Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 28 (Punishing the Arrogant Count)
**Chapter 28**
Everyone that was looking at Natalie felt chill inside their hearts. Although she was smiling at the count, no warmth could be seen in her eyes.
“How, how are you, Ms. Natalie?” Count Nougat greeted while forcing out a smile.
Count Nougat's smile was so forced that it was even uglier than his crying face earlier. In all honesty, the woman that was looking down on him was one of the people he wanted to see least right now.
“I’m perfectly fine, my lord. And looking at the pathetic state you’re in right now makes my day a lot better.” Natalie answered without mending words which leaves the count and onlookers speechless.
Natalie’s obvious sarcasm could be heard by everyone watching. Although she was talking to a noble there’s not a single hint of respect in her action. From the looks of it, there’s some conflict between the two. Moreover, it doesn’t seem to be a small conflict as one could gather through their interaction.
Seeing Natalie controlling the situation, Rennel stored her spear somewhere unknown (*unknown because it just vanishes from her hand*) and walk towards Karen and Mina. She gave Mina a modest smile as a form of greetings before speaking to Karen.
“What’s wrong with Natalie? Did she have some conflict with that annoying, pig-like noble?” Rennel asked in a low voice.
“…” Do you have to call the count a pig too? Hearing Rennel openly insulting the count, everyone who heard her pursed their lips. All of them couldn't help but to fell slightly exasperated at the two young women that seemed to hate Count Nougat a lot.
Even Karen who was the victim of the count’s arrogant behavior could not help but give Rennel a strange look before answering.
“Yeah, it’s something like that... Count Nougat and Natalie’s family have an ongoing conflict,” Karen answered truthfully.
“From what I've heard, Natalie’s family was almost financially destroyed by the count’s action. Also, the count seemed to have some design on Natalie in the past as well.”
Oh? Hearing Karen’s explanation, Rennel was a little surprise, especially when she heard that Natalie’s family have conflict with the count. Why is this important? Because it tell us that Natalie was a noble herself!
“Is Natalie a noble?” Rennel could not help but ask.
Um! Karen nodded at Rennel’s question, directly admitting that the girl’s deduction was right.
“Natalie’s father was a baron, and owned a silver mine. The count had vested interest in the mine and tried to purchase it but was denied by Natalie's father, Baron Othell. Known for his narrow-mindedness, Count Nougat did everything he could to force Natalie’s father to sell the mine to him."
"I heard that some of the businesses that belong to Natalie’s family was forced to close because of the count. I’m not really too sure of the specifics but at the end of it all, the count managed to get his hands on the silver mine.”
Rennel blinked several times before looking and giving the count an unfriendly gaze. She then turn to Karen and asked something that’s been bothering her. “The silver mine... It was the same silver mine where Lucas used to work? It originally belong to Natalie’s family?”
“Yes. It’s the same mine.” Karen answered.
“I seem to recall you saying earlier that the count used to have design for Natalie? How old was she then?” Rennel asked again.
Karen thought for a while before answering, “Yeah, the count wanted to make Natalie his mistress and talked to her father about it. Baron Othell obviously wanted none of it and decisively rejected the proposal. Forget that the count just cheated him of his silver mine and caused some of their family business to fail; the biggest reason why the baron refused was that the count was known for his amorous behavior and already have three mistresses. Not to mention that he was old enough to be Natalie’s father. As for how old Natalie when it all happened, I think she was just 14 years old back then?”
Wow! So the count was really a pig; a sleazy and chauvinist pig. No, he was worse than a pig, he’s trash and a cradle snatcher!
Older men having relationships with younger women weren’t exactly an uncommon occurrence in this world. No, to be more precise it was a common practice. The only reason Rennel reacted the way she did was thanks largely to her teacher's influence.
Whenever Chaos and Rennel converse, the girl’s teacher would often use words or phrases that Chaos learned from the other worlds it had traveled to.
Even the phrase “cradle snatcher” was a phrase she learned from her teacher. The phrase was actually for her. Since Rennel was an attractive young woman, the girl’s teacher would often remind the girl to be wary of men, especially older men which Chaos describe as “cradle snatchers.”
“I might have been too merciful to that trash. Maybe, it’s for the benefit of all women in the world if "it" was cut off?”
Rennel’s chilling words causes all of the men, including Lucas to distant themselves from her. Even Karen and Mina, who were both women could not help but let out cold sweats and step back a little while staring at Rennel in disbelief.
Fortunately, the count was currently busy dealing with Natalie and didn’t hear what the girl had said. Because if he did, Karen and others are confident that the count would faint then and there!
“The story shouldn’t have ended there, right?” Rennel turned to Karen and asked another question curiously.
Karen wiped the sweats in her brow with the sleeve of her uniform before answering, “Y, yeah… The count was displeased that Natalie’s father didn’t agree to his proposal, even going as far as to threaten to destroy Natalie’s family if he didn’t get what he wanted. He also approached Natalie personally in an effort to convince her – even repeating the threat he left to her father.”
“Fortunately, Natalie didn’t fall for the count's ploy. And as luck would have it, Natalie was discovered to have great talent for magic and was even taken as the disciple of the Arch-mage Emeril.”
“Really” Hearing that Natalie was the disciple of an arch-mage, Rennel was really surprise. Only after hearing this did Rennel finally understood why the count was so terrified of her, to the point of not even daring to voice out his grievances despite being verbally abused by Natalie.
