The tension in the air grew thicker, as if the very walls of the grand lobby braced themselves for the impending clash. The Red Orc Commander and General flanked their king, their weapons gleaming in the dim light, ready to enforce their monarch's will.
Sasha and Zealot stood their ground, their eyes fixed on the formidable foes before them. Their mission was clear: defeat these powerful adversaries and seize the gold they so desperately needed.
ROAAAARRRR! RUMBLE!
With a mighty roar, the Red Orc King charged forward, his massive frame thundering across the marble floor. His nine Royal Knights and the two Mini-Bosses followed suit, the ground shaking beneath the weight of their collective advance.
“Sasha, you focus on the Red Orc King! As for the rest, I'll handle them!” Zealot said, quickly commanding his Skeleton Gold Warriors to intercept the Royal Orc Knights and the two Mini-Bosses. The skeletal warriors moved with lethal precision, their forms clashing violently with the orcs. The clash of steel against metal bone reverberated through the vast lobby, the size of four soccer fields, with sparks flying from each powerful impact.
MINION BERSERK! CURSE OF DIARRHEA! CURSE OF PEE!
“Alright!” Sasha nodded and immediately fixed her gaze on the Red Orc King. With a burst of speed, she charged toward him, her colossal swords spinning in a deadly dance. The Red Orc King, a seasoned warrior himself, met her assault with a thunderous swing of his gigantic hammer. Their weapons clashed with a resounding crash, each struggling to overpower the other in a fierce test of strength and skill.
The battle in the grand lobby of the Red Orc Castle unfolded with a roar of chaotic energy.
The Red Orc King, with his towering presence and crimson armor, clashed against Sasha’s enormous swords in a grueling exchange of power. Each swing of his massive warhammer met Sasha’s blades with a resounding impact, the force of their struggle sending shockwaves through the grand lobby. The Red Orc King’s eyes burned with a fierce intensity as he fought to repel the audacious invaders.
ROAAAARRRR! CLANG!
Five minutes later…
Unfortunately, despite the Red Orc King’s formidable strength, it fell after only five minutes of combat. Sasha, being a B-Class demon adventurer, proved to be too powerful for the C-Class Red Orc King to withstand.
At the same time, Zealot and his Skeleton Gold Warriors were also achieving victory. One by one, the Royal Orc Knights and the two Mini-Bosses succumbed to their onslaught.
[You have slain a Red Orc General!]
[You have slain nine Royal Red Orc Knights!]
[You have slain a Red Orc Commander!]
[Leveled Up!]
[Level: 97 >> 98]
[Skeleton's Progression: 14% >> 18%]
Although Zealot and Sasha emerged victorious in the end, their sense of accomplishment was overshadowed by their fatigue. They had already depleted half of their total energy reserves during this single raid. In practical terms, this meant they had just enough stamina left to tackle two more C-Rank Dungeons before they would need to rest and call it a day.
Meanwhile, the Red Orc King lay on the ground, seething with frustration as he grappled with the true extent of Sasha and Zealot's power. He had entered the battle convinced he stood a chance of victory. However, as he struggled to rise, it became painfully clear that he had been utterly outclassed. The confidence he once held had crumbled under the weight of their overwhelming strength, forcing him to confront the harsh reality of his defeat.
Summoning his last reserves of strength, the Red Orc King lifted his head and glared fiercely at Sasha and Zealot. With a guttural growl of defiance, he rasped, “Grrrr! This isn’t over yet! You’ll pay for this!”
“Blah, blah, blah! Just shut up and die!” Sasha snapped. Just as she was about to deliver the finishing blow to the Red Orc King, the two bone slave-collars suddenly activated. In an instant, both Zealot and Sasha were hit by a sharp, searing pain in their necks, causing them to stagger and fall to the ground.
THUMP!
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhh! What the hell is this!? It hurts! Stop! Aaaaaaghhh!” Sasha exclaimed, her voice filled with confusion and pain.
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“Aaaaaaaargghhh! This pain is unbearable!” Zealot exclaimed, his voice trembling with intense agony. “Dammit! What on earth is happening to us!? Why are we getting punished!?”
The pain in Zealot and Sasha's necks was excruciating, a sharp, searing sensation that overwhelmed their senses. As they writhed on the ground, the Lich King’s voice suddenly echoed in their minds with unyielding authority.
‘Do not kill the Red Orc King!’ the voice commanded, its tone imperious and unyielding, echoing in their minds as though spoken aloud. ‘Instead, you are to capture him and bring him to me! As a new rule, from this point forward, all boss monsters must be taken alive and delivered into my custody. Their lives are to be spared, and they are to be brought to me unharmed. Disregard this order, and you will face severe consequences.’
With the command seared into their minds, the intense pain began to fade, leaving them breathless and disoriented. The Red Orc King, who had been lying defeated on the ground, took advantage of the momentary lapse in their focus. His eyes blazed with a fierce determination, and as he struggled to rise, his massive frame trembling with residual anger and defiance.
