Did I fail? Why the hell did it show a black ring, then?
Grey was angry. He was using his Art of Wood for the first time on a living being, so he wasn't sure if the colors meant the same thing.
But before he could act again, he realized that the Chieftain wasn't moving.
What he saw next was more surprising. A red, crystal-like thing left the wound by itself. After leaving the Chieftain's body, it turned white and dropped to the ground.
And then...
Grey was shocked since the Chieftain's whole body was filled with rings. His neck and heart showed black, while his belly showed gray, and his right eye showed white rings.
The weakness rings were as they would be on an immobile being, like a tree. He didn't wait, though. The Orc Chieftain could move anytime now.
Instead, Grey hit the Orc Chieftain's neck just like the way he cut a tree. He jumped back instantly in case the Chieftain moved, but he didn't.
Instead, Grey saw green blood oozing from the wound he created on the Chieftain's neck.
He went back for another hit, but again, Chieftain didn't react. So, Grey went for the kill, hitting the same spot again and again.
As long as it didn't move, Grey could hit the same spot on anything without the smallest error. So, the wound got bigger and bigger, until the Orc Chieftain's head finally fell.
[Art of Source has leveled up!]
Before Grey could understand what the panel in front of him said, he heard a sound and turned back, only to see Elaine running toward him.
She didn't wait and hugged Grey, crying. "G-Grey! Waaah! I was so scared!"
"It is okay now, he is dead." Grey tried to console her, but she didn't stop. Still, Grey didn't have time for this right now. "Elaine, why did you come? Didn't I tell you to run? Go, I have other things to do."
"A-Are you going back inside the f-forest?" she asked with shock visible on her face. "No, I will come with you."
"No way! I am coming with-"
"Elaine!" Grey shouted and hugged her back. "Thank you for your help. I lived thanks to you. But if you come with me now, I will also need to protect you. So, please, leave.
Since the Chieftain is dead, the Orcs won't leave the forest. But we will have many wounded. So, go back to the village and come back with the villagers. Also, bring carriages. Do you understand?"
Elaine didn't want to, but what Grey said only made sense. They would need to treat the injured ones. And she would only be a burden.
So, she nodded with tears in her eyes. "Promise me you will not die."
"Don't worry, I have no intention of dying. I will come back in one piece!"
Seeing his determined face, Elaine felt relieved. So, she started running in the opposite direction, outside the forest, and toward the village.
***
Grey ran toward Taek first. It wasn't because he wanted to save him first. Though he did, the real reason was that he was the closest.
So, he left for the last place he saw him. Even though Taek could take on a single Orc alone, since he didn't come later, he had either encountered another Orc or he went back into the forest to help the others.
Well, unless he is dead...
Grey didn't think Taek could die that easily.
He arrived at where he last saw Taek, and not surprisingly, an Orc was lying on the ground, probably killed by Taek.
But there were traces of another fight. When Grey closed his eyes and started listening to any sound, he heard the sound of something hitting the ground.
He immediately headed for the source of the sound and found an Orc and...
"Taek!" He jumped beside Taek.
"Grey? What are you doing here? Why didn't you run away?"
"We don't have time for that. The Orc Chieftain is dead. I am here to help!"
"What? Who killed it?"
But, instead of answering, Grey focused on the Orc. Taek wasn't in too shabby a state, but he was obviously tired.
When he focused, rings appeared on him. There was already a ring on its neck.
Is it because the Orc is weaker? he thought. But something else drew his attention. The color of the ring was gray.
While the Orc Chieftain's neck was black, meaning easy to kill if he hit there, the Orc's was gray.
Since the Orc Chieftain was supposed to be stronger and his body harder, the rings showed the other way around.
What is the difference between then and now? Is it because of that level thing? But I don't feel stronger.
He didn't even check the panel, but he saw it said something about leveling up and Art of Source, which he had no idea about.
Anyway, I can learn about it later.
Instead, he ran toward the Orc.
Five moves.
In five moves, the Orc was dead.
Even Grey was shocked. He had just aimed for the weak spots. With the first swing, he cut the Orc's arm, which had a black ring on the wrist.
When he hit the wrist, the Orc's whole hand dropped since the axe passed through the wrist.
Then, from behind, he cut the Orc's leg. But this time, he aimed for the tendons, causing the Orc to fall in pain.
Lastly, he cut the neck with the third swing. The axe, obviously, didn't go through the neck. But it took three hits before the axe went halfway through the neck, and the Orc died.
Taek was looking at him with his eyes and mouth wide open.
"Taek!" Grey shouted. "We need to save others!" Even though it didn't even take 30 seconds, there wasn't enough time for Taek to rest.
They could only fight against Orcs with numbers. So, even if he was tired, just being there would help a lot.
So, he nodded and started following Grey. They needed to trace their steps back.