The brightness of the sun pierced through Kallen’s closed eyelids, forcing a frown onto his face. He groaned in his sleep, shifting slightly before reluctantly stirring awake.
A harsh warmth settled over his skin, and the noise of the howling wind, drifted into his ears.
Squinting, he raised a hand to shield his eyes, peeking between his fingers in confusion.
"Oh? You’re finally awake. Good, good."
A gruff voice rumbled above him.
Kallen turned his head toward the source but imdiately flinched away. The sheer brightness of the sun made his vision blur, spots dancing before his eyes.
"It’s midday already," the voice spoke again, patient but firm.
Blinking rapidly, Kallen forced himself to adjust. He slowly pushed himself upright, ignoring the dull aches in his body, and turned toward the speaker.
A rounded figure stood before him.
Man? No, his skin was green, his hair a wild mane, thick and untad. His eyes were small and beady, glinting with an amused sharpness.
His body was wrapped in layers of fat, yet it wasn’t soft; veins coiled like steel cords around his arms, his sheer bulk betraying an overwhelming strength. His fra, though rounded, radiated raw power.
The sight was jarring, and Kallen frowned in confusion.
"An orc?"
"You’re not a very reserved child, are you?" the man chuckled, his deep voice laced with amusent.
Kallen’s eyes widened in surprise. ’He heard that?’
He hadn’t ant for it to be said aloud.
"Hmm, I see. You didn’t intend to say it aloud? That’s fine. You’re forgiven."
Kallen instinctively took a few steps back, his gaze sharpening.
The orc watched him intently, a grin stretching across his broad face as if entertained by Kallen’s wariness.
When Kallen felt he had put enough distance between them, he parted his lips to speak—but before he could, the orc erupted into a fit of rumbling laughter.
Kallen snapped his mouth shut, irritation flickering in his eyes before his expression cooled.
The orc grinned wider, as if taunting him. Yet, strangely, Kallen felt no urge to react. Instead, he relaxed, letting the tension drain from his shoulders. His brows straightened, his features smoothing over.
"Oh?" The orc raised a thick brow, intrigued.
"A smart kid we’ve got here, huh? Your are right, I’m not reading your mind. You’re just wearing your thoughts too openly on your face."
"Hmmm?" Kallen blinked.
A beat passed before his face shifted into its usual expressionless state—perhaps even colder than before.
The orc shook his head, amused.
"You’ll learn sooner or later," he chuckled, then fell silent, leaving Kallen with his thoughts.
They stood outside a building, with the mat Kallen had woken up on sprawled across the ground, directly beneath the sun.
He looked at the mat directly under the sun, and then to the orc with dissatisfied eyes. But the Orc might as well have not noticed, with the way he completely ignore him.
Kallen tore his eyes off him and frowned, deep in thought. He had expected to see the hazel-eyed man he had caught glimpses of before, but strangely, the man was nowhere to be found.
Sohow, Kallen was in a much better condition physically. His joints still ached slightly from prolonged immobility, but he felt... fine. At least he wasn’t dead tired or swollen anymore.
The creaking of a door caught his attention. A second orc stepped out of the building, which was oddly constructed from tal sheets and wood—an unusual blend of dieval and industrial styles, uncommon in this world.
Kallen’s sharp eyes locked onto the entrance, his focus intense. He expected to see the hazel-eyed man, but when the figure erged, he was t with disappointnt... and surprise.
Another orc?
One was already strange, but two? That was unexpected.
"Master," the newly arrived orc greeted, bowing to the rotund one.
"All good, nelaus" the fat orc responded with a dismissive wave.
Then, turning to Kallen, he gestured. "We have a new worker. What do you think? Do you like him?"
nelaus studied Kallen with barely concealed disdain, his gaze scanning him as if asuring his worth.
"Passable," he muttered gruffly.
"Excellent!" The eccentric orc clapped his hands together. "He’ll be under you from now on."
nelaus grunted in acknowledgnt.
"Huh? Worker? What’s going on here?" Kallen asked, utterly confused.
"Hmm? You don’t know? You’ve been employed. Use your brains, smartie." The fat orc grinned.
Before Kallen could process that, the orc gestured to nelaus. "Take him."
nelaus grunted again before effortlessly hoisting Kallen off the ground.
"Wait... what? What is going on? How am I employed?!" Kallen thrashed in his grip, struggling to break free.
nelaus didn’t so much as hesitate for a brief second, lifting him to his shoulder with ease.
anwhile, the eccentric orc watched them, his beady eyes gleaming with amusent, a wide grin stretching across his face.
Kallen struggled in nelaus’ grasp, his protests falling on deaf ears.
"Wait! What do you an employed? Who even agreed to this?!"
nelaus didn’t respond, simply carrying Kallen like a sack of grain, his grip firm and unyielding.
The eccentric orc, still standing outside the building, chuckled. "You did, smartie."
"I definitely did not!" Kallen shot back, twisting his body in a futile attempt to free himself.
nelaus rely grunted and adjusted his hold, securing Kallen with ease.
The strength disparity was so absurd, Kallen might as well have been a child in the arms of a giant... Well, literally that was true.
He could feel the vibrations of the orc’s deep voice through his chest as nelaus muttered, "Stop squirming, runt."
Kallen clenched his jaw pissed.
He was expecting he’d see the hazel eyed man to understand what was happening and why he was not in the Crimson estate, this was certainly not he would have expected.
No matter how strong or skillful he was, nelaus’ grip was like a vice that refused to let go. The disparity in strength was really large, and he was skillful enough that Kallen could not even move.
nelaus entered through the door leaving it open behind him, striding toward a dirt path within the strange, makeshift building.
Kallen cast one last look at the eccentric orc, whose grin only widened as he waved goodbye.
’What the hell did I just get myself into?’ Did I just get kidnapped?’
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