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Chapter 76: Orcheim (1)

“I didn’t think there were still men like you around,” Kaburak continued from behind Tiyo.

They were riding together on Tiyo’s karuk.

Tiyo grumbled, “Be careful. You spray saliva every time you talk!”

“Sorry, hahahaha!” laughed Kaburak. “I heard you\'re going to the north. Where exactly are you headed?”

“We are heading to the Temple of the Fallen God,” replied Tiyo.

“Fallen God...?”

“Ask Crockta,” said Tiyo while pointing at Crockta.

Crockta nodded as he looked at Kaburak. “Yes.”

“For what reason?” asked Kaburak.

“There’s something I want to find out for personal reasons,” answered Crockta.

He looked at the horizon far ahead. Hammerchwi had said that Crockta would find a village of dark elves if he went in this direction. Even if the dark elves were hostile, Crockta planned to approach them to find a way to the Temple of the Fallen God. Kaburak’s village was also in the same direction, so Crockta and Tiyo had decided to take Kaburak along for the ride until they reached the dark elves’ village.

“Hmm... Fallen God...” muttered Kaburak.

Crockta tilted his head curiously as he asked, “Do you know about the Temple of the Fallen God?”

“Not well, but...” Kaburak raised his head toward the sky in an exaggerated motion and then caressed his chin. “If it’s you, maybe... Hmm...”

“What are you doing?” asked Crockta.

“Crockta... I have a question. Why did you rescue me?”

“Does there need to be a reason?”

“I still want to know... Was it because of your principles? Or...”

Crockta grinned. “I’m a warrior.”

“There are many warriors. Even the ones who kidnapped us were warriors.”

“I’m a real warrior.”

“A real warrior?”

“On the continent, you can’t become a warrior just because you are strong. That’s a fighter, not a warrior,” Crockta explained.

Then he pointed at the tattoos that appeared on his body after he became a warrior. They had been Tattoos of Honor at first, but they had since evolved into Tattoos of Honor and Indomitable Will.

The tattoos of orc warriors were granted by the sorcerer presiding over the orc’s warrior ceremony and formed according to the warrior’s actions and principles.

Unlike Crockta, some warriors had Tattoos of Strength or Tattoos of Vengeance, but those who didn’t have the qualifications of a warrior were not able to earn the tattoos. Some orcs couldn\'t receive the tattoos no matter how much magic the sorcerer poured into the ceremony.

This meant that if an orc on the continent had tattoos, he was a true warrior.

“If you need a reason for why I rescued you, I will tell you this,” Crockta said.

“What is it?” Kaburak asked.

“The fifth commandment of a warrior.”

“Hmm?”

“A warrior does not do anything shameful to God,” said Crockta with a grin. “To enslave another living being... How shameful.”

Orcs didn’t usually mention their god. The first time that Crockta heard about their god was when he learned the Warrior’s Commandments from Lenox in the Hall of Fame. Orcs didn’t have a statue or symbol like the Goddess of Benevolence or the God of Light that other species had. They also didn’t have temples or shrines and couldn’t borrow holy power from their god the way believers of other religions could. Despite that, the Warrior’s Commandments were an oath to their god. Crockta surmised the god that the orcs referred to were actually the personal convictions they held in their hearts.

“God!” Kaburak’s eyes grew wide.

“God!” he yelled again.

As if trying to savor the sound, Kaburak shouted the word ‘god’ once more and then closed his eyes.

Then he tilted his head back and erupted into laughter. “Hahahaha! A warrior who believes in god!”

Kaburak tapped on Tiyo’s shoulder. “Hey, Tiyo! Are all of the orcs from the south like him?! Hahaha!”

“It hurts. Be gentler!” yelled Tiyo.

“I’m sorry. Hahahaha!”

The karuk growled at Kaburak as his body shook with laughter. Kaburak apologized to the karuk too and patted its butt while laughing still.

“So, you guys are headed to the Temple of the Fallen God?!!” Kaburak asked.

“Yes,” replied Crockta.

“If you guys aren’t in a rush, why don’t you follow me?!” suggested Kaburak. He pointed at the mountain range that began to rise above the horizon. “My beautiful hometown is on Mount Luclan.”

Tiyo’s eyes lit up at the mention of a new destination. He wanted to explore the whole northern region.

“Oh, what cool things are there?!” asked Tiyo.

“Haha, there are even gnomes around,” said Kaburak.

