Chapter 5: Chapter 5 – New Rules

"Alright, I resolved everything."

Two dozen orcs lay unconscious on the ground. A bruise the shape of a bat sullies each of their green faces.

"No one is stealing each other's boars anymore. If I hear any mention of theft, I'm going to smash everyone's faces in."

Loraine and the other women help the orcs up and ushers them back into their homes. She comes to me with an amused expression.

"You wouldn't get away with using brute force on any other race," she remarks.

"Yeah, well. I'm used to dealing with numbskulls."

Loraine pulls me back into our tent and sits me down on the bed. Her hand glitters with green magic that seeps into my body, warming me right up. The soreness, the pain, the crick in the neck I had since coming here vanishes.

"Was that healing magic?" I ask.

She nods and smiles. It instantly flips into a frown, hands resting firmly on her hips. "So, what was this about a demon?"

"Ah— are they that bad?" I'm caught off guard by her sudden shift in tone.

"They are! The United Kingdoms of Dysentia declared even the weakest of demons is to be fought with a sizable group."

The demon I fought was what, about three orcs stacked on top of each other? 

"What's the weakest demon like?" I ask, curious where the one I battled stood in the hierarchy.

Loraine puts a finger to her forehead and thinks hard. She positions a hand just above her thighs and says, "Bloodhounds are about this tall, and maybe the length of a spear. They're the mutts of the Demon Lord's armies."

"Huh…" 

Bloodhounds probably ain't that big a deal then. Maybe a pack of them could spell trouble if I don't have my bases covered. After all, Sacchan can only hit one thing at a time even if it's on fire. 

"What about something as tall as a tree, wields a big fucking sword?"

She shudders as she utters the words, "Demon giants. They are the Demon Lord's vanguards, meant to instill fear into opposing forces by acting as large and destructive shock troops."

"So these demon giants are a big deal, right?"

"Yes!" She exclaims. "A single swing from their fist can topple steel reinforced gates. Magic is the only way to defeat them, but they are able to tap into magic of their own. These formidable foes are best left to powerful magisters to deal with from afar."

"Oh. I actually encountered one earlier—" Loraine's hands slam down on my shoulders, her fingers digging into my skin. "W-What?"

"You're joking, right…?"

Loraine's eyes are wide and full of fear. That is the look of an animal who has seen its predator before, and escaped to tell the tale."

"When I was heading east, a big rock shot out of the ground. One of them big guys you mentioned came out of it."

"And, you killed it?" She asks.

"Yeah."

Just as I think Loraine is about to scold me, she tackles me onto the bed. Face flushed red and drool dripping from her mouth, she pins me down by my wrists.

"Wha— Loraine, what's gotten into you?"

"I never knew my chieftain was so strong. If only you were a man, how I would have loved to bear your children… hehe~"

I don't recall Loraine being this thirsty. Did she get more bold after last night? I push her off and back up to the corner of the tent, but she continues to crawl to me like a demon possessed.

"Wait, you don't know what you're saying. Calm down— I'm still not used to this yet!"

"Chieftain!"

The orcs that burst into my tent snap Loraine from her lustful trance. I never thought I would be grateful to see them. However, it doesn't look like they were coming to my rescue.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Under attack. Need help!"

Loraine and I head right out. The low drone of a horn can be heard from the western part of camp. More and more orcs pour out of the tents to follow me, even the women grab weapons of their own to join us.

"You think it's demons?" I ask Loraine.

She shakes her head. "The ground would be littered with corpses if it were."

We get our answer soon enough. A wall of orcs stand between an iron-clad army and our encampment. They part for me to pass, and I'm greeted by spears trained right at me.

I stare them down with nothing but Sacchan in my hand. "You punks gonna just stand there? Or is someone explaining to me why the fuck you're in my territory?"

"What the?" One of the soldiers looks at his buddies. "Isn't this the Rolling Plains tribe?"

Another one scratches his head in confusion. "You think Prince Kain got the wrong place?"

"Coulda sworn we were going to fight an orc the size of a mountain or something."

"What gives? Is that a tavern wench leading an orc tribe or something?"

Half the army erupts into laughter and the other half are left puzzled.

Sacchan ignites with blue fire. The flames are so strong the orcs behind me back away to avoid getting burnt.

"Hey, I asked you guys a fucking question." I take a step forward, causing them to raise their spears in retaliation. Their hands are shaking so much, the tips of their weapons clatter against each other.

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"What is the meaning of this? Why have we not laid waste to these orcs yet?" 

