Chapter 203
“What is it?”
“Damn it! What’s going on? Why blow the whistle like that?!”
The awakened members of the Red Storm Unit grumbled, but quickly gathered at the entrance of the Steel Fortress.
A whistle was the most efficient way to relay a signal—
especially when warning of danger.
At the entrance, which could only be accessed by basket lift, one awakened fighter stood there, breathing heavily.
He was the one who had blown the whistle.
Urtian approached him.
“Juing! What happened?”
“Huff… huff… Orcs.”
“Orcs?”
“Orcs have appeared nearby.”
The awakened man called Juing answered while struggling to catch his breath.
“Orcs?”
“Yes! We spotted a small group about twenty kilometers away.”
“Those bastard pigs… daring to come here…!”
Urtian’s expression turned fierce.
He did not fear orcs.
Neither did his subordinates.
The Red Storm Unit had already slaughtered and plundered orc groups before.
To them, orcs were not something to fear—
but prey to be hunted.
Urtian turned to his second-in-command.
“Komak!”
“Yes, boss.”
“Take the men and wipe them out.”
“Understood.”
Komak replied immediately.
As the second-in-command of the Red Storm Unit, dealing with orcs was nothing to him.
“Let’s go!”
Komak descended from the fortress with thirty awakened fighters.
Zeon spoke to Urtian.
“Shouldn’t you send more people?”
“What, worried?”
“It’s better to be certain.”
“No need. Komak’s an expert when it comes to dealing with beasts like that.”
Urtian answered casually.
He spoke from experience—
the orcs were no match for them.
“At worst, we might get a few injured. We’ll just patch them up when they return.”
“But—”
“That’s enough.”
Urtian cut him off, clearly unwilling to hear more, and walked back into the crowd.
Zeon said nothing further.
Urtian was the master of the Steel Fortress.
It was his decision.
To argue further would only undermine his authority.
Let’s just hope nothing goes wrong…
***
Komak and his men headed toward where the orcs had been spotted.
“Arrogant pig bastards… daring to threaten our home?”
After spending the past few days at the Steel Fortress, Komak had come to savor the stability of a safe settlement.
Having lived as a nomad constantly under threat from magical beasts, these days felt like a dream.
He had no intention of losing that comfort.
And so, his anger toward the orcs burned even hotter.
Komak called out to Juing, who was running ahead.
“Juing! Are we close?”
“Almost there. Once we cross that sand dune, we’ll see them.”
“You heard him. Prepare for combat.”
While running, the awakened fighters readied themselves.
When they reached the top of the massive sand dune, the scene beyond came into view.
A sly smile spread across Komak’s lips.
Just as Juing had said—
there were dozens of orcs.
They were poorly armed and completely unorganized—nothing more than a ragtag group.
Komak didn’t feel the need to plan or hesitate.
“Move! We kill them all and head back.”
“Yes!”
“Let’s go!”
Komak and his men charged down the dune at terrifying speed.
“Chiit!”
“Humans!”
The orcs noticed too late and hurriedly grabbed their weapons.
“Too late. Kill them all!”
Whoooosh!
A pair of discs shot out from Komak’s waist, flying toward the orcs.
It was his unique skill—Discs of Death.
In an instant, the spinning blades sliced through several orcs.
“Chiiit!”
“Kweeek!”
The orcs screamed as they collapsed.
Before the remaining orcs could recover from the shock, the awakened fighters crashed into them.
Slash!
Shhk!
With chilling cutting sounds, bodies were severed.
The sand turned red with orc blood.
“I’ll burn them.”
Juing, a magic-type awakened, hurled a fireball.
An orc struck by it burst into flames, thrashing wildly.
“Serves you right.”
“Don’t relax yet. The fight isn’t over.”
“Yes!”
At Komak’s command, Juing refocused and continued attacking.
Dozens of orcs were wiped out in an instant.
Komak and his men stood there, their bodies stained red with blood.
Only then did Komak smile.
“Good work, everyone. Let’s head back and enjoy a proper bath.”
“Hahaha!”
“Just thinking about it feels great!”
The awakened fighters burst into laughter.
Over the past few days, they had come to fully enjoy the luxury of abundant water.
For the first time in their lives, they had experienced something called a bath.
They had filled water to the brim and soaked their bodies in it—a luxury beyond imagination.
The sensation of the gently rippling water still lingered vividly in their minds.
