13. The Chieftain is Wise!

A massive shadow once again danced wildly before us. The “Great Wizard,” who had just been sent flying, lay on the ground, still unable to rise, while the fury of the Great Chieftain had already descended upon the other orcs. It seemed… it wanted to punish far more than just the Great Wizard. Under this dim sky, nearly all the orcs within the open tent suffered the consequences.

The burly, towering Minotaur brother was directly slapped backward, rolling several times before lying motionless on the ground; the others, who had just been filled with righteous indignation, shouting to fight the elven women, fared no better—either landing on their backsides or tumbling head over heels. Even Dovorum and Gu Erdan were not spared; the strong winds knocked their massive bodies down with a thud, the only difference being that their falls were not as severe.

Perhaps due to our status, Kephiel and I did not receive any of the Great Chieftain’s so-called “punishments” like those unfortunate orcs. Even so, the scene before me, combined with the unfolding script, was enough to leave me in shock.

[The Great Chieftain Sa’er Punished the High Orc Warriors of the Austro-Hungarian Tribe!]

It was reasonable to punish that seemingly ulterior-motivated Great Wizard, but afterward, this incorporeal Great Chieftain indiscriminately chastised all the orcs, regardless of whether they had explanations or what positions they held! Was this not even more unreasonable than the Lady of Rosia!? At this point, I could not determine whether this Great Chieftain simply wanted to vent his anger or had ulterior motives.

“Kael Bloodhoof, you stand on equal footing with the wizard, yet you simply obey its commands. Are you an orc warrior or just a milk cow?”

The Minotaur brother seemed to understand something; he fell silent and merely lowered his head deeper.

“The rest of you orcs, without my command, the tribe shall not make any external decisions. Have you all forgotten this warning…?”

Not to mention responding, none of the other orcs dared to lift their heads even once.

“Dovorum, Gu Erdan, why do you not dare to stand your ground when you have done nothing wrong? Is this your ‘dignity’ as orcs?”

I see now; when punishing one orc, he also punishes all orcs in the process, ensuring that no one would have any complaints. Though it is a strange tactic, the queen would probably laugh at it if she heard, but for the hierarchically rigid Austro-Hungarian orcs, it seemed quite effective.

After all this was done, the shadow returned to the candlelight, and the candle no longer flickered. Only the pair of eyes within the massive shadow remained fixed on Kephiel and me.

“There is no need to panic about this matter; the humans’ explanation is reasonable. Do not make any unnecessary moves externally for the time being. Great Wizard, do you understand?”

“Yes… yes…”

The Great Wizard, whose nosebleed had not yet been wiped clean and was now gushing again from the impact, still looked somewhat unwilling. However, facing the already manifested Great Chieftain, the gap in status left it with no other response.

“Lastly, humans… the conflict you instigated must be resolved by you humans yourselves. Do not let me discover that this is merely a cunning collusion between humans and elves; otherwise… you will be buried here forever!”

As the shadow faded away and the dim sky, shrouded by dark clouds, returned to clarity, the vanished eyes and the words clearly directed at Kephiel and me brought forth a new script.

[The Great Chieftain Sa’er Demands Oujilide Investigate!]

Investigate what? Isn’t this just asking me to clean up the mess caused by these single-minded orcs who only know how to pick fights with elves? That said, this was already the best outcome. After all, just moments ago, Kephiel and I had offended that Great Wizard. Despite its current state, lying on the ground in a pitiful manner, the script had now become extremely dangerous for me!

[The Humiliated Great Wizard Killed Oujilide!]

The death script of the Austro-Hungarian tribe had also emerged! With this turn of events, I could probably guess why that Great

[The Great Chieftain Sar Helped Oujili De!]

Indeed, that shadow, those eyes might be helping me! As long as they threaten alongside me and Kephiel, the orcs who just got a lesson won’t harbor any hostility towards us. The only regret is that this great wizard seems to hold a grudge; even so, they still entertain sinister thoughts of wanting to stab me.

But regardless of this great wizard’s intentions, why did the recently appeared great chieftain choose to help me directly? If it were to repay a past favor, that would be quite a stretch, wouldn’t it?

The scene before me made me shake my head and stop pondering further. After all, with the disappearance of the great chieftain’s shadow, those high-ranking orc warriors who had been lying on the ground began to rise. The great wizard, who had just been schooled by Kephiel and the chieftain, seemed to resent us even more for the “insult” we had inflicted, casting us a cold glance before wiping their nose and scurrying away in disgrace.

No matter how you look at it, this meant that Kephiel and I had thoroughly offended them. After the great wizard left, the voice of the correct side, Gu Erdan, gained quite a bit of authority.

“The great chieftain has already delivered a holy decree, so before our human friends clarify the outcome, it’s best we don’t go looking for trouble with the elves next door! Even if it’s unrelated to this matter, we can’t just let the warriors rush in and get shot, can we?”

“I… I have no objections.”

The Minotaur elder shook his head. “I felt like we were being led away by the great wizard just now, but it’s strange. The great wizard has always been quite cowardly; why would they want to go to war with the elves this time?”

Because they must have some other thoughts in mind, needing to create conflict with the elves to achieve them! But that’s just content from the script, and without any evidence, I wouldn’t be foolish enough to say it outright, making things difficult for Kephiel and me in the Austro-Hungarian tribe. For now, let’s not worry about that great wizard and find a way to “finesse” the whole situation.

“It doesn’t matter; as long as we find some clues to prove that no orc warriors in the Austro-Hungarian tribe have been deceived by the elves, that should suffice, right?”

I scratched my head; it’s indeed strange to seek such proof. In other small accounts, shouldn’t it be the elves being deceived by the orcs instead…?

“We came here for this matter. Once we have some results, we will inform the elves. This way, the elves won’t be pointing heavy machine guns at you every day at the border.”

“There’s no conflict left in this matter, and there’s no need for fighting or looking for trouble, no contradictions or conflicts.”

“Can you orcs accept such a method?”

Illustration: Zelus