Chapter 124: Climax (2)
The earth shook as the World Tree got up. Its roots parted and shifted the soil as it rose with its branches shaking through the air. The orcs took a step back at the unprecedented sight. The dark elves were at a loss for words and stared blankly at the scene. The World Tree was in a state of utter rage.
“Hahahahhahahahahaha!” Only Calmahart laughed uproariously as he took delight in the situation. He raised his double-headed axe high up in the air. He didn’t falter as he observed the colossal World Tree that was the size of a mountain rise for battle. He instead further unleashed his red energy and hyped himself up for battle.
“The day has finally come!” he exclaimed in a sinister voice. His entire body shone with crimson light.
He no longer looked like Calmahart but another entity residing in his body.
“I have been waiting for this day, Reuranka!”
Calmahart’s voice rang throughout the battlefield.
The World Tree cried out and swung its thick branches like tentacles. The dark elves and orcs in its vicinity retreated. This was a fight between Calmahart and the World Tree.
The World Tree emitted green energy as it struck Calmahart, and a gust of wind arose from the force and swept through its branches, penetrated the soil, and scattered debris. But Calmahart was no longer at his spot.
Calmahart had dodged the attack and was now charging forward to swing his axe at the trunk of the World Tree. With a loud thwack, its bark cracked, revealing its inner layers.
“Hahahahahahahaha!” Calmahart began to relentlessly hack the World Tree. With each swing, pieces of bark cracked and fell, and the World Tree moaned in pain. The sight of Calmahart hacking the World Tree with his double-headed axe resembled a lumberjack enthusiastically chopping wood.
The enraged World Tree tried to retaliate and swung its branch with great force. This time, Calmahart failed to dodge and took a direct hit. His body flew up in the air and plummeted toward the ground. He tumbled across the ground for a while from the shock, but he promptly got up again.
He then charged like a madman toward the World Tree as if he was immune to pain. The World Tree swung its branch multiple times to stop him, but Calmahart swung his axe and chopped off the branch. Sap oozed out from it.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!” roared Calmahart as he charged at the World Tree. The two clashed again. It was an epic battle of the gods!
The dark elves and orcs, who had been completely preoccupied by the fight of their leaders, came to their senses and resumed their battles.
Corpses continued to pile up like mountains from the fight between the colossal World Tree and the chieftain, as well as from the desperate combat between the orcs and dark elves.
Crockta suddenly felt lost as he stood in the middle of the scene. There weren’t any orcs charging toward him anymore. He was surrounded by countless orc corpses sprawled across the ground. He turned around and saw a chaotic entanglement of orcs and dark elves, swinging their weapons in a fierce clash.
The arrows of dark elves flew and pierced the throats of orcs. Sometimes, the orcs blocked them with their weapons, and the arrows struck the dark elves instead. The chaos continued.
He could tell how fatigued Tiyo was from a distance. With a worn out face, he was leaning on Anor due to the side effect of continuously firing the General.
Anor, who had been raising the dead, also had a limit to his powers even though he was a talented necromancer. He was just raising enough corpses to keep the orcs at bay.
Crockta quickly moved onward. Amidst the unfamiliar faces, there were some that he recognized-the guard he had met at Spinora and the soldier he had seen at Nameragon whose name he didn’t know. Although they were dark elves he had only met once, he was filled with sorrow as he ran into their corpses on the battlefield.
But the chaos continued.
Suddenly, he saw a face he knew well. Crockta got down on one knee. It was Caska. She was looking up at the sky, unable to close her eyes, with her stomach split open and intestines spilling out. She resembled a doll with her body completely depleted of life.
He recalled the sight of her smiling provocatively at him as she made a confession, the time he couldn’t tell whether she was being truthful or just joking around. She was still alive in his head.
Crockta tried to force himself to shake off that image. He couldn’t drown in his emotions on the battlefield. Crockta burned the sight of her final image in his eyes. She still had her bow in the tight grip of her hand. He placed the bow on her chest and shut her eyelids.
He got up again and saw Ladet slashing orcs with his bastardsword. Crockta ran toward him, but before he arrived at Ladet’s side, an orc chopped off Ladet’s wrist with his halberd. His hand flew in the air. Ladet staggered as he spewed blood. The orc’s halberd didn’t stop and went for Ladet's throat.
