The mercenary William Harrington and his team were concealed within tall grass on a hillside. He ignored the damp soil clinging to his clothes, pressing himself flat against the ground.

He cautiously raised his head from time to time, peering through the gaps in the grass at the orc army marching slowly in the distance, armed with weapons made of wood or bone.

The ground was covered with short, sparse grass, providing him with a clear view.

The orcs averaged around 2 blades in height, most with black eyes and dressed in animal skins. Their muscles bulged with strength, and their four fangs, crisscrossed in their mouths, exuded ferocity.

Savage, backward, primitive, strong – these were the words that came to William's mind every time he saw the orcs.

As a descendant of nobility, despite his family's decline, William was well-educated, unlike his teammates who struggled to even recognize their own names.

"Nicholas, are you sure these orcs are heading to a new gathering place?" William asked, his eyes gleaming with excitement as he looked at the orc army of over a thousand strong.

Ever since a mysterious individual posted a large number of tasks at the Green City Mercenary Association a month ago, seeking information on the movements of the orc army in the Barren Wasteland, mercenaries like him had been frequenting the area much more than usual.

That mysterious individual was truly generous, offering shiny gold punks for simply gathering information on the orcs, with no need for combat.

The clearer the information and the larger the number of orcs, the more gold punks they could earn.

Discovering the movement of over a thousand orcs, if they could confirm they were heading to a new gathering place and prove they were an undiscovered orc army, he could earn at least 50 gold punks.

If they continued to track their origins and investigate the specific movements of this orc army, the reward might even double.

Since he started participating in missions exploring the Barren Wasteland, he had already received hundreds of gold punks as rewards. Knowing the focus of that mysterious individual, he naturally understood how to maximize his profits.

"Of course, I encountered these guys the day before yesterday and wanted to follow them, but they discovered me halfway through. After I resurrected, I came back here and studied their marching route in detail. I found that this group of orcs is likely relocating their tribe. Sir William, perhaps we're about to make a fortune this time," Nicholas, a small and thin player, said excitedly.

Ever since he accidentally joined this mercenary squad a month ago, he had found his way to survive in this world: becoming a scout who gathers information.

With the player's ability to resurrect, he could take on dangerous tasks that mercenary squads wouldn't dare to do, such as closely tracking the orc army this time.

William had also discovered the resurrection ability of these Lost Plane adventurers a while ago, which led him to recruit Nicholas, who was still hauling sandbags at the docks at the time, into his team.

Since then, with the help of this adventurer's resurrection ability, William had preserved most of his strength in the perilous Barren Wasteland and obtained generous rewards in gold punks.

Nicholas, through his contributions, had become a glorious... candidate member of the William Mercenary Group.

"Very good. Stay alert and don't let the orc wolf cavalry catch our scent," William said, maintaining his vigilance despite his inner joy.

"Don't worry, Sir William. Although the wolf cavalry has a keen sense of smell, I chose this spot downwind. As long as we maintain a distance of a thousand blades, they won't be able to detect us," Nicholas said confidently.

During this time, a thief in the mercenary group had taught him thief skills and helped him change his profession, allowing him to quickly master these small techniques.

Wolf cavalry was the ace cavalry of the orcs, known for their exceptional sense of smell, often able to detect enemies from afar by their scent.

However, even the sharpest sense of smell had its limits. Beyond a thousand blades, the wolf cavalry wouldn't be able to smell anything, and they were downwind, in an absolutely safe zone.

"Nicholas, you've made a great contribution this time. Once the mission is completed, I will give you 20% of the mission's earnings as a reward," William said, patting Nicholas, who was lying beside him, with satisfaction.

"Our mercenary squad will not mistreat any of its members."

Nicholas nodded with a delighted expression. The reward for this mission was at least 50 gold punks, and 20% of that was 10 gold punks!

This was an astronomical figure.

"Thank you for your generosity, Sir William."

Just then, a wolf's howl came from ahead.

"Get down, conceal your aura!"

William's expression changed abruptly, and he pressed himself even closer to the grass.

Thump thump~ Thump thump~

Lying close to the ground, William felt the sound of running footsteps ahead. The sound of dire wolves moving was usually very soft. This situation could only mean...

William slightly raised his head and looked through the gaps in the grass, his back instantly drenched in cold sweat.

At the end of his vision, over a thousand giant dire wolves, 2.5 blades tall and 5 blades long, were running across the land, driven by orc riders.

William's sharp eyes noticed that many of the dire wolves seemed to have something tied to their backs. As they drew closer, his eyes widened.

