73. Rescuing the Elves (1)
It was late dawn that day.
The orcs, as well as the elves, were all fast asleep after a hard day’s work in the daylight.
Apart from the crackling sound of the blazing fire, the cave was enveloped in perfect silence.
Around this time,
In the dim cave where flames flickered, a massive hand appeared.
The God of Races, Hani, took in the surroundings.
“It’s quiet.”
Not a single orc was awake.
“…We have to move now.”
Elves huddled together behind narrow wooden bars, shivering and trembling.
Due to the distance, even the flames couldn’t reach them properly, leaving them fully exposed to the cold of the cave.
“Even the two orcs on dawn watch are fast asleep, leaning against a wall with their heads bowed.”
These creatures had no discipline.
No sense of caution or vigilance.
Of course, he was confident he could easily subdue a bunch of dying elves.
“Damned bastards.”
He wished he could punish them in some way right now.
But he was a God of Races.
He could empower the elves and bless them, but direct interference beyond that was forbidden for him.
Therefore, he had to watch this gruesome scene with eyes wide open.
Yet, he had no intention of just standing by.
He moved.
Creak.
Softly opening a metal lattice.
Tap, tap.
He cautiously touched one of the elves near the door, rousing them.
“…Hmm?”
The drowsy elf raised their head.
“W-who…?”
Gazing into the void with blurry eyes for a moment.
Realizing it was a giant hand that had woken them up, they jolted in surprise.
“Ah!”
He expected that reaction.
But before the elf could scream, Hani acted first.
He gently covered the elf’s mouth and gestured to be quiet.
Shh-
Raising a hand, signaling to keep silent.
Certain gestures were universally understood.
Even the elves had that level of awareness.
“You understand, right? You need to be quiet. It’ll be trouble if you’re not.”
Nodding. Nodding.
The elf nodded his head frantically.
He covered his mouth with his hand, afraid that a sound might escape.
The fierce orcs despised anything that disturbed their sleep.
How many times had he faced humiliation until now?
“Look behind you now.”
Swoosh.
Han gestured persistently towards his back.
The elf, upon seeing the open iron-barred window, widened his eyes in surprise.
“…!”
“Alright.”
Han handed him something he had prepared in advance.
“Here. Just put on this garment. It should be enough to sneak out past those eyes.”
What Han offered was a leather coat.
Exactly the one that Han and the elves had processed just a few days ago.
‘I never imagined I’d find a use for this so soon.’
There were plenty of spares.
There was an abundance of materials.
Without this, they would have undoubtedly faced significant difficulties.
Indeed, the saying “preparedness is key” was fitting.
Han also prepared fur boots.
Thick clothing. And boots.
This was one of the reasons why, despite their desire to escape, the elves had been unable to leave this place.
The orcs were cunning.
They never carelessly abandoned them.
Every night, they confiscated all the necessary clothing for fleeing to that frozen world.
There were various reasons for their vigilance.
Thunk!
Han lightly pushed the man’s back.
“Come on! Get up quickly. Make sure to gather your family too.”
With those words, Han vanished into thin air as if wiped away.
However, the elf still gazed in the direction where Han had been.
Toward the spot where he disappeared, he bowed his head.
“…Thank you very much.”
Yet, the situation was far from over.
It was starting now.
They were still the orcs’ captives, and they were still in the cave.
He hurriedly got up from his spot and quietly woke his family.
“Everyone, wake up, quickly…!”
“Dad…?”
Gazing in the direction where Han had vanished, he whispered softly to his daughter.
“An opportunity has come. Hurry, put on these clothes.”
***
“Hah. Hah.”
Elves dressed in fur coats.
Finally, they succeeded in escaping the cave.
Swoosh.
At that moment, something appeared in the air.
It was a giant hand.
Swoosh.
The appearing hand quietly pointed in a direction where snowflakes were swirling.
It was a strange experience.
It felt as if it was guiding the elves, showing them the way.
It seemed to be saying, “Go there.”
No.
Perhaps, it was indeed correct.
Undoubtedly, this giant hand was leading them.
As the elves hesitated for a moment, cautiously bowing their heads, the giant hand faded away and disappeared from the world.
Shortly after they left, pushing through the snow.
Pat.
Only orcs remained in the cave, and the remaining campfire inexplicably went out.
From Noble mtl dot com
As if someone had extinguished it.
***
[Snort?]
Orc Saltaras opened his eyes.
Somehow, the cave, which should have been warm today, felt cold.
There was no warmth at all.
Instead, a faint chill lingered in the air.
Feeling something odd, he turned around to find that the campfire, which had been lit just a moment ago, was now out.
[Grunt?]
Saltaras furrowed his brow.
Why?
It was strange.
Surely, he had gathered enough wood to last until he fell asleep.
A chill ran down his spine.
He had a bad feeling about this.
Instinctively, he grabbed the rusty iron sword lying beside him and scanned his surroundings.
Soon, he realized the situation.
The direction of the wooden iron-barred window.
