From Slave to King: My Rebate System Built Me a Kingdom With Beauties!-Chapter 219: Borg’s Time Is Up? [FIXED!]

There was nothing standing in the way of the women now—no more excuses, no more delays, no more time wasted on preparation or debate. They knew they needed to strike Borg swiftly and decisively, otherwise he would have enough time to fully prepare for their arrival, to rally his warriors and fortify his position until the element of surprise became worthless. Speed and stealth were their only advantages against a chieftain who commanded hundreds of loyal fighters.

The assigned warriors went as planned: the Chieftess, her four honor guards, Shava, and Maui—seven in total, all moving with purpose through the darkening wilderness. Each woman carried weapons and wore armor that had been carefully prepared, checked and rechecked for any noise that might give them away. They all went to Borg’s settlement with one goal burning in their minds: remove him from power before he could consolidate his position or harm anyone else in his desperate grab for legitimacy.

The sun descended below the horizon as they traveled, painting the sky in deep purples and oranges that gradually surrendered to night’s embrace. They had the advantage of darkness now, the moon only a sliver providing minimal illumination that would help conceal their approach. Orc eyes adapted well to low light, giving them another edge over any human or goblin sentries Borg might have posted.

The moment they crossed into Borg’s territorial boundaries—marked by carved totems and scent markers that any orc could recognize—they noticed something strange in the distance. Torches. Far more torches than should be present for normal evening routines, positioned at regular intervals like a defensive perimeter. The patrols had clearly increased, warriors moving in coordinated patterns that spoke of organized vigilance rather than casual watchfulness.

This told them immediately that Borg was aware they were coming for him, or at minimum suspected trouble enough to bolster his defenses. Someone had warned him, or his paranoia had reached levels that made him see threats everywhere.

"He knows," one of the honor guards whispered, her scarred hand tightening on her axe handle.

"Or he’s preparing for something," another suggested quietly. "The wedding, perhaps. Extra security for the ceremony."

Maui studied the patrol patterns with tactical assessment, her mind working through possibilities. She knew there should be a way around them—there always was if you understood terrain and looked carefully enough. The last thing she needed was an all-out fight before they even reached their target. A frontal assault would be suicide against these numbers, and even if they somehow won, the noise would alert the entire settlement.

"This has to be done quietly," Maui said, her voice barely above a breath. "Borg is the target. The rest are just following orders with their limited perception of the goblins. They don’t understand what’s really happening here—they think they’re protecting their chieftain from outside aggressors."

She had once thought the same as them, back when she’d viewed goblins as vermin to be exterminated, lesser creatures unworthy of consideration as intelligent beings. Until she lived with them, saw their society, learned their language, understood their capacity for growth and change. She couldn’t judge these warriors for their ignorance—she had been equally blind before circumstance opened her eyes.

The Chieftess made a gesture with her hands, asking a silent question that Maui had learned to interpret: "Alternative route?"

Before Maui could respond, Shava gestured for them all to follow her, urgency in her movements. "I know a way," she whispered. "Follow me exactly. No deviations." Shava commanded sternly but forgot for a second these women had far more experience than her in these situations.

They did just that, trusting Shava’s knowledge of her own settlement’s geography. She led them away from the obvious approaches, using the path further to the left that seemed paradoxically to take them away from the settlement rather than toward it. The terrain grew rougher, the footing less certain, forcing them to move more carefully to avoid twisted ankles or alerting falls.

Then suddenly the path ended at a cliff edge overlooking a body of water below—a river that carved through the landscape, its surface reflecting starlight in ripples that suggested significant current. The drop was substantial, at least thirty feet of sheer descent to the water’s dark surface.

The honor guards looked at Shava with expressions mixing doubt and concern. It was quite high—high enough that even an orc would feel the impact of such a fall, high enough to potentially cause injury if someone landed wrong or hit submerged rocks. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this was dangerous even for warriors of their considerable durability.

"This is your secret path?" one of the guards questioned, skepticism heavy in her voice. "A leap that could break our bones?"

Shava met their eyes with steady confidence. "It’s the only way that doesn’t take us through three layers of patrols. The water is deep enough—I’ve used this route before when I needed to leave unseen. The current will carry us around the settlement’s eastern flank where the guards are thinnest."