Crockta charged and deflected the orc’s attack. The Ogre Slayer charged at the orc’s body.
The orc endured Crockta’s attack because he was quite skilled, but he lost his balance at the continued onslaught and crumbled to the ground. Crockta plunged his greatsword into the orc’s head. There was no searing pain at his last breath. He collapsed without a sound.
Ladet, who had lost his hand, clutched his wrist and looked at Crockta. Crockta rested his hand on Ladet’s shoulder instead of saying anything. The dark elves in charge of medical treatment ran toward Ladet.
Crockta went past them and walked toward Calmahart fighting with the World Tree. He had to slash the chieftain.
The World Tree swung its branch and attacked Calmahart, who deflected it. Each time his double-headed axe cut the branch, sap spewed out. Calmahart was overpowering his opponent with a new momentum. The World Tree wasn’t fast, and all of the branches it swung were chopped off by Calmahart’s axe. The demonic crimson energy exuding from Calmahart’s body ripped apart the World Tree’s green energy into pieces.
“Crockta.” Before he knew it, Kaburak was at his side. “That is no longer Calmahart.” Crockta looked at Kaburak, who continued to explain, “That thing has swallowed Calmahart’s mind by taking advantage of his greed and desire for strength. That is no longer chieftain Calmahart, but a monster in an orc’s disguise... No, a demon.”
Crockta nodded. He had sensed this a while ago. He felt that Calmahart was always possessed by something whenever he unleashed frightening powers. And there was always the unidentifiable sorcerer behind him.
Kaburak looked at Crockta as he said, “If we let this continue, the North will be devastated.”
“But that’s if we let this continue...” Crockta didn’t take his eyes off Calmahart, who was the epitome of a berserker as he erupted in a frenzy of laughter and relentlessly swung his axe at the enormous World Tree. Each time he struck his axe, the surface of the World Tree exploded. He wanted to obliterate everything in sight.
“Yeah, if we let things continue. Hahaha,” laughed Kaburak. “Crockta.”
“Kaburak.”
“Are you going to fight?”
“Of course.”
Kaburak grinned and took the lead. “Then, let’s go.”
Crockta wasn’t sure what Kaburak, who no longer had combat abilities, was going to do, but he was filled with determination. Crockta followed him.
Calmahart continued his face-off with the World Tree without realizing Crockta and Kaburak were nearby. The chieftain was sometimes forced to defend himself, but the World Tree was no match for his double-headed axe.
Calmahart’s powers were superior to the World Tree’s in battle. The nature of the powers that surrounded them were different in the first place. Calmahart’s powers were those of utterly destroying the enemy.
“I will begin,” Kaburak began chanting a spell. He shouldn’t have much magic left in him, but the flow of the air began to shift. Crockta’s eyes grew wide. For some reason, magic continued to flow out of him even though most of it had been depleted from his battle to save the universe.
“Kaburak!”
Crockta realized that Kaburak was sacrificing the bit of lifespan he had left to cast a spell.
“If you use any more of your magic...!” exclaimed Crockta.
Kaburak grinned instead of replying. Crockta shut his mouth. He couldn’t reprimand Kaburak. He also had to bet his own life. Everyone had to put everything they had on the line to stop Calmahart. This war could only end at the cost of many sacrifices.
Then, Kaburak’s spell along with his hand gestures drew out magical powers that charged toward Calmahart.
Calmahart finally noticed their presence and looked behind. His expression instantly changed when he saw Kaburak. “You!”
Kaburak’s sorcery wrapped around Calmahart and began to push away his red energy. The inverted cross sign on Calmahart’s forehead flashed. The form of the entity that has resided in Calmahart’s body began to rise above his head as if two distinct beings were being separated. Its body writhed as it resisted the spell.
“Not a chance!”
Crockta could clearly see it. The thing above Calmahart had the grotesque form of a demon lord. The horrifying demonic figure was shrouded in a cloak of dark crimson. The exposed creature glared at Kaburak and Crockta. Its form repeatedly overlapped with Calmahart’s and then separated as if Kaburak was trying to split up the two. The sight resembled a camera unable to focus and blurring one form into two.
Kaburak shouted, “We meet again!”
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
“You aren’t Calmahart, the chieftain, or an orc!”
