Run, Mister!

Malone was indeed lucky—or to be precise, it wasn't that he was lucky to have been resurrected, but rather that Kaldara had no intention of killing him at all.

Kaldara resting his blade against Malone's neck was merely a formality.

When the Burning Blade Clan defeated an opponent, if they did not intend to kill them, they would perform such a ritual to force the opponent to remember the terror of facing death, ensuring they would lose the courage to ever oppose a Blademaster again.

"You lost, Death Knight." Kaldara sheathed his blade and mocked, "I thought you allies valued by Orgrim would be powerful, but it turns out you are just fools with nothing but brute strength who don't understand what combat truly is."

Kaldara held a strange, inexplicable sentiment toward the Death Knights—for some reason, Orgrim had not told the other Orcs about the origins of these allies.

At least not like the Trolls, whom everyone knew to be the masters of the jungle, led by their chieftain, Zul'jin.

The Burning Blade Clan had been very close with Gul'dan's Shadow Council, and they had remained loyal to the Horde's Warchief, The Destroyer Blackhand, until Orgrim changed everything.

Orgrim had gone on a rampage, slaughtering the Shadow Council and killing the Horde's Warchief Blackhand to become the new Warchief.

The Burning Blade Clan—the Blademasters who followed the Orc army to the world of Azeroth—chose to pledge their loyalty to Orgrim. They did not want to see the Horde begin to fracture, and besides, Gul'dan himself had not put up any fierce resistance.

However, Orgrim did not fully trust these Blademasters—otherwise, Kaldara would not be out on patrol with Orcs from other clans despite his status as a Blademaster.

Malone knelt on the ground; in that very moment, he had felt the threat of death.

Having grown up in a peaceful society, Malone had never been so close to death; when that blade pressed against his neck, Malone had been so terrified he nearly wet his pants.

Of course, he hadn't actually done it; if he had, he didn't know how much these Orcs would have laughed at him.

As Kaldara's blade left his body, Malone gasped for air, his hands braced against the ground. He felt ashamed of his cowardice, but more importantly, he realized he could no longer save that human girl.

Kaldara looked at Malone and shook his head slightly.

"Pathetic..." Kaldara said softly.

Every Blademaster had experienced countless defeats before earning the title—even now, having achieved it, Kaldara did not believe he could defeat his own master.

Yet, Kaldara had never doubted his own strength, nor would he ever let a single defeat shatter his confidence.

Seeing Malone's dejected and trembling state, Kaldara could tell that his opponent had never undergone any combat training and had never seen blood.

Defeating such an opponent was nothing to be proud of... Kaldara sighed and stepped over Malone's body.

Kaldara's feet, massive compared to a human's, landed on the hay without making a sound, but Malone knew he was walking toward the human girl.

Malone didn't look back at the girl's expression. He wanted to stand up, block Kaldara, and fight him again—at the very least, he had to stop him from getting near her.

But Malone couldn't move—his legs were stiff, and his fingers trembled uncontrollably.

Before this, Malone had always thought the descriptions in movies and novels of humans being unable to control their bodies due to fear were fabrications, but now, he had experienced it firsthand.

"Get lost, you coward." An Orc passed by Malone and kicked him to the ground.

The other Orcs laughed disdainfully as they stepped past him; although they, like Talrama, might not be able to withstand a single blow from Malone, they could stand there and mock him because of Kaldara—because they had a powerful companion.

However, the Orc's action helped Malone move his useless body, and he was finally able to stir.

Regaining a shred of sensation, Malone roared and charged at Kaldara; he had to stop this Blademaster before he reached the girl.

Yet, Malone couldn't do it—the other Orcs grabbed him, and sharp axe blades were pressed against his neck again, this time by two massive battle-axes.

The blood on the axes had not yet dried, and bits of mangled flesh hung from the serrated edges.

One Orc roared loudly: "Kaldara, let me cut off his head!"

Kaldara, who had already reached the human girl, turned back, frowned at Malone, and shook his head.

"Do nothing unnecessary," Kaldara said.

Malone didn't struggle; he looked at the human girl and found that she was looking at him too.

What a look that was... her beautiful, pale blue eyes were filled with despair and terror. The girl clutched her rounded shoulders, as if trying to hide herself from Kaldara.

"No!" suddenly, the girl spoke.

It wasn't in the Orcish tongue, but in the common language used by humans and other races—which, as it happened, Malone could understand.

Was she saying this to Kaldara? Was she trying to stop this Orc from violating her?

"No, sir... this gentleman! These beasts will really kill you! Don't... don't worry about me! If you can, run away!"

The human girl suddenly burst into a shrill, desperate scream.

She's talking to me! Malone's eyes widened—she knew he was trying to save her! She was worried about him!

Malone didn't know the human girl's name, but he believed it must be a brave one—even Malone himself had nearly wet his pants in the face of Kaldara's blade, but this girl...

This girl was telling Malone to run, telling him not to worry about her.

Sacrifice? Gratitude?—Malone didn't know how to describe such behavior, but he bit his lip so hard that he tasted a hint of metallic sweetness.

Malone bit his lip until it bled; beyond that, he didn't know how to vent the rage in his heart.

"Don't move! Move again and I'll chop your head off!" An Orc felt Malone's body trembling; he didn't know it was from rage, but he keenly sensed the abnormality in his captive and shouted a warning.

Malone's left wrist twisted slightly, flickering with a faint blue and green light.

The next Death Coil was ready—Malone chanted silently in his heart, his gaze fixed on Kaldara's back.