She looked at each of them in turn, her expression serious. "Trust me. I know what I’m asking." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Without waiting for further debate, Shava led by example and leaped first, her body arcing gracefully through the air before plunging into the water below with a splash that seemed thunderously loud in the quiet night. They watched her head surface moments later, her arm waving them forward in clear invitation.

The Chieftess went next without hesitation, her massive frame creating an even larger splash upon impact. Then her honor guards followed one by one, each woman committing to the jump with warrior’s courage despite the obvious risk.

Maui took a breath and leaped last, her stomach lurching during the brief freefall before the shock of cold water enveloped her completely. The impact drove the air from her lungs, sent jarring vibrations through her entire skeleton, but nothing broke. She kicked toward the surface, gasping as she breached.

"Don’t swim," Shava whispered urgently as Maui surfaced. "Let the current take you. Swimming or thrashing would create noise and ripples that will alert the carefully placed guards along the banks. Just float and steer minimally."

They obeyed, allowing their bodies to become driftwood carried by the river’s natural flow. The water was cold, biting through their clothes and armor, but bearable for orc constitutions built to endure hardship. The current swept them along at surprising speed, carrying them past the settlement’s main defensive positions in relative silence.

They went around the settlement’s perimeter this way, staying low in the water, using reeds and shadows for additional concealment when they passed near populated areas. Maui was genuinely surprised that such a path existed—she’d studied the settlement’s layout during planning but had never identified this particular vulnerability. But it showed that Shava must have planned all of this very carefully, which meant this matter of removing Borg was just as urgent as she had presented to them, perhaps even more so.

There was still the troubling case of Kragg’s missing body that gnawed at Maui’s thoughts as they floated. There should be no way a corpse that size should disappear into thin air with no suspect in sight, no witnesses, no trace of how it had been moved. Someone must have carried it away—bodies didn’t walk themselves to new locations. And as incompetent as Borg could be in matters of honor and decency, there was no way he would miss an opportunity like possessing the corpse of his greatest rival. Either he had it hidden somewhere, or someone else had taken it for purposes unknown.

After what felt like an eternity of cold immersion, Shava gestured toward the bank where an accessible slope presented itself. They swam quietly to shore and began the climb, using bare hands to grip rock and root, pulling themselves up the muddy incline with effort that made muscles burn. Maui could still feel the impact of the fall in her bones as they climbed—a deep ache that would likely blossom into impressive bruises by morning, a reminder that even orc bodies had limits.

They crested the slope and found themselves in a quieter section of the settlement’s outskirts, away from the main thoroughfares and defensive positions. Maui instantly noticed this path had far less security—only a single torch visible in the distance, no patrol patterns evident, almost as if this area had been deliberately left unguarded.

"Why so few guards here?" one of the honor guards whispered suspiciously. "This is a tactical weakness. Any competent commander would—"

"Because this is the area Borg uses to communicate with his sponsors," Shava interrupted quietly, wringing water from her hair. "The corrupt officials who supply him with resources and gold in exchange for favorable trade agreements. There’s no way he would want other orcs to be aware of this path—too many witnesses would inconvenience him in the future, create evidence of his dealings that could be used against him." Shava had no idea who he was working with but she had been able to narrow it down, she knew it was from the kingdom where the humans dwelled which meant it had to be a human.

It made horrible sense. Borg’s corruption ran deeper than simple ambition—he was selling out his own people’s interests for personal gain, making deals in shadows that would never survive sunlight scrutiny.

The Chieftess’s expression darkened with understanding, her hands clenching into fists that could crush stone. Even without words, her body language communicated pure disgust at such betrayal of leadership responsibilities.

"The path ahead is clear now," Shava continued, pointing toward the settlement’s interior where the largest structures were silhouetted against the night sky. "Borg’s personal dwelling is in the center—he moved into Kragg’s old quarters immediately after claiming leadership. That’s where he’ll be, either sleeping or preparing for tomorrow’s forced ceremony."

Maui nodded, checking her weapons to ensure the water hadn’t compromised any mechanisms or loosened any bindings. "Then the target is clear. We go in, we remove Borg from power, and we do it before anyone else has to die for his ambition." Maui knew if they were going to take over this place they would need to maintain the strength of the orc, killing them would make everything pointless as they wouldn’t have the required numbers they would need to help them.

The seven women moved forward as one, water still dripping from their clothes, determination burning brighter than any torch. The path ahead was open. The target was identified. And justice—or something very much like it—was about to be delivered.

Borg had made his choices. Now he would face the consequences.