“So does that mean that Natalie got her revenge in the end?” She asked.
“That’s right. Natalie told her teacher what the count did to her and her family which made the old arch-mage very angry. According to the rumor that was flying was around, the Arch-mage Emeril was so enraged that he stormed the count’s castle, force him to apologize and to return what he took from Natalie’s family. Well, everything with the exception of the mine which Natalie no longer want. Instead she “convinced the count to pay 20 times of the mine’s original cost!”
****
There were still a lot of question in Rennel’s mind that needed answers but before she could ask another question, she saw the count kowtowing towards Natalie!
“I beg of you, please just let me off, Ms. Natalie.” The count begged without even a single care for his pride as a noble – even going as far as to ignore the pain of his injuries.
A frown appears on Natalie’s forehead. She then gave the count a look filled with disgust. “What are you begging me for? It’s not like I’m the victim here. If you’re going to beg, beg to those two ladies over there!”
Natalie pointed towards Karen and Rennel while telling the count to beg for forgiveness from the real victims which causes the expression on the count’s face to fall. Being a noble, the count had a lot of pride. Although he didn’t mine begging other nobles for forgiveness or help, he would never lower his head at commoners and peasant as he considered them inferior to the nobles.
Basically, his pride just won’t allow it, especially since the one of the person he needed to beg for forgiveness was the same person responsible for all of his injuries.
“You seemed to be hesitating, my lord?” Natalie gave the hesitating count a cold gaze which shows her displeasure. In reality though, she was actually happy seeing the abhorrent man struggling with his inner demons. For her, the more Count Nougat suffers the better she would feel. And considering that this pathetic man was the cause of his family’s sufferings, Natalie’s action was somewhat justified.
“But, Ms. Natalie, they’re commoners!” The count argued indignantly, still unable to let go of his pride.
“So what if they were?” Natalie asked with annoyance.
Natalie was starting to find the count more unbearable. The man’s inability to separate right from wrong was getting to her nerve. So what if the Karen and Rennel were commoners? What does it has to do with anything?
“Let me tell you, Clyde has good impression of Rennel, if he finds out what you did, he’ll be very displeased. Moreover, I remembered there’s a consensus among nobles that Rennel should never be antagonized. And yet, you did exactly that. I don’t need to remind you that there will be punishment, do I?”
Natalie using Clyde as a threat against the count was rather surprising, which could only mean one thing, Clyde's identity was special.
“Also, Karen is Guild Master Tigre’s secretary. You might not care much about it since, the guild master is not a noble but you shouldn’t underestimate his connections. He knew people from high places and could easily make your life a living hell with just a word. So I suggest you think things through. If you apologize, you might still not escape punishment but they’ll be more lenient to you.” She added.
Natalie wasn’t reminding the count not out of good will. What she really wants to do was crush the man’s pride and humiliate him so thoroughly that he’ll think twice before showing his face in public. Although it won’t be enough to appease her anger, it’ll still serve a purpose. And as whether he’ll retaliate against her later down the road; Natalie isn’t afraid. Actually, she welcomes it with open arms as she’s just waiting for the opportunity to truly settle the score with the count.
*“Damn it all! How did this happen? All I wanted was to get back a slave that he had thrown away. So why do I have to run into these women?”*
Count Nougat could not help but curse his luck, and was suddenly reminded of what happened a few years ago. Due to his greed and lust, he messed with the Othell household which actually went well at first. He gotten the silver mine that he always wanted through trickeries, and almost succeeded in making, Natalie, Baron Othell’s beautiful daughter, his mistress. But as fate would have it, the young woman was revealed to be very talented in magic. So much so that she attracted the attention of the kingdom’s arch-mage!
It was then that his luck turned around. Turning from good to really bad. Everything he had gained from cheating them was taken back from him with the exception of the silver mine that the Baron no longer wants. Worse still, even though the silver mine was retrieved, he was forced to pay 20 times the compensation!
And now he was even being forced to apologize to two commoners.
*“I think that silver mine is a jinx. Bad luck after bad luck keeps happening to me ever since I acquired it… Should I sell it?”*
Taking a peek at Natalie, the count saw that she was starting to get impatient. If he still didn’t apologize to the two women, his situation might really get worse… What’s more, he had been kowtowing since a while ago and he could feel his injuries getting worse. Forget about his broken right arm, what truly worry the count were his crushed balls!
If he takes too long before seeing a healer, he might just lose his function as a man even if the crushed balls were restored. Once that happen, he’ll live his whole life in regret.
After some more struggles with his inner demons, and weighing the pros and cons of his next action, Count Nougat finally made his decision. But as he was about to approach Karen and Rennel to apologize, Mina, who had been watching all this time, approaches Natalie first and pointed at someone.
It was Tyr, who suddenly arrived to fetch his other party members. Currently, he was with Karen and Rennel and was conversing with them.
“Tsk! You luck out. But don’t ever think that this is over...”
Natalie gave the count a dirty look before walking towards Rennel and the others. Although she really wanted to see Count Nougat being humiliated, Natalie knew that she didn’t have much time. Since Tyr went his way to fetch them, it could only mean that they need to leave quickly for their next quest.
Seeing Mina and Natalie leaving with the male elf, the count knew that he no longer have to apologize. At least for now... And as for the threat that Natalie left behind, the count decided to deal with it later and pushed it to the back of his mind.