“Ohh, it must be a cool place since there are gnomes!” Tiyo glanced over at Crockta with earnest eyes. He clearly wanted to go.

Crockta shrugged. “Sure, why not? But why are you suddenly inviting us?”

Kaburak pointed at Crockta. “Didn’t you mention God?!”

“God?” wondered Crockta.

“All of the orcs who remember God have disappeared from the north! Everyone’s forgotten! But you’ve appeared, and since you mentioned God, I should invite you to our land!” shouted Kaburak with bright eyes. “To the sacred place of orcs, Orcheim!”

***

The group began to climb a mountain range. The karuks could normally climb mountains easily, but they started panting because they were tired. So, the group decided to take a break.

They had been in a wasteland just a while back, and now they were climbing a mountain with abundant forests. The northern landforms were truly unpredictable.

Crockta fell into deep thought while looking at Kaburak. At first, Kaburak had been dragged by slave traders, but after Crockta defeated Hammerchwi, his warriors, and the slave traders, Kaburak approached him and suggested they travel together. Kaburak was different from the other orcs. They had been afraid of Crockta even as they expressed their gratitude toward him, yet Kaburak didn’t seem to be afraid of anything and was friendly toward Crockta, who had overpowered the chieftain’s warriors in an instant.

Crockta initially wondered whether Kaburak was up to something, but now he was sure that wasn’t the case. He felt a strange sense of optimism from Kaburak. Kaburak didn’t seem like someone who had been beaten up and almost turned into a slave.

“I’m so glad to be back home!” shouted Kaburak when they arrived at their destination.

Crockta couldn’t help but enjoy Kaburak’s company. His cheerful personality was infectious.

“Hey, Kaburak! Where are the gnomes?!” asked Tiyo as he stood up on his karuk.

“I will show you once we are closer to Orcheim, haha.”

“I’m curious about what gnomes in the north look like,” said Tiyo. Then, he pointed at Crockta. “All of the northern orcs are weird, Crockta! Gnomes will be different! Hahahaha!”

“Hmph,” muttered Kaburak.

“Hey, Kaburak, I didn’t mean you! Haha!” laughed Tiyo.

“You are not wrong. Hahaha, you say whatever is on your mind!” said Kaburak.

The sound of the two men’s laughter echoed through the forests on the mountain.

“Gnomes will appear once we are closer to our destination,” said Kaburak.

The party pulled their karuks along with them as they began climbing the mountain on foot. The mountain’s terrain grew increasingly dangerous the further up they went. Kaburak didn’t have much athletic ability for an orc, so he kept tripping on things and struggled on steep roads. Crockta and Tiyo had to help him up multiple times.

“Hahaha! Thank you!” laughed Kaburak.

They eventually reached the ridge of the mountain.

“Look over there,” said Kaburak.

He was pointing at the view below the mountain. There were no other mountains nearby, so the view extended all the way to the horizon, allowing them to see the wasteland they had journeyed from, the vibrant plains, and other faraway forests and villages. The beautiful scenery of the northern region was spread out before them.

“Beautiful,” said Crockta.

“This is the beauty of the north, hahahha!”

While Kaburak was laughing uproariously, an arrow swooshed past and cut his face. Blood seeped out from his wound.

“Huh...?” Kaburak tilted his head in confusion as he placed his fingertip on the cut.

Crockta quickly grabbed Kaburak’s head and made him get down on the ground.

“It’s an attack,” said Crockta.

“Where are you?!” yelled Tiyo.

He immediately aimed his General in the direction where the arrow had flown from. It had come from the bushes above them.

As Crockta gazed into the shaking bushes, another arrow came flying at them, and he blocked the arrow with the side of his greatsword. The arrow dropped to the ground, but his greatsword trembled from the force of the arrow.

Kaburak, who was still lying flat on the ground, grabbed the arrow and muttered, “It’s an arrow of the dark... the dark elves...”

“It’s a dark elf?” said Crockta.

He had occasionally seen dark elves on the continent. Unlike most elves who had fair skin and hair, dark elves had dark skin and hair. They also had more enhanced physical abilities than most elves. As the party had experienced earlier, even the dark elves’ arrows were incredibly strong.

“Where are you?!” shouted Tiyo while firing his General into the forest.

When the General’s iridescent magic lights exploded in the forest, a sudden shriek rang out from behind the bushes.

Tiyo shouted again, “Reveal yourself if you don’t want to get hurt!”

The bushes shook, and the party soon heard a female dark elf’s voice.

