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Orcs had strong stomach, and if need be they could even eat rotten meat.
However, there was one thing that even the least picky of Orcs would never eat.
People flesh.
Of course, the term “people” didn’t apply only to Orcs – it also included the flesh of other civilized species.
Orcs, no matter how savage they may seem, do have a sense of ethics.
It was said history books and records that prior to the war, they did not mind eating them, but after fighting and getting to know each other, they became aware that they were all thinking, conscious beings that deserve a modicum of respect.
“…”
As Bash surveyed his surroundings, he noticed something moving across the river.
Looking at it more closely, he realized it was a hunk of flesh.
A whitish mass of rotten tissue, strewn with purple and black veins, so decomposed it seemed to be melting under the sun – yet strangely, it retained its shape.
A humanoid shape.
It was a walking hunk of rotten flesh shaped like a person.
“Zombie.”
“Oh, yeah, it’s a zombie.”
The zombie took one look at Bash, and it’s eyes started glowing a bright red as it leapt towards the shore.
It then proceeded to sprint towards the Orc.
Zombies, for some reason, hated the living.
Nobody knew the true motive of their actions.
Was it jealousy towards the living that still possessed the “life” they once had? Or was the god of death commanding them to bring him more worshippers?
The zombie followed its instincts and kept on moving closer and closer to the Orc Hero…
And then its right leg got caught in a nearby root, tripping it and sending it flying back into the water.
Not being able to swim and not being able to get its legs back under it, it was swept away downstream.
“So, there are zombies out here, huh.”
“I guess so.”
During and even after the war, the undead appeared in various areas, especially in the deadliest battlefields, where zombies and skeletons were commonplace.
It was commonly believed that those with strong grudges or unfulfilled desires were more likely to become undead after death.
And the front was filled with these kinds of people – many battles, after all, were fought with the combatant’s nation’s very existence at stake.
The warriors dying in fight they could not afford to lose would be filled with regret.
And therefore, there would be more undead in these places.
Siwanasi Forest happened to be a former battlefield on which the fate of an entire people depended.
So, it wasn’t unusual for zombies to pop up here.
In fact, zombies could even be considered commonplace in the world of today.
They were present within the borders of Orc Country.
Not only could undead Orcs be found there, but also Human and Elven undead – revived from the corpses of the attackers.
Those same undead could be found in Faerie Land, albeit much more rarely.
Finally, of course, they also cropped up in Human and Elvish territory,
Incidentally, no Faerie zombie has ever been seen so far.
It was believed that Faeries, who lived carefree, died without leaving any regrets.
“Let’s go.”
“Ah, right.”
Quickly putting the encounter with the zombie behind them, the pair hastened towards the official border entry into Elven Country.
The bridge was now only a couple of steps away.
This particular bridge had been build just two years ago.
Being the link between Elven and Human nations, it was appropriately named the Elman Bridge.
The name represented the hope that trade and friendship between these two parties would flourish in the future.
It was built out of sturdy stone and was wide enough for two carriage abreast to cross.
In fact, trade between Humans and Elves was thriving to such a degree that merchant coming through with wagons and caravans passed at least once an hour.
Once every whole hour.
Which, objectively, wasn’t all that much.
But relatively speaking, in time when every single country out there was trying their best to revitalize their economy and commerce, it was definitely flourishing.
Given the infrequent traffic, there were only two guards on duty at any time.
Originally, there should have been a tariff or price for entry, but the terms for such stipulations were still being discussed by the Four Tribe Alliance.
The war had lasted so long that no one clearly knew what was done before the conflict, and what to do in the future.
Of course, during the war, there were no such things as taxes or tariffs on supplies coming in from allied nations.
Had they existed, the Beastmen, whose nation had very little coin to spare, might have collapsed under the financial burden.
Most leaders just agreed to let things play out and plug in the holes in the system as they come.
Incidentally, the same loose and easy-going diplomatic relations that went on between the Elves and the Humans also extended to the rest of the Four Tribe Alliance
“You there! Yes, you! The Orc! Who are you? Why are you coming from Human lands? State your purpose! Speak, now!”
The Alliance did not, however, extend the same courtesy they had among themselves to the Seven Race Federation.
They were especially on edge towards Orcs due to the sheer savagery and violence of any clash involving that race.
Not to mention the stray Orcs that occasionnaly flowed out of Orc Country.
Wild and lawless, stray Orcs were a constant nuisance to other nations.
And so, naturally, Bash found himself on the wrong end of a pair of arrows, nocked into the respective, pulled back bowstrings of their respective bows.
“My name is Bash. I am on a quest to look for something. I came here on the recommendation of Houston, the Human General, who told me that the object of my journey might be here.”