The elves who should have been locked up there were completely gone, not a single one in sight.
[Grrr.]
The branches swayed low like beasts.
They realized why there was no warmth in the cave.
It was these creatures.
Bang! Bang!
The one nervously drummed a war drum, waking the rest of the orcs.
“The prisoners are gone! Everyone, wake up!”
“Huh?!”
The orcs, belatedly grasping the situation, began to rise from their spots.
“Where have those elf bastards gone?”
“They went outside! There are footprints! Judging by the snow, it hasn’t been long!”
It didn’t take long for the orcs to find the trace of the fleeing elves.
The orcs, who found the direction they headed, twisted their faces in anger.
“Grrr! How dare they!”
“Hurry, we’ll chase them straight away!”
***
“Haah! Haah!”
The snowstorm blew so fiercely that breathing became difficult.
But the elves ran without pause.
Pushing through the heavy snow piled up to their waists, staggering as if they might fall, they didn’t stop.
“Stop! Huh!”
Then, a commotion was heard from behind.
The elves reflexively turned their gazes backward.
Beyond the deep darkness.
A group carrying torches was hot on their heels.
“Oh, it’s the orcs…!”
Realizing who was chasing them, the elves’ faces turned pale.
Having been dragged around by them for days on end, they knew it all too well.
Moreover, this time they were fleeing in earnest.
The orcs’ temper would surely be at its breaking point.
If caught, some would undoubtedly face execution on the spot.
They could not afford to be caught.
“Stop right there!”
“If caught, we’ll kill them all!”
The threatening shouts of the enraged orcs carried on the wind.
This only heightened the elves’ anxiety.
“Huh!”
In no time, the orcs closed in on them at a terrifying speed.
With muscular legs plowing through the thick snow, they advanced.
The red orcs were a race adapted to the cold of the planet Frey.
Their carnivorous, muscular bodies, built for hunting, were far more accustomed to the cold than the elves.
The pursuit was fleeting.
Before they knew it, the distance between them had shortened to the point of being visible to the naked eye.
“Ahh!”
In the midst of it all, the elven girl Priscilla, who had fallen behind, tumbled onto the snowy ground.
“Priscilla!”
As the startled elves turned back.
Orc Salathar, who had finally caught up from behind, grabbed Priscilla by the neck and hoisted her up.
The girl writhed, letting out a muffled sound of distress.
*Snap…! Grrr! Finally caught you, you damn elf scum!*
The fiery, fierce gaze of Salathar glared at Priscilla.
At that moment, as he was about to exert force to break Priscilla’s neck held in his grip.
Thud!
Something flew and struck Salathar’s forehead deeply.
Salathar’s body came to an abrupt stop as if frozen in place.
*Grr…?*
For a moment, he stood there with a dazed expression, then reached to feel his forehead.
Salathar sensed a sharp sensation of something lodged in his forehead.
It was a long arrow.
Hot blood trickled down.
An attack.
The moment Salathar realized it, his consciousness faded.
His body collapsed onto the snowy ground.
Blood seeped out over the white snow.
“eeek!”
Shivering, Priscilla crawled away from the fallen orc Salathar in fear.
The white snow was being tainted with a reddish hue of blood.
The orc lay dead before her eyes.
“Salathar!”
His fellow orcs shouted in panic.
At that moment, a quick-thinking orc urgently exclaimed.
“It’s an ambush!”
“aaargh!!”
Before the orc could finish his words, a huge figure suddenly emerged from the snowy ground and pounced on the shouting orc.
It was a large wolf, much bigger than the orcs, attacking mercilessly with its fierce growls, biting and thrashing the orcs.
“Grrr! Grraaah! Save… Snap!”
The true identity was a giant wolf, the Dire Wolf.
Blood stained the white snowy field.
[Oh, a wolf! It’s a pack of Dire Wolves!]
[Everyone, gather! Form a defensive line!]
The Orc chieftain, who realized the situation belatedly, shouted, but it was already too late for them.
The Dire Wolves that descended upon the Orc pack were not just one.
As many as three wolves attacked them from all directions.
Crunch!
The skulls of the Orcs were crushed under the massive paws with a gruesome sound.
Pained screams echoed in the chaos.
[Despicable! How dare they!]
“Dangerous!”
As an Orc revealed his intent to strike Dire Wolf Noah with an axe, a figure intervened.
His large hand appeared.
Like a ghost, he opened his palm wide.
The Orcs gathered in surprise at his appearance.
[Despicable?! Th-that’s a giant hand!]
“What is that!”
As his figure approached swiftly as if to pounce, the Orcs retreated in fear, taken aback.
Terrified, they were in disarray.
“They’re coming this way!”
But that was as far as it went.
Without any proper physical force, as if a ghost or a specter, he passed through the Orcs, leaving them momentarily bewildered.
“Desp-Descend? W-What just happened?”
“It’s not real, it’s magic!”
“Don’t pay attention to illusions anymore! It’s a specter!”