigh and said nothing to comfort me. Chapter 105 - 104: Memories pt 4(End) Some hours ago, Urim''s POV, I had thought Torrelsav would be mad when I mentioned my relationship with Gilgar, but instead he laughed and said, "Be good to her". That instead made me confused, ''in what sense?''... Now today, we are all sitting here waiting for news from our scouts. it would have been normal if Gilgar wasn''t glaring at me right now and Torrelsav looking aloof for some reason. Largash on the other hand could be said to be the only one that was normal, even Raal would look between me and Gilgar, then turn to Torrelsav before shaking his head with a laugh. Lucky for me, the scout had returned... "..." everyone stared silently as the scout leader came forward with a Salute. "The Dregu clan went back on the agreement and managed to burn down the Shammob clans food reserve, They''re have confronted each other at the boundary and might break out fighting any minute." Torrelsav laughed lightly, "the Goddess must be helping us, now they will need our help even more" Indeed, even I myself, I couldn''t help but agree with him. But the scout looked like he had more to say, so I nodded my head, "the two Chief moved to the battlefield as well and I think this would be the final fight". I didn''t like that point at all, ''That goes against brother''s plans''. "That doesn''t sound like a good thing" Gilgar muttered with a little bit of hesitation and Largash looked at Moz. Raal then said, "What do we do?" I began to think about the whole situation, ''What would brother do?''. Then I remembered something Brother once said to me when I asked him about this kind of thing. _____________Flash back. "eh? what do I do when my plan doesn''t work?" Torug''s voice came as he sat casually by the black moon lake, "I''ll make another plan" "What if that one fails and you have no time to make another?"I asked curiously as it had always been on my mind. Torug laughed lightly as he picked up a loose rock, "If I can''t make another, I''ll make a mess for everyone..." with the last sentence, he crushed the rock with a grin. ____________________Flash back ends. "make a mess for everyone..."I muttered softly but everyone else seemed to have heard me. "Do you have a plan?"Moz couldn''t help asking, somewhat surprised. Everyone sitting here, looked at me curiously and I couldn''t help myself from wondering ''is this how Brother always felt?''. But I quickly got my mind off such thoughts and looked at Torrelsav, "Are you afraid?". "Hmph, if you are not afraid why would I be?"He says, making me grin but in my heart I thought silently ''I am very afraid...'' I looked at the scout and ordered, "Gather the riders, we''ll move first...the others will escort the goods while following behind... Largash, can you watch Bhok?". Immediately, everyone got busy but Gilgar stayed back... "What?" I asked. "I''m coming" She said. "No" "Yes!" she argued. "No!" "Yes" She countered again, so I then said... "Yes!" "No!" she shouts but soon thought of something before shouting"Yes?!". "Yes but stay with your father" I say. "Why does she have to stay with me?" Torrelsav asked in confusion. as I came up with an excuse, I ran before shouting from afar, "Because she''s not my responsibility yet!!". "What?" Torrelsav exclaims while Raal says"Shameless", only to be smacked at the back of his head. At this time, Gilgar finally recovered from her shock, "What?!!, I''ll have you know that, I''m a powerful Shaman". "..." __________________ It took us close to forty minutes to get to the would be battle field. Both sides had their warriors on their portion of the battlefield glaring at each other, taunts flew left and right but no one moved. The Chiefs on both ends remained motionless, the Shammobs Chief was a buff orc with somewhat grey beards that allowed you understand just how old he was, a blood red banner hanged behind him with a claw mark drawn across it''s center. On the other side, the Dregu clan Chief was rather young, he had an ambitious expression but you can tell he lacked experience, a brown necklace with a skull hanged on his neck and arm, a metal arm guard on his left and a war hammer across his shoulder as he stood in front of his army. Looking at their numbers, my heart began to beat wildly as I subconciously traced my finger along the scar on my neck. ___Flashback___ I stood in front of Torug as we watched a magic beast in front of us, it looked like a wolf but wasn''t one, bone spurs could be seen protruding out it''s spine, this made it look like rocks. Cold calculating eyes surveyed it''s surrounding. "Oh? looks like this one evolved into a fierce beast instead" Torug suddenly said with a laugh. It felt really strong... "Looks like you''ll be fighting this one alone Brother" Torug continued while looking for a good place to lie down. "What?!!" I exclaimed and the beast heard me, it went into battle stance. "Are you afraid Brother?" "Never" I replied defensively. "..." Torug simply sighs and says with a serious expression, "It''s okay to be afraid Urim, what matters is that you know how to use that fear". "Your ability to fight that fear is what makes us warriors..." "..." I stared at the fierce beast in front of me. "Do you understand?" He asks. ____Flashback end___ "Yes Brother" I mutter silently as I made up my mind to go on with my idea. ____________________ Back at the ''Crypt'' Torug''s POV, A weird silence hanged in the air as I didn''t know how to respond. "Ah, looks like you and your brothers still haven''t unlocked it yet..." The Elderly Orc says, leaving me confused, he laughed lightly while pointing at the side of his head. "Your memories" "..." "Then how did you find this place? Ugarth, Third circle too" He asked with his voice turning hoarse at the end, probably due to talking to fast. Unconsciously I rushed to his side and held his hand, I opened his stats and couldn''t help getting shocked. [Name: Ushamph White Bone] Race: Bone shaman(Orc) Level: Stage of metamorphosis (5th circle of evolution){Declined} Power Rating:??? Relationship: White Bone Chief, Father of Uloth, Guardian of the God seed, Brother of...] [Target''s spirituality is fading away] "How do I save him?!!"I enquired of the system out loud, shocking Ushamph. He frowned and asked, "Is there someone else with you?" "No!... Wait" For the very first time since I came to this world, I completely lost myself and felt useless. Immediately a powerful force was released from the now serious old man as it spread out in a circular motion. Somehow it skipped me and spread till it got to the treeline, only then did he relax and laughed, though it looked like he was laughing at himself rather than the situation. "Silly Ugarth, I know my situation more than anyone" he blindly stretched out his hand to touch my face. At this time the system remained silent, obviously that meant it couldn''t help. "Hooo?!!! you are not bald like your father, I guess that my daughter''s blood was stronger"seemingly surprised he says jovially, but the more he acted like this, the more painful the scene felt. "Ugarth, I was lucky you came this time" He continues while releasing a long sigh and relaxing on his throne, "twenty six years...My core can''t hold on anymore". "..." I could only watch as his body began to evaporate like black smoke, slowly his feet was gone. "I guess, I should release you and your brothers memories now, Did Vargan return?" The moment he finished speaking, a huge amount of information seemed to pour into my mind, I didn''t even know when I fell on my knees holding my head. By the time the pain left me, I was growling on the floor with drool pouring out of my mouth. "That...Do you remember now?" He asks curiously, now only his torso remained as his body continued to dissipate. "I remember" "Good, then you know what you must do" He grinned as all that was left was his head, he looked in the collapsing edges and sighed "Uloth must have been tired of waiting... Destroy them and..." His voice trailed off with him completely dissipating. "Ragol..." I completed his sentence and then roared, "I will destroy you all!!!" Chapter 106 - 105: Fallen Demi plane Torug''s POV, Rage... Unbridled Rage... That''s what I felt in every inch of my body, and for the first time, but I slowly forced myself to calm down. The sound of my heart beat and breathing could be heard in a strange Rhythm as I practiced the Heart Sutra. It took me hours to get a hold of myself and the only thought that crossed my mind was, ''Who would have thought that, Luegad was only one out of the many planes''. Apparently this place was a Demi plane made by the God that once ruled over Orcs, it was just below Luegad plane and had been used to house the God''s original calm. During the war of Gods, the Orc God was besiege during his attempt to retreat by a group of Lorcs aka Demigods (A/N: eight circle of evolution). After a dreadful battle, the originally wounded God managed to defeat them and even succeeded in injuring the leader of this group, this in turn damaged one of this enemy''s pillars, making him fall down to the seventh circle of evolution. His companions escaped, leaving him at the mercy of the Orc God. This leader was of course Ragol. At this moment, due to the orc God''s condition, he left without killing Ragol. The latter survived but the Orc God didn''t, That day, it once again rained blood. Before it''s death, it provided it''s crystalized pillars and formed a God seed for any who is worthy from the white Bone clan. Centuries later, Ragol somehow managed to ascend to the Ranks of a minor God but still didn''t forget about the Orc God''s God seed. He got the Degr kingdom, Elves, Halflings and ambitious humans who were tired of being at the bottom of the food chain, he made a trial for the groups and their target was the God seed but these mortal creatures had no idea what it was. These ''Trials'' took place once every thirty years and had become a kind of tradition. Unfortunately, the Humans stumbled onto one of these cracks that opened not too far from the village. They gathered their army and this in turn, was noticed by the Degr kingdom. both parties forced their way into the Demi plane and began to fight each other until they decided to first deal with the white Bone clan. They crossed over, killed the guards at the crack''s mouth and caught unawares by the time frame of the attack, it took a while for the white Bone warriors to Gather. Death and destruction followed right after, and during the Chaos, Toro, a general of the Degr kingdom injured my father, Bor. This caused a sharp decline in the army''s Morale, Mother, who was escaping before, ran back after hiding us again and joined hands with my father to fight Toro. When things were about to turn for the better, I, Urim and Vargan came just in time to see a human warrior sneak attack with a Mana coated arrow, I yelled to warn her but she turned to look at us in shock instead... The arrow hit but all she did was stare at us with a small smile as she fell to her knees. That was the first time I saw her kneel.... _______ I looked at the situation of this Demi plane and noticed that, the speed at which it was collapsing had increased exponentially since Grand father, Ushamph disappeared. So I stood up and looked at the throne, it sat there silently but no one knew that this was what his the God seed. Ragol was aware of it''s existence and where it could be found but could not sense where it was. "It was all thanks to this throne" I muttered this words slowly as I stretched my hands towards it and it disintegrated just like Ushamph, leaving only a black arm guard, It looked so plain and the metal used was unknown to me but the aura I felt from it, gave me unprecedented pressure. This was Ravrok''s God seed, Ravrok was the God of the Wild and a God under the war branch. He was the only God that evolved from an Orc and in turn ruled over the Orc lands, Trench''s rift and Wandwoods. These were territories that belonged to Orcs, each were located on different continents, but now, no one remembers his name because of how much time had passed. While I was looking at the floating arm guard, the whole plane began to shake and an even bigger spatial tear appeared at the far end of the plane''s sky. The plane looked like it was fighting this invasion as it tried to repair itself, the Abyss released wailing sounds and the crack expanded once more. I watched as this continued going back and forth until some seconds later, a system notification appeared. [Ding!] [Warning, An Unknown Divine energy is trying to force it''s way into this Demi-plane] [Host is advised to leave immediately!.] The moment I heard the Divine energy part, I already s.u.c.k.e.d the God seed into my inventory and began running towards the pool from before. Once I dived in, I began swimming as fast as I could, who knows if it had been Ragol that appeared. As soon as I was out on the other side, something pulled me up and I looked warily in that direction, only to find out that it was Alpha. looking at his wagging tail and tilted head, as it alternated between looking at me and the pool, I couldn''t help laughing as I let out a deep breath. "Silly Dog..." I say while bringing myself to my feet and looked around, ''the magic in the pool has died as well as the barrier at the entrance''. "Let''s go" Alpha barks at my words in response as we made our way out of the cave. "It''s time to evolve". _______________ Meanwhile, An Elderly looking dark elf could be seen floating above the Demi plane''s sky, He had silver grey hair that was a Stark contrast with his skin, below his Jaws were green gems with pointy ends, he''s green eyes scanned the place in confusion. "A fallen Demi plane?...I could have sworn I felt the fluctuation of a God seed here, how come there''s nothing" He says in a quiet voice as he stretched out his hand and released a force outwardly, it quickly spread across the plane before stopping. Shocked, he couldn''t help saying with a frown, "Nothing?". Then he adjusted his green robes with a sigh, "no matter, the Night mother and her people better have a good explanation for his death". Immediately he tore open another crack and crossed through space, His voice was the only thing that was left behind. Chapter 107 - 106: Urim Blackmoon Some time earlier that day, Shammob Dregu battlefront, Urim''s POV, Both sides kept glaring at each other but it was obvious the Shammob chieftain wasn''t particularly excited about the fight, they had a truce or should I say a Non aggressive pact with the Dregu for some reason, but suddenly their food storage suddenly got burnt with all evidence pointing at the Dregu clan and on coming here, He met the Dregu clan rallied and ready for war, right at his border. Even I could tell that, they were trying to lure them out or perhaps something happened in the Dregu clan as well and there is someone who would profit from this battle besides us. While I was thinking, a tragic wail brought me out of my thoughts. I don''t know what happened but a Tomahawk was sticking out of a shammob orc''s head as he fell. "What happened?" I blurted out unconsciously as the two clans charged at each other, the Shammob''s Chief remained unmoved besides giving the initial order and Dregu''s side could be seen roaring in excitement, they looked at each other with differing expressions. The young Dregu chief was arrogantly taunted the Old shammob leader, but the latter remained unmoved. ''Why is he not moving or responding to the young one''s taunts?'' I began to think when a thought came to mind, ''From the way Bhok described his father, he''s not one to agree to a truce in the first place, so the only possibility for this, is...He''s injured!''. Him sitting on the throne isn''t to show anything grand, it''s to cover his weakness. I turn to Moz with a grim expression,"can you sneak into the Shammob clan to get the treasure?". "It''s possible but, this isn''t what the Chief ordered". Hearing her words, I calmed down again and looked at the battlefield, both sides were tearing each other apart, "I know but everything has shifted from what brother planned, we must not fail". "So trust me, if anything happens...I''ll bear the consequences" She looks at me without saying anything. After a few seconds, she finally says, "Fine but I didn''t get the description of the place." "Easy, take Bhok with you...so he can explain everything to you, if he lies, just kill him"I say casually while looking at Bhok, who in turn flinched at my words. Moz pats her wolf''s sides and gestured for Bhok to come over before saying, "Be careful". The others sent her off with a nod before she went into stealth. "Now...we fight" I say with a grin, excitement could be seen on everyone''s face and I couldn''t help shouting, "ATTACK". The sound of my voice and the wolves dashing forward was lost in the chaotic battlefield, Orc roared in pain and anger clutching their grievous wounds as more warriors fought their way into the opposing army. Shammob''s Chief sat defiantly in the face of such ferocious battle with his proud back straight. "Kill!" An Elite warrior of Dregu ordered suddenly as the goblins unleashed waves of small projectiles, rocks, daggers and so on, causing chaos. The sun beat down on everything furiously as the heat wave continued unaffected at such chaos, the battle continued, unaware of our charge. We rushed forward and soon became visible to the enemies, I could see shock, fear, confusion as it spread across their faces. The Dregu chief had the most interesting facial expression... Just when we were about to come in contact with the enemy, everything went blank...! ___________________________________________________ Torrelsav''s POV, ''Urim is a genius, I never thought that two brothers would have such great minds'' I couldn''t help thinking as I eyed my daughters, both were interested in each of these brothers and I will make it happen. Urim spoke briefly with Moz and he seemed to have thought of something, so I approached them. "Easy, take Bhok with you...so he can explain everything to you, if he lies, just kill him" Urim says casually while trying to calm his wolf, Moz on the other hand looks at me for a second before sighing. I watched as Bhok ran over warily before mounting the wolf as Moz says to Urim from the side, "Be careful". While we watched her leave, Urim looks at the battlefield before grinning at me, "Now...we fight", excitement, that''s what his expression made me feel, he placed himself in front of us and ordered, "ATTACK". Everyone rode after him, I could feel Gilgar''s hands tighten around my waist and I couldn''t help laughing. "Hmph!" She snorts, probably aware that I noticed her fear, this only made me laugh further. The sound of the Battlefield covered and enveloped the surrounding areas, just at about seventy meters away from the fight, Urim suddenly clutches his head and fell from his wolf, shocking everyone. Gilgar didn''t even wait for me to stop when she jumped off my mount, She ran to in filled with panic. There''s no time to observe the situation as the Dregu clan dispatched a few warriors along with their Chief, they wanted to settle us quickly. "Get ready to fight" My voice and Largash''s voice sounded out at the same time, I couldn''t help looking at her in surprise. She calmly nodded and pulled out the cross bow from behind her, as she came down from Raal''s wolf. Everyone was battle ready by the time enemy arrived. No signs of Urim recovering soon but it seems He had become the target of the Dregu Chief. I pulled up my spear as Torug advised and charged ahead with Raal and a few others, Largash was guarding Gilgar as she chanted a few healing spells. Our momentum was already broken and a few of our warriors were still in shock,Unfortunately we could only fight like this. those of us with spears, were in front as we stabbed our approaching aggressors. an axe came flying towards me and I could only defend with the spear, this in turn left it broken. "Dismount!! let the wolves run free!!" I order and immediately there was results, the attacking army was in chaos and we had breathing space, Gel, my wolf fought by my side, she viciously pounced on an enemy while ripping it''s throat out. I used the chance to unleash my tomahawks while using my innate skill, as I charged out in a frenzy. the world became red as I let out the building rage, I could feel my heart pumping furiously as it sent blood and Mana across my veins. "Kill the fallen one at all cost!!... I''ll fight this one" the Dregu Chief ordered while l.i.c.k.i.n.g his skull necklace, this made his people fight more aggressively. I didn''t run back to stop them, I knew my mission, if the Chief goes down... they''ll naturally stop. He looked at me with interest before running towards me. He swings his hammer wildly and I dodge to the side, unfortunately he was too fast for me to counter attack. Forced to retreat, I continued to dodge while slowly being pushed into a passive position. ''This can''t continue!'' with that thought I decided to have confidence in my skills as a berserker but was interrupted by Largash''s scream. "Gilgar!" A rusty axe was inches away from her head and the whole world seemed to be in slow motion in my eyes, ''what happened?'' was all I could think as I ran towards her. But something unexpected happened, a buff arm blocked the attack and bled, it pulled the attacker closer and there was a deafening crunch. The one who had attacked fell to the ground with it''s head facing backwards. Then a deafening roar that shook everything and my ears began to bleed. A buff figure stood in front of Gilgar, roaring at the sky with anger and defiance as he spread out his arm. Then he shouted at the battlefield with glowing blue eyes saying, "I AM URIM BLACK MOON!! SON OF BOR WHITE BONE!!! WHO DARES TOUCH MY PEOPLE!!". Chapter 108 - 107: Duel of Fate? Shammob-Dregu Battlefront Urim''s POV, As soon as my voice died down, everything was silent, but this was the last thing on my mind right now. ''I remember everything now...every single thing''. Unfortunately, my thoughts were interrupted once again. "Blackmoon? never heard of it... but White Bone clan, sounds familiar but I can''t remember where" the Dregu Chief says while placing his war hammer over his shoulder. He walked towards me with an indifferent expression. "Anyway it doesn''t matter, I just want your head!" He says slowly as he picked up his pace and finally breaking into a run. The heat from earlier could still be felt in my c.h.e.s.t and eyes, I stomped the ground towards the approaching enemy and web-like cracks appeared as a barely visible ripple spread towards him. The young Chief of course noticed this but instead of stopping, he grinned and smashed his hammer forward. It hit the ground and hauled some earth towards me, problem thinking my strength came from my eyes. his men began to retreat from where I was standing and the others from my clan noticed this change, I grabbed a retreating orc and used him to shield myself from this attack. Unsurprisingly, the attack was more than just a means to blind me. My Orc shield was riddled with bloodied holes and the Dregu Chief was only a few steps away, so I used the dead Orc as my weapon as I smashed it towards his uncaring chieftain while retreating backwards. The latter unceremoniously turned out to meat paste and continued his pursuit. He spinner on his heel to gain momentum but I rushed at him as quickly as I could when he had his back to me. He''s strong but... I lifted him off the ground in an attempt to smack him to the ground, luckily Brother has been having me train in unarmed combat. Probably, he drops his hammer and tries to get a few hits in but I hid my head as much as possible. His struggle continued but I succeeded, I jumped off the ground before smacking him down, a sudden gush of pain must have jolted throughout his body as he roared in pain, "you Dare!!,". I grabbed a rock and rushed towards him unfortunately, he recovered quickly. but instead of facing off against me directly, he goes for the Hammer and I was right behind him, ''I won''t let you have any chances!''. ''He has no confidence in fighting without his hammer... I''ll take it from him then.'' I made a rough plan in my head as I charged at him once again. He looked at me and His tongue was soaked in the taste of blood. Bruised and winded, he grabbed his war hammer and pulled it off the ground. ''He''s slower now'' I thought subconsciously but he proved me wrong as soon as I was within range, He lets out a loud roar and his necklace seemed to flash with a strange light, this disrupted my senses for a second but it fatal as I got hit directly on the head. But something strange happened, it didn''t hurt like I thought it would but my head was pounding. I could feel different energies from my tattoos. Before the second hit came, I stomped the ground, making him loose balance, He stumbles forward and I brought a fist to his face, snapping his nose into a bleeding mess. He probably didn''t think of it but for him to challenge me right after my declaration earlier, was a challenge on my Honor, only one would walk away from this. the opponent''s face was stained with blood just as mine was, but I charged at him anyways, He shuffled to the side and attempted to elbow my sides but I grabbed him instead while following up with a head b.u.t.t. Blackmoon warriors cheered at this moment and I continued to head b.u.t.t the idiot to the ground. All of sudden, his necklace flashed a brown light as he let out a mighty cry. I dodged to the side in one fluid move. but the enemy swiveled in my direction. His menacing eyes were a blazing red and his face was twisted. Before I could recover from the surprise, a strong wind could be felt heading in my direction, and I felt the impact on my c.h.e.s.t shortly after. "..gah!" I coughed up blood and looked forward, the attack wasn''t over...He lifted the Warhammer above his head and was just about to bring it down. I, I suddenly felt tired but when I remember the fact that those who destroyed my clan were still alive...I performed the Heart Sutra while thinking, ''I haven''t even started.'' With renewed vigor, I roared loudly as I performed my skill without a blade for the first time, ''My hands shall be my blade'' while my stance remained low, I spinned forward with my arms feeling hot. I aimed for his tendons and thought about when Brother was teaching Moz about weak spots. The sound of a knife cutting flesh rang out loudly as blood sprayed wildly, the Dregu Chief fell to his knees and silence once again ruled over the battlefield. I silently wiped the blood from my lips and turned to observe my kneeling opponent. He looked shocked, like he couldn''t understand what happened but I wasn''t going to waste time to explain it to him. I walked behind and held his head before snapping his neck before his people. He''s body dropped slowly as I pulled his bone necklace away, this was something from the white Bone clan... I am sure of it. Then I picked up his Hammer and roared. Blackmoon clan did the same in excitement. I called my wolf over and ordered, "Today!! there shall be no more Dregu!". [Ding!] [Minor changes in the world''s fate] [Clan member has killed the Dregu Chief] [+450 system points] "What?!" I couldn''t help but be surprised, as I didn''t expect such a thing at all. though this was good news, it wasn''t all that good. ''There''s no one to keep the Shammobs in check now...who did it? that''s supposed to be a third circle power house''. Perhaps because of my out burst earlier, Alpha stopped it''s movement and looked at me with a sideways glance that said, ''what now?''. I could only laugh at him and Pat his side, "Let''s go". Several notification hinting that I had found a good location for evolution appeared repeatedly but I have no intention of evolving outside my own territory, although the system says it''s suitable, their was still some obvious dangers. [Branding of Brogg is 100% complete] Another good news, I couldn''t help grinning at the next notification. [Ding!] [Breeding of Ghost wolves has been completed]. Soon I could already see the black moon Town gates and the guards at the entrance, They simply saluted me as I passed by while rushing to my Manor. Almost everything was progressing, it''s about time I did as well. Chapter 109 - 108: Pain Torug''s POV, Darkness... Utter darkness... complete absence of light... That was all I could see since the moment I started my evolution, It was entirely different from my previous evolution where it felt more like taking a nap and was much closer to my first evolution. The sound of flowing water in the dark. All of a sudden there was a light coming from behind me, like someone opened a door in this dark space. "Alex..." "Alex, are you okay?" an all too familiar voice asked, it was my father''s voice in my previous life. ''Wait...this scene'' I turned my head to the side and there it was, a drowned corpse in the bathroom tub. the water kept rushing and began to over flow. My father saw this scene and was shocked for a second before sighing in relief, He finally sat down on the floor next to my eight year old self. "How do you feel?" He asked. "I don''t know"I subconsciously answered the same way I answered back then but everything crumble before my eyes and I was now standing in my old body as a gang enforcer. Shirtless with a tiger tattoo out in the open, an axe in hand while being surrounded by corpses, a broken rib and several other injuries but that wasn''t the point, the point was, in front of me stood Torug blackmoon... I looked at him from my human eyes and looked at my previous self from Torug''s eyes, it was a confusing and strange feeling... But then my human self said something while looking into the distance, "Whether it''s this life or the next, my journey for revenge hasn''t changed huh". "Indeed..." was all I could say as I watched my past self fade away as well, a light breeze swept across my face. "It''s still the same game" a low growl left my lips, "but this time I''ll play differently". Immediately, like shattered mirrors, everything collapsed as a new scene appeared. I was now looking at the plantlike thing wrapped around myself and without much thought I tore through it. Stepping out of the cocoon, I was back in my chambers and couldn''t help inspecting my changes. There was a slight increase in height, My length of hair increased once more with my muscles feeling like it held more strength than it normally would. Those were the physical changes but the major changes was from something else, my mind felt much more clearer, vision and my control over mana became more precise. ''what was that about, why did I see my previous life and that nightmare again? luckily it didn''t play out from the beginning, but...'' while having such questions in mind, I brought up the system''s user interface. "show me my stats" Race: Predatory Orc King Level: 30(Order of the Third circle) Power rating: 40000+(2100)(1000)=43100 Alignment: Lawful Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief,The one Behind the veil, Blessed by the Abyss. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak)] [Congratulations on breaking through to the 3rd circle of evolution, you have been awarded a free lottery chance] [Reminder: you are finally able to read the second manual in your possession.] "Thank you for your reminder but I''d like to use my character upgrade card now please". "what do you want them for?" [In order to evolve into a 4th circle lifeform, it''s advised to have back up mana as supplements, this evolution is also called the ''circle of changes''.] "You are permitted". [Using character upgrade card in 10....9...8...7] As I watched the timer, my mind went dark for a second and then the pain came... The pain immediately took over a portion of my brain, as if dealing with it is energy expenditure enough, without the effort of new thoughts. it sears through my abdomen better than a branding iron, my mind almost conceding to the torment, unable to bring a thought to completion. Without meaning to my body curls into something fetal, something primeval and all the while the pain burns and radiates. The pain kept increasing in waves, small lulls giving false hope of an end. Each peak robs my ability to speak, even my ability to control my body was robbed from me. It''s as though my own blood had become acid, intent of destroying me from the inside out. All I could do was writhe, an occasional whimper escaping to echo off the surrounding. My mind screamed out as the pain suddenly drove through my back. Every thought I just had became confused as the burning pain licked up my back like scorching fire. I could only weep at my own suffering. Of course it was the mana mixed with my blood that sort to change the very shape of my existence, but with each moment of clarity I gain, I cussed at this world... ''What kind of M.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.t sh!t is this!!''... And after hours of torment, it finally ended. My throat gurgled as I struggled to breathe, spitting blackish green blood. My body shaking as I was sweating. Slowly breathing hard I dragged myself into a sitting position, hand clutching my neck as an electric shock went through my body, I silently wiped the black blood from my nose. ''The pain was merciless!''. For a second I felt too weak to even move a muscle, I fell on my back once more as eyes flickered with golden green light. ''I can see the mana in the air''. [Welcome to the circle of changes] The system congratulated me with it''s usual dead metallic voice, showing that it was obviously programmed to give that message. [To evolve further, A new quest will be issued shortly...] With a sigh, I mumbled , "lets just lay down like this...Let''s sleep, just sleep" Meanwhile, at the borders of the Degr kingdom laid a few human villages, that were built by old human slaves who earned their freedom, Unable to return to their old lives, they chose to live under the rule of the Orc king while submitting tribute for protection. Today, a Goblin lord called Zugg, led a few of his goblin warriors, in order to try and surround Bayi village. He decided to do that because he saw how small it was and had some beautiful women. Probably unaware of the repercussions of his actions, he came under the tempting of Malu''s earlier words. Even though, he was dead, most have already begun to move. The odds were low, but there was a chance that they might be able to hold till reinforcement arrive to fight off the goblin threat. But the humans weren''t certain of this either. the Goblin lord ordered his people to attack swiftly. At the same time, he ordered the lizard folk slaves and the goblins at the flanks to also advance. "Attack! Let these humans know they are now this Zugg''s property!" What has to be known was that, this action was taking place within different locations across the Degr kingdoms borders. The somewhat peaceful Orc lands has began to once again burn with the fires of war. Chapter 110 - 109: Eclipse Torug''s POV, The following morning was rather refreshing, every cell in my body tingled with joy. So naturally I was in a good mood, I got off the floor with a stretch, my bones let out a Rhythm with each move. When I was done there was a numbing sensation that lasted for a few seconds before I could feel the power swimming within. "Status" [Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Spirit King Level: 35(Order of the fourth circle) Power rating: 85400+(2100)(1000)=88500 Alignment: Lawful Evil Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief,The one Behind the veil, Blessed by the Abyss. Equipment: Yol''n(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak)] Everything on my status seemed normal except for a few new changes, My race now had spirit king next to it, the size of my power rating grew immensely, sigil was now level 4, which meant more tattoos, and a new racial skill called spirit Pull. Besides these, the others were pretty much the same. Racial skills: Sigil(Unique)Lv 4{Updated}- A tattoo allowed to only those of the Great Orc path. Stands as It''s Identity and a way to know his followers.