Even if they couldn't grasp the flow of time while inside, it wouldn't even cross their minds that a massive period like seven months would have passed outside. If they had thought of this, they might have closed their eyes, which weren't opened this wide even when surrounded by hundreds of enemies.
"Are we really going to leave Alator behind!"
Siomha wasn't giving up no matter what; it was obvious she didn't want to leave here without trying as much as she could, at least. This time, the other eight druids also stood behind her; even if it didn't come out of their mouths, they were saying they weren't going anywhere from here.
"Do I look like I'm joking? The time given to you was seven days, and if you weren't dead, you were supposed to be here at the end of seven days. I liked Alator too, but just as millions of orcs die when they fail, he too failed his own test.
While inside the Orc Military Academy, you must have witnessed similar events hundreds of times. Hundreds, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of orc warriors enter an ability class, and the number of those who can obtain it doesn't exceed the fingers of two hands. Those who fail, if they are lucky, can continue their lives as mere privates; if they are not lucky, they have sacrificed themselves for the success of future generations.
Alator made his choice, and he was a brave enough druid warrior to bear its consequences. It's time for you to make your choice too, make your final decision until we meet with the Hell Realm forces; are you with me, or are you returning to the Wild Swamp?"
The silent rebellion ended after the speech. The person who said the final word was Blood God Nafız, and when she started walking, the footsteps of the bone army surrounding them began to fade away gradually. The nine druids knew perfectly well what would happen if they didn't follow her; unable to risk staying behind her any longer, they ran to her side.
Their leader was the first to risk going to the Orc Military Academy and choose to fight using offensive spells, but his subordinates disappeared into the fog, leaving behind Alator, one of the rare druids possessing dual elemental affinity.
Seven months had been a period where they experienced both qualitative and quantitative changes. The members of the Elemental Ten were bewildered, but a young and beautiful one among them quickened her steps and whispered into the ear of their new leader, Siomha.
"Did something appear on your nape?"
Siomha, waking up crying, turned ahead without answering the question; they hadn't yet managed to get out of the fog-covered valley, her priority was nothing but the safety of her subordinates left behind.
When the same feelings came to life in the body of another race, the place was no longer the foggy valleys of the south, but the inside of the sand-covered tunnels of the Central Region.
"Watch your back!"
A breath after the deep orc voice echoed in the dark passage, another orc dressed in black from head to toe practically mixed with the wind, appearing on top of the rocks above within seconds. To the place he was just a moment ago, first dozens of arrows, and right after, as many heads fell, all bearing the same expression of astonishment on their faces.
"When I first saw this speed, my face was like this too!"
"If the other orcs are as strong as these, we'll start sunbathing on the walls of the Golden City in less than two months!"
The members of the group Boss led didn't feel the need to lower their voices while talking among themselves. The heavily built orc warrior had given them a good scolding at first, but when the Elite Ten members came up with a new skill every time, he realized he couldn't repeat this.
"Hey Boss, are all orcs really this strong? Excuse me, I only believe what I see, and whenever we go out to fight somewhere with these guys for the last six months, they have the place cleaned up before we can even raise our hands!
The weapons they use, their abilities, and battle capabilities are at a point we could never reach. If I had a thousand people like these in my hands, it wouldn't even be considered hard for me to build a kingdom for myself."
The others could only talk among themselves, but Rapunzel, the number two person coming after the orc warrior, didn't hesitate to say what crossed her mind to Boss's face. The single eyebrow of the orc warrior, walking around with a grumpy expression on his face twenty-four hours a day and managing the military power of the Heart of the Sand, rose into the air, but slowly went back to its place upon seeing the glimmer in his subordinate's eyes.
"Orcs were always brave warriors. If their leaders were as brave and talented as them, their power would double or even triple, but the might possessed by the orc warriors they call the Elite Ten exceeds anyone who has come up to this time.
It is said that even during the times when the Orc-Druid Empire ruled the World of the Six Civilizations, the number of orcs who could use the battle abilities belonging to other races didn't exceed the fingers of one hand. Maybe they didn't try because they didn't need to, maybe because almost all orcs are born possessing lineage power, this was enough for them, but I am sure they must have paid very heavy prices to be able to reach their current states.
The ability used by the orc they call number eight is called Orc Steps; can you imagine the transformation muscles that evolved for generations for endurance and strength would go through to be able to specialize in speed?
I tried it only once and couldn't walk normally for three days. I guess there aren't many orcs like them, like the Elite Ten. The Orc Empire armies might possess a billion warriors, but the number of high-level ones must only be a few thousand, and if the majority is half as good as these freaks, they should be thankful!"
When her leader finished his speech, Rapunzel remained silent for a while. She looked him up and down; meanwhile, her constantly changing facial expression was saying her mind was also working at full capacity.
"Boss, when I asked you, you say you were a newborn who escaped from the hands of slave traders by chance, but your words don't say so at all. How well you know the times of the Orc-Druid Empire, or were you the son of a noble orc in the past and he sent you into exile here?"
The woman, looking a bit sexy, a bit naughty, and a bit like a cheap hooker in her leather clothes, was giggling; she didn't hold back from tilting her head and trying to make herself look mysterious, but after what she would hear, it was unknown whether she could hold it upright again.
"Rapunzel, did you think you were on an equal level with me because I have turned a blind eye to some of your actions for a while? With what courage, by what right can you speak to me like this!"
The energy starting to emanate from the orc named Boss first hit his own warriors, then number eight they came to the raid with, and then dispersed into dozens of tunnels. The enemies they wanted to capture were people hiding in these ancient tunnels built under the desert sand and who had almost turned into wild creatures, but the screams rising from inside the dark tunnels were saying this was no longer possible.
When the last of the long holes collapsing one by one also became unusable, everyone except number eight was on the ground, and the blood flowing from their eyes mixed with what flowed from their ears, wetting the soil. Number eight of the Elite Ten, drawing his daggers, managed to pull his cape over his head despite the pressure on him; within seconds, neither his appearance, nor his voice, nor his energy were perceivable anymore.
Perhaps this move would be what saved the others; Boss, feeling the sharp change in the environment, would rein in the energy he brutally unleashed, allowing his subordinates to cling to life. Pain-filled cries, ear-grating wails were rising from all four sides, but the voice of number eight of the Elite Ten wasn't among them.
The Heart of the Sand warriors taking part in today's raid didn't know; Number Eight was returning to the Heart of the Sand with the help of the mechanical device given to them every time they went out of the city and big enough to fit only two people.