Beneath the moonlight and the glow of the burning settlement, Rei and Set hovered in the sky, looking down at the earth below.
The battle continued in the east as before, but the number of orcs there was finally beginning to dwindle. Several other parties that had infiltrated the settlement from various directions had at last reached the rear of the orcs attacking the Axe of the Thunder God, trapping the monsters in a pincer movement.
"A single party providing the combat power of several combined in a pincer attack, huh? They certainly live up to their reputation as an A-rank party."
"Guru."
Though several hours had already passed since the start of the night raid, the thunderous sounds of combat still echoed from the eastern side held by the Axe of the Thunder God.
Min’s mana seemed to be flagging at last, as the intervals between her spells grew longer, yet she continued to unleash a relentless barrage of fireballs, ice arrows, falling lightning, and swirling gusts of wind.
"The orc count has dropped significantly, so why hasn't the one leading them appeared yet?"
Rei and Set alone had killed more than ten orcs. He didn't know the count for the other parties, but they had undoubtedly taken down a substantial number as well. Of course, the one with the highest kill count in the subjugation force was likely Elk of the Axe of the Thunder God, who had been fighting incessantly in the east since the raid began.
In fact, from what he could see from above, the number of orcs currently gathered in the east appeared to have fallen below fifty. Given that, it was abnormal that the individual leading them had not yet shown themselves.
Suspicious, Rei had Set fly over the settlement to observe the ground. It was then that a group moving under the cover of darkness caught his eye—not in the east, where the forces were concentrated, but toward the west.
A normal human would have found it impossible to spot them moving through the dark. Perhaps it would have been a different story for a race with night vision.
Though the darkness had been considerably thinned by the moonlight and the flames consuming the settlement, it was still possible to move while remaining hidden if one chose their path carefully. However, despite the members of the subjugation force infiltrating from all directions, the reason this group stood out was that they were moving as if to head outside the settlement. And the deciding factor was that Rei could see several adventurers participating in the subjugation force positioned ahead of that group.
Fundamentally, for this job, all parties had been distributed among eight locations around the settlement and had begun their invasion almost simultaneously, with the exception of the Axe of the Thunder God in the east. In such a situation, a group moving from the west toward the outside was extremely unnatural, even from Rei's perspective in the sky.
The orcs were being steadily thinned out by the subjugation force. A group was moving through the shadows in the opposite direction of the main battlefield in the east. This group was acting separately from the adventurers who had entered from the west. The moment these facts clicked together in Rei's mind, a ferocious smile crossed his face as he turned a sharp gaze toward the ground.
"I see. This orc settlement is finished. Their numbers are plummeting, and the village itself will burn to the ground before long. Still, for the one at the top to abandon their own and run... that’s a bit much. Set!"
"Guruuu!"
In response to Rei's voice, Set let out a roar and plunged toward the earth. Its target was not the group trying to escape the settlement... but rather the adventurers who had entered from the west and were positioned ahead of them.
Set landed, cutting through air that the burning village had turned as sweltering as a tropical night.
"Whoa!"
Naturally, the adventurers were startled by Set’s sudden appearance. They scattered and brandished their weapons... but they lowered them upon realizing it was Rei, the unusual G-rank adventurer they had grown familiar with, and his gryphon, Set.
"Geez, don't scare us like that."
The one who spoke was a female warrior in her mid-twenties—no, a swordsman. She held a sharply gleaming sword and wore leather armor that didn't hinder her movement. Standing next to her with a staff was a middle-aged man in his forties dressed in a robe. And behind them, exhaling a sigh of relief while lowering her bow, was a short-haired girl who looked to be in her teens—perhaps only slightly older than Rei. She also wore light leather armor.
The swordsman leader and the middle-aged mage were C-rank, and the girl with the bow was D-rank; this was the C-rank party, Scorching Wind.
"Oh, Seto-chan, have you been well?"
Mirene, the swordsman, patted Set's head. Seeing this, the mage, Sulnin, let out a sigh and addressed Rei.
"So, why are you here? I believe you were assigned to the mobile support unit. As you can see, we are on our way to the center of the settlement, and no combat is taking place here."
"Well, we did have a few skirmishes before reaching this point, though," Ekryl, the bow user, chimed in mockingly.
Rei hopped down from Set's back and surveyed the area.
"Rest easy... though that’s a strange thing to say. There’s a group of orcs heading this way from just ahead."
"Oh boy. I thought for sure the orcs were all gathered in the east. To think they'd be coming this way," Mirene said while stroking Set's back.
Normally, Set would have purred with delight, but with enemies approaching, it simply stared sharply into the darkness.
"Most likely. In fact, from what I could see from above, most of the orcs are in the east clashing with the Axe of the Thunder God, and the other parties are attacking their rear as planned."
"Then why are there orcs here?"
"Don't you get it? The orcs are fighting hard, but with the night raid and the pincer attack—not to mention Set and I hunting down several high-ranking species—it means..."
Rei cut his words short. However, Sulnin immediately understood and turned a grim gaze in the direction Set was facing.
"The individual leading these orcs realized they had no chance of winning and fled?"
"What!? But if they're the leader, that makes them the boss, right? And they're running away while abandoning their subordinates and comrades?"
Just as Ekryl's surprised voice echoed, Rei swung his Death Scythe in a sharp arc.
With a sharp ting, an arrow was sliced clean in half and fell to the ground.
"!? Enemy attack!"
