Overlord of Blood and Iron

The troops immediately started talking amongst each other upon hearing the report.

“20 Orcs!”

“We are lacking in numbers!”

“20 of them.”

It was a natural response.

It would have been a different story if Orcs were weak monsters like they were in games or fantasy novels, but in Pangaea, Orcs were strong enough to take on at least four or five adult males.

And there were 20 of them. 50 soldiers were not enough to fight them.

“Quiet, quiet!”

Commander James also seemed to be taken aback, but he tried to maintain his composure as a commander and worked to calm his troops.

He carefully addressed Kang Chul-In.

“Milord, there are too many Orcs. I think we should retreat and bring more troops.”

“No.”

Kang Chul-In cut James off firmly.

“Are you telling me to turn my back because of a group of Orcs?”

“But-but, milord… with our numbers.”

“I know.”

Kang Chul-In said.

“It would be a stretch. No, it is a stretch. Logically speaking, to take on those Orcs, you would need at least a hundred soldiers.”

“Yes, milord. For your safety as well”

“But that is something an incompetent leader does.”

“As a commander, your judgment is correct. In order to fight those Orcs, you would need to prepare for complete annihilation. A competent commander also knows when to retreat. However!”

Kang Chul-In had no intention of backing down.

“We can win. There is plenty of chances for success. If you can follow my lead, then we can take down all those Orcs without a single casualty.”

“H-how!?”

“I will show you.”

At that moment, with Kang Chul-In at the center, an intangible aura covered James and the troops.

This is enough to take on the Orcs.

The aura that Kang Chul-In created was the skill that all Conquest Lords had: the “Morale Stimulator”. Although he was only Level 1 so the skill’s duration was only 10 minutes, it was enough against the Orcs.

“Everyone, listen!”

Kang Chul-In roared.

“Those monsters over there are trying to take our people and our assets!”

The troops shivered at his charismatic, loud voice.

“I know you are afraid. However, if we retreat here, now, all those people will die. We will also lose all of our farmland and animals. Therefore, I, Kang Chul-In, will not back down. I will kill those Orcs, and I will protect our people as well as our assets!”

Hearing that, the thoughts of retreat disappeared completely from the soldiers’ minds. The saying “Lead by Example” existed for a reason.

“Let’s go! We will defeat those Orcs together!”

Kang Chul-In decided to add an incentive around this point.

“I will reward any soldier who performs exceptionally in killing these Orcs!”

The soldiers became restless upon hearing this.

“If you follow my orders, I promise that no lives will be sacrificed! Trust me! Trust in me and do not doubt our victory!”

And with these words, the faces of the soldiers began to fill with decisiveness.

It was as expected.

They were originally extremely disciplined and eager, so Kang Chul-In’s “Morale Stimulator”, promise of a reward, and assurance of victory were all extremely effective. He had exaggerated, but human history was written on exaggeration.

“I will lead the way!”

Kang Chul-In drew his Blood Sword and roared.

“All troops! Attack!”

With those words, the white horse that Kang Chul-In was riding started running at full speed. Laputa’s Royal Guards, with high morale, followed behind fiercely.

“Oh, my back is going to break like this. Oh, my back.”

Rustler, a farmer who was taking a break from the farming to soothe his aching back, furrowed his brow when he saw a dust storm forming far away.

“What is that?”

Rustler squinted.

With all the dust, it probably was the dust storm that would usually form around this time. When the storm came, he would cough for a while due to the dust covering him, so he was going to leave the work for later and rest in his hut.

“Huh? T-that…!”

Rustler, who had been looking at the dust storm for a while, stuttered in surprise.

No, he wasn’t surprised but horrified.

“Orcs!”

Despair filled his face.

It was understandable.

If it were a goblin or other small monster, he would try to protect himself with his farming tools, but Orcs were a different story. One Orc alone meant destruction amongst the farmers, and they were coming in a group.

“Run!”

The farmers who were hard at work raised their heads with Rustler’s scream.

“Orcs! A group of Orcs is coming! Everyone, run!”

With those words, chaos and fear spread throughout the farmers of Laputa.

“Hurry!”

“Run!”

“You need to run! Fast!”

“Orcs are coming!”

For the farmers who had no power, Orcs were destruction itself.

The moment they were cornered, they would be hit with blunt weapons or axes and be eaten alive. They would die either way. They must run if they wanted to live.

“Run, Lana!”

Rustler was about to run for his life when he remembered his only daughter and began to look around frantically.

“Lana! Lana!”

Lana was Rustler’s only child, and she had brought afternoon lunch with a couple of other women from the village.

“D-dad!”

Upon hearing his daughter’s voice coming from far away, Rustler’s fear of the Orcs disappeared, and he began running back towards where he heard her voice.

“Lana!”

When he found her, she was on the ground with a sprained ankle.

“Quickly, get on my back!”

Rustler quickly carried her on his back. Lana had sprained her ankle and could not run from the Orcs.

Squelch!

Meanwhile, the group of Orcs had almost reached the farm.

Rustler ran.

He ran with every ounce of strength he had.

Otherwise, he was going to die.

And not just him, but his lovely daughter would also be eaten by the vile Orcs. If not that, she would become a sex slave for the Orcs, birth a cursed Half-Orc, and then be eaten.

“Huff… huff”

Labored breathing left Rustler’s mouth.

However.

A common farmer could not surpass the speed of a monster. Orcs, who had much better muscle build and stamina than humans, had unimaginable speed. Rustler had no other option than to be caught by the Orcs.

Squelch!

The Orcs, with prey in front of their eyes, cried with excitement.

“NO, NO, you animals!”

Rustler ran and ran, trying to save at least his daughter but finally fell to the ground along with her.

“Ah!”

Rustler yelled as he rolled across the ground.

“Ahhhhhh!”

Lana had also fallen hard.

“Lana!”

Rustler yelled his daughter’s name.

“Dad!”

Lana was about to have her head smashed in with the Orc’s metal bat in front of her father. It was the same for Rustler as well, but he looked only towards her without worrying about himself.

Squelch squelch!

The excited Orc breathed roughly as he brought the metal bat above his head.

“Oh, Lana, my daughter!”

Rustler foresaw what was about to happen and closed his eyes tightly.

No, he tried to close his eyes.

He did not want to see his daughter’s bloody end. He was going to close his eyes, curse these monsters, and face his death. However, the unfortunate end that he expected did not come.

Swish!

Rustler opened his eyes wide at the change of fate that suddenly happened.

“Ahh!”

A knight on a white horse suddenly appeared and took off the Orc’s head.

The Orc’s neck gushed with red blood that soaked the ground underneath. It was a magnificent sight.

Hnnnggg-!!

The white horse whinnied loudly and kicked its front legs.

“Arise, dear child.”

The knight who had rescued Lana told him.

“Your daughter will not die, and you also shall live, for your Lord has come.”

And that day, Rustler realized that his sun had risen high above the sky.