It sounded beautiful with a melodious ring to it as she asked, “Are you the chieftain’s dogs?”

“What are you talking about? We have nothing to do with those people!” shouted Tiyo.

The dark elf fell silent for a moment while she continued hiding in the bushes.

She then questioned, “Then, who are you guys?”

“You should reveal yourself first!” demanded Tiyo.

“...My name is Yanura, and I am a ranger of Dejame.”

Confused, Crockta and Tiyo looked at Kaburak, who was still on the ground.

Kaburak nodded and then got up from the ground. “I’m Kaburak, and I’m returning to Orcheim!”

“Orcheim?” uttered Yanura before rising from the bushes.

Yanura was a beautiful elf with black hair and dark skin. She carried a heavy-looking bow that seemed too big for her.

“Why is an orc from Orcheim here?” asked Yanura.

“I am returning to Orcheim after being gone for a long time. Why is a dark elf from Dejame here?” asked Kaburak.

“Traveling... I see. So, you don’t know yet,” said the dark elf with a nod. “The circumstances have changed during the time you were gone. Orcheim and Dejame formed an alliance to guard this area.”

“Why?” asked Kaburak.

The dark elf furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Tiyo.

Tiyo’s face hardened when he heard what Yanura said next.

“Because of those wicked gnomes.”

***

The party headed to Orcheim with Yanura, who explained what was going on. Ever since a long time ago, orcs, dark elves, and gnomes had lived together on Mount Luclan in their respective territories. Unlike tribal orcs and dark elf coalitions that incited war, those that lived on Mount Luclan enjoyed a self-sufficient and peaceful life.

However, the gnomes had broken the balance. They had betrayed the other two species and joined forces with the orc chiefdom. The gnomes leaked information about the orcs’ and dark elves’ state of affairs and defense strategies to the chiefdom. After that, orcs from the chiefdom went to Mount Luclan, pillaged the citizens, and captured them to be slaves. However, the main problem was that some of the gnomes were trying to establish Mount Luclan as theirs and had made a secret agreement with the chiefdom for Mount Luclan to be officially recognized as gnome territory. This was because gnome communities were scattered and didn’t have a central authority.

Tiyo was devastated by the news. “The northern... northern gnomes...”

“Haha, it seems the northern gnomes don’t amount to much either,” teased Crockta.

Tiyo dropped his head in disappointment instead of jumping up and down like he usually did. Crockta felt bad for teasing him.

“Anyway, I will apologize for attacking you guys earlier. I will escort you to Orcheim. You won’t be misunderstood if you are with me,” said Yanura as she glanced over at Crockta.

Yanura kept looking him up and down. She could tell that this orc from the southern region was different from the orcs she had seen here. The tattoos all over his body and the rare greatsword were quite a sight. She instinctively knew that Crockta was strong.

‘If a guy like him helped us, maybe...’ she wondered.

Yanura decided to find out more about him first.

“What business do you have in Orcheim?” asked Yanura.

Crockta gestured toward Kaburak and said, “I heard Orcheim is the sacred place of orcs, so I’m visiting out of curiosity.”

“Sacred place?” Yanura tilted her head.

Crockta looked to the front and saw that an orc village was up ahead. Orcheim was situated on a plateau halfway up the mountain. Crockta could tell that although it wasn’t a highly-developed place, it was a well-organized village. He also saw orcs who had just returned from a hunt carrying a huge boar.

However, when Crockta’s group entered the village, all the attention was drawn to them. They were an odd group consisting of an orc, a gnome, and a dark elf, but Kaburak led the way confidently.

“I’ve returned, Orcheim!” he shouted.

The villagers’ startled expressions turned to shock.

“Kaburak!”

“Kaburak has returned!”

“Kaburak?”

Crockta and Tiyo exchanged looks. They had thought that Kaburak was just a happy-go-lucky guy, but it seemed that perhaps he was actually someone great.

“Wait, Kaburak?” Yanura uttered. She made an expression as if she just remembered something. With a trembling voice, she said, “Orcheim’s chief’s son who disappeared? The genius sorcerer Kaburak?”

Crockta’s and Tiyo’s eyes widened as they looked at Kaburak.

Kaburak had his arms wide open while he puffed out his chest and shouted again, “I, Kaburak, have returned!”

Then they noticed a flash of light growing in his hand as he uttered an unknown spell, and pink petals began to fall to the ground. Smelling the scent of the fresh petals in the air, Kaburak smiled contentedly.