n

n

nEarly in the dawn before the sun rose, the human army marched and claimed the position that had been determined the day before. The scouts that were sent by the orcs to monitor the human army movement immediately reported this development to their main camp.

nWarlord Abasi who received this report snickered.

"The human was much more agitated to make their move this early,

" he said.

nHe was also in the process of organizing his troops and was just about to have them set out. His aide, Badu Thickskull, a level 55 special elite, asked,

"are they probably trying some kind of trick? The humans are known for their deceits and schemes.

"

n

"Hmph, whatever tricks there is, we will crush them under the strength of the orcs!

" The Warlord exclaimed. His words drew a chorus of recognition from the nearby soldiers.

nHe went to a large wooden podium and addressed the ready troops.

"Orcs! Today we will spill the human's blood and claim honor to our tribe! Every one of you has followed me through numerous battles and I know for a fact that each of you is a courageous warrior! Any human you fells will bring honor to your family and ancestor. The one that managed to capture or kill the human prince, will receive a bountiful reward. Now, let us go and bring glory to our nation!

"

nThe sea of orcs made a concurrent roar upon the speech. The resulting roar was so loud that it could be heard from miles away.

nJack and the others turned westward as they heard the roar.

n

"That's the sound of our enemy?

" Bowler asked.

"Sounds like a lot of them.

"

n

"Stop being a chicken and go to your position,

" John told him.

nJack looked at the landscape, everything was still dark, and it was cold, completely in contrast to the heat when the sun was in the sky. He gazed to the faraway land where their enemy was supposed to be coming from, and said to John,

"by the way, how will you give us instruction? I mean, we will be very far away at the enemy's back. How will you be able to see us so far in the distance?

"

nEven with his Dragon's Eye skill, he was still struggling to see too far away.

nJohn answered him by taking out something from his inventory bag.

n

"That's…

" Jack was astonished to look at the thing in John's hand. It was binoculars.

"Where do you get that?

" He asked.

n

"What do you mean where? I bring it from the Tutorial world. Binoculars were a handy tool, I even wonder why none of you bother to bring one.

"

n

"It can still work?

" Jack remembered his handphone had turned into junk when the world changed.

n

"Of course it can still work. It was just a couple of lenses that let us see distant objects, why won't it work?

"

nJack took the tool from his hand and tried to see through it. He could indeed see distant things.

nJohn snatched it back from his hand. He said,

"now go, while the dark still conceals your movement. You need to hide with the others before this pitched battle started. Don't let those orc scouts see you, or everything will be ruined.

"

n

"Pitched battle?

"

nJohn looked at him as if he had asked a dumb question, and answered,

"it's the definition for a battle where the two opposite sides agree on the time and place of combat. Though in our case, only the time. Now, go!

"

nJack knew the importance of this operation, so he did not postpone it any longer. He walked by foot far to the side from where the army had taken position, behind one of the large sand dunes amongst the many others around this place. The twenty soldiers under him were already hiding there. The other team was hiding at the other sand dunes.

nThe plan was for them to move separately as they made their way to the enemy rear line, from one sand dunes to the others for cover. They would start moving once the armies clashed, when the enemy's attention was focused on the troops they were facing.

nJack laid down on the sand as he waited. Before long, his God-eye monocle showed a cloud of red appearing at the edge of his radar. The Orcs were already considered hostile by his radar since the war declaration was made. He must say, seeing the tightly packed dots forming a solid red cloud was rather intimidating.

nHe crawled to the edge of the sand dune and lifted his head to take a peek. He could see the large cloud of dust even under the dark sky. To be able to create a cloud that large would be a number that he had not yet witnessed before, except maybe in those epic war movies from his real world. And he could be sure this time, that this dust cloud was not made using tricks.

nHe could hear the heavy sounds of hoove steps next. The sound kept on getting louder as the shadows that created it were getting closer. The rumble was as if the sound of thunder, which was rare in this desert region, as it signified that rain was coming.

nThe rumble soon came to a stop as the shadows stopped advancing. The dawn was giving way to the morning as a line of red was seen on the horizon behind the human army. The little light dispelled the darkness and allowed the shadows not far away to reveal their true forms.

nRows and rows of orcs, each as ugly as the one after it, were seen in an unending line. There were so many of them that it was difficult to see where their formation ended. Even from the first sight under his hiding place, Jack could see that they far outnumbered the army on their side. Could John really defend their assault with just 2000 soldiers?

nIt took some time for that many orcs to come to a stop into a neat formation. Not long after that, a portion of the orc army came forward. He could see the one in the lead. It was a larger orc than the rest, which was already larger than a standard human. Jack estimated this one might stand three meters tall, or more. He was riding a large lizard creature, unlike the rest who were riding large jackals.

nHe must be that Warlord Abasi Raretooth that everybody had mentioned.

n

"Humans!!

" This lead orc bellowed.

"The time of reprieve was at its end. Whether you are ready or not, prepare for battle! Today let us honor our ancestors and decide who amongst us that will bring glory back to our countries!

"

nThe orc army started roaring, accompanied by the sounds of drums. 'Did they really bring drums to war?' Jack wondered after hearing the sounds.

nThe warlord lifted his hand and made a sign. The front column of his army came forward in an orderly fashion. They had unsummoned their mounts. They walked steadily at a uniform pace towards the human army that was holding their formation.

nJohn who saw the enemy army coming, looked behind him at the sun that was getting higher, and felt the air that was blowing from behind. He then said to everyone,

"hold the line, let them come.

"

nThe ones in hiding were getting agitated. John sent them a message in party chat to wait. They waited as they peeked from their hiding place and saw columns and columns of orc soldiers marching in the distance. The gap between the marching orcs with the human army was getting shorter with each of the orcs' steps. They could see the orcs huffed and grimaced, the orcs queerly displayed excited expressions in the coming confrontation.

nWhen the two armies were less than a hundred meters from each other, some of the orcs finally could not contain their eagerness anymore and started to sprint out of formation. Many and many started to follow until the entire marching army turned into a speeding army, they brandished their weapons and waved them around as they bellowed excitedly. Their combined running steps churned out a large cloud of dust into the air.

nThe players in hiding could not help but feel their hair stood on end. They were going to fight against this race of lunatic beasts?

nThe human soldiers, however, did not react to such a show of battle lust. They had perfectly accustomed to their opponents' traits. Their armies had been clashing in past occasions after all.

nWhen the advancing orcs hit the fifty-meter mark distance, John finally gave the sign. Commander Quintus followed suit and gave the command to his army. The human army rushed forward in a formation. Their running march was no less powerful than the orcs. Each step was a thunderous rumble that caused the sand in the ground to get thrown into the air.

nDue to the wind that was blowing from the back, the dust that was blown upward followed the human army's march. Creating the effect that a sandstorm was following their march.

n