Right now, all he wanted to do was leave this accursed place and see a healer before he lost something very important that'll surely make him regret for the rest of his life.
Turning towards his guards, the count yelled at them to take him to the best healer without even glancing at Lucas, and the others. As for Rennel, she no longer bothered with him and allowed the man to escape. Right now, all Rennel wanted to do was speak with Lucas.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 27 (Busting Balls Again)
**Chapter 27**
Karen and Rennel heard the fat middle-aged man berating the young man named Lucas while the two of them was walking. The man's words were full of arrogance and barb. And despite the man's fine clothes, the obscene language he uses made him no different from ruffians.
From the man’s arrogant way of speaking and the fine clothes he was wearing, Rennel could tell that the fat middle-aged man was a noble and might be Lucas’ former master. Even if he wasn’t he should be someone related to that person.
“You damn slave, how dare you argue back. Do you want to die?” The fat noble threatened, “Who told you that you’re free because I ignored you when you’re injured? Let me tell you, I don’t care if these peasants paid for your medical treatment. Your life is mine to decide!”
The faces of Lucas and the other men darkened after hearing the fat man's words. The man's words were so insulting and so out of line that Lucas and the others couldn’t take it anymore.
“You’re talking nonsense! According to the law, once the master of an injured slave refuses to bill the medical treatment of his slave, it was no different from forfeiting all rights to said slave. Since you threw Lucas away after being seriously injured, you’re no longer his master!” A man wearing miner’s clothes argued back with a face full of agitation.
“What law? I don’t care about such a law! Only my words count, no matter how hard your argue, that slave belongs to me!” The fat noble sneered, “Also, so what if there’s such law, who’s going to enforce it for you all? Do you think a peasant or a slave words holds more weights than that of a noble?”
Everyone could see that the fat noble was purposely ignoring the law and flaunting his authority. Even though he was in the wrong, none of the people present with the exception of Lucas, the miners, and two new comers dare to go against the noble's words.
“Please watch your words, Count Nougat” Karen warned. “Those words of yours could be interpreted as rebelling against the crown’s authority.”
“Who said that? Come out so I could see you!”
Hearing someone going against him, the noble, Count Nougat was greatly irked and ordered the person who spoke out to show herself.
Karen did not cower and stepped forward, surprising everyone who saw her. Seeing her Count Nougat frown with displeasure and scanned the woman from head to toe before settling his gaze on Karen’s chest.
Seeing the count staring at her chest without regards to propriety, Karen’s fuse almost blew up. If not for her professional ethic and great self-control, she might have slapped the rude noble.
“Count Nougat!” Karen called out loud.
“Hmm? Who are you woman? Why are you poking your nose on someone else's business?” Count Nougat asked rudely.
“My name is Karen, and I worked for Guild Master Tigre, the current head of the adventurer’s guild,” Karen replied.
Count Nougat raises one eyebrow after hearing Karen’s introduction, still, there’s no fear in his eyes. Although the guild master was an important position, the arrogant Count Nougat care’s not about it at all.
“I see, I see. So you’re the guild master’s secretary... but so what? Should I be afraid? The guild should not concern themselves with the business of aristocrats. Or does the guild plan to antagonize the aristocracy for a single escaped slave.” Count Nougat questioned arrogantly, going as far as to pit the aristocracy with the guild and label Lucas as an “escaped slave.”
Karen was not intimidated when the arrogant count mentioned the aristocracy, “By your words, are you perhaps implying that the aristocracy was willing to antagonize the guild just for you, my lord? Or maybe you're implying that the aristocracy is above the king and the royal family who made the law that you're ignoring just a moment ago?” She countered.
“Don’t speak nonsense! How dare you imply that I’m going against the king?!” Count Nougat was greatly agitated after hearing Karen’s counter-argument, especially the part where he sounded like he was trying to go against the king and the royal family.
Also, when the count mentioned the aristocracy earlier, he was just trying to intimidate Karen. Moreover, as an aristocrat, Count Nougat knew that the power of the adventurer’s guild could not be underestimated.
“Enough of this! Woman it seemed that we must talk more in private. Come with me!” The count grabbed Karen’s hand, wanting to take her away. Although she worked for the guild master, she was just a secretary. As long as he intimidates her a little, she should keep her mouth shut.
Unfortunately for the count, he made the wrong decision. Although Karen was just a regular woman without any fighting capability, the person that came with her, Rennel, was not so helpless!
Crack!
Ahhhhhh!!!!
Rennel forcefully broke the count’s arm that was grabbing Karen which made the count wail in great pain. The moment the arm broke it made a horrible cracking sound that made everyone that hears it shiver.
Alas, Rennel was not done yet. No far from it. After breaking the count’s arm, Rennel kicked the wailing count in the groin!
**Sound of something breaking**
Aaarrrgggghhhhhh!!!!!
The kick to the groin made a sound that made everyone react reflexively. This was especially true for the men in the vicinity who could not help but sweat profusely.
If the men from Alchur saw this scene they too would cower and be reminded of a certain nightmare that they all tried very hard to forget. Moreover, these men would probably exclaim that the ball buster was back!
****
Thud!
The arrogant count falls to the ground and into a fetal position. The pain of his balls being crushed almost made the count almost pass out. But somehow, the count was able to endure.
Maybe it was the count’s body fat or maybe Rennel finally learned to control her strength that made the count retain his consciousness. Although from the looks of it, the count probably wished that he had lost consciousness instead. After all, the pain was too unbearable for a man.
