Rise of the Horde
Chapter 192

Chapter 192: Chapter 19

“Ohh...okay...” the large Ereian soldier nodded his head as he handed his weapons to Khao’khen who was taken aback by how easily the Ereian in front of him trusted his words. He can’t help but shake his head but he received the weapons of the surrendering human. Khao’khen tossed the sword and shield of the heavy Ereian towards one of the trolls since the size of the weapon was too small for him to make use of it. The size of the sword was like that of a kitchen knife to him with how huge his frame was compared to the humans.

“You got food right?...” the chunky Ereian questioned as he stared at Khao’khen with puppy eyes.

‘What the F!’ Khao’khen screamed within his mind as he was stunned with how casual the Ereian was in front of him. He is an orc, a creature that’s often found on a battlefield and bathing in the blood of those that he has slain. They are monsters that are born for war and lived for war. The entire existence of their race almost only revolves around war or battles.

You have food, right?... I’m hungry... Haven’t eaten a proper meal for many days and I have already lost some weight because of not having a decent meal.” the fat man whined towards the orc as he craned his neck upwards to look at him since he was shorter than the hulking green creature in front of him.

Khao’khen stared at the whining ball of flesh of a human in front of him with eyes filled with complication and amazement. Complication because if what he said was real that he had lost some weight, then how heavy and enormous was he before. And amazement because he was too trusting towards him despite being called a monster by those who are with him. He doesn’t know why if the man was just so carefree with his life or is simply an idiot.

“I am called Khao’khen, how should I call you?” he asked the man in front of him who was smiling from ear to ear as he spotted Skorno bringing out some strips of meat from his rapsack and was heading towards him after he signaled Skorno to give him a portion of his rations

“Ooh... I am called Badz... Badz the Baddy or simply just Badz... It ain’t my real name though. They just call me like that and even I have already forgotten my real name. I have been used to the name given to me by my peers already since I was a kid.” Badz replied as he quickly snatched the strips of meat from the hands of Skorno and quickly devoured them with huge bites. A ration that was supposed to be for a whole day for Skorno was gobbled up in less than a minute by Badz.

.....

“Hak...hak... Water...” Badz coughed as he took out his water bag from his waist and hurriedly removed its cap before cramming almost the entire head of his water bag inside his mouth. He gulped down mouthfuls of water in a matter of seconds. Badz burped loudly before heaving a sigh of relief as he returned the cap of his water bag and reattaching it back to his waist.

“That hits the spot... You have more right?...” Badz stared at Skorno with eyes full of anticipation but the troll’s face remained stoic as he stared at him without any emotions at all as he couldn’t understand his words.

“Hey... Big guy... You got more food, right?” Badz turned his attention at Khao’khen as he stared at him with his pleading eyes.

“I knew it! You are a betrayer! Your name really fits you! Badz! A very bad person, the worst of the bad...Ha! I had long doubted you! Your true colors are now being revealed. Probably you are in cahoots with these freaks, you traitor!” the leader of the group that Badz belonged to shouted as he pointed his blade at him.

“Tsk... I guess that’s why we were quickly found out by these monsters. There was a backstabber in our midst.” the member of the Ereian Royal Army beside their commander muttered as he spat a mouthful of saliva towards the direction of Badz and their foes but there was no way that it would reach them.

“You! Are you also a turncoat!?” the leader of the group pointed his blade at the thin but tall man as he threatened to plunge his blade into his body.

“I- I – I... Am not...” the slim but tall man stuttered as slightly backed away from their leader who already had the tip of his blade upon his chest.

“Prove it! Kill that traitor!” the leader of the group shouted at him then pointed his blade at Badz who was staring at the ruckus that was going on. Badz was confused, really confused.

“I am not a traitor... This big guy here just said that he would spare the lives of those who would surrender and I am not an idiot to continue fighting when the odds are stacked up against me. Look, they outnumber us more than one to ten and there is no way that we will win. I am but just a normal person that still wants to live. And besides, they got food... Right big guy...” Badz replied as he glanced toward Khao’khen after the end of his sentence.

“R- right...?” Khao’khen got taken by surprise by the words of Badz and he just agreed with his words since it was true. He is a man of his words or probably an orc of his words now since he is now in the body of an orc.

“See!... Siroh! Come and join me and my new friends.” Badz shouted towards the thin but tall man which looked like a bamboo with his body frame and height, a burnt bamboo that is since he also has a dark complexion just like him.

“I- I- I don’t know...” Siroh stuttered as he was torn between joining Badz or continuing the fight alongside their leader.

“Traitor!” their group leader screamed as he slashed his sword towards Siroh who stumbled backward to evade the attack of their leader.

“I should have known!” the leader of the group screamed as he continued to try and hack Siroh but his attack kept missing since his target was like a real bamboo swaying with the wind as he evaded his strikes.

“Ah... Big guy... I think you should help him...” Badz patted the waist of Khao’khen who was watching the spectacle that was going on. He was amazed by the expertise of Siroh in evading the sword slashes and thrusts that were thrown at him. Like a dancer, he was swaying to the beat of the music and was graceful at doing it like he had practiced it so many times already.

“What was the profession of your friend?” Khao’khen can’t help but ask Badz as he was curious about the profession of Siroh.

“Uhm...” Badz scratched his head as he smiled embarrassingly at the orc in front of him. “Uhm... How should I say this...Mmm... He is an entertainer in a pub and often wears great outfits that would trigger your imaginations on what was hidden behind those parts that were covered by his great outfits...” Badz explained as he averted the gaze of the orc who was looking at him with full interest to his answer.

Khao’khen knitted his brows as he was confused by what Badz meant but then it dawned on him after he added all the details together. Entertainer + pub + graceful movement + pub + great outfits... He facepalmed after realizing it. Siroh was a crossdresser who is probably pretending to be a woman before in a pub while wearing, great outfits as Badz had mentioned.

“Do you like him...?” Khao’khen grinned mischievously as he stared at Badz with eyes full of evil thoughts.

“Hell no! We both have swords and there is no way I’m inserting my sword in that kind of sheath... I’d rather die than do so!” Badz shouted in protest in reply to the orc’s question.

“But you did fall for his charms before when you still haven’t figured out that he was actually a guy and has a sword just like you and not a proper sheath where you could sheath your sword for safekeeping... Am I right or am I correct?” Khao’khen continued to tease as the mischievous grin on his lips became even wider.

“I-... I don’t know... I have no idea...” Badz pretended to be confused to dodge the question of the orc in front of him while his forehead started to be covered in beads of sweat.

“I won’t judge...” Khao’khen simply replied as he raised his right hand above his shoulders with his enormous spear in his hand. Badz just stared down at the ground and kept silent.

Khao’khen was waiting for the right moment to throw his weapon as his target was still moving around as he tried his best to kill or wound Siroh who kept on dodging his attacks.

Probably because of fatigue, Siroh loss his footing as he fell to the ground and his attacker stood above him with his blade ready to stab him to death. Siroh could see the pointed end of the sword getting bigger and bigger, he wanted to move his body but it wasn’t responding anymore, so he just closed his eyes and accepted his fate. He had given up as his breathing was pretty ragged already.