(Passive). Can now increase the power rating of selected Vassals: 2/8. Effect: Personal: Adds 22% bonus to ones stats at level two. Horde: Adds 8% bonus to their base stats.] Spirit Pull(Unique){New}: Bring the will of the spirit world by allowing it to interfere with reality, pulling your targets towards you. Cool down: 15 minutes. ___________________ As I took note of each change, I brought out my Tyrant''s cloak from the inventory and decided to try out my lottery chance. [Due to you getting two consecutive evolutions within a day, You have a chance at getting a special draw instead.] Seeing this impromptu notification, I almost cried out, ''no! I want my two lottery chances'' , but at the same time I was curious about this so called special draw. "Proceed" As soon as my words came out, my vision changed and I was now standing on a platform made of white tiles, it was at the center of what looked like shallow pool. What was even more bizarre was that, on this platform, there was just one item, an ordinary looking basket. I approached it quickly to confirm, I even went as far as looking into it and it was indeed an ordinary empty looking basket. Curious, I touched the basket but was bombarded with a set of rules inside my head, it took some seconds to sort out but I got the essence of the message, you get a random item from within the basket but the ironic thing is that you need to place an item in the basket to start the draw. The quality of what you place in would determine how low the poorest item you draw would be. With such thoughts, I couldn''t help musing a bit, ''imagine having this placed within my village and using it every day for all our weapons''. After a short laugh, I made a few calculations and decided to place my axe, Yol''n in the basket. immediately, a basket cover drops from nowhere and cover''s the basket dramatically, a golden light flashed in waves with deep humming sounds in the background. The Scene repeated for almost a minute and became rather impatient, wanting to pull up the basket cover, but I held my self back. Although I may have somehow broken through to the second level of the Heart Sutra or Mantra, it feels like it might be a lot tougher to hold back my emotions because of how high my evolution has become, I need to double the time for meditation, after all, we orcs are creatures driven by our d.e.s.i.r.es ... My mind suddenly drifts to the second Cultivation manual that the system reminded me about and quickly decided to bring it out only to find out that my inventory was now locked because the draw had begun. Luckily, after another minute, the basket cover drops off abruptly, like it had tossed by some foul wind. The basket itself remained motionless on the spot and tension began to build as I watched this in a somewhat wary manner. ''is there any need for all these theatrics?'' I complained in my mind and got myself closer to pick up whatever laid in the basket. The moment I looked into the basket, it looked like everything dimmed for a second before returning to the it was. within the basket, luckily remained a battle axe, it''s blades and handle were as black as night, only it''s blade edge remained cold silver in color. It felt cold to touch as I opened it''s properties, [Eclipse, Vengeance of Insanity] Rarity: Unique Weapon type: Battle axe(single/dual handed) Damage: 60-95 Intimidation:+400 Power rating: +1000 Effect 1: when in the Dark, attack speed increases by 1% after every attack Maximum stack is 10%, lasts until you exit battle. Effect 2: When enough Mana has been stored within, it''s powerful enough to change the weather itself and make battle favorable for it''s wielder. Creates a total eclipse and lasts for an hour. Effect 3: Those within 400m around the wielder when under the effects of the eclipse, gets a debuff of dimmed vision while random blindness jumps around the higher the enemy numbers. Effect 4: The weapon grows with the higher number of revenge targets killed. Bound to Torug Blackmoon.] "A fitting weapon and a fitting name", I say out as I admired it once again, "I guess I should be glad I have a lot of enemies to kill then". "Eclipse, Vengeance of Insanity" Name: Torug BlackMoon(Alex Radwell) Race: Predatory Orc Spirit King Level: 35(Order of the fourth circle) Power rating: 85400+(2100)(2000)=89500 Titles: Savage, Orhani(Unknown Soul), Dark one, Chief,The one Behind the veil, Blessed by the Abyss. Equipment: Eclipse(Battle Axe), Black furred Tyrant Cloak(Cloak)] as I used my new weapon, I checked my status, only then did I find out that, at some point, the cloak had upgraded. "But why?" I wondered as my vision was returned to the interior view of my room. [Black furred Tyrant Cloak] Defense rating: B+ +1000 power rating. +10% charm. Intimidation(Passive skill): Releases an aura that reduces the basic stats of your enemies by 6%. Reduces basic stats by additional 40% If the Opponent is in a shocked state and are lower than you in the evolution circle. Reduces basic stats by additional 16% if the Opponent is in a ''Fear state''.] "System, What brought these changes?" [the log shows that the changes occurred during your evolution, as it was within the immediate vicinity and was a magic item from the beginning.] [I would also advise you check for any other possible changes in the items within your surrounding] "at what range?" I asked while walking to the throne room. [600m Radius...] shocked to a halt, I began thinking. "Do I see this as a good thing or a bad thing?" [70% -30%...] "..." I continued moving to the throne Hall while thinking, ''That''s a high percentage for bad and I don''t like it''. Chapter 111 - 110: Was I wrong? Torug''s POV, I made my way to the Breeding house but ran into Dabok and Lovan. "MY CHIEF!!" Lovan says in an exaggerated manner but you could feel the relief washing over the goblin, Dabok looked at me strangely for a few seconds before asking, "Where have you been?". "What is Janetta doing outside of the village?" I counter asked as I turned in the direction I felt the bond. "She went with Nazu for a ''stretch''..." He says teasingly but I only nodded in response before saying, "come". I led them to the Breeding house and made our way in immediately. When we got in, what greeted us was the sight of 43 over grown dire wolves suddenly opening their eyes, giving the impression of fireflies in the dim lit breeding house. Lovan yelps and hid behind me, I couldn''t blame him because the visual effect really had a strong impact to ones phsyche, surprisingly Dabok didn''t budge at the sight. "Dabok" I called out, attracting his attention. "Do you still have contacts within the borders of Degr kingdom?". Genuinely surprised for second, he went silent. "Yes". "Good...Have them send a message to the one eyed Haran" After waiting a short while he asks, "What do they tell her?". "Tell her I have news about Toro and I would like to meet her a day after the coming purple moon". "..." He watched me silently for a while and I said, "They had a hand in what happened to me and Urim". "Now you don''t have to push me to deal with them anymore, after all we can never live under the same sky" A solemn vibe lingered in the air till Lovan asked a question. "So what to do with them?" I watched the eager wolves with wagging tails before saying, "Train more riders...Lovan, have your people start making alchemy stones and you transmute them...till you notice your transmutation change" "..." a lost expression painted the goblin''s face. ''right'' Realisation donned on my face as I changed my words, "Make more boom rocks and do your glowing hand thing till you notice something different". "Oooh" he finally understood, "I finish the Liquid fire". "Really??" I asked in surprise and Dabok added from the side, "it was rough but I added a repulsion force with my totem and was able to do something that was close to what you explained". "just being close is amazing on it''s own... tonight you show me"I said with a grin, this made them visibly relax. perhaps my serious attitude had placed them on edge. What Lovan likes to call liquid fire was a flame thrower, I knew he had Raz the blacksmith helping him but I didn''t know Dabok had been dragged into the mix. "The Greyeye clan wants war, they already hurt one of us and I intend to return the favor."I changed the topic while looking at Dabok. the latter unceremoniously blurted out, "We''re no where close to being able to fight them and he probably has an alliance with white mountain''s Blood horn clan". I wasn''t angry with his statement because he was speaking with the details of a few days back. But when we talk about now, "If I said, In a few days we''ll be able to clean up the Greyeye clan and Blood horn clan would follow not long after that... would you believe me?" He paused for a second and looked at me closely once again before saying with a sigh, "I believe". A laugh subconsciously escaped my lips as I said to the old Orc,"I will make you confidently shout, ''I Believe!'' next time." with my words, I confidently headed outside of the Breeding house. I would come take them out later in the day to train more riders. ________________ I returned to the main hall after observing the village for a while. I ordered for Shev and Cail to be brought while I brainstormed on what my next tattoos would be. If I''m not wrong, these are the last ones and my next evolution would only upgrade the existing ones. First thing that came to my mind was a wolf but then a snake came to mind, I even thought of some ancient beasts from my previous life. While thinking about these, I found that the idea of a tiger being brought into existence by the system just to make the sigils work, highly possible. First of all, dragons already existed in the world but there has never been tigers, Dabok reported seeing a tiger evolve...I quickly shook my head at the thought, ''This won''t do...I can only confirm after seeing the tiger''. But then my mind was drawn to the creature in the black moon lake and I couldn''t help being tempted. What kind of effects would I get, how would it affect the state of things, what... My thoughts were disrupted by someone making an entrance into the hall. A purple haired beauty walked into the hall seductively, accompanied with Nazu following behind. Both of them were dressed in the standard black moon clan battle skirt worn by the females, same goes for the upper torso as well. Perhaps Janetta felt my change in demeanor and decided to tease, "Master" She says with a smirk as she bows slowly. Nazu feigns confidence as she bows, "my chief". Perhaps due to my evolutions, I could literally smell emotions much clearly than before, each had a different scent and I could immediately tell what was what. ''Why is she always anxious?'' I wondered as I casually responded to their greetings. "Do you know what you have done?" I immediately asked Janetta. "Yes, although I didn''t initial understand but I do now" She says. Nazu watched our exchange in confusion and I couldn''t help but ask this question,"Do you regret it?". The purple haired Janetta smiled and says, "No". Her response only made me nod repeatedly, but she soon wore a solemn expression, "I want to go back and challenge Selliqei". Hearing her words, I stood up slowly from the throne before saying, "You can go, you are ready". ''After all you can''t die'' I added in my head while wondering if I should take the same oath but I quickly dismissed the idea, ''I''d rather die than have my life in someone else''s hands''. Janetta nodded before walking out and Nazu alternated between looking at me and looking at the door. "Say it" I said, she looked confused at my statement. "What you have in your head, say it" I clarified. "I...I..." She tries to get the words in her head but I teased, "I never thought that the great Nazu would not be able to speak a word at..." "you disappeared" She responded sharply and I couldn''t help looking at her strangely, "You were worried?". "..." She glares at my question and I raised an eyebrow at her reaction. "here, I feel like everyone is helping but you never have me do anything...I feel...I feel" Nazu tries to state her worries without acting weak but at the same time her real worries open itself to me. My curiosity kicks in as I paced around saying, "Alone, forgotten, Useless". "N..."She tries denying but seems to think of something else, "You say you would have me but you never give m..." "You fear that you would be left behind..." I finally understood something, everything within the clan was advancing at a frightening pace and although she cared, she chose to remain still till I came to her... The silly Royal pride hidden in her bloodline must have set in but now she couldn''t sit still anymore, she craves for attention, she wants to be useful and be a part of things. Admittedly, although she has been a part of the inner circle, it''s only due to the fact that she brought her clan here and was the leader, aside from that I had refused to give her any chance due to her trying to claim me in public. I read it as power hungry but... it seems I may have been wrong. Chapter 112 - 111: Another one Torug''s POV, "A war is coming" I stated, surprise and confusion painted her face. "Kharag Greyeye" my steps stopped just two steps away from her, She turns around to look at me seriously. "I thought we settled everything with him that day". I unconsciously let out a small laugh before replying,"I thought so as well but they have killed one of our own, tell me my dear ''wife''...How do I respond to this provocation?". I expected her to protest like Dabok or something but she simply says a simple phrase..."a life for a life". a bit stunned, I began to wonder if she said this out of wisdom or the usual impulsiveness she had always shown. Burdened by my silence, she decided to explain... "This has been an iron rule in the orc lands, a life for a life according to the weight of their individual value". "He came in peace but took a life in the end, so he has to pay double...then there''s the matter of your reputation as well..." "I see" I had to admit that she wasn''t talking nonsense, also He is still lurking around my territory, so the probability of an attack is extremely high. Seems like I have to prepare a present for him real quick. While in thought, I brought out a small purple bead and showed it to her, ''I can''t use her as she is now... and I need her for when I meet the one eyed Haran''. "What''s this?" She asks. But I only said cryptically, "Eat it". This way I can see her inner thoughts and what my value is in that head of hers, there''s so much I don''t understand about this red haired Orc. without hesitation, she swallows the evolution pill, her eyes not leaving mine for a second as my fingers get locked in the process. ''...'' There was no Hesitation at all, is your head filled with stones or something. "What is that?" she asks while staring at me, for some reason I found the whole thing funny ''you only ask this now?''. As I laughed for a while she says, "My whole body feels hot... What''s happening?". I replied while watching her fall, her eyes slowly rolled back and her body was silently wrapped by the white silky cocoon, "I am making stronger, don''t want you spoiling my honor yes?". It didn''t take long after she began her evolution, Shev and Cail were brought in. Cail was still as jumpy as before but Shev was now calm, he bowed deeply and passionately said,"Master". The way he said it succeeded in giving me my first goosebumps in this life, ''Clap for yourself man!''. A bit creeped out by the look in his eyes, I decided to just give orders and send them on their way...''this would need some getting used to''. "Cail, do you wish to live?" I asked casually. "ye...s...yes..es" he cries out pitifully and I couldn''t help looking at Shev strangely ''what did you do to him in there?!!''. "Do you have full authority over the black purse in Thann''s End?" "Not completely, 40% of our power is held by ..." "Enough..., Shev you are to first get rid of Cail''s competition, use whatever means necessary, Secondly, I want you to help him establish a trade route and find a way to move weapons between My Blackmoon territory and Thann''s end, Thirdly, I want to know everything Davis Fairchild and the Radiant Sun Church does". after a short pause, I added "Lastly, ''take'' care of Cail and make sure nothing goes wrong with my plans". I looked at the shivering Cail, who wailed under my vision, "When this competition is gone, I want you to break off from the Black purse and you just might live longer". "As you wish, Master" "Of course great ser" they gave their response quickly. ____________________________ Meanwhile, Urim''s POV, After achieving victory over the Dregu tribe, I triumphantly returned to to where the battle initially started. "Urim!" Gilgar calls out as she approached me and the returning warriors. "As expected of you. Victory after victory! You brothers never seize to amaze me" Torrelsav Pat''s my back from behind with a smirk. Raal, who had been watching from the sidelines, came and also greeted me with a smile. "Get out the way."I quickly ignored him while kicking him lightly. He was obviously going to ask for more wine next. "tch¡­One epic win and you are already ignoring your friend" He snorts harshly while shaking his head, His wolf nodded in the background. "All you know is wine and more wine, do you know how many times Gilgar had to save you in this battle because of your drinking?" I complained. "Skill... skill..." Raal mutters indifferently. "you. I don''t know how you are still alive." Gilgar also lost her patience, it can''t be helped, his face is just too painful to watch. "Skill...skill" the Drunk repeated again. "enough! Have you forgotten about the Shammobs?" Largash looked amused as she tries to mediate. Though Gilgar wanted to argue, she ultimately gave up as I was now leading them towards the Shammob''s Chieftain. What to do next? I don''t know...I have succeeded in what I initially planned and did even more. I subconsciously rub the somewhat brown bone necklace in my hand, "What would Brother do?". "what?!" Raal asked, surprised at me talking suddenly, Unfortunately I ignored him, thinking of my next plans. "I have seen you, Great Chieftain!" I yell at the Shammobs while maintaining my distance. I believe they have seen how powerful our Blackmoon riders are and might feel threatened. "We have seen you, Urim Blackmoon, we''ve won the battle, now let us go get some rest and have some wine."the orc warrior next to their Chief, yells back with a grin. "I am sorry but I must return, I only came on the request of Bhok ''bone carver'', He has made an Alliance with our clan, so of course we can''t sit by and watch you suffer." I quickly came up with excuses to salvage the situation. The Shammobs began to whisper amongst themselves but I chose to mount my wolf without delay and the others did the same. "It''s done" Suddenly, I heard Moz''s voice next to my ears and a grin broke out. ''Perfect...This way would leave them guessing and their Chief''s injury is excellent news for brother, I can''t wait to return to see Ugarth or Torug?'' My thoughts ran amok as I urged my wolf forward. ___________ It didn''t take long for us to find Moz, Bhok sat behind her, not daring to move. "...where is it?"I asked impatiently and she wave a book made of skin. Not thinking that it would be this small, my eyes widened. I had naturally thought it would be shiny or something. "Let''s go, I''m afraid Brother may have grown impatient with waiting." I laughed while picturing Torug''s impatient face from when we were little. "We move!!" I announced. Thinking about the others on foot and escorting the cart, I grudgingly slowed down, ''So much rules''. I then decided to calmly inspect the bone necklace but found nothing special, ''that''s impossible'' I thought while noticing Moz not too far from me. "So what happened" she suddenly asked, "You seem different". Hearing her question, I only grinned. Chapter 113 - 112: Observing the Town. Torug''s POV, Several hours passed and I sat in my throne Hall watching Nazu''s evolution, I thought of ways to cause problems for Greyeye and his people and on the side my thoughts revolved around what sigil to use. It was then I remembered the feast Kharag had mentioned, ''I might as well attend using Brogg'' a cunning grin spread across my face as I thought about what I could do on that day. "I just hope Urim''s party succeeded in establishing trade relations with Shammob, we''ll need an Ally even if it''s only temporary... speaking of which, they should''ve already been back by now" I mumbled incoherently while heading outside, It''s time to test the new flame thrower. ''ah Imagine a few riders equipped with this, charging into enemy territory and burning things or people within a few minutes and rushing out quickly'',I let my imagination run wild until I spotted the hunters returning from the town gates. As a matter of fact, I spotted Haji amongst them and I was surprised to find that the little goblin of back then was already level 15. ''why do I feel old all of a sudden'' I thought subconsciously while slowing down my steps, thinking about it now, I have not taken time to observe the changes within the town. The members of Blackmoon Town shuttled around with intent, each having clear knowledge about where they were headed and what they needed to be doing, the newly born goblins ran around aimlessly like actual human children, if only they weren''t playing roughly with rocks... there''s even an Orc child in the crowd. with all this in mind, I urgently brought up the territory tab... Ding!] Town Name: Black moon Town Area: 4 square kilometre Town Territory: 61 square kilometres Residents: 1045/1000 (A/N: minimum population requirement for Lv intermediate Lv2= 1500) Soldiers: 370/300 Guards: 25/50 Sub territory: Basic Lv 1(Mura village), Govan (Damaged) Basic level 2 Dregu village. Landmarks: Black Moon lake, Cold Valley, Grole Mine, Harku tunnels. Laboni region(26%) Dastav region (1.4%). Existing structures: Lord''s Manor, Inner town wall, Outer town wall (43%) Wooden Residential buildings x66, Smithy, Basic Logging(good), Farmland(88%), Advanced Mining Field(89%), Barracks (Active), Training Field (Active), Town Hall (Active) Breeding house (Active)Fish Pond(Active)] There was a lot of changes that I hadn''t taken note of, like the population went up a notch and the number of villages under my Territory increased, it might have something to do with Urim. The landmark has added some new locations, the mine and a strange ''Harku tunnel'' which probably means Janetta might have or has almost succeeded. And the number of system approved structures has increased. ''This is good'' I couldn''t help praising in my head as i continued my stroll. After smiling for bit, I couldn''t help frowning before letting out a sigh, ''It''s a bit awkward with both Urim and Moz not being here.'' a minutes later, I arrived at the training ground and found out that the goblins were still practicing against an Orc warrior. they used the wooden dagger I requested and fought against him in twos, watching them is rather interesting, as they try coming up with funny ways to attack the Orc. I didn''t spend enough time to be noticed , since I have decided to look at the whole town before going to see Lovan, I believe I should head towards the places I haven''t been to. Like the Farm I was looking at right now, it took up the space between the houses and the southern wall, They had a lot of strange plants sprouting out and I suddenly have the urge to learn about all of them. ''Who''s in charge of the farm?'' It finally hit me, someone was in charge of the farm and it definitely wasn''t Dabok, judging from how vaguely he gave the reports. "So who is it??" I looked around and watched the lesser Orcs and serf Goblins busying themselves, ''Forget it, I''ll ask Dabok when I see him''. I turned around and chose a random route on my way to Lovan''s workshop, but surprisingly I found a group of female goblins working on ... clothes!. The Bone needle or whatever moved in a way that made it look like an art performance. each were skilled in their own way and I saw a few of the goblin females stepping on something inside what looked like a huge Wooden bowl, although I said wooden, I''m sure it was made with the steel tree. Within the bowl was a black liquid, as the others stepped on them, the pregnant Goblins either pulled some clothes out of the bowl or tossed something into the bowl. ''Dyeing?'' I was a bit shocked and couldn''t help wondering how they learned these things, from the look of things it wasn''t new knowledge to them or I''m just reading things wrong. While in thought, a sharp squeal came from the side as one of the goblin females had spotted my dazed self, "chief!" She says excitedly. "!!!" The others awkwardly saluted and I casually responded before leaving. ___________________ Thann''s End, Clack! Clack! The Sound of wood striking across something rang across the whole back garden as two elderly priests sat across each other. "Still training?" A priest in official gold robes asked the man seated across him with a sigh. Bishop Rodney, stood up from his seat with his hands behind his back and said, "Yes..." "How long has it been now since he started doing that?". "three? maybe four?" Rodney responds casually. "Aren''t you worried?" There was a short pause before the priest continued his words, "did you find out who the purple haired woman is?". Bishop Rodney raised an eyebrow at the question before turning to pick his tea cup and take a sip, He closed his eyes as though trying to register it''s taste in his brain before saying, "Lord Fairchild has sworn that he has no recollection of this woman". "A child born out in the wild by the old Fairchild patriarch?" Rodney lets out a small laugh while dropping his cup, "no... Patrick was never such a Man but perhaps his brother that died earlier in the Nispurlian battlefront, a rather unfortunate death for such a lecherous man I must say". "The body was never found Bishop Rodney" the Priest frowned slightly before questioning again, "What does she want then?... She even stole from the Moongrets while working with those barbarian Orcs". "That''s what I find strange, what does she need so much Aether for? and what did she discuss with Davis that made him turn to this, how did she even enter into the church premises?" While mumbling, Rodney suddenly questions the priest sharply. "Wait...are you..." when the priest tried to argue, he suddenly paused and said," Do you suspect that she''s the Night mother''s champion?". "..." Rodney remained silent, confirming the priest''s suspicion "I fear that she may have some spies in the church as well, considering how easily she came in before". "Preposterous!, I... Forgive me your holiness" Cold sweat could be seen across the Priests body immediately after his initial outburst. As though nothing happened, Rodney spoke calmly,"I have called for Anthony Vance, he''ll be in charge of investigation and you''ll do everything in your power to help him, understand?!". "Your holiness, Anthony is an Executioner, I fear for the people of Thann''s ..." "Just do as I say, Bast!" Rodney shut him up in a threatening manner, "Dark times are coming Bast, I feel that it would rain blood once again but who will be falling this time I wonder". Bast the priest quickly bows and covered his ears praying, like he had heard something he wasn''t supposed to hear. Chapter 114 - 113: Torug is my name... Torug''s POV, "is this it?" I asked in surprise while looking down at what looked like a Silver shaped lantern, several totems were obviously carved onto it''s body with a pitch black opening at the bottom, there were about three little blue gems embedded on the side and a leather wrapping on it''s handle. This was the supposed flame thrower. "it''s smaller than I thought" I finally say. Hearing my words, Lovan became restless and said, "but My Chief!! I...it works l... like you explained!". Dabok also added on the side, "it might even surprise you, look carefully at the gems, they''re pure Mana stones carefully selected from the mines, this was the perquisite that allowed Lovan transmute the flames into them." "Oh?" I was rendered speechless and looked at the gems carefully, indeed there was flames within the stones. ''it makes no sense!''. "Show me" I finally say. Raz and Dabok looked at each other and turned to Lovan who excitedly ran towards the ''flame thrower'' in my hands. He then takes it and turned the hollow space towards the sky and flames sprayed upwards in a straight manner like a flame pillar. it extended to a distance of 1 meter before fanning out and spreading outward like a firework but it was a constant stream. I couldn''t help but marvel and began to think of the possibilities, it was small enough for a goblin to carry and has strong destructive capabilities... A vicious laughter escaped my lips as I imagined the scene of sending a team of goblins with this item into enemy territory to cause chaos, destruction of food supplies would be a... "The only downside is that we need more pure Mana stones" Dabok''s words poured cold water over my head, "once the Mana within the stones are used up, you would need to replace them immediately". "it''s like the thing those dwarves use" Raz added from the side, fearing I won''t understand. "That would be made relatively easier when Janetta takes over the Groles" I replied casually but my mind went over several calculations, ''what effects does this have on the mine?''. "I''ll have to trouble you all to increase the production of this to at least a hundred". "A hundred?!!"Raz shouted in surprise while Dabok went silent for a second before saying, "it shall be done". Immediately, I headed back to my Manor and decided to start implementing my plans for the Greyeye clan. "How many fingers is a hundred?!" Lovan''s confused voice rang out from behind as the other two simply grunted. By the time I returned, I found Nazu staring at her hands rather dumfounded, Her appearance was much more impressive than before and her hair was much redder than before. when she felt my presence, a sharp and cold gaze turned to look in my direction but soon turned soft. Name: Nazu Redmane] Race: Royal Orc Duelist: Power rating: 39800 Relationsh.i.p.s: daughter of Toro ''the Cruel'' and The One eyed Haran, Former Chief of Govan, warrior of Blackmoon tribe. Loyalty: 93% Alignment: Chaotic Neutral] Interesting, Her loyalty can finally be seen and it''s almost rivalling Urim''s, although 1% higher than Moz''s. She noticed that I was not going to make a move from the spot I was standing at by the door, she decided to walk towards me. the sound of cracking bones could be heard with each step as she twisted her neck and stretched her arms, her b.r.e.a.s.ts swayed with each move like waving flags. "I''m impressed" I say but at what, I wonder. a smile blossomed on her lips as she heard my words before going on knees... "My Chief, Netraaki... Allow me to give you this bow and I shall bow to no other" Nazu''s voice came out somewhat hoarse, obviously tired from her evolution but the way she said the word Netraaki which could be translated to ''Husband'' made me feel pride beyond measure. I quickly controlled myself and lifted her chin so that her eyes could be facing mine, the golden pools were much brighter now and could easily be noticeable, with each evolution, the blood is purified further, so it wasn''t surprising, after all it was the same for me, but the problem lay in the trouble this could cause. After all, the Orc lands is filled with ambitious Orcs and the battle for supremacy is never ending, if there was a power strong enough to make the Degr kingdom fall, they would have attacked it long ago. The point is, having a bride or groom in the clan increases your right to be a king or ruler, and the chances of changing your future descendants into Royal bloodlines is infinitely possible. This was also one of the reasons I had picked her as the first choice for my wife, we are both royalty and so the children would have even more talents, the black moon clan would also be automatically be recognized as a royal clan, just like my White Bone clan. Unfortunately, they were not living in the Orc lands and thus were not recognized. "I accept your bow, now you shall not do so in front anyone else" But who cares about the trouble, let them come, I need the exp anyways. I already have a lot of enemies to kill, adding a few won''t be a problem. With those words I helped her up before heading towards the throne. I then told her about the flame thrower, so I could hear what she would say. "This... It''s amazing" She said with excitement and I could only looked at her confusedly, ''why are you getting all excited on your own?''. "I remember you said you had someone inside the Greyeye clan and he''s the slaver, what if we had a few goblins with this ''flame thrower'', go in as slaves and them cause havoc on the inside as we launch a surprise attack from the outside?!" Interesting, My initial plan was to use Brogg and cause problems but that would mean losing that piece, so if go with this...We can stage it as a riot from the slaves and... brilliant. For some reason, I stared at Nazu and couldn''t help laughing, ''how come I didn''t think of something so simple, well it''s too early to judge her based on this... I''ll keep observing till I figure out her talents and just how to use them''. While in thought, a shout came from the door. "Brother!! I have returned!" Urim yells with a laugh, his arms wide open. Seeing him now, memories of when we were little came gushing out like a Tsunami. "You have grown eh? you would have me run to you now? is that it?" I shouted in mock anger and he looked shocked for a second before running towards me. A bear hug was shared between us and the others looked at us in a strange manner, probably thinking ''it was just a few days no?'' but they don''t have any idea... "Ugarth..." Urim suddenly said but I stopped him saying, " Torug is my name, Torug Blackmoon". "..." Urim nodded furiously. "Have a seat brother, we have a war to plan" I say. A grin appeared on his face as he pulled up a war hammer from behind and dropped it heavily by his side before sitting down. Torrelsav quickly took a seat but kept on looking at both me and Nazu strangely. Chapter 115 - 114: misunderstanding? Better...! Amogrid(Palace of Eternal slumber) Ayaseh''s POV, "It''s so nice of you to join us Milensaroniz",Goltan says with sheepish grin, The Dwarf was obviously excited about the woman of his dreams joining his side but at the same time anxious that I would cause a scene. Can''t blame him though, this woman is infuriating but I will be as magnanimous as I have always been. "What made you change your mind?!"I asked with a raised eyebrow, after all her joining our Alliance at this time was quite fishy. Milen wasn''t shocked by my question, in fact, she relaxed further into her chair and looked at me. She was originally a member of the Sea-folk before becoming a God, so she had pale blue skin and glowing yellow irises that looked like gems, red hair that flowed down her body''s curves like a water fall. She had her usual smile on her face as she said words that left me confused for a second, "I didn''t realize I missed you this much before, well not until I saw you today again at least..." Silence filled the Hall and I noticed everyone looking at each other''s faces and questioning if they were dreaming, I shared the same feeling as well. "don''t mind my words but I am serious, the sea has been so boring, no one to..." And then she began to blab about who did this or that and how Ragol brought Mileesi to conjure an orb within the sea... "Why us" I finally asked. Milen looks around and noticed everyone else wanted to know the answer to this question as well, "your alliance is the only one I''m familiar with, I know and have a certain level of trust with each of you, yes even you...on the other, Ragol makes me sick when I see him, totally disgusting, especially with those worms wrapped around his left arm and the neutral guys are filled with the old ones, besides Ragol, Petos is so annoying, he keeps stealing..." And she began going on and on, Totally derailing from the original discussion. But honestly we stopped listening when she mentioned Ragol having worms on his left arm. Horjen looked at me with a solemn expression and I''m pretty sure I was mirroring her expression as well, this only meant one of two possibilities. ''Ragol was either tempted by the world eater or was using and trying to understand it''s powers.'' "Someone''s here" Carx says to me and I simply nod my head, everyone immediately shut down their discussions as they were curious about who would come see us. As soon as they were settled, I allowed the other party to enter the palace. "Helios?" I stated casually in greeting but he didn''t respond, he had an ugly expression with a tinge of anger. The Dark elf looked at everyone in the room and says somewhat sarcastically, "With all due respect, oh great mother of the night, I have been tasked with getting answers from you". "..." Taking my silence as agreement, he continued, "we would like to know your thoughts on the death of Mayo''s, the master of the veil". "it was stated that, two of your members were seen leaving the area..." I quickly cut him off the moment I understood what this was about, "so you are saying that my alliance is once again suspected without any tangible evidence?". "If you put it like that it would seem..."Helios tried to explain but was cut off by Horjen. "We had no hand on Mayos''s death". "..." Helios fell silent and decided to leave the topic for now, He then said "It''s almost time for the battle to begin and as you are aware, we all agreed on us Gods not Interfering with the outcome of the game...". "For peace to reign amongst the Gods, we''ll leave everything to whatever happens in the mortal realm". "Does this affect the other six planes?"the usually distracted Neah asked suddenly, this was a question everyone was curious about. hearing it, Helios became solemn "No...we need to remember how we lost Gerit plane eight hundred years ago". His words made everyone silent but I had to say or rather ask this question, "Has Ragol agreed to these terms?". "Of course, he was the first one to bring up the suggestion" Helios spoke in outrage, perhaps feeling like we were doubting him and the other neutral Gods. "..." Silence... I''m sure everyone was thinking what I was thinking as well but this was not the time to discuss it. "Very well, we shall continue with the idea of using the main plane, Luegad, as the battleground for this...Game" I declared in a Curt manner and Helios looked at me strangely, perhaps surprised by my decisive action. He approached the table before adjusting his green robe to sit amongst us, he looked at us one by one before saying to me, "I know rumor has it that, you have taken a champion and for some reason, you decided to pick an illegitimate child of the Fairchild family... she has already started making moves even though the game has not begun, did you order her to take such actions?". Now I was really confused, I wanted to speak but I chose otherwise... isn''t this what I wanted, give Torug more time to develop... Last I checked, he has already surpassed Ragol''s little champion and might be targeted for secret assassinations, this is for the best... So I chose to remain silent and luckily this guys have been with me long enough to know what I was doing, Milen doesn''t know who my champion is either or she could accidentally blab about it somewhere, too bad we need her power, "..." "I see...if it so, then we can give Ragol permission..." Helios sighed while standing up... "Permission to do what?!!"I asked quickly but the stupid elven God ported away just as fast. A deep frown was etched on my face but what was important was that the abyss were becoming restless because of my flunctuating emotions, I need to calm down... "Aaaah!!Ragol!"I roared, thinking about all the possibility and wondering, ''just what nonsense has he gone to feed the old Gods... After all, they were the ones with the final decision on the neutral side. ''Hmph! old Gods? are you even worthy?'' I thought with gritted teeth, "I''ll go see those old fools..." Horjen adds from the side, "I''m coming with you!" The others then sighed in relief and I could only say, "Fine... it''s not I was going to cause trouble". Perhaps taking my words lightly , Horjen wore a confused expression, "I don''t know why I have a hard time believing that". Torug''s POV, "Blackmoon lake" I muttered under my breath as I looked at lake before me. "Still... just still" I sighed and began thinking about the description of the creature in the lake, it was an important part of the books storyline mid Novel. "A creature that evolved and swallowed one of the world''s three moons" I looked up at the sky and watched the the three moons getting closer by each passing day, when they all align, the moon will turn purple and that''s is the so called purple moon, magic becomes more active and gives one an exp boost. Although in actuality, it was not exactly the Moon that was swallowed but the treasure in the lake. ''Just what is the mystery of Blackmoon lake'' After much thought, I decided that I would use one sigil slot on this creature... "My Chief, the Goblins ''slaves'' has set off for Hise, they''ll arrive in three days". Moz''s voice came from behind me. "Very well... you can join Urim and train the new raiders" "ok.!" "Kharag Greyeye, you dare touch and covet what''s mine...then I believe you deserve a nice present". Chapter 116 - 115: The Siege Pt 1 Stars light the sky like snow-flakes in the night, yet appear still, like an old photograph. Torug smiles, feeling the wind blow across his face as he watched a raging fire rise from the other side of his view. ''A little more'' he thought while silently waved his new weapon, Eclipse, in short cutting motions. But for now, with his left arm, he continued tussling the fur of his excited mount, not far from him, a red haired orc walked forward calmly as she wrapped her arm around the branch of a windswept tree and her head leaning gently on the bark, listening silently for something. After a few seconds, she nodded firmly. "It''s time!" Torug Roared, "Charge!!!" On the other side was a walled fortress, hidden between the mountain and cliffs surrounding it. It should have been the hardest siege for him since his arrival in this world, in fact it should be the hardest as it was his first official siege, Although they couldn''t use a lot of heavy weaponry yet, it didn''t stop him from improvising. The fortress had four sets of walls, that was three to four times taller than an average Orc and he wanted it even more, just as they corveted his, he wanted theirs but he knew this was hard to attack despite his initial preparations. surrounded by a moat from all directions and has a single drawbridge. they should have needed to use siege towers or a battering ram but the doors were already open. Goblins could be seen on the walls going on a killing spree, at the center of the wide open gate was a white haired female with white and black striped tail. "TORUG!!" an aggrieved roar came from within the fortress walls, making a grin spread across the tattooed Chief''s face. _________________________ Some days Earlier, Torug''s POV, I sat silently by the lake as I pulled out the second Cultivation manual in my possession and placed on the ground next to the Book Moz stole from the Shammobs. I observed the two carefully and went into contemplation, ''from what Urim told me, the Shammob''s Chief, Garak, was injured and was unable to move after he was injured by the late Obum Dregu... but it still doesn''t add up, how was he injured when he has been using this book for years... there''s also the fact that, Obum''s death changed fate, perhaps the fate of the Orcs I imagine.'' I subconciously traced my fingers across the said Book, it was rather incomplete and with the look of things, it was divided into two or three copies. ''What happened to the other parts?... well what ever, I''ll just read this ones and refresh my memory on the sacred oaths and orders I know while adding to my arsenal''. At the mid point