Stuck As A Dungeon Mob

In order to verify that the array worked as advertised, Ed looked at the input spiral. He looked at it for only a few seconds before bringing out his brush and drawing a simple stroke.

Since the mana crystals were already processed by the array, and were just circling infinitely, there weren't any crystals to remove. Even if there were any crystals to remove, the array would still have power for at least a couple of minutes.

The stroke he drew would stop the mana from revolving the spiral and dissipate instantly. This was proven true as the sapling which was growing at a hardly noticeable pace stopped growing. The array which was full of bright lights and magical motions came to a slow halt.

Ed stepped back while carefully observing the small sapling. It had grown in just a few hours as opposed to the usual minute or two from his other array but the sapling might still start to wither. If that happened, the array did not work as advertised.

Unfortunately, that was the case. Ed could see that some branches of the orc blood fruit tree dried and fell on their own. Ed was about to shake his head in disappointment until a second later he realized something.

'The withering stopped' The sapling lost some progress on its growth but it was nonetheless advanced.

'Ah, this is great!' This way the product could still be sold as advertised, well with some exaggeration. But most importantly, the array could already be used on Azalia.

'Azalia has proven to have tenacious vitality so this should be no big deal for her to handle' Ed planned to always supply the array with energy but it was good to know that even if the array were to shut off, Azalia would not die.

Sensing Ed's elated state of mind, the divine tree Azalia also transmitted happy emotions.

'What a nice tree' Ed thought as he returned to his system space. He needed to produce some more elven ink, draw an array for Azalia, and after doing that…

He needed to communicate with his key into the human world, the adventurer girl.

***

Back in Sanctuary, the return of the elite orcs caused quite a ruckus. Their departure might have been fairly silent, but their return certainly was not.

The orcs and goblins noticed their disappearance shortly after they departed. Soon the rumors from guards and others spread through the whole city. That meant that everyone was anxiously waiting for their return and were thus prepared for it.

"Hahaha!!! I wonder how they did!" One orc said while laughing boisterously.

"Do you think they went to kill some humans?" Another asked jealously. They wanted to kill humans too!

"Argh! We need to become elites!" "Let's go my love! Let's train hard together! I will hit you first, and then you hit me!" "Who wants to play card?" Some orcs were fired up by the thought of fighting humans. Others weren't as they opted for safer forms of entertainment but their orc blood couldn't be so easily distilled. Most orcs were still raving for battle!

That was why when the guards opened the first gates of Sanctuary, they immediately followed after the small caravan in curiosity. They were at first frightened by the mounts of the caravan, but fear was temporary!

"Wooo!!!" "We are invincible!" As soon as the second gate of Sanctuary opened, or what one might be able to call the actual city, all sorts of weird cheers inundated the ears of the orc elites.

"Hehehe, this is the return I deserve!" Needless to say, the orcs weren't humbled by this reception.

"Quiet" But as soon as a cold voice entered their ear through the wind they shut their mouths. Sharog was seriously contemplating what to do after Ed disappeared anew.

Of course, A was still with Sharog but it certainly wasn't the same. A was a blood clot inside a lizardman who needed to have his words translated by Reid of all lizards!

This meant the message Sharog might receive was being distorted and she didn't know what to do with the human woman Dakgu was forced to escort.

"Oh hey! A captive! We really fought humans hahaha!" "Overwhelming victory!" It was just as Sharog was thinking about this that the orcs noticed the presence of the adventurer.

Knowing that the human girl's actual conditions couldn't be divulged, Sharog had no choice but to alight from the carriage she still sat in and offer some words.

"Everyone! Get back to your work and activities! This is an important matter for Ed!" She shouted with a hint of anger. Why were they riled up by the smallest of disturbances in Sanctuary?

Their numbers were near 500 so even just half of those orcs and goblins forming a crowd made for a mess of the current Sanctuary society. Even the kids that were supposed to be learning in schools could be seen amongst the crowd.

The teachers were not supervising them properly. Sharog felt like she just might have a headache.

