The orc champion fell to the ground and died, spreading a puddle of blood and dust all around it. After witnessing their dead champion, the rest of the orcs gathered in front of a particular hut.

Borin, Seth, and Piyo had also finished the orc groups targeting them. They swung their weapon to the side to get rid of the remaining blood before walking closer to the hut.

It was clear, the moment the orc champion fell, the battle was already over.

No longer fueled by adrenaline, Tristan felt a sharp pain in his chest due to the stab wound from the spear. He looked around and searched for Layla amidst the carnage.

Finally, he found her being busy healing the heavily wounded Barry with a warm, golden light. When the light shone on his wounds, they disappeared bit by bit.

“Layla!” Tristan gritted his teeth. “What are you doing? I’m hurting here!”

“Of course brother,” Layla said in-between ragged breaths.

Hearing his brother hurting, Layla decided to leave the half-healed Barry, stood up and walked back towards her brother.

Just like before, golden light shone from Layla’s hands and caressed the wounds all over his body, letting them close up little by little. The healing felt similar to having the morning sun revitalize your body, warm, comfortable, and made him feel safe. As the wounds closed up, Tristan felt the pain in his limbs and chest diminish bit by bit before disappearing entirely.

“This is amazing.” Tristan praised. He had seen Layla do it, but feeling his wounds close was something else entirely.

“You owe me some gold coins for this, Tris…” Layla muttered. Though she was tired, it was clear that she was not above joking around with her brother.

“…”

Tristan looked in the direction of Borin and Seth, Meanwhile, Piyo was nowhere to be seen.

“Brother Borin, look at what I found!”

Piyo came out of the hut and shouted in an excited manner.

Tristan thought Piyo found some kind of valuable treasure. Instead, they saw eight short figures come out of the tent. All of them look like normal kids, except with green skin.

“Ah, those are orc younglings!” Borin shouted.

“Not just any youngling, these are all high orcs!” Piyo said.

“Really? Hahaha, this really is a find!” Borin laughed, his expression more excited than ever.

Tristan stared at the small children standing in line outside the tent, mentally comparing the children with the orcs and the orc champion he had to fight earlier. This was the first time he heard that there is a youngling.

… Well, honestly, it was to be expected that they have a youngling. Though they look very different as adults, there was no way they just sprout that big out of nowhere.

The orc younglings are no more than one meter tall and they had the physique of human children. Tristan was still having a hard time believing that the human-like kids he saw in front of his eyes could grow into the big, scary orcs similar to the ones they fought earlier.

“That’s because they’re high orcs.” Barry said, while limping towards them.

“High orc?” Layla raised her eyebrows.

“Yes most orcs grow underground like mushrooms, but rarely, every once in a while there are high orcs that are born among them. These special orcs look a little bit more like humans” Barry continued “seeing 8 of them in one place like this… No wonder this place was guarded by an orc champion.”

Beyond the green skin and the fangs protruding from their lower jaw, Tristan could agree that all 8 of them look like normal 8 to 10 year old kids.

While Tristan was observing them, Borin approached one of the kids and drew his sword. In one swing, he cut off one kid’s clothing and let the whole crew see the kid’s naked body.

“Hah, this one is male…”

Borin calmly walked towards the next kid and did the same thing.

“Now, jackpot! This one is a female!”

The orc kids narrowed their eyes and stomped their feet in anger, but they did not dare say anything.

On their behalf, Tristan and Layla looked more disturbed than anything. While Tristan was able to hold his tongue, the same can’t be said for Layla, who shouted in anger.

“What the hell are you doing!?”

Surprised, Borin turned around and raised his hand. “Hey, calm down girl, they are just orcs, no matter how they look.”

“But still they are KIDS!, stop it!” Layla screamed in anger.

One of the orc kids decided to take the chance as Borin was distracted. The kid quickly separated himself from the others and made a run for it.

However, Piyo noticed the attempt. The short guy unleashed multiple arrows from his crossbow and hit the running kid on the back.

Ssshhhht! Sshhhst!

Two arrows hit the kid. The kid dropped to the ground, small arrows sticking out of his back. As the kid was dying, it kept on gasping for air, before finally, he went limp and unmoving. The act spurred the rage of the other kids, and they all snarled, preparing for a slaughter to their deaths.

Borin shouted his orders and swung his sword.”Kill them! Kill them all!”

Clank!!

Tristan parried Borin’s sword with one of the orcs’ sabers.

“My sister told you to stop, are you fucking deaf!?”