Everyone present was shocked at the sudden turn of event. They didn’t expect that the person who was wearing the hooded cloak and who had been silent the entire time would act the moment the count acted against the woman, named Karen.
What’s more, that person attacked so viciously, breaking the count’s right arm and then mercilessly kicking him in the groin!
All the men watching paled after seeing that kick without exception. Even Lucas and the miners that had been arguing with the unfortunate count no too long ago could not help but feel sorry for the man. Like the other men, they too, quickly covered their groin with their hands, afraid that they might be next victim despite not being innocent bystanders.
“Hiss! You, you dare harm a noble?! I don’t know who you are you bastard but you’re dead!”
The count that had been in a world of pain because of Rennel’s kick finally came through. Between hisses and curses, he threatened the girl with death while still lying on the ground in a fetal position. If not for his tear-filled eyes and the snot running down his nose, he might have look more threatening.
“You useless guards, what are you still doing just standing there like idiots? Kill that bastard for me!”
The people who were with the count, his guards, finally woke up from their reverie and reacted. Without exception, all of them draw their swords, ready to do their lord’s biddings. Seeing this, Karen, Lucas, and the miners paled, panicking and not knowing what to do.
There reaction was actually very normal. There's a rule in the kingdom that protected the nobility from harm. If someone not belonging to the ruling class tried to harm a noble, that person would be kill on the spot!
As such, they have a good reason to be worried...
Rennel, of course knew this as well. But despite knowing about it, the girl was still unperturbed, and simply look at the men that were raring to go at her. Rennel raises one of her brow, ready to make her move as well.
And after that… there’s no after that. Rennel simply released his killing intent which turned (not literary of course) the legs of the count, and his guards into jelly!
How terrifying!
Both the count and his guards started shivering in fear because of the terrifying killing intent that Rennel releases. Teeth clacking in fear, the men all felt like they were being stared at by a legendary dragon!
Even those who were just watching felt the pressure of Rennel’s killing intent. And this was despite the fact that they were not the target and was simply hit by the residual pressure.
Suddenly, a green spear appeared on Rennel’s hand out of nowhere which surprised everyone present. The people were not surprise that a spear just appeared on the girl’s hand as everyone thought it was done through magic. What surprises them was the spear itself.
A green spear that was as beautiful as jade stone? Could it be…?
*Jade Thorn!*
Seeing that spear, everyone excluding Karen was reminded of a certain rumor. The rumor in question was about a certain person who owned a beautiful jade-green spear: The person who slayed the goblin king – Platina!
“Could that person be…Platina?”One of the onlookers asked.
Hearing this, everyone with the exception of the count and his guard looked at Rennel in awe. Although they have never seen the person who saved the city before, they had at least heard rumors about her.
According to one of the rumors, the person who slayed the goblin king was a young woman with silver hair that liked to wear a hooded cloak. Also, the person in question has a jade-green spear called Jade Thorn!
Wearing a hooded cloak… wielding a jade-green spear. Everything clicked. Then does that mean that the person who broke the count’s arm and kicked him in the groin was the legendary Platina!?
The count’s complexion turned incredibly bad, much worse when he was kicked in the groin earlier. Although the person responsible for his current flight didn’t declared her name, the appearance of the jade-green spear was enough clue for the count.
*“Damn it! What is she doing here? And why is she with that guild master’s secretary?”*
Count Nougat could not help but curse inside his heart. Rennel’s appearance spells trouble for him. And it has something to do with a new consensus from the council of nobles which states that members of the nobility were forbidden from antagonizing Platina, the person responsible for slaying the goblin king!
*“Sh*t! Sh*t! What am I supposed to do? Once the news got out that I got into conflict with Platina; I’ll be punished by the council!”*
The count was feeling livid. Although the council didn’t specify the type of punishment that’ll befall those who disregard the new consensus; Count Nougat was certained that it won’t be light.
While the count was thinking his next move, his train of thought was interrupted by a woman’s voice!
****
“Oh my, what happened here?” A voice full of curiosity asked.
Everyone was startled after hearing the woman’s voice. Although the voice was not too loud, it was still heard by the people present due to the awkward silence that suffuse the area just a moment ago.
Following the source of the voice, everyone saw an attractive woman slowly walking forward. The woman in question was wearing a magician’s hat which signifies her status as a magician. Beside her was a cute and petite young woman wearing a cleric’s robe looking ill at ease.
“Natalie! Mina!” Karen blurted out in surprise.
Yes, the two women who suddenly appeared were none other than the adventurers Natalie and Mina.
“Hello Karen!”
Natalie and Mina greeted Karen at the same time after walking towards her. The two women then looked at Rennel with surprise before looking at the men who were currently on the ground, kneeling, while one man was lying in a fetal position.
“So what happened here Karen? Why are these men kneeling before Rennel? Also, the pig-like man that’s lying in a fetal position, should be Count Nougat, right? Lastly, what are you two doing here?”
Hearing Natalie's consecutive question, Karen could only sigh before narrating the chain of events that lead to the current situation.
“Oh? So let me get this straight. You and Rennel are here on an official business when you encountered the pig- count’s group that was arguing with these men? Natalie looked at Lucas and his group before facing Karen again.
