"That's the Orcs," she said gravely.
Yuna and her Ogre battle maid Agnes both approached Michael. "I've heard the Orcs' shout send reverberation to an entire battlefield. I realize now how loud it is."
Even though Yuna and Agnes had no prismatic shield to protect them, they didn't seem to be too much affected by the deafening echoes of concentrated Earth mana.
Instead, Michael could see a concentration of Fire mana gathering at the ears, essentially neutralizing the Earth mana from the soundwaves. Stay connected via My Virtual Library Empire
What fascinated Michael was the fact that they didn't cast any spell to do that. It was a natural reaction from their bodies, the way a muscle tenses when hit by sothing hard.
I guess that's one of the perks of training your body for Physical Arts, Michael thought to himself.
After being distracted a little bit, Michael shook his head and concentrated on the problem at hand.
"Have the Orcs always been like this?" he asked Beth.
She nodded, rembering the sleepless nights they endured while the sounds of the Orcs' shouts echoed through the forest. That was one of the reasons why most of the inhabitants of the old Orcus Town left to settle in a different area. They couldn't stand the noise.
"Why?" Michael asked, which Beth had no answer for.
They never bothered to find out because it would do them no good at all. They had no power to change things.
Thankfully, Yuna held a lot of knowledge about Orcs brought about by her training as a diplomat.
"I've heard that the Orcs tend to turn on each other in harsh tis. The two different clashing shouts are evidence of that. My guess is that the two Orcs are battling it out for possession of the last resources in the forest," she explained.
Michael looked to the horizon, towards the Orc territory.
"They were affected by the earthquake too," he muttered.
Yuna nodded. "Yes, but the degradation of the Golden Road was what truly led the Orcs to fall in hard tis.
According to the history books I read, these Orcs used to find employnt in the Golden Road as bodyguards for hire. They protected rchants and envoys in their journey, scaring off any unwanted troubles. That was how they earned enough money to buy food and resources to keep their hunger in check. And you know Orcs, they need a lot of sustenance to survive—mostly at.
And with the loss of the Golden Road, the Orcs lost their source of inco. My guess is that they then resorted to hunting in the forest for food.
But with the earthquakes destroying and disturbing the ecosystem, they must have had trouble feeding both tribes."
Michael appreciated Yuna's insight into the whole situation.
"We can certainly help them," Michael said. "Is there any way that I can et with the Orcs?"
"You want to recruit them?" Yuna guessed.
"Yup. With our help, they don't need to fight it out with each other any longer. They could beco part of the Nation of Reborn and have all the food they could ever want. We still have a lot of at in the fridge ready to give out."
Neo Orcus wouldn't be the paradise he was hoping for if there were suffering Orcs just beside them.
Not only that but with their previous jobs as bodyguards and escorts, Michael felt that the Orcs could serve as good protectors of Neo Orcus.
Although he was planning on sending a few Rebornian Security Centaurs here in the future, it would be good if they had their own security to begin with.
"There is a way to et with them. And that is through at, literally," Yuna said.
"I rember about that too," Beth interjected. She could recall hearing about this thod when she was younger, when she was surrounded by rchants and peddlers. "It's through giving the Orcs a slab of at with a flag staked through it, right?"
"That's right," Yuna nodded. "Orcs are quite intimidating, so people would ask for the services of the Orcs by gifting them a piece of at with a flag on it. The Orcs would know to return to that place tomorrow morning to et with their potential employer."
Michael nodded, already planning in his mind.
"Thanks for telling ," he said to Yuna. "Without you, I would have had to rely on Fudge's investigative skills. And you know Fudge. His opinion could be quite skewed to fit his 'ninja' view of the world," he joked.
The adorable but edgy sli popped out of Michael's shadow in protest. "Master, I always give you an unbiased opinion!"
"Really? Why didn't you tell that you t Yuna?" Michael asked, staring at the guilty Fudge.
"Um…that's beside the point!"
Michael continued staring at the sli until finally…
"Uwaa~~ miss Yuna! Master is bullying !"
The supposed nonchalant ninja sli hopped on over to Yuna's arms like a kid crying to his mom after being made fun of in the playground.
"There, there… don't mind him," Yuna said as she patted Fudge, consoling the cute little sli. "You're doing a great job as a ninja."
The little bratty sli quickly showed a warm smile at Yuna before turning around and flashing a tongue at Michael.
"You know, he's supposed to be my companion," he complained to Yuna.
"You should take care of him better then," she retorted teasingly. "Otherwise, I'll snatch him right up."
Michael chuckled and shook his head. "By the way Fudge, do you want to join us to et with the Orcs? I'll give you permission to stake around the periter like a ninja."
"Really?!"
Fudge hopped back over to Michael's head as quickly as he left. It was that easy to placate the little sli, now acting as if nothing even happened.
"Master, don't worry. Those Orcs won't see , but I'll see all of them. I'll protect you!"
"He won't need that," Jaku said, holding the hilt of his sword. "I alone am enough."
"Count in!" Zion shouted.
".... too…" Umisu muttered under her breath.
"Lord Michael, we are at your service," Sheina bowed, with a smile forming on her face.
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