I Have a Task Log

Chapter 314: Chapter 313: The Sleeping Veteran

"You guys go on ahead to Dragon’s Fang Castle. We still have to patrol. Sorry, Colin."

"Alright."

Colin nodded and continued toward Dragon’s Fang Castle with Kase.

"Do all humans think dying in bed is a good thing?" Kase asked.

"If it’s painless, then it’s definitely a good thing," Colin said. "If I have to die someday, that’s how I’d want to go."

"Then just imagine it—the four of us on an ice field or a mountain, facing a Giant Dragon, a Giant, or some other monster. We fight to the last moment, only to be sent flying by a Giant’s club, or scorched by dragon’s breath into..."

"Yeah, I’ll pass."

"After being frozen into a block of ice by a White Dragon’s breath, we could be preserved forever in a ’battle-ready’ state."

"Still a no."

"You’re no fun."

The two of them arrived at Dragon’s Fang Castle as they spoke.

A few veteran soldiers on guard duty saw them arrive and enthusiastically welcomed them into the fortress’s command room.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with the commander, Colin, not wanting to disturb him further, asked for the location of the cemetery. He politely declined the offers of a few old soldiers who wanted to guide them, then he and Kase headed over.

Old John was buried in a large Church on the Golden Plain.

After greeting the local bishop, Colin and Kase entered the graveyard.

Old John’s gravestone was simple, engraved only with his name and a Holy Emblem of the Morninglord. The headstone still looked new; Old John had indeed been buried recently.

Colin wasn’t sure how people in this world paid respects to the dead.

So he simply took out his waterskin and a wooden bowl, poured a bowlful of beer, and slowly poured it onto the empty ground in front of the gravestone.

Colin drew [Burning Blood] from his waist, faced the gravestone, and said, "Thank you, Mr. John. The weapon you gave me came in handy. It banished a real-life Demon—you could say it saved my life."

As he spoke, Kase copied him, pouring out a bowl of ale onto the ground.

Looking at Old John’s gravestone, Colin’s mood eased considerably.

In the slums where he used to live, very few people got to die a peaceful death. Once the elderly lost their source of income, they’d quickly be thrown onto the streets by gangs. Some people in debt were even brutally disposed of by those same gangs.

’Thinking about it, for an old soldier to die peacefully surrounded by his comrades, having resolved his deepest regrets before his passing... it really was a fortunate end.’

After paying their respects, the two left the Church and headed toward the Orc Tribe.

Halfway there, Kase asked, "So, does that mean all humans get buried in the ground and get a gravestone when they die?"

"Are you serious, Kase?" Colin looked at him in disbelief. "We just had a huge battle with a Demon in the graveyard at White Dove Monastery not long ago. Did you knock your head or something?"

Kase waved his hand. "I thought only the humans over there did that... It’s really nice. It feels sort of like an Ancestor Stone, but it looks much better. Have you thought about what you want your gravestone to look like?"

Hearing this, Colin hesitated, at a loss for words.

But having read many books, he could understand Kase’s way of thinking.

In this world, the living conditions for Orcs were terrible; most didn’t live past thirty. So, in the eyes of the Orcs, a few decades of being celebrated after death were far more important than a dozen or so years of living in obscurity.

Or perhaps, most intelligent species with short lifespans placed a high value on honor.

With that in mind, Colin decided to humor his companion and said, "Probably just a stone slab, with my name carved on it."

"My gravestone will be a giant Axe, carved to look exactly like my own," Kase said with a strange laugh. "Yours won’t look as good as mine."

’Alright, so much for ’humoring my companion’.’

Colin immediately retorted, "If you die before me, I’m definitely going to go over and kick your gravestone in half!"

The two continued onward, bickering all the way.

Before long, they entered the northern region of Silverpine Forest.

They hadn’t gone far when Colin heard the deep, rumbling voices characteristic of Orcs coming from above his head. A moment later, several Orc Scouts armed with Hunting Bows jumped down from the nearby trees, gathered around them, and started clamoring in the Orcish language.

He had to admit, the Orcs were quite well-hidden.

At least, Colin hadn’t noticed a group of two-meter-tall, muscle-bound brutes hiding above his head.

After exchanging a few words with the Orcs, Kase turned back to Colin and said, "The tribe recently helped the humans win a few battles and earned a good amount of bounty money. They want us to stay the night."

"Sounds good to me. I could use a rest anyway," Colin nodded.

Seeing this, the surrounding Orcs waved their arms and cheered. One of them split off to lead the way, while the others climbed back up into the trees.

The group followed a forest path and soon arrived at the Orc Tribe.

The Orc Tribe was enclosed by a wooden wall.

Before Colin and the others had even entered, several Orcs came over, shouting Kase’s name, and welcomed them inside.

As he reached the entrance, Colin peered through the gaps between the Orcs to survey his surroundings.

They had built many small wooden huts, but it seemed the Orcs weren’t very skilled at it; several of the houses looked a bit crooked.

In the middle of these huts was a cairn of stacked stones. A wooden stick was stuck in the top of the cairn, and from it hung strings decorated with small, colorful flags that connected to the rooftops of the huts.

The stone at the very top of the cairn was the one where he and the others had left their handprints.

’But after entering, he didn’t see any Divine Emblems of the Morninglord or other Good Deities. The Weston Clan doesn’t seem to care much about the Orc Tribe’s faith,’ Colin thought.

Just then, the Matriarch of the Orc Tribe approached and said, "Colin, Kase, welcome. Where are the other two ladies?"

"They had other business to attend to, uh..." Colin thought for a moment, then decided to address her as the Orcs did. "Matriarch."

"Good child. Dinner will begin soon." The Matriarch gave a kindly smile and patted his shoulder.

She turned, clapped her hands, and began chiding the other Orcs in their own language, shooing them off to get to work preparing the food.

Colin and Kase were led to a tent by the central bonfire. They sat down freely on Beast Hide cushions, where a small table beside them held clay pots of beer, cups made from horns, and snacks like cheese and dried meat.

The two of them drank and chatted while waiting for dinner.

After a while, a few curious Orc children started peeking in from outside the tent.