Chapter 23

“Name and background.”

“Vaelin·Rodel, third son of the Verlbus family, ranked 37th in the underground city of Sodasper, defector.”

Drow society is matrilineal, and surnames follow the mother’s line, but family names are not the same as surnames; slaves, soldiers, and servants are all family members but cannot share the family surname.

In Drow society, there are no commoners; female newborns of a family may establish their own family or join another after their entire lineage dies out.

Males can only join a family as its vassal or remain in their original family. Common soldiers, regardless of gender, can only be soldiers, and so can their descendants.

“What are you doing here?”

“By order of my lord Sakavi, I have come to investigate the situation in Loga Canyon and seize the opportunity to kill Count Gash War-Cry.”

“Intelligence reported a large-scale operation last night—where did you go?”

“To Perch Wharf. My lord instructed me to kill Count Gash only after securing sufficient evidence. Last night, my men saw personnel from Count Gash’s residence enter a cultist stronghold at Perch Wharf—I went there to gather proof.”

“Did you find anything?”

“Yes, but it only proves someone from the count’s household was involved—it doesn’t implicate him personally.”

“Where is Sakavi? What is he doing?”

“I don’t know, and I have no obligation to answer.”

“Think carefully—you’re speaking to whom.”

“Ask my lord that yourself!”

“I’m done. You may leave.”

“Thank you!”

Wearing the disguise mask taken from Rast’s treasury, Sakavi successfully deceived the Captain of the Penitent Knights—he could not detect the mask’s hidden aura at his Master-tier level.

A Legend-tier would not be fooled; Legend-tier beings sense disturbances in planar elements and can perceive another’s presence.

On the afternoon of July 15th, Year 1135 of the Red Moon Calendar—or the Year of the Pantheon—the campaign against the cultists began. According to the Church of the War God’s announcement, they received reports from faithful followers that demons had been spotted within Loga Canyon; after verifying the information, they dispatched the Penitent Knights to eradicate them.

Subsequent investigations by the Inquisition revealed Count Gash War-Cry had been involved, and several high-ranking officials of the Luo Sen Empire were suspected as well. The news reached Skullcrusher City at 6:40 a.m. on the 17th; by 4:20 p.m., Prince Vilen was publicly hanged by the Inquisition for tolerating Shenyuan infiltration.

“These people work like amateurs—give us real evidence at least! Just slap on an accusation without investigation or trial? We’re done here. Send word to the Black Forest: mission failed, target dead prematurely.”

“Understood. Should I head to Loka Plains now?”

“Yes. I still have business in Skullcrusher City—you go ahead. Don’t use teleportation arrays; they’re too easily monitored and disrupted at this time. If you teleport out, you’ll scatter all over the place.”

After resolving matters in Loga Canyon, Sakavi immediately flew to Skullcrusher City. One must always give prior notice—rules must be observed when they matter.

“Your Majesty Grun, we meet again.”

“What, did looting Weilin City get you addicted? Planning to do the same here in Skullcrusher City?”

“Your Majesty vastly overestimates me—I’m short on coin, not brains.”

“Enough idle talk. The Throne will handle the cultists—your intervention is no longer needed.”

“Is that so? Let me guess. There are thirty-three Legends in the Red Moon Plane: five from the Wood Elves, one from the Sea Elves, two from the Dwarves, and two from my side. That leaves twenty-three usable by the Luo Sen Empire. How many will you lose in this suppression—five or six?”

“After that, aside from Church members, how many left can you truly rely on? Ten? Can you still spare the energy to deal with the Loka Plains’ undead plague? Can you even stand against the Church’s half-god Patriarch?”

“State your price, Black Dragon.”

“The complete materials and manufacturing techniques for a Wizard Tower.”

“Black Dragon, do you know what you’re asking? Your greed will cost you dearly!”

“But that has nothing to do with what you owe me, Your Majesty.”

“You ask too much—the Empire owns only five Wizard Towers, three of which belong to the Church.”

“Then there’s nothing to discuss.”

“All materials for one Wizard Tower—no manufacturing techniques. No more.”

“Plus two Rings of Saint Beru. Not one less!”

“One at most.”

“Deal!”

The Ring of Saint Beru is not a single ring—it was invented by a man named Beru, who later became a Saint of the War God Church, one of Ferlon’s subordinate deities.

The ring he invented, capable of randomly teleporting its wearer in moments of crisis, was later prefixed with “Saint.” Sakavi desperately needs such a life-saving artifact—he cannot afford another Gop incident.

Having secured his gains here, Sakavi planned to proceed to Loka Plains to oversee operations—to guide his men in looting towns. Ah, no, rescuing towns. Double-dealing fits the era’s prevailing norms.

What does my promised dukedom from Riedna have to do with you, Grun? Seizing lands ravaged by the undead plague is risk transfer. Whether they honor their promises or not, I won’t lose.