of the book, the MC began running into more people with this oaths and orders, it became a necessity in battles and some were even powerful enough to be used as Trump cards. With this in mind, I placed it in my inventory and focused on the Cultivation manual. I had been curious about this manual from the very beginning and surprisingly, it was a five star manual...quite far from future Davis''s seven star but it''s sufficient. Surprisingly, this manual required me to abolish the effects of my earlier practice as it was related to the same organ along others, ''The heart''. It was a thick book with ice blue covers, there was a drawing of a purple tree with a heart as it''s crown and it''s roots spreading across from both the base of the heart and tree. It spoke about the essence of refining the body and some other things, unsurprisingly the Heart remained an important factor in this Cultivation. after an hour of studying, I abolished the Heart Sutra without any hesitation and suddenly felt empty at heart. Surprised, I tried to study this phenomenon but came to the conclusion that Mana refined by the heart Sutra had always been within and had usually helped in suppressing several anomalies. In essence, it was bound to be weird. For some reason I came to worry, what would it be like from now on. Without any other delay, I began cultivating the ''Feral Serenity''. Unknowingly, I had cultivated for over eight hours, which was six hours more than the amount of time the Heart Sutra allowed. Unfortunately, I wasn''t able to complete the first level, on the bright side, it expanded my Mana pathways and has further improved my magic circulation. On the other hand, The Branding skill''s change was different. [(Brogg) Branding 100% - you can actively take control of the Target''s thought process. - Possession time available : 4 hours 30 minutes] From the initial 2 hours 15 minutes, it doubled, ''Does that mean I had bad reception before?'' I mused silently but all the same it was a good improvement. I focused on the Branding skill, and like before, two orbs appeared in front of me, I stretched my hands and held the faint green one that was Brogg in my palm. immediately, I could see his situation and it once again gave me a sense of deja Vu, like I was playing a video game...Brogg was warily looking at a few goblins whipping some slaves as he drank some wine in a wild manner. Without much delay, I quickly seized control from him and got up from his seat. I looked at his surrounding and tried to understand his body. I could feel everything down to his skills, which were pretty useless by the way. He had a skill that released a kind of gas that affects the mind, why I said it was useless was because, presently, it can only affect those below the first circle of evolution due to his level. It looked like I was within a walled fortress, the walls were made with stone and wood, the orcs and other creatures within busied themselves, making fortification, they were obviously preparing for war... ''What stupid banquet are you talking about Kharag'' I thought with a sneer, An Orc was relaying orders on the wall and I could assume that, he was Greyeye''s son. ''Perhaps I should kill him'' I thought with a grin but peeled my eyes off him, lest I''m really go through with my thoughts. I maneuver my way around the fortress and tried not to be suspicious as possible until I heard something. "The Chief''s son has a lot of interest in this slave, to think he wants to taste her before his father arrives...hahaha" a wretched voice came from the other side of this wooden building. An equally nauseating laugh followed after as I made my way there looking lost. It didn''t take long for me to see it, Within a rusty cage was a slave, laying down leisurely like a king would in a palace or should I say queen. But this wasn''t what attracted me, it was her fur?. __________ As I walked closer to her, "Brother!... Brother!!" Urim''s panicked voice came, making me disconnect quickly and turned in his direction, due to a little annoyance I asked a bit sharply, "What?!". "..." but he remained silent. "Well? What happened to you?"I asked, "is there something wrong with the preparation?" "no ...no" "Then what is it then?" "this..." He looked stumped for words and I could only look at him dumbfounded. "since when did you have problems speaking, did Gilgar tell you she is with child or something?"I teased but I didn''t get the expected reaction, his eyes went wide with surprise... "F*ck!!!!" I cussed in skaldish tongue without even knowing. Chapter 117 - 116: Siege pt 2...more preparation. Torug''s POV "...." "...." a strange silence permeated in the air as Urim and I stared at each other for a few seconds before Moz''s voice came from the side, "congratulations?" I quickly cleared my throat lightly and said while suppressing a laugh, "yes Urim, this is a spectacular news...have you shared it with Torrelsav?" A frown appeared on his face as though he was imagining something horrible, so I said, "Don''t worry, I can at least guarantee that he doesn''t kill you, if that''s what you are...pfff worried about." At my words, his face became visibly darker. "Hmph...", he snorted slightly before turning to look at Moz. "Snort all you want but I am not bailing you out of this one, I wonder if he would challenge you to a death duel or have you hunt some strange creature... what do you think Moz? or perhaps take..." I teased him with a grin and looked at Moz for support, too bad she only looked at me with raised eye brows. "would you relax already, it''s just a child not a blazing fireball, besides you told me that he already gave you his support no?", I asked calmly while he nodded, "good, so you are fine...at least Dabok isn''t having you do a ceremony just to f*ck". "Is that my name I hear?" Dabok''s voice comes from the direction of the village, the lakeside suddenly becoming more lively. A few moments later... "you must be joking, Urim!" Dabok''s voice rises up a notch in surprise, then he proceeds to whisper "did you mean...?" "Yes!!!" we all answered for the sixth time in the last few minutes, as we watched the old Orc grin foolishly. "So fertile?..." he murmured before yelling "splendid news!!", Dabok says repeatedly before rushing back to the village to do God knows what but for some reason I felt a chill run up my spine. "..." A wave of emotion cycled through me for a bit and I felt somewhat torn between finding it strange and being sad. I silently stretched my hand out to have a closer look and Urim placed it in my hand, "Where did you find this?" "The Dregu Chief had it around his neck". "..." "It looked like the..." he began to speak but I finished the words for him, "It was the one Filge used to wear" I said such words in a low voice as I examined the necklace with nostalgia. A memory of a thick bearded orc with a stupid grin as he worked on a wooden house, "Filge White Bone", brother to my mother in this world, he was a rather strange Orc that enjoyed wood working too much, he''d rather have those than go to battle. Thinking about it now, perhaps that''s where Urim got his talents when it comes to crafting bows or working on the wooden buildings around. Due to Filge''s nature, Grand father never forced him, instead he made a necklace that would help him to survive. I remember how envious everyone was that day because... I calmly gathered Mana from within and channeled it into the bone necklace, watching it change from brown to white. "You should keep it, after all, Filge would have wanted you to have it..." I said passing it back to Urim, Unfortunately, the powers in the necklace has pretty much been reduced to nothing over the years, Maybe if I could get a equipment upgrade card or something like that in the future... I''d use it on the necklace. With that thought, I looked at it''s stats once again. [Shufharz''s embrace] Quality: Rare Defense: 400 Power Rating: +200 Mana: 1000/1000 Durability: 48/100 Skills:(Only available for the white Bone clan) Mana field: forms a domain with defensive properties. Cool down: 60 minutes. Shield: Forms a protective Shield the wearer to block the overall damage of the amount of Mana available on the equipment.] "No you keep it" Urim argues but I didn''t let him finish, "Don''t worry, I have mother''s", Moz subconsciously touches the bone earrings on her ear but I showed them the necklace I found. He rushed closer to inspect it with a solemn expression, He seemed to have recognized it and couldn''t help nodding repeatedly as his hold on my arm got tighter for a second. "are you sure about your plans, Brother?" He suddenly asked while looking into my eyes. "Don''t worry, I would be letting our people down if I do otherwise". "..." "So, do you think it''s a boy or a girl?" After messing around for a few minutes, Urim left and now, it was just me and Moz by the lake side. "Take the Goblins, to the other side of white mountain... Someone will receive them" "Ok" She says and I brought out another evolution pill. "but before that, Take this..."I give her the pill and observed her expression. Besides the initial surprise, she collected it and swallowed without a single shred of doubt. somehow it felt different each time but I have come to understand that they all trust me for different reasons or beliefs. Earlier while talking to Urim, I gave him the pill and he didn''t even question it, if I hadn''t told him to wait till he was settled with his matter...he would have swallowed it and who knew how long his evolution would take, considering our bloodline. Moz on the other hand should be a lot easier. a minute later, a whitish cacoon laid next to me. With a sigh, I checked the cool down for my branding...I won''t be able to take control of Brogg with it on cool down. Another sigh escaped my lips as I sat down on the floor. ''Memories of my former life feels so far away now but does it even matter anymore?'' I looked at my green palm with slight confusion. ''Damn it Alex, you have never been an emotional guy...'' I thought with a laugh before bringing up the interface for Sigil. I have now confirmed that the tiger does exist, but it was now in the hands of the Greyeye clan. ''I need to make contact to know if it''s hostile or something before adding any other foreign creature to this world''. My line of sight then landed on the two empty spots available for new sigils. _____________________ Thann''s End, Moongret family domain. Slum Area, Shev''s POV "A territory with nothing." This place truly was the stinks. to think that Four Fingered Burne seemed to be pretty well-off, I thought his territory would be more developed, but I guess not. It''s still the slums after all. In the Four Fingered Burne''s estate, I leaned back into the chair Burne would usually be seated, as I looked down at his bound figure in front of me. "¡­now, what am I supposed to do with you?" I had invaded and taken Burne''s estate along with his armed forces, ''Master wanted Chaos in Thann''s End and so Chaos he shall get'' I smiled thinking about the praises I would receive as I signalled one of my men to smash Burne''s head. "And so it begins." I said while eyeing the Moongret castle in the distance. Cail did the same as he noticed my action. "Now we have a base befitting of master''s prestige." I never needed something like this before but now, things were different... Chapter 118 - 117: Incomplete Evolution? Moz''s POV, Hot!... Everything feels so Hot.. I Unconsciously groan but no sound came out. ''what is happening to me?'' I tried to open my eyes but something seemed to pour across my face, like I was at the pond. With a little struggle, my hands passed through something and the water leaked out. Hot... Hot!!... I looked around and found Torug looking at me in surprise. Hot! But something made me want to approach him. "M..My C..Chief...!"I struggled to say as I tried to stand up, but I fell... "What''s wrong?" He asks,"Incomplete Evolution? how come?"... While saying such words, he took off his cloak and tried to place it over my body. But some reason, I pushed it aside...I need to... I looked at him alone despite all the pain, it seemed like there was a fire burning in my eyes. There was no smile on his face, only a frown. I liked seeing this look on his face. His gaze, filled me with d.e.s.i.r.e and I felt like I couldn''t be complete without him, My Master!. I grabbed his arm and put it around my waist. I didn''t plan to do so but I just did, it felt right... His brows furrowed in discontent and I subconsciously straightened the wrinkles on his forehead with my fingers. My breath was rough, as I had trouble breathing. "don''t move." He said. But I slowly moved my hand on his firm c.h.e.s.t, c.a.r.e.s.sing it. His whole body, firm with muscles. Seeing his n.a.k.e.d body, I only had one thought "I want this body", my eyes drifted off to his shadow as it seemed to sing to me. I nuzzled my head under his jaw and mumbled at his neck. I slowly trailed down his neck with my tongue, going down his shoulders and c.h.e.s.t, tickling him with my tongue. I stroked his firm skin, enjoying the feeling in my hands. "¡­I still can''t move?"I hear myself ask suddenly as I hear his breath thicken, His voice was murky and subdued, "You asked for this..." I hummed in response. I was absorbed with c.a.r.e.s.sing him. When I s.u.c.k.e.d on the protrusion on his c.h.e.s.t, his breathing became rougher. It was funny and I was also excited by his reaction. My whole body acted on it''s own, and I felt my shadow magic try to connect with his shadow. Torug looked at my hand and my face strangely as he seemed to understand something, "so that''s how it is..." A strong force suddenly gripped my chin and a pair of lips covered mine. His patience seemed to have finally reached its limit. His feverish tongue ploughed through my lips and fiercely traced the innards of my mouth. "Ng¡­Hnn." I closed my eyes and let myself sink into what he was doing. My Mana surged at a faster rate as it sort to merge with his shadow, He grabbed me by the b.u.t.t and lifted me up. The moment their lips separated, he pulled her down by the waist, to meet his erect... "Aak!" "Grrr¡­" a growl escaped his lips and his eyes glowed greenish gold, a mild green flame seemed to longer above his skin. Rough m.o.a.ns escaped from both of our mouths from that moment. ____________________________ A while back, Janetta''s POV, This was my first battle since after increasing my evolution level. It was more agile than I have ever felt, I was able to move my body quite easily at a fairly rapid pace. That person''s face moved closer. '' Selliqei'' a woman with short hair, with extremely crazed eyes. When I gazed into her eyes, I could feel the goosebumps jumping out of me as she smiled creepily, thrusting her sword like arms onto me teasingly. She was there in her half spider form, feeling like everything was in the palm of her hands. ''I will show you real strength.'' I began to churn my mana as it spread throughout my body, this was one of the benefits of increasing my evolution circle. Mana flowed across my skin like never before, A great deal of heat began to surround me just below my skin and I could feel the changes in my eyes. I could feel or see the trajectory of every movement around me by three seconds, 2 seconds more than the last time I tried it...which shows my abilities were increasing by the day. after evolving, I had realized that I was able to control the timing to some degree, while matching it''s pace with my actions, so it would look like I was moving at a faster than normal pace. That way She feels like she was definitely suppressing me. Even though I was enjoying myself toy with her. She screeched while swinging her sword like arm, Sparks flew everywhere as I dodged to the side effortlessly. Then¡­ what I heard was an intensely unpleasant sound, the other spiders had given us the space we needed as tradition states, but that didn''t stop them from screeching repeatedly. Afterwards. "Ugh." she groans, with each dodge, I had been secretly giving her light wounds with my claws. since I was in human form, I found that I could actually make my nails turn into claws while releasing poison through them. Blood began to burst out of her body after a few seconds and I became curious, ''could my poison affect my own kind?''. "What did you do to me?!" She growls. ''hmph'' with snort, I place my left arm onto my waist while inspecting my claws on my right hand. While I was distracted for a second, she sprayed her webs at me in a strange manner but I dodged with a calm back flip (A/N: just picture the cat woman''s s.e.xy back flip lol). But a creepy sound wave echoed through my body, Selliqei then rushed at me with a stab. "slow" despite being dizzy, I felt like I could still toy with her and that I did, as I casually avoided all her attacks. For some reason, a strange laugh escaped my lips as I watched her struggle desperately, I could see shock, despair, rage and sadness...it filled me with bliss. I''ve had several opportunity to kill her, but despite that, I did not try to attack her. In other words, She was a bug that I could squish whenever I felt like it. "Ok It''s getting boring!"while saying that, I climbed up her body as she struggled to pull me away, I shot some web onto her face from my mouth, effortlessly blinding her. As she struggled, I grabbed onto her neck. The thing is, it was meant to be hard in her form but I felt like I could crush it in a second. "Wait! Janetta!! I am your sister! Your queen!! we can stop this now!" Selliqei''s voice called out in fear. With a playful tone, I struck out and pulled out her throat. "Pff...As if, you were never my queen" I said with a laugh, completely ignoring her attempt at a sneak attack earlier. Several shrieks rang across the cavern as the Grole spiders hailed their new Queen. A grin spread across my face. Chapter 119 - 118: Why do you smell like... Torug''s POV, The lake view is the only clock this mountain ever needs, for the hue reflected on the water tells all, from moonlit nights to the brightest noon sun. Despite it being nothing but Black, it seemed to have a special magic to it, ''A miracle born in this world...'' My thoughts trailed off as my eyes fell on the sleeping n.a.k.e.d body next to me. Memories of our actions all afternoon played across my mind teasingly. Unconsciously a sigh escaped my lips. [Name: Moz Blackmoon Race: Vans Alhamanut (High Shadow orc) Gender: Female Level: 31 (Order of the third circle) Power rating: 63440 (59970+3470) Alignment: Chaotic neutral Relationship: Blackmoon clan member, Torug''s shadow, ...] ''Her race changed and she increased by one level after evolution?... I wonder if that had something to do with me'' I calmly grabbed my Cloak lying not far away and tried to cover her. Then I noticed the changes her evolution brought after completion. Her medium length hair grew longer and her body muscles became much more refined, now she was less muscular and much closer to human than orc, looking more like the Halfling girls only taller... Her Mana swirled around her, over and over, like it was refining her body. Thoughts of continuing with our earlier exercise crossed my mind but I was more concerned about affecting her evolution. There''s still an and a 45% just below her stats. I sighed while lamenting a little, ''now that I have started, it might be troublesome to control my self from now on''. When her body was completely covered, I sat down and turned to the lake once again. ''Was it watching? that would be weird and funny at the same time...'' With a small laugh, I used my Brand to look at what Brogg was up to. There''s no longer any need to get him to send people to the foot of white mountain, that would need to wait till later. For now, I have to come up with something else just in case Moz is unable to wake up in time. While having such thoughts, I took control of Brogg and walked through the fortress. Just the same way I went through the last time and I quickly found the Tiger. White looking hair with black highlights all over the place, Her body laid in the cage leisurely, unperturbed by the fact that she was completely n.a.k.e.d, she had what seemed to look like a pinkish skin tone and feral looking eyes, every minute movement exuded pride, the base of her neck and few other spots on her body held small little patches of white fur, her tail would sway from side to side in a teasing manner like she wanted someone to touch it. Her golden brown eyes, cold and calculating despite her mannerism. [Name: ???(None) Race: ???(Unrecognized by the world, no name given). Gender: Female Level: 22 (Order of the second circle) Power rating: 20000 Alignment: Chaotic neutral Surprisingly, the system didn''t give anymore description other than this, even the minor explanations were nowhere to be found. I controlled Brogg to approach this Creature and as soon as I stepped within a 2m range from the cage, She turned towards me and stared into my eyes with confusion. Perhaps doubting whatever she was thinking, She got in a crawling position as I got closer to the cage. '' can she sense me through Brogg''s eyes?... interesting'' the closer I got the stronger confusion. "Do you speak?" I asked with a little doubt, but when Brogg''s voice came out, it was an entirely strange language that was heard. ''this works like this too?'' I couldn''t help but marvel at the language function. The moment She heard my words, surprised filled her face and an enchanting smile bloomed, she nodded repeatedly but didn''t say a word. "What is your name?" I asked but she didn''t to understand what that meant, probably wondering if it was something that could be eaten. She stretched out her hands towards me while nodding in a way that indicated that I should do the same. then it seemed like she had sensed something, probably me, she went to find me but was caught by the Greyeye clan. She was then moved here a few days ago from a hidden base within my territory. It continued to play until it stopped at this present time. This is incredible, these memories just informed me of a few things, like this secret base in my lands... ''What could they be doing there'' I wondered before coming to the conclusion that it was nothing good. I''ll take that base out... Meanwhile, this also proves that she could sense me and wasn''t hostile. Then what about this dragon? I couldn''t help thinking about my other sigil. after a few seconds in thought, I say, "Don''t worry, I will help you...I will call you Vass". although I said ''white'', it came out as Vass in this strange language... luckily it didn''t sound so bad. after reassuring her of my return, I quickly left Brogg but kept on watching. And unsurprisingly, the moment I left his body, Vass looked stunned for a second before becoming aggressive. Brogg dodged in an awkward manner before threatening her in fear and looking around in confusion. Seeing this made me laugh, so this connection isn''t really physical... ''there''s a lot of strange things in this world'' with a bit of amus.e.m.e.nt I decided to lead the team that would attack the ''secret'' base, ''I need to know what they''re doing''. With that thought, I noticed that I was covered with my cloak. I turned to look for Moz but she wasn''t there, I best go look for her first. __________________________ Meanwhile, At the entrance of the Mine, a crowd was gathered there with all the members of the Chief''s inner circle present. The members of the black moon clan whispered to each other as they stared at a purple haired woman talking to a group of strange creatures hiding within the mines. while all this was going on, Nazu has been looking at Moz strangely since she arrived. Even the others noticed this, Moz had a serious expression on her face as she looked at Janetta, no one knew what she was thinking. Lovan seemed like he was standing on needless as he has just found out that he has a phobia for spiders, If Raz wasn''t holding him down he would have probably run off by now. Torrelsav kept his hands on his axe but did not pull them out as he watched the mine entrance. Urim was nowhere to be seen and Dabok watched everything around him with a knowing smile. Perhaps unable to hold back her curiosity, Nazu walked up to Moz and began to sniff before frowning slightly. "Why do you smell like him" she asked, genuinely confused. Torrelsav was momentarily stunned before coughing slightly, Raal whoops with a "Ho Ho ho" sound before getting hit by Dabok''s staff. Janetta on the other hand had the biggest reaction, she abandoned what she was doing and sped towards Moz, sniffed here and there before saying, "Your right..." with a teasing laugh. Moz, who was the center of everyone''s attention could only wish she could sink into the ground. Suddenly, her eyes brightens as she suddenly disappears from everyone''s sight, well not everyone, as Janetta looked in a certain direction before laughing. Chapter 120 - 119: Completed quest Torug''s POV, ''Jealousy is easier to see than one might expect, it for sure has no cloak of invisibility.'' This are my thoughts as I watched what playing out in front of me. After leaving the lakeside, I ran in search of Moz, only to find that everyone was heading towards the mine. They barely even registered my presence as they gossiped with great curiosity amongst themselves, something about some creatures coming out of the mine. My first thoughts was Janetta, so I made my way there while thinking about how to reward her for settling the matter quickly. but then I was like, I shouldn''t just jump into conclusion in order to avoid disappointment later. Who knew I would bump into the escaping Moz, who simply jumped into my shadow without a word. The others looked at me with different expressions, Nazu just happened to be in the forefront of the group, with Janetta leading her Grole spiders behind, the villagers trailed behind with interest. As soon as I got closer, Nazu''s eyes went wide, she approached me and began to sniff, when she was done, she looked like she wanted to say something but chose to remain silent. Unfortunately, I have been feeling this sharp pain from the side, as she continued to glare at me. ''Woman, do you have some kind of superpower or something ah'', if she was the only one but who knew, Urim would come to my side and smack my shoulder playfully, he wiggled his eyebrows as well, making me feel the urge to have another unarmed combat training with him. Seeing him feel so smug, I used my eyes to threaten him but it only seemed to add color to his amus.e.m.e.nt, so I used my eyes to remind him of Torrelsav. The big oaf probably choked on his saliva, as he has been coughing for a while now. Before anyone could grab the opportunity to tease me, I quickly acknowledged Janetta. "Looks like everything went smoothly" I say, to which she simply bowed, a smile hung on her lips like a child who had been praised by a parent. I didn''t mind as I was genuinely impressed by how quickly she handled the whole matter, then I asked her another question as I approached her people, "Have you told them about what was to come?". Looking at the spider folk, I noticed that they seemed uncomfortable, perhaps because of being away from the Sun for so long. Well it was still a few hours before evening and this period is usually the hottest period of the day. "yes"She said as she looked towards her people, no one said anything or made any sound at this point of the conversation. As if on cue, the spider folk began to bow, from those who had yet to assimilate to those with half humanoid forms, every one bowed to the master of their Queen. Though confused, they accepted the situation whole heatedly. some of the elites who already had human forms and assimilated with human corpses had perhaps already begun thinking of the concept of Kings. [Ding!] [You have conquered the Den of Groles] [Unlocked new resource point (Mana crystal mine)]. [+300 Mana crystal would be available for use within the Town''s storage every day at 20:00] [you have gained a new title, One who plays with Silk] [For the Queen(completed)] [Etix is surprised by your improvement] [Ayaseh is pleased by your achievement and has blessed Blackmoon Town : 20% exp bonus card] [Unlocked New buildings] ____________________ I quickly accepted their allegiance in half surprise because of the system notifications. what surprised me the most was the number of spiders, 2170! that''s an army!. In my excitement, I asked Janetta about this while feigning calmness but I became sad later... Apparently, about 822 were still eggs while those that were in the first circle numbered around 610, 34 were on the second circle and had just completed their assimilation in order to become elites, that way they''ll have a complete humanoid form. The remaining 704 were still just Grole spiders. This sounded reasonable but at the same time left me disappointed in way but it''s not too late. the system has acknowledged them as my people, so all that would change in no time. I then dismissed everyone, asking my inner circle to come to the Manor after an hour. "Janetta" I called out from the side and the purple haired woman looked in my direction, "try to work with Nazu in order to make arrangements for your people". Hearing my words, she looked at me with a knowing smile before dragging away the Jealous orc woman. Meanwhile, I quickly walked to the Manor while going through the notifications. While at it, I noticed I had finally completed a quest. [''For the Queen''!] [Deal with the Grole Queen...] [The Queen serves...as expected of a King] [Rewards: purple equipment card x3, Skill level up card x1, Building upgrade card x1 ] "???" If I said I wasn''t somewhat confused by the evaluation, I''d be lying, but the rewards were rather generous. "..." at some point, Moz had appeared and was seated at the base of my throne. "Moz" I called out and she subconsciously looked in my direction, before rushing to look away again. "..." honestly I didn''t know what to say, as I didn''t want to be misunderstood. "I sinned" She finally says, but her words further increased my confusion. "What do you mean?" "Nazu was the one who should have been the first but..." her words ended halfway, obviously this was genuinely worrying her. Thinking about the whole thing, I remembered a rule about such things but they were only applicable within those clans that stuck with tradition and their prejudice against Shadow Orcs. Shadow Orcs had no right to rulership and were meant to stick with their hunters all their life, in fact, I could say their status were on two steps above outcasts and oath breakers, then a step above the slaves and serfs. This could be seen in the way the blood horn clan did things. ''I can only imagine what she must have been experiencing since childhood, up until I caught her, even then, She had been abandoned by her Hunter Ghur and left for dead...'' "Moz..." I called out to her but she didn''t really answer, "You are not to worry about such things, this is the Black moon clan, this is your clan... no one is to treat you differently and it doesn''t matter who is first or second... what matters is what I choose to do, if anyone feels otherwise, they''re free to come and fight me" She looked at me with raised brows but said nothing besides a nod. Soon she phased out in front of me. ''Ah idiot...is that how to cheer someone up or...'' I berated myself internally and couldn''t help shaking my head, for the first time, I didn''t know what to say than to babble nonsense. "Ah... another stupid title" I say trying to distract my self from what happened earlier. Chapter 121 - 120: Creature in the Lake pt 1 Lord''s Manor, Blackmoon clan, Torug''s POV, I silently looked at the two empty sigil slots and decided to use one of them for the creature in the lake. My talk with Vass helped me confirm one thing, this sigils reduces the creature''s hostility towards me... but does this effect spread out to my people?. Presently, all villagers have the tiger tattoo while my vassals have the dragon added to theirs. perhaps that''s why the tiger didn''t continue it''s rampage the other night. After a while, I Unconsciously let out a sigh before steeling my resolve while preparing for the worst. Recalling the image the author had posted that depicted the creature in the lake. It was a reptilian creature, reminiscent of a snake with whitish black, double layered, glass-like scales, it was said to be at least 250 miles in length. The exact size of the creature was unknown because what was stated by the author still shows that the creature never completely left the lake when it chose to battle. during the human siege, it''s armored scales made it impossible to kill the beast, this forced the army to retreat. it was seen in the artwork that, it had a double layer of armored scales that protected its flesh, in fact they were layered so closely together that I suspect not even air could get through!. Funny enough, this creature was also praised for its strange beauty. The mighty beast was said to have qualities that are fluorescent in nature. Its eyes and whitish black scales are said to have a dim sort of light that is thought to intensify if it breaks the surface of the ocean. As I recalled all these, the creature was slowly being drawn on the sigil space, infact the system already began to fill in the places that were not seen on the picture. [Do you wish to confirm the displayed Sigil above?] There it was in all its Glory, the creature to be feared by many, there was a rumor going around while I was on earth, saying that this creature could probably go toe to toe with the world eater, people disagreed saying that it had not shown any signs of magic despite getting attacked by a massive army, so it was impossible to fight the world eater... "yes" The moment I accepted, the unimaginable happened. A pain I had never felt before since all my evolutions and use of sigils, assaulted me. The sound of bones breaking, rang out repeatedly as I somehow fell to the floor with a pained roar. Nazu came in through the hall doors and dashed towards me, unfortunately Moz appeared next to me immediately. The audible sounds of bones breaking and amending themselves, brought Nazu out of her dazed expression. Urim couldn''t be bothered with any of them as he helped me up, only for my legs to give way accompanied by another loud crackling sounds like a mini thunder storm. I could feel my body heating up and sweat rolling down across my body. Dabok soon arrived and began to chant something but it was useless, my clarity was evading me with every minute but the activity within my body was relentless. ''Did something go wrong? no if it did, I would have been alerted by the ...'' I thought silently before a dreadful scream escaped my mouth. ''My spine''... My heart beat picked up and all our tattoos began to glow light green with each beat from my heart. too bad I''m not in the mood to figure out the reason. I tapped Urim frantically and said with much effort, "Let...l...let me..." "Yes Brother, tell me..." Urim says with gritted teeth and a worried but resolute expression. He''s probably wondering who did this to me or something along the lines. "Let me lie...down" I finally managed to say in a somewhat full sentence but even that was accompanied with a scream, at this point I couldn''t feel my feet anymore. soon the wolves began howling outside, it gave a sad vibe, obviously showing how they were feeling presently. ''you guys ... I''m not even dead yet, don''t jinx it for me'' Meanwhile I''ve been trying to communicate with the system but it remained silent, this went on for hours without mercy until it was close to midnight before it stopped. "Sixteen hours of suffering" I say while sitting up but something else surprised me and that was my voice. it was like I listening to ''Jeremy irons'' voicing scar. I looked up at the others and found them looking at me in shock and it was obvious they had been that way for hours. _____________________ Nazu''s POV, ''it finally stopped...'' a sigh escaped my lips as I could finally relax, ''but why is he not waking up?, he doesn''t seem to be breathing either''. I looked at the others and noticed that they had the same expression, Janetta didn''t look worried though, so I asked what she thought. "He''s fine...I can feel it, after all if he''s dead I would be as well" She says but I couldn''t understand what she meant by that. after waiting for an hour or so, Torug finally started showing changes. His tusks began to look thicker and his tattoos glowed green, ours followed soon after and everyone could finally relax. Although we didn''t know what the glow meant, it set out minds at ease. "Sixteen hours of suffering" When he spoke, he also sounded different and when he sat up, we saw it. Short Bone spike grew out of his spine repeatedly and went back into his body. His height increased and his muscles became firmer, his greenish gold eyes glowed even brighter than before. Soon he walked towards his throne in an uncaring manner. ''Strong'' While thinking of this, we watched him sit down and take a deep breath. "What happened?" Dabok asked, voicing everyone''s confusion. "It seems like I channeled or did something that my body couldn''t handle completely, luckily it worked out in the end" Torug explains but it only made us more confused, too bad we didn''t have the chance to enquire further because Torug said something shocking. "The Greyeye clan, have long since been targeting us and even have a hiding place within our lands". "What?!" everyone was shocked, so I wasn''t the only one that was unaware of things this time. While we mummured, He continued, "Yes, and they have been capturing wild or magic beasts for a while now... what do you think they''re doing?." No one said anything but then I thought of something I had once seen, "Could they be preparing a ritual?". "It''s very likely..." Lovan says. Torug looked at me for a bit and asked, "and when do they usually do rituals or sacrifices in the orc lands?". Hearing his question, I answered without much thought as it was so simple, "War of course..." while answering though, it hit me. What war are they preparing for, there''s no news from the white mountain which was their alleged enemies. "Kharag is very cunning, I can bet you that, we''re probably the only ones who are unaware of his declaration of war." Torug rubs his Jaws while smiling? before muttering "I could get used to this voice". others may not have heard it but Urim and I did, because of how close we were to the throne. "Perhaps, they announced their declaration of war to the major clans while leaving us out of the loop for a surprise attack" Dabok says... His words made me think of his visit, "He came here, claiming to be inviting us for a feast but the others would see it as him coming to declare war" I blurted out in surprise. "a perfect evidence to defend his actions, if anyone accused him of sneak attacking later, the other clans would defend him while accusing us of being weak and it''s only right to be taken" Torrelsav quickly added. Dabok looked at the rest of us before saying, "we''re already fighting a war without knowing it... and I''m there''ll be witnesses to this visit." "What do we do brother?" Torug looked at Urim before saying, "I have seen their place, they were fortifying their fortress not decorating and I know they already have their soldiers in our lands, so I say we give them a surprise". "What would you have us do" I asked, happy that I can finally do something for my mate... even though he has been with another before me... Chapter 122 - 121: Creature in the lake pt 2. Thann''s End, Radiant Sun Church''s Branch, "Your Holiness!" An apprentice dashes into the prayer room. His face was filled with anxiety as he approaches an elderly priest. The latter was praying to a statue of an old man, carved out of gold. it had a lamp on one hand and a sword on the other, staring out of the massive windows as the sun shined on it. Despite the disturbance from the apprentice, the old priest made no move to acknowledge his presence, he prayed wholeheartedly to the gold statue. After a full fifteen minutes, he moved away from his position. "He killed Another?". "Y..yes" the young apprentice says with a shudder as cold sweat rolled down his body. ''That''s the eight one!!!'' he thought fearfully. After his answer, there was silence before the old priest glanced at him, "you may leave" "yes..."the apprentice retreated with backward steps before bowing again, only then did he leave. The elderly priest then left with hurried steps before reaching the back garden. "Bishop Rodney, Anthony is really a problem..." the elderly priest says aggrieved, only for him to be cut off by the man seated amongst flowers. "Relax Bast...those are simply traitors" But his words only further agitated the man. "your Holiness, surely all twenty three of them aren''t as he says... that''s the total amount of people Anthony Vance has killed both openly and secretly since his arrival!". "Oh?... that many?!" Bishop Rodney says casually as he plucked the unsuspecting flower, from the other side of the garden another person made his presence known. "Anthony..." Bast says in a flat tone and Anthony does the same with great indifference, "Bast...". Rodney was amused and then asked, "are his words true?" "My dear Bishop, those were all traitors that had been bought by the nobles of Thann''s end and beyond, unfortunately, there has been no clues on the purple haired woman, so I''ll unfortunately have to continue my investigation" the young priest in purple robes says lazily before adding, "Soul searching is also troublesome...hmmm". "You!!" Bast found Anthony''s lazy tone, irritating. "Enough!" Rodney cuts the both of them off, "Anthony, that should be enough for the inside work...start with the outside investigation and find me that night mother''s champion, you have just this week!". "..." Seeing him silent, Rodney asked "Am I clear?!". Noticing how serious Rodney was, he said, "Crystal, your Holiness!". "Good... now leave my presence" Blackmoon Town, Torug''s POV, After making arrangements, everyone set out to complete the process while I chose to examine my system notifications but found nothing. "Strange" I muttered with the same unfamiliar voice, it was entirely different from what I was beginning to get used to. The strange thing about the whole thing is that the system only shows [Updating...], but I can already feel the changes. Using the creature in the lake, changed my entire constitution and body structure. It increased my defense and added a few extra features to my body, without any other actions from me, Mana has been flowing into my body at a steady pace. Using my cultivation method, I noticed that it was about three times faster than normal and I can now store more Mana within my body. Gills, retractable Bone spurs andclaws on my spine and limbs. the amount of body activity has increased as well as my Increase in height. My number of slots for my champion spells increased from 3 to 4. "Unbelievable, all this from a sigil" From the look of things, I need to do some more research on the creatures of this world before using my final sigil, ''I remember there were other powerful creatures but I have to experiment further about my sigils for now''. With that in mind, I stepped out for the usual bonfire dinner only to find Alpha dashing towards me. seeing his actions left my mouth twitching, ''how can your face be this expressive?!!''