Shame of despair

Kano stood on a small hill, watching the orcs. They didn't look like the typical barbarians he had seen in fantasy stories—they were exhausted, worn out, but filled with determination. Now, they were his people. His responsibility.

"Shit, how do I explain to Lenor that I'm the chief of the orcs now? He's either going to kill me or kick me out of the guild… or both," Kano thought, clenching his fists.

He turned to Elgot, who stood off to the side, brushing away an orc woman who was clearly showing interest in him.

—"Hey, old man..." Kano sighed. —"Is there some kind of artifact in this world for long-distance communication?"

The mage lazily glanced at him.

—"What?"

—"Something that allows you to send messages without messengers?"

Elgot furrowed his brow, then sighed.

—"Ah, you mean telepathic crystals?"

—"YES!" Kano almost jumped in excitement.

—"You don't have them. Lenor doesn't have them. And Ragnar doesn't have them. They're so rare, the last time I saw one was ten centuries ago. Any other questions?"

Kano gritted his teeth.

—"Fine. What about magical creatures? Pigeons, ravens, that carry letters?"

Elgot blinked at first, then burst out laughing.

—"Did you hit your head? What, a damn bird messenger? That doesn't exist, you fool!"

Kano didn't have a chance to respond—Grimtar shot forward like lightning, his hand reaching for the mage's throat!

But...

Bang!

Sparks flew into the air. Grimtar's hand slammed into an invisible wall—a magical shield that appeared instantly around Elgot.

—"What the...?" muttered the old chieftain, but in the next moment, his eyes narrowed.

Grimtar struck again!

His fist, with the power to crush stone, collided with the magical barrier with a loud crash.

Crack.

The shield barely held up.

—"Don't mess with me, mage..." Grimtar roared, preparing to strike again.

At that moment, Elgot burst into light.

Lightning swirled around him, and his body was enveloped in a glow—he no longer looked like a drunkard but like a magical being that had transcended human form.

"Damn... What did I just do?!" Kano thought, seeing the tension in the air rise to its peak.

The other orcs had already grabbed their weapons.

Another moment—and a slaughter would begin.

Kano did the only thing he could.

—"STOP! STOP IMMEDIATELY!!!"

His voice rang out like thunder.

For a few seconds, everything froze.

Grimtar slowly stepped back, straightening his shoulders.

—"I don't tolerate disrespect towards the chief."

—"It wasn't disrespect!" Kano looked at the old orc, then at Elgot. —"We talk like this among friends! It won't happen again."

Grimtar stared at him for a few more seconds, then silently bowed his head in agreement.

Elgot dispelled the magical glow, but the shield was still up. His gaze remained sharp.

—"These orcs are true savages..." he muttered.

Kano tiredly rubbed his face.

—"And don't forget, I'm their chief."

Elgot sighed and waved his hand, finally lowering the shield. But his eyes kept darting toward Grimtar—he didn't trust him.

Naira laughed and walked over, slapping the mage on the back.

—"What's up, old man? Got yourself in trouble first thing in the morning?"

Elgot merely gritted his teeth:

— "You're all just a gang of barbarians..."

Ignoring this, Kano turned to Grimtar:

— "Do the orcs have a way of sending messages? Is there some kind of communication system?"

Grimtar nodded.

— "Yes. We use beasts, ones we keep for protection and communication."

Kano's interest piqued. He imagined a giant wolf or tiger.

— "Bring Bul!" — Grimtar ordered.

...And when they brought the creature forward, Kano didn't know whether to laugh or run.

Before him was... something strange.

Eight legs.

A frog's snout.

Sharp teeth that appeared and disappeared.

Its body resembled a chunk of stone.

— "It's not aggressive?" Kano asked.

Grimtar smiled.

— "This is the gentlest creature we know."

He whistled, and a young orc tossed a piece of meat to the beast.

Bul instantly tore the meat apart, devouring it in mere seconds.

Kano swallowed.

— "Oh... what a cute little puppy..."

Naira laughed, and Elgot grimaced.

Kano looked at Grimtar.

— "How does this work?"