They wanted to return as soon as possible and immerse themselves again.
Just as Komak and the awakened fighters were about to leave—
“Chiit!”
“The humans have taken the bait.”
Suddenly, orc voices echoed from all directions.
“What?!”
“Were there still orcs left?”
Startled, Komak and the others turned toward the voices.
At that moment, orcs began emerging one after another from the sand dunes.
And there were a lot of them.
At a glance, there were well over a thousand.
At the center stood one particularly massive orc.
With a huge war hammer resting on his shoulder, he radiated overwhelming presence.
He was Ashanka—the second-in-command of the orc tribe.
Thud!
Ashanka stepped forward toward Komak.
“My name is Ashanka, human!”
“Ashanka?”
“I am searching for the humans who killed the children of our tribe.”
“…Children?”
“Yes! The ones who killed the children under communal care. Have you seen such humans?”
“Orc children…”
Komak’s expression stiffened.
The memory of slaughtering old orcs and young ones not long ago resurfaced.
Ashanka did not miss that change.
“It seems I’ve found them.”
“You insolent pig—!”
“Where are the others? There should be more of your kind.”
“Who do you think you’re interrogating, you pig—!”
“So humans truly don’t listen to words.”
Ashanka spoke with surprising clarity for an orc.
Watching him, Komak bit down on his lip.
Damn it… this is bad.
They were outnumbered—and more importantly, Ashanka’s presence was far from ordinary.
This wasn’t just brute force.
They had lured them in using bait—showing cunning as well.
Escape wouldn’t be easy.
Komak spoke quietly to his men.
“Listen carefully. From now on, don’t think about anything else—just escape. Don’t try to save anyone. Run straight to the Steel Fortress and report this.”
No one answered.
But every one of them engraved his words into their hearts.
Though Komak had spoken softly, Ashanka heard everything.
“Steel Fortress? So that’s where your comrades are.”
“Damn it… you heard that too?”
“You’ll tell us anyway—whether you want to or not.”
“Damn it! Die!”
With a shout, Komak unleashed his attack.
A pair of discs shot forward—
his Discs of Death, aimed at Ashanka.
This skill had never failed him before.
But this time—
Clang!
Ashanka blocked them effortlessly with his war hammer.
“Damn it!”
Komak tried again, controlling the discs.
“Weak, human.”
Ashanka mocked him and charged.
Thud! Thud!
A massive body larger than a camel rushed forward with the speed of a flame wolf.
Escape was impossible.
Komak sent the discs spinning again—
They sliced toward Ashanka’s neck.
But without even looking, Ashanka swatted them aside with his hammer.
What—?!
At that instant—
BOOM!
“Aaagh!”
With a deafening impact, Komak was sent flying.
His body rolled across the ground, drenched in blood, limbs twisted unnaturally.
A martial-type awakened—
rendered completely helpless in a single clash.
This is insane…!
It felt as if every bone in his body had been crushed.
His consciousness began to fade.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t hold on.
Crash!
He bounced across the ground like a skipping stone before finally collapsing.
Ashanka approached him.
“Captain!”
“Damn it!”
The awakened fighters tried to reach Komak—
but they were surrounded by countless orcs and couldn’t break through.
Ashanka grabbed Komak by the neck and lifted him.
At that moment, Komak regained just enough consciousness to shout with his last strength—
“Run! Even if it’s just one of you—get back and warn the fortress!”
Hearing his cry, the awakened fighters scattered and fled in all directions.
Watching them, Ashanka bared his yellow fangs and laughed.
“Kuhahaha! I’ll let one of you live… so you can guide us to your fortress.”
“What…? N-no!”
Komak’s eyes widened in shock.
He had never imagined an orc could think like this.
Ashanka looked into his eyes.
“Why? Did you think only humans could use their brains? Don’t be ridiculous. Orcs can think just fine too, human.”
He lifted Komak higher—
then grabbed his legs with his other hand.
And pulled.
RIIIP!
With monstrous strength, Komak’s body was torn in half.
Ashanka stood there, arms raised, as blood poured over him.
His entire body was dyed red.
He tossed the remains aside.
Nearby lesser orcs rushed in immediately, tearing and devouring the corpse.
“Chiit!”
“Meat!”
Ashanka didn’t spare them a glance.
His gaze was fixed on the fleeing awakened fighter who had broken through the encirclement.
“That’s right… lead us to your fortress.”