. At some point, I lifted my hand and took a sniff from my armpits, "..." "..." "Fine, I''ll go bath now" I finally say grudgingly, I am really stinky, how did the others stand the smell!?, especially Urim... now that I think of it, he did look stiff... ''sigh... respect to you brother, tsk tsk tsk''. Alpha looks at me with a "Just go" expression before sneezing. ''tch...damn dog face, how can you treat your owner like this'' I glare at alpha while thinking before a devilish idea came to mind. ''With my new specs, I should be able to breathe underwater...maybe I can take that thing?''. ''I''ll experiment further with Vass''. I had Haji prepare some water for me to bath but found the same muscular orc woman and a few others, carrying a makeshift bucket made with strange leaves and pouring water into the bamboo bathtub made by the system. while relaxing in the tub, I somehow fell asleep and found myself deep underwater. everywhere around me remained pitch black, so I chose to remain unmoving until a minute later, two gainomous snake like eyes opened in front of me. It stared down at me for a long time, exuding great pressure from it''s body but remained motionless. a pale blue fluorescent pupil scanned across my body silently before everything went dark once more, only for me to wake up in the tub. Regaining my senses, I found myself sweating even though I was in water. "Scary..."I muttered silently before processing what just happened, after thinking repeatedly, my eyes silently looked towards my dragon tattoo. ''Why isn''t there any movement from the dragon side then?''. "What was that?" a sultry voice came from the side, only for me to turn and find a stranger. "Ayaseh" I say after releasing my breath, unperturbed about her seeing me n.a.k.e.d, after all there''s nothing to be ashamed of in this body, also who knows how much she has seen without my knowledge. She smiles for a second and walked towards me with a curious gaze, "You''re indeed healing at a faster rate than I thought but why do you have the scent of a dead God on you?". "..." Stunned, I began to wonder if the creature was a God but her next words cancelled that notion. "Ah yes, I remember now... it''s the scent of that stubborn orc, what was he again? God of the wild or something?...hmm..." she lightly tapped into the bamboo surface while in thought. I then decided to test her, I stood up while bringing the up Ravrok''s God seed. "do you mean this?" I asked while looking at her face, she was surprised, then happy as she said, "why haven''t you absorbed it?! it would help Hasting your healing while taking control of that world law..." She began to talk on and on about how it was good for me but the system advised otherwise, I need to evolve to at least the level of a demigod before attempting that, but she didn''t know this rule, maybe because she was born differently I suppose. As she spoke, she set up a barrier around the manor to block the God seed''s aura. Suddenly, she paused while saying, "wait... that''s not right, hmm do I go and ask Goltan?". But then her face changed with the sound of lightning coming from outside, before I could even look back at her she was gone. I quickly put on my battle skirt and hurried outside to confirm my fears. There it was, Rain, not of water but of blood instead. "Another God has fallen" I said solemnly. Chapter 123 - 122: Slight problem? Blackmoon Town, Lord''s Manor, Torug''s POV, "Time is running out... another God is dead, all this must be Ragol''s plan to pressure the Neutral side''s hand" walking out of the inner parts of my Manor, I stepped into the throne Hall. because of the weather outside, the hall was dimmer than usual, the fire flickered seductively at the fireplace without any care. Alpha laid by the door, while covering his snout, a look of annoyance could be seen on his face as he glares outside. When I took a step further, his ears twitched for a bit before he looked in my direction. after observing for a second or two, he closed his eyes. His actions were all smooth and vivid in my eyes, all this made me chuckle silently as I approached him. "You must really hate the blood rain" I say with a laugh, he obviously closed his eyes because he didn''t want us to go anywhere. The Wolf opened it''s eyes but continued to dodge my eyes. "Alpha?" I coax while stroking it''s fur, only for him to snort in disdain. Unfortunately, his tail does not lie, it swayed behind playfully. "Fine, we won''t be going anywhere today" I suddenly say as I stood up for my throne, the wolf opened it''s eyes in shock, probably wondering why I changed my mind. Before it could say anything, Moz walked in from the door. for some reason, I found that action strange, after all, she usually just pops up next to me and I had already become numb to it... "My Chief" she bows her head a little and touched her forehead with her palm, like a wife greets her husband. She then smiled and said,"everything is ready now but the wolves are acting strangely...". She then waited for my response before adding something," Torrelsav suggested to wait, perhaps the blood rain is the problem but Nazu suggests we use this opportunity now that everywhere smells like blood..." "and who do you agree with?" I asked. "Nazu" She says without missing a beat. Silence followed her answer, as I went into deep thought about this matter "..." ''Are the wolves really unusable now and what are our chances of winning without them...No shouldn''t be a problem for a small camp, what if it were big?... wouldn''t matter too much either''. ''The rain isn''t helping matters as I have no idea when it would end, the length of the rain determines the God''s strength when he or she was alive, is there a side effect to the rain? considering the reaction of the wolves or does it have something to do with the law used by the dead God.'' "Dead God" I muttered, I found that strange and ridiculous but yeah, even Gods die. No this must be done today, the purple moon is only two days away and there''s the meeting with the one eyed Haran''. Moz left a nod as my eyes lingered on body much longer than It would have several days ago. After watching her leave, a sigh escaped my lips as I said, "You know, this isn''t normal". "what isn''t?" a female voice asked as someone crawled out from the dark parts of the bamboo roof beams. a purple haired woman stood before me, wrapped in what looked like a pyjamas but was obviously made of her own webs. "Interesting"I muttered, This could be used for trading and so much more. at some point, Janetta was already in front of me as she traced her fingers playfully on the throne. "I thought you said you found where to live"I asked with a sigh, I could almost guess what she meant back then. "Indeed, I have...up there" "..." "I want to go with you guys" her voice sounded playful. She raised an eyebrow in wonder and I elaborated," the church brought someone to hunt you down and kill you, so I want you to hunt this Anthony down instead before he leads trouble to our lands." "..." "Can you do it?" I asked . A teasing smile spread across her lips and I took that as a yes. "Make his death a public art site...I have a score to settle with his father, so don''t be in a hurry, be sure to invite his father out with this" Anthony''s father, Crodsey, was part of the leading humans that attacked the white Bone clan. "As you wish" She climbs up the beams and moved to the dark side to change, too bad I can see everything as clear as day. This... Shaking my head, I proceeded with my cultivation while considering what to do with Brogg and Vass in the Greyeye fortress as I have come to call it. Blackmoon Town, Outside by the training Field, Nazu''s POV, Moz walks out of the hall and nods at me before heading off somewhere. That only meant one thing, He agreed... I couldn''t help smiling at the fact that he agreed with my suggestion. Urim didn''t say much either, as he understood what Moz meant, he simply shrugged before leaving the shade we were hiding under. A few steps away, he stops and says with a laugh... "You still owe me a duel" "..." without waiting for my response, he chose to leave and I couldn''t help but turn to see Raal''s expression but was greeted with the sight of Raal and his wolf arguing again, well it was mostly Raal yelling and the wolf either nodding or shaking it''s head while supporting it''s opinion with some odd sounds. "You are wondering why I didn''t taste it myself?" Raal asked in surprise before saying"Don''t go accusing me of anything, it''s just that I just ate earlier...Old Dabok says we shouldn''t drink immediately after eating.." "what do you mean you just ate too... how did you eat, I don''t remember giving you any...How did I eat? ah? You are really unbearable? how am I supposed to eat? can I still swap you for...No, I didn''t mean..." Shaking my head speechlessly, I went to gather some goblins and prepare somethings to shield us from the rain but I noticed that there were more children and pregnant Goblins than a few days ago. I couldn''t help being jealous as I subconsciously touches my tummy, The thought of having children has been lingering in my mind lately since the news of Gilgar being pregnant for Urim spread out recently. ''in two days'' I keep repeating to myself. Chapter 124 - 123: Raiding the hideout. Torug''s POV, As soon as I was done with my cultivation, I could feel that I only needed another session to breakthrough the first level of ''Feral serenity''. It was still the early hours of the day so I left my inner Chambers and headed for the throne Hall. ''From the look of things, only few were awake on this side of the town'' I thought lightly before sitting on the throne, I looked at the silent throne Hall with a loss at what to do. After a little bit of thinking, I decided to use my branding skill. the day before, I had decided secretly, to have Vass kill Kharag''s Son, it was the plan that had the highest probability of success. __________ Greyeye Fortress, Brogg''s POV, "Master said I should deal with the little Chief... but how...what Master??!" I mumbled before getting confused for a second, then "Ah yes Master". I hurried towards the Breeding house while cackling inexplicably. Then my body stopped again and walked to the caged beast female. ''Ah! Ma...master... he came, Master is here again'' I thought with joy as I watched myself move in ways I never thought I could. I don''t know what... _________________ Torug''s POV "Vass" I say through Brogg''s mouth and she turned to me with slight surprise as She says slowly in a strange language, "Green eyed one". ''She spoke?!!'' I found it surprising and couldn''t help being shocked, then I noticed the bones of different creatures lying around her cage, there was even a half eaten goblin corpse not to far from here as well. ''Looks like have been feeding her well'' I thought with dry humor, and subconsciously scratched my cheek. She tilted her head in confusion, before adjusting how she sat, exposing herself further to my view. Obviously, having grown to this point without being bothered about clothes, has affected her thinking...can I even put it that way?. "Let the one I am wearing help you..."I finally say, trying to blow off the weird atmosphere while pointing at Brogg''s body. She then places her finger on her lip before nodding, despite her confusion. With that I released control over Brogg and began influencing his thoughts. with the frequent use of the branding skill, I have come to become more proficient. Influencing the branded individual''s thoughts slowly breaks them, while giving orders directly has no side effects, which was a bit strange to me. but both methods had one thing in common, they leave the victim in awe. Brogg is the former while Shev is presently the latter. After feeding the Green skinned creature with my entire plans to break down the Greyeye fortress, I left him to make the necessary preparation before returning to my body. __________ It was the second day since my last discussion with Janetta and only then did the Blood rain stop. before sunrise, I rallied my raiders, along with a part of my inner circle as we set out for the hidden enemy base. Near the Base was a separate outpost along a makeshift road that led to the direction of white mountain, within the hugs of the mountain ranges and Gerat trees that were still wet with blood, a light blood fog seemed to form as blood dripped from random places, forming streams that flowed between the forest. Nazu''s team of riders were marching in between the trees until a shrill cry rang out from within the distant base, alerting the birds around, causing them to fly away, leaving only some of their feathers behind. ''only the heavens knew what kind of torture brought about such a cry'' I winced at the abominable cry while thinking. We were presently located at the boundaries between the forest and the white mountain, the snow slowly invades the edge of the forest before melting again, leaving me in wonder. Presently, I was seated with my back against a thick tree and my hands rested on Alphas side, as I stroked him slowly. Tonight was the night of the purple moon and I had my own wedding to attend. the clan was bubbling with excitement as the chief was finally taking an official bride but the said Chief and his bride were out for battle, no matter how I thought about it, I found it funny. unsurprisingly, Alpha gave me an odd look for chuckling abruptly, he shook his body lightly as his fur swayed randomly. When the Sun was at its peak, Moz returned to my side and the time for action finally arrived. She had mentioned that there was a hidden sentry at the side of the mountain facing our direction, so I had her take care of him. I brought my vision to enemy outpost not to far away from Nazu''s team and my blood began to boil along with a wild heart beat in the background. ''How I pray to the night mother, that I find Kharag in there'' I thought darkly. According to the information given ''willingly'' by a concerned Greyeye Hobgoblin, who was part of a party sneaking around our town... this was the time for the patrol team to open the stone gates and head out for a routine survey around the base. This only further increased my thoughts about Kharag Greyeye''s shrewd character, but increased my curiosity on the purpose of this base. immediately, I had Alpha activate stealth, but instead a pale white Halo spread from Alphas feet until it enveloped everyone within it. This was something I was seeing for the first time and from what I understood after asking the system, it was a that came with the increased number of wolves and was tagged a ''pack skill'' that belonged to Alpha and the Ghost wolves. With everyone within the Halo going into stealth we watched as Urim approached the patrol team at the gate. ______________________________ the sound of the great hammer cutting through the air rang out, accompanied by the sound of cracking bones. An unlucky orc patrol member fell to the ground with shocked eyes as Urim rode passed him. His squad members were still in shock when the rest of Urim''s party claimed their heads as war trophies. Before the look out could react, Largash shot him down with the repeating crossbow. The gates remained open and I immediately led the remaining riders with me through the gates and the sound of fight was soon heard from the direction of the outpost. Moz already dismounted as she joined me in slaughtering the panicking troops like a shadowy Spectre. It only took a few minutes and the outer section was completely in flames, all this was to smoke out Kharag and those within the base. Largash aimed at the entrance with her crossbow and I dismounted Alpha. Silence... It didn''t take long and we could hear noises from behind the door. An Orc warrior charged out the door as though he was declaring his presence, too bad he was shot in the throat by Largash, ultimately silencing him. Swoosh!! swoosh!! swoosh!! She fired a few more as soon as she noticed any movement, adding to her body count. There was once again silence... only...this time it was too quiet. Without hesitation I pulled Largash out of the way and immediately, a human voice shouted out, "Greater fireball!!". A large ball of flame destroyed the wooden doors and shot towards Largash''s previous position. Several anxious cries came from behind and I noticed several shadows chasing after the flames, attempting to use the chaos to turn the tide of battle. Without much thought, I instinctively infused my Mana into my voice while releasing my intimidating aura to the max. And then, I roared!. Chapter 125 - 124: Are you confident? Earlier that Day, "Failure!, another Failure" A mage with a distorted face yells in frustration, "what am I missing?". "Paxim, are you sure it is possible?" Someone says from behind, attracting the seething mage''s attention. "What nonsense are you spouting Kharag?! do I need to remind you Everytime?...also, how come you are yet to find another striped creature, I mean if you are having trouble finding another, why don''t you give me the one you took away?!" Paximus sneered at the orc seated lazily before him. "Forget it, after I''m done...I might consider it" Kharag Greyeye says while standing up with a yawn. "Tch...I can''t be bothered with you, if you think finding the essence of life itself is that simple, then your deceiving yourself" perhaps ranting at the orc calmed him down but The mage quickly cleared up the magic array, disposing of the bloodied corpse and the other things on the worktable. "Do I really have to capture an elf?...oh Kharag, what about the weird orc you spoke about?" He suddenly asked like he wasn''t about to pounce at the orc a few minutes ago. Kharag simply signalled one of his warriors before saying, "another time, mage...I have something to attend to". "..." Paximus watched the Orc''s retreating back and sneered, ''You think I don''t know, your just waiting for me to succeed, so you can steal my work... unfortunately for you, I would be a God should I succeed...if only I can get the late Simon Weiss''s Grimoire, according to legend, it was burnt down along with his body at the battle of Munbat''s Grove all those years ago...such a waste of such precious artifact.'' The mage finished wiping his work table and whispered, suddenly, blue flames appeared on the work table, burning lightly as Paximus stared in a daze. His dark hair blocked the right side of his face and his pale blue eyes showed great hatred, once he recollected himself, he used his right hand to raise his unruly hair, exposing the burnt skin it was hiding before saying, "just you wait...Bring in, the next batch!!". ________________ "No...No... curses!"Paximus raged once again as he knocks down the work table. An Orc guard rushed into the makeshift lab and looked at the mess, understanding what went wrong, it sneered at the mage for a second but it quickly changed its expression. "Where''s your Chief?!!" "Hunting" The Orc guard gave a Curt reply. "Have a patrol team search for him, I require his presence this instant" Paximus ordered in clear orcish tongue. "..." Without much of a choice, the Orc went out immediately. An explosion and several wails could be heard in the distance. Paximus immediately became pale as he rushed towards a bunch of scrolls, "No, No, No..." he cried out repeatedly. "Anyone?!!! Where are these fools when you need them?" immediately an Orc rushed in saying, "Puny human, we go" "Huh? no wait...take this... and that one!" Paximus''s anxious yells could be heard. The orc soon grunted in frustration but did his best to help, "let''s go" the mage finally says. After exiting the room, they ran into a bunch of warriors heading outside and followed them. Argh! several bolts were shot in through the exit, taking the lives of several orc warriors with each sound. Presently, Paximus regretted not making a second entrance all this while. ''Well, the enemy shouldn''t be too powerful...at least I hope so'' He thought. "Razos!!"Paximus yells as a huge flaming ball flew out the exit. A booming roar that brought great pressure rang out from said direction, "ENOUGH!!!". A sound wave knocked everyone out of place, leaving only Paximus standing... barely. a fog made of smoke spread across the surrounding but soon cleared up slowly, exposing everything it had hidden from him. A group of tattooed Orcs riding on strange sized wolves and a b.a.r.e c.h.e.s.ted, two meters tall Orc with even more tattoos, thick black hair and piercing golden green eyes, in his arms, laid a Halfling female glaring at him. "wolves?"Paximus muttered in confusion and then he seemed to have thought of something while completely ignoring the Halfling, ''Blackmoon clan?''. __________________ Torug''s POV, [Name: Paximus Rufford Race: Advanced human rune mage Power rating: 32802+4600(Equipment Bonus) Relationship: Banished disciple of the Grey Tower, Heretic of the sacred church of Knowledge, outer member of Al''varux(The Hand) Alignment: Chaotic neutral.] Seeing this mage''s information, brought a frown to my face, ''To think I''ll be able meet one of them so soon''. For the Greyeye clan to have contact with the Al''varux(the hand), this further makes me wonder what really happened in the Orc lands that weakened them to the point of not being able to put up a fight. Perhaps my actions today would further affect the trajectory of things or even the flow of fate''s thread once again. ''This mage...'' I took a few steps towards this disheveled person, his dirty blonde hair covered his face, so I couldn''t tell the look on his face. When I was only few steps away from him, I tilted my head with a frown..."What do I do with you, human?"I deliberately made my voice sound deeper and threatening. But there was no response from him, his lips kept muttering something... Without hesitation, I attempted to grab him, only for him to port several meters away while dropping his scrolls, this allowed me know the direction he teleported to. Looking at the magic circle, I was reminded of the ill.u.s.tration for the rune magic, ''Searing rain''. ''Good, for a minute I was worried about him running away...'' I grinned, "Are you confident?" Unfortunately, he ignored me and kept chanting with utmost focus. I immediately charged forward, my reckless charge was now many times faster and went further than what it used to be, once I added Mana. In response, the mage waved his left arm, erecting a translucent barrier in front of himself. ''Dual casting?!!'' I was genuinely shocked but too bad for him, I knew a fatal weakness for this kind of barriers. at the end of my charge, I continued my combo by using while the damage bonus from was still in effect. Boom! To crown it all, I activated reducing his stats. A loud groan was heard when he was knocked into the air, at the same time, he never stopped chanting... instead he removed the barrier while releasing an instant cast of a lightning attack. Seeing this, I paused... Everything happened within a few minutes but without any hint of denial, I am thrilled. I looked at my hand sheepishly for a second while opening and closing my palm as I tried to ward off the minor numbness. ''His casting speed...'' I turned in the direction of his Mana and was greeted with the sight of him gasping for air, he was completely unable to chant at the moment as he tried to catch his breath. His situation reminded me that he wasn''t a fourth circle mage yet, at that time, they''re somewhat or almost no longer affected by space. Finally turning my body towards him with a grin I said in an amused tone, "Are you confident?" Chapter 126 - 125: Mages are so irritating Torug''s POV, "Great Chief of the Black moon clan, I have no bad blood with you...why do this?" The mage, Paximus yells in orcish tongue with ragged breath. hearing his words, I knew he lost his confidence, I could almost predict his next course of action and say that he was about to question my honor but... "You stand on my lands, Mage" only those words trumps all, if he really knew our culture. His eyes go wide before saying,"Nonsense, these land is under the rule of the Greyeye clan". "Said by who?" I counter-asked and he goes silent, "tell me, ...where''s Kharag?" "..." Watching the silent mage who looked like he couldn''t even stand right now, ''Such a farce...'' I thought, I could still feel his Mana building up silently. "I''m guessing you don''t know..." I finally say. ''humans and their arrogance about their intelligence, too bad you don''t know what you are messing with''. the mage continued to stay silent, trying to put up an act, so I decided to throw him off a bit. Luckily he was standing within a 20meter range, so I immediately used for the first time and a strange wind that moved in a circular motion dragging everything within 20 meters around me, and hauled it in my direction, only dropping it all, one step away from me. I grabbed the mage by his neck and said, "Why would the Al''varux have their people on my lands?". As expected, he was visibly shaken and immediately broke out with a spell that looked like tossing a lit match into gasoline container. I tossed him a distance away with a frown and an explosion rang out not long after. Surprisingly he didn''t die, no, far from it, there wasn''t even a scratch on the little Sh!t. Besides the obvious signs of Mana loss, he still had enough to keep himself alive as a mage. it took him just a few seconds to recover from the fall and he looked like he was speedily recovering his Mana. ''Oh?I understand it now'' I thought, amused by the mage''s innovative ideas. There were rune imbedded in his body, that were used to store Mana and his chant-less spell from earlier was just him discharging almost all the Mana within his Mana sea while mixing it with the fire elements in the air. ''Admirable'' I mused, it was a tough feat but he did it all casually without hesitation, ''just how much did you practice?''. Although all this went through my mind, I never stopped moving. I could sense that he still had two more of those crystal-like runes or batteries, and they were still loaded. But this time, I couldn''t be bothered with that...a magic circle with a resemblance with what I think is teleportation circle began to form under his feet. With my skill locked onto him, he visibly paled, probably noticing the debuffs. He began weaving another spell and I leaped towards him without hesitation, knocking him up once more. ''Just how many spells does this mage have as an advanced?'' I couldn''t help thinking because I found it confusing. Once again my attempt to grab him was met with a Failure, a transulent cone shaped like barrier blocked the direction my hand was coming from. A sickening grin appeared on his face as he tore up a scroll abruptly, "DIVINE PUNISHMENT!!!!". Craaakakaka!! "What?" I was stunned for a second and then I remembered he was a Heretic who was once a member of the church of Knowledge. ''He must have some really good things'' while having such thoughts, I immediately called out a sacred order while pulling out Eclipse, my battle axe from my inventory, "WeGotev!!" The Black clouds that gathered, immediately shot down golden lightning in my direction and A force field made of wind shot towards the sky according to my thoughts, both forces collided and I immediately felt my life force being s.u.c.k.e.d from me. that was the price I had to pay to the world for using that order. Seeing what happened, he ran towards the Forest, With each step, a teleportation circle kept flashing light. He was obviously trying to make a magic circle while running. I dashed towards the escaping mage and aimed at his back before tossing My battle axe. Just before he was hit, He twisted his posture to the side, sacrificing his right arm for a chance at survival. "I will kill you!! I will kill you Blackmoon Chief!!" Paximus roared pathetically, his pain was visible but he never stopped running. I used my full and got within range before using . Everything rumbled, perhaps responding to my irritation, My Mana was more violent than previously. When he was being pulled towards me , a scroll appeared in his left hand as he tried tearing it with his teeth. Without hesitation I pulled him down, adding more force to his initial fall. He puked blood but I wasn''t done yet, like a ragdoll, I held him by his face and disarmed of the scroll. I injected my own Mana into his mana sea which was located in his head like every other mage, creating a disturbance. Dragging him by his head, I walked towards my axe and picked it up before heading towards the hideout entrance. As Soon as I arrived, I dropped him casually before squatting next to him. From the look of things, blood might have spilled into his wind pipe or something, I didn''t care. "I''m going to burn all your work" I said with a teasing tone and he looked livid. gurgling sounds became prominent but was soon covered by laughter from my warriors. But at the same time, the sound of riders approaching could be heard. ''Nazu'' "What is the situation there?"I asked. Nazu dismounted her wolf and walked towards me before saying, "I think I got someone important!" A grin spread across my face as I walked towards the prisoner she was dragging. Race: High Orc Guard Level: 30(Order of the third circle) Power rating: 35474+1367(Equipment Bonus) Relationship: Member of the Greyeye clan, the Chief''s right hand man, Slaver Alignment: Chaotic Evil] It was a buff looking Orc with dry green skin, slightly buffer than me but smaller than Urim, he was dressed in leather armor that covered only his shoulder and c.h.e.s.t, leaving other parts of his torso open. He surprisingly though, had an iron battle skirt and arm guards. ''Looks like I''m not the only one thinking of armor'' With those thoughts, I beheaded the Orc and said, "Hang it on a pike for Kharag to see, he should never have touched my people". Immediately, My men went to work and Urim soon arrived covered in blood, those who followed him was the same but he wasn''t injured. Surprisingly he didn''t kill them all, there was about 40 orcs of the first circle, that were captured alive and they submitted. I watched him glare at me for a while before saying in skaldic, "Don''t worry to much, I might help you take care of the Grey Tower, so you can go ahead and prepare a place for them." He once again became agitated once he heard my words, ''Wait, why don''t I just...'' Chapter 127 - 126: Drive-by? "everything is gone my Chief" a two meter Orc guard says to the Orc leading their group of twenty. This very Orc has been the source of Black moon''s wrath, Kharag Greyeye, Chief of the Greyeye clan and supreme leader of the Greyeye fortress. A few hours ago, he had left this hideout to gather more resources for the mage, Paximus and information on the Black moon clan''s alleged alliance with the Shammob. Luckily for him, he found that their chief was injured and his children were already at each other''s throats, preparing for a ''trial of fate'' ceremony. ''Destroying the black moon clan would several steps easier'', so he thought but... Reality slapped him in the face once again. Kharag looked at the head of his most trusted warrior hanging on a pike, it was mounted at the very center of the hideout and two outposts. This situation, for some reason made him much more angrier than he needed to be as he gnashed his teeth repeatedly. perhaps it was the words written in blood at the feet of the mounted head or the fact that the mage and the other things in the base were missing. it said, "Your move..." That was an insult to one such as Kharag, who prided himself in his intellect. "the scrolls... everything that has been..."He began to yell but seemed to have felt something as he abruptly grabbed a close by orc and pulled to himself. Sui! sui! sui!... the sound of something tearing through the air accompanied by the painful cry of a dying Orc spread across the afternoon air. "Uaaak!!..." several bolts stuck out of the unfortunate Orc as Kharag glared from behind him. ______________________ Moz''s POV Some minutes earlier, ''Would the Greyeye Chief really return before night fall?'' I wondered silently as I observed the surrounding. Earlier I was asked to probe some secrets from the Greyeye Chief because I had mentioned him being able to spot me in stealth, so Torug said after some thought... _______Flashback start___ "Drive-by?" I asked in confusion, where does he get these strange words from, for some reason I was staring at his head ''will I see it if I opened it?'' with that thought, I couldn''t help but facepalm myself. perhaps I was too used to seeing his actions and I forget that he can die like everyone else, no one is immortal right?... I''ll protect you for... "Moz...Moz? can you hear me?" Torug asked me with raised eyebrows. "Yes?" I answered with slight difficulty while trying to clear my head. He wiped his forehead while asking in confusion, "is there anything on my forehead? you have been staring at it for a while now". "No...kuhum" I responded with a small cough before saying, "What is a drive-by?". "okay!!" he says with a grin and begins his explanation... _____________end___ "Ugh!" I g.r.o.a.n.e.d while covering my eyes, ''Stupid''. A smile crept up my face when I remembered his excited face... until the thought of his ''ceremony of souls'' with Nazu tonight. "No need to think too much Moz, Always try to be like this lake." Torug''s voice rang in my head once again as I imagined the black moon lake, Unconsciously, I touched the bone earring he gave me. ''right, he said he would be watching'' I muttered... grrr....! ''hmm?'' I looked in the direction my wolf was growling at and there they were. Several Orcs dashed into the main spot while Kharag stayed behind with his other people and began staring at the ground just like my Chief said he would. "everything is gone my Chief" one of the Orcs returned with a shout. ''he looks angry...no, it''s not time yet'' I decided to approach slowly but there was still no movement from Kharag. as I got closer, he became distracted and spoke, "the scrolls..." "everything that has been..." Sui! Sui! Sui!... All seven bolts were released in succession, but too bad He used one his people''s body to block the attacks. ''It would have been great if he just died ugh'' I thought while feeling conflicted about leaving just like that. "Leave immediately after your shot, no matter the outcome... it''s already our victory if you get to shoot" Torug''s words replayed in my head before I left decisively. Like he advised, I pulled myself and my wolf into the ''shadow world'' only for a spear to pass through my c.h.e.s.t from behind. I looked behind in shock and found his Greyeye glowing on his livid face as I rode further away. "Aaaaaargh!!! I''ll kill you!!, I''ll kill all of you!!!" A roar came from behind as his scrambled around in confusion, from beginning to end, he was the only one that saw everything, I had only been out of stealth for a few seconds like Torug had predicted and that was when I released my shots. _______________ A group of heavily armored Orcs were riding under the setting sun with varying degrees of tiredness showing on their face. At the lead was a female Orc with flaming red hair and a thick black cloak, this was the only female general under the king of Degr, the one called ''Mad general'' also known as the ''one eyed Haran''. _______ Haran''s POV, My body sways with the movement of My Calcuv Beast, a lazy and understated rocking motion. It''s times like this I wish I had brought some fruits to enjoy as a pass time. I turned to my side and The orc by my side has quite forgotten what one can see in peripheral vision and his eyes are walking from my hair line to my feet and back up again. In short, he is staring and there seems no end to his fascination. The only time his gaze breaks is when I turn my head his way and he hurriedly looks at surrounding scenery with an immersive gaze, too bad I can''t ever give him what he d.e.s.i.r.es... Wanug has been like this since ''his death and my child went missing. When war breaks out, Wanug is the Orc you want next to you. He feels the shockwave and stays on his feet. Whatever he had to do disappears and he refocuses on what needs to be done. He''ll cover every angle and stay right there until you can breathe, walk and talk at the same time. Then he stands back and lets you get back on with your life, never mentioning the crisis again and not wanting to discuss it further. Unfortunately, besides fighting... he''s not very bright, just like most of the other Orcs everywhere. In fact, the main reason he came this time was because he expects a fight. Wanug suspects it and believes to be a trap but I feel otherwise, even though all reason points to it being a trap. ''well, we''re almost there anyway...'' I muttered lost in thought as I eyed the setting sun. ''He had better have a good explanation for bringing me this far away from Degr.'' Chapter 128 - 127: What is this? (A/N: Listen to "medicine" by Daughter for this chapter) Torug''s POV, I stood before the fireplace with a lost expression. "I''ve never had a wedding before..." I said with a laugh as brought my fruit wine to my lips, "who would''ve thought?" Although I hate to admit it but I was strangely nervous as began to wonder who I would have invited if I really was going to have in my last life but... all that came back was... Anger... Hate... and... Sadness... ''Was that it?...'' I wondered as I thought of the woman who birthed me in my previous life, the woman who I loved and so dearly hated. I am jealous... -Flash back- "God''s aren''t as omnipotent as they are made out to be" I said in a small voice as a small laugh came from behind me. "indeed Ugarth, that''s why..." Mother hugged me from behind, "like our ancestor before you, you can be a God" hearing her words a frown appeared on my small green face, "you say that Everytime even though I''m the weakest of my brothers" I complained while kicking up dirt with my feet, only for her to laugh further. "My child is my child, strong or weak. My child holds my soul in their heart, and my heart is forever theirs. there is no rule that can contain such a sacred thing. My child has my support for always and my guidance should they every wish to ask. I would walk through the gates of hell to keep them safe and feel honoured to be given the chance, feeling only gratitude." "Eh?? What are you saying now..." "what is strength Ugarth?!" "Father?!" ________ "I did everything I was told mother... What must I do for you to look at me one more time, Mother?" "Leave me Alexander... You''re pathetic!" "Pathetic?! All of this! everything! Everything I have done! everything I have ever done! what was it for mother?! Tell me!!" "..." ________ "Mother...I did it!" "Good job, Ugarth!...my little warrior!" "hehe..." "Yes mother?" "Remember to always protect your brothers" "Huh? But I''m not the first..." "You connect them, You see how they always fight" "hmm I guess you are right" "That''s my little warrior" ________ "when I look at you, all I see is him..." "Who mother?!" "Do this Alex, Do that Alex...If you hate seeing me so much why bother even having me return every time?!! I hate this!! I hate you!" "Alex!" *Bang!