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With a beast-like roar, the crude sword of an orc slashed through the air. Siris deftly dodged the sword and struck the orc’s thigh. Since she intentionally struck with the flat side of the blade, no blood splattered. Nonetheless, a scream escaped from the orc’s mouth.

“Ughhh!”

In the meantime, another orc launched a series of attacks. Siris easily maneuvered her body, slipping through the attacks. Then, she delivered consecutive kicks, striking the back of the orcs’ heads.

“Thud!”

Two orcs stumbled as they were hit in the back of their heads. Tilla swiftly swept their legs with the handle of her axe. The orcs fell with a groan.

“Grrrr!”

Russ, too, was moving among the orcs, wielding his sword. He didn’t even use aura. He simply fought the orcs with his sheathed sword, knocking them down one by one.

Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack!

Even Repenhardt didn’t bother to dodge.

“Takara!”

“Kratta!”

With tenacity-filled shouts, the orcs’ iron hammers and stone axes simultaneously struck Repenhardt’s chest and back. Repenhardt spread his arms wide with a grin. The orcs’ mouths dropped open at the sensation of hitting solid steel. No matter how fiercely determined they were, they couldn’t hide their astonishment at this sight. After all, seeing someone deflect blades with their bare body wasn’t something one witnessed every day.

Thus, Repenhardt’s group easily overpowered more than twenty orcs. Needless to say, Repenhardt and Russ were aura users, while Siris and Tilla were also among the top warriors of their clan. On top of that, they were blessed by the powerful priest, Sillan, so it was no surprise that the orcs stood no chance.

However, despite the situation, Repenhardt’s group was impressed.

“Quite impressive, these orcs,” Russ remarked, deflecting the orcs’ attacks with his sheathed sword. For the orcs facing him, it was infuriating, but in truth, he was genuinely impressed by the skill of these orc warriors. They seemed capable enough to be compared to the knights of the Tenes Order he once belonged to. It was just that their party’s skill level was too high; otherwise, these orcs alone would be formidable opponents for any knightly order.

Repenhardt nodded in agreement.

“Indeed, they are impressive. The problem is, orcs have a critical weakness…”

At that moment, the orcs let out a collective roar of rage.

“Grrrr!”

For a long time, they charged in without managing to inflict a single wound, and their emotions exploded in humiliation. Normally, they would have sensed the difference in capability and retreated, but instead, they began to swing their swords recklessly, disregarding their own lives. To orcs who revered warriors, a battle where their opponent held back was utterly disgraceful. Their eyes gleamed with a murderous glint.

Facing those who disregarded their own lives was challenging regardless of their skill level. Especially considering that they couldn’t afford to injure them, it made things even more difficult. Siris and Tilla’s movements faltered for a moment. At that moment, Repenhardt, enduring the blades with his entire body, raised his arms.

“Sand, flow. Become the dream of the abyss! Mass Sleep!”

As he scattered sand with both hands, the powder spread out, enveloping the orcs. In an instant, Russ wore a bewildered expression.

“Eh?”

The twenty or so orcs, who had been so ferocious, collapsed all at once. They fell with a thud, immediately lying down and beginning to breathe shallowly. It was the effect of Repenhardt’s 2nd-circle wide-area sleep spell, Mass Sleep.

Sillan murmured in disbelief.

“No way, why is it so effective?”

Originally, sleep spells weren’t meant to be used this way. They were supposed to be used subtly, making the target drowsy without them realizing it. To use it in the midst of battle and for it to work? It was almost suspicious, as if it were a high-level paralysis spell rather than a 2nd-circle spell.

“Wasn’t sleep supposed to be completely useless in actual combat?”

At Sillan’s question, Repenhardt made a bitter expression.

“This is why orcs, despite their formidable combat prowess, are still outmatched by humans.”

That’s right. Orcs severely lacked magic resistance.

Humans, if they had strong enough mental fortitude, could resist a mage’s mental spells through concentration. But orcs were inherently very weak in this aspect. Even the mightiest warriors could be toyed with by the mental magic of a low-level mage.

“In the old days, there were so few mages that it wasn’t a problem for the orcs…”

In the past, the very existence of magic was extremely rare. Only a very few mages secretly passed down their arcane knowledge. But now, with the establishment of the Magic Tower and formal training of mages, mages were no longer as rare. They were still valuable, but at least now, most noble families of count rank or higher could afford to have one or two mages in their household.

Over hundreds of years, humans gradually increased their magical power. The orcs, who lived scattered in tribal units, were gradually defeated by humans who had established magic battalions, weakening their power. In the present era, most orcs have become slaves.

At Repenhardt’s explanation, Sillan tilted his head.

“Then, no matter how strong a warrior they are, aren’t they pretty much useless?”

Repenhardt shook his head.

“Sillan, think about if you cast a simple mental defense blessing on them.”

Sillan’s expression turned curious.

“Well, indeed…”

Mental protection spells were not particularly difficult. Sillan could even create protective talismans that could last for a long time. The orcs’ weakness was certainly serious, but it was a problem of the orcs themselves. It could be easily overcome with a little help from other races.

“Moreover, these guys aren’t even warriors.”

At Repenhardt’s continued words, everyone looked surprised. These orcs, with such excellent skills, weren’t warriors?