Sasha and Zealot, regaining their composure, exchanged a pained and puzzled glance. Despite their exhaustion, they knew they had no choice but to comply with the Lich King’s orders. Their mission was clear: capture the Red Orc King and bring him back to their master.
Out of nowhere, a new bone slave-collar materialized in front of them, its presence almost eerie in its sudden appearance. Master Drelak’s voice resonated in their minds once more, smooth and authoritative:
‘To exit the dungeon without defeating the boss monster, simply place the collar on any part of the Red Orc King’s body. This will grant you control over him and allow you to forcefully leave the dungeon. I will not delve into the mechanics of how this bone collar functions—simply follow my instructions, and you will witness its effectiveness firsthand.’
The bone slave collar was no ordinary slave collar; it was, in fact, a rare Demigod Artifact owned by Drelak. This unique and powerful rare artifact was the primary reason why Drelak could forcibly exit any dungeon and venture into the outside world.
“Dammit!” Zealot muttered through gritted teeth, his voice strained with frustration. “If we’re not allowed to kill any boss monsters, it means we won't be able to complete any raids or claim the rewards we’ve been counting on. This puts us in a tight spot. Our entire strategy was built around defeating these monsters to farm gold and gather the loot we need. It looks like we’re going to have to come up with an alternative plan to make up for the loss and find another way to farm gold.”
Sasha, still wincing from the lingering pain, nodded in agreement. Her eyes, usually fierce and determined, now revealed a hint of frustration. “We’ll think about that later. For now, we need to capture the Red Orc King quickly. If we delay any longer, I fear Master Drelak might get angry and activate our slave collar again.”
The memory of the earlier pain sent a chill down their spines. The agony inflicted by the bone slave-collar was no joking matter; it was undoubtedly one of the most excruciating experiences an adventurer could ever endure.
Zealot nodded and, without wasting any time, quickly began issuing commands to his Skeleton Gold Warriors, instructing them to gather rope and chains from the nearby storage rooms within the grand castle.
Meanwhile, as the Red Orc King slowly rose to his feet, his rage palpable and his fury evident in his fierce glare, Sasha and Zealot struggled to stand as well. Their bodies trembled with lingering pain, the residual agony from the slave collars earlier still throbbing through their muscles and bones. Each movement was a reminder of the excruciating torment they had endured, adding to the difficulty of their task as they tried to regain their composure.
“Ugh…! To think the bone collars could cause such intense aches all over our bodies…” Zealot groaned, his disbelief evident.
Sasha nodded in agreement, her face etched with the same astonishment. Both of them were struggling to comprehend the sheer power of the bone slave collars. It was now painfully clear that these bone collars were not just slightly more powerful but many times more devastating than any ordinary slave collars found in the Mortal World. The torment they had experienced was a stark reminder of how vastly the bone slave collars surpassed the usual restraints in terms of agony and control.
The grand lobby of the Red Orc Castle echoed with the remnants of battle, the air thick with dust and the scent of spilled blood. Sasha and Zealot, both battered and fatigued from the pain caused by the bone collars, faced the daunting task of capturing the Red Orc King.
Zealot’s skeletal warriors moved with deliberate efficiency, hauling ropes and chains from the storage rooms and preparing to bind their formidable captive. The Red Orc King, still seething with rage, watched them with a fierce glare, his massive form trembling with frustration. Despite his earlier defeat, he was far from subdued.
Sasha, her enormous swords still dripping with the blood of their fallen enemies, approached the Red Orc King with grim determination. The new bone collar now materialized before her, its dark, ethereal glow pulsing with a disturbing energy as she grasped it.
“Alright, Zealot,” Sasha said through gritted teeth, her voice strained but resolute. “Let’s get this done quickly. We don’t want to give him a chance to recover.”
Zealot nodded, his expression focused as he commanded his Skeleton Gold Warriors to secure the Red Orc King. The skeletal minions moved with practiced precision, their bony hands expertly binding the Red Orc King with the ropes and chains they had gathered.
As Sasha and Zealot worked together, the Red Orc King glared at them, his eyes burning with defiance. “You may have defeated me, but this isn’t the end!” he growled, his voice a deep rumble that reverberated through the chamber. “I swear, you’ll pay for this!”
Ignoring the Red Orc King’s threats, Sasha positioned the bone slave-collar carefully. With a swift and decisive motion, she fastened the bone collar around the Red Orc King’s gigantic middle finger, securing it with a sharp click. The collar seemed to resonate with a dark energy, and the Red Orc King’s furious growl was abruptly cut off as the collar’s enchantment took hold.
The moment the collar was in place, a shimmering barrier of energy enveloped the Red Orc King, preventing him from breaking free. Zealot and Sasha, still aching from the earlier pain, watched with a mixture of relief and apprehension as the bone collar worked its magic.