The Good Orc
The Good Orc
At the grim news, I hurriedly summoned Kal Guls and Siel and we held a meeting in the Pantheon. I could tell that the sudden summons made the people around us uneasy, but I had no other choice.
The information Asilie brought was as simple and brutish as the orcs themselves: additional orc reinforcements. But the severity of the situation far outstripped the simplicity of the intel.
"During the last reconnaissance, I focused on the passage the orc shamans entered. Suddenly, dozens more orcs started pouring out of it."
She explained that they might have been hiding in a large cave inside, so she observed as carefully as possible. However, the orcs that emerged acted bewildered, looking around as if they had arrived on a whole other world.
"Hard as it is to believe... it would be rational to conclude it's a gate."
I had to thank my luck that Bisquente was no incompetent fool prone to escaping reality. Though startled by Asilie's account, he properly grasped the situation. Even if the very idea—that the most rational explanation was orcs using gates—was deeply contradictory in itself.
"Since there is absolutely no possibility that the shamans created a gate, I believe it is at least more plausible they stumbled upon a key to activate a gate manufactured in ancient times."
"Honestly, I don't want to believe it... but turning a blind eye here only increases our chances of dying."
Kal Guls agreed with my opinion with a heavy sigh, and Bisquente, having reached a decision, moved quickly.
Those on the scene could see with their own eyes and act accordingly, but the higher-ups receiving reports would only consider hauling their heavy asses into motion after reading a report based on sound reasoning. Sending a message like 'Orc numbers went up lol' would get absolutely zero proper reaction. So, the moment a hypothesis that everyone present could agree on was established, Bisquente immediately drafted a document and sent a dispatch rider.
"The orcs didn't keep pouring out after that. Seeing the utterly exhausted shamans emerge belatedly, it's certain there are limits to both activating the gate and moving personnel that way."
"Even so, the fact that time might not be on our side is truly menacing."
We couldn't know where it connected. Judging solely from how bewildered they were by the snow, they might have been, as Bisquente speculated, bastards who had come from the Great Grassland.
The fucking insane Great Grassland? Even riding a horse day and night from here, it was a distance of at least several months. The very fact that a gate capable of piercing that distance existed made my skin crawl. Even the Demonfolk's gates couldn't manage travel that far, forcing them to create and operate relay points. Just how advanced had magic been in the ancient era, and why had it regressed?
As usual, I shoved the endlessly sprouting questions aside and focused on the meeting. There might come a day to investigate, but today was not that day.
"I understand that orcs invariably conduct a shamanic ritual before war. The fact that bastards who haven't properly adapted to an unfamiliar environment and are likely in poor nutritional condition have suddenly started summoning reinforcements... means that ritual is, at the very least, already complete."
"You're saying it's not strange for them to march at any moment."
"No, it's highly likely they've already marched."
Orcs were monsters ruled by the typical instinct to bully the weak and submit to the strong. And from the very moment they attempted a raid on this village, they had classified it as weaker than themselves. The additional troops were clearly preliminary groundwork for a larger war.
Because the bastards had such a simple principle of action, explaining that fact to the others didn't require much time at all.
"Since Asilie hurried here, we do have some leeway, but it's only half a day at best. It would be perfectly normal for the orcs to come charging by tomorrow afternoon."
"We haven't even finished building the palisade yet..."
Siel muttered in a devastated state of mind, but it wasn't purely a worst-case assumption, so there was no way to offer comfort.
The true worst case was if the bastards couldn't control their tempers and sprinted madly at us. Their strength would be somewhat reduced, but stamina and muscle power aside, they hardly had anything else going for them, so they would still be sufficiently threatening to adventurers below red-rank.
"It is as Siel says. At this rate, it's obvious only the village will suffer. We must strike first before the bastards reach the village. Otherwise, we won't obtain any proper results."
"...Is it possible?"
