Back to the Empire
The holy relic Cor had vanished.
The news delivered by the messenger who had raced from Bator in search of Zerik delivered a tremendous shock to the orcs, who were in the midst of assessing the damage from the battle and rushing to return home. It wasn't the disappearance of what had been dismissed as mere fragments of legend that stunned them—it was the circumstances surrounding it.
"They say a Black Knight stormed in and slaughtered the warriors guarding the relic."
"Bator's warriors went down that easily?"
"It was a monster wielding something like aura..."
The unbelievable tale: a single Death Knight, a Black Knight, had invaded, slain the guarding warriors, and stolen the relic. The fact that their holy site had been breached and the relic taken by just one enemy ignited fury among the orcs.
"A Death Knight, they say."
"Demon Worshippers did this..."
"Those vermin are targeting the orc race after all!"
Everyone agreed that the entire orc race had suffered a massive insult. And it had been mere days since the tribal war—the worst in centuries, with its staggering casualties—had finally ended. The elites of the eight great tribes, the victims of that war, had not yet dispersed. That shared rage quickly forged a common bond among them all.
In the fragile post-war period, when the eight tribes still harbored mutual hostility despite knowing it had all been a conspiracy, seven chieftains—everyone except Nergui—gathered in one place.
"We absolutely cannot forgive this!"
"We must unite our strength and crush them!"
"This is a challenge to all orcs, Great Warrior!"
The chieftains of the three tribes who had fought against the Black Rhino—Batar, Tenger, and Nudar—led the charge, raising their voices as they looked toward Zerik, seated on the bone throne at the head of the gathering.
"I agree and will follow. The White Rhino tribe will lead the vanguard!"
A burly warrior wearing a massive bone helmet, Ul, responded in kind.
"The Red Raptor tribe also wishes to take the lead!"
The slender female warrior Talba followed, boldly slamming her enormous bone spear into the ground.
"It's not bad to make Nergui pay for his foolish allegiance. The Blue Hippo tribe will follow as well."
The elderly shaman Uhrak, his wrinkled skin etched with blue tattoos, nodded and stepped forward.
"If my master says so, I must follow. The Blue Raptor tribe will lead too."
The young female orc Tseg, her body likewise covered in blue tattoos, raised her short spear in agreement.
Zerik nodded and rose from his seat, striding heavily to the center of the tent.
"I have heard the chieftains' will. I share your rage, and as I have already decreed, the orc race will permit no disputes until the Demon Worshippers are exterminated! Let us eradicate these pests from the world!!!"
"Woooaaarrr!!!"
The furious roar echoed beyond the massive tent, so overwhelming that the orc warriors waiting outside flinched at the intensity.
And in the heat of that fierce, blazing anger, the orcs failed to notice that something critically important had been overlooked in their meeting.
"Judging by the timing of the messenger's arrival, the attack happened right after I left Bator."
"...Yeah, probably."
"Those trash Demon Worshippers—if we find their base, the entire orc race will charge in and smash it flat."
Zerik snorted, clenching his fist tightly. Whether he meant to vividly convey the meeting's atmosphere or not, Tiny—upon hearing that the Death Knight had stolen the relic—could only clutch his head, his persistent headache unrelieved.
"So how are you gonna find them?"
"Hm?"
"...You didn't think about that?"
"Didn't you know, friend?"
Tiny felt his blood boil at the nonchalant reply.
Luna muttered "Idiot orc" under her breath, earning a fierce glare from Zerik, but...
"If I knew, I'd have smashed them first somehow!!"
Zerik could only clamp his mouth shut at Tiny's outburst.
"...Ugh, damn it. Fair enough. So what do we do?"
Heh heh, these orc bastards.
"Why are you asking me!? Why didn't you discuss that crucial point!?"
"...Everyone was too pissed off venting their rage. Eh, they'll figure something out."
"That's not a meeting! It's a goddamn rally!!"
"What's a rally?"
"...Ugh."
As Tiny groaned, Luna—leaning against him—muttered "Total idiot" again, grating on Zerik's nerves once more. But Zerik merely glared at her briefly before sighing shortly.
"Common tongue's still tricky sometimes. Anyway, they'll sort it out. Batar and the smart orcs will handle it."
"Shouldn't the Great Warrior lead that?"
"The orc Great Warrior represents us, but he's no Orc Lord. As long as it doesn't violate the laws, the chieftains decide tribal matters."
Tiny felt like his stomach would burst at the casual explanation, but Zerik continued matter-of-factly.
"Why rush? Like you said, we've averted our race's downfall. No matter what those bastards try, tribal war won't happen now. Orcs are simple, but once we decide, we don't waver easily."
"But we lost the relic..."
"Is it that big a deal? It's just some ancient relic we haven't used in centuries anyway."
"The relic can incinerate any monster below Superior-grade just by existing! It could be our greatest weapon in future wars!!"
Irritated by Zerik's infuriating nonchalance, Tiny raised his voice, prompting Zerik to snort dismissively.
"So? You think our orc tribes' might is weaker than those relics?"
"...No, not that."
Zerik gave a wry smile at the grudging admission and clapped Tiny on the shoulder.
