Volk braced himself for the impact, expecting to be thrown aside or crushed beneath the enormous tusks of the Hazardous Warthog. His muscles tensed, ready to spring into action, but instead of the anticipated force, he felt sothing else—a warm, gentle whoosh of breath washing over his face.
Confused, he kept his eyes shut tight, heart pounding in his chest like a drum thud thud thud. When nothing happened after several heartbeats, he cautiously opened one eye.
To his shock, he found himself staring directly into a massive nostril, re inches from his face.
The Warthog was sniffing him, its breath warm and surprisingly gentle.
Volk's jaw dropped with a quiet clack, and his breath caught in his throat.
"Eh?"
The absurdity of the situation hit him all at once—here he was, face to face with a beast that was supposed to be one of the most dangerous creatures in this cursed forest, and it was… slling him?
Volk's mind raced. "What… is happening?" he muttered to himself, his voice barely more than a whisper. His heart pounded thud thud thud as he struggled to make sense of the scene unfolding before him.
The Warthog's eyes, glowing with that eerie green light, seed to study him with sothing that resembled curiosity—or was it pity?
The massive beast tilted its head slightly and nudged Volk gently with its snout.
The touch was delicate, almost tender, as though the creature was afraid of hurting him. Volk's heart skipped a beat, and his body tensed involuntarily, but the Warthog made no move to harm him. It rely continued to inspect him, as if it were trying to puzzle out why he was different from the other orcs.
Volk's confusion deepened as the Warthog continued its strange behavior. It circled him slowly, its massive bulk moving with an unexpected grace. The beast's nose brushed against Volk's chest swish, then his shoulders swish, then his arms, as if it were checking for sothing.
Each touch was light, almost reverent, as though the Warthog was handling sothing fragile.
At one point, the Warthog pressed its snout against Volk's side and released a deep, rumbling breath grrrh that shook his entire body. Volk felt the vibration travel through his bones vrrrr, leaving a strange, tingling sensation in its wake. He could feel the Warthog's breath on his skin, warm and steady, as it continued its bizarre inspection.
It then nudged Volk's leg, as if testing his stability.
Shook!
Volk stumbled slightly, but the Warthog didn't react aggressively.
Instead, it pulled back, looking at him with those glowing eyes filled with… pity? Yes, Volk realized with a jolt, there was unmistakable pity in the Warthog's gaze, as though it saw him as sothing weak and fragile, sothing in need of protection.
Volk could hardly believe what was happening.
"Is this really happening?" He mumbled.
This creature, this monstrous beast that was supposed to be the most hazardous—no, the most pitiful and weak—creature in the forest, was treating him with a gentleness that was completely out of character for its fearso appearance.
It even nudged his hand, as if encouraging him to touch it. Volk hesitated for a mont before slowly reaching out. His fingers brushed against the rough, bristly hair on the Warthog's snout shhhh.
The beast closed its eyes, seeming to enjoy the touch.
Around him, Volk could hear the gasps and murmurs of the other orcs gasp gasp, both the younglings and the older, bone-armored warriors.
Their faces were a mixture of shock and disbelief, their eyes wide and their mouths hanging open.
So of them looked like they had just witnessed a miracle, while others seed unable to process what they were seeing.
The expressions on their faces were so exaggerated that Volk might have laughed if he hadn't been so bewildered himself.
The Warthog, anwhile, continued its inspection, circling Volk one last ti before stopping in front of him again. It sniffed at his hair, its breath ruffling the strands whoosh whoosh, then released a soft, almost contented grunt hrmph.
The beast's eyes softened even further, the pity in them almost painful to see. Then, without warning, the Warthog turned and lumbered away, its massive hooves thud thud echoing through the forest floor as it disappeared into the dense foliage as if it had simply lost interest.
For several long monts, the forest was silent.
The orcs around Volk remained frozen in place, their eyes still locked on the spot where the Warthog had stood.
Volk felt his heart slowly return to a more normal rhythm, but his mind was still racing, trying to make sense of what had just occurred.
"What… just happened?" he muttered, more to himself than to anyone else. He looked around at the other orcs, hoping for so kind of explanation, but all he saw were their stunned faces, their eyes still wide with disbelief.
The bone-armored orcs, veterans of countless battles and hardships, were staring at him as though he were sothing otherworldly.
One of them, an older orc with deep-set scars and weary eyes, finally snapped out of his stupor and barked an order.
"Mag'Durotans, forward!" His voice was sharp, but Volk could hear the tremor in it, as if the orc couldn't quite believe what had just happened.
The younger orcs hesitated for a mont before they began to move, their steps slow and uncertain.
Volk remained where he was, his mind still struggling to process the encounter. As the others moved past him, one of the bone-armored orcs approached him, his eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and sothing Volk couldn't quite identify.
"Young Mag'Durotan," the orc began, his voice low and cautious. "Who are you?"
Volk blinked, the question pulling him out of his daze. "I'm Volk Mog'ger," he replied, the words feeling strange in his mouth after what had just occurred. "The current Kaz'rogal of this year."
The orc stared at him for a long mont, his expression thoughtful. "Current Kaz'rogal?" He asked before contemplating, "I see… I heard the current one was a Labor Orc. No wonder the Hazardous Warthog didn't attack you."
Volk frowned, still confused. "Why?" he asked respectfully, his tone polite despite the whirlwind of questions in his mind. "What is that Warthog? Why it didn't attack ?"
The orc sighed, looking out at the forest with a distant gaze. "The Hazardous Warthog," he began slowly, "is a creature that is considered the strongest among magical beasts in this land. This is because it is filled with hazardous magic particles compared to others, which make it more dangerous and stronger. These particles, though dangerous to others, are the Warthog's power.
This forest is its domain, where it lords over creatures even weaker than itself."
Volk listened intently as the orc continued, his voice taking on a tone of grim resignation. "The Warthog despises those who are weaker or who don't have hazardous magic particles, or those who aren't burdened by the hazardous magic. It sees them as nothing but a consumable existence, and it will often attack them out of spite, as if to prove it's the strongest there is.
But for those who are even more affected by it, even weaker than itself, it feels like a strange kinship. It treats them as more talented than itself, and if you grow to your peak, that's when it would only attack! To beat you! To prove that it's mightier than you."
The explanation left Volk speechless. He had never imagined that such a creature could exist, one that was simultaneously so dangerous yet so... arrogant.
The orc's words painted a picture of a beast that was desperate to assert its strength in a world where it was inherently fragile, a contradiction that Volk found difficult to grasp.
The bone-armored orc placed a heavy hand on Volk's shoulder, his grip firm but not unkind. "You, Volk Mog'ger, must carry a burden even greater than the Warthog's. That is why it spared you. It saw in you a potential enemy, one who can endure the sa or more hazardous magic particles as the warthog himself."
Volk didn't know how to respond. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, none of which seed to settle. He looked up at the orc, searching for answers, but all he could manage was a weak, "I… I see."
The older orc nodded, his expression softening slightly. "You have much to learn about this world, Volk Mog'ger. But know this—you are not alone in your struggle."
There was a long silence, broken only by the rustling of the leaves above them rustle rustle. Volk felt the weight of the orc's words settle heavily on his shoulders, a responsibility he hadn't anticipated but could not ignore. He took a deep breath inhale, trying to steady himself, but before he could speak, the orc's voice cut through the quiet.
"Are you familiar with the Labor Orc curse?" the orc asked, his tone serious.
Volk looked up, his confusion returning. "No," he replied slowly, unsure of what this new revelation would bring. "What is it?"
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