The gnarly half-witted Orc who captured the seemingly human girl Cassie was named Gord. Several hours back, he led the search party for the missing Cromwell heir. Apparently, the latter had fallen off the ridge that connected the Southern Hills to the rest of Fondel County.

Gord was supposed to find and return with Ethan's corpse. However, the party had failed after a night-long search through the valley forests. The Orc was about to return empty-handed, riddled with the fear that their leader would heavily punish him.

By a stroke of luck, Gord smelled the fumes from a roasted, spiced rabbit. That animal wasn't really considered a delicacy in the Orc community, nor were any such small animals. Their godforsaken species had meat grinders for stomachs, which favored humans, Elves, and witches alike.

Therefore, the two human-like individuals cooking a spiced rabbit in the middle of the clearing appeared to Gord like gold mines. He turned the search party into an attack party immediately.

The Orc ordered his subordinates to catch the green-haired boy, dead or alive. Either way would be okay. However, the girl was young and beautiful, a combination that made her valuable both as a fuckdoll and a breeder.

The green-haired boy was swift on his feet and escaped. But Gord caught the girl easily, along with her pet wolf. He returned to the Orc lair in the Southern Hills with his prized possession.

Lobo, their leader, had already ordered a feast. Their makeshift army had mostly succeeded in their mission. Moreover, they had many Elves and humans during their raid. The afternoon would be a celebration ringing with Elf screams and smelling of human steaks.

Gord was really proud of his accomplishment. The exotic dark-haired virgin he caught was one of the rarest beauties their party had ever encountered. The Orc expected a promotion after gifting her to Lobo.

One could only imagine how devastated Gord was to find that his captive was a deadly witch. In fact, he was the first to hear what his dying leader was trying to say.

"She's a witch! Kill her!" Lobo screamed as his throbbing, engorged dick and ballsack melted off.

On his end, Ethan had a look of extreme satisfaction etched across his feminine face. Cassie was blessed with rare, exotic beauty. A sly, evil grin made her look quite haunting.

[Challenge: Kill 10 Orcs]

'Great timing!' the boy thought in amusement. 'I have an assortment of interesting spells lined up to experiment on these savages.'

[Decree] [Liquisha—Melt] [MP Cost: 2] [Requirements: A solid material within user's eyesight]

Gord froze when it was revealed that his captive was a witch. However, the shock lasted only a few moments and turned to fury. He reverted to the monster he really was and picked up the nearest battle ax. The fuming Orc raised the weapon above his head to cleave the girl into two.

"Liquisha!" Ethan pronounced the word carefully, his eyes fixed on Gord's weapon. A cold sweat had already formed on his (her) pearl-like skin, a direct result of being in an incredibly heightened state.

Sputter! The ax's metal head glowed red and started to bubble. Splash! Before the Orc could swing his arms down, hot liquid iron sloshed on his head. The metal head had melted!

"Aggggggh!!" Gord shrieked like a possessed madman, an appropriate response to the pain. His voice died down immediately as the molten iron dripped into his mouth and choked his throat.

The Orc fell to his knees, his large head scalding and shrinking by the second. When he fell to the ground dead, there was a loud thunk. Gord's demise fulfilled his wish. The solidified iron helmet covering his entire head could be considered a promotion.

"Bloody witch!" a spectator Orc raged.

"Whore!"

"Hexing cunt!"

It was not the first time Orcs had encountered such terrifying magic. In fact, there were tales of legendary witches who could raze forests with a single spell or explode Orcs with a snap of their fingers.

Seasoned Orcs had a different strategy when faced with powerful witches. Run and hide.

However, Lobo's main army was elsewhere, and only a ragtag group of amateurs were left behind to guard the lair.

These Orcs were not battle-seasoned yet, and knew little about witches, except the need to despise them. They did not expect a young, helpless girl to be a challenge.

Knowing not how to react and somewhat bamboozled by the revelation, they did what their kind was known for—rushed in to solve the problem with mindless violence.

On his end, Ethan found himself in a bit of a bind. Literally. His hands were tied, and he could barely move. The latter problem was more likely because of a broken spine and shattered ribs. The boy could swear he had several concussions and nerve damage.

Lobo and Gord were taken care of, but more Orcs were about to lunge at him. Even if Ethan freed himself from his bonds, he couldn't get up and fight. How to proceed? The boy shifted his attention to the GRIMOIRE section again.

