Karina crossed her legs as she sat atop a tree branch. She gnawed off a chunk of the owl in her hands.
Even though it was full of feathers, she didn't care. She embedded her canines in a brutal way. Sucking out the blood, she made an ecstatic expression, seemingly drunk on the taste and scent.
"Aa, as expected of owl blood at night! This fragrant and fresh taste…! I love it!"
Karina muttered to herself and looked down.
Below her, the werewolves were bowing their heads.
They were the wolves that she sent to hunt the rabbits.
Karina looked at them, waiting for them to make a report. One werewolf spoke while keeping his head lowered in submission.
"W-we killed them," the head wolf said.
His answer was hesitant and shaky.
Werewolves regarded the truth of a matter as a fundamental component of their pride. This has been true since olden times. As a result, they were very bad at telling lies. Another werewolf would have known right away that what he had just said had not been true.
"…?"
Karina was immediately suspicious. She felt that the werewolves in front of her were telling lies as well. But, it didn't last long, and she eventually dismissed the doubt as a delusion.
They were cursed wolves, after all. They couldn't possibly oppose her orders or tell her lies. If they said they had killed them then they had killed them.
Karina tilted her head at the uncomfortable feeling but tried hard to ignore it.
She was excited about meeting the Devil of Lania soon.
"Really? Good job mongrels! Hihihi…I will save your species as a reward."
"…"
"You guys… Go to the capital and serve my brother. Because I might lose my dignity if I keep you mongrels around!"
Karina chuckled.
"This is an order. Don't tell my brother where I'm going."
"… We understand."
"And that's what makes you guys mongrels."
Karina got up.
The other vampires gathered around her, licking their lips with their long tongues.
"I should go now! Aa…I want to hurry up and drink more blood. Brother! Please wait for a moment. After I suck and drink the blood of the Devil of Lania I will present to you the blood of the Demon Lord! Hihihihihi!"
She let out a bizarre sound before turning into a cloud of bats and flying away The other vampires followed suit.
The werewolf spoke to his subordinates after a few moments of silence.
"… Go to the capital right now and inform them that Karina went to the Orcs' bivouac. Everyone needs to know!"
***
The Moon Rabbit Lulu was confused. As he opened his eyes he saw an unfamiliar tent ceiling. And he was laying atop a knotty straw bed.
As he sat up he could see his sister Luli sleeping next to him while holding his hand.
"This… is not heaven, is it?"
He looked at his clothes. They were like shabby rags.
It looked like somebody had put them on him temporarily. Of course, his belly and back had been pierced, so he didn't understand how he could be wearing servant clothes.
"…?!"
Lulu hurriedly lifted up his top. Clean skin without any scars was all he could see as he looked at his stomach.
'… I'm in perfect shape?'
After thinking about it, he remembered somebody else appearing at that time.
The man that had appeared and stopped the werewolves. He had restrained them with some unknown magic, and he had even performed healing magic on him.
Being healed like that had been the most comfortable, warm sensation that he had ever experienced in his life.
Even in that tense situation, he had fallen asleep without realizing because of that comfort.
'I'm alive? How? That man really healed that huge wound with magic?'
He began to question what had happened. Had it all been a dream?
Lulu recalled the feeling of being killed by the werewolf.
It was horrifying. Cold nails, pierced skin, tearing muscles, crushed bones, and his organs being ripped apart. It was an otherworldly pain that he never wanted to ever experience again.
"It was terrible!"
He held Luli's hand tightly while his body trembled.
He glanced over at the entrance of the tent.
A ruckus stirred up behind it.
"Oy! Hurry and move it!"
"Come on. Do we really have to do it to this extent even though it's late night?"
"I'm tired… I want to rest…"
"Hold on a bit more! We will have a break after this training!"
The Orcs were moving busily. Countless pieces of equipment were being loaded and carried onto wagons.
Lulu blinked in confusion. He carefully removed Luli's hand and put the sheet over top of her. Then he stuck his head out of the tent.
"As I thought, I don't like the color! It's annoying and sparkly! Red! I like passionate red!"
"I will give you all the equipment! A weapon per person, and also armor!"
"Oy! How is the ballista manufacturing going?"
"Well… We have three components so we can build it, but as expected it seems like mass production will be hard… Would it be enough with just these?"
"Oy! Collect all the useless weapons from the Hero's allied forces'! Melt them and make armor for the cavalry unit!"
The Orcs continued working.
After dipping a piece of armor in a container of thick red liquid, they would roast it in the wood fire to let the dark red color come out. Then they would distribute it to the Orc soldiers one by one.
Other Orcs were busy caring for a variety of siege weapons. Some were pulling a newly built catapult across the camp, while others were busy removing the wheels of a ballista, while Ogres held it up.
The armor from the Hero's allied forces was melted down into molten metal which the Orcs turned into pieces of armor for their cavalry unit.
They were urgently made and loose, with only the sizes of the straps holding the armor together being adjusted.
Huge pieces of armor were also equipped all over the Ogres' bodies.
"Everyone prepare for training!"
They gathered up in groups, separating and arranging themselves in organized lines and formations.
The Orc swordsmen held long swords and huge shields. The Orc spearmen held spears over four meters in length. The Orc crossbowmen held heavy and huge crossbows with quivers filled with bolts on their backs. The Orc stormtroopers held huge axes. And the Ogre cavalry unit carried a large ballista for siege use…
Lulu was shocked at the sight, his eyes opening wide.
"Scream!"
"Shout it out!"
"Kwooooooo!"
Shrieks were echoing across the bivouac.
Lulu's legs gave out at the sheer majesty of the Orc army and he fell to his knees.
Koong Koong!
They moved together as a loud ringing noise was heard.
"Move fast! Form a line! Raise your shields!"
The Orcs held their shields up in unison at Karakul's words.
"Release the shields! Pike wall!"
As the Orcs who had shields stepped back the Orcs with long spears rushed forward and aimed their spears.
"Stormtroopers!"
The Orc axemen dashed in between the spears.
They repeated it a few times. If they got it wrong they did it again. If they got it right they still repeated it from the start.
It was continuous training under heavy pressure.
They were Orcs with huge builds. Since they were wearing dark red plate armor over their whole bodies, the sight was extraordinary.
"Everyone prepare to fire!"
They had made a target earlier. The Ogre cavalry and Orc crossbowmen stood up while aiming at it.
"Fire!"
The triggers were pulled at the Orc commander's order.
Many of them failed to hit the target, so they collected the bolts and tried again.
Lulu had seen the Orcs' training process before, but their training back then had been really simple.
They fought against each other to practice, often exchanging blows without rules. He had only seen them make a line so loose that it was hard to call it a formation at all.
This was the first time that Lulu witnessed this kind of 'army'.
While he sat there, awestruck, somebody suddenly held out their hand in front of him.
"…?"
Lulu looked up.
A man in a white robe smiled down at him.
"Are you okay?"
"… Ah, yes. I'm okay."
Lulu grabbed the man's hand and got up. At the same time, he tilted his head because the man looked familiar.
Then suddenly, he recalled the werewolf attack from earlier and remembered the golden eyes that had shone brightly in the darkness.
"…?!"
— Ω —