Reforged Chapter 42: Call Me the Reaper of the Hundred-Handed, Part 1

Murlocs, one of the most annoying creatures in the world of Azeroth, can be found on nearly every coastline and lakeshore.

Their slippery skin, large, cunning eyes, radical fin styles, and vibrant colors combined with their rascal-like behavior make them unmistakable.

Individually, murlocs are weak and can be easily defeated. However, when attacked, they tend to flee quickly, using their strong limbs and aquatic abilities to their advantage. Before long, they will regroup with even more murlocs to retaliate against their attacker.

Duke had experienced this frustrating chain reaction in the past. So why would he seek out murlocs?

First, murlocs are often subordinates to powerful deep-sea creatures, either in a dormant or waiting state. In other words, murlocs are accustomed to being enslaved.

Second, murlocs are not as foolish as many people believe. Evidence suggests that they have a high level of coordination and organization when it comes to their gradual occupation of land. However, whether this plan aligns with their own desires and interests remains unclear.

The most crucial factor was that one day, while in Elwynn Forest, Duke had discovered a peculiar language – Murloc – after feeding the corpse of a hapless thief from the Brand family to the creatures. The advanced system had managed to decipher the simple Murloc language.

Before his journey to Azeroth, being bilingual would have been more useful than having a college degree when it came to job hunting. Duke never expected this to hold true in this new world as well.

After integrating the translation software provided by the system sprite, Duke found that when he tried to say certain phrases, the words that came out of his mouth were comical Murloc expressions like "Wala, Gya-wo."

This realization led Duke to believe that he might be able to subdue and control the murlocs.

Normally, Duke wouldn't be so bold as to attempt such a feat. However, with the orcs yet to invade and the Dark Portal still closed, every kingdom in Azeroth operated on a hierarchy based on seniority. Without taking an unconventional approach, Duke could never reach a level of influence capable of affecting the outcome of the impending battle before the Dark Portal opened.

With determination, Duke set out for the beach early in the morning.

Although he had planned to use magic to communicate with the murlocs, eliminate the less intelligent ones, and leave behind the more clever ones, Duke was astonished to find two large murloc tribes engaging in a tribal conflict.

What an incredible sight! Hundreds of murlocs clashing in battle, with flesh and blood flying everywhere, boiling with rage and brutality!

Duke suddenly realized that expecting such a scene was incredibly foolish.

The spectacle of hundreds of murlocs fighting resembled less of a bloody battle and more of an enormous game of hide-and-seek!

.

Yo, over here at Murloc Tribe A, three murlocs have gathered, facing off against two murlocs from Tribe B. Sorry, there wasn't any real fighting; the outnumbered side fled after a brief encounter. They may have had short legs, but they scurried away faster than rabbits.

Huh? Suddenly, the two murlocs from Tribe B bumped into two fools from their own tribe, and now the fight was three against four. A decisive counter-attack, no, a counter-chase ensued.

Now it was the trio's turn to run.

Finally, when both sides had roughly equal strength, the first generation Murloc of Tribe A threw a rock fiercely, hitting the second generation Murloc of Tribe B's eye, causing it to swell. The other side immediately lost all their courage and scattered.

Listening to the Murloc language's strange cry, "Gak ogg gal!" which roughly translates to, "It's not that the *Army isn't trying! But there's a **** Gundam!"

Gundam my foot! You're calling a mere rock a high-speed kinetic weapon... You'd better apologize to all the Gundams in the world!

Upon hearing the system sprite's ridiculous translation, Duke had the urge to strangle it.

However, seeing the pathetic battle among the Murlocs, Duke gave up on the idea of organizing them into an army.

Knowing that the other side had only wand-wielders, why would you go there to sell swords?

Duke wasn't that stupid.

With a sigh, Duke took action.

In his original plan, Duke thought he would have to kill at least a hundred Murlocs to calm these fools down. However, as soon as Duke made his move, the entire battlefield of Murlocs fell silent.

The next moment, a chorus of "Gak ogg" filled the air as countless Murlocs bowed in reverence on the beach.

The sole reason for this was Duke's Mage Hand.

A Mage Hand is a simple arcane energy manifestation in the shape of a human hand that a mage uses to perform simple tasks, like retrieving a key from a high place outside a cage.

Duke's Mage Hand was slightly different. After the system sprite automatically extracted Duke's knowledge on motion capture systems, Duke estimated that his Mage Hand should be at least a level 2 spell.

This was because not only did he have more of them, but the quality was also beyond what ordinary mages could achieve.

Eight hands of light hovered in the void behind Duke, while four Mage Hands effortlessly tore apart the fastest charging Murloc that had tried to attack him.

"Gak ogg olla olla (O Great Ocean Emissary, I, Old Blind, on behalf of the entire West Coast Tribe, submit to you.)!"

"Olla olla ola (O Mighty Ocean God, I, Fish Spear, on behalf of the entire North Tide Troop, submit to you.)!"

Hundreds of Murlocs kept bowing to Duke as if he were a god. The scene was... hilarious!

Was that it? It seemed too easy, making Duke somewhat incredulous.

Perhaps there was no such thing as a free lunch. Suddenly, intense splashing sounds came from the shoreline.

Duke's pupils shrank abruptly.

Those were creatures that shouldn't be here - Naga!

Unlike other monsters in the world of Azeroth, the Naga had a rather noble origin. About 10,000 years ago, the leader of the Burning Legion, Sargeras, tempted Queen Azshara of the Highborne Elves and her noble followers to open a portal for the Burning Legion to invade Azeroth.

The ancient battle ended in Sargeras's defeat. To survive, Queen Azshara and her followers accepted the call of the Old Gods as they fell into the ocean, transforming into the half-humanoid, half-serpent creatures known as Naga.

Therefore, the Naga were highly intelligent beings. Moreover, due to their Highborne Elf heritage, female Naga were quite beautiful in their upper body, but unfortunately, their lower half was that of a serpent.

At that moment, two groups of Naga were clearly in battle.

The female Naga at the forefront noticed the Murlocs and shouted in the Murloc language, "By the name of Avis, I command you to help me fend off those foolish male Naga behind me!"