* "Mother! No!!" _________ "Watch yourself You!" "Yes moth..Ah!" "Oh! look at what I was saying...now you hurt your knee" mother laughed, "Are you crying? Warriors don''t cry" "Sorry..." Torug''s POV, "Haha, look at me...I really am pathetic, I say I have forgotten my past life but here I am thinking about..." I gave myself a self depreciating laugh. The woman I hated, the woman I thought hated me, took a bullet for me... Images flashed across my mind as two memories of both worlds clashed, memories hidden deep within my mind gushed out like a flood, I always take that part of me that is broken and make it a ghost, a ghost that falls away and becomes nothing. and what remains is an empty shell, strong and ready to do what is to be done. "To think that was the last thing I said to her". Then I thought of my mother in this life, ''There was no magic on earth, but it''s not the same here, here, it''s different, I''ll bring her back, this time I have a family, this time...I won''t fall that far... at some point, I was standing outside and the purple moon was in full bloom, I stared at it lost in thought and strangely it felt... Silent... Calm... The noise in my head seemed to disappear as I muttered, ''as calm as the black moon lake''. ''What changed?'' "My Chief" Torrelsav called out from behind me. "Yes?" "It''s time" he said with a nod. "it''s time huh?" I repeated before asking, "where''s old Dabok? How come you are the one here?". Torrelsav sighed awkwardly as he says, "He said he was going to meet a special guest". "Oh! That was today? right... What about Urim and Gilgar?"I asked. "everyone''s ready... we''re just waiting for you my Chief". I took in deep breaths "Let''s go". "yes my Chief" As we head towards the Town Hall, the whole clan looked like a machine, everyone was busy, the wolves laid on both sides the path and Mana stones were used to light up the path on both sides. The purple moonlight added a strange ethereal beauty to the scene like never before. the children played around with wooden weapons pretending to be warriors, and I couldn''t stop myself from wondering, what would it have been like, to live through that time, live through this past that I know now and experience first hand, a mother''s love. "They''re more human than humans"I muttered. "Did you say something?" "No..." ''Something isn''t right, why all this emotions? could it be you?'' I looked at the moon while having such thoughts. ''I need to complete the First level of my cultivation quickly'' I concluded as I noticed Urim standing at the entrance of the Town Hall. ______________________ At the edge of the forest boundary just passed Govan territory, separated from the Laboni region. Dabok''s POV, The forest here was vast, misty, and rich. Its canopy was marked by elm, cedar, and birch, their crowns allowed cascading purple lights to shimmer through for disorderly bushes to control the stony grounds below. Curving climbing plants suspended from many trees, and a variety of flowers, which desperately tried to claim the last remnants of light, added colorful variety to the scenery. A discord of noises, most of which were bird songs, resonated through the air, This was the difference between the other parts of the forest compared to the otherwise silent Laboni region''s forest. Soon, Mounted Orc warriors appeared before my eyes under the leadership of a red haired Orc female. "We meet again old friend..." She says, leaving the me speechless for a second before saying with a smirk, "you''ve grown old as well". immediately, the atmosphere changed as the temperature around seemed to become hotter. Unfortunately, me being the target of all this seemed oblivious of these changes, After all she didn''t really spread whatever that is, to me. After a few seconds, Haran broke out with wild laughter, "Where''s the prince, how can he not even come to see me even though he invited me over?!". "..." "You..."She raised a brow, "you sent me that letter?" "... Yes" I said. She looked at me seriously for a while before nodding, "What''s this about?". "A ceremony" "A ceremony?" ''here''s the hard part'' I thought before saying, "Yes, a ceremony... ceremony of souls". "...is this what the letter was about?"She finally says and a smile spread across my face," yes, come with me". I turned around and took a few steps only to turn back, They remained unmoved and exchanged glances. "Come Haran, or has the years made you cowardly?"I taunted. unsurprisingly, she urged her group forward as she fired back with a playful tone, "Cowardly?! hahaha coming from you? are you still hugging those books like you did all those years?". _________________ Chapter 129 - 128: The wedding Torug''s POV, ''a wedding in a natural woodland setting that''s what I''d call this''. In the Orc lands, it is tradition for the females to get a traditional, temporary tattoo on the day of their wedding. well, that''s If they were marrying a Chief and the second condition was for them to be the first wife. It is seen as a sign of honor and loyalty. This material used in making the tattoo is actually the sap of a ''Bolly'' tree, Trees that glowed light blue in the dark, same material smudged onto the wooden pillars all over town in the shape of a palm or moon. Everyone was excited as the villagers began to chatter, there was a huge bonfire just any other bonfire night. Urim and I stood on a platform that was made at the center of the town hall, with Urim''s spot slightly lower than mine in height. Several blue mana stones were set in place, the light it normally releases, fluctuating lightly at our Feet. "Brother...did you have to make us do this the same time?" Urim complained and I couldn''t help but snorting at the guy, "It''s too late to complain now, besides, shouldn''t you be happy about a free wedding?!". "..." "Speechless?" I couldn''t help laughing lightly. At this time, everyone began to quieten down. "hmph!" Presiding over this occasion was supposed to be the oldest in the clan but as Dabok wasn''t around, Vaggi had to take over as the second eldest. Vaggi''s an old female orc with a fat body and wrinkled skin, testimony of her low evolution ranking, after all she was just 68 this year. Compared to the more serious and m.a.t.u.r.e Dabok, she was rather playful and loved to prank others from time to time but remained serious when needed to. She was amongst those who came from Sker''s clan way back. At some point she became the head mid wife of sort, with a rather good reputation in the clan and everyone liked her when she was quiet, after all she speaks the old orcish tongue which only few of the young ones understood her words. Right now, she was dressed in a tight gray robe that looked like one of those seized from the Greyeye clan hideout. obviously it belonged to Paximus as it didn''t fit her fat orcish body, her grayish white hair made it Dreadlocks with some bones used as accessories. Funnily enough, I hear she''s a witch... too bad she''s not evolved yet, that would definitely change with the next big territory upgrade. "my Chief!" she salutes before slowly heading to a corner, muttering something. In her hand was a bowl of the Bolly tree sap, it looked like a bowl of glowing light blue liquid. With my understanding, I couldn''t help thinking, ''That must have been prepared for Nazu''. "Thank you" I say to her and she smiled, "I always wanted to do this once". "..." "You have done well, child" She says to Gilgar in playful tone, to which the latter nodded repeatedly while shyly spying on Urim. If we didn''t have green skins perhaps both of them would be beet red. Vaggi then turned to the absent minded Nazu who stared blankly at the light blue liquid in the bowl. Seeing this, Vaggi sighed before saying lightly, "You hold great burden child...it is not time for thoughts". Returning to her senses, She responds to the old one, "What do you mean?". "..." Vaggi said nothing but dipped her right index finger and the middle finger into the bowl resting on his left hand. With a slower pace than before, she took the stained fingers and Drew a moon shaped symbol on Nazu''s forehead. From there she moved, drawing other symbols across Nazu''s skin. As she did this, the other females began to mutter things in between grunts as they clapped along, this gave things a mysterious feeling. I on the other hand watched all this curiously. With each mark done, it would glow, making Nazu flinch at the same time. When Vaggi was done, She used what was left to draw three messy lines on each side of Gilgar''s cheeks and then there was silence. The only sound was the sound of Urim breathing close to me and the Bonfire in the distance. _____________ Meanwhile, as all this was happening, Dabok and the others arrived at the Town gates. Haran repeatedly nodded her head as the she admired the walls and gate "Dabok... The Doesn''t seem to be doing too bad" She says. "..." "You old Orc, why aren''t you saying anything?" Haran asks while repeatedly poking Dabok''s side. After being pestered for a while, they arrived at the gates and Dabok finally opened his mouth again, "The prince is Dead". There was a strange silence in the air and even though Haran wished to ask more questions, she told herself that she would get all the answers accordingly before following after Dabok. Once they came in, She noticed the Mana stones that were used for lightening and the glowing Palm prints. When she saw the material used for the glowing Palm prints was the Bolly tree''s sap, she recalled Dabok saying that today was someone''s ceremony of souls. Dabok on the other hand, silently lead them to the Town Hall where the ceremony had long proceeded forward, at this time Nazu and Gilgar were offering wine to their partners as they knelt before them. This attracted their attention as they noticed that the ceremony seemed to be the Chief''s. Haran''s eye soon dilated as she noticed the red hair on the bride, then a strange feeling of closeness and sadness began to well up within her warrior''s heart as memories of that day struggled to resurface. She looked at Dabok with shock in her face and the latter simply nodded before adding, "You can test it if you want". As soon as his words were done, the sound of cheering attracted their attention, the grooms accepted the bride''s offer and they would now head to the groom''s abode as the people escort them back. Seeing all this, Haran became conflicted with no idea on what to do now. this was the effect Torug wanted and he acted like he didn''t see the their group. Moz''s POV, I had been watching the ceremony and somehow couldn''t help feeling envious. ''I have no right to be?... right?'' I asked myself for the eighth time this night. By my side was my wolf, for some reason, it had been following me around all evening. "Don''t you want to go to your people?"I asked but it only stared at me silently. Then a cheer came from the town hall. "..." I silently walked around the village but somehow found myself by the lake. the ever silent black moon lake. Any form of light seemed to be s.u.c.k.e.d up by it, except the purple moon. It''s reflection was on the lake''s surface. With a sigh, I decided to sit down. "Do you think I still have a chance?" I asked my wolf and as expected it only licked my face in response but before I could laugh at myself, a voice answered... "You don''t know... unless you try" Chapter 130 - 129: Haran Moz''s POV, "You don''t know... unless you try" I turned in the direction of the voice and found that it was...Raal. Once again drunk with his wolf by his side. "What do you mean?" I asked, He picks up a bowl and began to drink something. When done swallowing it all, he belched loudly before laughing afterwards, his laughter disrupted the calm and solemn atmosphere at the lakeside. His laughter was more like he was mocking himself than expressing happiness. He then looked at me before standing up to leave, he said, "You know what I am talking about, if you don''t... it''s also fine, just know that if you continue like this without letting him know, you''ll just end up like...me". "..." Silent, I watched his retreating back only for him to fall and his wolf snorted at him, leaving without looking back. "Wait for me! how can you leave your master like this!!" Raal yells a few seconds later after recovery, "Hey! Hey! why aren''t you stopping, My wine!!...Ugh how could you take wine off a fallen warrior!! ..." His voice slowly disappeared as he chased after his wolf. "What do you mean, I will end up like you?" I muttered, only for my wolf to shake her head. __________ ________ ________________________ The following day, Blackmoon Town, Lord''s Manor, Torug''s POV, After a busy night, I felt it was time to wrap up with the Grey eye clan, but first... "My Chief!...General Haran would like to see you" Dabok''s voice came from behind as I observed the fireplace. It was still the early hours of the morning and I just started the fire, mostly to light up the hall than to warm myself up. "Are you really going through with this?"Dabok asked once again for the umpteenth time since he my plans. "..." Irresponsive, I continued to stare at the fireplace without bothering to look in his direction, Him knowing that I wouldn''t say anything further, he walked towards the entrance... "Have I ever failed you?" I asked. "..." He sighed before leaving. "I can''t fail, I''m not allowed to fail" I muttered. About a minute later, the sound of slow footsteps could be heard from the side as I pulled off my cloak and tossed it towards my throne, it casually fell on it''s arm and I slowly turned towards the approaching figure. Red hair, and a golden pupil scanned the hall with a somewhat disinterested face before stopping on my figure. She scans me from head to toe before locking eye contact with me, I felt this was a test, a test to see what kind of person I was. At this time, Dabok walks in but stops not too far from the door...unsurprisingly we both ignored his movement. [Name: Haran Bloodmane Race: Royal Witch Orc Level:40 (Order of the fifth circle) Power rating: 145847+6677(Equipment Bonus) Relationship: Matriarch of the Bloodmane clan, 2nd Great General of the kingdom of Degr, 3rd in line to the throne of Degr, Mother of Nazu Redmane, leader of the ... Alignment: Lawful Evil] "What is the meaning of this?" she finally says, Obviously she meant the whole invitation and me marrying her daughter despite knowing who she really was. She squints at me with every word as her head slowly tilt upwards in a threatening manner while trying to feel me out. A subtle pressure appears as the atmosphere in the hall got tensed, despite noticing all this, I acted nonchalant and said instead, "I''m surprised you came...". "I didn''t come for you" She says but still had a posture that said she was willing to hear me out. Unsurprisingly, the subtle pressure increases it''s intensity ever so slowly as I subconsciously swallowed hard. Seated before me was one of the top 10 most dangerous characters in the Novel, not for overwhelming power or anything but for her madness and unpredictability. She was someone who had almost succeeded thrice in killing Davis Fairchild, in fact, she had succeeded one time during an ambush on her battalion but Ragol played dirty, resulting in a public outrage amongst the Gods, too bad there was no God standing up for the Orc lands. From her posture, I began to make corrections to my plans... "I have a business proposal" I say while taking a few steps to sit opposite her and not on the throne, this was mostly to buy myself time as I arranged my thoughts carefully. "I don''t remember saying I do business, little chief" She says with a small laugh but it obviously didn''t reach her eyes, perhaps she might have even considered killing me and taking Nazu by now... luckily, the ceremony of souls can''t be ignored. "But I know you need money and supplies" I said this while locking eye contact with her, I then leaned forward as I deepen my voice, in order to emphasize on the seriousness of the matter, "especially at this time when the king has begun suppressing your clan, unaware of the dangers brewing from outside the orc lands." "..." Silent, she looked at me without distaste for the first time. Noticing my action, she looked in Dabok''s direction just in time to him signaling someone outside. Immediately, the warriors came in dragging the disfigured Paximus into the hall. This time, Haran looked at me with interest, probably surprised with the outcome of things. "To top it off, We have traitors in the orc lands, colluding with humans to slowly make a mess of things" I stated casually but had a solemn expression on my face. earlier today, I had used my last branding slot on Paximus and now he would become an important piece to further my goals. Haran observed me with her eye and said, "speak clearly..." "I sent you that letter, because of the information I got from this human...and considering...we would be family and the fact that the Great king was suppressing you...I" I let my words linger as I sighed repeatedly. "..." She silently looked between me, Dabok and Paximus. "What did the human say?". Immediately I signalled the warriors to wake Paximus up. Whap!!Whap!... A series of slaps was given and the Unconscious mage woke up with a wail as he looked around warily. "human... Repeat what you said earlier today!" I ordered. "I was sent to gather information on the Orc lands over the years and have been working with the Grey eye clan all this while", He says, as he began to narrate the story I had fed him after the branding. Hearing his words, she looked me in the eye and says with a small laugh, "So you are saying you called me out here to inform me of this?". Obviously she was putting up a show, so I indulged her, "Of course not" I responded with a small laugh of my own and leaned back into my own chair. I then pulled out a transparent glass container, within it laid the grounded Mana stone Lovan had helped me make and I said, "After all, I said I had a business proposal..." Chapter 131 - 130: News on Vargan Whitebone (18+) Blackmoon town, Lord''s Manor, Haran''s POV, Dangerous... If I was to use one word to describe this Orc Chief, it would be ''Dangerous''. From the moment I stepped into this hall, I have done my utmost best to observe his every move. A Great Orc Chief, finds my daughter, despite knowing her identity, married her and not just in way, but the ceremony of souls which can''t be dissolved by anyone unless they wish to be scorned by the orc lands. This also just happened to be taking place on the same day he used this very topic to drag me over into his territory... His territory... Hearing his words, I looked him in the eye and said with a small laugh, "So you are saying you called me out here to inform me of this?". If he thinks this territory of his can stop me from escaping, he''s wasting his time, I''ll break out with my people and return with my batt... "Of course not" He suddenly says with a small laugh as he leaned back into his chair. he pulled out something that looks like ''Mana dust'', and said, "After all, I said I had a business proposal..." I then recalled seeing a lot of Mana stones used as a light source across the town last night and my eyes narrowed into slits. ''Could it...'' He chuckled and said, "mine?...no no no, instead you could say I have some interesting friends." ''Who could they be?'' I wondered but he soon elaborated. "One of my people have infiltrated the human Town at the edge of cilldean kingdom borders and created what you could call a...hmm what''s the word"His golden green eyes flashed a bit as he stood up from his chair, "clan..." ''Clan?... What''s the, how''s that possible? Seems I can''t ignore this fellow'' For years I have been thinking of ways to get our people to infiltrate the human lands but have failed repeatedly, ''how did he do it?'' He could be bluffing... "So I can help you get the things that you need, even if the kings faction continues to suppress you..." He walks up to me slowly but soon stopped, staring at me with interest. This made me ask the question that has been bugging me for a while now. "What Royal clan are you from?" "..." He looked stunned for a second before he wore an amused smile a second later, "Why do you ask?" For the first time, I managed to pull him out of his game, he understood this but chose to play along. I don''t like it... Where''s the confusion, the anger of being interrupted, just like every other orc...or does he have the rumored cold blood like ''Rusa Coldstone''?... Despite having such thoughts, I had to keep the conversation going... Then I remembered something, an Orc with an eye like his and his brother. "Are you from the main family line of the white bone clan?" He stared at me expressionlessly but says nothing further, this made me feel like I was correct. "Your eyes and even your brother''s eyes, I know someone with that same eyes...well his, is much closer to your brother''s eyes than yours" I say while standing up and circling him at a leisurely pace. He looked at me in wonder, as if to say, ''what are you saying?'' Could it be that, he doesn''t know his origins or what does... ''Wait, it is said that the Vargan was the last of his clan but... argh! forget it!''. Seeing that I am unable to get the upper hand or the opportunity in this... whatever it is... Out of frustration, I just wanted everything to end, so I can meet my daughter... ''All this, is because I know nothing about him...I think it''s time I start paying attention to things in the orc lands again, not just the kingdom. "What do you want for the dust?, we''ll talk later about this thing you have in the human lands" "for now nothing, I just want to support you" He spoke calmly, watching my every move as I came to a halt. "..." I looked at him in confusion. "I Just want you to make sure they''re unaware of what is happening outside Degr, then I''ll support you with what you need until you sit on the throne, after all... we''re family" once again I reevaluated his threat level, I looked at Dabok and noticed the shock on his face...that means he was unaware of this as well. "... how did you get this information?" I am really getting worried now...''could there be a traitor amongst my people?... impossible!''. but he ignored my question as he said, "I''ll get your daughter to meet you before noon, think about my proposal carefully", all the while, he walked into the next room behind the throne. __________________ Torug''s POV, "Vargan!" I said with a grin, "he''s in Degr!" I had struggled not to laugh earlier when I was talking to Haran, ''finally there''s a clue!!...'' "But I feel uneasy...why was he tagged ''the coward''? " I muttered to myself until the sound of a m.o.a.n came from the side. I looked over and found Nazu stretching lazily as her nose twitched from time to time, Her red hair was all over the place and her b.r.e.a.s.ts were in full display. "Mine..." She muttered softly, like she was reminding herself and slowly crawled off the bed, never breaking eye contact. perhaps she was thinking of last night, she began to pant heavily, her c.h.e.s.t heaving up and down uncontrollably. Last time, she was more clueless of what to do with herself and I had to show her what I had learnt from my previous life, but this time, She didn''t wait for me to say or do anything. on the other hand, with this view presently...I can only say in my defense that I am yet to complete the cultivation manuals first level and I had abolished the previous one, so it''s easier to say that my monster nature was also fuming inside. I couldn''t help but kiss and nibble on her neck. After prying her mouth open, our tongues intertwined. feeling an unprecedented thirst or heat., our hands and feet moved together as she pulled off my cloak and battle skirt. while I naturally charged forward, pushing her back to the bed. our movements were even more intense than last night for some reason, leaving me hot-headed as Nazu let out a soft hum that pull on my inner d.e.s.i.r.e to dominate. She was the same as well, trying to get the upper hand in this ''battle''. With a pinch on her b.u.t.t, she let out a teasing laugh that rendered me speechless by surprise. Although I had some ideas about Nazu, having steaming morning s.e.x with her was not part of my plan. ''perhaps things would be more interesting than I imagined'', those were my thoughts as our bodies were soon entwined. Chapter 132 - 131: Rewards? Blackmoon town, Lord''s Manor, Torug''s POV, A few hours later, we finally got tired of our repeated "bedmatics" or should I say Nazu was out of commission. ''seems like she''s really into the idea of having a kid huh...do I want one right now?'' I weighed the pros and the cons before deciding to go through my system notifications from earlier today while sitting at the edge of my bed. [Achievement unlocked] [Tied a knot?: congratulations host, for taking one step further in solidifying the foundation of the clan. Reward: ¡Á2 random construction gift cards, Rare twin furred cloak, ¡Á10 Elite Clan guardian cards] [Let it burn!!: Congratulations, You have up to 25% contribution in the present chaos in the Orc lands. Reward: [You have been officially recognized by a member of the closest ruling kingdom..] [Reputation System Unlocked] [You can now get a steady flow of refugees] [This week''s batch of refugees, have arrived] [Your town population is enough to increase it''s level] [Your clan''s Presence has been acknowledged by all of the Orc lands... Congratulations, your placing is in the top 10! Reward: Authority +5%(Orc lands). Ding¡­ You have opened ¡Á2 "Construction Gift cards"] [You have received a "Wolf raider Camp" card.] [You have received a "training ground" card] [It has been noticed that you already have this facility, so the reward would be changed to a building upgrade card(Training ground)]. [You have received "Stone Wall" construction card.] [You have received a "Lv 1 Watch tower" construction card]. ___________________ I was suddenly filled with excitement that I felt my mind on the brink of exploding!, I subconsciously dragged myself closer to the edge of my bed. I didn''t think... I did not expect such great harvest ... ''If I had known, I would have read them sooner!!'' I thought all this while cl.i.c.k.i.n.g my tongue. but I soon swallowed hard as I read through the notifications once again. I took a deep breath, but his face was still filled with excitement. With the stone wall card, I can calmly create a defensive line that would protect my land before they can get to my second inner wall. At some point, I didn''t even know I was grinning. Even with all my attempts to relax, I was still unable to maintain his composure at this moment. "perfect!." I said with a wild grin on my face. looking at the dense list of the system notifications on my retina, I couldn''t help letting out a small evil smile. " with This I can completely destroy the Greyeye clan." [ Elite Clan guardian cards(¡Á10): This item is used in automatically training the selected number of individuals, in the way of the following sets {Axe and Shield, Mace and Shield, Warhammer and Shield or Sword and Shield}. Granting you and your selected family members their absolute loyalty mana would be needed in completing this task, be sure to provide. ] ________ ''This card was even more impressive than I thought'' I mentally cried out in surprise!. This is a card that would help me make elites in a short amount of time!, That is, If I selected a person at the 3rd circle and used the card while selecting one of the above mentioned weapons, he or she would automatically get training and battle experience on the selected weapon!, "Too bad it''s just 10...". "Luckily, there''s no shortage of second circle warriors in the clan" I finally say. The "wolf raider camp" was also interesting. "Calvary!" It would produce two warriors and two black furred dire wolves once every two days. Unfortunately, the camp has its own level system... Every new warrior and wolf would come out as tier one, they''d level up from there...all the way to tier 5, which is equivalent to a 4th circle warrior in luegad''s standard. The watch Tower was pretty much just a watch Tower... "Let''s do this... can''t keep Haran waiting for too long." I muttered to myself as I poked Nazu''s side lightly. ________________________ Cildean kingdom, Thann''s End, At this time, Frank led a team of knights out of the moongret residence and was about to arrive at the city gate, many spies who had been waiting outside the residence immediately left in the shadows and corners. Including the two hoodlums who, if you looked closely, had a tattoo of a black ghostly figure hanging over a black pouch on their shoulders. At the same time among the pedestrians outside the official residence, some commoners in coarse clothes also hurriedly left with their heads lowered and a few nobles looked over with curiosity. It seemed normal but in reality, there were layers of ripples and webs on this marbled bridge. New Black Ghost crew Headquarters, The two men from earlier came to report to the person sitting on the chair lazily, "The long awaited Anthony Vance would be arriving shortly huh?... it''s about time, I''m curious to see why Master would want me to take care of him specially". Among the two, the one with the tanned skin, he looked like someone who spends a lot of time under the sun, with a cautious expression he says, "my lady, there''s something strange." "oh? tell me." A purple haired beauty leaned over from the shadows, exposing herself to the men before her, However, these two dared not have any ideas!. "Although we know that it was the church who invited this Anthony fellow over, they''re going through much lengths to hide it from the masses and they seem hell bent on pushing it over to the Moongrets clan." Immediately he finished speaking, his partner added, "Meanwhile, the Moongrets dare not resist, much less complain". The lamp hanging by the wall flickered, and another man appeared from the side of the room. The bas.e.m.e.nt became silent. "Lady Janetta..." He greeted with a grin. The tanned skinned man quickly brought a chair while Janetta was lost in thought for a moment before saying, "Shev, what do you think?." "From this things and the fact that Master specifically mentioned him, I''ll have to say, this Anthony might be troublesome". "Yes," the other responded while nodding, only to be glared at by Shev. Janetta stood up seductively, it was unknown if she does this Unconsciously or consciously. However, the men present could only swallow hard or they might be killed by Lord Shev, just like the last guy. Till date, no one knew how strong the purple haired leader was but Lord Shev has always been respectful. a man with dark circles slowly pushed open the wooden door. He took out a box the size of a head and said, "This weeks product just came in" After opening it, there was a faint blue dust that was flickering with a faint blue light, wrapped in red velvet. "Ser Cail!" The two men bowed awkwardly, Cail''s position in the gang has been rather awkward since it was changed by Janetta and Shev. they had made it into a brand new gang, separate entirely from the "black purse". Shev silently closed the box and put the box down from the table. He looked over at Cail and said flatly, "rather than that, I''m more interested in what Ruby badger has to say about the Lady''s offer,". "The Ravens are rather adamant with their stance." Cail says with a sigh, before sitting on the last free seat. "we''ll have to give them a little trouble then." Janetta waves the duo out of the room with a mocking smile on her face. "How do you want to do it?" Shev asks curiously. Janetta casually crosses her legs over the table before saying, "Let them help us carry the blame for what we are about to do with this Anthony... they''ll come running". "haaa...I can almost feel sorry for them" Cail sighs while c.a.r.e.s.sing his rough beards that had grown over the passed few weeks, since his stay at the black moon clan. Chapter 133 - 132: More Plans. Blackmoon town, The ''Dungeon'', Torug''s POV, A narrow pathway could be seen just behind my Manor and the orc guards standing next to a boulder not far away marks the entrance to the clan''s dungeon. Behind the boulder lies a grand, renovated, filthy room. It''s covered in roots, moss and rat droppings but who am I to care. At this time, the sun was already high in the sky and the weather seemed especially hot today, so I skipped the idea of using the furred cloak. After responding to the guards salutes, I take the left path in the new construction. and unsurprisingly, the goblins really took digging seriously. Due to Torrelsav''s suggestions, it was decided that the wooden jail or dungeon, should be made into an underground prison, like the one humans used to hold gladiators. That gave me a business idea but it''s to be used at a later date. at the entrance, was a staircase, Its twisted trail lead downwards and soon provides my view with a ghastly scene. There''s different items all over the place, probably part of one of the workshop. ''What happened in this place?...'' Looks like they are not done with construction, ''is this safe to use?''. On the bright side, this confirms my decision of letting Dabok and Lovan handle construction. With these thoughts, I slowly move onwards, deeper into the dungeon''s expanse. I pass a few rooms and passages, most lead to nowhere or a dead end. but I eventually make it to what looked like the final room. A grand metal door blocks my path. ''It''s probably made from that metal tree, so useful!'' I mused with myself as I sized the Unconscious mage, Paximus!. His disheveled hair covered his face but couldn''t hide his fawning gaze. [Name: Paximus Rufford Level: 32(Order of the third circle) Power rating: 32802 Relationship: Banished disciple of the Gray Tower, Heretic of the sacred church of Knowledge, outer member of Al''varux(The Hand), Soul slave of Torug Blackmoon. Alignment: Lunatic.] There were a few changes on his status page, namely, "soul slave of Torug Blackmoon" and his change in alignment. Initially I had intended to kill him on the spot but his titles made me feel it was too wasteful. If this was a novel, Paximus would be a very important character, perhaps he would be a main character template or an important villain that would terrorize everywhere during the middle stages of that book but either way, his knowledge alone makes him indispensable...for now. Amused by my train of thought, I couldn''t help grinning at the idea of having him as a pawn. This pawn would have many uses, presently, they are unaware of Janetta''s identity and are speculating, when they manage to unravel this mystery and find out that she''s not really the boss, I can just entertain them with another puzzling existence... too bad his level is lower than mine. When I took control of his body before, despite his tainting being only around 76%, I found his rune magic rather interesting, So when I am bored, I use the opportunity to research on this type of power. On the bright side, I can draw some runes on my warriors, like giving Moz and the Hobgoblins under her, a speed enhancing rune... This further increased his worth in my eyes and luckily he had not helped Kharag with any of these benefits. But for now, I needed him to do something more important. Back in the Novel of luegad, aside from Davis Fairchild, there were other souls that transmigrated into this world that very day and my target is one of them. His ability would be of great use to me in successfully creating a kingdom. I believe at this time, he should have escaped from slavery and has begun to make himself known in the Slums of HaldBeard, Nispurl''s capital. I believe he''s yet to awaken his abilities and should still be below the first circle now. In the book, he was a Dark witch, a strange evolution path for a human and that''s because, he''s not entirely human. "Bruta Ryleld"I called his name and Paximus looked confused, so I continued, "You will go to HaldBeard" "Nispurl''s capital?" "Yes, you will find the one called Bruta Ryleld ''The Bull'', take him as Apprentice and you will bring him to Cildean''s Thann''s End, there you will join Janetta and the others to create chaos. When Bruta enters the second circle, bring him to the black moon clan". While I spoke, Paximus had a look of wanting to say something but didn''t know how to say it. So I ordered with a frown, "Speak!". His irritating smile became even more exaggerated than before as he crawled to the metal cage, he winced when his injured arm accidentally touched the ground. He begins to explain, while trying to adjust his words, "Presently, I am being hunted down by the Gray Tower and the Church of knowledge..." Unfortunately I cut him off, "All the more reason for you to hide well, don''t you think?... You''ll set off tomorrow." without waiting for another word, I headed back the way I came and found that the Goblins had started working in the vicinity with a "Hai! Ho!" sound as they busied around, not long after, I spotted Lovan in the background. "Lovan My friend, you are one hard goblin to see..."I said with a laugh as the Goblin adjusted himself in his oversized robe. I remember Raz teasing him about the clothes being preparation for when he becomes a Hobgoblin. Shockingly though, the Goblin was just a tiny bit away from becoming a Second circle creature. "My Chief!" He squeals in shock, perhaps if he didn''t have green skin, he''d be red all over, after all, I just bumped into him while he was ''exerting his authority on the workers''. ''let''s give him that little push, he can''t be too far behind...Haji is already catching up to him'' I couldn''t help myself from having such thoughts, so I say while leaving, "Follow me". He absent mindedly says "Oh" before chasing after me with his short legs. ________________________ At the same time, Blackmoon Town, Nazu''s POV, As My ''Juk''(Husband/Man) had ordered, I went to see old Dabok after I was able to work normally. A grin spread across my face again as I thought of earlier this morning, intoxicated Torug''s scent that was coming from all over my body, I let out a small laugh. Along the line, I noticed someone from the corner of my eye. She was rested on the side of a wooden wall next to her wolf. She would tease it from time to time with her feet, attempting to touch the wolf''s wagging tail but it would always dodge. As I noticed her, she sniffs the air a little before turning in my direction looking stunned. The feeling was mutual as I suddenly remembered that she had once had Torug''s scent... After a few more seconds, I didn''t know what I wanted to do but then I thought about it and found it strange and not strange at the same time... In my confusion, I simply turned away and continued on my way to old Dabok''s house. Chapter 134 - 133: Finding gems?... Blackmoon Town, Torug''s POV, Leading Lovan up the wall, I try to explain to him my plans for the second wall, He nodded repeatedly as I spoke... "I want you to join hands with Dabok and increase the rate of construction, start with normal buildings that can house the goblins and orcs, especially the Orcs...if the inner wall is filled, start working outside the walls..." Shocked, he subconsciously asked "Out... outside?". "..." I look at him with suspicion, "Yes outside". He begins fidgeting... "Lovan...when was the last time you left the wall?" His eyes dart around as he mutters, "Uhm..." "Have you... What is it?" I stop mid speech and observed him carefully. He starts, "You see, my Chief...I" "My Chief!"two Hobgoblins appear before us with a salute, one was lean, his muscles look light but explosive. ''An agility type?'' I thought silently while looking over at the other one, it...it was a female!. ''An actual female Hobgoblin?!!!'' I thought in shock as I observed her rather carefully. [Name: TuTu Blackmoon Race: Hobgoblin hunter Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10890 + 100 (equipment bonus). Relationship: Coco''s Gob [Name: Haji Blackmoon Race: Hobgoblin scout Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 10233+ 800(Equipment bonus) Relationship: Son of Lovan Blackmoon, Chief''s Errand Gob. Alignment: Neutral.] "Haji?!!!" Shocked, I reassess the lean Hobgoblin again while stroking my beard. "Yes, My Chief!" I exclaimed for some reason while feeling surreal, "This is Good!". ''All grown up already!!'' it''s like watching a kid grown up or something. Lovan looked overjoyed and shocked as he ran around his son like a child, a look of yearning laced his face. "when did you evolve?" hearing my question, he says calmly, "not too long ago, my Chief!" sounding stable. This only made me appreciate him more, TuTu on the other hand, looked more like a silly foodie with the way she was grinning. "Are there any others?"I asked again. "Nine others are left with the Harukariri" ''What did that mean again? Master teacher...oh they already gave him a title, that should be Torrelsav... after all Urim is the one they call head Guard or something.'' Ignoring my thoughts, I asked what I was curious about, "Why did he send you to me already?". "He said, he had nothing left to teach us and that you would understand" Haji answered like he was more confused about what he was saying. ''yes that''s the look...but Torrelsav seriously...is there something else happening here?''