At the two ends of the lands of the Mercenaries' Lodge, different calculations were being made. The Four Major Merchant Guilds relied on their allies, whom they leaned their backs against to fend off the orc threat, and the passes formed by the mountain ranges that naturally divided their lands into three.
Crossings could only be made from certain parts of the continent; in this state, the Mercenaries' Lodge, which somewhat resembled the Orc Steppes, was a geography at least as chaotic as its original state. The chaos was unceasing; a stable social life wouldn't suit the merchants; if there was turmoil somewhere, opportunities for profit would follow right behind.
Contrary to their mindset, the first thing the orcs did as soon as they took lands under their dominion was to establish order. When they captured the Arid Region, they set the standards for the army, mining, and societal rules.
When they conquered the region where the City of Parthenia was, they continued their trade life, which they started with Nikonya, within the framework of certain rules. They forced not only themselves but also the merchants trading on the Orc Steppes and visiting the Cities of Parthenia and Nikonya to abide by these rules.
When the Wild Swamp was liberated, they didn't give up their habits and made sure everything ran like clockwork, and now it was the turn of the Mercenaries' Lodge. Even if they never had a claim like 'we are bringing order', even their most rampant states would pale in comparison to the chaos created by the merchant guilds.
Well, a team in the southwest was doing whatever was necessary to prove the opposite of this thesis; the light green robes of the Elemental Ten, running from front to front under Nafız's leadership, had long been dyed the color of her hair.
The border outposts and castles, which took a completely defensive position upon the 'hold your ground and fight' order from the center, were waiting for an army consisting of at least tens of thousands of warriors before them. If the Blood God hadn't learned about the secret facility where experiments were conducted on orcs, they might have been able to save themselves by surrendering, but after Nafız purged herself of her ties with humanity inside her, this was impossible.
While destroying the Border Castles by taking them inside the shield created by the Elemental Ten, utilizing their defensive position, they didn't even go through such trouble for the troops. In fact, while wiping one of them off the map, the Blood God didn't even feel the need to lift her hand. The Elemental Ten and their Leader seemed to want to prove that druids didn't only possess superior defensive features.
In this region bordering the Hell Realm, there wasn't a single General Class soldier; some were truly people who needed to take one more step to reach this rank, but unfortunately, the one before them was Nafız. If she were here in her state on the Orc Steppes or even the Wild Swamp, they might have had a small chance, and perhaps a few of them could have managed to escape, but after the time she spent alone for centuries, this was impossible.
She had received her lineage power from God Berkut, and Mora's accumulation of knowledge for the Orc Blood Techniques. Her civil war was also over; she carried a male human consciousness and a female human consciousness in an orc body. The orc consciousness bestowed upon her the moment she was born had retreated to a corner for years, making itself forgotten, but after the war where the Royal Family of the Hell Realm was overthrown, she was now a single person.
Perhaps she couldn't live her femininity, the male consciousness was still an obstacle to this, but the orc warrior had started to lead, taking precedence over all her other identities. Upon the battle cry she let out after capturing the last castle and dividing the commander into four equal pieces, there was no need to look for further proof.
"Ma'am, all points on the map given by Bookworm have been destroyed, and not a single person has been left alive. Ignorant of our enemy identity, the operation has been completed without a single flaw.
When Alator, whose long hair cascaded strand by strand to his shoulders, gave his report, the blood of the last enemy he killed hadn't dried on his face. Not only him, but his nine subordinates were completely different from their appearance when they destroyed the first border outpost. They were not the calm druids coming from the Wild Swamp to the Orc Steppes and then, maintaining their cold nature, swept all the way here, to the Mercenaries' Lodge.
"Very good, much better than I expected! I thought you would be sissies like that wimp Ainle, that you would only turn into men after I laid my hands on you, but there was no need at all. The academy we established has done everything necessary!"
Alator and the nine druids lined up in a single file behind him didn't know what to say. The orc complimenting them was one of the two people whose statue was at the entrance of the Orc Military Academy they graduated from, and where she was, not even the Khan, the ruler of the massive continent, powerful enough to kill everyone living on it with a single move, had a statue.
This being the case, they were supposed to die of pride, but on the other hand, the hero of their nation, the man who enabled all other druids to use the Spirit Tree even if they didn't use it themselves, had been called a wimp and a sissy. Caught between a rock and a hard place, the members of the Elemental Ten were in mixed feelings; their faces rivaled the woman in the Mona Lisa painting.
"What happened? Did my saying words to the Supreme Leader of your nation, Ainle, offend you?"
How could she not understand the fluctuation in the moods of those before her? The Blood God had understood everything from the faces that fell the moment she said wimp, smiling again in a second.
"Of course you were very young back then, no one must have told you that he came to bully us with his two friends he brought along and got beaten up, and that his mother took him from our hands with please and grace. We didn't tell anyone either that he was useless for most of our journey, that he acted like a sissy saying it was against his beliefs while his other two friends were killing enemies, so don't dwell on these subjects too much.
Just knowing this is enough; I wouldn't trade a thousand of his state before the power Ainle gained from the legacy dungeon for a single strand of your hair."
Upon the final words, neither sulking nor being surprised would be fitting; due to their chests swelling despite possessing frail physiques, they looked as if they were giants.
"Ma'am, begging your pardon, I ask; could you tell us about the place you call the Legacy Dungeon?"
Nafız didn't look like she would turn down the request of Alator, who gathered his courage and voiced what was on his mind; in fact, judging by her raising a single eyebrow and stretching her lips towards her ears, this audacity pleased her.
"Even if the common folk and low-ranking warriors don't know, I guess you are aware of the subject of Reward Dungeons. Judging by your state, I can easily say you haven't entered even one yet."
The orc warrior possessing blood-red hair wasn't wrong in her guess. Unfortunately, unless you achieved an outstanding success, no matter how privileged your lineage was, it was impossible for you to enter Reward Dungeons.
Even the community named the Nameless Ten earning the right to enter what orcs called the Blessing of the Ancestors Dungeon was thanks to them managing to survive among thousands of people by adapting to the taught techniques. Even they didn't own a Power Animal yet. The Orc Empire kept this place under strict control too, just like the elixir awakening Lineage Power through the Khan's skill.
"No matter how much I tell you now, it's useless; unless you experience a Reward Dungeon on your own, it will be impossible for you to fully understand what I mean. What a coincidence that I undertook the mission of capturing the southern part of the Mercenaries' Lodge, and do you know, these places used to belong to the Holy Bone Sect.
Some birds whispered in my ear that there is a Reward Dungeon here. Of course, if you know me even a little, you must have understood that the bird must have definitely had to tell its location too in order to get away without dying. What do you say, shall I treat you to a Reward Dungeon until the troops the Hell Realm will send arrive?