I am actually quite curious about the sword, so when the orc swings it at me I catch its hand. My strength is higher so I am able to stop the swing easily, which makes the orc look shocked. I continue swinging Blitz and cutting down the orcs around me while holding the leader still.

Then I slowly squeeze his hand until all the bones in it break and shatter. Of course, the orc starts screaming in pain, but I am able to keep the other orcs from helping it. The orc leader draws a knife with his other hand, but instead of attacking me he cuts his trapped hand off.

This leaves me in control of the sword, not a very smart move on the orc's part. Before the orc can do anything else I bring the sword down and cut him in half. Seeing him die all the orcs howl in rage and attack me with no thoughts of self-preservation.

The sword is about the same size as Blitz, so I am able to swing both of them around easily. Even though they are both technically two handed weapons I have no problems using them with one each. Green orc blood and body parts fly everywhere as I slice and dice the orcs.

Several of the orcs I cut down with the new sword burst into flames after they are cut. It seems that the sword has a flame effect on it, which just makes me smile. Although, I do my best to make sure I don't cut any of the orcs in the head with the new sword.

After all, even though I am going over the five hundred mark, there is no reason to burn up any ears. Having to be careful of my swings isn't very hard, after all the orcs can barely hurt me. The leader that had the sword was probably the only one who could have hurt me.

That being said, all that is left is to finish cutting down all of the orcs surrounding me. The fact that they won't run away no matter what makes it easier since I don't have to chase them down. Even the very last orc doesn't give up, even when he is standing against me all alone.

450 Orcs defeated! 450,000 Exp gained!

50 Orc Warriors defeated! 100,000 Exp gained!

1 Orc Champion defeated! 200,000 Exp gained!

*DING*

Congratulations! You have gained a level!

Level 16: HP +200, DP +100, Stat points +10!

'Nice! I finally leveled up! Let's see how bad the next level is, experience!'

Level: 16 Exp: 3,857,283/6,553,600

'Three million exp to the next level?!? This is insane!'

Although, looking at it another way, that is only three thousand more orcs! Looking at it that way, I could probably grind to the next level in just a couple of days or so. The thought of Swiftleaf's face if I dump out over five thousand ears in front of him makes it even more tempting.

However, as fun as that sounds, the longer the others have to wait to hear from me the worse it will be. Getting access to the portal is the most important thing right now, I can't waste time. After collecting the five hundred ears and grabbing the scabbard for the new sword, I start moving south.

It is time to return to the elves, of course any orcs that attack me on the way are fair game. The only thing I can't decide is whether it would be better to travel by day or night. I will be going through territories I have already been through, so it might be quieter during the day.

Then again it might be the opposite, they might be out for revenge against me. In the end, I just decide to move as quickly as possible and see what happens. Before dawn I run into another group of orcs, about half the size of the last group.

As they rush at me I draw Blitz and the new sword, then start cutting them down. There are no casters in this group either, and I also don't see a strong leader. That makes it too easy, but it is still fun to dance around swinging both swords and kill them all.

277 Orcs defeated! 277,000 Exp gained!

10 Orc Warriors defeated! 20,000 Exp gained!

Once they are all dead I collect the ears and then resume moving south. With that group I have already met my goal of collecting a thousand ears. With the distance I need to cross to return to the elves I will probably end up in more fights.

Maybe I ventured a little too deep into the orc's territory, but it is too late now. Then again, I could always fly out of here, but the exp is just too good to give up. It won't take that much longer to just kill my way back across the orc's territory.

Then I come to the edge of a large ravine and when I look down I see a river of orcs. I quickly duck down before they spot me, there are at least a thousand orcs down there. If it was just normal orcs I would probably still attack, but I saw bigger orcs and shamans mixed in.

After considering my options I decide to just let the orcs pass me by, it isn't worth the risk. So I move back a bit from the ravine and sit down to eat some food as I listen to them march past. After about an hour I can still hear more orcs passing, it looks like I made the right decision.

It isn't just a thousand orcs passing, it is an entire army of them, at least five thousand. That many would easily be capable of wearing me down just with their numbers. The ravine they are following is headed west, but I have no way of knowing where it ends.

Hopefully they are heading off to fight the humans, because I don't think the elves could beat them. Then again, I still know very little about the elves, maybe they could handle this army of orcs. However, the few I saw with Swiftleaf didn't really inspire any confidence in me.

If the elves have enough numbers then they could probably handle the orcs. However, in most fantasy settings elves don't tend to have very high numbers. If the orcs outnumber them, then I don't think the elves would stand much chance.

If I can get back first I should be able to alter the odds, if the orcs are heading that way. If not, then they are heading for the humans, and that isn't my problem. Besides, the humans are just as good at using numbers as the orcs are.

Not only can the humans match their numbers, but they can also use tactics. In any fight of equal numbers my money will be on the humans every time. That is as long as no politics are involved among the humans, they are their own worst enemies.

Some humans would even work with the orcs if they could benefit from it. In fact, if I found out that there was a human leading the orcs I wouldn't be too surprised. So, I don't plan to worry about the humans, although I am curious as to how they are doing.