How boring.

When I heard the stories about the Vrared tribes, I thought they would be a greater challenge.

As a whole, they are a potential threat, I agree. However, the tribes individually are quite easy to deal with.

All I need to do is fly to a tribe, challenge its leader for command, beat him to death, be acclaimed as the new leader, and fly to the next tribe after leaving a puppet in charge of the conquered ones.

Some tribes refuse to surrender, so I give them a little lesson with the help of Sarak and Salutar.

In the end, nothing but savagery and pure barbarism. Violence as the means and the only solution.

I thought I was tired of Kheldash and Camilo's schemes, but they are less tedious than this.

Apparently, there are only two tribes that could pose as threats in our raid on the Vrared. One of them has an extremely strong chief, capable of killing lesser dragons by himself. The second tribe, the largest of all, is led by an extremely intelligent and cunning orc. He will try some trick to avoid facing me in a duel for leadership, and we will have to face the whole tribe, which can be quite problematic.

So, let's leave them for last for now.

§ § § § § §

Almost two months have passed since we began our raid on the Vrared. Meanwhile, our troops have already arrived in Shaxai to defend the city.

If everything goes well, by the end of the year we should meet up with the troops in Shaxai after passing through the Bay of Zord , the Mountains of Korath and the forest of Kasvil.

Here in the Vrared, we have taken control of two-thirds of the orc tribes. Those that refused to submit had their members disbanded. We crossed the tipping point when we conquered more than half of the tribes. Even if the others join forces to fight us, we now have numerical superiority.

In fact, I could just give an order for the bands I conquered to march through all of Vrared and conquer the remaining tribes. But that would take away the sabbatical purpose of this journey.

No more hordes or armies. I need to do this with my own hands.

And now our target is the second-largest orc tribe, led by the dragonslayer chief.

§ § § § § §

When we arrive at the village, the orcs seem to be waiting for us. They make way as I land and walk toward the center of the tribe, where their leader awaits me.

There are at least sixty warriors in this tribe. The orcs of Vrared are larger and stronger than the orcs of Darog. Even their females are big and intimidating. Sarak looks like an elf compared to them. The shamaness must have inherited her physique from her father.

And in the center of the village, the largest orc of them all. Standing over two meters (7’) tall, he was a mountain of muscles and scars.

But the weapon he wielded was not a massive club or axe, but rather a spear. A hunter's spear.

"Sonur, the dragonslayer orc. I've come to take your tribe." I utter.

"You're the Dragon of the Steppes. The elders told stories about you." The orc start to speak. He must be thirty years old or less. "Stories about a dragon with copper scales, enslaving goblins and beastfolk. He was trying to conquer the trows and then he’d come after us."

"Your elders were right." I answer, nonchalantly.

"They said you were sleeping in your lair. The cowards were relieved. But I've waited all my life for the day you would wake up. I grew up hunting your kind. Preparing for this day." He says, pointing to a lesser dragon skull he uses as a shoulder guard.

"Hunting my kind?" I laugh. "I'm a greater dragon. Disciple of Ralkor, the Marching Mountain. Enemy of Korath and Renxing. Have you ever killed a dragon like me?"

"No. Not yet." The orc answers confidently as he raises his spear made from dragon bone.

"Glory to my name when I make it. Until the ends of time when the sandworms swallow the world." He declares.

"Then come, orc. Come to claim your glory." I challenge, gritting my teeth.

The orc charges at me, swinging his spear. He's strong. If he were wielding a two-handed axe or a massive club, he would be lethal in a fight against other humanoids.

But he's not a warrior. He's a hunter. A hunter with no interest in hunting humanoids, only large beasts.

And despite his size, he's agile. I attempt to slash him with the claws on my wing, but he dodges and counterattacks with his spear, piercing my wing.

I roar as I unleash a torrent of flames. The orc hunter, unable to dodge this time, withstands the fire.

I strike him with my tail a crushing blow. Despite having some broken ribs, the tribe chief counterattacks, grabbing my tail. He quickly draws a bone knife and slashes at my scales, creating a huge gash.

I twist my entire body and hurl the orc into one of the village huts, nearly demolishing it.

Then I take flight and begin to target him with [Scorching Ray]. The orc recovers and runs toward his spear, trying to dodge my spells.

He picks up his spear from the ground and points it towards me. This is the decisive moment when the hunter lands a critical hit on his prey and claims the hunt.

But I am no prey.

When the dragonslayer hurls his spear, I block it with a flap of my wings, causing the weapon to fall far away. Then I dive on top of him, pinning him to the ground with my talons.

"I won't kill you. But I will leave a scar so huge and gruesome that you will never forget this day. The day you faced Akalani and lived to tell the tale." I say as I dig my talons even deeper into his chest. A fiery liquid begins to drip from my mouth, splashing onto the orc's face.

He screams and shakes his head as part of his face burns. But soon, an even sharper pain would make him forget about the burn.

I tear into his torso with my talons, making a deep cut. There's a chance he won't survive. However, if he does, I'll want him in my ranks. Someone so hard to kill can be quite useful.

"The sandworms won't swallow the world. You know why? Because I've killed almost all of them." I tell the orc as his consciousness fades

"I am the monster that will devour this world."