Fortunately, the fortress was sturdy. Due to its location on a cliff, the dragon couldn’t descend to the surface, and the barriers surrounding it prevented the fire breath from consuming it completely.
But perhaps because of that, the dragon wasn’t satisfied. Every few days, it would fly to the Gije Fortress and unleash its breath from the air. So the demons established an isolation barrier around the fortress, making it invisible to the dragon.
However, the massive creature still came.
Although it couldn’t see them, it must have remembered where they were and randomly attacked them with its breath. Yes, they were invisible, but nothing more. If the dragon found them walking outside the fortress, it would pounce on them and devour them as if it were natural.
Therefore, the demons could no longer leave the fortress during the day. In fact, fear made them wear hoods and remain silent to avoid being seen or heard, even within the fortress. Although the dragons didn’t attack at night, perhaps because they weren’t nocturnal, it was enough to instill terror in them.
This series of attacks broke the demons. They knew they couldn’t win against the dragon.
And now I am here, thinking about what we should do…
There wasn’t a day when Sequence wasn’t worried. How could demons escape this state and see the light of day? That was the question he asked himself every day. And he couldn’t find an answer.
Everyone hoped that at the very least, the dragon would lose interest someday. But they couldn’t come up with any effective measures to deal with it themselves. Therefore, most of the demons had already given up. Trapped amidst all this snow and ice, they would perish.
And he didn’t know what else to do. Sequence was said to be the smartest general among the demons and had found answers on every battlefield. But even he, who had received the title of “Dark General,” didn’t know what to do. What was the answer? All he could do was worry. Today, just like any other day, he sat in his chair, his body covered in frost, and remained motionless…
“Excuse me. Your Excellency, there’s a guest for you.”
But that day seemed different. A soldier stood at the entrance of the operations room. Sequence remembered his presence. He was a young man who had recently become a soldier.
“A guest? Who is it? I told them to come at the meeting time.”
“Yes, but they are from outside the country.”
Upon hearing the words “outside the country,” Sequence finally opened one of his eyes. He glanced at the soldier at the entrance. Then he looked at the person standing beside him and widened his eyes.
“It’s you…!”
Four eyes to the left and right, and four eyes aligned in front of him. He looked at the man with his eyes wide open.
An orc.
Just a green orc. One among the many. They were a common sight on the battlefield, dying like cannon fodder. There were a few good warriors among them, but even so, they were merely expendable units that could be counted in “numbers.” Due to this perception, Sequence couldn’t distinguish the orcs. And when one of his colleagues told him that one of these orcs had guts, he chuckled.
But as soon as he saw him, he got goosebumps. He felt a shiver run down his spine. He had only seen this man once. But he would never forget him. There were no two orcs like him.
Sequence barely remembered the name of the orc, but he was sure he would never forget him.
“It’s you, Bash!?”
“It’s been a while.”
Sequence involuntarily stood up. It had been weeks since he last stood. Sequence’s hips and legs made a cracking sound, and the frost clinging to his body scattered onto the floor.
Bash. The green orc was a warrior who had been notably active before and after the decisive battle in the Lemium Highlands. He was also the only person to whom Sequence’s friend, the “Strongblade General” Netherhanks, gifted his own sword while still alive.
After Gediguz’s death, the battle continued to be lost, but only the successes of this orc were known. He destroyed several positions where commanders were located in fierce human assaults, defeated the Great Elven Archmage, and saved the succubi in a desperate situation…
He was also the man who was present in Gediguz’s final moments. And he was the man who slaughtered the Hero Leto. Sequence would never forget when this man came to his side with Gediguz’s corpse. He didn’t even want to remember the despair he felt at that moment.
But there was one more thing that Sequence knew. Bash had two titles. This orc had many nicknames, especially among the demons.
The Dragon Decapitator.
The Dragon Slayer. Bash defeated the dragon in the decisive battle of the Lemium Highlands. He defeated a dragon. Now, this was exactly the kind of person the demons had been searching for. With this orc, the dragon that had terrorized them…
But Sequence wouldn’t easily reveal his emotions. He understood that the orc before him couldn’t have appeared for such a convenient reason, nor was it a time when he could turn him into a pawn on his chessboard.
“Why… are you here?”
Sequence calmly posed the question. If you thought about it calmly, there was no way Bash, the Orc Hero, would have come here. Orcs, like demons, should be in a position where their heads were held by the Four Races Alliance. Why would a national hero like him leave his country and come to a place like this?
“I received a letter from Nazar, the Human Prince.”
Upon hearing this, Sequence closed four of his eyes. He inwardly nodded. It was impossible for orcs to come here on their own. The question was what the contents of the letter were.
“Let me see it.”
The paper that Bash pulled out of his pocket was a testament to the harshness of the journey. All the corners had been crushed, and everything was wrinkled as if it had been soaked in water at some point. There was barely a seal of the human royal family, indicating that it was indeed from Nazar.
