Predicament

Whether it was due to the orcs' constitution, the medicine's exceptional efficacy, or Luna's prayers taking effect, Orkash recovered remarkably quickly. Not long after waking, he was able to get out of bed and walk. Aside from weakness, fatigue, and a slight dizziness, he was basically fine.

To the orcs, this was nothing short of a miracle.

Since the Stone Crow Clan's earliest days, they had struggled bitterly in these Wilds. In the orcs' memories, countless people had been claimed by the Flame Demon Curse; only warriors with wills of iron could endure it.

And such warriors were few and far between in the Stone Crow Clan's records.

If Caesar could have read their thoughts, he probably would have snorted with laughter. Try leaving someone with severe heatstroke out under the blazing sun and scorching heat. During the dry season, temperatures in northern Eladia could soar above fifty degrees Celsius. Surviving under those conditions truly required the gods' blessing.

Though they did not know how Caesar had saved Orkash, that did not hinder the orcs' gratitude toward the black dragon. They had originally needed to painstakingly hunt horned cattle for him every day. No matter how straightforward the Stone Crow Clan was, no matter how faithfully they kept their word, they could not help feeling somewhat displeased inside.

But now, that feeling had been swept clean away.

The orcs had not become more attentive, nor had Caesar received anyone's thanks. Yet from then on, whenever an orc saw the black dragon, they would instinctively stop what they were doing, straighten their chests, look directly at him, and lightly strike their chests with their right fists.

That was enough.

Orcs were not a race skilled in groveling flattery like gnomes or kobolds. Most were poor with words and did not express their emotions intensely. This gesture was enough to show their respect for Caesar.

But Caesar had no mind to dwell on such matters at this time. He had other business to attend to and was busy studying the plant he had named "Summergrass."

He had picked the stuff at first purely because he was craving a snack and enjoyed chewing a few leaves. Later, he discovered that it tasted good when boiled in water and chilled. Since Luna liked it quite a bit, Caesar had kept plenty in his lair.

Feeding it to Orkash had only been a spur-of-the-moment idea, an attempt made with nothing to lose. He had never expected it to achieve such outstanding results. Even Caesar, the one who had caused it all, was astonished.

Afterward, he immediately realized that this might be a potential opportunity—one that would allow Caesar to complete his primitive accumulation of capital.

But there was a problem. He had to confirm that Orkash had awakened because of Summergrass, rather than because of the orc's own constitution or Luna's prayers.

There was another point as well. Summergrass had produced remarkable results on an orc, but would it have the same effect on Caesar's target group—humans?

It needed to be verified.

Caesar immediately thought of contacting the orc leader, Sifu.

Because of his recent studies in magic, he had become quite familiar with the old fellow. And now that the black dragon's relationship with the Stone Crow Clan had changed beyond recognition, there was no need for formalities. Upon reaching the cave where the old wizard lived, Caesar slipped straight inside without even greeting him.

Firelight flickered. Sifu squatted solemnly atop a stone stool, sparse brown hair drooping limply from his head. A layer of ash covered his robes, and he held a battered scroll of parchment, reading something unknown.

"Hello, Caesar."

Noticing that the cave entrance had been completely blocked from the light, Sifu turned around, rose to his feet, and forced a wrinkled smile at the black dragon crawling in. "Regarding Orkash, on behalf of the Stone Crow Clan, I thank you."

"I'm not here to accept praise."

Caesar lowered his head and looked at the somewhat stooped old orc. Under Sifu's questioning gaze, he said in a deep voice, "The Stone Crow Clan's fate should not be like this."

Orcs actually reproduced quite quickly. Yet the Stone Crow Clan had never been able to grow into a truly sizable force. When all was said and done, was it not because they were simply too poor?

Their limited food could not support more orc children as they grew, and without a steady stream of fresh warriors joining their ranks, they could not build up their numbers to seize more resources.

It was an obvious vicious cycle, yet the Stone Crow Clan, trapped in the Wilds, seemed unable to break free from it.

Caesar knew that there might be many other reasons behind the Stone Crow Clan's predicament, but at its root, the crux of the matter was still resources.

Resources were not merely food. They included weapons, water sources, territory, population, and every other aspect. In the Wilds, each problem could drag the Stone Crow Clan into a quagmire, pressing down on them like an immense mountain.

Caesar could see that Sifu was different from the other orcs. He was more adaptable and wiser than ordinary orcs. Perhaps he had once considered leading the Stone Crow Clan to rise up.

But what could Sifu lead these orcs to do? Nothing more than raid and plunder, just like their ancestors.

Yet in the vast Wilds, although every orc had eyes, they were no different from the blind. Without intelligence to support them, one could imagine how inefficient they were.

Besides, these fellows surely robbed whatever they encountered, but their spoils could only pile up in their own territory and rot away. They had no channels through which to exchange them for supplies they needed, and they also had to face the extermination campaigns of human armies. How difficult their lives were went without saying.

His vision was too limited. For Sifu to painstakingly keep the Stone Crow Clan from being swallowed by other powers was already the old wizard's limit.

As Caesar thought this, before the wizard could speak, he tossed a clump of plants that looked like weeds in front of Sifu.

"What is this?"

The wrinkles on the old wizard's face deepened. He had seen this grass before, but as Luna had said, in Eladia, no one would invest time and effort into studying a plant that could neither fill one's stomach nor posed any danger. So even though he had seen it, he could not guess Caesar's intention.

"Boil this stuff into water, and it can lift the Flame Demon Curse."

Caesar said this. He did not want to waste time explaining the concept of "disease" to Sifu, so he chose a way the wizard could understand to inform the orc leader.

"Impossible!"

Just as expected, the old wizard flatly denied it, refusing to believe the black dragon's words. "A 'curse' can only be dispelled with divine magic. I have never heard of a method that can eradicate a curse using plants."

"And no one has ever tried."

Caesar immediately shot back, then added, "Otherwise, how do you think Orkash survived? By himself? Then the Stone Crow Clan really is favored by the gods."

The old orc fell silent for a moment, seemingly considering whether the black dragon was deliberately making sport of him. Rumor had it that the black dragon's close kin, the brass dragons, loved doing such things and spent every day delighting in pranks.

But black dragons would not do that, and Caesar certainly would not.

As Sifu considered this, his brows relaxed. He raised his head to meet the young dragon's gaze. "You are right. No one has indeed ever tried."

He picked up the Summergrass from the ground and handed it back to Caesar. "But this is yours. What do you intend to do with it?"

Caesar narrowed his eyes. "I told you already. The Stone Crow Clan's fate should not be like this."