“Also, the person you were looking for was for of this group? And when you tried to intervene, the pig-like count tried to intimidate you by using the name of the aristocracy? But when his intimidation failed, this pig turned physical and tried to abduct you? Only to be stopped and punished by Rennel?
With Karen’s narration, Natalie was able to summarize what had happened till before they arrived which give her and Mina a clear image of the entire situation. That said, her constant use of the word “pig” to describe the count was rather confusing to most of the listeners.
Although the count was indeed very fat and the word pig somewhat fit him, none of the people present dared to voice that out. What’s stranger though was the fact that although the count’s face was colored in purple, the count didn’t even let out a peep!
*“Just who is this woman?”* Everyone thought.
Natalie ignored everyone’s questioning gaze and walked towards the Count and his group. As she passed by Rennel, she slightly stopped and smiled at the girl before continuing. Since Rennel had already retracted her killing intent, Natalie did not feel the pressure that the count and his men felt earlier.
Before long, Natalie stopped several feet in front of the count. She looked down at the count that was still in a fetal position before giving him a smile so cold that almost freezes the count’s heart!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 26 (The Whereabouts of the Village Children)
**Chapter 26**
Karen led Rennel inside the guild master’s office. Inside, Rennel saw a muscular dwarf with a full beard. The guild master seemed to be very busy and was almost buried by large stacks of documents. Seeing this scene, the end of Rennel’s mouth twitched.
“You’re finally here, I’ve been waiting for you,” Guild Master Tigre put down the pen he was holding and greeted Rennel.
“Good afternoon, guild master. I heard from Nora that you have something for me.” Rennel asked eagerly.
“I do but before that, please take a seat. I want to first hear the report of the quest I asked you to do.”
Rennel nodded and took a seat, after that she proceed to report the result of her quest. Guild Master Tigre listened attentively to the girl’s report. And from time to time frowns would appear on the guild master’s face.
While Rennel was talking, both Karen and the guild master was silent. And after twenty minutes of speaking, Rennel finally completed her report.
“I see... to think that you’ll encounter an orc settlement in the northern forest while investigating. Seriously, it's another close call. If you didn’t took the quest, we might have only known of the settlement’s existence after the orcs attacked a village or town. By then it would have been too late...”
The guild master let out a sigh. He was aware that the number of monsters had increased significantly over the years due to neglect. If not for the accidental discovery of the goblin village in Greenhorde forest which alerted the authorities, monster settlements might have just pop out everywhere.
Thinking about the consequence of letting monsters multiply unchecked sends chills into the guild master’s heart. Thankfully they have prevented the worst scenario.
“This damn war…”
Guild Master Tigre gritted his teeth. I was mainly due to the war that the kingdom was almost overrun by monsters. After the king started recruiting mercenaries and soldiers to fight in the war, the guild had been greatly lacking manpower to complete quests.
The reason for guild's lack of manpower was because many skilled adventurers answered the call of the king and became mercenaries. After the king offered large amount of money as compensation, many adventurers were tempted.
Of course the guild master would not blame the king. After all the king had no choice. The war that had been raging for years was not started by Almena but by the warmonger king of the Kingdom of Forst. If the king did nothing to counter the threat of Forst, Almena might have been easily invaded.
“Thank you for your report. You’ve been great help to not only the guild but for the kingdom as well. Since your arrival, many things have started to go in the right direction. I’m grateful.
Guild Master Tigre and Karen bowed their heads towards Rennel which surprises the girl greatly. Slightly panicking, Rennel asked them to raise their heads.
“There’s no need for that guild master, Karen. I’m just doing my job.” She said.
“No, this is necessary to show our gratitude,” The guild master argued.
“I agree.” Karen said before nodding her head.
Karen and Guild Master Tigre’s action made Rennel felt very awkward. Thankfully, the two finally raises their heads a minute later ending the the awkwardness.
“Now then… it’s my turn to return the favor. After almost two months of investigating, I finally found some clues on the people you asked me to investigate.” Guild Master Tigre started, “Unfortunately, it’s not complete since the event you mentioned happened many years ago. So I apologized that I only managed to locate some of them.”
Hearing the guild master’s explanation, Rennel was not too disappointed that the guild master only managed to gather information on some of the missing children. For her, it’s already good that the whereabouts of the some of the children were located despite the years that had already passed.
“It’s fine. I’ve long prepared myself for that possibility. Actually, I’m aware that my request was extremely difficult considering that the clue I gave was very limited. Therefore, you have nothing to apologize for, guild master.” Rennel replied with a smile, “Please tell me what you know.”
Guild Master Tigre fixed his sitting position and went through the information one by one.
****
“After months of digging and searching, and using most of my connections, I’ve manage to find three of the people you were searching for. The guild master started.
“First I’ll start with the young man named Lucas. He was bought by a noble who owned a silver mine two years ago, and had been working for him since then.”
When Rennel heard the word ‘mine’, her expression drastically changed. How could it not? Being a miner was very dangerous occupation in this world. Those who worked on mines are always in danger of dying. After all, accidents could happen anytime inside the mine. This was especially true for slaves.
Regular miners were still treated well but the same could not be said to slave miners. If regular miners were injured, their employees would have to pay for their medical treatment as stipulated by the law. But slaves didn’t have such right, if slaves are injured while working, their owners will usually not bother having them treated.
The reason for this was because it’s much cheaper to buy new slaves to that'll become miners than to have injured slaves treated. What’s more only criminals and death row inmates were sent to the mines to become slave. Regular slaves are more expensive and therefore would not be sent there to become miners.