. Perhaps I''ll just feel them out first... "come with me" I turned towards the training ground, I was curious about how much the kid learned from Torrelsav and Urim. We arrived within 6 minutes and it seemed rather silent at first until I spotted Moz throwing daggers at a makeshift training dummy. Her wolf would rush forward and carefully pull out the dagger, then return it to her. Repeatedly... Lost in thought, she did these series of actions without putting any thoughts into it. Noticing our presence, She turns towards me and approached us without much delay. "My Chief!" She salutes, trying to sound as normal as possible. Seeing her like that, I thought ''It shouldn''t be long now, I''ll do something for ...yes Let''s keep her busy for now and I can test my theory for the third circle ''. "Moz, Have you been well?" I asked, trying to respond to the salute as casual as possible. "...yes" She says. "Now Haji, TuTu...I want you two to have a hand to hand combat, don''t stop until I tell you to." ""Yes!"" both of them went to the middle of the training field and stood about 8 meters apart. Similar to Haji, TuTu was of a slim build. the muscles didn''t look like much but you can feel the power in them, Haji had height of 1.8 meters tall was 4 centimeters taller than TuTu. His eyes revealed a fierce gaze with a raw determination, probably hoping to impress me. Facing him, TuTu was the same and this made me wonder how the others were in mentality since the trainings. Neither of them showed fear. In its place was a look of anticipation. they wanted to compete with each other, as it seems they had some kind of rivalry. ''No wonder Torrelsav sent them to me''. Immediately, they charged at each other.. he approached TuTu at top speed, then turned around and kicked toward her face. Unlike the Goofy feeling she gave me earlier, it seemed like a different person as she dodged the blow, aiming for Haji''s feet. Clear decisiveness but haji was not to be out done, he lifts his feet only for her to place her hands on the ground and kicked upwards at Haji''s upper torso... Boom! A light booming sounds came from the point where hands and feet met. As expected of those trained by an ex gladiator. both parties reaction were extremely fast. they used both hands, feet... kicks to punches... not long after they were knocked a few steps back from each other. ''A tie? no TuTu seems to be holding back... but why?'' I wondered while watching their serious expressions. After stabilizing his body, Haji was the first to rush toward TuTu and punched toward her abdomen... ''It''s a trap!'' as expected, she blocked with her left hand and countered with a pull before tripping him with kick. He falls to the ground and TuTu chased after him with a right hook to the cheek. This punch didn''t have a huge impact but set up a way for the other combos. It should be known that none of them have been holding back the power of their attacks, so the blows looked rather terrifying. Even Lovan was shocked as he became restless. Haji didn''t expect TuTu to be so strong...I believe he must have underestimated her, but I think now his fighting spirit was also aroused, and he took the opportunity to grab toward her neck. In a flash, he pulled her to a roll before kicking her toward the side. his kick sent her flying but she landed without much problems besides the grimace on her face despite her attempt of easing the tremendous impact of the blow. From this, it could be seen that they were definitely taking this fight seriously. Haji was relentless. ''half-berserker?'' Before I could make any conclusions, Haji''s fist was already punching towards TuTu. She quickly dodged to the side throwing a punch of her own, then used all her strength to use his legs to tangle Haji''s legs, trying to take him down again. He learned his lesson and stomped him feet to lift the female Hobgoblin up... TuTu slips away, creating distance before stopping. ''Ah! they''re fighting for dominance now... interesting'' a playful look graced my face as I turned towards Moz secretly. She was watching TuTu with appreciation, "Would you like to teach her your warrior way?". Shocked, she looked at me with doubt. "If you will it" "Do it then" I say, ''That should get your mind off things for now''. At this time, TuTu was already running toward Haji and kicked toward him, who hadn''t decided on his next course of action. He grabbed the leg with both hands and pulled, attempting to use the force to knock her down but life happened. She didn''t fail to kick him with the other leg as she went for a duplex during his daze. Their movements were surprisingly consistent. as Haji pushed himself backwards with full force, knocking the two to the ground. The battle between the two got intense, TuTu was already bleeding on an eyebrow and Haji wasn''t any better. Lovan looked at me worriedly but my mind kept playing with the business of opening an arena later...it was really tempting. "That''s enough!"I finally decided to end it, after all it didn''t look like it was going to end soon... ''No wonder Torrelsav...tsk tsk tsk, that guy is already pushing work eh?...But this is good...this is Good!'' Chapter 135 - 134: Elite Clan guardians... Blackmoon Town, Torug''s POV, After the whole activity earlier, I was now standing with Lovan, Moz, Haji and TuTu. Well the latter two... let''s just say looked interesting. "TuTu" I called out calmly and she looked curiously in my direction, "Who''s Gob are you?". "papa Coco" she responds in confusion, probably wondering why I wanted to know that. Luckily Lovan blurts out, "Coco the Simple?!" "Yes!" "He''s learning to be a blacksmith with Raz, hehehe he believes that a blacksmith should only handle iron...silly Gob" He continued while giggling with himself. ''Well he''s not entirely wrong...'' I thought while deciding not to delve deeper on the topic. "I want you to tell Your Pa, that you will be training under Moz from now on" I then told her what I really wanted to say. She had that goofy expression again as she subconsciously asked,"eh?" "..." I squinted my eyes silently at her till Haji patted her on the back before she began running towards the blacksmith shop. When she was a distance away, I looked at Moz who was smiling wryly like she just thought of something. "Haji...no need to be jealous, I will be the one training you personally but first, there are two things you would do for me" I then looked at the grown Hobgoblin again and couldn''t help sighing in my heart. ''This feeling is really strange'' I thought while suppressing a laugh. "Don''t worry my Chief, as long as it is something I can do...I won''t hesitate." he says and I couldn''t help thinking, ''Definitely better to make goblins as smart as possible before evolution, this way it''s more profitable'' With such thoughts, I stated casually as I took a few steps towards the center platform, "Good, first...I want you to go and pick 10 orc warriors from amongst those who were the first raiders and bring them here..." Haji nodded silently while thinking. "Second, when you are done..." With a slight pause, I say "Take your father hunting, you are to do this alone and you are to make sure he''s not harm... you are to do this until he becomes..." at the end of my sentence, I gestured towards him with my Jaws. Lovan''s eyes continued to widen with each of my words but there was no sign of protest from Haji. ''If my calculations are correct, he should be done in two to three days at most...Then he should be able to make changes that overly straight forward personality, I don''t need a blind warrior'' Curious about what Lovan would be like when he evolves, I sent both of them off before looking at Moz. "You will take TuTu to train while watching them, don''t let them see you two" I added. "No problem" She responds curtly before pausing, "Do you think TuTu is like me?" "A shadow orc?" I asked back and she nods, "No...but it should be something not to far off". After I said that, there was an awkward silence in the air for a few seconds. "Do you resent me?"I asked more out of curiosity than... "No" She says with a hollow laugh, "I have never held such dreams, after all, I am what I am". ''Ah...as I suspected She thinks I picked Nazu first despite her being first with me because of her face''. I walked closer to her, looking over her like I wanted to see into her brain, deepening my voice, I say, "Do you really think that is the reason?" "..." Before she replied, there was a sound of hurried footsteps not to far from us. """"My Chief!"""" "..." I look in the direction of the ten orcs that just arrived before looking back at Moz, "we''ll continue this discussion later tonight" She only nodded silently. With that, I turned my attention to the Ten 2nd circle Orcs in front of me and then looked at the card on my user interface. [ Elite Clan guardian cards(¡Á10): This item is used in automatically training the selected number of individuals, in the way of the following sets {Axe and Shield, Mace and Shield, Warhammer and Shield or Sword and Shield}. Granting you and your selected family members their absolute loyalty Customizable equipment on the first use... mana would be needed in completing this task, be sure to provide. ] With a thought, I crushed the card and a new interface appears.. [Please Customize their equipment] [Equipment quality capped at Rare(Blue)] An armor made with the mixture of leather, fur and iron appeared before me, along with several sliders, ranging from color scheme to hardness and how it affects the user. I want something that won''t affect their speed and riding ability, so I immediately went to work without much delay... The primary color as usual was black, Light leather c.h.e.s.t armor with some shining silver steel patched on the c.h.e.s.t, covering where the heart was, the shoulders. A silver colored moon was drawn at the abdomen, just above the black battle skirt that was made with a mixture of leather and steel. the arm guards was iron coated with silver fur, matching the leather boots in design. The Head gear was sadly fixed, unless I wanted to change the entire armor style... Luckily, it has room for enchantments, same as the arm guards. [Kindly select the weapon you wished for them to be trained in...] "Axe and Shield" I made my choice long ago, I have always favored axes more than the sword... ''besides, who wants to see orcs waving swords around'' I thought while thinking of when Urim had been using swords a month ago. [Are you sure you want to confirm the changes you have. made?] ''Yes'' At the same time as I was making my confirmation, a pale golden light enveloped the ten orcs in the training ground. [9 minutes 56 seconds] _________________________________ Cullbeg kingdom Rosenvug City, 43 Sonia Ozil street, Helene Caronte (Simon Weiss) POV, clothed in a peach colored dress, I picked up the accursed book with an exegarated sigh... "Why is it so hard?!" Soon a twisted voice responds, "Now, now... I''m not surprised that young Lord isn''t falling for your ''charms''..." "Don''t start..."I deadpanned while complaining inwardly at how much this body was already affecting me, "Should I take the fiancee''s body then?" but a female voice shot down the idea immediately, "Oh God no, He hates that little thing" Then several voices within the Grimoire g.r.o.a.n.e.d loudly in frustration... "I''m going to try ''the'' ritual" I say firmly... "No it would only alert the high circled people in Rosenvug!" She counters again as she always does... "Not if we''re fast enough..." an aged voice says more like a question than a statement. "Yes Yes Yes, if it was with his real body 180 years ago... now he''s just a pitiful third circle filth" The grumpy thing states before adding, "If only you had listened to me back then, Greta is bad ..." Annoyed by the mention of that incident, "Enough!" "Ah... silence again" I mutter before saying, "To complete the ritual, I need more strength but I can''t seize any other bodies carelessly...so, what if I channel power from someone, something or... some people?". "You want to do a Mass slaughter in the city?" Hearing the Question, I laughed "I''m not stupid... what if someone else does it for me while I perform the ritual?". "..." "..." "..." "Yes... with the escalating wars, the Sons of Zonfid are all fighting for merits... the young Lord has returned from the front lines and is too stubborn, so I''ll use the third, because of his disgusting love for his sister, he''s even more desperate, he believes that once he is in power, no one would have an opinion on his ''deeds''...so I''ll lie to him and have him make the sacrifice while performing the ritual myself, if I succeed... House Zonfid is mine for the taking... I''ll have enough force to seize the patriarch''s body" A l.e.w.d grin spread across my face as I continued to weave more plans in my head. "haaa... he has that face again, it''s even more creepy with the girls face on" Meow...! A black cat walked out of the shadows before turning into black smoke, crawling into my body through my fingers. After digesting all of its memories, a frown appeared on my face. "The Date Weaver is really becoming more preposterous...I wonder what that one has over her!" I said with mix rage and amus.e.m.e.nt. "What happened?" I responded while standing up from my seat, "Their people actually stepped into Rosenvug..." "Then you don''t have time to waste... what if they find out Master''s plan?!" ''I am your master'' I complained inwardly before turning towards the Obnoxious Grimoire, "Looks like I''ll be killing someone tonight..." "Why are you sounding like you don''t enjoy it?!Hehehe" a wretched voice sounded out. "Please...I beg to differ" I responded with a teasing laugh while thinking, ''Just you wait, I''ll soon take everything... take it all!!''. Chapter 136 - 135: the Day before it all began. Orc lands, Somewhere between Black moon town and Govan, Torug''s POV, it''s already the 25th hour of the day and I have decided to use the ''wolf raider camp'' and the ''Lv1 watchtower'' in the place I have chosen. ________ Earlier today, At about three hours ago, Haran and Nazu were done with their ''Bonding'', I didn''t try to enquire on what was discussed...well at least for now. But from my observation, Haran had left in a hurry... not long after, Urim came to me and resumed his ''Body guarding'' duties. Out of the ''Elite guards'', I gave Urim and Nazu three each for protection, leaving the remaining four with me. Of course, my commands still had the highest priority. I then gave Urim my old black fur cloak, boosting his defense somewhat, then I picked up the newly acquired Twin furred cloak, which were black and white respectively...I handed Nazu the white version and put on the black. Unsurprisingly, each of them had a hoodie, a bonus on charm and Aura, compared to the +500 defense on the old one, they both have a +1000 defense bonus. On seeing this effect, I began considering giving the white to Urim for a second but I don''t think it would work like that and the following scene had proved that point. The moment the both of us put on the cloaks, a mysterious force linked us together and through the system, I learned of the new effects that just came on. {Growth Item} Defense:+1000 Charm: +2% Aura boost: +1.3% Special Effects(New): * Lv 1 : When both spouses have the cloak on, Each can monitor their partners life Ryhthm . (Unlocked) * Lv 2: Portable Storage. * Lv 3: Long distance communication (Locked) * Lv 4: Once a day, you can automatically teleport to your spouse, cool down : 30 hours (Locked) Apparently, it is a growth Item that has to do with the emotion shared between both parties?, this is what unlocks the special Effects and the list seemed endless, there''s even a part where the other party who doesn''t have the system could get minor system privileges... ''What does that even mean?!'' ''If it wasn''t for only legally married couples and I gave it to Urim, I''m sure I would have unlocked at least 4 of the special Effects, that way it''d be useful to me at the moment!... Just imagine the strategic value of this thing!!'' I screamed in my head, barely holding back my groan. ''Now only the first level was unlocked'' Frowning slightly, I looked at the new health bar that appeared below mine, I couldn''t help rolling my eyes before turning to see, Nazu trying to catch something invisible in the air. And It was that moment, I froze... "Do you see it too?" She suddenly asked, noticing my gaze. "See what?" I asked with curiosity. "The Green... green..." "Bar?" I said while quickly drawing the shape of the health bar on the ground. She says "Yes!" loudly with a focused expression. "How many do you see?" "Two" she responds without missing a beat as she stood rooted on the spot. I extended my claws and made a cut on my palm, noticing a slight movement on my health bar, I asked "which one moved?" "The one under?" she answers absentmindedly before her eyes soon became brighter!!, "does that mean the other one is mine?!!" I nodded in response as I watched my wound heal, lost in thought. ''System privilege...Does that mean that it''s sharable, if I go by this line of thought, I''m something of a system administrator in training... interesting, guess I have to work harder upgrading the system'' "Why is this happening?" Nazu suddenly asked and I pointed at her cloak, which she proceeded to inspect with a curious gaze. Not giving her time to rest, I said while exiting the room with quick steps,"I will be heading out and be back by night fall" She didn''t seem to hear me though but I didn''t slow down, needed to get to Govan at least before nightfall... "Alpha, take me to Old Dabok" The Big ''Dog'' snorts dismissively and I couldn''t help staring wide eyed at him, then he looks at me from the corner of his eyes before rolling it again. ''Eh?!!'' I couldn''t help being shocked in my heart but I soon burst out laughing. "I know I haven''t come to play with you all day, but am I not here now?!" "..." All I got is another snort. "Does that mean you can''t find him?, what do I do? Alpha isn''t so strong anymore" I muttered, this time it stood abruptly with an expression that said, ''When did I ever say such a thing?!''. "Oh? I understand... rest rest, I''ll find him myself" I say with an understanding expression before turning away to leave, as expected, he rushed after me with a slight bump before snorting away... sniffing the air for a but, he moved in a certain direction on the other side of the town hall. With a laugh, I chased after him, "Wait! don''t be angry Foo...why are you increasing your speed!" "Aren''t you cute" I yell and oh boy was he dissatisfied... ''I got an eyeroll again... Alpha, are you sure you aren''t female?...Guess we need to check again'' Not long after I left, the Elite guards followed behind. We found Dabok within five minutes, luckily Torrelsav and Urim was present, even his three guards weren''t far away. "Oh Great, everyone is here!" I announced my presence and everyone salutes. After responding, I say "There''s news on Brother..." Urim looked shocked and excited, he even stood up to ask, "Is what you said true?!!" "Yes" I answered before turning to Dabok, "can you have your contact in Degr buy Vargan immediately?!" "I''ll make the arrangements immediately!" Hearing his words, I relaxed a bit. "Buy, buy?" Urim looked confused. "He''s being used as a slave fighter in Degr" I decided not to mention anything about him being named a coward for now, ''No matter, that is a bad prefix for an Orc'' "What?!! All This time?!!" "Yes" "How..." "Calm down Urim... Everything will fall into place soon, at least now, we know our brother is alive" I cautioned Urim immediately and I''m happy he was able to calm down immediately, that''s an improvement. "For now, you and Tor can come with me...We need to go to Govan and" I turn to Torrelsav before adding, "There''s much to discuss". _______________________ Back to the present, I and the others had already arrived in Govan, the Guards were in charge of making a clearing where I can set up the Raider camp. With there axes, three of them continued chopping wood and the other four would move it, into the ruined village. "What do you think of this place? Tor"I ask Torrelsav seriously. Aside from me, He and his daughters understood humans more, after all they had lived with them... infact he was married to one I believe. "Aside from the ruined village, The soil is very rich, added with the wood here... this part of labodi region, I think I understand why you have always held on to this place... but I have to remind you that, this is the part that is closest to the humans..." "Can you handle it?" I asked while walking to the completed clearing, I quickly break the camp card and placed the construction on the open space. Bang! A gloomy stone building appeared with a flash of white light, to the side, Two wolves laid resting. Not long after, two tier one riders came out of the stone house, they didn''t look much different from Black moon orcs aside from their wild aura being milder than ours. ""My Chief!!"" I didn''t respond to their bow and asked Torrelsav again, "Can you handle it?!" I walked closer to him and say slowly with my hands on his shoulder, "This will be our main Calvary, every two days, two new warriors will appear here... they''re to train in this forest terrain most of the time" "In time, I intend to build a fortress here and I plan for you to manage it...Can you handle it?" I asked again, by the time I was done, his eyes were shining, probably happy that I finally gave him something or a responsibility. "I will see to it that your plans are completed, even if it costs me my life" He says with a somewhat shaky voice but I could understand what he was saying, so I smiled "Good". I have nothing to fear as these raiders are 100% loyal to me, when it boils down to it...his commands will always be translated as secondary to mine. "Now that''s cleared up, we just need to collect ''My'' Fortress from the Greyeye clan before any other thing" I say to everyone before turning to the raiders, "Watch this place for now" "I think it''s time we go collect our debt" Chapter 137 - 136: "Much to do!" Several days ago, Degr Kingdom, Somewhere in the Grand coliseum, A place of raw violence and blood shed, Stood gloriously after the day''s close of business, In a dark corner of a somewhat rusty cage, a shivering hoarse voice could be heard from within. "Personally," the voice said, "I have always found self control and creativity to have direct proportionality, more of one means more of the other. I guess when you stop using primitive reactions to solve problems the rest of your brain has a chance to respond with something infinitely smarter...But...That doesn''t seem to work here..." "Cold...so Cold" The voice mutters rather pitifully as it''s squatting figure scribbled on the earthy floor, "Day 132 since waking up in this dreadful world!". "Still can''t make sense of the new influx of memories some days ago but I feel I understand how the previous body owner ended up here..." With short pause, the figure stares at the mess he had scribbled out before adding, "It seems I have Brothers somewhere out there..." "Bah!! would you keep quiet!!" An irritated orc suddenly yells at him while glaring at him, it''s fierce expression made him flinch, this only brought up several hissing, grunts and jeers from other prisoners, "coward!!" "Vargan the cowardly!!" "what nonsense is he saying this time...?" Several comments could be heard but Vargan seemed not to have heard anything as he seemed to have thought of something. ''AGH!! what kind of situation is this!...why didn''t I transmigrate into a human or at least something not in this situation!....'' He yelled inwardly. The irritated orc didn''t seem to be satisfied as it soon stood up and walked towards Vargan, The orc was in full on aggressive mode as it used it''s feet to wipe Vargan''s scribbling with a ferocious expression. But Unlike before Vargan didn''t retreat in fear but growled at the aggressive orc, his eyes, glowing icy blue from beneath him messy malnourished hair... this shocked the orc as he took a few steps backwards. Everywhere suddenly became silent as the others were shocked as well, unfortunately, Vargan''s mind was somewhere else at this time, ''Showing high rates of aggression since the integration of recent memories...is this good or bad? what was that mysterious energy? they were immediately s.u.c.k.e.d out by these chains'' immediately unable to control his excitement and the hope of finally having something to defend himself with, he tried mustering it up again and nothing happened, ''I might not be as lucky to survive all the time...'' "AAAAaargh!!" The aggressive orc suddenly made a sloppy charge in embarrassment, only for Vargan to crawl backwards in shock, each cage contained two people and it was only the size of two bathrooms. beng!! His back collided with the cage and he was immediately grabbed, luckily though the sound of whip came from the side as a guard made his presence known, "Back to you corner...Uvral" Hearing this, Uvral could only give up and walked back to his side of the cage, glaring at Vargan. The guard looked at the prisoners one more time before heading somewhere else. ___________________________________ Torug POV, A day after my trip to Govan, I decided to take Moz on a trip to confirm the supply route Brog gave me last night. Due to how busy I have been, I have been unable to really discuss with Moz, So I hope to achieve that today alongside what we have set out to do...At least this was what I thought until I received news of an Envoy from the Shammob clan, requesting for Bhok Bone carver. Apparently their clan had some kind of rite of passage for the chief''s sons. ''I couldn''t just let go of such a good tool man'' I thought while inviting Bhok over from his ''Residence''. The so called Envoy was surprisingly a Kobold or could he be a sacrifice?... Looking at his status, I confirmed that he isn''t a slave or anything but an ''Envoy''. I became unsure of whether to laugh or cry, ''Looks like I have to do further experiments on this race/class thing''. Aside from wanting to bring back Bhok, He brought gifts and word from His chief, Apologizing for not being able to attend his wedding and saying thank you for the help rendered last time, He would like us to have more dealings later blah blah... ''Trade? sorry I can''t wait to swallow your clan up later'' I mused silently while being expressionless on the surface. "Trading weapons and ''food'' isn''t a problem but it won''t be free like the last time" I clarified quickly, "You can go and discuss with your chief on what you can exchange with later". Bhok walks in as I was speaking, he gave a salute before nodding at the Envoy. I already arranged with Bhok, to have some of my people to act like they were part of his guards, that way, we''ll slowly sneak into the Shammob clan. This was the early stage. Presently, our relationship with the Shammob clan was barely a matter of cooperation based on benefits. As for the idea of taking them down immediately?, there are too many hidden rules of the orc lands. At present, I still don''t have enough capital to do as I like in the orc lands but as my military aspect increases.. "he...he...he" A strange laugh escaped my lips slightly, now, I just need to maintain a certain degree of friendliness. There has always been competitions amongst the Chieftains. once there''s a mistake, they would also not mind setting traps for their enemies to drag them down. Moreover, I am no longer the same as before, when Black moon village was just starting. Now, I have gained strength to at least to have a say in the Orc lands. There was no need for me to play dead! Just like a month ago, Annex the weak ones, even if they had the backing of white mountain, or Degr. "load it." I say quietly to Urim, "Understood." After a few minutes, I felt the old batch of weapons should be completely loaded into the caravan... "Come with me." I didn''t give the Envoy a chance to speak before walking outside with Moz in tow. the Envoy drank the alcoholic fruit drink served to him in a silver cup in one gulp, stood up and walked after them. "Whoosh Kring!! krang !! Klang!!klang!!" The sound of a longswords, short swords, wooden crap being hurled in the caravan rang out. The envoy''s serfs gazes were fixed on these things, and they were extremely greedy. "This¡­ this¡­ this¡­what to exchange?!" he tilted his head in confusion. "That is for the chief and Bhok to discuss...just be sure to bring your own things at the end of six days at most" I decided to give an ultimatum while using my eyes to find out the time. "Oh..." The Envoy felt something was wrong but couldn''t place his mind on it. I began to hurry them up as I still had other things to do, I still need to confirm the information I got from Brogg, Chapter 138 - 137: At some kilometers south of the White Mountains, Torug''s POV,?? Right before was a well developed Outpost with several orcs and Goblins standing on the wall as high as 15m, guarding it as they cautiously watched the several makeshift caravans enter and leave in quick moves. Several footprints were embedded on the ground, a mixture of sand and snow. "They''re doing our business?" Moz''s voice comes from my side and I chuckled with a nod. I swear, Kharag must have gotten the idea from when he met Urim back then and has improved upon the idea, using his connections in the Orc lands to make it bigger. ''I''m beginning to suspect this fellow must have been a sly human in his last life'' I thought in amus.e.m.e.nt, Honestly I am impressed with how far he had come. "This is good too, he has made work easy for us...it won''t be strange to the orc lands as it was before" I continued, glancing at the shadow orc, she nodded curtly. A few grunts came from my personal guards around as they adjusted on their wolves itching for a fight. Glancing at the Outpost in stealth, I added once more, "It''d be ours when we take it later no?". This brought a smirk to her face. I soon rested my body on Alpha by placing my body''s weight on my elbows, I try to scan the guards visible to me and found out that most of them weren''t even in the second circle. ''This is Good, we''ll Rob this place for supplies and even make it our base... it''d be ideal to attack the fortress from here...'' I weighed my options, This Outpost is the biggest amongst the other two outposts. "I might as well create chaos with Brogg''s body and keep them from noticing any changes...Moz would then lead all the stealthy orcs and Goblins to assassinate the top figures of the camp..." Muttering to myself, I urged Alpha towards Blackmoon Town while ordering Moz, "Have one of your people come here and watch from the patch of trees over there, meanwhile the rest of us shall return". Without much of a change in expression, She gave TuTu a nod, who in turn signaled a random Hobgoblin. The Hobgoblin then urged his wolf in the direction I spoke of. Since the last time I used the breeding house, old Dabok has been pumping the place with materials...so the production of wolves hadn''t stopped, just that the new ones aren''t as strong as the ones I used Alpha to make. I call them the second generation wolves, the time needed for their cloning isn''t as long as the first, that''s why I''m working with that. As of now, there''s about 103 second generation wolves with us being short of about 22 riders. With full speed, it took us close to 8 hours to arrive at the clan. Then I had Moz gather everyone aside from Lovan who was out with Haji, in their father and son ''bonding'' time. While waiting, I began thinking on how to go about the 2nd wall and the tower. "We start tomorrow?" Obviously excited about the fight, she asked. "yes and no..."I responded calmly while urging her to sit on the very chair closest to my right. She displays a confused expression and asked, "what do you mean?" "The distance between us is quite far, so we''ll be taking the biggest outpost Kharag owns... he''s gathering weapons and supplies from everywhere, so we take it and attack from there." She nods in understanding before saying, "But I don''t get it, why doesn''t he just challenge you directly?". Hearing her question got me laughing wryly, "That only works between small clans... we''re not that easy to swallow anymore as we have plenty strong people and he''s not sure how strong I am either." "..." "You called, brother" Urim steps in with quick strides and I quickly pointed to the chair on my left, "Sit". He absentmindedly complies still waiting for me to say something. Observing their expressions, I turned to Torrelsav and asked, "Have you started with construction?". "We started the same day, the new riders have been patrolling the area as well" He states calmly before adding, "From time to time, during late hours of the night... the magic in area seems to disappear completely". Immediately after hearing this, my eyes flashed dangerously as I looked towards Moz, who happens to be looking at me as well. Urim seemed to understand as well but that wasn''t the main point. ''Looks like I might need to inform Ayase about this''. "I''ll look into it later" I say, "But for now, I wish to inform you of my plans". "We have spotted the said outposts and amusingly, Kharag has been using our caravan idea", I paused before adding, "He''s been gathering weapons and other supplies... from what I hear, they''re to be sent to the fortress at the end of the week". "That''s in two days" Dabok''s voice seemed to increase a bit as he thought about this. I looked at him weirdly in my mind but nothing was seen on the surface, "Yes, so we will be taking everything early tomorrow... right before the sunrise". "Moz, you would lead your men...I will follow, Urim, you will lead the other raiders and warriors to the location tomorrow, Moz will leave a man to guide you... Torrelsav, increase the speed of construction and watch those warriors...Nazu, you will help me look after everything here." After dropping a series of orders I looked at Dabok silently. As though he could read my mind, He said, "He is in my friend''s hands and He''ll be brought over in a few days, you don''t need to worry my Chief". Hearing his words, I let out a breath I didn''t know I was holding. "Very well... you can all go and continue with your preparations". I said calmly while wondering ''Friend?''