Buried Ambush

Abel, looking distracted, left the Blacksmith Shop and headed straight for Knight Marshall's study.

The reason he had come was to look at the map and find a place where he could safely dispose of the Super Explosive Greatsword inside the Horadric Cube.

That was how Abel defined the failed greatsword. Just thinking about its power—enough to withstand even tempered steel—gave him a headache. If someone wanted to take others down with them, he believed that even a group of Senior Knights together would not be able to withstand the power of this Super Explosive Greatsword. He wondered how strong the Knight Commander's qi armor was and how long it could last beneath the Explosive Greatsword's power.

While his mind wandered, Abel kept searching the map. At last, he found a place called Ansa Valley, a day's ride from the castle and back. The map showed a cliff there, which was perfect for destroying the Super Explosive Greatsword.

After resting for two days, once his Qi Vein had fully recovered, Abel told Knight Marshall that he was leaving the castle to take care of something. Since Abel was equipped with the Hari Bow, Knight Marshall had no reason to worry about his safety. As long as he did not encounter a Professional above the intermediate level, his life would not be in danger.

On top of that, Abel was now a master blacksmith and had earned the right to arrange his own time freely. No reports of Orc attacks had come in over the past two days, and everything indicated that this attack was about to end. Thus, Knight Marshall did not stop Abel, merely telling him to be careful.

This time, Abel led two warhorses. One carried provisions for warhorses—high-quality soybeans and oats—while Abel rode the other himself.

Just as Abel rode out of the castle, an ambush was unfolding in Nai Valley, in the direction of Ansa Valley, where he was headed.

Knight Saloyan was a Senior Knight and also a lord. He had followed the city lord, Viscount Dickens, for many years and commanded an elite force of a thousand men. Although his status was noble, there had been few wars in recent years, making military merit difficult to obtain. He was still a landless lord, and his longing for a fief and desire to pass down his title had made him eager to join a war and earn enough merit.

However, Harvest City lay deep within the human world and was extremely safe geographically. Apart from a few small-scale battles, it had always been a land of peace.

A few days ago, Knight Saloyan received an order from the city lord, Viscount Dickens, instructing him to lead his elite force of a thousand men to Nai Valley and ambush the Orcs. From the moment he received the order, Knight Saloyan had been exceptionally excited. So many soldiers had been deployed, along with two Senior Knights and thirty Knights to join him in the ambush. The enemy's numbers had to be enormous.

Senior Knight Bernal and Senior Knight Hope were both born to fallen noble families. By the time their family titles had passed down to their generation, demotion had already made them impossible to inherit. The glory on their ancestral shields had dimmed. Although they possessed talent for knight cultivation, without titles, they could only become family knights of the city lord, Viscount Dickens.

Family knights received extremely generous treatment, but their positions could not be passed down. The two Senior Knights had always been looking for an opportunity to restore the glory of their ancestral shields.

When the three Senior Knights met, all of them knew that their chance to gain military merit had arrived. The thirty Knights and thousand elite soldiers all held a fire in their hearts. When they set out, their morale was soaring, and everyone looked forward to battling the Orcs.

The army had now been in Nai Valley for three days. All the scouts had been sent out to investigate, and everything was ready. They were only waiting for the Orcs to appear.

Knight Saloyan sat on a rock, looking down at the map of Nai Valley. Mountains surrounded the valley on three sides. Two sides consisted of steep, difficult-to-climb slopes covered in thick thorns. Those two slopes were dead ends. Knight Saloyan's troops were concealed atop the last slope, which was extremely gentle.

"Report!" A scout leaped down from his horse, saluted, and shouted his report.

Knight Saloyan turned to the scout, whose head was drenched in sweat, and asked, "What did you discover?"

"A small group of Orcs has appeared to the south and is heading toward the valley. They are expected to arrive in twenty minutes."

"Keep scouting." Knight Saloyan waved his hand, then looked toward his adjutant and ordered, "Have everyone use the Scent-Masking Powder."

