Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

"That is why I hope that the orc king can understand that we are not trying to terminate the one-sidedly or anything" From the stature and the frame of their body, one could easily tell that they weren't any orc.

The Orc King Bergarios grumbled, a strong aura of that of a disaster class beast permeated out of him just by sitting on his throne.

"I don't care about the circumstances of your kingdom. But you do realise that halting our business at this point is a huge loss for me right? The deal was for me to supply a large number of orcs in return for mana crystals equivalent to the weight of each orcs".

"After doing business for more than thirty years are you telling me to suddenly put the trade on hold? Don't think that I don't know what you are doing with the orcs that I'm supplying to you. I'm suffering a huge loss here due to you people, how are you going to reimburse me for that?" the orc king said putting pressure on each of his words.

Since the face of the person facing the orc king was covered, it was hard to tell what kind of expression they were making. However, from their body language, it was easy to tell that they were somehow fawning over the orc king.

"Of course, our kingdom understands that, that is why we have brought 50 tonnes of mana crystals to compensate the orc king," the man said taking out a space ring.

The orc king extended his burly hands and the space ring immediately flew over to him. From that, one could see how masterful he was in using his mana.

The orc king checked the contents of the space ring and snorted "Hmph… do you think a measly amount such as this is enough? The quality of the crystals is also merely grade [2]".

Hearing that, the man said wryly "The orc king should know how valuable grade [3] and above crystals are. Even our kingdom doesn't have many quandaries that produce that grade of crystals. Consider the ones we gave you as an apology from our side and a consideration for our continued collaboration".

Grade [3] mana crystals weren't something that a third rate kingdom like theirs can spurge freely.

"So, how long do you plan on keeping our business on a halt. Depending on your answer, I might decide to find a different partner kingdom to collaborate with" Belgarious spoke keeping the space ring unceremoniously.

"Haha, surely the orc king jests, I hope that you will give our partnership a little more importance. On that note, I assure you that once the situation in our kingdom is resolved we will open our business as soon as we can" a droplet of sweat trickled down the man's face.

Even though he had interacted with the orc king many times previously, it was still a challenging task to converse with a being who released such a strong aura.

"You have been going on about some kind of circumstance your kingdom is going thorugh. Can you not tell me what exactly is happening with your kingdom?" the orc king asked, his dark eyes falling on the man.

"Unfortunately, I cannot tell the orc king about this since I myself was not made aware of this. But I can assure you that whatever it is it will surely be resolved and our trade will open…".

"Enough about that, I'm sick of hearing you repeat the same thing. I'm willing to wait for some time but I cannot wait for too long. You should also know how risky this business is for me too. Those subordinates of mine still do not suspect me. However, there have been growing suspicions lately".

"If possible, I want to transport those individuals away from here and as soon as possible. That is why, I will only wait for a month, if you are still putting this business on a hold I will find some other way to contact those guys you have been trading with. Now then, you should leave before my subordinates find you. Also, remember to erase your scent with the item I gave you".

The man sighed before melding with the environment and disappearing from the sight. Not long after that person left a group of Diluvian High orcs, led by an exceptional looking orc approached the altar and bowed towards the orc king.

"My King, I have arrived as per your calls" the orc on the lead said.

"You did well by arriving here as soon as possible. I hope that you have been well? Did you look into that thing I had asked you before?" Belgarious lazy gaze fell on his subordinate, one of the orc generals, Berirock.

"Yes my king, I have thoroughly investigated the matter that was concerning you. It was as you have predicted, the orc general Berigard does indeed harbours the heart to rebel. He had been spreading false rumours about my king being the one behind the disappearance of the orcs to manipulate the others".

"My subordinates have reported seeing him make various preparations and expanding his army. As such I believe it wouldn't be long before he makes his move" Berircok reported.

The task that the orc king had given him was precisely to keep a tab on one of the four orc generals, Berigard. The orc generals were second only to the orc king and each governed a large area of their own inside the high orcs territory. They have their own subordinates and military and were a powerful force on their own.

"Hmm… is that so. That Berigard plans to rebel huh? What do you think about the false rumour that he is spreading? Do you too believe in that?".

The orc king asked while yawning. From his attitude, one could tell that he wasn't the least bit bothered by one of his four generals rebelling and instead seemed to find everything extremely bothersome.

"How can that be my king? I am one of your loyal subordinates and will never dare to believe such nonsense. I think Berigard is out of his mind for planning such a thing. I believe he has forgotten that it is because of your presence and effort that we are still able to live inside the western region of the forest."

"If not for my king repeatedly repelling those monsters, our race of Diluvian High orc might have been forced to abandon this place by now. It is presumptuous of Berigard to forget this fact and raise his weapon against you".

Berirock stated with sincerity, his anger towards Berigard could be felt from his words alone.

"Is that so… well I'm glad that some of my are still in their sane mind. As long as I have your trust, it doesn't matter how many people they try to manipulate against me".

The orc king praised, his act was so genuine that it was hard for anyone to tell that he was actually just acting.

The culprit that was behind the mysterious disappearance of the Diluvian High Orcs, was none other than he himself. He had been acting and misleading the facts up until now and blamed it on the other monsters and the humans on the borders of this forest.

However, due to some unknown factors, the news about the orcs being captured and turned into experimental subjects found its way back into the forest and into the ears of the other Diluvian High Orcs. Thus making them more vigilant.

Amongst that faction who believed the news, was Berigard and the subordinates he commanded. Somehow, the latter suspected him and was trying to overthrow him.

The rest of the orcs like the Berirock in front of him seemed to still have faith in him which was a good thing for Belgarious.

'For now, it seemed that the masses are still in my favour. I don't know how you got to know it, but it looks like I will have to get rid of you too. Honestly, all of this is just too troublesome. Should I just rid of the entire orcs?

No, they still have their worth. Besides I still need a lot more resources before I can ascend to become a calamity class' the orc king thought internally.

"My king… what should we do about Berigard? If you ask of me, I shall immediately take my army and take him down" Berirock suggested. The orc behind thumped their chests as if saying that they do not mind to go into war with another faction.

"Do you have the confidence to win against him? if not then leave him alone. When the time comes and he arrives before me, I will take care of him myself. But to be honest, it is quite a shame to lose a subordinate as capable as him. Even amongst all the other Dilviona High Orcs, Berigard is exceptional in that his unique physique is suited to become a shaman" Belgarious sighed.

The physique of the diluvian high orcs or the orcs in general were more suited to become warriors because of how their stats tend to concentrate more on Strength. However, Berigard was different in that his body was unlike any warrior with his overall stats focused more on Magic and Agility.

Shamans were what the beast race calls one of their own who are suited to use magic. They are equivalent to a mage in human terms.

Although very rare, there are some irregularities amongst the orc who are born with a high Magic stat and Berigard was one such individual. Even if it was another orc general like Berirock, it would be very tough to defeat Berigard.