[Elemental] [Magmatis stagnum—magma puddle] [MP Cost: 2] [Requirements: none]

[Nature] [Anima sans—Self-healing] [MP Cost: 2]

[Nature] [Peregrin sans—Heal others] [MP Cost: 2]

[Decree] [Liquisha—Melt] [MP Cost: 2] [Requirements: a solid material within user's eyesight]

[Decree] [Secas—Cut] [MP Cost: 1] [Requirements: target within fifty feet and user's eyesight]

'Hmm.' Ethan found several convenient ones squashed between elemental and decree spells. They had just finished loading. 'Need to upgrade the system's hardware sooner rather than later.'

"Anima sans! Heal me."

Immediately, the boy felt a blast of energy radiate throughout his body. He could almost hear his cracked skull close up, and the shattered ribs snap back into place.

Ethan's broken spine quaked as if straining to fix itself, but failed. 'It seems one spell was not enough…'

"Anima sans…! Anima sans…! ANIMA SANS…!" The MP cost was cheap, so there was no point being a miser. The boy's spine realigned within moments, and his body was fully regenerated.

"Secas!" Ethan called out, eyeing the ropes binding his wrists. They snipped as if sliced by an invisible knife. "The boring part is over. Now, it's time for retribution."

Ethan kipped up to his feet with agility. From the Orcs' point of view, it was Cassie doing the acrobatic jump. However, it didn't deter them from heading towards the girl. One snap of the neck, and she would be dead like the rest.

"Hmm…" Ethan said, surveying his surroundings. Nine Orcs had abandoned their pitiful errands, smelly dinners, and horrible gangrapes to avenge their leader's penectomy death.

Ethan drew an imaginary circle around himself with a radius of six feet and announced the following spell, "Magmatis Stagnum!"

The ground along the boy's tracings shook and cracked. Within seconds, a wide moat of lava appeared around Ethan, bubbling with gold-green, fuming liquid.

Orcs were as stupid as advertised. They did not bother to question the sudden appearance of a glowing land feature. They rushed in to attack their target, regardless.

Splash! Splurge! Every single one of the raging Orcs fell into Ethan's trap. Their feet dipped into the lava as if it were a swamp. The monsters realized their mistake quite late.

Roar! Growl! Orcs were indeed savage creatures, but Ethan felt pity at their dying faces this time. Perhaps they had never imagined pain of such magnitude.

Death didn't come immediately. Orc bodies were quite durable. Even though they were stuck in the lava swamp, it took time for the superhot fluid to reach their critical organs. The Orcs' demise was slow and excruciatingly painful.

Ethan watched the bizarre scene of horror peacefully. The gritty experiences of the previous day had somehow desensitized him to violence and death. Besides, Orc deaths wouldn't evoke emotion in the most charitable people.

The other Orcs realized their opponent was too overpowered. Without expert witch handlers, they had no chance. They ran off into the forest, screaming murder.

Ethan released his lava spell and heaved a sigh of relief. He was hungry, sleepy, and in urgent need of a bath. However, a few things had to be addressed first.

The boy walked around the Orc lair, burning and destroying valuable objects. Then he approached the victims, hoping someone was alive. All the Elves and humans of the original Cromwell party were dead.

It seemed the savage Orcs had been fucking and eating corpses at the same time in some cases. A shiver ran up his spine, thinking about the mind-numbing brutality.

Ethan's attention went to the gray wolf. Two Orc arrows, killed it, one in the head and another through the neck.

"Sorry, little pup…" Ethan said affectionately, removing the arrows one by one. "You tried to save me but died in the attempt. What kind of animal are you? Few humans and Elves would do what you did."

"I'll remember our strange interaction. Thanks. I wish I could pet you while you were alive."

Ethan snapped the arrows and got to his feet. Perhaps he could look for clues on how to locate Beatrix and Athena. As soon as the boy turned around, he heard spurting and gurgling sounds.

Ethan spun around in alarm, expecting an attacker. However, he was greeted by a bizarre scene. The wolf's head and neck injuries healed, and the furry body developed cracks all over.

Ethan watched in shock as the wolf-skin tore open and a human figure crawled out. It was a familiar green-haired boy with hazel-green eyes. Artis Lupine!

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