Atlas didn’t budge for even a single second, and this made Emil even more concerned because
Atlas didn’t seem this focused during the dungeon they both attempted a while ago. Just because of this, he knew that something which was coming towards them wasn’t like a normal goblin; he instantly looked towards the three dwarves and said. "We should take cover; Atlas will handle the rest."
Emil walked in the opposite direction and stopped beside the enormous tree’s trunk, which was enough to cover all of them. Dwarves followed behind his trail; their motion came to a halt when they reached beside him.
No one dared to move, but still Emil mustered enough courage to peek through the trunk, looking at Atlas’s back.
Soon after, the rumbling came to an end as a figure towering ten feet tall, with a broad green frame and a sheer amount of muscle mass, and long, matted hair filled with dirt, hung loosely over its shoulders.
It wore just a small garment which covered its genitals, and a wooden mace loaded with iron spikes remained firm in its grip.
Expressions on the older dwarf’s face darkened; sweat filled his face as he muttered under his breath. No... it can’t be... How can an Orc be in this forest?! "He questioned himself.
Ironically, Emil eavesdropped on his words, which even made him worry because he knew Orcs were stronger than the species he faced before. Although orcs and goblins belong to the same family tree, orcs are significantly stronger.
Emil gulped, but still a flicker of relief washed over his face because he knew that the monsters that are outside in the wild and not in the dungeon are significantly weaker than those monsters that spend their lives in dungeons.
Atlas didn’t waste any more time; the only motive of his was to finish this as soon as possible. His grip on the axe’s shaft tightened, and he lunged forward right away.
Atlas spread his stance, drawing his great axe back as far as he could to build up maximum momentum. The moment he came within a foot of the orc, he unleashed a powerful horizontal swing aimed straight at its torso.
The orc reacted instantly. Tightening its grip around the massive mace, it raised the weapon just in time to intercept the attack.
Steel collided with iron in a deafening clang, the impact sending a violent shockwave through the air as the orc successfully blocked the blow, shielding its body from the devastating strike.
But the impact was heavy to the extent that it sent shockwaves through its body. The orc let out a huge roar through its nose, pain soothing through its body, muscles tensed up, which caused the release of adrenaline through its veins.
Atlas stood there, gently resting his axe over his shoulder as he waited for the orc to regain its composure. Emil questioned himself regarding Atlas’s behaviour. ’Why isn’t he attacking him? It’s the perfect opportunity to take its head and finish this.’
But before he could try to find any answer, the orc dashed forward; anger seeped through its body. Its eyes were now filled with blood.
It kept swinging the mace in a desperate attempt to hit Atlas even once, but sadly for the orc, it didn’t even come near him.
Even the dwarves who were still standing behind the trunk were left astonished at the sight of this battle. They never imagined someone of this enormous size to have such agility.
But none of it concerned Emil; only one thing was on his mind, and that was to finish this as early as possible. "Atlas, let’s not drag it any further."
"It’s just a single orc for now, and we don’t know if more of them are there or not. It’s better to move away from here instead of toying."
Atlas tilted his head slightly but still let a single nod pass in consideration of Emil’s order. Atlas raised his axe in the air, this time holding it with just one hand.
His gaze was fixed on the orc who was still trying its best to reach him, but Atlas ignored him as he brought down the axe in a clean yet violent strike.
Slicing through the centre of the orc’s body. Its blood splashed over the grass around it; some of it fell over Atlas’s face, which trailed down to his chest. The slice parted its body in two halves; one crashed to the left, while the other was dropped to the right, both hitting the ground with a resounding THUD.
Dwarves were stunned; they never saw someone defeat an orc this effortlessly. Well, maybe because they never encountered an orc outside of the dungeon.
Emil looked at their expressions; instantly, a faint smirk appeared on Emil’s face, and he crossed his arms gently. "So, what do you think? Am I still a lowly human?" Emil asked; his voice remained neutral.
The older dwarf gulped because he was the only one who knew about the difference in power levels when it came to monsters in the dungeon and the monsters outside. But still, defeating an orc in merely a few dozen seconds wasn’t a cup of tea for everyone out there.
"It’s not that impressive, but I’ll agree that you’re not lowly..." His voice was low; even the confidence from before had started to fade.
Emil walked towards Atlas; he gently touched his arm and patted it once before continuing. "You did well, Atlas."
His gaze swept across the dead body of the orc; he was expecting some scraps just like he got from the dungeon, but unexpectedly there weren’t any.
He let a small chuckle escape from him; he muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Yeah... It’s not a dungeon where I’ll get some good items after killing a monster."
Emil slid his hand inside his pocket and pulled out a cloth that he had kept to clean his sweat, but he extended it to Atlas. "Take this and clean yourself; your entire torso is filled with that monster’s rotten blood," Emil said, holding his breath as a nauseating stench lingered around Atlas. The blood coating his body reeked so horribly that his nose wasn’t able to endure it.