“The true warriors of the Blue Bear Tribe guard the village, herd sheep and goats, protect food supplies, and hunt invading monsters. Only the orcs who haven’t become warriors yet wander the wilderness, patrolling and honing their skills to earn the title of warrior.”

It seemed contrary to human common sense, but considering their lifestyle, it made sense. Russ shook his head in disbelief.

“This level of skill… doesn’t even qualify as a warrior?”

In any case, since the situation was resolved, Repenhardt’s party gathered their horses again. They decided to leave the sleeping orcs as they were. After all, these orcs usually wandered the wilderness and slept anywhere. Sleeping for an hour or two in such a place wouldn’t cause them any harm.

“It’s a sleep spell, not a paralysis spell. If any monsters appear, they’ll wake up soon. They’re all trained for that.”

Repenhardt’s group carefully moved away from the area so as not to wake the sleeping orcs. Once they were far enough that the sleeping orcs were no longer visible, they mounted their horses again. Repenhardt looked eastward.

“If we go straight this way, we’ll reach the Blue Bear Tribe’s campsite. They should be there around this time.”

* * *

Repenhardt’s party couldn’t reach the Blue Bear Tribe’s spring camp. Before they got there, a group of orcs came out to greet them.

“Awooooo!”

The howls of the direwolves carrying the orcs echoed across the plains. The air was thick with tension. The horses, terrified, stamped their hooves. Calming their mounts, Repenhardt’s party quickly dismounted.

With grim expressions, they faced the orcs before them. Russ unconsciously grasped his sword hilt and let out a groan.

“My God…”

Seeing them made it clear why the previous orcs were not considered warriors. Just standing there, these orcs emanated an aura on a completely different level. There were only about a dozen, but each one exuded the presence of a powerful warrior.

Among them, one huge orc slowly stepped forward. His entire body was wrapped in a gray cloak, and a hood covered his head, revealing only his eyes.

The orc opened his mouth and shouted loudly.

“This is our land! Humans cannot enter!”

It was surprisingly clear in the common tongue. Despite the charisma in his voice that made them shudder, Russ felt a sense of curiosity. The tone of the voice seemed somewhat thin.

Repenhardt took a step forward and raised both hands.

“Oh noble spirits of warriors!”

The orcs, who had been exuding murderous intent, suddenly showed signs of confusion. Hearing their own language from the intruder’s mouth, their fierce demeanor softened. They began to murmur among themselves, exchanging glances.

Seeing this, Repenhardt smiled inwardly.

‘As expected…’

Indeed, when dealing with different races, knowing their language was immensely valuable. Just being able to speak their language could halve the hostility. Repenhardt hadn’t learned the languages of different races so diligently in his past life for nothing. Of course, in his past life, he was such a genius that he could speak a language fluently after staying in a place for about three months without much effort.

Repenhardt continued in Orcish.

“We have come here to establish friendship with you!”

“…Friendship?”

The huge orc woman, Stalla, was taken aback. In her life, the relationship between orcs and humans had always been simple and straightforward.

When humans appeared, they fought. They either killed or were killed. That was all.

The idea of a human extending a hand in friendship was something she had never imagined. For a moment, she couldn’t make sense of the situation.

She shouted back in the common tongue.

“Humans are deceitful! I don’t trust you!”

Repenhardt responded in Orcish.

“I understand! That’s why we want to show you our trust!”

‘He understands?’

Stalla looked at the intruder in front of her with a face that showed she couldn’t comprehend. There was no hostility in his voice or demeanor. The human seemed to be speaking sincerely. Of course, humans were cunning, so she couldn’t trust him just like that…

“What are you scheming, human! You are…”

She began to shout in the common tongue, then suddenly laughed. It was funny when she thought about it. The human was speaking fluently in Orcish, while she, an orc, was replying in the human language.

Mid-sentence, Stalla switched to Orcish.

“You say you came here to meet us?”

“Yes.”

Repenhardt replied calmly, looking directly at Stalla. Seeing the clear absence of hostility in her eyes, he felt pleased.

‘It seems we’ve managed to start a conversation.’

Normally, these orcs of the wilderness wouldn’t bother talking to humans. They would usually draw their swords at first sight, like the orc scouts they had met earlier.

The fact that these were among the top warriors of the orcs actually worked in their favor. True warriors, confident in their own strength, had enough composure to be taken aback by a human speaking Orcish.

Of course, it was only that they had started a conversation. The orcs were still wary of Repenhardt’s party. They were ready to draw their weapons at the slightest sign of trouble. Repenhardt cautiously stepped forward and continued.

“Noble warrior, would you give us a chance to prove our trust?”

Stalla’s eyes wavered. No matter how much orcs hated humans, they were fundamentally a straightforward and bold race. With the human approaching like this, it was difficult to respond with immediate hostility.

Above all, wasn’t this human speaking the blessed language? It wasn’t the warrior’s way to reject someone who spoke their language so fluently and respectfully without reason.

Stalla’s tone softened.

“Tell me, how do you intend to prove yourselves?”

She was also curious. How could these humans prove their trust to her, an orc?

Repenhardt smiled broadly and spoke.

“A true warrior shines their soul through their blade. To prove our sincerity, I propose a ritual of honorable combat.”