Chapter 296: Orc Boss
Meanwhile, inside the Gate, Elara continued pushing deeper into Orc territory.
The landscape became increasingly mountainous as enormous stone fortresses appeared one after another, connected by winding roads carved directly into the mountainside. Massive wooden watchtowers overlooked deep valleys, while gigantic bridges stretched between towering cliffs, all built on a scale suitable only for creatures as large as Orcs.
It wasn’t the lawless wilderness she’d expected.
There was order, purpose, and civilisation, and though crude, it was undeniably real.
Entire settlements bustled with activity.
Warriors sharpened oversized axes outside barracks. Blacksmiths hammered glowing metal atop colossal anvils, each strike echoing throughout the valleys. Shamans carved glowing runes into towering totems that pulsed with mana. Even young Orcs raced through the streets carrying wooden practice weapons almost as large as fully grown humans.
As savage and battle-hungry as they were, they had built a society.
Unfortunately, that changed nothing.
They were still monsters, which made them humanity’s natural enemy.
Elara continued forward without hesitation, eliminating every Orc foolish enough to stand in her path while following the overwhelming concentration of mana she had sensed from the moment she entered the Gate.
She already knew exactly where she was heading.
High within the mountains, A colossal fortress overlooked everything else.
It dwarfed every settlement she’d passed.
Its towering walls had been carved directly into the mountain itself, while enormous banners stitched from monster hides fluttered atop the battlements.
The amount of mana radiating from within was almost tangible.
’That’s where the Gate Core is.’
Without another thought, she accelerated.
Blink!
Blink!
Blink!
Her figure repeatedly vanished before reappearing hundreds of metres ahead, crossing the mountainous landscape in moments until she finally arrived above the fortress.
She slowed.
"...No guards?"
An army large enough to defend an entire kingdom, yet not a single Orc stood watch atop the walls.
Almost as though they were expecting her.
Elara silently drifted over the fortress before descending through the enormous central courtyard.
The halls inside were vast, every corridor built for giants rather than humans. Torchlight flickered across rough stone walls decorated with primitive carvings depicting countless battles and conquests.
The deeper she ventured, the quieter everything became.
Eventually, the corridors opened into an immense throne hall.
It was easily the largest chamber she’d encountered since entering the Gate. Rows upon rows of Orcs stood in complete silence along both sides of the hall. There had to be over a hundred of them.
Every single one radiated the power of a B Rank, waiting and watching.
At the far end of the chamber sat their ruler.
The Orc Boss rested upon a colossal throne carved from black stone.
Unlike the other Orcs, it wore elaborate robes covered in glowing runes and wielded an enormous staff instead of a conventional weapon. Dark mana pulsed rhythmically around it.
The moment Elara laid eyes on it, she understood.
’A mage...’
Not only that, it immediately began chanting.
The entire throne hall trembled as dark green mana erupted outward like a tidal wave. Every Orc surrounding her threw back its head and roared. Their muscles swelled, veins bulged beneath green skin, and their already massive bodies grew even larger as their leader’s mana flooded through them.
Their rugged weapons glowed and their eyes burned with unrestrained madness.
The Orc Mage wasn’t merely commanding an army; it was strengthening and empowering them, driving every single one into a berserk frenzy.
And beneath it all, a continuous stream of restorative mana flowed from the staff, rapidly mending every scrape and injury the Orcs received before the battle had even truly begun.
Elara narrowed her crimson eyes.
’Yeah... This definitely isn’t an ordinary B Rank Gate.’
That was clear.
’B+ Rank at the very least.’
It didn’t feel as insane as the insect gate she had just cleared alongside Ethan and the others, but boy was it close. Any ordinary A Rank would’ve turned around the moment they saw this.
Even elite clearing squads would hesitate to continue.
An Orc Mage capable of simultaneously enhancing, healing, and commanding over a hundred B Rank Orcs was the definition of a nightmare.
But Elara simply took another step forward.
She hadn’t come here because it would be easy; she had come because she wanted to become stronger and prove herself.
"I’ll clear it."
The first Orc charged.
Then another.
And dozens more.
The entire throne hall erupted into motion as the berserk Orc warriors rushed her from every direction, each step shaking the stone floor beneath their combined weight.
Elara didn’t retreat.
She raised her hands.
"Crimson Flash."
Dozens of crimson beams erupted from her fingertips, streaking across the hall like scarlet lances of light.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Each beam pierced through charging Orcs before exploding in violent bursts of crimson mana, forcing entire groups backwards and tearing open gaps in the encirclement.
At the same time...
Blink!
She vanished and reappeared behind another group.
Blink!
Vanished again before their weapons could reach her.
Mana constructs intercepted enormous axes and hammers, while Physical Augmentation strengthened every movement, allowing her to weave effortlessly between attacks that would’ve flattened buildings.
The throne hall exploded into chaos.
Crimson beams carved across the battlefield, and explosions echoed from every direction. Yet even while exchanging blows with dozens of empowered B Rank Orcs, her crimson eyes never once left the throne.
The Orc Boss hadn’t moved.
It simply watched, buffing, healing, and commanding its army.
That’s when the realisation struck her.
’I don’t need to defeat all of them.’
Every clearing squad had a single objective: to destroy the Gate’s Core. That almost certainly meant defeating the strongest creature in the space, which was unmistakably the Orc Boss.
If she killed it, everything else would disappear alongside the collapsing Gate.
A faint smile spread across her face.
"If you don’t want to come to me... Then I’ll come to you."
Blink!
She abruptly changed direction, slipping through a narrow opening between the surrounding Orcs before launching herself straight toward the throne, crimson beams erupting behind her to keep the pursuing horde at bay.