"A Once again I almost died"

Despite Gall's diversion, several skeletons pursued me relentlessly through the forest.

The sound of their rattling bones still echoes in my ears, like a macabre symphony that refuses to stop.

Admittedly, I'm much faster than them, but it seems that fatigue isn't in their vocabulary. Losing them was a real pain.

Fortunately, I managed to outrun them by crossing a river. The water currents carried away the skeletons, allowing me to escape. Soaked but alive, I kept running until I found a cave.

After carefully checking that no monsters were hiding there, I decided to rest.

"At last I can rest peacefully," I sighed, feeling an immense relief wash over me.

Just as I was about to lie down comfortably on the floor, a slight tremor occurred, followed by a sharp sting.

"Ouch !" I cried, rising abruptly to discover the source of the pain.

To my surprise, I saw a sign stuck in the ground. As I approached, I recognized the symbol of the sanctuary.

I slowly approached the sign, reading the engraved words with apprehension:

"Due to the fact that you are very far from the stone you must protect, the shrine gives you one week to retrieve it."

"Why ?" said I after reading the warning.

Just why ? Since the beginning of this ordeal, I haven't had a single moment's respite.

I haven't even had a chance to eat something to get rid of the mushroom taste stuck on my tongue. My stomach is screaming and my head is heavy with mental fatigue.

I sit down heavily on the floor, feeling exhaustion wash over me.

"Just an hour, no, just ten minutes would be more than enough for me."

I knew it was a bad idea to hand over the core to those orcs, but what do you expect me to do ? At that moment, I had no choice.

"No, that's not the mentality to adopt,"

I should have known from the start that this world is ruthless. After all, I was part of its creation before I was reincarnated into it.

I took a deep breath, trying to gather my strength. It was no longer just a matter of recovering the stone, but of surviving in this cruel world we'd designed.

"I must remain strong," I murmured to give myself courage. "I must survive."

With renewed determination, I prepared to leave the cave. The shrine had given me a week to retrieve the stone. It was both a curse and a blessing. Time was short, but at least I had a deadline.

However, there was one major problem.

"Where is the stone ?"

I stood there, planted like a tree at the entrance to the cave. After forcing myself to build a mind of steel, here I found myself blocked in my tracks.

"It's hopeless," I muttered as I fell to my knees on the ground, despair overwhelming me.

Just as I was about to give up, I remembered the bag Gall had given me before we parted. A glimmer of hope sprang up inside me.

Taking it out of my storage space, I hurriedly opened it to discover its contents.

"At last!" I exclaimed with relief.

Inside, I found two daggers slightly larger than normal, no doubt because they belonged to an orc.

They were adorned with intricate engravings and looked fearsomely sharp. Wielding them, I felt a surge of confidence.

The bag also contained monster and animal skins, resources that could be useful for making clothes or bandages.

But what caught my eye the most was a map of the area. I carefully unfolded it and quickly located the orc village.

According to Gall, the stone was in their home before it mysteriously disappeared and ended up around my neck.

Analyzing the map, I realized that it would take me five days to reach the village, if all went well.

"But first, I must prepare myself."

I decided to start by assessing my physical condition. My body was still scarred from the recent battles, but Gall's potion had worked wonders in closing my wounds.

However, mental fatigue was still present, weighing on my thoughts like a persistent shadow.

Ignoring this, I took the time to make myself a rudimentary pair of gloves from the monsters' skins.

It wasn't perfect, but it would offer extra protection against the elements and attacks.

I would have liked to rest before heading to the village, but there was one place I absolutely had to go.

After a few hours' walk, I found myself in front of Gall's corpse.

My aim wasn't to pay homage, but to understand, or rather know, the weak points of the orcs.

I want to know everything: the position of their heart, their liver, their vital points, anything that might enable me to kill one instantly.

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"They knocked you around pretty bad, didn't they, Gall ?"

The skeletons had been merciless. They'd torn his body to shreds beyond recognition.

The ground around him was stained with blood, and flies buzzed around what was left of his body. It was a gruesome sight, but necessary for what I had to do.

I crouched down beside him and began my examination. Despite the state of his body, certain things were still discernible.

I noted the position of his vital organs, the structure of his muscles and the points where the skeletons had inflicted the most mortal wounds.

I needed to understand what had led to his death if I was to use this information to my advantage.

"They struck with precision," I murmured, observing the marks on his ribs and limbs.

"They aimed at vital points to maximize pain and damage."

The careful study of Gall's corpse took me some time, but it gave me the information I needed.

I made a mental note of every important detail, engraving the locations of the orcs' vital points in my memory.

Once my analysis was complete, I felt a strange mixture of respect and sadness for Gall. Although he had been my enemy, he had helped me survive and deserved a decent burial.

I found a peaceful spot, away from the bloody scene, and dug as deep a grave as I could with the means at my disposal.

"Rest in peace, Gall," I said softly, covering his body with earth.

"You deserved better than this."

After finishing the burial, I straightened up, feeling a new surge of determination run through me.

The information I'd obtained from Gall would be invaluable to me in the days ahead.

"Now that everything's done, let's go and get that damned stone back," I said.

I left the place with a sense of gravity, but also with the conviction that, whatever lay ahead, I would find a way to overcome the obstacles.

The memory of Gall, and the lessons I had learned from him, would accompany me on this journey.

…

…

…

Five days later, I finally arrived at the orc village. The sight was hardly pleasant, due to the surrounding disorder and primitive buildings.