“Bash? General Houston sent you…?”
The two Elven men stared at Bash.
They must be on the younger side.
Either they only entered military service near the signing of the peace treaty or didn’t participate in the war at all.
Otherwise, they would have been trembling at the mere mention of Bash’s name, and had they recognized him from afar, never let him get within striking distance in the first place.
Elven veterans, when encountering an unknown entity, would blend and become nearly invisible within the forest, hiding themselves and never coming within fifty arm’s reach, using their magic to project their voices and interrogate any intruders from afar.
Only fresh-faced recruits would act this recklessly.
“Hey, did you hear what he said?”
“Shut up, let me focus, an Orc is coming this way.”
“He said he was just a traveler.”
“So, you think we should let him through?”
“Not sure. We were told to not let stray Orcs pass… is he a stray?”
“Don’t ask me. Not like I can tell the difference.”
The two of them were flustered by Bash’s dignified attitude.
If he was a stray, he would have already attacked if they had stopped him like they did.
Or perhaps they wouldn’t even have had a chance to stop him, as stray Orcs were also known to instantly deal with any potential obstacle by yelling out their Warcry and charging into battle.
The fact that this Orc in front of them had done neither made them think that he was maybe not a stray…
However, it was also possible that he was lying.
Decisions, decisions…
“Hey, you two! This mister here isn’t a stray Orc!”
And then Zell stepped up to the plate.
She flew up to the Elve’s faces and began her speech.
“Hello, la…uh… gentlemen and gentlemen! Let me introduce you to the Hero of the Orcs, the one and only Bash! He is the savior and greatest warrior of the Orc Country! A representative of all Orcs! A real VIP! And if a great man like him is travelling, then its obvious that he has the permission and blessing of the Orc King! Do you get it?! If you call him a stray Orc, then all the Orcs in Orc Country are strays! Now then, I’ll forgive your little blunder of not recognizing an incredible personage like him and let this slide. You both look pretty young, and the young make mistakes! Clear the way now, chop chop!”
And finally, to follow up on her little monologue, she rattled off a litany of praise for Bash.
The strongest, invincible, fierce, mighty…The two young Elven guards frowned at the Faerie’s endless blabbering that could only be matched in scale by an Elder Elf telling a story about themselves.
“You know any of this?”
“I don’t know of any Orc celebrity. You, you’re lying, aren’t you?”
“Suspicious…”
“Yeah, really suspicious. I don’t believe a word that comes out of any Faerie’s mouth anyways.”
The Elves had a saying: “A Faerie’s instruction causes great destruction”.
The story behind the saying went as such:
There once was an Elven traveler.
In the midst of his journey, he noticed there was a hole in his canteen.
He quickly plugged the hole, but the water was already long gone.
Thirsty and lightheaded, he wandered through the forest in search of a source of water, when a Faerie appeared and said: “This way, this way! There’s water over here! There’s 100% water if you follow me!”
The Elven traveler, being desperate, trusted and followed the Faerie, and sure enough, after a while of walking, they came across what appeared to be a pond.
Overjoyed, the Elf jumped into the water.
But moments later, he let out a shriek.
In his excitement, he hadn’t realizer that this was a hot spring.
And all the Faerie did was laugh at the poor man’s misfortune and scalded face.
In other words, Faeries are born pranksters whose words are full of misdirection, and you shouldn’t rely on them to give advice when it comes to important decisions.
However, it was only recently that this saying has become widespread.
During the war, the citizens of Elf Country didn’t have the time to travel like the man in the story did – not that they had much contact with the Faeries anyways.
It was more than likely that the saying was born to warn Elves from Faeric deception during the war, and the story was only made up afterwards to make it more palatable.
Anyway, the two Elves did not seem convinced.
“So, you’re saying you won’t let us through?”
“Exactly! No dirty Orc like yourself will enter Elven lands!”
“Hmm…”
If they couldn’t make their way in, Bash would be troubled.
If the pair were just wandering around without a real destination, they could have easily just turned around, shrugged it off, and say, “Well, let’s go to another country”.
But right now, he was working off information given to him by “Houston the Swine Slayer”.
Bash thoroughly believed that there must be a beautiful Elf within Siwanasi Forest that would be willing to become his wife.
Given the end goal of his journey, there was no way he could pass up on this opportunity.
Of course, this was just some minor, individual purpose – not some grand quest.
There was no real reason to force his way through.
However, if he was going to be denied entry simply because of his race – because he was an Orc, then Bash could not back down.
There were no laws in place that stated that Elven nations would not admit entry to Orcs.
There was no fault on the Hero’s side.
“Hey, what’s the hold up over here? Stop blocking the road!”
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