My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Damon had once again dug a hole for himself. Honestly, he felt like his propensity to jump into danger was ten times higher than your average suicidal maniac.

At the top of the hill, Twilight glanced at Ilukras with an inquisitive expression.

"Hey, you speak multiple languages—what did he say?"

Ilukras tilted his head. "Hmm, I'm not sure if I'm hearing him right or if my Orchis is rusty… but it kinda sounds like he just challenged the orc war chief to a hand-to-hand duel."

Twilight stared from above, wide-eyed.

"He just… threw the staff? What is he doing?"

Wimpy whispered, "He's bluffing. Right? Right?"

Saint narrowed his eyes, looking at the spectacle beneath. "I don't think so..."

On the ground, Aleph—who was weakly lying there, drained of mana—raised his hand, gasping for air.

"Serves him right… this is instant karma... damn orphan."

Dred kicked him, taking advantage of his helplessness.

"Should we just toss him to the orcs?"

Unnoticed Singularity glanced at his party. "Great, we can send you too…"

Lena rushed towards them, almost slipping on the grass.

"Hurry, we need to stop him! That orc is a whole rank above him. Taking that one barehanded is like asking a child to wrestle a bear."

Aleph raised his hand, laughing weakly. "Thank god, one less orphan in the world. He can join his parents."

They all glanced at Unnoticed Singularity, who sighed.

"He had it coming. You can beat him up now."

What followed next was them beating the living daylight out of the weak and helpless Aleph.

Lena watched them with trembling hands. Why were they so nonchalant? Why did she expect this party of eccentrics to act normal?

'If he died down there… what hope did they have left? No hero, no miracle. Just the orcs.'

She gritted her teeth, holding her staff, and turned away. Unnoticed Singularity saw her expression and chuckled.

"Don't worry, he won't die from this. Trust his judgment."

Lena bit her lips. Before she could speak, Unnoticed Singularity raised his voice.

"Move the train towards the orcs. Let's get a closer look."

One of the adventurers bit his lips. "That doesn't sound like a good idea… I mean—"

"If he dies, we're done for anyway. Might as well get a closer look," Unnoticed Singularity cut him off.

He slowly began to walk down the hill, pulling Damon's stag with him.

The civilians didn't have much of an idea what was going on. Unlike those adventurers who had awakened a class, these people were rankless and had no class—they did not have superhuman abilities.

The amount of information they could get was limited.

As the train began to slowly move down the hill towards the orcs, they were fearful.

"Are we surrendering to the orcs...?"

"Is this the end...?"

"I heard they eat children and kill all the men..."

"The Ascendant will save us... he promised."

"All nobles are the same—liars."

No, he's not. We'll be fine. I know it.

"Oh goddess, help us..."

Prayers and fear, hope and despair—various emotions were passed and whispered. What else could they do? No one gave them any explanations.

The adventurers were also uneasy as they approached the bottom of the hill.

The roar and clapping of orcs as they rhythmically banged their weapons created a circle, where a barely dressed Damon stood with a calm expression.

They sat in the train, too afraid to come out. It felt like the train was the difference between life and death—having saved them from the orcs before, perhaps it was.

Except now, there was no place to run.

Unnoticed Singularity finally decided to speak.

"This is a duel between the Ascendant and the orc war chief. Only the mightiest will stand, and the weak will fall."

Damon didn't look back to know Unnoticed Singularity was briefing these people. He closed his eyes calmly.

He was starting to wonder how he even got here.

Ah, right. He had decided to be selfless and embody the noble ideals of Valarie Sunwarden and the kind Carmen Vale.

How did that end for him? Fighting an eight-foot-tall orc with his bare hands while being a whole rank weaker than it.

Come to think of it, every time he was a good Samaritan, he always got hurt.

If he lost here today, he wouldn't die—because he was never in danger of dying to begin with. He could just shadow stride away anytime.

The reason he was here was because the hundreds of helpless men, women, and children behind him could not.

For once in his life, he wanted to do something that was good—not motivated by guilt or necessity. A decision that was solely his.

He wondered, now that he was on the road to his village... if his father saw him at this moment... would he be proud of what he saw? Or would he be disgusted by the monster beneath?

Damon's thoughts spiraled beyond the battle with Iron.

"You are distracted, human. You look down on me…"

The Orchis language spoken by the orc war chief shook Damon out of his thoughts.

He glanced at the eight-foot-tall orc whose height dwarfed his own, his brown eyes staring down at Damon.

"From where I'm standing, you're looking down on me."

The orc narrowed his eyes, not understanding sarcasm.

"I do not look down on warriors. Only weaklings. Which one are you? Show me—or become a skull on my neck."

He gestured to the chain of skulls on his neck, clearly intent on adding Damon's head.

"Ah, you're too eager. Before we fight, I have conditions."

Dred glanced at Ilukras where they stood on the side, with the human crowd separating them from the orcs.

"What's he saying?" he asked the monk.

Ilukras squeezed his lamp. "He wishes to have a prize upon his victory. The orc chief can choose one of two things: for all the orcs to be enslaved by Damon and serve him to their deaths... or the second option—the orcs must allow our entire caravan safe passage through the Green Hills."

Dred nodded. No way the orcs would choose the first option. No one wants to be enslaved by another.

Unnoticed Singularity chuckled. He was familiar with this. It was a tactic in psychological manipulation.

Giving someone an impossible option first—one they would not agree to—then giving them an alternative option that seemed less bad, which was actually what you wanted them to pick.

Damon glanced at the orc, speaking in their tongue.

"Do you agree? Or are you afraid?"

Iron clenched his fist, making cracking sounds. "Agree. Same for you... we will enslave you all..."

Damon nodded. "Agreed."

He took a battle stance. Before he could steady it, Iron's large fist made astral winds. Damon raised his hand to block. He felt his flesh ripple, skin tear, and shock travel through his bones.

He was pushed back several meters, blood pooling at the side of his mouth.

[HP: 995/1695]

His legs felt weak, trembling from the shock.

Iron smiled. No human takes an orc head-on.