Chapter 404: Third Kind of Contact

In fact, aside from appearances, Garona and the orcs had many differences.

For example, her skin was smoother and closer to that of humans, with a brighter hue compared to the orc's dark green skin. 

Her eyes were also larger, more vibrant than the blood-red eyes of the orc warriors.

Moreover, orcs tended to wear tattered and dirty armor, and they were quite unhygienic; one could smell their strong stench from a distance.

However, Garona was much tidier. Her clothes seemed to come from humans, and when Alaric approached her, he could surprisingly catch a whiff of a pleasant fragrance.

At this moment, not only was Alaric looking at the female orc, but she was also observing him.

To her, this human seemed somewhat strange.

He didn't despise her like other humans did, hurling insults at her. In his eyes, she only saw curiosity.

What puzzled her the most was that this human, despite not being very strong, was clearly the highest-ranking among the visitors.

It was known that in the orc tribes, only the strongest could become chieftains, and on the battlefield, human commanders usually had some strength as well.

After they exchanged glances for a moment, finally, Alaric spoke.

He did not use the common human tongue familiar to those present, but rather a sound akin to a growl and mumble.

That was the orc language.

To the female orc, it was one sentence.

"Hello, may I communicate with you?"

To the female orc, this sentence sounded like a celestial voice—this was the first time a human was willing to communicate with her.

So, she excitedly nodded and replied in orcish.

"Of course, I would love to talk to you."

"Alright." Alaric nodded and turned to look behind him.

At that moment, his attendant and the commanding officer of the guards, Baron Gramond, looked at him in astonishment, as if he were some kind of monster. 

"I... I didn't expect you to speak their... I mean, the language of these beasts." 

After a long pause, Baron finally managed to say.

Alaric noticed that when the baron mentioned the word "beasts," the female orc frowned slightly.

"Beasts? Perhaps." Alaric shrugged indifferently, "But they are indeed a race with a certain degree of civilization; it's not strange that they have a mature language."

Noticing that Baron seemed ready to say something else, Alaric cut him off.

"Now, I'd like to speak to her alone. Can you give us a private space?"

"But she might harm you, my lord," the baron advised, "Don't be fooled by her smaller size compared to those monsters; she is actually a powerful warrior. 

Before we captured her, she had already injured five infantrymen and unseated three knights... If it weren't for our numbers, she might have escaped into the forest by now."

"Don't worry," Alaric shook his head, "I'm a mage; she won't have the chance to harm me."

Alaric's confidence left the baron speechless, and the door to the room was closed again.

Now, only Alaric and the female orc remained in the room, the flickering torches casting long shadows on the walls.

Alaric was the first to ask a question, using the orc language.

"I noticed that you can understand our words, which means you can speak our language, right?"

"Yes…" the female orc replied hesitantly in human language, "I... learned from your... captured... prisoners. But I… speak poorly."

"Just being able to mimic and speak like this is impressive already," Alaric praised. "If you want to learn, I can teach you."

"Of course." The female orc switched back to orcish, "I would love to learn your language."

"That's great," Alaric said with some joy; at least this proved that the female orc was not narrow-minded.

"But that's for later. Now, let's talk about you. My name is Maverick Sandor. What about you?"

"Garona," the female orc replied, "I am the child of a slave, so I have no surname."

Garona—just as she was, everything matched up.

"Alright, Garona," Alaric nodded, "I will call you that, and you can call me Sandor; it's how humans refer to friends."

"Sandor... Sandor…" Garona repeated his name, her mouth opening into a slight smile, clearly pleased.

Suddenly, she looked at Alaric.

"Do you... really want to be my... friend?"

"Yes, I would certainly like to be your friend." Alaric nodded and added, "As a friend, I could even set you free—provided you promise not to escape from here."

Hearing Alaric's words, Garona appeared quite surprised; she couldn't understand why this young human would make such a decision. 

However, after thinking for a moment, she made the promise.

"Then we are friends. Garona promises not to escape, I swear on my honor."

With that, Alaric waved his hand at the cage and cast a transformation spell.

In the next moment, the once hard iron bars seemed to turn into noodles, bending softly to create an opening wide enough for Garona to pass through.

She quickly darted through the hole.

However, the moment she emerged, she lunged at Alaric.

Garona's muscles tightened in an instant, her form resembling a cheetah, and her hands aimed to grip Alaric's vulnerable neck as if to snap it in one motion.

Yet, despite Garona's sudden assault, Alaric remained unperturbed, not even making a defensive move, as if nothing had happened at all.

Just as Garona was about to strike Alaric, she planted her feet firmly on the ground, halting her momentum, her hands hovering just within five centimeters of Alaric's neck.

Then, she withdrew her action and sat cross-legged on the floor.

"Tch…" The female orc seemed a bit displeased, pouting, before curiously looking at him, "Why don't you resist? If I moved just a bit closer, I could snap your neck."

"I don't believe you would harm me," Alaric smiled gently, "You just said we're friends, didn't you?"

Seeing the smile on the man's face, Garona felt as if the darkness in her heart had been illuminated by sunlight.

But the truth was quite different; with Alaric's current physical condition, Garona's move would only inflict a light injury on him, after which he could easily subdue her—after all, Garona was unarmed at the moment.

Not to mention the triggering magic items concealed on Alaric; mages were always known to be heavy spenders.

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