The meaning behind Bisquente's question was clear. Could we handle over 200 orcs with our current numbers? The enemy outnumbered us more than three to one, so it was an exceedingly reasonable question, but the opponent was merely a slightly physically stronger monster.
"Hammer and anvil tactic. If we force things a little with that, I believe it's not impossible."
"You mean to divide the forces we have now? We haven't even completed constructing a defensive strongpoint, and yet to split a mere 70 combat personnel..."
I raised a hand to cut off Bisquente's eminently realistic and reasonable counter-argument and answered with firm conviction.
Even hearing myself say it, the plan was madness and nonsense, but there was simply no other safe way to hold out right now. Preposterously, this was the best option to avoid abandoning the village and to minimize casualties.
As a result, Asilie let out a deep sigh, and the others doubted their own ears. They tried to dismiss my opinion, but I insisted we had to hear the opinion of the person who could be called the core of the plan. Reluctantly agreeing, Bisquente had someone summon that individual, and then explained my insane plan to her.
After listening with an utterly serious and calm demeanor, the key person's eyes lit up as she asked for my opinion.
"Can't I be the hammer? My weapon's a hammer too, y'know."
Faced with Yekaterina's eager response, bantering as if there was no threat at all, even the mercenary Kal Guls shook his head.
"I am unable to properly fulfill the role of the anvil."
"Hmm, I feel this every time, but it's like Eldmia always gets to do the fun stuff."
Dismissing my plan as 'fun stuff,' Yekaterina crossed her arms and grinned. A bewildered Bisquente and Kal Guls couldn't even open their mouths before a flabbergasted Siel stammered back her question.
"D-did you say fun? This reckless plan?"
"Huh? It's not reckless. They're orcs. It's plenty possible. As long as we don't die, I mean."
Baring her teeth in a show of confidence, Yekaterina looked utterly dependable.
Even so, we barely managed to persuade Bisquente to agree after he expressed his refusal three more times. We reassigned all night watch duties to the residents and construction workers and told all combat personnel to get as much rest as possible. Fortunately, no fools were happy to hear it. The whole village entered a state of tension and faced an uneasy night.
And the following day, under a cloudless, clear morning.
"O-orcs! The orcs have appeared!"
The shouts that came with the ringing of the village alarm bell signaled the start of the operation.
"The day of bucolic slaughter begins."
Asilie, having finished her preparations and mounted her horse after hearing my murmured words as I loosened up and saddled my own, let out a deep sigh and earnestly urged me.
"Haah... You really have to be careful."
"Don't worry too much, big sis. I'm the guy who slaughtered knights at Envelde Manor."
Though my body wasn't at full strength and using the needles was too much of a strain, if we considered just the operation of Magic Power, my efficiency had actually increased significantly since then. I could be certain there would be no hiccup in this plan as long as the opponents were orcs, though it might be a different story against humans.
Of course, 'no hiccup' only referred to me being disabled or killed mid-battle. It did not mean a perfect victory in this fight.
"I'm more worried about you, big sis. You have to handle all the scouting alone."
"I'm going with Laika."
[Laika! Protect Asilie!]
The confident tail-wagging dog beside Asilie's horse was only there as auxiliary combat support, so the fact that Asilie had to handle the actual scouting alone remained unchanged. But just as I didn't want to worry Asilie, she was saying it for the same reason, so I had to accept it and move on.
She was holding back too; saying more wouldn't do any good. I smiled and stroked Laika.
"Right. You protect Asilie well."
[Okay!]
The plan we devised to deal with the simple and brutish orcs was itself simple. The village's combat forces, led by Yekaterina, would be the anvil. Laika and Asilie would act as scouts at a midpoint to grasp the enemy's troop strength and situation.
And I would be the fire punch— no, the hammer.
"Then, shall we go?"
The plan was built entirely on trusting the sheer simple-mindedness of the orcs. Whether they were orcs of the Great Grassland or orcs from some dungeon, that basic nature was the same.