Dwarves??

The orc army had captured so many dwarves??

What was going on??

Why were dwarves appearing in the Barren Wasteland??

William's mind was filled with questions, but before he could think further, the galloping wolf cavalry forced him to lower his head again.

If he were discovered by so many wolf cavalry, even with a hundred lives, he wouldn't be able to escape the Barren Wasteland alive.

For a full half a sun hour, until the trailing orc army and the wolf cavalry had long since disappeared, William dared to raise his head again.

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By now, his entire body was soaked in cold sweat.

It was too dangerous. The wolf cavalry had just now approached within 500 blades of them. If not for the downwind position, they would have been wolf food already.

"Sir William, do we still need to track the orcs?" Nicholas, who had been excited, now looked a little pale.

The constant possibility of being discovered was too much for him to bear. It would be better to be discovered and die, since his level was low and the loss from death wouldn't be significant.

William shook his head. "No, we've gathered enough information. Our mission is to investigate the movements of the orcs, not to figure out their purpose. If we continue to follow, no one except you will survive."

After saying that, as if remembering something, William added meaningfully, "Nicholas, you've passed the test. When we get back, we'll sign a contract, and the William Mercenary Group will officially accept you. From now on, you're one of us, and you'll share in all future adventure earnings."

Nicholas heaved a sigh of relief.

Oh my god, I've finally joined the organization. It's too hard to survive alone.

"Sir William..."

"No, from now on, you can call me captain or boss. Let's go back and report the mission. We'll earn at least 100 gold punks this time. So many wolf cavalry, this is a force that can influence a war. And those dwarves who have become captives... Nicholas, we're going to be rich..."

Nicholas was also in a great mood. Damn, I'm going to be rich too.

...

Dawn City.

After reading the secret letter in his hand, the joy of forging high-level weapons instantly turned into solemnity for Leeds.

Stanley had sent news that someone at the Mercenary Guild had reported discovering the movements of over a thousand orc wolf cavalry, and these wolf cavalry were also carrying dwarven captives.

This should have been good news, but the thousand orc wolf cavalry made him frown... This was a powerful enemy.

Wolf cavalry was the ace cavalry of the orcs. The dire wolves they rode had an initial level of 5 and could reach a maximum level of 15.

To train wolf cavalry, one had to start raising the dire wolves as cubs to ensure better coordination when they reached adulthood.

This special training method made the wolf cavalry incredibly powerful.

Both the dire wolves and the orc riders on their backs were trained to have such good coordination that they could unleash combat power greater than the sum of their parts.

However, while wolf cavalry was powerful, the cost of training them was equally high. Even large orc tribes did not dare to raise too many because the Barren Wasteland was simply too barren to support them.

But now, this orc tribe that had captured dwarves actually had over a thousand wolf cavalry! The implications behind this were significant.

This was not a simple orc tribe.

Just like the blood race's magic bats, if he could have 5,000 of them, anyone would be wary.

This was not just about the power on the surface, but also about the strength behind it.

The wolf cavalry was just the revealed power, what about the hidden power lurking in the shadows?

"Amy, Harrison, immediately gather the blood race and magic bats. Everyone except those necessary for city defense should assemble."

Leeds's tone was serious.

"Inform Stanley, Groot, and Betty to return to Dawn City immediately."

Hearing Leeds's sudden orders, the surrounding people were confused, except for Warren, whose expression was complex.

"Lord Carchal, you..."

Before Warren could finish, Leeds waved his hand and said calmly, "That's right, we've discovered traces of the orc army. Their wolf cavalry are carrying dwarven captives..."

He paused slightly and gave the dwarven forging master a meaningful look.

"Warren, abandon your pathetic delusions. The mithril vein will only belong to Dawn City."

Warren's body trembled, and his expression turned dejected. Although he knew this moment might come, he hadn't expected it to arrive so quickly.

His once energetic body instantly slumped, and he seemed to have aged decades in an instant.

"Lord Carchal, I hope you will keep your promise."

Leeds gave him a deep look.

"Don't worry, as long as your people don't raise their swords against me, I will ensure their safety."

He then turned around and looked at the residents who had stood up and were looking at him with excitement, his voice rising.

"My people, I am your Lord Carchal.

Today, we have spent countless precious resources to forge two powerful sets of armor. I won't hide it from you, the armor on Corso and Castro cost 100,000 gold punks to purchase the ore."

