Chapter 95: Orc Purge (3)

While the orcs attempted a sneak attack, Demian was moving to determine the location of the main camp. He knew that blindly entering the forest and failing to find the enemies would only lead to a dangerous situation. He either climbed to the top of a tower to keep a watchful eye on the orcs' movements or spread his magic to detect a wide area. During the second ambush, he discovered a bald black mage hiding in the forest.

'From her actions, she seems to be from the Aberration School.'

Demian immediately chased after the woman and found the orc village and the black mage from the Aberration School. He surveyed the enemy camp to assess their strength. Over a hundred orcs had gathered, and many orc warriors were on standby.

'An ogre? Where did they get this from?'

There was even an ogre. It was clear that they had made thorough preparations to ensure the failure of this purge.

'The Aberration School is more dangerous than the monsters.'

The Aberration School was a nuisance that became more troublesome the longer they were left unchecked. If they set up a base and laid traps, casualties were inevitable.

'I can't give them time to prepare.'

As soon as Demian returned to the castle, he gathered the knights.

"I've found the enemy camp. We will launch a surprise attack immediately."

The knights, taken aback by the sudden order, quickly prepared themselves.

"Be well-prepared! There are black mages in the orc village!"

The mention of black mages left the knights even more bewildered. They had come to purge the orc group, but the mention of black mages was unexpected.

However, no one doubted Demian's words. The knights had already been puzzled by the orcs' use of poison. They weren't fools and had been suspicious all along. Hearing Demian's explanation, their doubts were resolved.

If the black mages were controlling the orcs, everything made sense.

"Let's move out!"

Riding horses would likely alert the orcs due to the noise, so they only equipped basic armor and attacked the orc group.

The orcs, unaware that they would be attacked, had not even posted sentries.

"Press the attack! Don't give them a chance to regroup!"

Thanks to this, Demian and the knights quickly gained the upper hand. They swept through the village, cutting down the orcs.

-Querlek!

-Gweeek!

The orcs were helpless. A few tried to resist, but it was futile.

"What are these green lumps trying to resist!"

"Hand over your heads now!"

The knights, armed with armor and aura, were overwhelmingly powerful. The orcs couldn't even scratch them.

"Hmm?"

While cutting down the orcs, Demian noticed two women standing far away, looking dazed.

"Black mages! There are black mages over there!"

Upon seeing the two women, Demian shouted. The knights turned to look at them.

The women's expressions twisted at the knights' gaze. The bald woman shouted.

"You filthy bastards! How dare you touch my orcs? Do you know how hard I worked to gather them!"

Black magic power erupted from the bald woman. As she formed a seal, black magic manifested.

The orcs' eyes changed. Their confusion and fear disappeared, replaced by intense malice and hunger.

"You'll pay for touching my children!"

The woman didn't stop there and manifested another black magic. The orcs' muscles swelled, their skin turned black, and their teeth and claws grew long and thick.

The Aberration School was not just about controlling monsters. They could use black magic to draw out the hidden potential of monsters or grant them new abilities.

The cost was the monsters' life force. The orcs would likely die before the day was over.

-Krlek!

-Gweeek!

The orcs, who had tried to flee, let out eerie cries and charged at the knights.

"Ugh?"

"What kind of power...!"

The knights, who had collided with the orcs, were taken aback. The orcs were much faster and stronger than before.

Their surprise created an opening. The orcs pressed the attack even harder.

"That's a problem."

Saying this, Demian charged at the orcs.

He used magic to accelerate. Demian's body disappeared, and a moment later, a flash of light appeared in the air.

One circle.

The flash of light drew a circle. The orcs surrounding the knights were cut in half.

The upper and lower halves separated, and blood and entrails spilled onto the ground.

"Unbelievable..."

"Impossible..."

The knights looked on in shock.

As knights of a noble house, they had faced many mid-class monsters. None of them moved like Demian.

"Everyone, focus! No matter how strong they become, they're still just orcs!"

Demian shouted at the knights.

Seeing Demian's incredible movements, the knights' fighting spirit was rekindled. They began to press the attack on the orcs again.

"That guy...!"

The bald woman gritted her teeth. She shouted.

"This won't do! You must come out now!"

New orcs appeared from the forest, much larger than the others. They held different weapons, but they had one thing in common: mist rose from their weapons.

Orc warriors had appeared.

"I hate to use you, but I have no choice!"

The bald woman manifested another black magic. The orc warriors' bodies grew larger, and their skin turned black.

Not only their bodies were enhanced; the aura on their weapons became even more intense.

"Kill that Demian Haksen together!"

The bald woman pointed at Demian. The orc warriors charged at him.

-Krlek!

-Kweeek!

Auric weapons rained down on Demian.

The already threatening orc warriors were further enhanced by black magic. Each attack was terrifyingly powerful.

"There are so many."

Demian activated the Beast's Blood Elixir. His body temperature rose, and all his senses became extremely sharp.

The world slowed down. The orc warriors' attacks gradually slowed and then stopped.

Demian moved, passing through the orc warriors and beheading them one by one.

Even with their heads severed, the orc warriors' heads remained floating in the air, and no blood spurted out.

Demian broke through the group of orc warriors and reached the back. Then he deactivated the Beast's Blood Elixir.

Blood spurted from the orc warriors' necks, and their heads fell to the ground.

"...What?"

The bald woman's face showed confusion.