Mirene shouted, and Sulnin and Ekryl immediately took up combat stances. Mirene moved to the vanguard with her sword. Ekryl the bow user and Sulnin the mage took positions behind her. Seeing them seamlessly form their formation at Mirene's single command, Rei understood that this was Scorching Wind's winning strategy.
While inwardly admiring their coordination, Rei and Set also took up their usual stances.
Rei held his Death Scythe, ready to unleash slashes or magic at any time. Set stood ready to take flight and provide support from the air.
"...They're here."
Almost the moment Rei finished speaking, orcs emerged from the darkness.
There were five regular orcs, one Orc Archer, one Orc Mage, and one Orc General—a monster a head taller than the others and clad in armor.
"Ugh, not just regular orcs, but three high-ranking species too... It's a good thing Rei and Seto-chan came as reinforcements," Mirene muttered, cold sweat faintly beading on her forehead. She judged that if they had clashed head-on with this group by themselves, they wouldn't have been able to win. Even if things went perfectly, Scorching Wind would have suffered several casualties. In the worst-case scenario, they would have been wiped out.
However, the A-rank monster Set was here. Furthermore, she knew the rumors that Rei had defeated the D-rank party Falcon's Claws single-handedly.
Yet, even with nine orcs before them, Rei was still staring deeper into the darkness. Mirene followed Rei's gaze, and a single shadow emerged as if slithering out of the night.
It was even larger than the Orc General, standing over three meters tall. It wore ornate, luxurious armor and gripped a greatsword that appeared to be a magic sword. Above all else, its dignity—its pressure and killing intent—was clearly on another level.
Mirene, feeling almost overwhelmed, called out to Sulnin.
"Sulnin, do you know that orc? I've never seen anything like it... I’ve got nothing but a bad feeling."
"Impossible!?" Sulnin shouted in spite of himself.
For Ekryl, this was the first time she had seen the normally calm and polite Sulnin lose his composure. However, Mirene had seen him like this several times before. For example, when they encountered a Kelpie while on a goblin mission, or an Alraune Queen while hunting Treants. It only happened when they encountered something far more powerful than their target.
"Sulnin, tell me. That orc... what is it?" Mirene asked, her eyes locked on the monsters.
Sulnin's voice was raspy.
"The king of orcs, the ruler of orcs—an Orc King... It’s a Rank B monster."
"!? ...I see. No wonder you’re reacting like that."
Mirene gasped. A Rank B monster was only one rank higher than her, but she knew the insurmountable wall that existed between ranks. Having overcome the wall between D-rank and E-rank herself, she understood that the guild's promotion exams were no joke.
"This is trouble... To think it would come toward us in the west instead of the Axe of the Thunder God."
Mirene deliberately adopted a casual tone to suppress her panic. Thanks to that, Ekryl managed to regain some of her composure.
In the midst of this, Rei, holding his Death Scythe, spoke up.
"There's no need to be frightened. After all, as I said before, these are nothing more than remnants fleeing because they know they can't win."
His words were laced with unmistakable mockery. The orcs likely understood the emotion behind his tone even if they didn't know the language, as their murderous intent surged instantly.
"Hey, Rei! Don't provoke them. Do you think we can handle this by ourselves!? All we can do is buy time and wait for reinforcements."
"She's right. With our current combat power, I don't know if we can beat them... Even for your gryphon, as an A-rank monster, it's still outnumbered. If it survives but we don't, it won't mean anything."
Rei ignored their warnings as he assessed the enemy.
The Orc King—I'll handle that one. The problem is the other high-ranking species. Archer, Mage, and General, one of each. ...I guess I have no choice.
He let out an internal sigh and turned to Mirene.
"Mirene, I have a proposal."
"What is it?"
"To get through this, Set and I are willing to use a trump card that we keep secret from others. However, if I do, you'll obviously see it. You must promise never to leak it to anyone else."
"...And if I say no?"
"In that case, Set and I will take our leave immediately. You three can figure out how to handle those orcs on your own."
Rei stated bluntly that he would abandon them. His expression was perfectly natural, making Mirene realize that if she said no, he would carry out the threat without hesitation.
"Mirene," Ekryl whispered softly. She was still terrified, and she knew that if the gryphon left, they were doomed.
Mirene sensed her teammate's fear and let out a small sigh.
"Fine, I get it. I promise we won't tell anyone about yours and Set's secret. Is that enough?"
"Yeah. But let me be clear: don't think a verbal promise is enough. Once this battle is over, I'll have you accept Oath Magic. Will you agree to that?"
"Oath Magic?"
Mirene looked at Sulnin, but the mage simply gave a silent shake of his head. He didn't know it either.
"What's your answer?" Rei urged.
Mirene was uneasy, but her mind was made up. The choice was to follow Rei and survive, or to refuse and fight an Orc King alone. If they chose the latter, dying in battle would be the lucky outcome; otherwise, she and Ekryl would undoubtedly spend the rest of their lives as broodmothers for the orcs.
"All right. I'll keep your secret, and I'll accept that Oath Magic too."
"Good. Set, you can stop now."
"Guru."
Set let out a short cry. Until Rei spoke, it had been using its presence as an A-rank monster to keep the orcs at bay. The orcs had instinctively sensed that the gryphon was no ordinary opponent and had been paralyzed by the threat.
And so, the final battle in the orc settlement for Rei and Set began alongside Scorching Wind.