The orc took a piece of hide, wrote a note, let the creature sniff an object that belonged to his son, and said:

— "Go to the camp."

Bul shot off into the forest like lightning, raising a cloud of dust.

Kano: "Now that's speed…"

But just a few seconds later, it returned.

— "Probably didn't find it?"

Grimtar pointed to the collar. The note was gone.

Moments later, a large warrior with a long scythe emerged from the forest.

— "Father, what happened?"

Kano was stunned. He turned to Naira and whispered:

— "If I give this Bul something of Lenor's, will it find him?"

The girl smiled.

— "Oh, it will. But Lenor will probably just kill him."

Kano took a deep breath.

— "I have a plan..."

Kano stood near his tent, watching the orcs.

There were one hundred of them.

Seventy warriors. Strong, battle-hardened. Men and women—all warriors.

Thirty children and elders. Those who could not fight, but who still carried the spirit of battle within them.

"These are not just survivors. These are the remnants of a real army."

Kano exhaled heavily.

What he had done had been... accidental. But the orcs saw it differently.

They believed it was their destiny—to serve him, obey him, die for him.

They looked at him not as just a leader. But as a true ruler.

And that scared him.

Especially when he saw the lone orc women—those who had lost their husbands in battle—looking at him with a grim, resolute determination.

"I'll have to deal with this later. But first… Lenor."

Kano set off to find Lianel.

Lianel was sitting by the campfire, cleaning her bow.

When Kano approached, she didn't even lift her head.

But the orcs sitting in the circle beside her immediately bowed their heads.

Kano felt a jolt inside him.

"Even she is beneath them. They only bow to me."

— "I need your help."

Lianel calmly lifted her eyes.

— "This probably has to do with your new army?"

Kano grimaced.

— "Not an army. I want them to be free."

— "And do they want that?"

Kano fell silent. He had no answer.

Lianel sighed but said nothing.

Kano got to the point:

— "Do you have something that smells like Lenor?"

Lianel raised an eyebrow in surprise.

— "Something with his scent...?"

She paused for a moment, then started rummaging through the bag that was always slung over her shoulder.

A few seconds of rustling, and she finally pulled out a pair of leather gloves, adorned with golden embroidery.

— "Lenor gave me these before my last mission. His scent might still be on them."

Kano took the gloves, examined them, carefully squeezing them between his fingers.

He sniffed them.

The smell of oak resin, ink, and metal.

"This is definitely Lenor."

He nodded.

— "This might work."

Lianel watched him with curiosity.

— "What are you planning?"

Kano smiled mysteriously.

— "Send Lenor a little surprise."

Kano sat on a wooden chair, his fingers tightly gripping the rough leather that was to become a letter.

"This is it – the point of no return."

He dipped the quill into ink, took a deep breath, and began to write.

**"Lenor.

If you're reading this, then I'm still alive. That's already something.

I've accidentally become the chief of the orcs. Don't ask how – you know me well enough to guess that I don't even understand how it happened.

There are only a hundred of them.

Seventy warriors (men and women).

Thirty children and elders.

I'm planning to build a city for them.

Where? In the Wild Lands. The place where no one lives. Where only monsters and death exist.

But it will be a place for those without a home. Not just for orcs – for everyone whom the world has cast aside.

I'm asking for your official permission to build.

I'm asking for Drachenfest and Ragnar to stay out of the way of this city's development.

In return, I will give my word.

If Drachenfest is ever threatened – my city, my orcs, my warriors will fight for it.

I'm not offering an alliance.

I'm offering a guarantee.

So, I ask you now:

Will you give me a chance to build this?"**

Kano reread it, sighed, and rolled the letter into a tight scroll.

He tied it with a rope and attached it to Bul's collar.

— "Take this. To Lenor."

Bul inhaled deeply, sniffed the gloves that still held a faint trace of Lenor's scent, and...

Vanished.

More precisely, it shot forward with such speed that, where it had just stood, a dust storm rose.

Kano nearly choked.

— "Did you say ten seconds?" he muttered, looking over at Naira.

The girl, arms crossed, smiled.

— "Now, I think it's more like five."