The Scent-Masking Powder was a medicinal powder developed through years of warfare between humans and Orcs to conceal one's scent. Orcs possessed exceptionally keen senses of smell. Human scent in the air was like a sea beacon to them. Over countless years of war, humans had suffered heavy losses because of the Orcs' sense of smell. After learning their lesson, humans developed the Scent-Masking Powder, which consequently became a standard strategic supply for the army.

The army began moving in an orderly fashion. No one spoke as they silently sprinkled Scent-Masking Powder over themselves. Even the warhorses were covered in it.

"Report!" Another scout discovered something and reported, "A small group of Orcs has been spotted to the east. They will arrive in twenty-five minutes."

"Report! A small group of Orcs has been spotted to the north. They will arrive in twenty minutes."

Scouts kept returning with reports. A smile spread across Knight Saloyan's face. At least waiting three days had not been in vain. He glanced back at Senior Knight Bernal and Senior Knight Hope and said with a smile, "They finally came. The city lord's intelligence was truly accurate."

"Indeed. He even managed to determine the location of the Orcs' gathering point." Knight Bernal replied with a broad smile, his eyes filled with longing for military merit.

A group of Orcs had now appeared at the mouth of the valley. They were a Wolf Rider unit. When they reached the entrance, one Wolf Rider charged into the valley and scouted around. After confirming that it was safe, he waved to the other Wolf Riders, and the unit entered the valley.

Atop the slope along the side of the valley, every soldier in the concealed army held his breath, afraid that they might startle the Wolf Riders and ruin the ambush. This was all military merit. Every additional Orc that entered the valley meant another share of merit.

Time passed slowly, and the Orcs in the valley gradually increased in number. One group after another entered. Believing themselves safe, the Orcs lit bonfires and began eating roasted meat. They loudly discussed their respective missions and shared the joy of successful looting. Some Orcs even brought out stolen wine to drink with their roasted meat. For a time, the valley became a sea of merriment.

When the number of Orcs in the valley reached more than 160, no more groups appeared. The Orcs seemed to realize that everyone had gathered and stopped talking. They discovered that fewer Orcs had returned to gather this time than ever before. Of the 500 Orcs sent into this region, at least more than 200 had returned in previous years. This time, only 160 had come back—the lowest number in history.

Sorrow began to spread. Many Orcs discovered that their friends and brothers had not returned. The lively valley fell silent in an instant. However, Orcs were ultimately a warrior race. Their sorrow lasted only a moment before they began forming up according to their groups. The appointed time was approaching, and the flying beasts coming to take them home would soon arrive.

Knight Saloyan observed the situation in the valley. According to the city lord's intelligence, this was the Orcs' gathering point. It seemed that everyone had gathered. He turned and said to his adjutant, "Go inform the company at the valley entrance to seal it off."

"Yes, sir." The adjutant took out a sheet of parchment, wrote down the order, stamped it with the company's official seal, and sealed the envelope with encrypted wax. He then arranged for a messenger to deliver the order to the valley entrance.

A little over four minutes after the messenger had left, a flock of huge birds flew across the sky. There were more than twenty of them.

When Knight Saloyan saw the birds in the sky, he could not help exclaiming softly, "Sky-Scorching Sparrows? Is this the Orcs' return point?"

Knight Saloyan then turned to his adjutant and asked, "Can the order we just sent still be recalled?"

The adjutant shook his head with a bitter smile. "They should have already begun carrying it out."

"If we can keep these Sky-Scorching Sparrows here, even just one of them would be an earth-shaking achievement." Knight Saloyan stared greedily at the Sky-Scorching Sparrows in the sky. If he had known that these strategic flying beasts of the Orc Empire would come here, then even if every Orc below escaped, capturing just one Sky-Scorching Sparrow would still be an extraordinary military achievement.

Thanks to "Yueyu Tian" for the tip. Due to an account issue, the author cannot speak, so I am expressing my thanks here.