Chapter 76: Frozen Land #2

Chapter 76: Frozen Land #2

There’s no hospital in the slave village, but there is a bar.

Perhaps even if the end of the world comes, bars in various places will remain open until the very last moment.

They’ll probably drink with the world’s destruction as their drinking snack. Drinkers are that kind of race.

Jonathan and I opened the door of the orc bar and went inside.

“Ugh.”

My nose twitched involuntarily. The strong smell of alcohol pierced directly into my nostrils.

“I told you, it’s not a place for a young girl like you.”

Jonathan chuckled. He seemed to find my flustered state quite amusing.

“Do you drink?”

“A little.”

“Forget whatever you’ve drunk before. We can’t get normal alcohol at our village bar anyway. We drink things like this.”

Jonathan shook the bottle in front of my eyes.

There was no label indicating what kind of alcohol it was, and the way it was contained in a dirty glass bottle looked quite crude.

It felt like illicit liquor brewed secretly in a basement during Prohibition.

In the slave village bar, there seemed to be no other option besides this drink.

The bar owner placed this bottle in front of us without us even ordering.

The snack was just a few grains of salt.

“I’m warning you. Don’t drink more than a sip. You’ll die.”

“Tsk – trying to scare me.”

“Does it look like I’m trying to scare you? Then pay up.”

“Why?”

“Because it’ll be troublesome for me if you die before paying. You have to pay for the drinks, and my wages in advance.”

Jonathan said with a serious face. He was quick when it came to calculating money.

I know their alcohol.

It’s alcohol, but it’s something that can’t be called alcohol. Beyond strong liquor, it’s poison itself.

The truth is that this alcohol is industrial alcohol, secretly siphoned off and refined during mine work.

As Jonathan said, it’s clear that drinking something like this, which isn’t even proper alcohol, would harm the body. But the orcs couldn’t even get this much.

‘Shall I give it a try?’

This is a good opportunity to test my abilities.

I poured the strong liquor until it overflowed the glass. Jonathan narrowed his eyes.

“How foolish! That’s not how you drink it. I told you, it’s not normal alcohol. You should drink it one sip at a time, over time-“

“You drink this one.”

“What?”

I pushed the glass towards Jonathan, and then picked up the bottle myself.

“The first glass is a one-shot.”

“Wait-“

Jonathan’s eyes widened. I tilted the bottle before Jonathan could stop me.

Gulp, gulp-

‘Ugh.’

Indeed, this was not alcohol.

Transparent poison.

My throat burned. A flame flowed down my esophagus.

I felt like I could breathe fire if I exhaled right now.

“You’re crazy. Is this how humans commit suicide!”

Jonathan’s words faded indistinctly in my ears. I could hear the sound, but couldn’t understand the meaning.

I couldn’t see anything in front of me, and my senses disappeared.

Then, my body felt relaxed.

「Resurrected due to the effect of [Trait: Immortality].」

「Resurrected immediately with the power of the Holy Reliquary.」

「A portion of your stats will be permanently lost due to the after-effects of Immortality.」

「However, as your stats have already dropped to the minimum, they will not decrease further.」

System messages I hadn’t seen in a long time.

No, I really died.

“Ah, damn, this alcohol is strong.”

I shook my head and exhaled.

Although I died of acute alcohol poisoning, the after-effects remained.

My head was clear without any hangover, and my body felt light as if it could fly.

Debuffs before death are nullified upon resurrection. It’s a Lich’s overpowered trait.

“No, you- you collapsed on the table just now- you definitely looked dead-“

Jonathan stammered. As if he couldn’t believe what he saw with his own eyes, he kept rubbing his eyes with his dirty hands.

“Your alcohol is tasteless. I’m done drinking.”

“⋯.”

“But what are you doing? You have to finish your drink.”

I pointed to the drink glass in front of Jonathan.

Jonathan cowered, his shoulders slumping.

An extraordinary presence that a mere snow orc couldn’t imitate. I could feel his gaze towards me had clearly changed.

「Achievement Unlocked. Acquire a new special ability.

-Rashness: When HP drops below 5%, all stats increase by 5%.」

It was worth it to perform such a suicidal show of madness.

A trait called “Rashness,” obtained by overcoming an absurd and ridiculous death.

It’s quite a difficult trait to acquire intentionally. It’s common for people to die trying to get Rashness without overcoming the situation.

It’s a kind of Darwin Award.

“⋯You’re not just an ordinary girl.”

Jonathan finally opened his mouth.

“Well, it was strange enough that you made it this far, breaking through Carmilla’s magic. What is it? What’s your purpose for coming here?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. I told you. I just got lost.”

“⋯Is that so? Yes, I understand.”

Jonathan took a sip of the strong liquor. The orc fell into thought for a while without speaking.

***

After leaving the bar, we next visited the orcs’ fighting arena.

The orcs living in the slave village have two sources of enjoyment.

One is the gut-twisting strong liquor. The other is the duels.

It seems that even for snow orcs, their inherent belligerence hasn’t completely disappeared.

“A duel is happening today. Do you want to watch?”

