Chapter 86: The Disappearance of the Orcs
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The orcs worked hard to build houses on Peach Blossom Island. They first used dry wood and stones to build a few simple wooden houses for women and children to live in.
However, on the surface, they seemed to be thriving, but behind the scenes, there was a hidden danger.
During that period of time, Lin Qi and the Dark King continuously explored Peach Blossom Island, but they still did not find any threatening creatures.
On the tenth day after the orcs landed on the island, the orcs started to gradually disappear. At first, no one noticed.
Orcs were physically strong so they did not get sick easily. Therefore, there were often orcs sleeping outside in order to speed up the progress of building around the island. They had not known that they would become perfect targets by being vulnerable out in the open.
By the time everyone realized that something was wrong, there were already dozens of male orcs that had disappeared.
At first, their wives complained that their husbands did not return home, and even secretly scolded them for not wanting to pay public rations.
Then, a large group was sent to look for the missing orcs, ostensibly afraid that they would be tired during the search.
Once they arrived at the construction site, they found that the orcs were nowhere to be seen. When asked, the people at the site thought that those orcs had gone home, and it had been three days since they left. They were still wondering why they had not come back to work by then.
That day, while Lin Qi was discussing the future plans of the tribe with the old priest and the Holy Maiden, an orc rushed toward them in a panic.
“Not good! Not good! Not good!”
Lin Qi and the others were confused. “What’s wrong? Is someone injured?”
“Abalu and the others are missing!” The orc said in a panic.
“What?” Lin Qi jumped up from the stool in surprise.
“Missing? Are you sure?” The old priest said with a serious face.
“Yes, their wives said they haven’t been home for five days, and Denima who is working said Abalu and the others haven’t been at the construction site for three days.”
Lin Qi scratched his chin and thought aloud, “Are they lost? Or did they find something?”
“Absolutely not. Abalu is the best hunter in the tribe. They would never get lost. Even if they had found something, they would have never left without saying a word,” the orc said with certainty.
“How are you so sure?” Lin Qi was a little puzzled.
“Because…” The orc stammered and refused to say anything.
The old priest frowned. “Speak quickly!”
“Because Abalu is very disciplined when it comes to his wife. He loves his wife very much. Every time he hunts, even if he is in a hurry, he would find time to go home and tell his wife. But this time, his wife hasn’t seen Abalu for five days,” the orc said truthfully.
At that moment, the Holy Maiden at the side also said, “Indeed, I have heard about this matter. Sometimes, Abalu’s wife even finds him annoying.”
Hearing that, Lin Qi finally felt that something was wrong. Would a person who loved his wife so much suddenly leave without saying goodbye? Absolutely not, so he must have encountered an urgent situation.
It was so urgent that he did not have time to inform the others.
At that time, Lin Qi suddenly thought of the strange skeleton. He and the Dark King, who had just sneaked in and wanted to listen to the gossip, looked at each other.
They both thought of the skeleton. If Abalu really had not gotten lost, it meant that there was an unknown danger on the Peach Blossom Island.
“How about this…” Lin Qi instructed the orc, “You gather all the orcs. Remember, it has to be all the orcs! No matter what they are doing, tell them to put all their work aside and count how many people are missing.”
If there were some dangerous demonic beasts on Peach Blossom Island, the most important thing was to gather all the orcs together.
However, Lin Qi was not that worried. If that existence was very powerful, it would not specifically target those who were traveling alone. If they attacked at the moment when they were exhausted, the group of orcs would not have any strength to fight back.
Therefore, it was better to see how many people were lost first. It was hard to say if they were really lost.
The orc rushed over and gathered his companions to call back all the tribesmen who were working outside.
Not long after, all the orcs returned to the gathering place.
Lin Qi looked at the crowd and said, “Quiet!”
After the group of people quieted down, Lin Qi called over an orc, “Line up yourselves and check one by one to see how many people are missing. Also, make sure to keep a record of when they disappeared and where they were last seen. Got it?”
“Yes!” The orc nodded.
Lin Qi looked at the Holy Maiden. “Holy Maiden, you are familiar with the people in the tribe. Help me check them.”
The Holy Maiden nodded and went down to check the number of people.
Lin Qi and the Dark King whispered to each other, “What do you think?”
The Dark King was also a little confused. “It’s hard to say. We stayed on this island for so long, and there was no one keeping watch at night. If there was any creature of intelligence, it would have attacked us a long time ago.”
It paused for a moment and then said, “Do you think… The big skeleton from that day is still there?”
Lin Qi said with certainty, “It’s still there. I went to take a look the other day. Moss has grown on the skeleton. And after a few days of observation, that skeleton should have been the skeleton of an elephant of the Peach Blossom Island. That kind of elephant is said to be about 30 feet tall, and the height of the skeleton was around that exact measurement.
“And this kind of elephant… I’ll call it the spear elephant for the time being. There are indeed other wild beasts that feed on this spear elephant. A few days ago, I led the orcs to kill one.”
The Dark King was stunned. “When did you kill it? How come I don’t know about this?”
“It happened just two days ago, you even ate it.” Lin Qi was a little speechless,
“Oh, I remember now. It didn’t taste very good…”
“… Let’s get down to business. What should we do now?”
The Dark King thought for a moment. “Let’s see how many orcs are missing first. The main point is whether there is a pattern. Generally speaking, the time when demonic beasts or wild beasts hunt is random. When they felt hungry they would immediately catch their prey.
“And if it’s really an intelligent creature, then there must be a pattern.”
Lin Qi pondered for a moment and found that it was indeed the case. “It makes sense.”
After half a day, they finally finished investigating.
An orc reported to Lin Qi, “Abalu was the first to go missing. It was about three days ago. So far, a total of nine tribesmen have gone missing.”
“And…” The orc gulped, seeming to be a little scared. “Two people went missing at the same time as Abalu. Three people went missing the next day, and three people went missing on the third day.”
Lin Qi and the Dark King looked at each other, their eyes full of shock.
It seemed to be the worst case scenario!
Lin Qi looked at the old priest and said in a serious voice, “Announce that from now on, no one is allowed to leave the camp!”
After the orc left, Lin Qi turned around and said to the old priest, “I have reason to guess that there are intelligent creatures on the Peach Blossom Island hunting the orcs.”
He paused. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know this would happen. I will take responsibility until the end.”
After saying that, he was about to bring the Dark King out of the wooden house.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