The Orcs had the Spiny Bronze Anteater surrounded, but their opponent was a tough nut to crack.
Even with so many enemies ganging up on it, it stood its ground and gave the Orcs a hard time.
Thirteen's group had also fought this monster in the past, so he understood how hard it was to kill it.
However, this wasn't the first time that the Orcs were fighting such a Monster. They already knew the strategy that they had to use against it.
The High Orc commanded its subordinates to use hit-and-run tactics to pressure the Anteater while it waited for the perfect opportunity to move in and flip it over.
Once that is done, two more Orcs would move in to stab its soft underside, dealing serious injuries to the Anteater.
After that, it was only a matter of time before it bled to death or completely unable to right itself, allowing it to land more hits on its body, ending its life.
Seeing that the opportunity had come, the High Orc charged forward and grabbed the side of Spiny Bronze Anteater's body.
Using all of the strength it could muster, the High Orc roared and flipped the Monster's body.
As soon as he succeeded, the two Orcs who were waiting for this opportunity moved in to stab the soft underbelly of the Anteater, making it bellow in pain and anger.
Suddenly, they heard the sounds of hooves in the background.
However, before the other Orcs could even look in the direction where the sounds were coming from, one of them got hit by an arrow in the arm.
A moment later, another arrow flew and hit another orc. But, this time, the arrow landed in its throat, making it grunt.
The High Orc's gaze then landed on a Black Horse that was running in their direction with two humans riding on its back.
Rianna had one of her arms wrapped around Thirteen's body, holding him in place, while the younger boy fired one arrow after the other, aiming at the Orcs in the distance.
Three of the Orcs were hit, while the other three, including the High Orc, used their shields to block the other incoming arrows.
While this was happening, the Spiny Bronze Anteater righted itself up and tackled the Orc closest to it.
Its sharp claws dug deep into the Orc's body, causing the latter to cry out in pain.
Seeing this scene, the High Orc knew that their operation was compromised.
The Anteater only ate Ants, but it was still a Rank 2 Monster that mustn't be underestimated.
With the Anteater behind him and the two humans in front, the High Orc knew that it wasn't in a position to defend itself properly.
The only saving grace was that the Anteater was already seriously injured and might bleed to death very soon.
Perhaps knowing that it didn't have long to live, the Anteater decided to take the Orcs down with it, so after mauling the first Orc to death, it shifted its attention to the High Orc and the other Orc beside it.
With a bellow filled with anger, the Anteater charged at the two Orcs, prompting the High Orc to distance itself from the Monster.
The other Orc was about to do the same, but before he could do that, an arrow hit his leg, hampering its movements.
The arrows that Thirteen shot were coated with the venom of the Purple Desert Scorpion, paralyzing everyone it hit.
Although the Orcs wouldn't be paralyzed right away, it still made their movements sluggish, buying the Spiny Bronze Anteater plenty of time to catch up.
Thirteen then focused his attention on the High Orc and shot one arrow after the other.
However, the latter used its shield effectively to block the arrows headed in its direction.
As the High Orc was doing this, it was running in a particular direction so that it wouldn't be sandwiched between the humans and the Anteater, who was now fighting the Orc it had set its eyes on.
"Chase the High Orc," Thirteen commanded.
"Okay," Rianna replied.
The younger boy's target was the High Orc, so he wouldn't let it escape no matter what.
Thirteen fired one arrow after another, putting pressure on the High Orc, who had no choice but to block his attacks while running away.
First off, it knew that it couldn't run toward the Black Morgan because it was way faster than it.
Second, it believed that the moment the Human ran out of arrows, the boy would no longer be able to threaten it.
'This High Orc is smart,' Thirteen thought as he fired another arrow. 'Fortunately, I prepared in advance.'
Just as the High Orc was about to hide behind a nearby boulder as a shield, it found itself facing a bone club headed straight to its chest, which sent it flying.
Thirteen, who was waiting for this moment, fired two arrows in rapid succession, hitting the High Orc's body.
Brutus then ran past Bruno, shouting his warcry with his spiked mace raised high.
It then mercilessly smashed it down, aiming at the High Orc's chest with the intention of killing it.
The High Orc had no intention of dying, so it rolled to its side, evading the attack.
Although its movements slowed down considerably due to the Scorpion's venom, it took a fighting stance, raising its sword and shield to fight Brutus to death.
Unfortunately for it, this wasn't a one-on-one battle.
Bruno, who was feeling competitive with Brutus, also charged forward with its Bone Club raised high.
Cristopher, who was hiding somewhere safe, clenched his fist in excitement.
'The Young Master did it again!' Cristopher watched as his two subordinates worked together to confront the High Orc. 'This High Orc is as good as ours!'
Brutus and Bruno took turns attacking the pitiful High Orc, who was unable to come up with a strategy to defeat the two Brute Monsters.
Its body was also starting to succumb to the Scorpion's poison, rendering it unable to fight properly.
Because of this, it was unable to do anything and simply stood, blocking and parrying the attacks of the two Monsters who left it with nowhere to run.
This battle lasted for a few minutes before Bruno, who was using his overwhelming strength to his advantage, unleashed a powerful blow, which shattered the High Orc's shield, and broke the arm that was holding it.
Brutus didn't miss this opportunity and smashed his spiked mace on the High Orc's chest, making the latter collapse on the ground.
It was Bruno who landed the killing blow by smashing the High Orc's head with its bone club, finally ending its life.
After confirming that the High Orc was dead, Thirteen urged Rianna to return to where the other Orcs were so that she could land the killing blow on the survivors.
Out of the five Orcs, only three survived.
The Anteater, on the other hand, was lying on its side no longer able to move and was just waiting for its death.
Although it was dying, Thirteen didn't take any chances and ordered Rianna to hit its underbelly with an arrow.
Rianna obeyed and hit her target. The Black Morgan stood five meters away from it.
They then went to the three surviving Orcs and repeated the same process.
Only this time, Rianna used arrows coated with the Yellow Striped Dusk Brute's poison, ensuring that they would succumb to death slowly.
Rianna managed to get an item from the four monsters that she had killed, which wasn't a bad thing.
The item she got was a Spiny Dagger that had the ability to return to its owner with a command or just a thought.
Of course, this item came from the Spiny Bronze Anteater, which they had killed.
Thirteen then rummaged through the belongings of the Orcs and looked for things that they could use.
He collected their swords and a few silver coins, which they used to trade with the Barbarians.
Although none of them could wield the swords of the Orcs, Brutus could, so he kept them in storage.
Thirteen also collected the arrows he had used in battle because he had a very limited supply of them.
After making sure that they had taken everything useful, they left the scene and joined up with Cristopher, who was smiling ear to ear because he now had a High Orc under his command.
