MADWD 104

Episode 104

“Why did they refuse?”

Richmond answered.

“I don’t know. They didn’t explain—just told us to leave. If we had stayed any longer, it would have turned into a fight, so we came back.”

“You did well. If blood had been spilled at that meeting, there’d be no fixing it.”

Ulken muttered.

“Why not just give up? We can’t trust orcs anyway.”

Ariella shook her head. She had studied the orcs in travelogues and books from the library.

“Surprisingly, orcs are known to keep their promises to the death.”

“What?”

Ulken, who had never opened a book and only fought orcs, had never heard of such a thing.

“Those savages?”

“It’s true. Getting the first promise is hard, but once they agree, they never break it. Not even once.”

They didn’t even need contracts or written deals. They couldn’t read anyway. A spoken oath was enough.

“Then there’s no helping it. I’ll go myself.”

Ludwig asked, “When?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Fine. I’ll be ready.”

He said it as if it was obvious he’d be coming along.

“Just don’t fight. I don’t want to see that meeting end in a bloodbath.”

“Demons came again?”

The next day, the orc chieftain listened to his warrior’s urgent report.

“This time, it’s the fire-using Demon Lord himself!”

“…!”

The chieftain’s eyes shook as if the ground had quaked.

We may have to move the village immediately!

If there was one being he feared even more than the lycanthrope from yesterday—it was the Demon Lord.

How many orcs had died, burned alive by his flames?

“What should we do?”

He couldn’t order his warriors to attack.

This time too, the demons had come asking for talks.

But the women and children weighed on his mind.

We should have moved long ago.

With a sigh, he said, “I’ll meet them.”

And so, once again, the orcs gathered outside the village, surrounding the visitors.

The setup was the same as yesterday—but the faces were different.

…A human?

The chieftain blinked.

The Demon Lord stood silent, and instead, the human woman led the talks.

“I am Ariella Capelle Oinos, contract-holder of Demon Lord Ludwig.”

With her introduction done, she went straight to the point.

“I want to hear your reason.”

“…What?”

“I can’t understand why you rejected our offer of peace.”

She crossed her arms.

“Do you plan to keep fighting until you die? A so-called honorable death? To me, that just sounds stupid.”

It was a deliberate provocation.

The orc warriors bristled, their killing intent filling the air.

As it turned toward Ariella, Ludwig’s eyes grew sharp, flames flickering at his fingertips.

Orc weapons tightened in their grips—Ludwig was about to unleash fire when—

“Stop, all of you!”

“Ludwig, don’t.”

“…?”

“…!”

Ariella and the orc chieftain had shouted at almost the same time.

The tension broke, leaving both sides awkward and still.

Watching their reaction, Ariella thought:

So they can think. They’re not just mindless slaughterers.

Then why reject peace?

The question pressed on her, until the chieftain spoke in a hard voice.

“You speak as if victory is certain. Human, you are arrogant.”

Ariella pressed harder.

“It’s because your situation is so bad. Things can only get worse.”

“What?”

She wasn’t guessing—she had proof.

Yesterday, Richmond had secretly scanned the village with magic.

Even the orc children were malnourished, thin as sticks.

“Orcs are famous for breeding quickly. For years, you plundered our lands freely—so your numbers must have grown a lot.”

“…!”

“But now? You can’t raid us anymore. The ents have grown their forests.”

The consequences were obvious.

“More mouths to feed, no way to farm, and now no food coming from outside? Your tribe must be close to chaos. A revolt, even.”

She guessed that was why they had suddenly attacked merchant wagons they had left alone before.

“Grrk!”

The chieftain’s face twisted—her words had struck home.

“At this rate, your tribe won’t survive. You can’t afford to refuse our offer. So tell me—why?”

She had done her homework.

In the past, the orcs sold stolen grain to the Fedwick Company. In return, they got livestock and supplies they actually needed.

