Chapter 50: Plan To Turn Things Around
The Orc Chieftain bore a long grey beard that stretched all the way to his chest, while his grey hair trailed down to his waist. An old scar ran diagonally across his face, which, combined with his large tusks, gave him a terrifying appearance.
His physique, consisting of a ridiculous amount of bulging muscles, was hidden beneath golden armor that reflected the light.
The monster had two properly maintained greatswords. He carried one in his right hand while keeping the other sheathed on his back, his free hand gripping the reins of his saber-toothed tiger mount.
The tiger mount had camouflage-like orange, black, and white fur, along with fangs longer than a human’s head, giving it a deadly bite.
The sudden appearance of the Orc Chieftain halted the breath of every awakener.
Even Elizabeth stopped momentarily and narrowed her eyes, realizing that the creature could endanger her life.
"So what if my offspring has fallen? A new one will take his place in time!" The Orc Chieftain declared with a deafening roar.
In response to the war cry of their leader, the other orcs followed suit, erupting into a battle chant.
"Better narrow down the opponents." Elizabeth’s cold eyes focused on the Orc Champion she had been fighting until now.
She waved both hands. One froze the ground beneath the orc’s feet, while the other conjured an ice pillar that shot forward and collided with his head.
Because the Orc Champion had been momentarily taken aback by the appearance of the Orc Chieftain, he wasn’t fast enough to respond, leading to his doom.
Two out of the three Orc Champions had been killed, yet the awakeners weren’t the least bit happy.
The Orc Chieftain noticed that Elizabeth had single-handedly slain another of his children.
Rather than feeling grief, his lips curled upward in joy.
He pointed his greatsword toward her.
"You have the strength and the looks. I like you! From now on, you shall be mine."
The monster squeezed his legs, forcing the tiger to leap toward her.
Under the presence of a Level 25 monster, the awakeners shuddered, yet they were unable to run away, too busy with keeping up with the ordinary orcs.
"T—This is really bad... What are we going to do?!" Winston almost lost feeling in his legs.
"Stop acting like a coward!" Harley yelled. "Elizabeth is strong! She can keep up with that thing while we get rid of the smaller fries!"
"That’s what I’m talking about!" William was ready to charge back into the fight.
Leonard didn’t share their optimism. He doubted that Elizabeth could hold on against the Orc Chieftain for long, especially since she had already exhausted a portion of her mana.
[Mana: 0/230]
Unfortunately, he had been stretched far too thin. His mana ran out, and Valor vanished the next second. He wasn’t able to send his strongest trump card to offer assistance, severely limiting his options.
With time of the essence, he first redistributed his newly gained attribute points.
Name: Leonard
Level: 8 [Experience: 125/1,000]
Bloodline: Primordial
Vitality: 18
Strength: 20
Agility: 18
Endurance: 24
Magic: 23 → 28
Mana: 230 → 280
Skills: Lightning Strike, Dimensional Storage
Attribute Points: 5 → 0
Evolution Points: 390 → 400
Traits: Accelerated Manaflow, Hardened Physique, Devoted Summons
Titles: Lumberjack, Inquisitor, One Man Army, Lone Diver
Leonard purposely increased only his magic and mana pool. He needed them most for what lay ahead.
His eyes swept across the party.
"Follow me, I have a plan!" He called out, getting their attention before lunging toward the Orc Shaman.
Besides the Orc Chieftain, they needed to choose between the remaining champion and the shaman.
Considering that the shaman had been acting as a commander, giving orders to the orcs, Leonard believed forcing her to divert her attention toward them would be beneficial for the battle.
The party exchanged glances. Truth be told, they feared the shaman more than the champion, yet given Leonard’s confidence, they knew he had a plan.
Winston, Harley, and William followed after him.
"We meet again, you prick!" Leonard taunted, closing in on the Orc Shaman.
"You again!" She bellowed in fury. "How much trouble do you plan to cause, you pest?! Once I am done with you, only bones will remain!"
Leonard merely scoffed in response. Now being Level 8, Titanic Oath boosted his strength by a whole 16 points!
He swung his axe.
Despite the level discrepancy, the Orc Shaman knew she wouldn’t be able to walk off a hit from such a powerful weapon.
She was forced to dodge, fixing her attention on him.
Gritting her teeth, she cast a spell on her legs, accelerating her speed. After gaining distance, she retaliated with a sphere of corruption.
[You have come into direct contact with condensed corruption! Your corruption has risen by 10%!]
[Corruption 34%]
With one-third of the way toward succumbing to corruption, Leonard felt his mind becoming hazy. Nevertheless, his plan was working, so he pushed forward.
The party joined his side. Although they were incapable of catching up to the monster, they were at least able to keep her from giving orders to the orcs.
Slowly, the ranks of the monsters crumbled, giving the awakeners a chance to properly push back.
"How long do you think you can last?! Soon the corruption will turn you into monsters!" The Orc Shaman laughed arrogantly.
By now she had guessed Leonard’s plan and was certain she could make him and his party fall to corruption long before her troops lost the battle.
"I hate to admit it, but she is right..." Harley murmured, her eyes locked onto Leonard’s back. "This can’t be the extent of his plan, can it? Otherwise, we are done for..."
Leonard remained unfazed throughout. Accelerated Manaflow had replenished his lost mana much faster than any ordinary awakener could.
[Mana: 120/280]
When he judged his reserves were sufficient, he acted at once.
"Go."
Rather than summoning Valor, he paid 20 mana and summoned Joker.
While the Orc Shaman was distracted by the party, Joker mimicked the form of his master and quickly ran inside the orc camp.
Leonard had observed the orcs’ behavior for long enough to know about their arrogant nature. All of the orcs had left their base to clash with the awakeners, leaving their prisoners unguarded.
Joker stealthily traversed the interior of the camp, stopping before the cages where the awakeners had been kept restrained.
Shattering their prisons, he freed them at once. They numbered twenty in total.
"T—Thank you! We heard battle cries, what is happening?"
Although Joker had just freed them, his appearance still frightened them. He looked identical to Leonard, but his misty form made them fear he was another monster that had come to devour them.
Joker simply raised a finger over his lips in a silent gesture and pointed toward the ongoing battle.
His message was clear. After freeing them, they were to act as reinforcements.
Next, he charged towards the pit where the orcs threw bones and other inedible remains.
Without hesitating, he leaped in, frantically searching through the scattered remains.
He spotted the amulet capable of sending a distress signal and retrieved it.
The mission was completed.