“How did he become a miner?” Rennel asked anxiously.
“According to the report, he was bought by another nobleman three years ago. The said noble seemed to have been quite the cruel owner and have the boy beaten or whipped every time he made mistakes. Unable to take it anymore, the boy attacked his previous owner in a fit of rage.
Fortunately for him, noble was relatively unharmed as the nobleman's guards managed to subdue the boy before he could hurt the man or he would have been killed then and there. Still, he didn’t escape punishment, and was sold to another nobleman who owned the silver mine I mentioned earlier for a silver – most likely as revenge and to spite the boy.” The guild master explained.
Hearing this, Rennel’s heart grew heavy, “How is he now?” The girl asked
The guild master didn’t answer instantly and instead stayed silent which made Rennel’s hear lurched. As she was thinking of the worst possible scenario, Guild Master Tigre spoke again.
“He was injured in a mine accident a month ago, and is currently in a medical facility being treated for his injuries.” The guild master finally answered.
Rennel was worried after hearing that Lucas was injured in a mining accident but was greatly surprised after hearing that he’s injuries was being treated.
“Was it his new master that paid for his treatment?”
Slave owners are not really known to treat their slaves with kindness. That said, not all slave owners are cruel. Some of them are actually weirdoes that still treated slaves as people instead of properties. These slave owners are a rare breed and not easy to find. If a slave find such an owner, he or she should thanks his or her lucky star.
*“Could it be that Lucas found a kindhearted master?”* Rennel thought to herself.
As if reading the girl’s mind, the guild master spoke, “How could that be? It’s not his current master that paid for his treatment; it was actually thanks to the other miners that he could even be treated for his injuries. From the reports, the boy seemed to have made quite the good impression on the regular miners while working in the silver mine that they willingly pooled their money for his medical treatment.” The guild master explained.
*“As expected…”*
Rennel was feeling a little disappointed. She really thought that Lucas managed to find a good master. Unfortunately, Lucas was not so lucky.
“Where is Lucas staying now, guild master” Rennel asked.
“He’s currently staying at a medical facility just east of the city. I’ll have Karen take you there later.” Guild Master Tigre answered. “For now, I’ll tell you about the whereabouts of your other friends.
Friends? Hearing the guild master refer to the other village children made Rennel's heart feel sour.
Can she really call them friends? If Rennel recalled, she barely speaks with the other children after her best friend, Pina was sold by her parents.
Actually, Rennel pretty much cut ties with them. Moreover, besides Pina she’s not that close to the other children in the village to begin with.
Questions that Rennel tried to buried inside her heart finally resurfaced. Now that she found the whereabouts of the other children, how was she supposed to face them? Will they blame her for being the only one that escaped the fate of becoming a slave?
Confusion starts to cloud the girl’s mind but managed to regain her calm after remembering her teacher’s teachings.
*“I should try to meet them first before thinking of anything. Only after meeting them and finding out their thoughts should I decide my next move…”*
Rennel ignored her doubts and focuses on the guild master’s report. According to the guild master, the other two children were bought by traveling merchants. One was a boy named Rudy, and the other was a girl named Adel.
The merchants that bought the other children didn’t live in the capital but was from other cities. Which mean that Rennel have to go to these cities just to meet them. Not that Rennel mind as she plans to move around anyway. Moreover, the girl was in no hurry to need to meet them as compared to Lucas, the other children were doing quite well. At least as slaves goes.
From the guild master’s words, the two children seemed to have talents in business which was the main reason that they were bought by the two traveling merchants. This somehow put Rennel’s heart at ease…
****
After conversing with the guild master, Rennel followed Karen to the medical facility where Lucas was currently resting. The two ladies rode a horse carriage owned by guild employees. Although Rennel preferred walking, she didn’t insist that Karen walks with her as she knows that not all people liked traveling on foot like her.
After an hour in the carriage, Karen and Rennel finally reached their destination. But the moment they get out of the carriage, they saw what seemed to be two groups of people arguing. Surrounding these two groups of people was a large crowd of onlookers.
Also, among these people was a young man with bandages on his head, and arms which indicates an injury.
The moment Rennel laid her eyes on the young man, she already knew his identity. It was Lucas, one of the village children than had been sold three years ago, and the same person that she wanted to visit.
It had been three years since he was sold and had now grown into a young man. Just like her, the boy Lucas had also changed.
Lucas has short, shaggy red hair, and green eyes. He’s not handsome but not ugly as well, just average. His arms that were covered in bandages were muscular, most likely thanks to working in the silver mine for two years. Appearance wise, the young man didn’t changed as drastically as Rennel.
Although she was not close to the young man, Rennel somewhat remembered that Lucas used to be a boy with cheerful personality and eyes that seemed to always glow with hope.
Unfortunately, the betrayal from his parents and villagers, couple with the young man’s experience as a slave wiped that glow from his eyes. Right now, Rennel could only see some sort of darkness within it.
*“He had changed…”*
A complicated emotions rose from inside the girl’s heart. There was a feeling of happiness, sadness, and a little despair. She was happy that the young man was safe but sad that he had to experience what he did. Lastly, she felt despair that the happy-go-lucky boy she remembered no longer existed.