Calmahart grabbed his head in pain. Kaburak’s sorcery was pushing him over the edge.
“Reveal yourself!” shouted Kaburak.
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
“Who are you?”
“I’m...!”
Calmahart’s eyes turned red. At the same time, the apparition of the demonic form above his head disappeared. Everything turned quiet.
All of the dark elves and orcs stopped fighting at the unexpected situation and looked at Calmahart. Calmahart stood straight as a rod and then said, “I’m Chaos.”
He took a step forward. The World Tree behind him was oozing sap from its cracks after having been struck by Calmart’s axe several times.
The branch bent over to attack him, but it flinched and paused as Calmahart raised his axe. Calmahart smirked as he looked at Kaburak and Crockta. The thing had completely taken over Calmahart’s body.
“I’m the one who plunged the world into war and famine, a being who purifies the world with screams and cries, and the nightmare you have created yourselves. I am Chaos. The foolish and greedy Calmahart accepted me, and I gladly came to turn the world into endless chaos with his body. I will kill all of you, get rid of the foolish World Tree Reuranka, and drive the continent into a firepit of endless war. Cry out in despair. That’s why I have come here.”
He gripped his axe tightly and raised it up in the air. It was covered in the blood of countless dark elves. “Kill the elves. Follow me and make the world fall into chaos. Repeat: Endless chaos!”
Kaburak dropped to his knees. His hair had turned completely white. He was unable to get up after expending all of his energy. Then he said, “Crockta, stop the orcs. We now know that’s not the chieftain...”
The tide had already shifted. There were way more orcs than dark elves. The dark elves were barely hanging on by a thread. If the fight continued, the only ones who would remain standing would be the orcs. Then, things would go according to that demonic entity’s plan.
Crockta looked around at the orcs. The orcs were startled by Calmahart’s sudden change in attitude.
“Abandon foolish hope, Crockta.”
Before he knew it, Calmahart was near him. Crockta quickly retreated. Calmahart was looking down on him with his axe resting on his shoulder. Crockta felt like he could see the demonic entity he had seen earlier above Calmahart’s face.
“Orcs only obey the chieftain.”
As a sinister energy erupted from Calmahart’s eyes, the red powers residing in the orcs’ bodies stirred. The orcs bared their teeth and growled. The frenzy of battle and craving for blood began to spread again. They no longer looked and acted like orcs.
Calmahart loudly roared. The orcs responded by raising their weapons.
“I, Chieftain Calmahart, command!” Calmahart pointed at Crockta and Kaburak. “Kill them!”
Orcs began to slowly surround them. The dark elves no longer had the strength to support them. All of their reinforcements were dead or injured. The orcs’ victory was imminent.
“Ahh...” Kaburak closed his eyes.
He had sacrificed his lifespan to reveal the god’s identity, but he hadn’t lifted the orcs’ loyalty toward him. The chief’s commands were absolute to the orcs. The orcs were possessed by the demon’s madness and loyalty toward the chiefdom. Their priority was to carry out the slaughter he commanded regardless of Calmahart’s true identity.
“There isn’t a way out,” muttered Crockta.
He didn’t see a way out anymore. Calmahart had become a complete monster and had even half-destroyed the World Tree. Most of the dark elves had fallen. They lacked everything and were inferior in strength and numbers. The North would soon fall into that demon’s hands.
“Is this it?” He couldn’t always win on the battlefield. They had been at a great disadvantage from the start. He had struggled ‘til the end to win, but there wasn’t anything he could do anymore. Right then, an orc walked out from the chiefdom’s side.
“Everyone, stoooooooop!”
Everyone’s eyes headed toward him. The orc raised his axe at Calmahart.
***
Shireuga couldn’t believe his eyes when a demonic apparition rose from the chieftain’s body. That wasn’t Calmahart, but something in Calmahart’s disguise. It had called itself Chaos. He now fully understood the nature of the trepidation and suspicions he had felt up to this point. The entity was probably one of the countless ancient deities buried in the past whose origins had long been forgotten.
“Kill them!” commanded the chieftain.
His body moved on its own. The chiefdom followed the chieftain; it was the law they had observed for many years. With the chieftain’s command, the red energy swept through his head and muddled his thoughts, so he could no longer think properly. Battle instinct, craving for blood, and violence filled his head. He wanted to immediately kill his enemies and lick their blood.
