"...The Sorcerer. Just who is that man?"
The old orc let out a heavy sigh. In the past, spirited subordinates would have approached, saying it was nothing and that they would catch and kill the bastard immediately. But the orcs' confidence had significantly dropped due to the consecutive events they had suffered.
The old orc muttered with a bitter face.
"The only 'Tusk' we had left is broken. The Matriarchs who steadfastly supported Orkma are trembling in fear. The regular members of Orkma are fleeing one by one. Not from the Sorcerer, but from our Orkma. Snort. We are a laughingstock now. No one fears us. When I went out to the streets today, some bastard at the butcher shop was shouting at the top of his lungs that he was openly selling pork, claiming he had to turn them all into sausages and store them in the warehouse because of someone."
"Which bastard is it? I'll go kill him!"
"That's the problem, we can't do that."
The old orc answered self-deprecatingly as he looked at the young orc who stepped forward in fury.
"He touched Obely's Sapien. Even if we were caught in the Sorcerer's machinations, it was a painful blunder. Now, the City Guard perceives Orkma as a dangerous group. They cast suspicious glances at the mere sight of Pig Beastmen, and are ready to lock us up the moment we cause trouble."
"Isn't that the same as usual!"
"No. Usually, they didn't care about us at all. They didn't even treat us as fellow humans."
No matter how many Pig Beastmen there were, and no matter how well Orkma hid, there was a limit. If they were stronger than Ende's public authority, they would have built their own city.
Orkma merely hid within the crowd and acted for the interests of the Pig Beastmen; it was a foregone conclusion that their power would shrink the moment the situation escalated and Obely responded.
Z2dKbDJFSCtSbEo3WFlpUEN0eDQxUmpOTlNFakpPekVCUytMVnhKaE5JbWxSVXlnanl4a3JhQmYzY1RQRGZneg
"Those Obely bastards, they never cared about Ende's security usually, but the moment an official is attacked, they arrest everyone left and right!"
"It must be the Sorcerer's machinations. Damn it. Just what kind of guy is he... Looking at his actions, he seems well-versed in Ende's ecosystem. He might have stayed here for at least ten years."
"Why did a guy like that move now, of all times! There has to be a reason. A reason for doing this!"
In truth, the Sorcerer had not even been in Ende for a month, and he was acting for the very simple reason that he didn't want to hear any nagging. But the orcs, who couldn't possibly know such circumstances, found another reason.
"There is something I suspect to be the reason."
All eyes focused on the old orc. The old orc rose slowly from his seat and said.
"Grull of the Beast Faction. You all know him, right?"
At those words, a complex silence lingered even among Orkma's leadership.
Not all Pig Beastmen are the same comrades. Some live peacefully within Ende's order, while others harbor resentment and operate in the shadows like Orkma. But even that is a story that takes place within Ende.
The Beast Faction are savages living in the harsh lands of the Ende Plains.
The Ende Plains are a blessed land. For humans, and for beasts. Lush vegetation grows on the fertile soil, and the flesh of the herbivores that graze and grow upon it grows plump.
Then, the beasts that prey on other beasts flock in. They must fight endless battles against this harsh nature, other predators seeking to monopolize the prey, and prey that is never easy to catch. Whether they die of old age or die of weakness. Until death, either way.
The Beast Faction survived there.
Just as humans cultivated their own civilization, the Beast Faction also uses their own script, wears clothes, and builds houses. However, that proportion is less than half compared to ordinary humans. For most of their time, the Beast Faction struggles to survive.
Since Qigong was introduced, that struggle included Qigong training. The Beast Faction learned and used Qigong to survive. Their Qigong, which evolved in its own unique direction, produced a miracle.
An orc who reached the Dao, Grull. The glory of the Pig Beastmen.
"The impending battle with the Wolf King. It seems he will join it as well."
"...I heard he fears the Beast King."
"It seems the news that there is a Hound King on our side has reached them. And the boy who brought the Hound King is also said to be a powerhouse comparable to the Beast King. It seems that fact had some influence. We, who cause trouble despite being fellow Pig Beastmen, must have been an eyesore."
Obely's confidential information, which he must have heard from somewhere, spilled from the old orc's mouth.
Shei is not delicate, but he hates troublesome things. So when he went to Obely, he firmly requested that matters regarding the Hound King be kept confidential. It would be annoying if Dog Beastmen who learned of the lair flocked in.
Ende's Mayor, Trevor, faithfully kept the secret in his own way... but unfortunately, the secret he tried to hide had leaked down to the lowest places of Ende.
The orcs who heard the information twitched their broad noses.
"Snort. If Grull is coming, the Pig Beastmen will take on a major role in this battle..."
The glory of the Pig Beastmen stepping forward as Ende's vanguard was certainly good news. However, the Pig Beastmen could not accept the glory purely.
Because,
"The problem is that those Pig Beastmen are not 'us'. The Blind Fighter Grull has no interest in the human rights of Pig Beastmen!"
Because individual glory is not the glory of the species.
Where there is light, there is shadow; a dragon raised in the sewers despised the place where he was born. The ones who felt the most intense hatred towards him were the bugs of the sewers watching their fellow species ascend alone.
"He is arrogant! Spouting nonsense that the mistreated Pig Beastmen lacked effort!"
