Orgrim's Adjutant

At this very moment, Malone felt a surge of resentment toward that "God of Video Games"—a mortal who, somewhere out there, was toying with a fate identical to his own.

He had granted him seemingly formidable power, yet it was not strong enough to overcome his greatest enemy.

Just as he had prepared himself to live in seclusion, he had sent him Tiffany, someone he could not simply abandon.

And just as he had decided to take Tiffany and flee the Orc camp, he found himself moved by the brotherly affection of Teron Gorefiend, unable to harden his heart.

Fate, why do you enjoy tormenting me so?

Malone felt as though there were countless words he wanted to say to Teron Gorefiend.

Words of gratitude, words of apology, words of warning, words of comfort...

Yet, not a single word could pass Malone's lips, no matter which one he chose.

Because Malone could not say the one thing Teron Gorefiend wanted to hear.

Malone had no way to tell Teron Gorefiend: "Good brother, I will stay."

Just as Teron Gorefiend and Malone stood there "looking at each other in silence," nearly on the verge of "tears flowing in a thousand streams," the unexpected occurred.

Outside the wooden shed where the three of them were staying, a chaotic sound of footsteps erupted, accompanied by roars, low growls, and the clashing of metal.

"What is happening?" Malone panicked—judging by the commotion, this was definitely not just one or two, but a whole group of heavily armed Orcs outside the shed.

"I don't know." Teron Gorefiend stood up and shielded Malone behind him.

"Mr. Malone, what is going on?" Tiffany also sensed the unease in the atmosphere and asked cautiously.

"Don't worry." Malone smiled as he lifted Tiffany's small legs from his knees, placed them gently on the pile of hay, and then stood up to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Teron Gorefiend.

"Mr. Malone!" Tiffany's urgent cry came from behind him.

Malone turned his head and saw the girl's panicked face.

"If... if there is no hope, Mr. Malone, you should run!"

Even though Tiffany was terrified, she still insisted on saying this.

"But, before you leave, please, never forget our promise!"

Tiffany's fingers were intertwined against her chest, a posture that looked as if she were praying to the gods.

Malone knew exactly what "promise" Tiffany was referring to.

Tiffany had said before that if Malone could not take her away, she would rather die by his hand than be humiliated by the Orcs.

This poor, kind-hearted girl...

Malone thought silently to himself—even at a time like this, she was still thinking of such things...

"I won't let those Orcs hurt you."

After saying this, Malone turned around, watching vigilantly for the Orcs outside to storm the shed.

Malone did not even realize how resolute his expression and gaze were at this moment.

But what Malone did know was—how could such a kind and innocent girl be handed over to that group of brutal, evil Orcs?

The battle with Kaldara had helped Malone grow quite a bit and had given him more confidence; more importantly...

Malone glanced sideways at Teron Gorefiend; he did not feel that the other man's shattered face was even the slightest bit ugly.

With such a good brother fighting by his side, how could he possibly lose? Malone's heart was filled with courage.

"Riiip!"

With the sound of tearing, the canvas hanging on the shed was ripped down in large swaths; as the canvas fell to the ground, Malone saw the situation outside.

More than twenty heavily armed Orcs had gathered outside the shed, surrounding the place completely, leaving no room for escape.

A tall Orc stood at the front of the Orc soldiers; he was nearly bare-chested, wearing only armor on his lower body, and held a massive battle axe in his hand.

He did not know if it was his imagination, but Malone felt that the Orc seemed to frown when he saw Teron Gorefiend or himself.

"None of you move."

Malone heard the Orc issue an order to the other Orc warriors, and then he slung the massive battle axe onto his back and walked toward the shed.

"I only heard that a few Death Knights were causing trouble; I didn't expect the leader to be you, Teron Gorefiend." The Orc stood at the entrance of the shed, speaking to Teron Gorefiend from a distance.

"I didn't expect it to be you who came, either, Tabek." Teron Gorefiend replied coldly.

Tabek... I feel like I've heard that name somewhere... Malone recalled.

"If it were really just a few Death Knights causing trouble, why would the Warchief send his adjutant here? Tabek, although I am a dead man, I am not a pig." Teron Gorefiend continued.

Right, this guy is the adjutant of Orgrim Doomhammer—Malone finally remembered.

Although Maicomarlon's memories did not recognize this "Tabek," because Tabek was still a nobody when he was killed.

But the official plot had mentioned this guy, even if only in passing.

"That's right. If it were normal times, Doomhammer wouldn't bother with such trivial matters; he would just have someone capture the troublemakers and chop off their heads."

Tabek shrugged, saying something that seemed incredibly bloody to Malone as if it were nothing.

"Chopping off heads is a habit of weak humans; we prefer to split them in two. And do you really think the few men you brought are enough?"

Teron Gorefiend cast a look of disdain at the Orc warriors standing behind Tabek.

"Only twenty? Whether you intend to lop off my head or hack me in two, that is nowhere near enough. Go back and bring ten times that number, young man. When the name Teron'gor first echoed across Draenor, you didn't even know how to wield a weapon!"

Teron Gorefiend seemed to hold these Orc warriors in utter contempt, including this "Tabek," whom he recklessly dismissed as a "greenhorn."

"Sharp tongues are a human habit; we prefer to let our actions speak," Tabek retorted, showing not a shred of fear toward Teron Gorefiend.

"Actions?"

Teron Gorefiend let out a scoff, followed by a piercing howl.

Even now, Malone could not quite fathom how Teron Gorefiend, a dead man, was able to speak at all.

The biological knowledge he had learned back on Earth made it impossible for Malone to imagine how a corpse's vocal cords could still function.

However, a Death Knight was an anti-scientific anomaly in itself—Malone could, to some extent, understand that.

But... damn that Teron Gorefiend, could he not have given a warning before letting out such a shriek?

Malone tightly plugged his ears while anxiously glancing back at Tiffany.

Fortunately, Teron Gorefiend's howl did not last long, and Malone was lucky enough to keep his eardrums intact.

Tiffany did not look well; although she had covered her ears the moment the sound began, she still appeared dazed and dizzy from the piercing noise.

Tabek did not look much better, shaking his head in an attempt to shake off the ringing that still echoed in his ears.