Since the company’s collapse, the southern merchants had cut all ties. The orcs had no trade partners left.

Which made their refusal even more baffling.

“So? Was it just pride?”

The chieftain’s eyes darkened.

Did I push too far?

Ariella stayed alert, ready to cast magic if needed.

Then, after a pause—

“…Orcs keep their promises.”

Ariella frowned. The statement came out of nowhere. But she waited.

“We already swore an oath.”

“What oath? What does that have to do with refusing peace?”

“It has everything to do with it. It was one of the conditions set by the vampires.”

What?

Vampires?

“We swore never to deal directly with the Demon Lord of this land. Raiding was fine, but joining hands with a Demon Lord was forbidden…”

“Wait! Hold it right there!”

Ariella felt dizzy from shock.

Vampires? Here?

No… surely not.

Her scalp tingled.

“…Was that vampire’s name… Bephar?”

“Yes.”

Thud.

Ariella and Ludwig’s eyes locked in disbelief.

“So it wasn’t just the Fedwick Company. Even the orcs were in league with that leech?”

“In league? Mind your words. We only traded with him.”

“So yes.”

Ariella let out a hollow laugh, while Ludwig fought the urge to burn the vampire again—though Bephar had already died by his flames.

I’ve said it before. For everything he did, death was far too easy.

The trade records between the orcs and Fedwick had raised suspicions.

Now it was clear—Bephar had been behind it.

Ariella’s memory clicked.

“Wait—on the day I first arrived, you orcs said something strange. You knew Ludwig was supposed to be away!”

Back then, the orcs had been surprised to see him, when he should have been on leave.

“Bephar was feeding you information about the Demon Lord’s domain!”

And even encouraging them to raid, telling them when and where.

While Ariella’s anger surged, the chieftain spoke firmly:

“That is why we cannot make peace. We must keep our promise.”

Ariella let out a long, heavy sigh.

So the reason they can’t be our allies… is because of an old deal with Vepar.

Where on earth was she supposed to start unraveling this mess?

“Tell me—this promise of yours.”

“…What of it?”

“Does it still count when one side no longer exists?”

“…What?”

“An oath isn’t one-sided. If one party can no longer uphold their end, then the promise is broken by nature.”

The orc chieftain’s expression shifted—he sensed something in her words.

“Bephar must have paid you for that oath. With information, with trade.”

“Y-yes, but…”

His voice wavered.

“But recently, has he given you anything? No information, no trade. Not a single visit from Fedwick merchants.”

“…Could it be…?”

Ariella gave a dry laugh.

“Bephar’s dead. Months ago. This Demon Lord here cut off his head and burned him to ash.”

This time, it was the chieftain whose jaw dropped open.

Ariella offered to prove it.

She didn’t need to bring out the vampire’s ashes.

Showing the orcs that a pillar of the Demon Realm was completely gone would be enough.

“Chieftain, let me go see for myself! I’ll confirm it with my own eyes!”

One of his most trusted warriors volunteered to accompany her.

When they reached the Demon Lord’s borders, the orc froze.

“T-that’s…!”

Before them spread the forest of the ents.

He remembered well—their branches and trunks smashing orcs through the air in the last battle.

Their previous chieftain had died from wounds dealt by those very trees.

“Don’t worry. They know friend from foe.”

Ariella led the way through a path the ents had promised to leave open.

It was the same path used by southern merchants.

Creak—crash—

“Eek!”

The ents stirred their branches and roots, making the orc flinch in terror.

He half-expected to be whipped and crushed at any moment.

But instead, the ents spoke warmly.

“Ariella…”

“We meet again.”

“Give our regards to the great Gold Dragon.”

All of them looked at Ariella with respect and affection.

These monsters… so gentle?

It was the opposite of the terrifying sight he remembered from battle.

Without realizing it, the orc looked at Ariella with awe.

Soon, they reached the Demon Lord’s lands—

“By the heavens!”

The orc gasped in shock.