"Reaching the Dao is something even that promising genius Sapien couldn't do! Something that is a miracle in itself, he makes it sound like anyone can do it!"
"If he comes after telling us to train instead of whining, will he help us? He'll ignore us, go up to Obely, and receive the same treatment as other officials! He won't even need to cut his ears and tail. Qigong that has reached the Dao is a qualification in itself!"
They feel inferiority towards humans, but towards Grull, that feeling is mixed with a sense of betrayal. A fierce and painful reaction, like loaches sprinkled with salt, shook the Pig Beastmen. Only after the emotion, close to a seizure, had swept through did the old orc open his mouth.
"He is still our kin. That is an unchanging fact."
It was true. The glory of the Pig Beastmen certainly brought glory. After Grull's appearance, all claims that Pig Beastmen were to be ignored, looked down upon, or lacked aptitude disappeared. From Obely's officials to the strongest unit named Obelisk, everyone was conscious of him.
The dream realm that even Obelisk, reigning like a king in Ende, failed to reach. Pig Beastmen stand at a pinnacle that cannot be reached by learning and effort alone, but only when talent and luck overlap. They were too outstanding Qigong Masters to feel inferior to.
"The fact that Obelisk only imprisoned us after catching our Orkma was also done with him in mind. They probably wanted to lock up the troublemakers before Grull joined Ende. I heard that the First Tusk Urkfang and some members are doing quite well in Obely's prison."
"Isn't a prison still a prison, even if it's Obely's?"
"The cells there are bigger than your house. Snort, though they won't give a single room to a single orc. It means they care about Grull in their own way."
Once again, the old orc spilled information he had heard from somewhere. A few young orcs who heard the story made complicated expressions.
"We will soon fight the Wolf King. It is a matter where everyone in Ende must join forces. Especially, the strength of us orcs, who have the largest numbers, is indispensable. Ende will ask for our help, and in return, ask us to die."
"...But the fight is also necessary for us. If the wolf packs roaming the Ende Plains sweep through, we orcs will not be unscathed either."
"If we're going to risk our lives fighting anyway, we need to get everything we can!"
"Grull will take our place in the fight, and he won't do anything we want! Fair treatment? Equal opportunity? Grull doesn't care about such things!"
"This time, we must step up and settle things ourselves. If we don't win it with our own hands, Ende will regress to the past again."
However, the foundation for doing so had been ruined.
Orkma was gradually expanding its power. Hidden in anonymity, receiving the support of countless Pig Beastmen, it was on the verge of rapidly emerging as a single faction. If Orkma had been intact, Obely would have entered negotiations, if only to fight the Wolf King.
But now, that secret and massive organization had been ruined. Not by Obely, nor by the Wolf King, but by a single human.
"If it weren't for the Sorcerer, we wouldn't have had to hide like this..."
"It's because we hide that it doesn't work."
An orc who had been just listening in a corner jumped up. Now that everyone was silent, this was the only opportunity that had come to her. The young and romantic female orc, Tila, made a passionate appeal to the other orcs.
"Let's take to the streets! Gather all the remaining people, and march towards Obely!"
"March?"
"Yes. A march. We need to let our intentions be known. But by operating in the shadows, it will be impossible even if it takes a thousand or ten thousand years. If we don't speak directly, our voices won't reach them. At least once, we need to convey it not only to Obely but to everyone in Ende!"
Marches, protests—the Pig Beastmen had always made vain claims every day. As always, the other Pig Beastmen set out to rebuke her.
"Snort! Tila, you idiot. A march? Are you protesting for the City Guard and Obelisk to arrest you openly? Even if a thousand gather, they'll be suppressed in two hours and end up rolling on the dirt!"
"But if they do that, they will incur the resentment of over ten thousand people. If they ignore the voices demanding fair treatment even while the Wolf King is invading! Nothing will be able to justify them!"
"Do they need justification? The opponents are the powerful of Obely who hold all the power and authority? They can just crush it with force!"
"Grull will help us!"
This time, his name felt a little new.
Grull is of the Beast Faction. He experienced survival of the fittest in the ruthless land of the wild. Because of that, he despises the Pig Beastmen who stay in Ende and eat the scraps.
"I think Grull is right. If we don't act, we won't get anything. Of course, it would be nice if that were power gained through bone-grinding effort. Unfortunately, we weren't even given the conditions to make an effort."
But that didn't mean Grull was callous.
If he were truly callous, instead of gathering the savages of the Ende Plains to build a faction, he would have enjoyed prosperity alone. Instead of becoming the guardian of the Beast Faction, he would have reigned as a powerful figure in Ende.
"We will demand it. At least give us a chance to make an effort. If there is a chance to eat, learn, and grow, we too could reach a new realm just like Grull."
Therefore, even if he despised the Pig Beastmen, he would not turn a blind eye to them. The young orc sang of a dream with quite political, yet at the same time, yearning eyes.
"Grull did it too. I don't think Grull is a special but unique being. The Pig Beastmen have potential! Just as winter passes and spring comes, spring will come to us orcs who have endured the hard times!"
An unrealistic, vain story, like a sweet narcotic.
But Orkma, having been struck by the Sorcerer, needed a narcotic to get high on.