Orc Villages Beyond the Great Wall
Orcs forming villages and living in communities beyond the Great Wall. It was about as plausible as a pink elephant. Such a thing simply couldn't exist. No, it shouldn't exist. Estiang recalled the countless battles he'd fought against orcs, enough to make him sick of them. The image sprang to mind of massive olive-green blobs charging forward, suffocating in their sheer numbers, devoid of any hint of intelligence.
When those blobs swarmed in relentlessly, plenty of them must have trampled and been trampled by their own kind, dying in the crush. Without thinking, he pressed Maximilian. "Tell me more details."
"Yes, Your Grace. We all saw it with our own eyes. Allow me to explain in full."
Maximilian's report continued. They'd spotted smoke rising in the distance just as they entered the coniferous forests at the foot of the snow mountains. Curious about smoke beyond the Great Wall, they investigated and found an orc village—crude huts built from wood, barely more than burrows. The smoke was unmistakably from a fire. Doubting their eyes, they scouted further and discovered over ten such villages.
"Some were hardly worthy of the name 'village.' I'm not sure we should even call small clusters of four or five families that."
"Was the one you wiped out like that too?"
"Yes. It looked small and easy, so we approached closely. But they spotted us like ghosts and attacked. They came at us with clear hostility first, so we countered immediately. Males and females alike charged, so we killed them all."
"Hmm……."
"They definitely had intelligence. They didn't scream like beasts; they attacked while speaking what seemed to be their language. I'm no linguist, but they made the same sounds repeatedly, so probably……."
Uncertain, Maximilian trailed off and untied a leather pouch from his belt. "Anyway, these are trophies we took after wiping them out."
A wooden bowl, so crude even serfs wouldn't use it. A small handaxe fashioned roughly from bone or stone.
"Ha."
Estiang let out an involuntary chuckle. "This... it defies all reason……."
"But I saw it clearly, Your Grace. Not just me—all our rangers did."
Maximilian's face was deadly serious. Estiang's head throbbed fiercely.
Orcs had never shown any intelligence before. They'd just swarm bare-handed, climb the walls, and plummet screaming under arrows or boiling sand. Their wits were goldfish-level at best.
"Do orcs only gain intelligence beyond the Great Wall?"
Orcs never routed easily. They wouldn't turn tail unless nearly annihilated. Normally, creatures instinctively feel fear as kin die or death looms, morale crumbling. Take ten average men in an octagon against a heavyweight champ: they know rushing and grappling gives a chance, but after one skull-crushing punch, who dares grab and ground him? That's morale collapse. Orcs had lacked even that basic instinct.
"Yet they speak their language, form villages, live in groups……."
"What are your orders?"
A chill ran down his spine. Silently, he unrolled the map Maximilian offered. Past the snowfields, through the coniferous woods to the snow mountain foothills. It was a rough field sketch, but legible for the areas they'd traversed. Black dots stood out prominently—undoubtedly orc villages. Staring them down, he spoke.
"Everyone who knows is just you rangers, right?"
"Yes, Your Grace."
Sensing the gravity, Maximilian replied with a solemn expression. Cautiously, he added, "Shall I seal the rangers' lips?"
"Seal lips... seal lips……."
In that instant, a whirlwind of concerns flashed through his mind. No wonder the raids had quieted lately. Had something changed in that short time? Or had it always been this way, and the ones breaching the wall were the anomalies? Possibilities swirled.
"Haa……."
He sighed deeply from his lungs. He'd thought he was dealing with mindless white hordes. But no—the genre was different. This was King Sejong's conquest of the Four Armies and Six Garrisons, subjugating the Jurchens.
To rule meant bearing responsibility for every ripple of his choices. What to do? After standing lost in thought, he resolved.
"No need to seal lips. I'll announce it myself."
"Yes, Your Grace."
Maximilian nodded gravely. Better to face the inevitable lash early than dodge chaos now. It couldn't be hidden forever. He thought this best, whatever the outcome.
Among the Berg Grand Duchy's forces, the rangers were an elite unit handpicked from the best. Their first expedition beyond the Great Wall yielded shocking results, now publicly announced.
Scouting to the snow mountain foothills revealed orcs beyond the wall possessing intelligence, forming villages. Estiang's personal proclamation spread the news astonishingly fast.
But contrary to his fears, the duchy folk barely stirred.
"Orcs forming villages?"
"Monsters huddling together? That's normal, ain't it?"
"Who knows? First time anyone's gone beyond."
"They're just trying to eat and survive. We skewer 'em every time they charge anyway."
Northerners shrugged it off. Instead of fleeing in terror at orcs, they'd grab wood axes and charge to split skulls. New info, sure—but not shocking. Or shocking, but so what?
"……They're this calm?"
"It's good news, isn't it, Your Grace?"
"Good or bad, yes it's good. But the reaction's wildly different from what I expected."
"Unless orcs are invading right now, no one has bandwidth for it. Thanks to you, Your Grace, Berg's changing so much."
Roena soothed in her gentle tone. New artisans flowed in after ages; construction boomed everywhere. Blink, and things transformed. Survival trumped distant orc smarts.
As Estiang tilted his head in bafflement, the news hit the capital via merchant caravans and technicians.
Intelligent monsters shattered conventions—like pink elephants. Nobles and scholars took interest.
"Heard the news?"
"What news?"
"Berg's Great Wall. They scouted beyond: orcs in villages."
"Villages, not hordes? Like humans?"
"So it seems."
Mostly curiosity—gossip fodder. But overturning axioms, it piqued even mage tower wizards. Eccentrics pondered serious northern research. Still, just intrigue. With Berg's ironclad defense, capital dwellers would never face those orcs.
Two took it gravely.
"Hmm……."
Imperial Palace, reception room. Emperor Giovanni von Valentino, facing close aide Ludwin Court Count, frowned. The frail 68-year-old ruler creased his brow.
"Scouted beyond the wall, found intelligent orcs. Does that make sense?"
"Most dire, sire. Mere monsters forming villages."
"Can't grasp the how here."
His wrinkled brow furrowed deeper. "Rumors only reach us. Best send someone."
"Worth dispatching for, sire?"
"Yes."
The emperor stated firmly. Decades-honed judgment remained sharp. He recalled Estiang's excitement over northern steel output. Berg's army was empire's finest—battle-hardened elites. Yet Estiang fussed to strengthen his 5,000 more.
"Berg's fuss had reason."
"Pardon?"
"Think, Count. All that noise for cause."
Previous assumptions: mindless monsters. Shattered now.
"Might not be subjugation. Could be war with orcs."
"Hmm……."
Ludwin's eyes widened. "Did Berg anticipate this?"
"Who knows. But he's right: prepare for war, not hunts."
The emperor eyed the count—fellow aging retainer past sixty, recently envoy to the north.
Ludwin averted his gaze. "No envoy, then?"
"……I'll trust you, sire."
"Can't tax my confidant twice. Ahem."
The emperor cleared his throat. "Not formal invite—just probe the truth."
"Still needs protocol."
"Indeed. Suitable candidate?"
"Honorary Imperial Knights. Their captain's honorary; send a count or higher."
"Good. Select and dispatch."
His gaze drifted to the window, afar. "Send fast; full report."
"As you command."
"Berg's alarm suggests worse than thought."
Rubbing dry eyes, he added, "We may need to aid Berg."
"Leave it to me."
"I trust only you. Proceed swiftly."
The emperor nodded solemnly.