. _________________ Nature''s summit! A demi plane standing at the very reaches of Luegad, Think of it as the highest court for the Gods. Here, The oldest neutral God, the God of knowledge, the untainted, Melanos stands as the judge and witness. Today stands as the official date, where the battle between Ragol, ruler of light, Master of the Sun and Ayase, Goddess of the moon and night will begin the war between their champions as it has been agreed upon. At the center of the massive white hall, lays a huge table. surrounding it were several thrones giving off different auras. Whenever one becomes a God, they leave a divine imprint here in the form of a throne...those who do not, are seen as rogues and would not be protected by the law. On the High table was the throne of Melanos and Ayaseh the oldest, Ragol despite being an Archgod isn''t allowed to sit on this edge of the table. This was set by the world rules and it was arranged with the oldest having the highest rights to speak here. Going by this, Ayaseh should be the judge, as she has been alive since the very beginning but she forfeited this right due to reasons best known to her, allowing the second oldest, Melanos to hold this right. Ayaseh was the first to arrive, appearing on a pitch black throne with smokey black substances oozing out. She calmly watched the hall Accompanied by a series of ethereal and holy hymns, the gods descended. On the frontmost divine throne of the Pantheon Palace, the embodiments of the true god''s will condensed one after another. Deep and vast consciousnesses appeared in the Pantheon Palace. Eve''s expression remained unchanged, but His heart was full of curiosity. He observed the figures that appeared in the temple without batting an eyelid. There were fewer gods descending than Eve had imagined. Less than a hundred. Most of them appeared in human form or human form. The most eye-catching were the thirty or so figures in the center. Their divine robes were rather similar. They were all white with golden rims, which matched the style of the Eternal Lord''s divine robes. They were the gods of the human gods, and the largest gods in the world of Sagas. They were the gods of the Divine God of War, the second major god of the Sagas world. Looking at these two groups of believers, Eve felt a chill in his heart. The human and the God of War were the main forces attacking the World Tree a thousand years ago. However, among the inheritances obtained by Eve, there should be more than a hundred of them. According to Oros'' memory, they did not lose much when they defeated the World Tree, but the total number was less than 60, which surprised Eve. A god would definitely act at the same time. Those who did not appear here could not have not come. So there could only be one possibility¡­ that in the past thousand years, at least one-third of the true gods that had besieged the World Tree had perished Chapter 139 - 138: Baiting... Nature''s summit!, The God of knowledge gave Ayaseh a long, hard look before nodding like he understood something. "let''s get started." He suddenly says. As He spoke, Ayaseh felt dozens of eyes filled with, scrutiny, vigilance, indifference¡­ "The Feud between Ragol and Ayaseh has gone on for far too long, It''s time we fix that before more of us are dragged into the battle." "And The purpose of gathering everyone, is to discuss Who and who are standing with the two, also those who remain Neutral. According to Mileesi''s prediction, there''s a great enemy coming to Luegad and we''re yet to have a specific date" "In this period of time, we need them to settle their differences...Ragol as the challenger requested for the battle of Gods, to which Ayaseh agreed on" A scroll zapped into existence showing the contract. "Winner has the right to ask for one thing from the Loser!" Melanos''s solemn voice spread across tthe hall calmly, "There are no limitations on who can help who...but after today''s decision, there will be no chance for those who chose to be neutral, to join the fight." ''Only this chance?'' Ayaseh squinted at the other members of her faction, wondering if they would use this chance to back off. Melanos''s words, was definitely strange but She expected this to a certain extent. You can never completely trust anyone, not even a God!. Surprisingly Etix, Goddess of the Earth was the first to speak, "I would like to join you in this Battle, Aya...". Ragol''s expression grew serious, when you talk about strength or those with the highest damaging dealing capabilities amongst the Gods, you talk about the likes of the God of war being number one at his peak, The Night Goddess being second, Sun God being third...depending on different conditions they are all number 1. But For defensive gods with matching strength, Etix was the undisputed number one even if she was just at the Advanced God Rank. The only reason she hasn''t really been targeted is because, like her nature, she never strives for anything, she''s satisfied with her little followers, The Dryads. So for her to join the battle now, voluntarily at that... Melanos, God of Knowledge looked at the Goddess of Darkness and asked, "Do you have any objections?". Before Ayaseh could speak, Ragol questioned Etix in a forceful tone, "Have you thought it through?". The Gods all had different expressions. But more eyes were focused on Etix¡­ Etix did not even bother to respond, rather another voice was heard "I would be joining Ayaseh as well". Suddenly everyone looked at who spoke, it was Milen, "Ruler of the Sea". The other Gods were even more shocked, the ruler of the sea and the Goddess of the abyss have never been on good terms, everyone knows this!. With this new development, they looked at Ragol in a weird manner. Most Gods avoided this kind of things, especially those ranging amongst Factions, not a 1vs1 situation. At this moment, you would know that Ragol had done something to irritate these neutral Gods before this. In the past few centuries, there were only two of such wars in Luegad. One was the world war instigated by the God of war for his advancement, and the other was the Battle of Nodes. But thinking about it now, the strange thing was that, Both wars were related to Ragol. "Anyone else?."Melanos continued. Hearing this, Ayaseh subconsciously began to think of counter measures on what would probably happen if the God of war''s faction suddenly forms an alliance with Ragol due to the increase in her faction. Honestly, She needs all the help she could get at this point, considering most of her faction members have had most of their worshipers hunted down for a long time... "Wait!, I would like to participate as well as a challenger..." Finally the battle freak couldn''t sit still anymore, Allexrex , the present God of war. At this time, if Ayaseh did not know that the God of war was trying to enter the battle to mess with Her, She should have died severally before now. "Of course you''d be interested!!." Ayaseh flared up in anger, well she was only acting angry but the others didn''t know that except a few close confidantes like Horjen. At the same time, Horjen follows the script long prepared and called out to the Night Goddess, while signaling for her to calm down "Ayaseh!". Bolten, the Storm God also in her faction flares up as well "why can''t she be pissed?!! F*ck! i''m pissed as well...how can someone be so irritable, we have long prepared for this and he suddenly pops up because he wants to?". Other Gods nodded in agreement, it sounded like he was coming for himself but everyone obviously knew he was only coming to help Ragol, after all those two have known and worked together since their Human lifetime. Ragol saw that things might not be easy as he thought, He suddenly said, "I also agree, you can''t just join without any prior notice...Why don''t you do this, offer something up that''s impossible to refuse". As He spoke, Allerex kept nodding his head like he just understood the problem while Droll sneered from the side at the War faction. As he was thinking, a minor God suddenly added "right, there have been many mad believers Yohohari(World eater), recently they have been very active at the Garden, triggering this Battle...won''t this be giving them an opportunity?." Melanos sighed at this statement because he knew Ragol won''t let go of such an opportunity. The Gods sank into their thoughts with frowning faces before looking at the leaders of this trial of champions. Surprisingly, Ayaseh was sneering, Allerex had a playful expression like he was taunting the former, and Ragol was indifferent. "My Godhood" Allerex says jokingly but his words stunned everyone, Melanos frowns as things were going in the direction he never wanted... Obviously they were after the laws Ayaseh controls!. Ayaseh''s face was now filled with frost, Her faction members weren''t much different either. This method Ragol was trying to use to drag them into a messy poodle had pretty much shed all pretense of cordiality!. Ayaseh suddenly laughed as her gaze swept across those Present, ''Honestly, this was what I wanted from the beginning but I will play the role I am given...Ragol, Just you wait...your Godhood will be in my hands''. "Is that what it is?." She asked but no one said a thing, "Very well, I accept your Challenge!". She Looked Allerex in the eyes as she spoke. ''I will take you out first...Pawn'', This was the first time She had carried so much hostility for someone aside for Ragol. _____________________________________ Gray eye Fortress!!, "FIRE!!FIRE!!!FIRE!!!" series of roars and yelling could be heard from the Fortress''s storage space. The serfs and warriors scrambled to put out the fire as the head guard kept yelling, "Quick put it out, PUT IT OUT!! UWaaaargh!!". Suddenly seeing the Head guard drop dead, confusion and the chaos ensued, "What?!!Look!! Brogg did it!! you!!" Another orc warrior screams trying to draw attention, "Catch that filthy oath breaker!!!". "KILL!! KILL!!" Chapter 140 - 136: War beginning Gray Fortress, Durzel Greyeyes''s POV, "Look, Little beast, I believe, Fear is wisdom in the face of danger." speaking slowly as I looked at the white furred female caged before me. Then I turned to my raging father who could be seen raging in front of the weapon storage, "It''s a good thing to be tuned in enough to feel fear and figure out why it''s there and what to do about it; that''s what bravery is. You have to be brave to feel that fear long enough to analyze it and keep your self control." I pick up a piece of metal from within the fire place, lost in thought as I continued my monologue, "Because when we learn about it, it gives us a real chance to become strong, to find Honor." Staring blankly at the Beast girl once again, "When I am afraid, I remind myself that my good decision making ability is only gone for a short while and I need to wait before I can figure things out, But it is also at this time my hunger for power and honor...I guess I''m not much different from my father, Tell me little beast...Do you feel afraid?" A hollow life escape my lips as I look at Brogg the slaver who stood at the side of the room, "Tell me, does she even understand me?". "No" "Tch...did anyone see you bring her here?" I asked again. "No" "..." This time I found the situation strange as he made no movements to leave, so I turned towards him once again, only for a weird gas to spread across my face before I knew it, "Uwak!! kuff!kuff!!" Brogg sneers at me as continued coughing hard and said, "Stupid welp, lashing out because your father beat you?, to think you actually wanted to mark what isn''t even yours...ridiculous." he spoke as He calmly opened the little beast''s cage, grumbling as he worked... "w...wa...wait!" I struggled to say. "wait? Silly boy...yours and your father''s fate was sealed the moment he chose to deal with me, Torug Blackmoon...do you really believe you can bargain right now?" Brogg speaks as he walked towards the door before peeking outside. It was then I noticed the fallen guards at the entrance, He began to calmly pull the corpses into the room. "Kuhum....Kuff!!!" Everything began to slow down, "what is th...this...poison?!! coward!" "coward?! you are even more of a jester than your father...Vass you can kill him, stop clawing the wall...you''ll attract attention seriously" Brogg says to me before speaking to the beast thing in a strange language. slash!! She slashed my already limp body.... ______________________________ Torug''s POV, Looking at Durzel Greyeye''s bleeding corpse, I checked the remaining timer on Brogg before muttering, "they should have gotten to the temporary camp now, I''ll start with the distraction here" With that thought in mind, I peeked at Kharag''s location, He is presently with his main warriors plotting something and it''s only a matter of time before He asks for Durzel''s presence. ''now or never'' I picked a firewood from the fire place and began torching Durzel''s entire room, before it spread, I took Vass and headed towards the slaves I had sent to the fortress a while ago. Blackmoon goblins, presently equipped with our miniature flame thrower...I had unlocked their chains before moving, so the moment I came to the entrance, I nodded solemnly and they rushed out in different direction on the fortress. ''this time I''m ready to give up this body but I must injure Kharag in the process'' I picked up another batch of Brogg''s stoned fate poisons and rushed out once again. "hope they''ll be able to see the fire now,...Vass come!" "FIRE!!FIRE!!!FIRE!!!" series of roars and yelling could be heard from the Fortress''s storage space. The serfs and warriors scrambled to put out the fire as the head guard kept yelling, "Quick put it out, PUT IT OUT!! UWaaaargh!!". Suddenly seeing the Head guard drop dead, confusion and the chaos ensued, "What?!!Look!! the slaves escaped!!" Another orc warrior screams trying to draw attention, "Catch that filthy oath breaker!!!How can he be so careless!!". "KILL!! KILL!! what is that thing?!!!" Meanwhile, at the temporary camp, The warriors came out early in the morning...they didn''t bring anything except weapons and a water bag. Under the leadership of their Chief, they made a rapid march for hours until almost four o''clock in the morning before setting up camp amongst the woods, reaching an erosion between the white Mountains and the newly built roads connecting the Grey eye clan to the Blood horn clan etc. A day ago, Torug had led Moz and his elite guards to survey the route while having a Her team clear the road, so there is no trouble during the night march. He gave Urim authority over this mission and Moz to support, his four elite clan guards were now guarding his makeshift tent alongside Alpha. Torug then went ahead to make use of the Brand to make sure the battle goes as plan from within the fortress. The vanguard includes all 40+ ghost wolf riders, Moz''s stealth team of 22, 30+ goblins equipped with flame throwers, Lovan''s special bombs and daggers, 2 Shamans. This army of about 100 can be said to be the backbone of the Black moon clan, in order to take down the canyon as quickly as possible, Torug brought them out...The other ones would be arriving later. This army led by Urim waited until 6:23 in the morning. The plan was to immediately start the attack the moment they spotted fire in the night sky, once done, laying down defense was paramount, in case of an unexpected attack from either the weakened fortress or the Blood horn clan which was their ally. The logistics party coming later was led by Largash, so Torug was confident in her abilities, it''s not her first time handling a mission besides The main baggage includes food, arrows, tents, etc. are all carried by them. Their task is to provide support later as long as they reach the outpost, so in a way, they were the reinforcement. Because this battle, Torug has made nearly one-half of the ?du?t gobs and orcs in the territory pick up arms and man the walls. Though the Aegis shield is still there, it''s expensive to run and he wants them to start being on their toes, after all this would be more frequent in the future. The warriors stood solemnly around Urim in the dark. they kept staring at the direction of the Fortress, scared to even blink. "Raal, This time you will be taking half the riders to attack on the other side of the outpost. We must drive them out and finish them off as fast as possible." With a serious expression, Urim looked around and said in a deep voice: "the Grey eye clan came to our lands and killed our people, our Family, someone who hunted game for you and me to eat, was caught and killed without honor in the forest...They want our land, our women!!" "So all we need to know is that" "this is revenge" "Vengeance for our honor" "Our Chief''s Honor" "We will not stop until we take their everything for our own" Urim lifted his Warhammer onto his shoulder and looked at Torug whose eyes remained glowing ominous green light on Alpha''s back, He then looked at the excited warriors with a Sneer, and said the most crucial sentence as he spotted the risen flame that lit up the night sky -"For our Black moon!!" Chapter 141 - 140: Secret of the Grey eye 1 On the walls of the Grey eye clan''s outpost... The orc warrior in charge of the station made his rounds on the wall, only to find a sleeping orc with a sheepish grin. "grrr!Get up fool!" He growled out in obvious anger but just before he could finish speaking... Du! Du! Du! Du! Du! The sound of hurried footsteps could be heard so he quickly went to check and found a group of Goblins and Hobgoblins charging at the walls on foot. He looked at their numbers and felt they might have been running from something. so he decided to think of a way to get them as slaves, He didn''t even think as much to even find out their strength because he knew how much warriors were in the outpost and he was confident in his skills. With such thoughts, he didn''t bother with the gates but had the sleeping warrior alert everyone. What he didn''t know though was the Black moon raiders or riders were already taking positions and was silently charging at the gate... On the other side, Moz and her team of ten had already made their way up the wall. Their mission was to identify the leaders of the outpost and clear them as quickly as possible... ''Shiiik!'' A rookie hunter in the team accidentally grazed the stone wall with his dagger and received a glare from the whole group, especially TuTu...if looks could kill. Luckily it wasn''t enough to attract attention... "Let''s go" Moz quickly ordered as she moved ahead. she didn''t try to blend with the shadows as the others didn''t have such skill, she would always lead them physically and teach from her experience. Meanwhile, the situation at the gate was becoming heated as the outposts captain shouted, "Stop you stupid Gobs!!, you must really want to die!!" But no one stopped, they dipped their hands within their pouches and each pulled out a Boom rock. A mixture of red and blue colored marbles flew across the air and landed amongst the defending warriors. Explosions and Ice could be seen scattered across the scene, As the defending warriors had arrogantly walked out of the gate, they had no where to hide. During the commotion, the riders swooped in without delay. "Charge!!!" Urim roared as they left stealth, his target was the Outpost captain who managed to survive the earlier attack. Huuuuura!!! Chaos ensued as blood and gore spread across the somewhat snowy ground. Moz and the others z killed the sleeping warriors that looked like they had some strength before going after those on the wall. The defenders were stunned and didn''t have time to throw down Rocks at the enemy, after all...their Boss was there too. Urim increased his speed as his wolf brutally rammed into the outpost captain, sending him flying by about 9m. Without pause, Urim jumped off the wolf as he swung his great hammer down at the fallen opponent. The Sound of the hammer coming in full force broke the captain out of his stupor as he ducked to the side, b?r?ly managing to avoid it. Urim wasn''t going to let go of such an opportunity, He stomped the ground, sending him off balance and began spinning with the hammer... knocking down everything in his path. shrieks and wails could be heard in the chaos as the enemies scurried away, the defenders on the wall then chose to use Urim as their target upon seeing the captain in danger. The Rocks thrown bounced off the spinning Urim like a cartoon scene and scattered across the battle ground. Unfortunately, it couldn''t differentiate between friend or foe, so Urim chose to stop before using his hammer as a spear. It broke the air as it flew towards the ranged combatants and crushed bits of the wall they were hiding behind. The Hammer embedded itself on the wall and didn''t look like it was coming down, but it served the purpose Urim wanted. While they scrambled to dodge, Urim charge at the disoriented captain, ramming him to the ground as he proceeded to pummel him into the Earth beneath them. With his body''s overwhelming advantage of almost 3m against the Captain''s 2.3m height, Urim basically destroyed the captain... He picked him up by his head and repeatedly smashed down, they were no powers involved, just raw brute strength!. RAWR!! Urim Roared as the blood went to his head but he remembered what he was told. "an overwhelming offense can still be an amazing defense..." He muttered absentmindedly when he remembered Torug doing this during one of their sparring sessions, but he quickly snapped out of it. He decided to draw everyone''s attention like Torug asked before performing an execution. "YOUR LEADER HAS FALLEN!!!" He roared out, attracting everyone''s attention. actually they had been silently watching from a distance since the time he had been spinning and deflecting rocks. With their attention, He proceeded to pull out the captain''s head from his body as his eyes glowed blue. The sigil on his body seemed to glow as well, right before blood splashed across his face and body. He glared at the enemies before calmly adding, "will you surrender?" The threat was simply glaring but effective, they quickly tossed their weapons on the floor as the Black moon clan members cheered. the riders circled around in disarray before the Elite clan guards approached Urim and proceeded with their guarding duties. Moz watched the massive fire raging in the distance silently from above the wall, Her team celebrated as well behind her, no one knew what she was thinking as she muttered under her breath, "He''s still fighting..." _____________________________ Torug''s POV, Still in Brogg''s body, I had Vass follow the other goblin survivors out of the city, while I snuck my way through other places in the fortress city, causing chaos wherever I went and misleading the enemy. Now I''m sure, things on the other side must have been concluded and it''s almost dawn. I don''t have much time left... So I decided to use this fool''s body to test out Kharag''s ability despite the many injuries I have accumulated tonight and unsurprisingly, it''s really tough... A volley of arrows and rocks hails down from the side of the wall again as I struggled to find cover, cursing The hobgoblin for not having any special ability besides his poisons which could be made either liquid or gaseous. An orc and a goblin approached to confirm if I was hit, so I swing my short sword to slice the orc''s palm and then lunge forward, running the blade through him, the other hand tossed the dagger dexterously... something I doubt I could do this easily with my own body. Two enemies and cut down one after another. "eeik He''s still alive!!" someone yelled from afar as I struggled to stand, my breathing erratic. ''Do not fall'' I repeatedly thought to myself, I haven''t even gotten to Kharag yet. "Today cannot be my last day" A memory overlap with my vision, it was a memory of the moment I died in my previous world. "Tch...I really hate it" I finally say to no one in particular. A new enemy rushes forward, brandishing his weapon with practised skill. "I remember you. but who are you?" Kharag glared at me, but not at Brogg directly but me. Shocked, I looked skeptical before saying "You don''t remember?." ''Is this a specialty gained from his eyes?'' I wondered as I stared at his gray colored eyes that was glowed and then I remembered, this orc wasn''t a warrior but a Shaman!... probably one who normally dealt with spirits too. with this conjecture, I opened my spirit vision and it was then I saw it. A huge man-like thing that was glowing dark red kept pacing behind him impatiently. Smaller sizes people of about 9 in number kept cackling in madness next to him. No one else seemed to see anything but these things looked like they would attack should Kharag command it. ''was that his confidence?... Interesting, that''s the secret behind the Grey eye clan?'' "Hehehe" I laughed and Kharag frowned, He maneuvers his spear expertly and shatters my short sword. "You killed my Son!." He shouts, "the least you can do is speak your name!" Instead of answering, I toss the hilt at him just to observe. and He doesn''t bother to avoid it, as one of those things blocked it for him by smacking it away. It looked like I missed my throw... "Hehehehe Interesting..." I let out those words out of my mouth breathlessly, I knew what I wanted to know. Watching me grin and laugh angered him, so He walked towards me with a stab. As he stabbed, the massive man-like thing pushed forward with him... I cannot stop it. ¨C Puuk! I can hear the sound of this life thrumming in my ears and It''s getting even more difficult to breath. "We''ll meet again...soon, Remember it." I lift my eyes to stare into the distance before disconnecting from Brogg''s body. I wasn''t willing to test what would happen if I died with him. When I opened my eyes again, I was now sitting on Alpha while being surrounded by four guards. "Hehehehe" I let out a wretched laugh, as I found it all amusing. Alpha tried to look at me, but I carress the fur on his sides to calm him down. "Let''s go" I urged everyone towards the outpost, "ah! Now I''m looking forward to our battle more and more....hehehe". Chapter 142 - 141: Secret of Grey eye 2 Dawn... Moz''s POV, "Do you see him Teacher?" TuTu''s word ?ssaults my ears once again. "No" "Do you wish to find him?" "No" "But you worry?" "..." I absentmindedly stroke my belly, feeling hungry again. TuTu notices my action as she makes herself comfortable on the messy wall, "Have you told him?". "No" "..." She pauses, and takes a bite off her boar meat, "why do you not just..." "I see you are very free, TuTu" I spoke while glancing at the dying fire, "The snow from white mountain reaches this place, we need more wood..." "...Ah! look!" she suddenly says... I look in the direction she pointed and there was... Nothing!. "You!" "hihihi" She scurries away like a mice and her giggles trailed behind her. ''Sigh'' I looked at the rising sun, unable to think about what to do with my self ...''sigh!'' "You seem worried" Another voice once again pulls me from my thoughts, I couldn''t stop my mouth from twitching in annoyance...well at least till I saw the owner. "Urim..." I say dryly. "Hahaha what is with that tone?!! Did you think it was my brother?!!" He booms loudly. "I know, I know..." He echoes. I couldn''t help sneering at his words, "What do you know?". "I know you worry too much. And your worries, worry the Chief too much as well". This time I let out a small laugh, "Hahahaha...Worry him?" "..." he said nothing, only the sound of burning wood could be heard. "Are you serious?" He didn''t reply but yawned before coming forward from the stair, Dressed in Torug''s old furred cloak... ''Doesn''t look as good as it did on Torug though''. "What is it that you are so afraid of, Mo''z?" he finally asks. "..." a frown makes it''s way to my face, "I...I don''t know". Silence lingers in the air for a while. "Perhaps, that it would be rejected?" I soon add in a small voice after some thought. "it?...hmm..." Urim mauls over my words for a bit before shouting in astonishment, "IT?!!!!" Then he broke out laughing like a Mindless fool, "HAHAHAHA!!" "Torug!! To think you would have your day?!!!HAHAHAHA!!!" He laughed loudly while beating his th??h. "What''s so funny?!!" I yell while punching him in the gut. "Uahahaha!! Mo''z Hahaha!" glaring at him I asked, "What?!" Urim tries to catch his breath before saying, "You have to let me know when you are to tell him" "I wish to see his face..." "I don''t know if I should, I am an Alhamanut, we..." I couldn''t finish my sentence. Urim looks at me from the corner of his eye and says with a grin that looked like Torug''s, "So what?... you are My brother''s Alhamanut... anyone who speaks nonsense should come die!" He pats his Warhammer playfully before adding, "Besides, No one of White bone blood would be abandoned..." "It''s a white bone!" His eyes glowed icy blue before turning into a laughing mess, "Hahahaha". I could only roll my eyes at him, but... Now I feel better... At the same time, a loud wolf''s howl came from quite a distance, a little far from the outpost. We look in this direction and all the wolves in the outpost howled in response. "He''s here" Urim says with a teasing smirk and I reply while placing my arm on my tummy, "Yes... He is". Meanwhile, Grey eye Fortress, Kharag''s POV, "I''ll kill them, I''ll Kill them all" I say through gritted teeth, "How dare that..." "My Chief, why don''t we bury the little Chief?" my right hand man questions abruptly. "Bury Durzel?" I glare at him, "we will not bury anyone until I kill him!" "But...My Chief, didn''t you kill him earlier?" "No no no no no, that was just a useless puppet!" I quickly retorted while slapping the side of my sweating head. "Tell Blood horn, that I will have Mala''kwe with the Black moon clan!! we will not share the same sky!!!, He dares touch my..." Suddenly I remember, "Where are my weapons?! Why have they not arrived?". "..." "..." "..." Then the Hobgoblin said something funny, "There''s no news from the outpost my Chief" "what are you doing here then??!! Get out!!, equip my men with weapons and bring me the head of the Outpost captain while you''re at it" I roar in anger, my blood was boiling. ''I will feast on all your blood!! argh!!!'' I kick down the war table as everyone in t war room gulped. "Get out!!!, why are you still here?!!! Hey out!!" I roared in the end before finally having the whole place to myself. "Did he see them?" I muttered calmly before sighing, I looked at my dead son. "I was waiting for you to get to the third before devouring you but looks like it has to be now, can''t have you awakening and devouring me after all, like I did my father" I say ever so softly as I bring myself closer to the corpses face and sniff. ''mhmm...'' I hummed in Glee as my stomach rumbled, "Don''t worry, you will see my father and my brother...kikiki!''. "I don''t care who that person was, but to me, it''s the Black moon clan, it has to be for my plans to work... that village would be the greatest gift you would give me and I will make it into a holy land after torturing and milk out all of it''s secrets"I fantasized, "how can you have..." _______________ Thann''s End, Janetta once again appeared at the church, to investigate enemy movements. The solemn cathedral is illuminated by the warm glow given off by lamps. This causes the scene to seem fantastical, even. The only person standing here in this cathedral is a stunningly beautiful purple haired woman. Her cold eyes are directed at the statue of the God Ragol, her eyes beneath the cloak was filled with a bit of confusion. This would be the first time she looked at this statue despite coming here severally. but looking at it now, have her the feeling of Deja Vu. ''So the human was really a priest?, so why does this stone match that of our clan temple... different Gods?'' The early morning sun shines brilliantly into the hall, driving away darkness. She had been standing here silently for a while now. "All we wish for is the truth huh." It was as though she was talking to the statue but it was a sentence that came from an unknown memory. "Damn fellow. What is it that you actually did in the church? Now truth and lie is mixed together so thoroughly, it is like reading chaos... show me nothing if it''s not important." Then she begins walking away, the sound of her high metal heels reverberating crisply throughout the cathedral. Gradually she approaches something red on the marble ground. "dear Bishop. did you see your death coming like that human priest I ate, or was he the only one who could do such. why would he continue despite knowing it would lead to his death, he saw that I would eat him but still walk down that path. answer me." The red thing on the marble ground is a large piece of meat covered with blood. What used to be a corpulent man was now this thing that looked like it had exploded from inside out, with not a single breath left in him. her high heels stop right on top of the puddle of blood. The knee length skirt reveals her white, shapely legs. "Who is it that could cut down someone in a position as high as yours silently? could it be that old man? or was it Anthony" she poked the meat silently, she was a bit out of it and muddle headed since she saw the statue. Totally uncomfortable. The eyes of the archbishop''s corpse speaks of the sublimity of the line on the boundary of death. The rumors of this bishop had reached even the ears of those in the slums. Yet he is erased so silently. "I will await the actions of that butcher Anthony today." she taps her chin with her index finger playfully as she thought of the people executed wrongly yesterday at the Town''s square. ''Trying to force me out by attacking my conscience? it might have worked if I was human in the first place'' a sickening smile across her face before breaking into giggles. She then gives the statue one last glance before turning away. From beyond the doors to the cathedral float voices looking for the bishop. Paying them no mind, she walks to the doors and strides out. As the sound of high heels gradually fade into the distance, knights surge in from another direction like an exchange. She already knows this place like the back of her hands. a knight caught a glimpse of a shadow but was occupied by the thought of finding the bishop. Though they immediately see the corpse of the bishop, immediately that knight chased after the shadow. Too bad She was gone though.... Chapter 143 - 142: Secret of the Grey eye 3 Torug''s POV, I stood at the entrance of the out post''s storage. the place was filled with weapons and food, all in a messy pile. ''hmph orcs'' I thought cynically as I thought about a scene from an old fantasy movie. "Urim, have the warriors change their weapons for a better one. Give them food as well, Largash would soon be here". Urim hummed a reply while stroking his beards, this made me look at him strangely. He gave me a knowing smile before walking away with a coarse hehehe.... "Hey!! Urim!! what mischief are you up to again?!!"I couldn''t help yelling, the big guy only chuckled loudly in response. ''that''s even more fishy...he didn''t say anything'' I look at Moz for answer but she was only glaring at the retreating Urim. Unable to get any answer, I walked towards Alpha who was ???k?n? his fur. "Look at how busy you are" I tossed a snow ball at him while speaking only for him to shake roughly. "hohoho" laughing at his reaction I decided to rest on his sides, "I hope your ready, the big fights is about to start" He rolled his eyes at me before snorting, the action looked funny to me and I didn''t know when I began laughing. "They''re here!!!" a Hobgoblin rider yells while rushing in through the gates, everyone got into battle mode immediately and the previous leisurely atmosphere was no where to be seen. The hobgoblin made his way to me and says with a salute, "My Chief, Largash has arrived with the reinforcements and supplies". "Good" I Pat his shoulder lightly before heading towards the gate, it didn''t take long for Moz to appear from my Shadow. She glanced lightly at the others around me and became somewhat guarded, "My Chief, one of my people spotted a team of Grey eye warriors on foot. they seem to be in a hurry". "on foot...how many of them?" "about 10 of them" With a nod, I turned towards the outpost and shouted, "Alpha!". The big guy casually walked towards me but his tail exposed his excitement, so I laughed as I jumped unto his back. "Moz, help me organize the goblins to handle the equipment and supplies brought by Largash. Although I trust my brother but he... let''s just say arranging stuff isn''t one of his charms hahaha" I say with a laugh before charging towards my exercise. the guards and a few raiders followed after me. we rode for about 15 minutes and saw a party of 10 with a Mish mash of equipments. Soon they spotted our figures and went into battle stances while shouting, "This is Chief Kharag greyeye''s lands!, Who are you!!". I chose to ignore his words, and increased my speed instead. Alpha probably felt my urge to battle and used it''s pack skill {Haste}, increasing the charging speed of all the wolves in the group. "Kill!!" I roared out. The leader of the enemy group soon Charged forward in a scattered manner as he cursed at me "You fool!". Urging Alpha to ram into their leader, He attempts to avoid this by Jumping straight at me, only for Alpha to raise it''s mouth and bite his ankle before dragging him down. His actions led to an accident where we all went stumbling onto the ground, Dust and rubble flew into the air. Upon feeling myself touch the ground, I rolled to my feet fast enough to spot Alpha trying to lift the orc with his bite. The orc struggled and then attacked with his Makeshift Blade, Alpha jumps backward slightly, narrowly dodging the blade before rushing for the kill. This time he aimed for the Orc''s neck, He calls out in hysteria "Argh help me with this swine!!". ''looks like he has really been itching for a fight hehe'' while being amused, Two orc warriors changed targets and headed for Alpha, another one headed my way. Immediately I used reckless charge and intercepted those heading for Alpha, I grabbed one of the approaching Orcs by its head and gave him a head bu??, knocking him down. I tossed [Eclipse] at another before lifting the fallen orc and tossed him at the last attacker. ''They felt so weak, to think I was once at their level... Second circle huh'' while thinking about this, I walked up to the dead orc and picked up my battle-axe. guggle... grrr The other two were enraged, the screams of their leader was still echoing in the background along with the surrounding combat. "aaagh!" the first one comes forward and I sidestepped, avoiding the club in his hand. His partner following behind tried to attack but I slashed across his ?h?st before grabbing him by the neck. Turning around, I placed the orc in front of me, just in time for his teammate to smack him across his face with a club. "Wow you really didn''t hold back" I teased before beheading the confused orc. His face was filled with pride, obviously waiting for me to praise him. so I smacked him lightly on his head while reprimanding him, "don''t try that next time, what if we are in a bigger battleground? you would have gotten us killed with your recklessness...huh? what''s that look? what do you mean you know?" "My Chief, one of them had escaped" an elite clan guard quickly reported as I was bickering with Alpha. "Let him be, that''s what I wanted anyways... we''ll be attacking tonight" I explained while mounting Alpha, "Let''s go, we need to survey the area before heading back". ____________ A few minutes ago at the outpost, Urim''s POV, "ah! ah! ah! I didn''t say anything did I?"I cried out in pain from all of Moz''s poking. "you didn''t say anything but you made him suspicious" She says glaring at me. I couldn''t help but touch my nose with an awkward laugh. "Err... what don''t you want to tell the Chief?"Largash finally voiced out her confusion. cough... I looked at Moz but she began directing some Goblins to move some items. "..." ''Haaa...this way I can''t say anything?, well let''s change the topic'' I turned to Largash and asked while pointing at a woman in the distance, "who''s the white human with beast skin?" "Our Goblins said she followed them from the fortress" Largash explained with an ''it couldn''t be helped expression''. I looked at the suspicious woman and decided to wait for Torug, who knew that she would immediately turn towards with a curious stare. Standing not too far across me, Her body was concealed under a thick robe, she remained silent like she was waiting for something. So I approached and asked, "Who are you?" When she heard my question, she lifted her hand up to poke the side of my cheek, leaving me bewildered. she sniffed repeatedly before shaking her head in confusion. "..." I began to suspect that she was looking for my brother, so I said "How about you come with me for now? ". Chapter 144 - 143: Night attack 1 Torug''s POV, Upon returning to the outpost, I noticed they were moving the supplies to the store house. Urim and Moz supervised the whole thing while bickering, they''re pretty much friends now compared to before and I find that interesting. standing behind them was Vass whom was sniffing on Moz for some reason but she soon stops like she noticed something and turned to look at me. She pointed at me and spoke in a strange language, "I have seen you!!" Obviously I was the only one who understands what she said but her voice attracted the attention of the other two. She walks towards me with child-like steps as she smiled innocently and asked, "did you change your body again? how do you do it?". I looked at the cloak she had on and decided I would have the goblins make some clothes for her, I can literally see her ?ssets peeking out as she walked hurriedly. "you will have to learn yourself, I can''t teach you how" . She pouts but still followed behind me as I headed to where I had designated a war room. several of the warriors would stop their actions and salute, those with building experience were fixing up the place. especially those who evolved into hobgoblin with a class that seems like engineers. Apparently they were well sort after and I can see shy, their dexterity in the art is uncanny. Perhaps, after the dwarves and gnomes, the goblins are next on the crafting ranks. [Name: Ukuk Blackmoon Level: 20(Order of the second circle) Power rating: 12089 Relationship: Father of Hukuk, Blackmoon''s Iko, Hamga''s mate. Alignment: Chaotic neutral.] "I''ve come to understand that the prefix Iko is a branch of evolution that stands for the crafting type" As I watched the skinny hobgoblin rush passed me with an oversized tree trunk that he was struggling to transport, I could only let out a laugh and say, "Hey Ukuk!". The Hobgoblin stops in his tracks and look behind like a