“Sure.”

“You can even bet money on the one you like. Choose carefully. The ones fighting today are listed here. One-eyed Jack, Pustule Waldo…”

Jonathan read out the names written on the notice board one by one.

Gauss, nicknamed ‘Polar Bear,’ who was on a 4-win streak, caught my eye. He probably got that nickname because of his white hair.

“Gauss can find peace today if he wins.”

“Peace?”

“It means he can die completely. It means he gains the right to rot away in the ground without being eternally enslaved even after death. I’m truly envious.”

Jonathan said with a longing voice.

The orcs’ goal was to die peacefully. While gladiators in other arenas fought and won to earn a lot of money or freedom, the orc champions fought for death.

“Then, the defeated orcs-“

“What else can I say? Naturally, they become eternal slaves on the spot.”

As soon as Jonathan finished speaking, a group of orcs passed behind us.

They had a different aura than the living snow orcs.

Empty eyes that were open but lacked focus. A detachment that didn’t even react to flies landing on their cheeks.

They were ‘eternal slaves,’ destined to serve Carmilla for an eternity, neither alive nor dead.

This was also the future for most snow orcs, except for a few lucky ones.

Jonathan tried his best to avoid making eye contact with the undead orcs.

“Let’s go in.”

We entered the arena, which looked like it could collapse at any moment.

The interior was desolate. Wooden pillars were roughly erected, and tents were haphazardly draped over them to block the wind and rain.

It looked like a building destroyed by a bomb. However, it strangely suited the orcs of this slave village as a stage for their fights.

“Look over there, it’s a human.”

“Now even girls come to watch. Are you on a field trip or something, tsk.”

I felt the gazes of the orcs inside. The orcs muttered remarks as they looked at me.

“What are you looking at!”

Jonathan narrowed his eyes and nodded his chin. The orcs turned their gazes back to the center of the arena.

Two orcs stood in the middle of the arena. The old orc with white hair seemed to be Gauss.

“Gauss the Polar Bear. He’s a master of the club. As everyone knows, if he wins just one more time, Gauss can proceed to the path of eternal rest.”

The announcer orc raised Gauss’s hand high. Gauss was among the orcs with a relatively decent physique.

“Cheer for me! I want to win! Brothers who bet on me, I won’t disappoint you!”

Gauss shouted, veins bulging in his neck.

“Now, now, his opponent is Gallon the Deer Hunter. A born hunter who has hunted over a hundred stags.”

Amidst the escalating atmosphere of the arena, the announcer orc continued.

However, the deer hunter did not appear on stage. Gauss tilted his head in confusion.

“⋯The match was supposed to be like that, but I have sudden news to share with my brothers. Those who know have already heard. Gallon met with an accident in the mine yesterday. He was hit in the head by a fragment of bloodstone and is currently unconscious. Please pray for Gallon.”

The announcer orc placed his fist on his chest and closed his eyes.

Gauss and the other orc spectators followed suit.

“So, Gauss’s opponent today has changed to another orc. It seems that the fat Wafa has decided to enter the arena himself after a long time. Come on, brothers who bet on Gallon can re-bet. I’ll say it one more time. Today’s duel is between Gauss and Wafa, Wafa and Gauss.”

The orcs murmured. Jonathan whispered in my ear.

“Gauss is finished today.”

“Why?”

When I asked back, Jonathan narrowed his brow.

“No matter how well Gauss fights, he can’t beat Wafa. Wafa is the strongest gladiator in the slave village. Wafa and Vetdi. These two are brothers, and they’ve never lost.”

“If they’ve never lost, wouldn’t they have found peace long ago?”

“Wafa and Vetdi don’t want peace.”

Jonathan shook his head.

“They are Carmilla’s subordinates. They are the de facto rulers who manage the slave village on Carmilla’s behalf. Although there is a separate orc elder, no one listens to the old elder’s words. This village is practically in the hands of Wafa and Vetdi.”

As soon as Jonathan finished speaking, an orc hobbled out from the entrance of the arena.

“The champion has arrived! Give him a round of applause, everyone. Wafa is here.”

As his nickname suggested, Wafa’s belly protruded like a mountain.

It’s not something to be simply laughed at. In a village where most orcs were skinny due to poor nutrition, he alone had eaten enough and gained strength.

Moreover, if you look closely, although his belly is large, he has a thick, muscular build like a wrestler. His body was accustomed to fighting.

“Then I’ll bet five thousand gold on Wafa.”

“Good choice.”

Jonathan grinned. Jonathan went to the arena management and spoke with someone, placing the bet.

A moment later, Jonathan returned.

“We need to change seats.”

“Why?”

“You bet the most money today. They call it VIP among humans, right? They said to watch from the best seats.”

Jonathan and I moved to the very front of the arena, the spot with the best view of the fight.

Even in a slave village, the value of shining gold coins doesn’t change.

“Hoo, hoo-“

Indeed, it was the VIP seat. Gauss’s tense breaths were clearly audible.

“Hehehe – Gauss, let’s have a fun fight.”

Wafa said with a sinister smile.