The group of Orcs held firm in their positions, each of them lined closely within their hiding spots—four of them standing with bows nocked and arrows drawn, while the other four kept their hands resting on the hilts of their weapons.
They remained silent and unmoving, searching desperately for Oliver.
Their supposed prey had simply disappeared without a trace after being struck by the first arrow. This was not something prone to happen when a prey was injured, so they were cautious.
If only they could descend to the scene and check for blood trails. But as seasoned hunters, they knew that would be nothing short of walking straight into the trap of their prey… turned predator.
So they kept their distance.
This was a battle of who would reveal themselves first. And given their prey's current injuries, he would be left with no choice but to do so… sooner or later.
So they waited, locked in an undefined stalemate.
However...
Their caution became a very grave mistake.
SPLOOOSH!
The sickening crunch of a skull caving in stunned all the Orcs in their hiding places.
Their gazes snapped toward Oliver, who had latched onto a female Orc, lodging the crimson, unforgiving blade of his dagger deep into the side of her temple—the sharp end jutting out grotesquely from the other side.
It was a vile sight that froze the Orcs for a split second too long.
"KAYHAACK!" an Orc brayed, dropping its bow and arrow as it yanked an axe from its sheath, lunging forward at Oliver since it was the closest to him.
It raised the axe high, bringing it down with brutal force toward Oliver's skull.
But Oliver was quicker.
He summoned his other dagger and hurled it straight into the creature's throat.
The Orc convulsed violently, its blood greedily sucked into the heinous, blood-drinking blade. Within seconds, it collapsed onto its side—dead.
[Ding!]
[You have killed a Cave Orc]
'Six left...' Oliver thought, simultaneously yanking the corpse of the Orc girl up and using it as a shield to block an incoming arrow from another Orc.
His location was already exposed, and with that, the remaining Orcs were upon him—two with arrows already nocked and ready to fire, while the other four charged in for close combat.
"Shit... Take out the fucking archers!" he yelled at the top of his lungs as more arrows tore violently into the corpse, threatening to punch through and strike him behind it.
They were extremely skilled archers and would become a serious problem as the battle dragged on.
Luckily, the Dark Crow swooped down immediately at his call, latching onto the arm of one of the Orcs just as it tried to release another arrow.
The Orc struggled to break free from the tyrannical grip of the Crow, but despite its monstrous strength, the creature held firm, using everything it had to resist.
"HEEEICK!" the other Orc snarled, firing at the Dark Crow... A shot it barely dodged by jerking its head aside, the arrow grazing its feathers… far too close for comfort.
This would not be an easy battle on its end.
At the very least, it kept the archers occupied.
Now Oliver could focus on the incoming horde.
He released the corpse, letting it drop lifelessly to the ground. Then he summoned his second dagger back into his grasp, patiently waiting for the first two Orcs to reach him.
They did.
The first thrust the edge of a rusted blade toward Oliver's gut an attack that was fast and nothing short of devastating…
But Oliver was faster.
He sidestepped, letting the attack barely graze his gut, then he countered driving his dagger forward and...
"What?!" He gasped.
Crack!
Oliver staggered back, a groan escaping his lips.
Just as he was about to strike, another Orc had leapt in with terrifying speed, attempting to save its comrade its fist threatening to smash Oliver's face into mush.
He raised his forearm just in time, taking the full brunt of the impact, which drove him back several feet.
"Damn it!" he grunted watching as the next attack came without a moment of rest.
A massive axe cleaved through the air toward his skull.
[Short burst]
Oliver snapped sideways leaving the jagged iron missing his shoulder by an inch tearing into the ground with a thunderous boom.
Oliver recoiled instantly fast and unexpected at the Orc, his blade ruthlessly driving through its exposed neck with insane precision.
Blood sprayed into the air in a violent arc, the barbaric corpse of the Orc crumpled to the ground.
[You have killed a Cave Orc]
[You have leveled up]
"Three more..."
[Short burst]
Oliver jerked his head to the side, narrowly avoiding a direct strike of the cold, vicious edge of a longsword grazing his cheek just enough to leave a shallow cut.
He grunted attempt a counterattack, but just as expected, the remaining two stepped in, coordinating their movements and ready to strike it he dared to take one more step further.
He did not...
Oliver leapt back, narrowly escaping the reach of their blades.
He had already gauged their intelligence through the flow of the current battle. They weren't entirely as intelligent as he gave them credit for, sure there was coordination, there was reaction, but in the end, they were nothing more than crude, instinct-driven creatures.
[Stealth skill cooldown 00:00]
[Stealth skill has been activated]
[Short Burst activated]
Giving it everything, Oliver lunged forward with explosive speed, his form blurring as he cleaved through the first Orc's throat.
[You have killed a Cave Orc]
The next swung wildly in panic, its longsword cutting through empty air.
It didn't matter.
Its fate had already been sealed.
Oliver appeared behind it, gripping its bald skull before driving his dagger deep into it with merciless precision.
At that moment, the last Orc hesitated, its body trembling rather than attacking, its terrified eyes darting wildly, searching for a target it could no longer perceive.
SPLURT!
Oliver's dagger pierced straight through its chest, stabbing clean through its heart as the stealth effect faded.
The Orc's face twitched, its lips trembling as its breath grew shallow... its desperate gaze locked onto the man who had ended it's life in some sort of...
Self pity.
'How disgusting.'
Oliver yanked the dagger free and shoved the body aside, indifferent.
Perhaps in his first life, something like this would have shaken him. He might have hesitated… felt something; fear, guilt, maybe even pity.
But now—
"I guess I'm different."
All he did was open his status screen, a faint smile forming at the edges of his lips.
[Your summon has killed two Cave Orcs]
[You have leveled up]
[You have reached Level 8]
[You have gained 90 Karma points]
[You have gained 90 Evolution Karma points]
[Progress report: Bronze Assassin… You have gained new rewards]
Oliver's smile widened slightly.
He turned toward the Dark Crow, ready to brag about his progress as he usually did…
However, it seemed occupied.
It was already attacking another Orc, likely the last one which has hidden from it's keen sight eatlier.
'Farm me good exp, I guess.'
He turned back to the system, scanning through his improvements until his eyes landed on the one that intrigued him the most.
"I fought like an assassin against the Orcs… but I didn't expect a reward for it," Oliver mused.
Curious, he tapped on the notification.
At the section—
[Bronze Assassin]
[Congratulations, Crow, on becoming a Bronze Assassin]
[Here are your rewards]