To her, it seemed that Demian Haksen had teleported and instantly decapitated the orc warriors.

"Unbelievable..."

"Noctis! Snap out of it! Quickly, call them over!"

At that moment, a haggard woman shouted. She simultaneously threw a poison vial to the ground, and a cloud of poison rose.

When the haggard woman used black magic, the poison cloud flew toward Demian and the knights.

"You're being troublesome."

Demian put away his holy sword and drew the Thousand Mile Sword. He flicked the tip of the Thousand Mile Sword.

The Thousand Mile Sword began to vibrate. Demian swung it widely.

The Thousand Mile Sword emitted a sword beam. The emitted sword beam tore through the approaching poison cloud.

"What kind of unbelievable skill is that...!"

The haggard woman shouted in disbelief.

"Noctis!"

"I'm here!"

The bald woman shouted. At that moment, ogres burst out of the forest, breaking through the trees.

-Wooear!

-Woear!

The ogres' roars shook the entire forest. The knights, who had been killing orcs, cried out in shock.

"Ogres?"

"Why are those monsters here!"

For the first time, fear appeared on the knights' faces.

The ogres, known as the kings of the forest and giants, possessed immense strength. They could easily kill low-class monsters and were dangerous even to mid-class monsters.

It was understandable that the knights were taken aback.

"Ogres? It's been a while."

"Wow, they're big. There's a lot of meat to cut."

But not all the knights were surprised.

Mihail Ryanbloom and Veronica Sanché just looked at the ogres with curiosity.

"Hey, Demian."

"True, but your words are too crude. You vulgar thing."

"Want to bet on who kills more? The loser becomes the other's servant."

"Don't regret it?"

The two simultaneously charged at the group of ogres.

The ogres swung their fists to kill the two.

The Ryanbloom family was known for their powerful swords.

Mihail Ryanbloom did not dodge the ogre's punch. Instead, he countered it.

The ogre's fist shattered. The ogre's face contorted in pain.

At that moment, Veronica Sanché charged in and beheaded the ogre. The ogre's thick skin and bones were easily cut.

"I'll take one."

Veronica Sanché said this and ran toward another ogre.

Mihail Ryanbloom looked at her with a bewildered expression.

* * *

While the two were dealing with the ogres, Demian reached the two black mages.

The bald woman glared at Demian and asked, "You're not seriously planning to face us alone, are you?"

"What if I am?"

"Hah! Do we look that easy to you?"

Despite being cornered, the two did not look panicked.

High-level mages possess combat strength comparable to mid-class monsters.

Moreover, black mages, who do not hesitate to use any means to gain power, are far superior to ordinary mages of the same level.

"We'll show you who we are."

The bald woman formed a circle with her index finger and thumb and put it in her mouth. She whistled loudly.

Suddenly, the ground near Noctis began to tremble. Something broke through the soil and emerged.

It was a white lion with a lush mane. But it was not an ordinary white lion. It stood on two legs.

Not only did it walk on two legs, but its shoulders were also wide like a human's. It had well-developed pectoral muscles and a clearly defined six-pack.

Its limbs were not those of a lion. From the forearms and below the knees, they were covered in scales instead of fur. Its feet had talons like an eagle.

The most bizarre feature was the snake instead of a tail. A large snake moved around and flicked its tongue at Demian Haksen.

"It's not a lion, but a chimera."

Demian said, sounding surprised.

A chimera is a monster that can only be created through the Aberration School's unique magic, which combines multiple monsters. As a result, it is both bizarre and powerful.

"How about it? Isn't it cool? I worked hard to create it!"

The bald woman shouted from behind the chimera.

"It's not just the chimera. I'm here too."

The haggard woman opened her bag and poured out poison vials.

As the vials broke, the poisons that flowed out turned into a large snake that wrapped around her body.

Even though it was just poison, it made her hair stand on end.

It was not ordinary poison but the Aberration School's secret technique, the Deadly Poison.

The chimera and the Deadly Poison.

It was, without a doubt, the worst combination.

"...You? The one who has been hindering all our plans?"

The haggard woman glared at Demian and said, "You must pay for hindering us. I won't kill you immediately. I'll subdue you and make you watch."

Despite her calm voice, her tone was filled with malice.

"I'll make you watch as the knights you brought are poisoned and beg for their lives. I'll make it the most terrifying day of your life."

The most terrifying day.

Hearing this, Demian suddenly remembered his days as a Death Knight.

As a Death Knight, Demian was a slave who had to follow Dorgo's orders.

He had a sense of self, but he couldn't control his body. He was trapped inside, forced to watch everything he did.

The burning castle, the mountain of corpses, the screaming people.

All of it was done by Demian under Dorgo's orders.

Demian watched this every day, without fail.

"Why can't you say anything? Do you think something is wrong now? Even if you do, it's useless..."

A fierce killing intent erupted from Demian's body. It felt as if a dark aura was covering the entire world.

The two black mages' bodies stiffened as soon as they were exposed to the killing intent.

"I hate black mages. Every time I meet one, the unpleasant memories keep coming back."

It wasn't just the memories. The emotions he felt at the time were vividly felt.

As if it had happened just yesterday.

"You said you'd make it the most terrifying day?"

The two black mages looked at Demian with frozen faces.

"That's a good idea."

A smile spread across Demian's lips.

It was a terrifying smile, as if the skin had been torn and forced into a smile.