A knight on horseback rides in to put space between me and his army. His gaudy silver armor is an eyesore, and the gem-encrusted sword even more so.  He has to be helped down from his horse by the soldiers around him.

"Your Highness, we're being impeded by a woman…"

The prince looks me up and down, and then removes his helmet. His short side swept hair is as blonde as the sun, but there's something about his pearly white teeth that makes me want to knock him out.

He bows to me and says, "I've heard these barbaric beasts do unspeakable things to any woman they find. Fear not! For I, the illustrious Prince Kain, is here to save you."

"I'm the chieftain of the Rolling Plains, and as far as I can tell, you're on my turf."

Pretty boy beckons one of his aides over. They speak quietly, but are clearly arguing under their breaths. He returns to me, clears his throat and asks, "Are you… Chieftain Bracca, of the Rolling Plains Tribe?"

"It's Micchi. If it's Bracca you're looking for… ya gonna have to ask the boars we fed him to."

His jaw drops. There is some mental rewiring going on inside his head as he tries to process what I told him. "Well, uh. In that case, problem solved? Would you ladies come with us?"

"No, I don't think so." I answer.

Princess Kain scratches his head and leans in lowering his voice. "If I return empty-handed, I'm going to be my siblings' laughing stock."

"I already gave the captives a chance to leave, and they didn't take it. Looks like this new life suits them better."

"Five. Five women, and I'll give you a thousand gold." His voice is growing desperate.

"No."

"Three. I'll give you anything you want."

"Nope.

"Okay, one." He points to Loraine. "Surely you can part with one!"

"She's mine."

Prince Kain throws his hands into the air and draws his sword on me. "So! Ahem… erm, you fight for the Demon Lord? So be it! I shall slay you and liberate these women myself."

"Can't get what he wants, so he goes around lying. Rich punks like you ain't any different in my world," I say, sighing. "But if it's a fight you want, I'm ready to throw down."

Loraine comes to my side and clutches my hand. "I'll fight with you."

"Nah, it's chill. Pretty boy says he wants to take you away, but I ain't handing you over."

She drops to her knees as though something stuck her.

I help her back up. "Are you hurt?!"

"No…" she says, her entire body quivering. "I think I just came a little."

"Okay… I didn't need to hear that before a fight…" I wave over a couple of orcs to take Loraine away.

Prince Kain stands tall and proud, as befitting someone of royalty. There's a great deal of confidence in his stance that tells me he's fought and killed before. But after fighting that demon giant, this battle feels almost trivial.

He brings the sword up to his mouth and whispers. It begins to emit a blinding light that illuminates both our armies until it dims to a controlled glow.

"Behold my enchanted sword— Dawnbringer, the light of Dysentia, the slayer of demons, the shining light of the Kingdom of Scoth, the soon-to-be-bane of the Demon Lord, the— "

"Too fucking long!" I cut off his long-winded presentation of his sword's titles. "Not that it's gonna matter. Sacchan and I are going to mop the floor with you anyway."

"Hah! Your club may be enchanted as well, but such a primitive weapon can't defeat Dawnbringer. Since I am an honorable prince, I shall let you make the first move."

I take his offer and charge in. "Ain't you a peach—!" 

The flames along Sacchan roar with intensity as I swing. Prince Kain, realizing his life is in actual danger, raises his sword to guard. As our weapons collide, the blade shatters and he is thrown into his soldiers. He's helped back to his feet, rubbing his head from the impact.

"Such demonic strength, but it's my turn to—" he raises his sword once more, but finally notices that the entire length of the blade is missing. Only the hilt remains. "M-M-My, Dawnbringer!"

I pull him up to my face by the collar.

"Protect the prince!"

His soldiers begin to surround me, but just as that happens, the orcs also pour in to my defense.

"Wait! Stand down!" Prince Kain orders his soldiers back.

I do the same of the orcs. "You guys stay back, too. Pretty Boy and I are gonna have a little chat. Mind explaining what you're doing here?"

"We were directed here by the court mages. They detected a monolith nearby, and my father— King Allo, asked me to take care of it. We couldn't find it anywhere! So, I thought I could secure some glory by taking care of the Rolling Plains orc tribe." He speaks so fast the gusto of his princely demeanor has been lost.

"Oh, that thing. I already took care of it and the demon," I say.

"You… did?"

I let the prince go. He drops to the ground, staring at the dirt under him.

"Now that you know, you can get out of—"

"Please, come back to the capital city with me!" His sudden outburst catches everyone on both sides by surprise. "It's clear as day you are incredibly strong. We humbly request your help in defeating the Demon Lord!"