*“Calm your emotions. To live in this world meant that one would experience countless things both good and bad. Suffering injustice is part of life. If one has a strong heart, suffering could make one stronger while those with weaker hearts would be sweep away by despair,”*
Noticing the girl’s complicated emotions; Chaos could not help but give the girl some advice. Chaos knew that Rennel was harboring the feeling of guilt since a long time ago. After all, she was the only one among the village children that was not sold to slavery. Not to mention she was fortunate enough to meet a teacher that could show her the way.
Of course, what happened to the children of her village had nothing to do with her. If someone was to blame, then everything was the fault of all the adults in her village who had chosen to sacrifice the children in order to survive.
*“I understand, teacher…”*
Thanks to Chaos who spoke up before Rennel could doubt herself more, the girl was finally able to calm herself. She then looked at Karen who was watching her all this time with worried look in her eyes, and nodded – signaling that she’s feeling okay now.
Seeing this, Karen let out a sigh of relief. She then signaled her to walk with her in order to ascertain why these two groups of people were arguing.
Rennel agreed to this as she too was curious why these people are arguing. Not only that, she also want to know why Lucas was out about instead of resting considering his injuries. As the two ladies draw closer, a fat man with a large belly pointed at Lucas who then proceeds to berate the young man!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 25 (Arc 2: Prologue)
**Chapter 25**
It’s been exactly two months since Rennel joined the Blizzard city adventurer’s guild and the event in Greenhorde forest. Due to the interference of a certain administrator, a large goblin village with at least ten thousand goblins and ruled by a goblin king appeared in the aforementioned forest.
This event led to a large campaign against the goblins which spearheaded by the adventurer’s guild and the army. It was also during this event that Rennel made a name for herself by killing a large number of goblins including a goblin champion, and the goblin king.
Although the campaign lasted only three days if one includes the cleanup, it almost caused a panic in Blizzard city, the nearby towns and villages due to large number of goblins involved.
The presence of the goblin village was obviously terrifying. But what really terrified the citizens though was the fact that it took so long for anyone to discover the existence of said goblin village despite its close proximity to the capital.
It was also for this reason that Rennel’s name becomes known to pretty much everyone in Blizzard city, including the people of the nearby settlements.
The citizens were especially grateful for her part in the defeat of the goblin king and the destruction of the goblin village. Moreover, the event no only propel her to fame but also gave her and her spear ‘nameless’ their titles: Platina and Jade Thorn.
Platina was supposedly the name of a legendary silver-haired female spear-wielding warrior that lived in ancient times. Since Rennel, has silver hair and uses a spear as well, people gave her the title of “Platina.”
As for her spear, it go its name from an adventurer with a well-known sense of humor. The adventurer, after seeing the spear, jokingly said that Rennel’s spear was like the thorn on every monster’s sides. Coupled with its green coloration and shape, it was then named “Jade Thorn.”
Speaking of which, what is our heroine doing right now? Why, she’s completing guild quest, of course.
Although it was in the middle of the winter season where work was supposedly slow, the guild wasn’t actually short of quest. On the contrary, the amount of quest available for the adventurers increases after the appearance of the goblin village.
Afraid that other goblin villages might be hidden somewhere in the region, the people in the castle especially commissioned quests to investigate the nearby forest, mountains, and plains in the region. Moreover, quest to whittle down the number of monsters were very common as well. As such, all adventurers including Rennel were very busy these days despite the season.
****
Somewhere in the northern forest, a young, silver-haired girl was being encircled by a large group of club-wielding monsters called orcs. Orcs were monsters that look like bi-pedal boars. They have mountain-like physiques and are known for their voracious appetites, eating pretty much anything with the exception of their own kinds.
As for the silver-haired girl, who could it be aside from Rennel?
Rennel encountered the orcs while she was investigating the northern forest in the northern part of the Blizzard region (a region named after Blizzard city). Usually, it was the city that took the region name and not the other way around. But due to the circumstances of Blizzard city when it was being built, the region where the city was located was named after it.
The forest was quite large which makes the investigation rather difficult for most adventurers including Rennel. Although Rennel possessed a special ability to detect any life forms within certain kilometers, the size of the forest and the terrains still made the investigation difficult even for her.
It was probably for these reasons that the quest remained untouched for almost a month. Even Rennel was not willing to take the quest until the guild master himself begs her to do the quest.
If not for the fact that Guild Master Tigre had helped her a lot during the last two months, making it difficult for the girl to refuse, Rennel wouldn’t even bothered with the obviously troublesome quest.
Anyway, it took Rennel half a day before finding these orcs that seemed to be part of an even larger community of orcs.
Four large orcs charge at the girl while swinging their clubs wildly. They wanted to encircle the girl, and blocked her escape path using their large bodies before trying to land the killing blows. Unfortunately for these orcs, Rennel was no pushover and had even fought a larger and more powerful monster.
Using her speed which she was very proud of, she was able to escape the encirclement of the orcs. She then started picking the orcs one by one by stabbing them on the throat or head which instantly killed them.
Several minutes later, all orcs lie bleeding and dead on the snowy-covered ground.
Checking the corpses of the orcs, Rennel frowned. Looking at their bodies, Rennel noticed that they were rather skinny. Skinny, as orcs goes, that is.
“They must be from a large community of orcs. And from the looks of it, there’s not enough food for them in their settlement.” Rennel murmured to herself.
“Very few are as dangerous as starving beast and monsters,” Chaos commented.