To be honest, Loka Plains is a fine place—endless green plains, fields of wheat stretching as far as the eye can see, just like my homeland in my past life. They say this region harvests twice a year: wheat first, then cassava, yielding double the output.

This cassava is hard to classify—part yam, part sweet potato. It grows yam-like vines but has sweet-potato-like tubers, and tastes as hard as wood. But don’t underestimate it—it’s the staple food of the laboring masses.

Unlike humans, the orcs here have no free citizens. Unless one possesses a special skill—trading, blacksmithing, or other crafts—one must toil in the fields.

Don’t underestimate merchants of this era. Once you leave your village, anyone outside might turn bandit—and they themselves often play the role.

Add to that many savage kobolds and gnolls who don’t recognize currency but still demand trade—they must barter, and must guard against being cheated. Many uncivilized subhumans don’t speak Common, and live in remote, isolated places.

To be a merchant here requires literacy and martial skill, knowledge of astronomy and geography, fluency in multiple languages and customs. Familiarity with local customs, consumption levels—all basic skills. On Blue Star, even graduates of top-tier universities might not qualify.

As for becoming an extraordinary being? Just dream about it. With the Luo Sen Empire’s three-point-five-billion population, only twenty-three have reached Legend-tier. Less than one in a hundred million—each is a once-in-a-century genius.

Legend is the peak attainable by ordinary mortals. Beyond that, the half-god tier can only be reached if a deity is willing to reshape your body. Note: it’s merely a chance—not a guarantee. The odds hover around 0.1%.

Dragons, as innate magical beings, ascend merely by sleeping; by youth, they reach Master-tier. Elves, who inevitably surpass the extraordinary after a century or two, are the mainstream elite. In truth, within the Pantheon, few are human or orc—most are magical beasts or subhuman intelligences.

Humans and orcs’ greatest advantage is their short lifespans and high reproduction rates—they overwhelm elves through sheer numbers. The former rulers of the plane, dragons, were likewise defeated by elves. Perhaps the cycle continues.

The wheat of Loka Plains—neither the local orc commoners nor any ordinary person in the Red Moon Plane is worthy to eat it. Transporting grain is unprofitable if too little, and impossible if too much.

As a result, people everywhere eat local staples: rye, oats, cassava, or other plants that grow under extreme conditions.

Loka Plains, rich in produce, is directly ruled by the Luo Sen Empire. So too is the Vunao Highlands, industrialized and the orcish homeland. All other barren lands, overrun by subhumans, are dumped on imperial vassals—to deal with these troublesome subjects.

Every year, nobles die in their fiefs, yet enthusiasm never wanes. The most successful example is Rast the Duke. The more common case is Duke Rudolf Blood-Spear—who regularly raids the wild subhumans under his rule for plunder.

“Such fertile land will be destroyed by the undead plague—poor billions of orcs, who never knew comfort, now suffer this fate. But if they don’t suffer, how can I hold my dukedom steady? Truth doesn’t matter—only what appears to be truth.”

“I’m compassionate—I can’t bear to see them suffer. Watch over things for me. If anything beyond your ability arises, call me. I’m going to sleep.”

Grap: “………….”

Verna: “………….”

On July 23rd of the Red Moon Calendar, the cultists first erupted in Thorn City, the western trade hub, then rapidly spread across the entire Red Moon Plane. On July 25th, Emperor Grun ordered the Second, Eighth, and Eleventh Legions to accompany him to Thorn City to suppress the rebellion.

He appointed Chancellor Ludenborg Blackblade as Viceroy of the Tirolan Continent, commanding the First, Fourth, Fifth, Seventh, and Ninth Legions to quell the uprising. After losing their inside man in Skullcrusher City, the cultists’ strength appeared utterly negligible.

Watching the endless Fourth Legion march down the road ahead, Sakavi felt profound envy—every soldier clad in iron armor, the front fifth composed of Frost Wolf light cavalry, the rest entirely of Rhinoceros cavalry.

Standard orc unit structure: twelve per squad, one commander and one deputy. Three squads form a company, with commander, deputy, scribe, and chaplain. Three companies form a battalion, with one squad each of scouts, archers, and heavy infantry. Three battalions form a banner, with a scout company and a guard squad.

Four banners form a regiment, with a scout battalion, archer battalion, heavy infantry or cavalry battalion, guard company, and priest or shaman squad. Five regiments form a legion, with one banner each of scouts, archers, heavy cavalry, and five hundred elite guards. Ten legions form an army—twelve thousand combatants. Logistics personnel counted separately.

Standard orc squad composition: three scouts, one cook, two archers, one medic, five warriors. The deputy leads the scouts; the commander doubles as a warrior.

Battalion commanders and above must be those who have awakened extraordinary abilities—every orc warrior is rigorously selected.

The orc’s primary mount is the rhinoceros. Frost wolves carry too little weight and require meat; magic in the plane doesn’t mean magic is as common as cabbage. Carnivores, no matter the organization, cannot be raised in large numbers. Frost wolves also cannot be armored—they cannot withstand a single volley of arrows.