Twilight of Darkness

So, did absolutely no one attack when the hero approached the book?

No one attacked in 2 out of 3 cases (all times with Necropolis). The hero “pauses” at the point, then can proceed and collect the book.

This compensates for the lack of Might. And for Orcs, the lack of Might is actually a good thing.

Exploring the map led me to the conclusion that it’s easiest to play as Necromancers, and most difficult as Orcs. (By the way, only by playing as them can you get into the “Hall of Fame” and earn points.) Orcs play with only one castle: it’s inconvenient to combine them with inhabitants of other castles. And on this map, the “meat” part is decisive. Being without Cyclops is very detrimental to them. Also, their magical abilities are limited (already meager for Barbarians): everyone else in each castle can learn something, but Orcs can only do so in their one castle.
I can’t say that Necromancers are devoid of Dark Magic. I specifically started playing as Necromancers for the “revival of darkness,” which is visible in the demos. The absence of “Berserk” and “Dominate” is not critical with such possibilities for replenishing the army. The main thing is that all mass spells are available.