"Getting a house for everyone is really not going to be easy," Akhil said with a bitter smile, surveying the bustling activity around them.

"Yeah, that's why I suggest that we should expand the settlement further," Aria replied calmly. "We could clear some of the dense bushes and expand from there, building more houses."

The orcs had been rebuilding their settlement for a few days, but even with the support from the bots, the task remained massive. After they had completed a recent population count, they hit a number of roughly 10,000 orcs within the settlement, a total that had greatly surprised Akhil.

Some of the orcs still didn't have permanent houses to stay in, but they were being sheltered by those whose houses were already fully completed.

Akhil was currently touring the settlement with Aria, looking over the newly built houses and all the other structural projects they had added to the construction list. It was a complete makeover. Akhil was hell-bent on making the orc settlement not just into a comfortable place for the orcs to live in, but a fully stable society where they could carry out all their activities with ease.

"That makes sense, we should definitely do that," Akhil said as they finally came to a stop in a spot where the bots were currently laying the foundation.

"So you suggest that the guild should be right here? Are you sure it's the best place for it?"

"Well, this will be a major area according to the master plans we've made," Aria explained. "A lot of people will be visiting here frequently. Keeping it at the center of the city doesn't seem like a bad idea."

"Yeah, that makes sense too."

"You've been saying that for the past two hours, you're just taking all my suggestions at this point," Aria stopped, staring straight at Akhil with a sharp gaze, pouting her lips.

'I've been caught.' Akhil smiled wryly, seeing as she had caught onto his little trick.

He honestly didn't like making decisions for everyone, so he just elicited her opinion and then used that instead of his. If she accepted his idea, they would proceed with it.

"Well, when I have a smart assistant with brains like yours, I can't be the only one making the decisions by myself, can I?" Akhil said with a sly smirk.

Aria blushed deeply. "You, stop flirting... This is serious, you have to be more confident in your own decisions!" she retorted, her cheeks still flushed pink in embarrassment, pointing her fingers straight at Akhil.

Akhil could only offer a stiff smile under her friendly reprimand.

"Speaking of which, has the new leader Langdon spoke about come to the settlement yet?" Aria asked, glancing at Akhil.

"No, I haven't gotten any news about the person. He was meant to come when they were bringing the equipment for us, but he didn't, so I have no idea when he'll be coming now."

Just as Langdon had promised, they had brought ample equipment for the orcs—clothes, weapons, and even food. Even the awesome clothes Akhil had on now were from them: the black coat with intricate red and golden patterns that gave him an air of elegance.

He could argue that most of the equipment they had brought were all basic weapons and basic amenities, but then again, he knew that was infinitely better than nothing, so they could only accept it gratefully.

Besides, most of the orcs were all happy regardless, and seeing their delighted smiles made Akhil just as happy. They hadn't worn good clothes in a long while, so wearing these ones was rather refreshing. They could finally get rid of the smelly, worn-out clothes that they'd endured since the start of the apocalypse. That was a welcome bonus.

"Oh, if that's the case... we'll just wait until the person comes. For now, we can focus on what we have here," Aria said with a calm smile.

"Sir Akhil! Some humans are on their way to the settlement... They're several kilometers away. We don't know what their purpose is, but we've been watching them since they entered the dark forest. What should we do? Stop them and ask their purpose?" One of the orcs quickly appeared by his side, relaying the alert.

"Hmm? That's unexpected. Langdon would have informed me earlier if he was sending anyone over," Akhil mused. "Don't startle them. Allow them to reach the front of the settlement. I'll be meeting with them there," Akhil said firmly.

"Alright, Sir Akhil!" the orc said with a low, respectful bow, but just as he was about to leave, he stopped as a voice echoed in his head.

"Inform Sir Akhil that they've reached the front of the settlement and we've stopped them!"

The orc quickly relayed the new information he had received to Akhil.

"Very well then, let's go together... We'll meet this person."

Thanks to all the high-tech gadgets they had acquired from Langdon, their defense had increased by a large margin. Ryan and J were doing an excellent job training the orcs. They now had a sophisticated surveillance team that watched out for any potential attack.

That way, they would be able to prepare in time for any unexpected aggression. It was a great advancement, and seeing the entire growth within the past few days, Akhil could only give a relieved smile.

'Since after that day, it seems everything has been on easy mode... No fighting, no quarrels, no worry—just peace. I'm wondering just how much longer till the Titan decides to make his next move,' Akhil thought with a deep frown.

As he got closer to the entrance of the settlement, he could see an adventurer clad in bright, shining armor—the first he had seen since the apocalypse started.

"Get out of my way! I'm here to meet Nexus, the leader of this camp... I don't have time to waste, and neither does he. We have to get back to the human settlement so we can settle this issue once and for all," the man in armor demanded with a grim look. His large sword hung behind his back, and his face was stern with an intimidating look.

A powerful surge of aura was emitting from him, and his dark brown hair was scattered over his head.

Seeing his aggressive behavior, Akhil could only frown.

'I guess the peace won't last long.'

By his side was a timid, scrawny man with a dark mole next to his nose, hugging a tablet tightly to his chest, his round glasses covering his eyes.

'That guy... I've seen him before,' Akhil thought, noticing the man. As the scrawny man's gaze met his, the man flinched instantly, cold sweat covering his body as he quietly retreated behind the armored man.

"Larry, what is it?" the armored man glanced behind him, confused by his assistant's reaction.

"Sir Ben, please, you should calm down... We shouldn't cause trouble here," the assistant, Larry, pleaded with a scared expression.

Ben looked at Larry with a confused expression, wondering why the man was so terrified.

"Are you scared of these puny orcs? Hmph! Do you guys think you can intimidate my assistant?! I'm Ben, the great adventurer of the Coast City and the new city lord! Show me respect, or you'll suffer for your stupidity," Ben roared, puffing out his chest with a confident pose. The air around Ben grew heavy, causing the nearby orcs to tense and take an involuntary step back.

"Is that so?" Akhil said with a dark voice, walking out to the very front of the two.

Seeing the small-statured figure, Ben's face contorted with irritation.

"Who the fuck are you? I said bring me your leader! What are y'all waiting for?! Want me to beat you up?"

Larry walked up to stop him, but before he could, Ben blurred, appearing right next to Akhil. Larry instantly paled upon seeing the aggressive move.

'Idiot!'

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