Shireuga desperately resisted. It was a fight with the destiny of the North and northern orcs on the line. He had to stop that thing. He was the son of the Great Warrior Shiktulla of the Iron Axe Tribe.
‘Where are warriors who know honor?’ Shireuga thought of Crockta’s shout that had sent an adrenaline rush through him. ‘Honor. Northern orcs had honor too, but that demon was covering their eyes.’
Shireuga took a step forward and shouted with all of his might, “Everyone, stoooooooop!”
All of a sudden, the orcs came to a stop. Countless red eyes were headed toward him. For some reason, laughter seeped out of his mouth.
It was strange. He had continuously doubted himself as he followed the chieftain’s orders. His heart wavered as if he was doing something very wrong even though all of the chiefdom orcs were doing the same thing. But now, an unknown certainty filled his heart to the brim as he disobeyed the chieftain and put himself in danger.
He didn’t care if something went wrong, and he ended up dead. It wouldn’t be shameful. He experienced an emotion he hadn’t felt in a long time. It was pride. He was confident about the decision he had made. With his renewed determination, the madness that had clouded his mind diminished.
“I no longer acknowledge you as the chieftain,” said Shireuga to Calmahart.
Calmahart smirked. “Shireuga. An idiot who can’t hold a candle to his father. Nothing will change just because a small fry like you disappears.”
“Don’t mention my father when you have sold your soul! He was a real warrior!” Shireuga raised his axe and charged at Calmahart with all of his might, but Calmahart sent him flying with a light swing. There was a vast difference in strength.
Shireuga pitifully rolled across the ground. He somehow managed to get up. However, his insides had become a mess from that single attack. The sky looked as if it was spinning as blood surged from his throat.
“Is this all you got?” muttered Calmahart.
He was a monster. Shireuga glanced around him. The chiefdom orcs were still looking at him with those frenzied red eyes. There was only one way to rescue them, but it wasn’t something he could do.
“Crockta.”
Shireuga had always observed him from a distance. It was his first time facing him. ‘An orc who uses a huge greatsword, wears a red bandana, and has tattoos running all over his body. An honorable warrior from the continent.’
Crockta returned his gaze. Shireuga beckoned him. Crockta squinted his eyes and then slowly approached him. Shireuga whispered something to him.
“...” Crockta’s eyes grew wide at what Shireuga had said. Crockta looked at him with surprised eyes. “Is that true?”
Shireuga grinned and spit out blood. “Crockta, we are also orcs.”
“...”
“We have fallen because the chieftain has succumbed to an evil god, but we have our own sense of honor. We didn’t forget our roots just because we have been entranced by an evil energy. All of the orcs here at least remember that.” Shireuga’s eyes glistened as he spoke.
Calmahart raised his hand disapprovingly at Shireuga and Crockta’s exchange. He was signaling their execution to the orcs.
“Crockta,” said Shireuga with a wide grin. Then, he grabbed Crockta’s arm. “I beg you. Please save us.”
Crockta nodded and then looked at the chieftain with a calm look in his eyes as if the chieftain wasn’t a threat at all.
Calmahart responded with a sinister laugh. “Hahaha, what’s the point of talking when both of you will be dead soon anyway? Just watch the world fall into chaos from the afterlife.”
“Calmahart.” Crockta ignored his ridicule and raised his greatsword. “I came from Orcrox, a place on the continent beyond the boundary.”
Calmahart tilted his head curiously at Crockta’s unexpected words. “Why are you saying this all of a sudden...?”
But Crockta didn’t stop. “My teacher was the great warrior Lenox. I have inherited the Warrior’s Commandments from him. I carry out what I believe in and fight even if death stands in my way. I know that honor is greater than death.”
Crockta’s calm voice rang throughout the battlefield. Then, he pointed the tip of his Ogre Slayer at Calmahart. “I’m an orc and a warrior.”
Calmahart’s expression suddenly grew stiff as he realized the situation. Crockta was invoking the most important law of northern orcs and challenging Calmahart to the most sacred duel that no one could intrude on.
“My name is Crockta.” Crockta’s eyes glistened with murderous intent. “Calmahart, I challenge you to a duel for the position of the chieftain.”
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