Intermission: Orc Village

While Idmon and the others were on their way to find the Ancient Golems, he instructed Mel's group to handle the Orc Village.

The refugee Orcs had settled in an abandoned goblin camp not far from the capital of Un Deth.

Idmon had built them a shelter with his skeleton workers, who worked night and day to make the abandoned camp into a livable village.

Mel: "I trust everyone has no problems settling down."

Noel Warbreaker, their young warchief, answered.

Noel: "Yes, Lord Mel. The houses that we have now are better than what we had before."

It seems that the orc only valued weapons and armor when crafting something.

They said that they could live anywhere, even in a cave, if need be.

The sudden acquisition of better housing has improved the morale of the Orcs.

Mel: "That's good to hear. Lord Idmon has sent a message for you."

Noel: "It's to call us for war, isn't it?"

Mel: "Yes, that is right. An enemy whose power is beyond everything we have faced before is on their way here."

Noel: "We will comply; however, please tell Lord Idmon that he might be disappointed with the quality of soldiers that we can provide."

The Orcs had arrived in the Grave Isles with few warriors. Most of their villages have mothers and children.

Sure, they can reproduce quickly, and orcs grow faster than humans. Unfortunately, it would still take years to get enough warriors to field a large and respectable army.

Noel: "The band that I can provide consists of mostly warrior women and the few warriors that we have left. We can't send all of our women because we might become extinct. Please understand."

Mel: "It doesn't matter. Our Lord has commanded you to provide anything that you can. If this group of yours can prove their worth in combat, then there is no problem."

Noel: "Thank you. We are eternally grateful. I will be personally leading the warband since I am the strongest warrior in the village. I will take many heads for our king!"

Mel: "That's great. Those bastards will surely charge us mindlessly, like raging bulls. We will meet them with our Lord's cunning battle plans and the soldiers' unmatched valor."

Mel left the village after checking everything and having placed more guards in the area to help fight against any monster attacks.

Noel walked around the village before giving his orders to his fellow Orcs.

The orcs in the village are very busy. Their children, as small as a toddler, were already swinging clubs and sticks.

It was not just playing around. The Orc children were sparring with others of the same age or height.

Orc women had also taken up the jobs of blacksmiths, guards, farmers, and hunters.

Everyone in the camp knows that even though they are women, they can be as strong as any orc warrior when protecting their children.

Now is their time to prove their worth. When the men are gone, they can't stand idly and wait for others to feed and care for them.

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The Orcs are proud people; they would not depend on anyone, like babies. Self-sufficiency is an essential trait of any Orc village.

Idmon had provided them with seeds and land to make farms. Their work had finished very quickly with the help of the skeleton workers.

Now, they only need to wait for the bountiful harvest that will grace them when the time comes.

Also, the sounds of hammers hitting metal are heard throughout the village.

Some of Idmon's dwarven allies had taught the Orc women to craft weapons and armor. They are now even better than their old smiths.

Once Noel had seen everything, he rang the village bell to gather the villagers in the center.

Noel: "Our savior, Lord Idmon, had asked for our aid in the coming battle against humans. The very same humans drove us out of the Orclands."

Rargh!

Down with the pigs!

I'll get them!

Angry remarks and cries for vengeance could be heard from the village.

The scars from their defeat have not healed yet. Most of the villagers lost their husbands in the war.

They know this. And now the hearts of the Orc villagers desire revenge on the humans that attacked them without reason.

Noel: "We will cut them down, that I promise you. Now that we have allies and more information about humans, we can destroy them in battle."

Yeargh!

Rah!

Yeah!

Now encouraged cheers came from the villagers.

Noel: "We will make better weapons and armor to equip ourselves. The humans only won because they have better equipment, but they are no match against our physical strength."

The quality of their equipment now was better than what the humans had (except for the humans' legendary items).

Yeah, we'll crush their skull!

Orcs are the strongest!

Noel: "We will make sure to repay our debt to our savior, Idmon, and once we gain the upper hand against the humans, we will make preparations to retake our homeland!"

YEAHH!!!

He dismissed the villagers after that.

Noel: "Even though it's almost impossible, having a goal will unite us, and once we are united, our strength will not fail us when we need it."

The worst thing that could happen is for the people to despair and lose all hope in living.

Noel: "I just hope Lord Idmon is powerful enough to stand against those monstrous humans."

Noel Warbreaker is unlike other chieftains and the former warchief. He is willing to use underhanded tactics to win. And for him, the survival of his race is the winning condition.

It would not be surprising that he could consider changing sides. Even if this means the hate of the villagers will be upon him,.

This decision just might save his race, even if they become slaves in the process. He will not hesitate to sacrifice his reputation.

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(Mel POV)

Mel: "So, you're saying that we would use them as bait?"

Mag: "Yes, our Lord Idmon knows that their loyalty is not entirely with the Undead but to his own race."

Mel: "It is not better to massacre them now? Or enslave them to make sure?

Mag: "Hah! That would not yield any positive results for us. Also, slaves are only obedient when their masters are looking. They would be more likely to revolt. The Orcs are unruly by nature."

Mel: "I see. But what if they don't change sides?"

Mag: "That's great! It would save us the tiresome task of baiting them and rounding them up after the battle."

Mel: "I don't understand why they would even consider that. That's just stupid. They see that the Dwarves and Ents are in a better position now with their alliance with the Undead."

Mag: "Indeed. His race would prosper under the rule of Lord Idmon; however, that would only happen if they were smart enough. As I always say to my soldiers, never turn on the one who holds the leash."

Mag clenched his hands as if choking something.

Mag: "Or else he would tighten the leash."

Mel: "Okay."

Mag: "Enough about that. Let's do our next task of checking the state of affairs in the capital."

Mel: "Those boring things tire me out. I'm glad you and Ran are with me."

Mag: "Of course, Lord Idmon made sure of that. Or else the capital would be in flames."

Mel: "What!?"

Ran: "(laughs softly)."

Ran was a bit better now; she had regained her confidence when Lord Idmon praised their group, especially when Mel had complimented her personally.

Mel: "Don't get full of yourself now! I still have the lead in < most heads bashed in battle."

Mag: "Who the hell even started that competition? You better get back to studying, or Lord Idmon might replace you with a competent captain."

Mel: "For real!?"

Mag: "Hahaha!"

The group laughed as they traveled back to the capital of Undeth.

They savor these moments because they know that everything they have lies at the edge of a cliff.

Once it falls, they will never get it back.

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(Human POV)

Meanwhile, the Paladins' main force had arrived in Haven.

They left one legion of Paladins behind to maintain their hold on the Orclands and finish colonizing the island.

They quickly marched back to their capital and were already preparing for the upcoming war.

And this time, the Paladins are contacting the guilds for assistance.

A united force will be assembled, just like when they decided to end the reign of the evil kings (the Skeletal King, Demon King, and Beast King).

And Hero specifically had something special in store for the undead. Something he had discovered during his time in the Orclands.