If the tribe was large enough to sustain a force this size, it naturally meant they had spent a long time fixated on fighting the strong and their own version of honor. Their combat instincts were just that fucked up.
Therefore, a single sufficiently skilled person drawing aggro from the rear of an orc unit was a perfectly viable plan. If, on top of that, a person of similar skill positioned at the anvil's location and wielding a large, beautiful weapon that would drive orcs wild drew aggro a second time, the effect would be even better.
The absolute majority of the orcs would focus on those two individuals, creating a perfect composition for the others to crack the orcs' skulls from behind.
"Eldmia! Let's bet on how many orcs we kill today!"
Yekaterina naturally flaunted her presence among the hurriedly moving crowd and shouted as she spotted me riding away. The adventurers rushing by, betraying their own unease, shot exhausted glances at her reaction, and I was reminded once more of the importance of reliable comrades.
"We'll settle the meal costs when we return to the capital!"
"Hahaha! A fine contest it'll be!"
I lightly ignored the busy gazes that seemed to be looking at the world's craziest motherfuckers. After all, once this battle was over, they'd either be trembling and unable to meet my eyes or going wild, drunk on victory.
"Be safe! Safety above all, Eldi!"
"You too, big sis!"
I made a wide detour around the direction the orcs were expected to come from and separated from Asilie. Before long, I confirmed with my own eyes the orc unit visible between the tree branches. Because of the forest's trees, they looked far more numerous than the numbers we'd previously known.
It was a strange sensation. Even though over 200 muscle-bound pigs were by no means to be taken lightly, I felt no particular pressure. I knew full well that once in actual combat, I'd have to abandon my horse, plunge among those pigs, and couldn't come out until I'd killed them all, and yet it still felt that way.
Unable to tell whether my nerves were shot or if this was composure, I rode toward the orcs' rear flank. Then, from far away, Yekaterina's shout rang out.
"Well, look who it is! The pigs so utterly cowardly even their dead ancestors curse them!"
The provocation was really nothing special, but the effect was tremendous. Enraged orcs began their pig-slaughtering squeals from all directions with a force fit to tear the forest apart. The fortunate thing was that Yekaterina's voice was loud enough to pierce through that noise.
"Nameless little pig bastards! I am the Wall Destroyer, the Siege Ram Yekaterina! Let the cowards flee and only true warriors come at me!"
A planned provocation, a calculated signal. The orcs, who had been moving while maintaining some degree of composure, quickened their pace almost to a sprint, and the tail of the unit came into my sight.
"Guiiiiik!!! Iik? Human?"
Perhaps because his stamina was the worst, one orc gasping and making furious slaughtering squeals at the very rear of the unit spotted me and tilted his head.
This little shit, the sound's coming from a different direction than where I am, so he's having trouble figuring it out.
"Thick-skulled little shit."
Just riding forward and swinging my sword stacked one orc. Fortunately, the bastard didn't forget to shriek in horror with a pig-slaughtering cry even as he died, serving as a brilliant alarm that focused the other orcs' attention on me while I slapped my horse's rump to make it flee the battlefield.
"Guik? H-human?"
"Guiiik? Why behind us?"
What should I shout to draw their aggro?
Unfortunately, I didn't possess any notoriety known to the orcs, like a monster out of legend, so nothing in particular came to mind. Come to think of it, the orc I killed last time had shouted out a name. They had some form of fellowship, so wouldn't that draw aggro?
"I killed Kakula Basha."
There was some reaction to the bait I threw out on a whim, but it wasn't as much as I expected. Rather, the who-gives-a-shit kind of reaction left me feeling a bit awkward.
"...I see there is no warrior among these cowardly orcs to avenge Basha."
"Guiiiiik!! Kill you!!"
"Guik! Orcs have no cowards!! For Basha!!"
"Bashaaaaaa!!"
For fuck's sake, these thick-skulled bastards only got their fellowship firing once their own feelings were hurt.
Looking at their wonderfully consistent behavior, I swung my sword toward the orcs who would soon become 'good.'