Stepping one by one into the house, which was entered through a narrow cavity instead of a door, the orcs looked around but found nothing but empty walls. There were no windows on the first floor; a staircase rising from the right corner and a floor formed by stones thrown randomly onto the dirt were the only things they had.
Wind of Death, who started walking upstairs with slow steps, gave a stop sign with her hand to the Elite Ten trailing behind her; it was obvious she was supposed to go to the upper floor alone. Although the wooden stairs creaked with every step, they performed their duty properly and managed to deliver the female orc, who set her foot on the smooth stone floor, to where she wanted to be.
"I was thinking your brother would come, but seeing you wasn't much of a surprise either!"
The voice came from the person sitting on the only piece of furniture on the floor, whose face was hidden by the large hood of his clothes. Even though his face wasn't visible, it was clear he was a man, but it was obvious Wind of Death didn't know who she was talking to.
"Where is our man?"
As her right hand slowly moved toward her back, her energy started overflowing from her body. The upper floor, which was five paces by ten paces in size, was under the influence of the Warrior's Wrath, and if Wind of Death didn't get the answer she wanted, it seemed she would invoke the first word making up her name.
"Him? He wasn't needed anymore, so I retired him!"
The moment the last letter left his mouth, the double-sided axe was right in front of his eye; these weren't the things the Commander-in-Chief of the Orc Empire Armies wanted to hear. A breath later, first the armchair and then the floor split in two, and the members of the Elite Ten popped up on the upper floor.
"I only came to say hello today, but we'll be seeing a lot more of each other, orcs!"
When the voice of the shadow jumping from roof to roof and moving away reached their ears, he had already gone out of the orcs' reach. The Heart of the Sand knew Wind of Death and the Elite Ten were here; the struggle between the two powers had effectively begun now, but in the easternmost part of the continent's northern region, the conflict was officially ongoing.
Even though the thirteen orcs who had come a long way wanted to spend the night resting, this wasn't quite possible. The incessant shooting, the shouts, and that adrenaline-pumping tone of war had prevented sleep from entering their eyes.
They didn't get out of their beds, but they barely endured until the first lights of the morning. The most excited among them was the nameless unit consisting of the ten orcs, and they were standing at attention in front of the massive gate of the castle even before their three commanders took their places.
The mercenaries belonging to the Balsici Family who saw them were surprised at first; they knew very well that their employers were supported by the orcs and druids, but for the first time during the long-running war, they were being supported by having warriors sent directly to the front line, apart from ammunition and supply aid.
Before long, Alyon, Hammerstriker, and Bookworm also appeared. Now they could be sure; these orcs were here to fight alongside them against the enemy practically at their doorstep. With the arrival of their commanders, the ten orcs took position behind them and continued to march in step until they reached the top of the walls.
"Golden Leaf must be holding a serious grudge against you. At the very least, they've gone so crazy as to send an army of ten thousand people here."
While Dimitri, Sasha, Master Leonardo, and Michelangelo advanced from the bastion on the eastern side, Bookworm was watching the siege army relentlessly battering the walls with war mechs.
"Since the other three major Merchant Guilds can easily fend off the attacks coming through the Hell Realm, they too were able to direct all their attention and efforts onto us. As you know, as a result of our Balsici Family's cooperation with you, they all took a hit, and we could actually call this army you see the joint army of the four major Merchant Guilds."
The explanations of the man who approached them while scratching his goatee were things they already knew. His father Alyon secretly infiltrating them to try and thwart the plans to conquer the Hell Realm, countless leaked confidential information, and the Balsici Family controlling all trade done with the Orc-Druid Alliance was more than enough to be besieged by an army of this scale.
"Master, it seems you haven't intervened in the war yet!"
Following the words spoken to the man who was the inventor of the energy shield that enveloped the castle's walls like a membrane and covered it like a dome, the soldiers around started looking at the orc who spoke in anger, but a second later they would be completely shocked.
"Because we didn't have enough offensive power, I had to focus solely on defense. Your arrival will allow a new chapter to be opened for me. It's time to give the necessary answer to those who are acting tough while carrying the weapons of my people in their hands!"
When he touched his apprentice's metallic shoulder, Michelangelo swung his other hand toward the walls in front of them. There were no offensive weapons on this front of the castle, but within a few seconds, all the gaps were filled with strangely shaped metal monsters.
Unlike traditional offensive mechs, these didn't have a single barrel; arms extending from holes opened on a circle two handspans wide merged with the body of the weapon, and long belts hung from the solid steel, which was wide enough for a person to hold comfortably.
"Wow, what are these things!"
Even though his son usually handled the talking, Alyon couldn't restrain himself this time and couldn't hide his astonishment at the weapons he was seeing for the first time.
"My apprentice's new inventions! A new take on traditional offensive weapons!"
The change on the walls had caught the attention of not only those on top of it, but also the side that had been attacking for months to tear them down. A soldier breaking through the front lines ran non-stop to the area where the gold-colored tents were, and handed over the message inside a round tube made of leather under the stern gazes of the two guards who appeared in front of him.
"Urgent message from frontline commander Nikolay to the Grand General!"
The broad-shouldered guard, after taking the message in the hands of the messenger he harassed with suspicious looks, turned around and walked away. His friend hadn't moved from his spot in order to keep the breathless man under observation.
The guard's steps, advancing through the narrow path between the tents pitched practically on top of each other, were hard and rhythmic; almost each one corresponded to the same length. He advanced neither fast nor slow all the way until he came near the tent, which had no neighbors for a distance of ten paces in any direction and was ten times larger than the others.
His journey ended here; the actions he had just performed were now being repeated by another guard, and his gaze was even more condescending than his.
"What is it, soldier?"
The guard, hunched over in front of the man who didn't hesitate for a moment to make him feel the audacity his superior rank gave him, couldn't maintain the upright posture he had kept all along the way. As he slowly extended his hand forward and handed over the leather tube containing the message, his eyes were on the ground, and they stayed there until the other took it and turned his back.
"Sir, frontline commander Nikolay has sent an urgent message!"
The man, who carried his arrogance like armor on him until he reached the tent, started curling up like a cat waiting for food from its owner the moment he parted the wide curtain of the rectangular structure and stepped inside.
"Read it, let's see what he says!"
The answer came from the left side of the tent, from the wide bed covered with white tulles embroidered with gold on top, its metal legs shining even in the dark.
"New weapons have appeared on the eastern walls of the castle where the treacherous Balsici Family is trapped. Along with this, thirteen people whose identities we couldn't fully determine due to the energy shield, but whom we suspect to be orcs, are also watching our army.
Awaiting your orders!"
The guard had managed to read the message uninterruptedly. Even though it would be a situation not worth mentioning at a normal time, managing to do this amidst shrill female screams and male shouts resembling growls was truly a difficult task.