Luckily, the orcs were easily riled but living in the luxuries Ed granted them, they were also more obedient. They were very willing to trust in Ed and his commands, or just the command of his proxies.

That meant that the crowd dissolved easily and order was quickly returned to Sanctuary.

"Sharog, what do I do with the human?" Dakgu asked as everyone dispersed. Sharog put on a pensive face before instructing him to take her to the Sanctuary hall. As for what Sharog herself would do…

"I'll go find Shel" Shel was always busy at the smithy, and while her brain wasn't the most reliable, every other part of her was reliable. Sharog would sometimes talk to Shel for advice.

The two of them could be said to have become best friends. Before Sharog could do so, however, Reid tapped her shoulder.

"Ahem, Yoashk and me will handle human" Reid said to Sharog who nodded before disappearing into the wind. Reid scratched his head awkwardly before shuffling away with Yoashk, Dakgu, and the human girl. The mounts could... stick around they supposed.

Sharog left no instructions and they didn't think there would be any harm. Sharog was already breezing past buildings and rooftops.

'I wish Ed had more time to teach me' Sharog said with some lament. The speed augmentation was something Ed helped her perfect.

With the simple technique, she soon reached the Sanctuary Plaza. Without sparing the town hall  glance, she went towards the bustling smithy.

"Welcome Sharog" An orc said greeting from behind a desk.

The smithy had gone through a lot of changes recently. As the Sanctuary population expanded, the number of hands available also rose. That meant the number of construction workers increased.

This in turn required Yerghug, the head of all construction in Sanctuary, to expand his skill sets. He now needed to learn to manage many workers. This was something he recently got the hang of.

He personally trained some bright individuals from other tribes, and despite being a bit dumb in the head, he was well respected by them. There were no internal conflicts within the Sanctuary construction group.

The speed of construction increased drastically and many projects were always underway in Sanctuary.

The changes to the smithy were one of them. Since equipment requests became more common after Ed popularized them, the smithy expanded a bit outwards to form a simple desk. The orcs could place orders from this front desk.

"Hello" Sharog replied to the orc with a smile. She then passed through what would be a staff-only door and entered the suffocating smithy. Her ears were assaulted by the sound of clanging metal

Shel who was working on the center smithy noticed her arrival from the corner of her vision. She formed a wide smile and dropped her work that very instant.

"Sharog!!!" She yelled gleefully before going in for a hug.

"Argh!" Sharog let out a painful yelp as the muscular woman hugged her to near death. All the work at the smithy only made Shel stronger!

"What brings you here?" Shel asked after finally letting go.

Sharog who was now covered in sweat thanks to Shel made an awkward smile.

"I thought we could get some drinks" Sharog said to Shel who stopped to think for only a second.

"Hey! You!" Shel said pointing at one of the orcs that worked near her.

"What am I supposed to be doing today?" Shel asked.

The similarly muscular orc let out a sigh.

"My name is Uggug…" He was one of the original smiths but Shel never bothered to remember his name after their initial conflict.

"Ogog, just answer me!" Shel commanded. Ever since she was put in charge of the smithy by Ed she ruled like a tyrant. She loved to lord over the smiths!

"There are some important requests from…" Before Uggug could recite what requests were made of her Shel turned to Sharog and smiled.

"I'm free! Let's go!" Shel said before grabbing the stunned Sharog by the hand and running out of the smithy. Why would she just leave if there was important work!?!

Sharog had to admit she was partly to blame but… still…

"You definitely are free…" Sharog muttered as she was dragged across the Sanctuary plaza. Goe's tavern was full as usual but Shel easily made a path.

Elsewhere, A who was residing inside Yoashk's body finally made it into the hall with Dakgu and the human girl.

As one of the few languages Ed did actually learn, A was able to speak the human tongue with her.

"This is Sanctuary, a city of mobs" A informed the adventurer who was still petrified from the welcome. She had entered a den of bloodthirsty orcs and goblins!

"Ed probably wants me to show you around, I'll help you get settled" A told the girl who nodded absentmindedly.

'Maybe this is the start to a city for both mobs and humans…' A thought mockingly. This girl no doubt wanted to run out of there that very instant!