Chapter 93
Chapter 93
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: Orc Subjugation (1)
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The sound of hooves pounding the earth rang endlessly in their ears. The wind scraped across their faces and clothes.
The orcs, which had been far off moments ago, were now close. Demian shouted to the knights.
“Not a single one escapes alive!”
-Yes, sir!
At Demian’s command, every knight responded with a thunderous roar.
“Uwaaaah! Charge! Kill them all!”
Everyone except for one—Veronica Sanchez. She was already wildly excited before even swinging her sword.
“How vulgar…”
Michael Ryanbloom shot a displeased glance at Veronica Sanchez.
In the meantime, Demian at the vanguard reached the orc horde. He immediately swung his holy sword.
The holy sword flashed several times, slicing through the orcs’ necks. Their tree-trunk-thick necks were severed in a single stroke.
-Kuek!
-Kyeeek!
With every swing of Demian’s blade, another orc’s breath was cut short. Demian carved a path through the orcs, massacring them.
“Don’t fall behind! Support Sir Demian!”
“Kyahaha! Their thick flesh feels great to slice!”
Michael Ryanbloom and Veronica Sanchez stuck close behind Demian, providing backup.
“Follow behind Sir Demian!”
“Bring iron judgment upon these savage monsters!”
The knights followed, cleaning up the remaining orcs. The orc horde began to split apart.
-Uwooooh!
-Woooaaar!
The orcs belatedly sensed something amiss, but it was too late. Demian and the knights had already pierced through the horde and emerged on the other side.
Demian pulled his reins, turning his horse. The knights did the same.
Demian and the knights charged back toward the orcs. The orcs wailed as they faced the oncoming foes.
-Woooaaar!
-Uwooooh!
Though their formation had been completely shattered in the first charge, causing a momentary hesitation, the orcs’ momentum hadn’t waned. If anything, it seemed fiercer.
‘They’re well-coordinated. Their leader must be a strong one.’
Orcs’ combat prowess varied greatly depending on their leader.
Not only did their ferocity surge, but their physical abilities actually increased as well.
Mages said it was because the leader’s influence activated the mana within their bodies.
“Break through!”
But that changed nothing. Demian charged at the orc horde once more.
-Uwooooh!
-Woooaaar!
The orcs blocked Demian’s path. Their resolve to prevent a breakthrough was palpable.
But it was futile. As Demian swung his holy sword, the orcs were diced apart without a chance to resist.
“Haaap!”
“Kyahaha! Die! Dieee!”
Michael Ryanbloom and Veronica Sanchez more than pulled their weight.
Before mid-class Aura, the orcs were defenseless.
The second breakthrough was far easier than the first. Demian and the knights pierced through the horde and emerged on the other side.
After being run through twice, the orc horde was nearly annihilated. Demian realized it was time to finish them off.
“Disperse! Completely exterminate the orcs…”
Something sliced through the air. The sound grew in an instant.
Demian raised his holy sword to shield his face. Right then, a hand axe slammed into the holy sword.
A heavy impact traveled along the blade. Even with his strength boosted by Alecto’s royal jelly, his arm trembled.
Demian looked toward where the axe had come from. In the distance, an unusually massive orc glared at him.
“Well, now.”
Demian eyed the orc with an amused expression. More precisely, he was looking at the greatsword in the orc’s grip.
Red haze rippled endlessly along the greatsword’s surface.
“To think I’d encounter an Orc Warrior here.”
Orc Warrior.
The title of “Warrior” was bestowed upon orcs born with a warrior’s spirit for good reason.
It referred to orcs who had awakened to Aura.
With their inherently tough bodies and ferocity enhanced by Aura, their danger was immeasurable.
“Well, if it’s the Aberration School under Pandemonium, they’d manage something like this easily.”
A black mage from Pandemonium’s Aberration School could produce an Orc Warrior without breaking a sweat.
“Michael!”
“Yes! Your orders?”
“From now on, you command the knights.”
“Yes? So suddenly?”
Demian gazed at the Orc Warrior as he spoke.
“I have a pest to deal with.”
No sooner had he spoken than Demian charged toward the Orc Warrior.
-Krurk!
The Orc Warrior charged at Demian as well. With each step into the ground, the distance closed in a flash.
‘Taking it head-on would kill my horse.’
The horse Demian rode wasn’t a mythical beast like a unicorn—it was just an ordinary warhorse.
Clashing with the Orc Warrior’s power risked severely injuring the mount.
Demian kicked off the horse’s back and leaped. He brought his sword down on the charging Orc Warrior.
The Orc Warrior swiftly raised its greatsword to block Demian’s strike. A thunderous boom rang out as the Orc Warrior’s body was shoved back.
-Krurk!
The moment it stopped sliding, the Orc Warrior lunged again. It swung its greatsword wildly at Demian.
Its swordsmanship was crude. But the orc’s instincts and savagery sharpened and amplified its strikes into something astonishingly lethal.
Demian blocked every attack from the Orc Warrior. As he did, he gauged its level.
“It could easily beat low-class.”
But it fell short of mid-class. Of course, this level was plenty threatening on its own.
-Krrrrk!
Irritation flashed across the Orc Warrior’s face. No matter how it pressed, Demian blocked everything, fueling its rage.
-Kwaaaar!
The Orc Warrior bellowed. Bloodlust surged in its eyes.
