Moonlight illuminated the burning settlement as Rei and Set looked down from the sky.

The battle to the east proceeded as planned, steadily thinning the Orc ranks. With several parties striking the Orcs from the rear while Axe of the Thunder God held the front, the monsters were trapped in a pincer attack.

「It seems the rear attack by multiple parties matches the strength of Axe of the Thunder God. They truly deserve to be called an A-rank party.」
「Guru~」

Several hours had passed since the night attack began, yet the sounds of battle still echoed from the east where Axe of the Thunder God fought.

As expected, Min’s magic power was running low, lengthening the intervals between her spells. Even so, ice arrows and fireballs rained down without pause, and spells like 『Lightning Rain』 and 『Gusty Wind』 flashed across the dark.

「The Orc numbers have dropped considerably, so why hasn’t their leader appeared?」

Rei and Set had dispatched ten Orcs on their own. While he did not know how many the other parties had defeated, the total was undoubtedly substantial. Naturally, Axe of the Thunder God, having fought continuously from the start, claimed the highest kill count in the subjugation force, particularly Elk.

Judging from the sky, fewer than fifty Orcs remained gathered in the eastern sector. By any measure, it was strange that the Orc leader had yet to show itself.

Troubled by that question, Rei scanned the ground as Set circled above the settlement, his gaze catching a group moving west under the cover of darkness rather than toward the east.

An ordinary human could never have spotted movement in that gloom, though it might have been different for a race blessed with night vision.

While the darkness had been softened by moonlight and the flames consuming the settlement, careful movements through the shadows could still conceal a group. What drew his attention, however, was that while the subjugation force pushed inward from all directions, this group was heading out of the settlement. Nearby, the silhouettes of several adventurers belonging to the subjugation force were visible.

All parties deployed to the eight positions had launched their assault around the same time as Axe of the Thunder God. In that context, a group heading west looked entirely out of place.

While the subjugation force steadily culled the Orcs, a contingent was slipping through the shadows in the opposite direction from the fierce fighting in the east. They were acting on a completely different agenda. As the pieces fell into place, Rei looked down with a fierce grin.

「I see. This Orc settlement is already finished. Their numbers are plummeting, and the village will burn to the ground before long. Even so, I can’t let any Orcs escape. Set!」
「Gururu~!」

At Rei’s command, Set let out a spirited cry and dived steeply toward the earth. Yet rather than swooping down on the fleeing Orcs……he landed right before the western adventurer group.

Carrying heat from the burning settlement, the gust stirred by Set’s descent felt like a stifling tropical wind.

「Whoa!」

Startled by Set’s sudden arrival, the adventurers scattered and readied their weapons with gasps of surprise……only to lower their arms upon recognizing familiar faces from the subjugation force: Rei, a G-rank adventurer, and Set, as a Griffon.

「Hey, don’t scare us like that!」

The speaker was a female warrior in her mid-twenties……no, a female fencer. Brandishing a gleaming sword, she wore lightweight leather armour that did not hinder her movements. Beside her stood a robed man in his mid-forties holding a staff. Behind them, a short-haired girl in her teens who looked slightly older than Rei lowered her bow with a sigh of relief. She, too, wore light leather armour.

Led by the female fencer, the party consisted of two C-rank adventurers, herself and the middle-aged mage, and the D-rank archer girl. Together, they formed Scorching Wind.

「Ah, are you doing well, Set?」

Milein, the fencer, stroked Set’s head. Sulunin, the mage, let out a sigh at the sight and addressed Rei.

「So, why are you here? If I remember correctly, you’re assigned to the mobile strike unit. As you can see, we’re heading toward the centre of the settlement. There’s no fighting here.」
「Well, we had a few skirmishes before you showed up,」 Ekril, the archer, teased, cutting in.

Looking at the three of them, Rei dismounted from Set and scanned the area.

「Glad to hear it……though as strange as it sounds, a group of Orcs is heading right this way.」
「That’s impossible. All the Orcs should have gathered in the east. There’s no way they’d be here,」 Milein said, still stroking Set’s back.

Set would usually give a happy cry at such affection, but with enemies nearby, he merely stared into the darkness.

「You’d think so, wouldn’t you? From above, most of the Orcs are engaged with Axe of the Thunder God in the east, while the other parties have hit them from behind as planned.」
「Then why would Orcs be over here?」
「Don’t you see? The Orcs have their hands full dealing with the night attack and the pincer manoeuvre between Axe of the Thunder God and the other parties. On top of that, Set and I have taken down several high-ranking variants. In other words……」

Rei trailed off. Sulunin caught on immediately, turning a grave gaze toward Set.

「The leader realised they can’t win and is trying to escape?」
「What!? You mean the Orc leader, the boss? Abandoning its subordinates to run away!?」

As Ekril’s surprised cry rang out, Rei swung the Death Scythe with a sharp snap.

With a metallic clang, an incoming arrow was sliced in two, dropping to the dirt.

「Enemy attack!」

At Milein’s sharp command, Sulunin and Ekril immediately prepared for battle. Milein stepped forward as the vanguard with her sword, while Ekril and Sulunin took up positions behind her. The speed with which they settled into formation made it easy to see why Scorching Wind was so successful.

Watching them with quiet respect, Rei and Set readied themselves as well.

Rei raised the Death Scythe, prepared to strike or cast spells at a moment’s notice. Set took to the air to provide aerial cover.

「……Here they come.」

Just as they assumed their stances, the Orcs emerged from the darkness.