Woah~

These words instantly sent the crowd into an uproar. 100,000 gold punks??!! This was an astronomical sum that no one dared to even imagine.

Many residents only earned a dozen or twenty silver punks a month, and their annual income might only be two or three gold punks.

Now, forging these two sets of armor had cost 100,000 gold punks. Leeds's generosity left all the residents breathless. It was too extravagant.

"Why did I spend such a huge amount of money to forge armor?

Because we are about to launch a war against the orcs!"

Leeds had no intention of hiding it. Every time he launched a war, he would do his best to publicize it. He wanted all residents to know that the blood race was fighting for them, for the future of Dawn City.

This was very conducive to unifying the people's hearts. The fact that Dawn City had become so harmonious and integrated so quickly might also be due to his two wars.

One was against the Cyclops, and the other was against the Covenant of Darkness.

External conflicts were often the best way to shift internal conflicts.

"The filthy orcs have occupied a mithril vein that does not belong to them. This precious vein can create stronger weapons, capable of blocking arrows aimed at the hearts of our soldiers. It is a treasure that even dragons would envy.

And Dawn City will take back what does not belong to the orcs from those dwarven orcs!

Our soldiers will once again fight for Dawn City, for every resident!

Every resident of Dawn City, please pray for the Holy Light Blood Race.

We will return with abundant spoils of war.

All for Dawn City!!"

Leeds's words carried a powerful persuasive force. With his unshakable prestige, these few sentences instantly ignited the crowd.

"For Dawn City!"

"For Dawn City!"

"For Dawn City!"

From a scattered start, it gradually turned into a unified and resounding chant that echoed throughout Dawn City.

Everyone's eyes were filled with passion and excitement, because this was an order personally issued by their great Lord Carchal. No one would doubt Lord Carchal's foresight.

And no one would doubt their ability to achieve victory in the war!

With the great Lord Carchal leading them, Dawn City would eventually become an unstoppable force, and every resident was a participant and witness!

Warren, the experienced forging master, watched this scene with a complex expression.

Looking at Leeds's handsome and elegant figure, he suddenly felt a sense of admiration from the bottom of his heart.

A vampire, a dark creature feared and loathed by everyone in the outside world, could actually gain the sincere respect and admiration of humans.

How astonishing and shocking!

Such an enemy was too terrifying.

If possible, he would rather fight against tens of thousands of orcs again than become enemies with this vampire lord.

Facing an attack from tens of thousands of orcs, he still had a glimmer of hope for victory. But facing this existence with powerful methods, unfathomable strength, mystery, and immense wisdom, he had no confidence at all.

Leeds nodded slightly as he saw the crowd's excitement. The hearts of the people could be used.

As a dictator who held both military and political power, he knew the importance of public sentiment better than anyone. That's why he repeatedly had the propaganda department spare no effort in promoting his image.

After nearly a year of ideological construction, the residents' recognition of Dawn City and the Holy Light Blood Race was almost at its peak.

Therefore, he basically didn't have to worry about any rebellions or problems occurring in Dawn City while he was away on expeditions.

"Nilo, the Dawn Cult needs to stabilize the people's hearts during this time. I don't want any problems to arise due to the absence of the Holy Light Blood Race."

Although the probability of problems arising was close to zero, Leeds still gave Nilo a few words of advice.

With over seven thousand followers, as long as the Dawn Cult remained stable, Dawn City wouldn't descend into chaos.

And with Nilo there, Leeds was also very reassured.

"Don't worry, Lord Carchal, my sister and I will manage the Dawn Cult well," Nico, the little girl, said with a smile, blinking her big eyes.

During this time, Nico had been following Harrison in the City Hall, learning how to handle government affairs. Through training, Nico's abilities in various aspects had greatly improved.

A new administrative talent was about to shoulder important responsibilities.

"Good, assist your sister well."

Leeds reached out and rubbed the little girl's head, offering a few words of encouragement before leaving amidst the cheers of the residents.

Harrison and Amy immediately followed closely behind him.

Leeds also began to ponder.

How should he deal with the orcs?

The mithril vein was like a delicious fruit, constantly tempting him.

This was a treasure that could cause two countries to go to war, and now, he was just one step away from obtaining it. He wouldn't give it up even if he faced a dragon.

Moreover, there was another crucial point – the dwarves, this renowned and glorious race, whose skill in forging weapons was unparalleled.

In Leeds's view, the value of the dwarves themselves was no less than that of the mithril vein.

What was the most valuable thing in this world?

Talent.

And talent was precisely what Dawn City lacked.