Chapter 81: In the Heart of Orc Fury

Nearly twenty orcs blocked the path ahead but three names burned brighter in Luke’s vision:

[Kayn, Orc Captain – Lvl 22]

[Drukar, Orc Captain – Lvl 21]

[Morvat, Orc General – Lvl ??]

The largest stepped forward, towering above the rest. His voice oozed contempt. “You saw the fortress. That leaves us no choice.” He raised his voice, words cutting like steel.

“Not that this wasn’t inevitable. But now?” He pointed toward them, eyes hard. “No more games. Kill them.”

The volley came before the last syllable faded. Luke grabbed Allison and pulled her sideways. They hit the ground hard, tumbling down a ruined slope into the broken streets below. Dirt filled their mouths. Breath stolen. Bones jarred. Above, the orcs roared, frenzied and blood-hungry, charging after them like a pack unleashed.

The three commanders stood motionless until the General raised one hand. Three lances of fire ignited in the air then plunged downward. The world shattered.

Flames erupted across the ruins, masonry torn apart in the blast. Heat slammed into their backs. Luke surged forward, dragging Allison as debris rained around them.

“We can’t fight that!” he shouted, dodging a burning beam that collapsed in front of them.

“Then where the hell are we going?”

“The fortress.”

She stared at him. “Seriously?”

“I’m bringing the Midnight Warden to us.”

Behind them, the thunder grew—heavy footsteps pounding through stone and ash. The orc commanders had joined the hunt. Another barrage came crashing down, shaking the ground and splitting the street. The shockwave hurled them in opposite directions.

Luke crashed through an archway, shoulder slamming against jagged stone. Orcs flooded in behind him. He spun, hurled a kukri—the blade sank into one’s chest, then snapped back into his grip with magnetic force. “Damn it,” he muttered. “Should’ve picked Blood Shot… Too late now.”

Above him, Allison dashed across crumbling rooftops. She leapt, landing hard, her sword flaring with frost. She slashed—a crescent wave of ice surged forward, catching the lead orcs mid-charge. Frost bloomed across their limbs, locking them in place.

Luke dove in. One throat opened under his blade. A kick sent another staggering. Then Dark Dash. He blinked forward, sliced two more open before their weapons even rose.

And the ground trembled.

Something massive dropped from above—warhammer sparking with electricity. The impact cracked the street in two. Luke flew, bones rattling from the blow.

[Kayn, Orc Captain – Lvl 22]

Electric arcs flickered along the orc’s arms. He sneered, teeth bared, then lunged forward. Luke barely raised a blade in time. The strike tore past his guard and shattered the wall behind him. Blood spilled from his mouth. Pain flared through every nerve.

Still he forced himself upright. Still breathing. Still moving.

He turned and ran, deeper into the ruins. A kukri flashed in his hand, the blade like a whisper in the dark.

“Get back here, human!” Kayn’s voice crackled with power.

Luke weaved through alleyways choked with rubble, ducking under swinging hammers and threads of lightning. Then a shadow fell. Allison descended like a meteor, sword charged with raw frost. She struck. Ice burst across the impact zone. Kayn staggered under the force.

Luke didn’t hesitate—he was already on him. Blades cut deep, draining heat and strength with every wound. But the battle wouldn’t slow. The ground shifted again—stone splitting as another behemoth entered the fray. It was covered in jagged armor, fists the size of anvils.

“I AM THE WARRIOR OF STONE!” it bellowed. Then it tucked into itself. And rolled.

Not like a fighter but like a collapsing building made of spikes and fury. A living avalanche. Luke and Allison dove aside as it thundered past—flattening the orcs in its path. But more took their place. A flood. An army.

Luke froze. More than he’d seen during the Safe Zone invasion. Too many. His chest tightened. His hand trembled.

“Dammit… this arm—”

He wasn’t whole. He wasn’t ready.

A thunderclap split the sky as Kayn surged forward, his body cloaked in lightning, hammer raised—not at Luke, but at Allison. Steel met thunder, frost met fury, and their weapons collided with a shockwave that rattled the battlefield. Titans, locked in combat.

Luke didn’t hesitate. He moved—kukri in hand, blade flashing through the rain. He threw it—but didn’t get the chance to follow through. A scream cut the air.

“LUKE!!”

The Stone Orc barreled toward him—massive, wild-eyed. He leapt, fists clenched, ready to crush. Luke ducked low, sprinted up the crumbling wall beside him, and launched himself into the air. His kukri sliced across the orc’s granite hide—a scratch. Nothing more.

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The orc laughed, a deep, echoing sound. He grabbed the trunk of a shattered tree and hurled it like a spear. Luke hit the ground hard, rolled through thick mud and broken tiles. His lungs burned, but his body didn’t stop. He tore into the weaker orcs—shadow-stepping between them, blades flashing.

[You have slain an Orc Scout – Lvl 14]

“Damn it,” he hissed. Not the kill he needed.

Above, the sky flashed white. A burst of snow crashed over the battlefield—Allison had dropped a frost bomb, slowing their pursuers in a blizzard of ice and mist. Luke dodged under a fresh volley of arrows.

Then impact.

A warhorse crashed down in front of him, hooves gouging stone. Mounted atop it:

[Morvat, Orc General – Lvl ??]

The General’s gaze locked onto Luke. “Where do you think you’re going?” he snarled, forming a glowing spear of mana in his palm. The air trembled with power.

Before he could throw it, Allison acted. A volley of icicles shot from her hand, detonating the spear mid-air in a violent flash of heat and shards.

Together, she and Luke dove into a ruined building, sprinting through its broken corridor. They leapt out a shattered window onto a slanted rooftop just as the structure groaned beneath them.

Behind: hooves. Roars. War drums. The horde was here.

“We’re close!” Luke shouted over the chaos.

Ahead—across the courtyard—stood the Midnight Warden. Silent. Still. Unmoving. He walked with deliberate calm, as if untouched by the carnage around him.

“What if he’s with them?” Allison called out. “What if he’s here to kill us too?”

Luke didn’t answer. He didn’t need to. He only needed a trigger.

Then he saw it—etched into the ruin’s base: a ring of glowing crystals. Blue. Then red.

A sharp, rising hum filled the air.

The alarm.

The Warden stopped mid-step. His head tilted toward the sound. His blood-red eyes locked on. Then he moved. One blink, and he was gone. The next instant, he stood atop the tower. “ROOOOOOAAR!”

He raised his spear—and unleashed it.

The impact tore through three orcs in a single breath. Their bodies crumpled before they could scream. The tide turned.

Panic swept the horde like wildfire. Even the most hardened warriors turned to flee.

[Your servant Princess Charlie (Skeleton) – Lvl 6 has recovered from her injuries.]

Luke exhaled hard. “Finally…”