startled rabbit, "my Chief?" "Why don''t you cut it into two parts or have someone help you carry it?"I ask while pointing at what he was carrying. He looked at me confused, "Ukuk is strong". "Yes I know, but... It would become easier, here...put it down" When done, I repeated the action again until it was in smaller pieces. I then went to one of the cargo wheel that was used to bring supplies and loaded the wood. The Hobgoblin finally understood and had his eyes wide open all along on surprise. He laughed and pushed it to where he was headed before, like he couldn''t wait to share the new discovery. It was then it hit me, ''what the cut wood doesn''t match the part they''re trying to work on?'' "Oh well, I''m sure they''d figure something out" I suddenly say, Vass grabs the side of [Eclipse] and began to admire it. "Let''s go Vass, Hey Urim, Moz, why are you walking so slowly today?" "Relax brother, I felt you were in need of the space." he says while jogging to catch up, Moz lazy jumps into my shadow seamlessly. "what nonsense are spouting?" I scoffed at those words before entering the war room, Urim shakes his head as well. ________________ As the day went on, the Grey eye clan''s leaders huddled together in a room in the fortress to convene a war council. Vomga had managed to endure Blackmoon''s attack and survived by himself, not only did he incur a lot injuries, he was left severely fatigued. The orc warrior wasn''t young anymore. Rest would be needed to recuperate but Kharag called him forward and promoted him to a captain position. Even then he couldn''t complain, war was here and it was already staring at them in the face. luckily, Kharag had them offer him a bed to lie down while the council was going on. "We don''t have a single thing to eat in this fortress, it was all burnt down...so we can''t afford to wait!!" "He speaks the truth" "Nonsense, you have always supported everything he says. I bet if he farts right now you would jump out and say the same thing, ''He speaks the truth!'' fool!" Kharag watched them bicker all morning and still couldn''t get an agreement out of them, even now they dare compete. With a sigh, Kharag says "haaa...Aging is such an unpleasant thing." Everyone went silent. "We must do something tonight at the latest. Kuhag, you will lead a small group. Take Bigla along the road and bypass the little fortress, pass my message to blood horn. Ask him how long he wishes to remain silent. I don''t believe he didn''t notice anything. Corban is leading the goblins. try and lure their beasts, as long as you make it out of the forest, Hogg will take care of the rest. As for me, I will be leading the warriors to have a discussion with this Torug". "Understood." Corban was an old Hobgoblin warrior, Kharag has known him since back when he was a child and went hunting for the first time. He was then taken under Kharag''s command for over 20 years already and had a long history together. If there''s anyone he trusts, it''s Corban and Hogg. ____________________ Everything was set into motion but unfortunately for Kharag Greyeye, as soon as night fell, the Black moon tribe had already arrived at their doorstep without them being aware. ___________________ Moz''s POV, Stifling my breath, I prowled through the darkness with my warriors. When I neared the hidden path, I stifled even the slightest breath I had left. I don''t know what these warriors are planning but it doesn''t matter, our job is to open the gate for for the clan. I looked at the White furred female with the name Vass, She led us through and we made our way. I was surprised at her skills which seemed not to involve magic of any kind. As I was thinking, she looked at me and gestured for me to follow. The enemy remains clueless of this place or aren''t even bothered about it but... Whatever course of action they wish to take won''t affect my decision to slaughter them. ''just thinking of how Kharag tortured our people irritated me but I must be calm'' I couldn''t help thinking of what the old Vaggi said to me as I rubbed my belly, ''I should be slow to anger at this period. I thought she was going to tell Torug after confirming her suspicion...Vaggi is indeed a Strange orc''. I looked at the big bowl of water and wine as we poisoned them, it was then I noticed there was no light from the moons tonight, it was as though the moons have hidden themselves, but the reflection of the terrifying expression on my face was clearly smiling. I am moving by myself with Vass centered around the hunters, TuTu, along with Alakr and Zuga. There''s also another group centered around Largash, but their roles will come only after the success of this poison attack. After confirming from far away that there was fire lit in the other side of the fortress, I signaled to Largash to position themselves around the walls, south the upwind. "Everyone is in position," TuTu said. "It is not yet the time" I told her, "as the Chief said, the Grey eye clan really doesn''t know how to use this place". Vass looks at me curiously and I feel like she''s is learning our language as we speak. but isn''t that a good thing?, I have questions to ask... After waiting a while, Largash signaled that the Greyeye warriors were moving in groups. ''Are They going out for an attack?, no we can''t let that happen, they others might not have hidden properly yet. forget the poison!'' I quickly made a decision. "Fire!" I ordered, and Largash, conjured her flames onto the arrow heads while the archers along with her all shot simultaneously, while I led our group across an open space. A few enemies appeared in front of us but the sound of Largash''s continuous crossbow came from the behind. I look back in shock as I wanted to question her but she cut me off, "the Chief asked that I protect you, he says if you better not be doing something careless with his child or he''ll punish you later". "what?!!" I let out a confused voice while the others looked at me in shock. "URIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIM!!!!!!!" Chapter 145 - 144: Night Attack 2 Urim''s POV, Without so much as a word, I and brother watched the raging fire on the fortress walls. "West Wall" he suddenly said before giving me a glance, with a nod I urged my wolf forward. The warriors grunted in response as half the 150 broke away and followed after me. ''News of Vargan had reached brother''s ears, It won''t be long before we brothers unite once again'', I paused in slight worry and looked at Torug''s focused eyes. No one besides him knows what to expect inside, but I do not doubt him. I just worry, "Brother!!" Torug looks at me and I asked, "Are you afraid?" He looked stunned for a second before laughing, "Not today, Urim, Not today". Hearing his words, I couldn''t stop myself from shaking my head, "hmm". At the same time, a goblin rushed over and whispered something into Torug''s ear. "Let''s move!" We charged towards the west side and remained out of sight. ______________________________ Kharag Greyeye saw almost dozens of huge flags and banners flying in the distance but the fire in the night gave him poor visibility when he came to the Fortress walls. All the flags and banners had pictures of a wolf growling at a black moon drawn on them. The roars of the warriors and wolves were echoing out and putting huge pressure on his people. It was estimated that there were 200 to 300+ enemies rioting in the treeline. It looked like a very big group which was comparable to warriors of a large tribe. "no wonder that Torug Blackmoon dared to come to cause trouble. he actually had an army that could threaten me!" Kharag''s expression was rather twisted as his breath became erratic, he slapped his temples with his palm. Wooo~ Wooohooo~ The wolves from the Blackmoon tribe began to howl and their sounds echoed as if a tsunami. It was a pre-war psychological tactic, Torug chose to use against the enemies. The inhabitants of the Greyeye fortress were scared when they heard that the enemies were attacking the fortress. They were unsure of Torug''s character. wondering if he would spare them and not start a massacre when attacking a city. After all, majority of them haven''t eaten since the night before. "We won''t be able to run away..." a goblin wailed. "What can you do? Blackmoon chieftain will kill us all!" "What are you saying? We are warriors, aren''t we? We are people of the Greyeye clan! I have a hammer and I''ll fight until the last blood that drops out of my body. I will fight even if I''m dead even if I have to bite the enemy with my dying breath!" "Yes, what''s the point of dying as a coward? We will use our fearlessness and machetes to kill these weaklings. Why should we wait for our death instead of attacking and killing them?" Kharag''s inner circle, saw that the chief was about to slip into his berserk state and began to agitate the citizens of the fortress. Touba Hong was a talent from this perspective. He wasn''t planning to recklessly fight against Red Beard. The population of the fortress presently was about 400 people. most of them were warriors, leaving about a hundred plus non fighters. So majority of the population could fight as the percentage of women and children was low. Everyone that could use a weapon was a potential soldier for Kharag. The wolves wasn''t the only reason he was interested in the black moon clan, the population and how healthy the location was, made him drool. His initial intentions wass to trick Torug into a duel and swallowing his properties in one move. but this happened and unfortunately, his forces was scattered across his territory. "My Chief, the situation in the fortress isn''t that good!" Bilga suddenly ran over and reported. "what are you still doing in the fortress?!!...ah!!! my reinforcement from Bloodhorn!!" Kharag''s expression was livid and his face began to squirm. "we were intercepted inside the fortress!" Bilga defended. Kharag''s body swelled as he roared, "So what?!!!!" Unsurprisingly, some people became excited, thinking they were saved after seeing the Chief like that. his existence meant that they would safe from the enemy leader. "we''ll set up a trap for those rats, we don''t know the size of the enemy outside, but they know... shoot all but one!" taking a deep breath, he thought about what actions to take. As he loudly talked towards the crowd from the wall. The inhabitants got more confident by his words. Almost everyone went up to get weapons to get ready for the battle. "cursed thing¡­ how did he calm down?" TuTu scratched her nose as she spied at Kharag who was on top of the gate''s wall. she quickly relayed the information to Moz who was on the other end of the fortress, fighting kuhag and she simply gave the order, "Avoid the gate and wait for Urim, spread the fire!". Largash followed behind her like a tail. Toot~ horns were blown as the Torug''s side began to attack. The goblins rushed towards the gate of the fortress and tossed the ''Boom'' rocks at the Iron gates repeatedly. BOOM!!! BANH!!! BAM!!! Seeing this, Kharag couldn''t help cussing. This was the first time he was seeing such ''means''. "Kill them! toss down the rocks and killed them all!" He shouted loudly, "Boil some water, Kill those things!!!". The inhabitants shouted out after Kharag greyeye''s roar. "Kill! Kill them!" More people began to appear on the fortress walls and used heavy rocks to stones at the goblins. Torug''s eyebrows wrinkled up when he saw the sight. It felt a bit weird, but it soon relaxed in amusement. This fellow focused most of his forces here, he must be unaware of Urim''s group. "It''s alright.. it''s only a matter of time before I take your head." Torug smiled. Boom~ One part of the gates was blown open by a ''Boom rock'' and the goblins were able to rush back in time. However, the opening was only at the upper part of the gate which had wood. "Focus on the top side!! Archers provide support!!" Torug roared. The goblins rushed out again with the archers following behind this time. as they provided cover. Kill~ "Are you all idiots?." Kharag became even more furious, as his deformed body glared at those who jumped down. "Kill them! Kill them! kill them! Dye the fortress gates in blood!" Kharag loudly shouted. "but my Chief, our people are..." "Do it, they made their choice when they went down there!" awoooo a Wolf howl broke out and all the unmanned wolves charged at the warriors who jumped... A fierce and real battle was happening¡­ Both sides fought each other fiercely. many died in the first few minutes of the battle. Nevertheless, both sides turned more ruthless as they hurt each other mercilessly. The archers switched aim and shot down the raging orcs. For some reason, their actions made the Blackmoon clan feel Respect for them. It wasn''t about who had the best fighting method but the one with the calm mind at the battlefield. The one who could see the gap and take the step to kill was much luckier than the other party. In the battlefield, the luck was a must. Torug rode Alpha and stepped out of the treeline as the other wolves retreated.. the booming in the background along with the yells and screams, Torug gave Kharag a taunting smile. Chapter 146 - 144: Night Attack 3 The fierce battle continued on. More and more people died from the Greyeye clan''s side. There was a crazy smile on Kharag''s face as he looked at the battlefield. "Kill! don''t let them into the city!" Kharag loudly shouted. He knew that the resolve of the goblins and orcs under his command would be down the moment the Blackmoon clan destroy the gate. Afterwards, they would be able to wantonly plunder the fortress. The warriors on Urim''s group suddenly shouted out loudly, waving their weapons, they rushed up the fortress walls. They didn''t care about life or death due to the high morale. For a brief moment it seemed that the outcome of the battle was already set. Grey eye clan was going to be conquered by the black moon clan soon. Kharag greyeye looked at something behind him: "It''s time." "It''s been a long time since I participated in such a battle." a slight ripple in the air as Kharag''s eyes became pure white. anyone who saw this would notice that Kharag was actually talking to himself, both sentences were from his lips alone. Afterwards, He ran to the other side of the wall and jumped out to the other end. his claws grazed the wall like metal until he dropped to the ground. His bear was already there waiting for him. He sat on the brown bear and used the all his Might to roar at the sky like a mad man: "I''ll kill you!!" Hooo~~ The Greyeye warriors around shouted out as they increased their pace of attack, some rushed to get to the other side of the wall in order to block Urim''s group. ¡­ ¡­ At the same time, the Moz''s team were finally able to rush in through the inner gates and enter the main parts of the fortress. The fighters and slaves defending were in desperate situation as they tried to resist the them. It was proving to be very hard to organize a counterattack since her team were able to break into the main fortress in full force. "Head for the gates!" Moz jumped down from a high platform as she unsheathes her dagger. she avoids an arrow and rushed towards the gates. " Momen!! Momen is leading us into the battle! ATTACK!" TuTu suddenly shouts. The other members of the team were pumped up when they saw Moz personally dash forward in battle, killing enemies in seconds. meanwhile, Moz was shocked that they regarded her as the Chief''s wife!, but it made her do more as she fought fearlessly. Puchi~ Puff~ Vass was like an arrow as she rushed through the crowd, leaving Moz and the rest in the dust. she was so fast and could reached the gates in the blink of an eye. the necks of her enemies had been clawed open any where she passed through. Moz followed behind as she used her dagger like a lightning. She weaved through reality and the shadows, Most of the enemies didn''t know how they got killed. Fear spread in the enemy army and they became too scared to move forward, Within a few minutes the burning gates were force open by Vass and the team escaped. Torug Blackmoon looked at the sight from the distance. He murmured: "Where are you Kharag, what will you do now?.¡­" he used his legs to kick the Alpha to move in front of his warriors. "ATTACK!!!" "Kill!" The black moon warriors rushed out with killing intent as they welcomed Moz''s group and charged at the enemy. "TORUG!! TODAY YOU DIE!!" Kharag''s voice suddenly exploded in a strange manner as he charged forward with his bear. Torug immediately rushed towards Kharag greyeye. The Elite clan guards behind him followed after as they saw that their leader had chosen to act. Torug knew that if he killed Kharag, his troops would surrender, then he would have victory. The fortress city was a good strategic point of power in the Laboni region, not mention the traces of iron ore. In fact, This fortress was a treasured land. ¡­ ¡­ Both sides attacked each other. For a moment it seemed as if two huge waves smashed into each other. Boom! A sound similar to an explosion echoed out because of the violent impact. Torug''s battle axe and Kharag''s spear collided on air for dozens of times. Both of them were very strong and showing extraordinary skills. However, it was obvious that Kharag''s strength was somewhat lacking in comparison to Torug. Kharag greyeye was only a peak third circle shaman with some mysterious abilities while Torug was a genuine fourth circle beast. It was obvious that Kharag was going to lose but Torug didn''t dare take things lightly Suddenly Kharag jumped off his second circle mount. On the ground he could use footwork to supplement his exceptional skills to tangle with Torug. Torug noticed his actions and decided to leave the bear to Alpha. he used [leap] to land in front of Kharag and the knock back effect kicked in, but Kharag was ready. He stabbed the ground with his spear and held his ground. With the first exchange, Kharag was now aware of this Chief''s strength. Grrr!!! Both sides attacked each other without a single hesitation. Everyone knew that this was the most crucial moment of the battle. Both black moon clan and the Greyeye clan didn''t dare to hold back their strength. Urim was now entangled with two Elite orcs, He stomped the ground as he swung his Warhammer. The battle was suddenly in a stalemate. Everywhere field was full of bodies. Dozens lost their lives every second. It was clear that the defenders had lost more than the black moon clan. Even Torug hadn''t seen such casualties since he had began his life as an orc. Nevertheless, There was only one option at the moment and it was to kill and survive. The moment both sides were fighting each other head on, there was no room to out-maneuver anyone. It was a wishful dream to try to get out of this place because of the battle. Both sides were sucked into the battle. Everything was going according to Torug''s calculations. Although the black moon clan didn''t have much warriors, they had a lot of wolves as support in battles. Kharag suddenly snorted: "Do you think that you are invincible because you are stronger? Today is the day you die!" Torug smiled as he looked at the overly swollen orc: "is it? Without a word, Kharag rushed forward with a pierce and Torug attacked with [reckless charge]. Clang! Kharag''s speed suddenly exploded as he stabbed out repeatedly, the collision of weapons was jarring for the ears. Suddenly a strong force rush down at Torug''s focused face. ''it''s here!'' He quickly turned around and raised his Axe to resist. A huge slash went down and he was able to block the attack but his hands turned numb. ''What the....!'' he cussed In his heart. At the same time, Kharag slashed down using the spears blade. Torug once again turned around to block him. At the same time, a different force rushed forward from his. Torug turned on his [Wraith vision] in time to see a red goblin figure, attacking him with a dagger. Chapter 147 - 145: Battle Ends. ''Tch... escaped!!...This spirits are troublesome, I can only kill Kharag quickly!'' Torug thought solemnly before dashing forward with a {Reckless charge}, pushing most of the force and mana to the tip of his Axe. Kharag used his spear without a moments delay, spinning like a whirlwind in order to block the attack. Bang!! A loud sound from the clash of weapons exploded out and the wind protested forcefully. while this was happening, Torug used the remaining move by slashing the ground in the direction of the attacking ghost forcing it to halt slightly, he performed a {Spirit pull} in quick succession, once again aiming at the recovering Shaman. Like everything he had seen was a lie, one of his invisible enemies pushed the shaman away and Kharag adjusted his posture in a way that made it seem like he was dancing before he turned into another whirlwind knocking Torug back. Immediately, his shoulder was slashed as well. Torug''s expression soon turned to a malevolent smile, when he was hit by the wind blades, he was finally able to touch the ghostly assailant. He stepped back almost dozen steps before coming to a stop but he never stopped smiling. "Kharag, I''ll tell you something I once told a friend ..." He placed a finger over his shoulder wound with glowing green eyes before licking his blood playfully, "You are going to die today". The Gray eyed shaman sneered and said, " where is this friend?" "Dead in the seas, hahaha" he laughed wildly before leaping towards the distant orc. "Well, we''re not friends!"Kharag spat before charging with a stabbing stance. Both monsters roaring loudly. Although Torug was a fourth-circle powerhouse who could deal with ten third-circle warriors, today he was having problems with this orc''s strange ability. Kharag was showing various and excellent skills that were much too refined for an orc!. {Prey on}! Kharag shuddered for a second, his stats became de-buffed but he soon recovered, his momentum rising without stop. Torug aimed for the shaman''s neck but the latter was fast enough to dodge with but a simple cut to the ear. At the same time, a huge shaped ghost charged at Torug from the side. It was obvious this was an orc and Torug had been waiting for it. The moment it swung its club, Torug swung [Eclipse] as well, trading blow for blow and also disrupting their rythm. Kharag stabbed from another angle but froze the moment the ghostly orc''s head was removed from it''s shoulders. Torug smiled and gave the frozen orc a back hand punch. This sent his victim reeling backwards, He kicked the shaman''s feet and another ghostly figure came to the rescue but ended up losing its bowels. Kharag froze again and Torug soon understood the pattern. Another tried to help but once again ended up meeting it''s demise, affecting Kharag''s combat. After that death, they became smarter but to the detriment of their host though. Bam! Bam! Bam! Kick after kick, no one tried to help. They probably understood that Torug''s main target was them but too bad they were wrong this time. Swish! The blade of his Axe reflected light as it moved to kill. One of the figures finally moved, it was the goblin with the dagger. It silently rushed out in a heroic manner, bashing into Kharag slightly but it''s weight wasn''t enough. The axe missed the head but got an arm, awakening the dazed shaman as his left arm dropped to the floor. Aaagh!! The Shaman rolled away miserably in order to avoid the follow up attack, the goblin also ran further away from Torug, just like the others. Torug''s green eyes glanced at every one of them and Chuckled darkly, "Cute". He sneered and charged at the shaman but the latter simply turned around without any shame, he whistled and his strange bear ran towards him. Alpha chased after the bear with a maddened glint, Torug leaped into the air and landed right in front of Kharag, just before he mounted his bear. Both creatures were knocked in the air and Torug grabbed the shaman''s feet, only to be stabbed at his side. Without letting go, He dropped is axe due to the spirit standing at an odd angle. He grabbed the ghostly creature by the head and bit it''s neck, breaking it into pieces. The shaman once again froze and Alpha pounced on the falling bear with a force so great, the very air pushed Torug slightly. Sounds of cracking bones were heard a few seconds later. All this had happened in less than a minute. Torug lifted the orc Shaman with both arms before swinging him like a weapon against the last remaining spirits. They dodged hurriedly, only for Kharag to bring a short knife from god knows where and stabbed him in the arm. This made him let go immediately with a laugh as he watched the orc try to escape before catching up once again. Each time Kharag got a chance to escape Torug would catch up and mess him up, taking the chance to kill a ghost of the opportunity shows itself. ARGH~~ At the same time a loud roar echoed in the battlefield. There wasn''t a single person who didn''t hear it. It was like an ancient beast had awoken from deep slumber. A huge figure rushed through and reached the place where Torug was standing. A war hammer was swung but Torug dodged lightly with a frown, he grabbed the orc''s arm and looked into the orc''s hysterical eyes, speaking slowly, "you dare taint your Chieftain''s honor?". Before the orc could speak, he punched the orc''s heart and it exploded before he proceeded to fling it away in anger. The body disappeared somewhere far away. Torug had thought that it was someone very strong, for him to have been able to utter such a strong roar. Only for him to find out that, it was just a first circle orc. Torug couldn''t help but regret that he had killed it in anger without checking it''s status, perhaps he would have gotten a worthy recruit. However, regret was useless. He turned around and found that, Kharag was unable to move and his body had returned to it''s original form. Even the last two spirits had disappeared, He could only feel disappointed. Without much delay, he beheaded the shaman and lifted it''s head up with a roar "Your Honorless Chief is Dead, drop your weapon or Join in the belly of Yohohari(World eater)!." In fact, He didn''t need to shout as the surrounding battles had stopped long ago. They had watched him toy with Kharag the moment he tried to run away. The sounds of weapons dropping slowly, spread across the battlefield. Torug looked at Alpha who was too busy eating the Bear to even bother with the world and couldn''t help being envious. It was at this moment that Urim''s roar came from within the fortress walls, "FOR BLACK MOON!!!" RAWRRR!! ___________ Somewhere within the borders of the snowy Nispurl, A cloaked figure with manly features shuddered as he walked through the heavy snowfall with a heavy heart. He would stroke his palms to generate some heat but it soon became cold once more. So he made an odd gesture and a tiny flame appeared from nowhere lightening up his face. The cloaked figure was none other than, Paximus!. There was a fanatical crazed smile spread across it as he said, "I didn''t fail you my Lord, I have arrived!". Chapter 148 - 146: Theres More To Do... Thann''s End, Janetta''s POV, In a blink of an eye, a secret deal was completed in the Moongret''s castle. Using the death of the late bishop, Anthony led the church on a witch hunt. Several hidden powers began to move, and my crew got a place. Except for Shev who almost lost his life in a gang fight last night. Although he escaped, he shed a large pool of blood and almost lost the Item. This was something that would help us mess up the whole power play in this ''Town''. The count himself sent out 400 men and the church holds up to 600. They want to search Thann''s End for the killer before chasing the Heretic if he or she made it outside. Mind you, the Bishop died five days ago!. Apart from Davis Fairchild, everyone else was happy, and a big case like this might have shocked the citizens but wasn''t surprising to the nobles, in fact they were more interested in exploiting the church for their support. in addition to the church, there was another person who suffered a big loss in this situation. That was Ser Brittle. Ser Brittle just lost his most important backer. Brittle Stanfield is but a lowly knight, who is surprisingly not serving the Moongret clan. And from what I hear, he has been busy in the streets of thann''s End for a long time and is well respected or feared. Everything illegal had to go through him and his people first, there he would then take his ''cut'' before distribution to it''s owner. Now the Bishop was dead, He wouldn''t be able to sleep at night. I heard that people could still hear him yelling and ranting while being holed up at home. I''m almost tempted to carry a whip and beat him, but he''s well guarded. ''I still need to kill him though, before anyone else does''. I watched the patrol team harass a woman on the streets and a sneer made it''s way to my face. "Janetta, our men just told me about an execution. It''s a perfect opportunity to kill Anthony, just like the Master wanted!" An excited but wounded Shev came up the stairs as he spoke. "It''s a trap" I rolled my eyes impatiently, "besides, He told us to wait". Black moon is presently embroiled in battle and Torug hasn''t given any other message besides us watching Davis and the knight Frank. At this time, Cail walked in with this week''s supply of mana dust. Majority, are to be sent to Torrelsav while the other batch would be sent to their old gang. The reduced portions are meant to attract them to what''s happening here. "I''ve counted them and everything is accounted for, it''s just that the lockdown on the gates... Are causing problems" the man wasn''t as timid as before and he has been trying to adapt to the changes. I glanced at him, finally peeling my eyes from the window as I said," It''d be opened soon, as long as we don''t do anything during this execution". "Alright..." He responds calmly before leaving once more. Shev on the other hand was disatisfied, so I said to him, "you had better relax and recover, we might get the order to kill him anytime from now. Even if we went now, How are you going to fight with this injury!". As I spoke, I pointed at his bandaged body with an incredulous expression. "..." "Yea... that''s what I thought"I sneered, this something I''ve been doing a lot lately, I''ve been very irritable. What She didnt know though, was that, I''ve been discussing the matter of recruiting or placing someone inside the Moongret castle, so I wasn''t really in rush to do anything further without the Chief''s explicit order. Suddenly the atmosphere became eerie as green miasma began oozing out of Shev''s head for a second and Torug''s voice could be heard, "Tell me everything that has been happening for the passed one week". __________ [A brillant victory!] [Under your command, you and your army won. As the war has come to an end. You get one silver treasure chest.] There is no change in my expression as I sat next to Alpha as those without injuries began taking care of the fortress. A goblin was soon caught pretending to be injured by TuTu, so he got a beat down. I then looked at the busy Serfs... In this battle, a lot of my clansmen were seriously injured, especially towards the end of the battle. As for minor injuries, everyone was injured. On the bright side, we have such a low casualty is still surprising, maybe because a lot on our side were already at the second circle of evolution. Although, If it weren''t for Vass''s powerful force and how quickly she destroyed the enemy gate, there would have been a lot casualties from those who snuck in. "Brother, a few of our key riders were injured too badly, I am afraid they can''t be useful for at least four months!." Urim appeared so suddenly and sadly said. The development of medicine in the clan is very slow. In many cases, it is necessary to rely on some rare materials for treatment. "Take me over, I want to see." I said directly. Soon I saw the four of the seriously injured riders. The wounds on them were mostly lacerations. ''Judging from the aura, These should be caused by a Second circle orc warrior with a saber. Should be at least two meters tall and stronger than the average second circle orc . The most serious wound was a cut to a chest, a rather big cut, and two of the riders ribs were broken, probably from a fall. Through the wound, we could see that the internal organs are squirming. Such a serious injury, it''s a miracle he''s still alive. If the wound was slightly deeper, it is estimated that he will die on the spot. I raised my palm, and an eeire green light began to converge on my hand. In the next second, it rushed into the warrior''s body and healed him slightly. At least, it stopped the bleeding "Take some warriors and quickly take them to Dabok for healing" I quickly ordered Urim as I used my mana to relieve them slightly. Although the wound on the riders did not heal, their lives weren''t in danger anymore. At least, I have pulled the three warriors back from the brink of death, while waiting for Urim to return, I applied makeshift bandages to them, so that they would be carried back to the Clan to recuperate. The fire in the fortress of was gradually extinguished sometime in the night. The prolonged fire burned the surrounding walls and ground. It was not until the later that we dismantled the simple buildings or rather their skeleton, and began to burn the corpses inside. all kinds of charred corpses were piled up outside the Fortress to be burnt, and the air was soon filled with the smell of barbecue. We were busy all day and night before we had a small feast. I intend to stay around the fortress for a while until it''s up and running, I''m also considering who to leave in charge of this place. But then, I was soon reminded of how small my inner circle was. "So much to do...." Chapter 149 - 147: Some Days After The Battle 1. Thann''s End, Moongret castle, Inside the secrecy of a secluded study¡­ An adorned wooden board was laid out, looking like something reminiscent of a chessboard. Tiny but blackish green and bluish white figures were engaged in an intense battle. And the battle looked very bitter. "Lord Moongret, how do you feel about today''s events?" Anthony the Templar gently pushed forward one of his bluish white figures on the board with mana. His actions made the board issue a loud ''bzzzr'' sound. His opponent was seated opposite to him, dressed in an ink-black attire. "It is boorish as usual. There was nothing strategic about it, just utter recklessness," Lord Moongret''s facial expression remained static as he saw his next attack. "Anthony, did you believe that you could capture the night mother''s champion with just any pawn? Its best you stop the charade, and prepare to bleed." His voice remained flat, as he continued, " I''ve always felt that the lord''s little brat,. Davis, isn''t a very suitable character for his grand plans. What do you think?". "He''s far more than a suitable character. So, there no way we can question the gods," Mr. Anthony closed his eyes and considered for a while. He then continued, "This Davis kid is very odd. He keeps sticking To training and without a care in the world, goes to sleep, then wakes up crying." "What you means is ¡­hmm, this would be really troublesome in the long run " the nobleman lowered his head slightly in thought. He raised his finger to his temple and started to massage it. "Perhaps we should give him a push" He finally spoke in a thoughtful tone. It was evident that both parties had been Paying attention to Davis very clearly, and have both made prior in-depth consideration on the matter. Anthony was merely using this opportunity to speak his mind, it''s a habit he just picked up. "Oh, that''s what you meant?!" Lord Moongret picked up the fallen chess piece from the board, but stopped. "There are no reasonable words to justify weakness. But I believe however, that lord Ragol, won''t do something so useless" Anthony smiled and moved another chuckled. "Just use some of the gangs in Thann''s End to pressure him". Lord Moongret automatically ruled-out the possibility of a major change in character anytime soon. "Your thought process is indeed admirable," Anthony carefully considered the angle, and approved of it. Anyone who knows him would be surprised with how intelligent he was sounding but this was in fact, his real self. "Anyways, We have to be quick with the purple haired woman issue. The borders on all sides are becoming restless from what I hear. I know all you Noble Families are loyal to the throne but Your queen is... The Church is too busy with the upcoming God''s war, so we are no longer keeping things in check. The situation in luegad is like a boiling volcano and is just short of a fuse to blow it all up. I''m saying a lot will happen in the near future." Anthony looked at Lord Moongret seriously, "it''s best to be prepared." ______________ Torug POV, "spread the word, the Black moon clan has conquered the Greyeye clan and are the new Masters of the fortress." I ordered the messenger goblins to head out. There were more voices in the background as everyone was busy. Largash spoke with those handling the carts, "You must purchase them even if you have to pay two times the price!, No more!. What did I say?, I mentioned three special herbs¡­ if you find them ¡ª get them; make no mistakes or I''ll throw you into Elder Lovan''s fire. I want them all as soon as possible! Do you understand?". "Me understand! Me will do my best!" The shivering hobgoblin team leader could sense the urgency in her tone. Therefore, he agreed without any hesitation. I exhaled a long breath; before I turned around, and stared at the improving buildings which looked mighty under the sunlight. There were construction activity going on all over the territory, all the way to the main town. There was this sense of urgency, I was feeling since the fall of Kharag greyeye but I couldn''t find where it was coming from but I once again calmed myself down. Could it be that the Degr kingdoms attention had been Drawn to me. Impossible. ''I think I need to do some power leveling, there''s also the issue of Moz. So shy, she''s been hiding ever since the battle. I could simply have Vass find her but I''ll let her take her time on this one. A few more days at most''. My training on the cultivation manual is coming on nicely. Raz and his apprentices are making weapons every day, the iron ore mine is not yet up and running though. A day ago, I found 500 gold coins and had two of my elite clan guards send them to Torrelsav to buy more supplies. News of the increasing Chaos around the orc lands have reached me, so I''m confident that the Degr kingdom aren''t aware of my actions yet. Next target would be the Bloodhorn tribe. [Requirements for a territory upgrade: ¡ãPopulation Should reach the 15 thousand upper limit!" ¡ãAll basic structures for housing are to be built ¡ãHost''s rank is at least a 3rd Circle of evolution, ¡ãPolitics, economy, culture and military Should all be up and running.] Anytime I look at the recent quest, I feel embarrassed. It was as if the system was reminding me of my neglect for many things. ''But to be fair, there''s culture right?'' ___ While I was trying to cheer myself up, I spotted Hagi struggling to ride a wolf. He sat himself on the saddle and grabbed the reins, but no matter what he did, he would fall and the wolf laughed in disdain. A little speed from the brown wolf, and Hagi would immediately find himself patting his back on the ground. But he did not give up. Day after day, hour after hour, he has been working himself to the bone, trying to ride that wolf. He fell and fell, and many more times did he fall. I remember I asked him why he didn''t just change the wolf, there were many Master less ones. He refused, so now I just watch... No one bothers him either. But in time, the falls grew less and less. Impressed by his improvement, even some other riders couldn''t help but become zealous teachers. And they took turn to train the Gob. "That''ll be all for today, hagi." "I can still do more¡­" "No, we''ll be riding in the evening tomorrow, so you should get some rest." "Oh Alright." He dismounted the wolf skillfully and patted its head. The wolf happily purred. "Looks like you''ve gotten used to each other already.." I smiled as I said.