There were five ordinary Orcs, an Orc Archer with a bow, and an Orc Mage with a staff. Looming slightly larger than the rest was an Orc General clad in armour.

「Ugh, not just regular Orcs, but three high-ranking variants……we’d be in serious trouble without Rei and Set here.」

Cold sweat beaded on Milein’s brow. She knew Scorching Wind could never have defeated that group alone. Even if they won, one or two of them would have died, and at worst, they would have been wiped out.

Yet Set, an A-rank monster and a Griffon, was right beside them. Furthermore, while they had never seen him in action, they knew Rei had single-handedly crushed the D-rank party Claws of the Hawk.

Yet Rei kept his gaze fixed deeper into the shadows beyond the nine Orcs. When Milein followed his line of sight, another silhouette emerged from the dark.

Taller even than an Orc General, the figure stood over 3m tall. It was clad in extravagant armour and wielded what looked like a magic greatsword. Above all, its imposing dignity, strength, and presence set it completely apart from the other Orcs.

Nearly crushed by the creature’s overwhelming pressure, Milein called out to Sulunin, the party’s strategist.

「Sulunin, do you recognise that Orc? It’s unlike any Orc I’ve ever seen……and I have a really bad feeling about it.」
「Impossible……!」

Sulunin gasped in disbelief as he turned his gaze toward the monster.

It was the first time Ekril had seen Sulunin lose his composure, as he was usually polite and calm. Having partied with him for years, however, Milein had witnessed him like this a few times before. Once, when they encountered a Water Kelpie during a Goblin extermination, and another time when they ran into an Aruraune Queen during a Treant request. In other words, whenever they encountered an unexpected or overwhelmingly powerful beast.

「Sulunin, answer me. That Orc……what is it?」

Fighting to calm the dread rising in her chest, Milein kept her eyes locked on the monster.

Sulunin’s voice came out hoarse.

「The king of the Orcs, the one who rules them all. In other words, an Orc King……a B-rank monster.」
「……!? ……I see. No wonder you’re shaken.」

Milein drew a sharp breath. The gulf between a B-rank monster and a C-rank monster was far greater than a single grade. Just as a wall existed between S-rank and A-rank, a similar divide separated B-rank and C-rank. Having overcome the barrier between D-rank and E-rank herself, she understood that rank up tests were not just for show.

「This is bad……we certainly can’t expect Axe of the Thunder God to come running from the east.」

Milein spoke in a deliberately casual tone to settle her nerves. Hearing her, Ekril, who had been trembling before the B-rank monster, regained some composure.

Meanwhile, Rei lowered the Death Scythe beside Milein and spoke up.

「There’s no reason to be frightened. After all, they’re just deserters who realised they couldn’t beat the subjugation force and decided to run.」

His mocking tone was unmistakable. Though they could not understand human speech, the Orcs grasped the insult and glared angrily at them.

「Hey, Rei! Don’t go provoking them! Do you really think we can handle this alone!? Our only option is to buy time until reinforcements arrive!」
「She’s right. It’s frustrating, but we don’t have the strength to defeat them as we are……even with an A-rank Griffon on our side, we’re still outnumbered. If the Griffon survives while we get wiped out, it won’t do us any good.」

Sulunin agreed with Milein, urging that they focus entirely on stalling rather than fighting.

Paying no heed to their advice, Rei took stock of the enemy’s numbers.

(I can handle the Orc King. The real problem is the high-ranking variants: one archer, one mage, and one general. ……Guess I have no choice.)

Sighing inwardly, he turned to Milein.

「Milein, I have a proposal.」
「What is it?」
「To resolve this, Set and I will need to use our trump cards. Naturally, you’ll see what we’re truly capable of, so I need you to promise you won’t reveal it to anyone.」
「……And if I refuse?」
「Then Set and I will leave immediately, and the three of you can deal with the Orcs yourselves.」

Rei stated the ultimatum bluntly.

His calm, matter-of-fact tone left no doubt that he would abandon them without a second thought.

「Milein……」

Ekril murmured anxiously. Even with her composure somewhat restored, she could not shake the terror radiating from the Orc King. The only reason she had managed to stay standing was having Set, an A-rank Griffon whose presence surpassed even the Orc King, fighting at their side. If Milein refused and Rei took Set away, they would stand no chance of escaping.

As the party leader, Milein understood their predicament all too well and let out a soft sigh.

「Fine. We swear we won’t tell a soul about your trump cards. Is that good enough?」
「Yeah. But a verbal promise is just words. Once we finish off the Orc King, I’ll have you accept a 『Magic Oath』. Understood?」
「A 『Magic Oath』?」

Unfamiliar with advanced magic, Milein glanced toward Sulunin, but the mage merely shook his head in ignorance.

「What’s your answer?」

Rei pressed for a decision. Uneasy though she was about an unfamiliar spell, Milein had already made her choice. Their only options were to accept the 『Magic Oath』 and survive, or refuse and face the Orc King’s pack alone. If they chose the latter, death in battle was the best they could hope for. At worst……she and Ekril would spend the rest of their days as breeding stock for Orcs. Accepting an unknown spell was a far better fate.

「Understood. We’ll keep your secret and accept the 『Magic Oath』.」
「Good. Set, go ahead.」
「Guru~」

Set let out a cry in response. Until Rei spoke, the Orcs had been frozen in place by the overwhelming presence of the A-rank Griffon.

Though momentarily locked in place, the Orcs had sensed instinctively that the creature before them was no ordinary beast.

And so, the final battle of the settlement began between the Orcs, Rei, Set, and Scorching Wind.

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