"Then it's fine. You did great—don't beat yourself up. If anything, losing the relic's on me. My fault."
That rough, callused hand cooled the boiling frustration in Tiny's chest somewhat.
And as Luna's eyes widened with a whispered "O! Orc. Not bad," Zerik growled like a beast and glared at her. Luna pretended innocence, slipping behind Tiny.
The minor scuffle brought a faint smile to Tiny's lips.
"Yeah... that's true."
"...What?"
As Zerik's glare shifted from Luna to him, Tiny waved it off with an awkward chuckle.
"N-no! Not that it's your fault—just that things are way better than before."
The Sage Tower's conclusion hinted at something more, but he had no idea what, and even accounting for it, the relics didn't seem worth more than the orcs' current strength.
Still...
But stealing it intact instead of destroying it bothers me...
The Death Knight that had carried off the massive crystal whole. The moment he heard it, Tiny recalled the black mage in Carun who had hurled the relic's core into the sea. When Husel had burst out and attacked him, had that mage been waiting to receive the relic?
Why...?
Why would they take relics that could be their weakness?
As he sighed over the unanswered question, the tent flap suddenly opened, and Jenas trudged in with a grim expression.
"Tiny, more bad news."
In his hand was a small crystal orb. A disposable communicator—expensive, one-way only—its blue glow fading to stark white in real time.
"I tried contacting for a report, and... we got bad news. A massive terrorist attack on Carun's royal palace."
"What!?"
Tiny's face twisted.
"Humanitas was stolen there too. Eyewitnesses say a giant crystal was cradled in a massive demon's arms and vanished into the sky."
"...Goddamn it."
Tiny gritted his teeth, dragging a hand down his face like washing away dryness.
Bator without its Great Warrior. Carun without its sole mage superhuman. Both vulnerabilities perfectly exploited.
And this confirmed it. For reasons unknown, their goal was clearly the relics. Perhaps in his previous life, amid the countless catastrophes, there had been a motive to hide their pursuit of the relics while weakening humanity's forces.
Why...? Why?
It was baffling, but one thing was certain.
"The future I knew has completely changed... no, it already has. Ha, fuck..."
What now? As despair loomed, Jenas sighed lightly, then smiled faintly.
"It's not all bad, Tiny."
"Pardon?"
"Orcs and Carun lost relics, sure—but now every kingdom knows they're after the relics."
"Even without that, Carun and the Empire's incidents..."
"No, no. You stopped them all, so most treated it as rumors. Right, Warlord?"
Jenas's brown eyes fixed on Zerik, who scratched his head and looked away.
"Ha..."
Tiny shot Zerik an incredulous look; Luna muttered loud enough to hear, "Orcs really are idiots." Zerik flushed but stayed silent.
"Now with two relics actually stolen, the world will take it seriously. And the defenses around the remaining relics are on another level compared to those two places."
"If I'd been at Bator...!"
"Sure, but you weren't, and it was urgent."
"Tch..."
"I should've thought of it. Damn, even in a rush, I should've insisted on defenses..."
Jenas smiled again, patting Tiny's shoulder.
"It's fine. You did amazingly. No one expects you to use your head, Tiny."
"What the fu—"
As Tiny bristled, Jenas grinned playfully.
"Kidding. Your hero face looked too glum. Haha."
That unfunny joke—or rather, one word in it—struck Tiny.
"Hero...?"
"Yes, hero. Carun didn't fall, orcs took heavy losses but didn't collapse. The Empire's intact. Hell, a genius like me survived, so it's even better."
Self-praise aside, Jenas's gaze was earnest now.
"Normal? Nah, he's an idiot too?"
"Doesn't seem right."
Luna and Zerik snickered softly, but Jenas stared straight at Tiny unwaveringly.
"What you did wasn't wasted. Chin up. Be proud."
The slightly over-the-top encouragement steadied his shaken resolve.
"...Thanks."
"We should thank you. No—the whole world. Though most won't know your part."
As Jenas nodded with a wry smile, Tiny reached a decision.
"...Guess we head back to the Empire first."
"Ho?"
"I'm lost now. But the Sword Emperor's soul... er, Duke Valentia called us back—he must have a plan. I'll trust that."
"...A solid choice."
Jenas nodded with a smile, and they prepared to depart the battlefield at once.
The next dawn, as they left the still-chaotic field...
"Warriors! Escort the orc race's benefactor!"
"Guh!? Zerik!?"
Zerik's booming voice rang across the entire field from the tent cluster, followed by a thunderous thud as feet stamped in unison, shaking the ground.
- Respect to the benefactor!
Every orc warrior on the battlefield chorused in the common tongue, drawing their weapons toward them. The voice shook the world itself. Though hundreds of thousands aimed weapons at them—an uncountable sea—it evoked not menace, but majestic grandeur that swelled the chest.
And at the forefront...
"Remember this, my friend Tiny! Orcs repay debts with our lives!! Call if you need mine!"
As the orc Great Warrior drew the Transcendent Weapon Honor and summoned a massive silver wolf into the sky, a colossal roar erupted.
- Woooaaarrr!!
Amid cheers that rent heaven and earth, the group raced toward the Empire. A smile Tiny couldn't hide played on his lips at the vanguard.