Its muscles swelled taut across its body. The Aura cloaking the greatsword thickened.
-Woooaaar!
The Orc Warrior smashed its greatsword down at Demian. Its intent to kill in one blow was clear.
Demian angled his holy sword’s blade to parry the greatsword. The two weapons clashed in midair.
In that instant, the greatsword’s trajectory suddenly shifted. The vertical descent veered sharply left.
The Orc Warrior lost its grip on the greatsword as a result.
-…Kruk?
Even the Orc Warrior, forgetting its savagery, was left stunned.
Demian didn’t give it time to recover. He seized the opening and swung, severing its head.
The Orc Warrior’s head hit the ground. To the end, its face bore an expression of utter bewilderment.
Confirming the Orc Warrior’s death, Demian surveyed the battlefield.
“Don’t let your guard down until they’ve completely lost their will to fight!”
Michael was leading the knights admirably. He took the initiative, cutting down orcs left and right.
“Kyahaha! Die! All of you die!”
Meanwhile, Veronica Sanchez was fighting the orcs on her own terms.
But her skill was so superior that the orcs were being shredded helplessly.
“Ten minutes, and it’ll be over.”
Demian’s prediction was off.
The battle ended in less than five minutes.
A victory for the humans.
* * *
Once the battle with the orcs concluded, the Lord of Walnut emerged from the gates to greet Demian’s group.
“Prince Oliver! I don’t know how to thank you!”
The Lord of Walnut was practically prostrating himself. With the castle on the verge of falling, the reversal was only natural.
“To arrive just before the castle fell! It was as if we were gazing upon angels sent by the gods to save us!”
The Lord of Walnut praised Oliver Apple effusively, his words flowing without end.
“In all my life, I’ve never seen such valiant knights! To trample an orc horde with so few numbers!”
The Lord of Walnut praised not just Oliver Apple but the knights as well.
“Especially when that gentleman slew the Orc Warrior in one stroke—I doubted my own eyes! If it’s not too rude, may I have your name?”
The Lord of Walnut looked to Demian.
“I am Demian Haksen.”
“Demian Haksen… Could you be the one who eradicated the corpse play with the Church…?”
Demian nodded. The Lord of Walnut’s mouth fell open wide enough to worry about his jaw dislocating.
“Indeed… As expected… The rumors weren’t exaggerated! Truly impressive!”
The Lord of Walnut gestured toward the gates.
“Please, come inside! I’ll prepare a banquet tonight in honor of Your Highness and the knights!”
At the word “banquet,” Oliver Apple’s face lit up instantly.
But he soon shook his head with a serious expression.
“I appreciate the offer, but orcs may still remain. It’s too early for celebrations.”
Demian, standing behind Oliver Apple, couldn’t help but be impressed.
It was an answer unimaginable from the wastrel who’d once gone mad for booze and meat.
“His Highness is right. Truly wise and astute…”
“More importantly, tell us about the orc horde. When did they appear? What’s their scale? The more details, the better.”
“Ah, understood. First, according to our scouts…”
While the two conversed, Demian called Michael over.
“Michael, you remember those items I told you to distribute to the knights?”
“Ah, the antidotes?”
“Yes. Distribute them to everyone right now.”
“Understood. But is it really necessary?”
Michael Ryanbloom asked, puzzled.
Orcs did use poison, but it wasn’t particularly threatening.
Most people worried about orc axes, not poison.
“Better safe than sorry.”
Demian brushed it off. But deep down, he was certain.
‘They’ll spread poison tonight, obviously.’
Black mages from both the Aberration School and the Myriad Poisons School were here.
As a Death Knight, Demian had observed the Myriad Poisons School’s black mages countless times.
They were a school weak in direct combat. To compensate, they struck with insidious tactics in unexpected moments.
“Have the knights patrol the surroundings. If any orc shows even a hint of suspicious movement, track it down and kill it.”
* * *
“What the hell? Why are you guys here already?”
A bald woman gazing at Walnut Castle from afar said in disbelief.
“Even at top speed from the capital, it should take at least a week to get here, right?”
“Even longer…”
A gaunt-faced woman, so skinny her cheeks were hollow, murmured. Her voice was faint and raspy, like a patient’s.
“Ugh! We were supposed to smash Walnut and isolate it before the subjugation force arrived… This throws the plan off from the start!”
The bald woman vented her frustration, flailing punches at the air.
“Screw it, I can’t stand this. I’ll call all the kids! Bring everyone and smash those bastards!”
“Noctis, calm down. You just saw them—they’re no ordinary foes.”
The bald woman, Noctis, replied with a frustrated scowl.
“Marina! But they ruined our entire plan! If this goes on, Leona sis will chew us out!”
“No need to worry. Leona sis sent me precisely for contingencies like this.”
Marina set down the backpack slung over her shoulder. Opening it revealed it stuffed with suspicious vials.
“I made tons of poison with the materials Leona sis gave me. Even they won’t stand a chance.”
Noctis reached out curiously toward the vials.
“Touch it wrong, and your hand rots off.”
Noctis yanked her hand back.
“Noctis, prepare some orcs.”
“Why orcs?”
Marina whispered something in Noctis’s ear. As the explanation dragged on, Noctis’s eyes grew wider.
“As expected, Marina’s so smart! I’ll get it ready right away!”