However, the presence of the orcs confirming that I had indeed arrived at my destination gave me a slight sense of relief.

"What's that ?"

Not far away, I spotted monsters trying to enter the village, but unable to do so, as if stopped by an invisible wall.

As I discreetly approached, I noticed a force field preventing anyone from entering.

The monsters clashed violently against this invisible barrier, their claws and fangs useless against the magic that kept them out.

I tried to force my way through with my two daggers, but to no avail. The force field was far too powerful to be simply pierced by brute force.

"Look, there are more monsters around."

"Let's get rid of them."

Suddenly, I heard voices from the other side of the barrier. Instinctively, I hid in the tall grass and watched from a distance. Two orcs were advancing towards the monsters, their weapons ready for action.

With a flick of his blade, one of the orcs sliced through the monster trying to enter the village. The blow was clean, precise, demonstrating their expertise in combat.

"It's over on this side," he said, wiping his blade.

"Hurry up, we've got to finish if we're going to make the party tonight."

"Don't worry, we'll be in time," sighed the orc before adding.

"Too bad the barrier isn't indestructible and requires constant surveillance."

"Indeed, but fortunately, once we've got rid of them, other monsters won't be able to reappear until tomorrow."

With that, the two orcs left to patrol the other side of the village.

"Interesting," I muttered to myself.

So, the barrier can be broken, and what's more, tonight they'll be throwing a party.

I took advantage of their inattention to attract as many monsters as possible in order to break the barrier and retrieve the stone before the end of the time imposed by the shrine.

"It's a good thing I came across so many of them in the forest.

All along the way, I'd been running into monsters every thirty minutes.

This forest was a veritable den of hostile creatures. With a plan in mind, I headed into the depths of the forest to lure as many monsters as I could towards the village.

However, I couldn't afford to attract just any monster. Using my analytical skills, I carefully selected the creatures to approach.

I needed monsters aggressive enough to attack the barrier, but not too fast or powerful to catch me.

After a few hours of research, I had managed to gather a suitable group: giant wolves, black bears and even a troll or two.

Each of them followed me, attracted by the prospect of capturing me.

"Come on, follow me, all of you," I murmured as I ran towards the village.

As I approached the gate, I could see the orcs on guard on the other side, still busy patrolling.

Night was falling, and the shadows of the forest added a dimension of mystery and danger to my mission.

I stopped at a cautious distance from the barrier, letting the monsters rush forward. They struck the barrier with all their might, causing flashes of light with each impact.

"What happened ?"

The orcs turned, startled by the sudden attack. They immediately sprang into action, trying to repel the monsters, but I could see that the barrier was beginning to weaken under the constant assault.

"Now's the time," I murmured as I crept through the tall grass, closing in on the breaking point.

With a little luck and a lot of caution, I could get into the village and retrieve the stone before the orcs realized what was happening.

The plan was risky, but it was my best chance. I took a deep breath, preparing to seize the opportunity when the barrier finally fell.

Moving quietly through the trees, I observed the preparations for the party.

The orcs had lit bonfires, and music echoed throughout the village. They were dancing, drinking and feasting, oblivious to the danger lurking outside their magical barrier.

"Perfect," I murmured to myself. Their attention was completely diverted.

As for the monsters, they weren't letting up in their efforts to penetrate the village. I could see the barrier cracking slightly, a sign that it wouldn't hold much longer under the constant pressure.

"It's time!"

When the barrier finally gave way, the monsters rushed in, spreading panic among the orcs trying to repel them.

Taking advantage of the confusion, I slipped stealthily through the village's dark alleys.

I quickly made my way to the central hut where the stone was probably kept.

On the way, I carefully avoided orc patrols and fights between orcs and monsters, using the darkness to my advantage.

When I reached the hut, I could see that the door was unguarded.

"Probably helping the other orcs fend off the monsters!

I slipped inside the hut to make sure no one was watching me.

The room was dark and gave off a mystical aura, with symbols engraved on the walls and ancient artifacts arranged around the room.

My gaze immediately fixed on the stone floating above a table.

"At last," I murmured when I saw the stone.

It was levitating above a table adorned with ancient writings I vaguely recognized. Beside it was a blue sphere, radiating a strange magic.

Just as I was about to grab the stone, someone burst into the hut.

"Human, I strongly advise against removing this stone from the enchantment table," he said, breathless and panicked.

I turned quickly to see Ganki, his expression a mixture of fear and despair.

"Oh, is that you, Ganki ? To what do I owe the honor of your visit ?" I said, stepping even closer, my hand already resting on the stone.

"Please listen to me, you have to trust me!" yelled Ganki desperately.

"Trust you ? Have you forgotten our agreement ?" I retorted, remembering clearly that he had refused me a healing potion in exchange for the stone. Anger rose to my head.

With this memory in mind, I tried to snatch the stone from the enchantment table. Ganki rushed to stop me, but it was already too late.

The stone felt cold and rough in my hand, but almost immediately, the blue sphere beside it began to shake and crack.

"That's not good," I muttered.

*Boom*

An explosion sounded. The force of the blast threw me against the wall of the hut. I landed heavily, my head ringing with a high-pitched hum.

Opening my hand, I saw that the stone was in a thousand pieces, reduced to harmless fragments.

"Oh no," I breathed, my heart sinking in my chest. The realization of my failure was hitting me hard.

At that moment, a shrine sign appeared before me, floating in the air.

"You have failed to protect the stone. Therefore, you will suffer a penalty."