Chương 59: The Wake-Up Rod Bet

When the orc chieftain came forward, the village boundary went quiet again. He stopped between two broken markers. The wet dirt under his feet sank deep, and the iron nails at the end of his club held old blood and mud dried together. The elves were scattered behind the tree railings and ground markers, and Kichan stood in the middle of it all, holding his wake-up rod. The fighting did not stop. Bowstrings were still drawn, and the orcs' shields were not lowered. Everyone merely waited one beat.

The big one had come out, so now it was time to settle the board with strength. Kichan stiffened his shoulders. The stares gathered again.

"Why are you looking at me again." Riphiel answered.

"Because you have been at the center for a while now."

"Since when."

"Since just now, continuously." Instead of answering, Kichan adjusted his grip on the wake-up rod. The orc chieftain looked Kichan up and down. He did not seem to be on the elf side. No elf clothes, no forest markers, and words that did not get through properly. But he had knocked down several of his warriors and blocked the path toward the World Tree. The chieftain laughed low. It was a laugh easier to understand than words. Riphiel lowered herself on the sabertooth tiger.

The tiger's ears lay back, and the tip of its tail slowly swept the wet ground.

"I do not speak orcish perfectly, but what he just said is broadly a challenge to fight."

"I know that much."

"And he called you small." Kichan's eyes went toward the chieftain.

"Don't translate that."

"I already did."

"Why."

"Accuracy matters." Kichan planted the wake-up rod in the ground. Thud. The low sound spread. The smell of wet moss rose instead of dust. Several orcs narrowed their eyes. The elf elder lowered his staff as well. Kichan pointed at the chieftain, pointed at his own wake-up rod, then pointed beyond the forest.

"Let's just do one." Riphiel's eyes sparkled.

"Are you proposing a duel?"

"A wager."

"A duel and a wager are—""A wager." Riphiel closed her mouth, then shouted toward the orcs. Her Orcish was clumsy, but her gestures were clear. If Kichan won, the orcs would withdraw. If the orc chieftain won, the invasion would continue. A small stir went through the elves. One elf on the tree railings lowered his bow, then raised it again at the elder's glance. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. The elder stepped forward immediately.

"You cannot decide for our village—" Kichan's head turned toward the elder.

"Then do you want to hold a meeting?" The elder's mouth stopped.

"Now?" Kichan pointed at the orcs.

"You think they'll wait?" The elder could not answer. The orc chieftain laughed loudly. A low breath leaked between his yellow fangs. While the elves dragged on with words, a human had appeared to settle it with strength. For an orc, it was a far easier method to understand. The chieftain struck his chest. Then raised his club. Kichan nodded.

"Good." Just as Riphiel was about to exhale, Kichan asked again.

"What if I win?" Riphiel stopped.

"He said they would withdraw—""That's the elf compensation. My compensation." The elves' faces hardened at the same time. The elder's eyebrows went up again, and Riphiel froze with her mouth open.

"Why should I do it for free." A brief silence. The orc chieftain laughed first. This time he laughed louder. He beat his chest, pointed at the sky, and raised one finger. Riphiel caught the meaning and blinked.

"He says he will grant you one thing you want."

"Nice."

"However, since it is one thing by orc standards, the interpretation—""That's for later." Kichan nodded. The orc chieftain nodded too. The board was set. At that moment, Dust vanished from Kichan's shoulder. Just moments ago, one black leg had been flicking beside his nape, and now only an empty shoulder remained. Kichan immediately grew uneasy.

"Hey." No answer.

"Dust." The sabertooth tiger growled low. Riphiel looked at Kichan's shoulder too, then glanced around.

"It was there moments ago."

"That's the problem." Kichan searched for Dust in the middle of the fight. The orc chieftain's eyebrow twitched, and the elves' bows swayed along with it. Beyond the broken markers, arrowheads were still aimed at him, but Kichan paid no mind. Beside a tree root. Behind a broken marker. Under a fallen shield. Not there. Then Dust returned from inside the village. From beneath the roots on the World Tree side, where the leaf shadows gathered deepest, one black dot crawled out rapidly.

In its mouth was a fist-sized green fruit. Kichan stopped. The elf elder's lips hardened. The bows of the surrounding elves wavered. Someone swallowed their breath, and someone stepped back almost as if about to kneel. Riphiel said in a very small voice.

"That is an object that should not be included in 'one thing you want.'" Kichan's gaze went down to the fruit in Dust's mouth.

"What have you brought back this time." Dust tapped a leg. An extremely confident flick. The water droplet slowly came out from the end of Kichan's sleeve. This time, it did not block Dust. Instead, it went closer to the fruit. Its small body trembled before the fruit. The elder barely managed to speak.

"A fruit of the World Tree…" The orc chieftain did not understand that word. Instead, he saw the elves' stiff hands and wavering bows. A precious object. A very precious object. The chieftain's laughter stopped. He pointed at the fruit. And struck his chest. Riphiel's hand gripped the sabertooth tiger's mane tightly.

"He says if he wins, he wants that fruit." Kichan immediately scowled.

"That's not even something I stole." Riphiel said.

"Your party stole it, so it is your responsibility." Kichan's head turned toward Riphiel.

"Are you my party now too?" Riphiel answered without hesitation.

"Not yet, but soon."

"Don't be."

"Regardless of my will—""Don't say that either." Kichan's head was starting to hurt. The elves shouted to return the fruit, and the orcs did not lower their shields. The water droplet trembled before the fruit, and Dust was still holding it. Kichan raised his wake-up rod and struck the ground once. Thud. Everyone went quiet. Kichan pointed at the orc chieftain.

"Let's go in order. First, the big one." Then he pointed at the fruit in Dust's mouth.

"Then the fruit." Riphiel paused while relaying.

"If you call it a fruit, the elders—""It's a fruit, isn't it?" The elders swallowed their breath, and the orc chieftain laughed again. The orc chieftain's laughter grew bigger. Kichan put the wake-up rod over his shoulder.

"Let's hurry. I'm hungry."