Those who dared to approach the limits of the border drawn by the Elite Ten were only the members of the three factions, and unfortunately, the rest of the Heart of the Sand wouldn't have the pleasure of enjoying the magnificent scene they were watching right now.
When had the two orc warriors dared to fight so recklessly on the Mercenaries' Lodge? As the Black Tsunami clashed with the crimson lava, the stars adorning the sky of the desert seemed to lose their former brightness, but the show of strength that had been going on for about ten minutes was about to come to an end.
The energy darker than night descended upon its dazzling opponent like a nightmare, and no matter how much Boss resisted, he couldn't manage to counter it. The black and crimson, which previously met in the middle, were now closer to the orc at the head of the armed forces of the Heart of the Sand.
"I lost!"
Withdrawing his energy before the sounds coming out of his mouth reached the ears of the person before him, Boss didn't look scared at all while standing under the tsunami about to collapse on him. The reason would become clear a second later; the Commander-in-Chief of the Orc Empire Armies was withdrawing the energy unique to her Lineage Power.
"Are you sure? A voice inside me says you can do better than this!"
Even if Wind of Death heard it from her opponent's mouth, she wasn't rejoicing in her victory; she was about to grab the collar of Boss, whose side she went to step by step. Her not using all her strength while struggling with him would mean the same as spitting in his face.
"Maybe you are right, maybe not. I will fight as your subordinate until the war on this continent ends, but I won't say a single word regarding my past or my power. You can consider your victory as a wedding gift that wasn't given in time!"
Turning his back and walking away, Boss didn't want to say anything else, and no matter how tough Wind of Death wanted to stand, she couldn't hide that she was struggling due to the fierceness of the struggle. Well, her opponent's condition wasn't encouraging at all either. If he could take two steps properly, on the third he either stumbled or had to stop and rest.
The winner of the clash where it was determined who would control the Central Region military forces was certain, but its loser was also quite clear. The Heart of the Sand was experiencing something it hadn't witnessed for a long time, a destruction where everything within a two-hundred-pace area turned into sand.
This was the sign that the peaceful days were over, just like the words the soldiers gathered in front of the castle in the northern part of the same continent would hear shortly. Dimitri Balsici, the Lord of the Balsici Family, taking the orcs on his right and Master Leonardo and his apprentice on his left, was watching his army totaling ten thousand people from the eastern walls he went up to.
"My soldiers, valiant warriors who haven't left the Balsici Family alone even on its hardest day!"
The vast plain, which half a year ago was captive to the attacks of the siege army, to his daily life and speeches, was now echoing with its owner's voice. Until it returned to silence again along with the response given by the ten thousand people in golden yellow armors from head to toe hitting their shields at the same time, all the birds in the vicinity had taken off from where they perched.
"Our journey to take what is rightfully ours will begin very soon. We will take back the lands, properties, and prestige that the tyrants, the traitors took from us by force, by ripping their livers out. The moment we capture the promised Northern Region, everyone who stands by me will attain the wealth they deserve, the glory they deserve, the life they deserve.
Not only them; whoever they left behind, whoever they love and care about, their rights are all under the guarantee of the Balsici Family. I, Dimitri Balsici, swear to defend the rights of those with me until my last breath!"
Even though the soldiers, knowing they were walking to death, didn't break their valiant stances, inwardly they had many things to worry about. Their master was also aware of this, and since the residents of the World of the Six Civilizations didn't believe in the afterlife, he could only relieve them with the opportunities he would provide in this world.
There were momentary changes in the eyes and body languages of almost all of the ten thousand soldiers; how could Dimitri, a shrewd merchant, not catch this. He had stoked the fire, and the iron had to be struck while it was hot; it was the exact time to say his final words.
"Our advance begins in a week; are you ready to become the new masters of the Mercenaries' Lodge?"
Dimitri had made speeches here before too, but never had the voices of his soldiers extended all the way to the Wild Swamp continent. Even if maybe a hundred, maybe a thousand if they were very lucky, could gain the mentioned privileges, no one could control themselves in the face of the magnitude of the promise.
Until the silhouette of Dimitri Balsici, turning his back and descending the three-step stairs, disappeared, the commanders didn't intervene with the soldiers in enthusiasm; as they began a march where they could die at any moment, they couldn't begrudge them this.
"Nice speech, Mr. Dimitri, I am sure there isn't the slightest crumb of doubt left in the minds of your soldiers!"
Bookworm stopped at the entrance of the tunnel leading to the large meeting hall in the northern bastion and called out to Dimitri Balsici, whose smile on his face suddenly disappeared. Even though it was weird to see him in this state after his imposing stance and his words full of self-confidence, it was a perfectly natural situation for those around him.
"There, being a commander and sending the warriors under your command to the battlefield knowing they will die is such a feeling. I guess you can now understand the difference between being a merchant and being a warrior!"
Hammerstriker wasn't going easy on the man experiencing the feelings he had lived many times before for the first time. This was the style of the orcs; for these creatures, who managed to face a cruel reality in the very first moments of their lives, everything was fast and definitive.
Except for a very small minority, they were deprived of parental love, became able to fight within days, and whether they lived or died was entirely related to how well they adapted to the environment. Despite having an unlimited lifespan, they were cursed to carry death on them at all times like a backpack.
"They are all mercenaries, they all get their payment for this job, and they all know very well that they could die on the battlefield, but I can't tear the heaviness settling inside me away from its place. I must confess, I have never felt such an emotion before.
Because of my family's activities, there have been those who died before too, I even saw with my own eyes the death of my father who sacrificed himself to protect me, but this is like nothing else. The others were just sadness, there wasn't much I could do, but now I have to face the consequences of the events that happen entirely by my will.
These men fought alongside me for months, defended the last heirloom of my family at the cost of their lives, didn't pay any mind to a single one of the enemy's attempts to draw them to their ranks with money or threats. While knowing I will lose most of them, you can't know how hard it is to lie to their faces!"
Along the long corridor, the sunbeams leaking inside through the windows between the stone walls accompanied Dimitri's words. Except for the high-level figures of the Balsici Castle, there was no one around them, they could talk comfortably, and one of them intended to use this comfort to the fullest.
"What great selfishness!"
Alyon was speaking little but substantially these days. That he didn't pay attention to the tone of his voice either was evident from the states of the people who jumped with fear the moment he opened his mouth.
"I sent them to death, I am suffering, they fought for me. I see that you think there is no one else in the world but you, Dimitri. I have never seen a mercenary before whose mind wasn't swayed by gold, or a soldier who didn't tuck his tail between his legs and run away when his life was in danger has never crossed my path.
Come to your senses, Dimitri. These people are not fighting for you, they are fighting for the cause they laid their heads down for. This cause was initially protecting your family, but now it has become creating a future for themselves and their families. You have done your part, guaranteed the safety and welfare of those left behind; from now on, it's up to their wrists and hearts!"
When entering the meeting hall, the pessimism possessing Dimitri's body dissipated with Alyon's slaps. The merchant was acting so egocentrically that only the ruler of a society with billions of members could bring him to his senses.