Rennel’s expression turned solemn after hearing her teacher’s words. Although the orc settlement seemed to be far into the northern forest, they might still attack the nearby human settlements if the orcs are desperate enough.
“Then, teacher… should I destroy their settlement?” Rennel asked feeling rather unsure.
Orcs are known to be man eaters, and would not hesitate to eat any humans that they come across. It was for that reason why the orcs attacked her the moment they laid their eyes on her.
Although orcs are not as sinister as goblins, they were no less dangerous than them. Moreover, it didn’t matter to the orcs if there victim were children, elderly and women. For orcs, all of them were food.
“That would be up to you. Do what you believe is right,” Chaos advised.
‘I understand, teacher.” The girl answered.
Rennel weighs the situation before making her decision. Although orcs were monster that eats people, they rarely attacks human settlement, unlike goblins. Orcs might attack humans that they encountered in their territories or while hunting but they only do so in order to survive.
So annihilating their settlements might be a bit too cruel...
But starving orcs are a different story altogether. Orcs that were desperate because of starvation are known to attack human settlements. If Rennel left them alone they might attack the nearest towns and villages.
“Since it comes to this, I’ll do what I must.”
Rennel hardened her heart. She’s human after all, so she must act for the benefit of her race. Having made her mind, Rennel started searching for the orc settlement. But due to the snow, the terrains, and the sheer size of the forest, it took her about two hours to find what she was looking for.
Looking at the place, it was indeed a big settlement. Excluding the ones she had encountered and killed earlier, the settlement has about forty orcs living in it. And looking at their sallow complexion, Rennel knew her guess was right: These orcs are starving.
After observing the orcs for quite some time, Rennel finally entered the settlement…
****
An hour latter…
Rennel stared dazedly at her handiwork. On the snowy ground, large bodies of dead orcs, young and old, female and male were scattered here and there. Their red blood that had been freely flowing for several minutes ago are now frozen completely under the freezing weather.
“Do you regret it?” Chaos asked with an unreadable expression.
Hearing her teacher’s question, Rennel shook her head, “…No, not really. I did what I thought was right. If I didn’t kill them, these starving orcs might attack the settlements near the forest.”
“But… the fact that I didn’t felt that much regret might be the real problem…” A strange smile appears on the girl’s face. She then look at her teacher and asked, “Teacher… am I broken?”
Rennel was feeling very complicated. She just annihilated an entire orc settlement and yet… she’s not feeling much guilt or regret. It was as if she’s been desensitized after killing so many monsters in the past.
Chaos stared back at Rennel for several seconds before speaking, “…Did you just notice it now? You’re already broken before you even left your village. Seeing the fate of the other children in your village had desensitized before we even met.”
The girl’s eyes widened after hearing her teacher’s answer. Thinking about it, her teacher was right. When she hunted and killed her first prey, she actually didn’t feel much guilt back then despite having killed for the first time.
‘Indeed, it was like that…” A wry smile appeared on the girl’s face after she murmured to herself.
“No need to overcomplicate things. The you now is still much better than those hypocrites that tries to always take the moral high ground despite being scums.”
Chaos had travelled to many words and encountered countless people. So what kind of people had it not encountered or seen?
Ordinary people, heroes, emotionless people, naïve, saints, villains, scums and hypocrites – Chaos had seen them all. Moreover, it had seen people broken by their circumstances before so Rennel’s case wasn’t unique at all. Besides, Chaos still prefers people like her compared to hypocrites and scums.
“After destroying this settlement, you had already completed your quest. You should take the orcs’ tusks as evidence and leave. Also, there’s no need to burn the corpses of these monsters. These can be left for the other beasts and monsters. With these many monster corpses, the other monster no longer need to go out of the forest for food.”
Chaos neither blames nor looked down at Rennel for feeling that way. Instead, Chaos instructs the girl the way it always did – making the girl feel much better.
“Yes teacher!” The girl answered, her complexion looking much better.
Rennel followed her teacher’s instructions, and started gathering the tusks. Since the girl only needed to cut the tusks, the work was completed in no time. So after getting all the tusks, Rennel took one last look of the orc settlement before leaving.
After leaving the forest Rennel traveled to the nearest town and stayed at the local inn to rest for the night. Once morning arrive, Rennel quietly left town and travelled towards Blizzard city on foot.
Although she could have taken a carriage to her next destination, the girl still prefers traveling on foot. Maybe she’s just used to it after traveling like that for so long. Aside from that, her running speed was still much faster than that of a horse carriage, especially after her awakening.
If she really wanted to, she could return to Blizzard city in less than an hour. But since she wanted to take her time and enjoy the journey, she didn’t do so.
After half a day of alternating between walking and running, Rennel finally arrived at Blizzard city.
****
Rennel entered the guild while carrying a sack bag filled with the tusks of the orcs and was welcomed by the familiar bustling scene. Observing the place, adventurers are either, chatting, drinking, eating, or looking at the quest board for available jobs.
The girl ignored all of this and walked towards the reception area. As she was walking, many adventurers greeted her. Despite wearing a hooded cloak everyone present still recognized her. Not really surprising as she’s pretty much the only adventurer in the guild with that getup.
Rennel returned the greetings from her fellow adventurers before continuing to the reception area. There she saw Nora, a female receptionist that she’s most familiar with among the receptionists, and spoke to her.
“Hi, Nora. I’m here to report the completion of my quest,” Rennel started.
“Hello, Rennel! Welcome back! I’m glad to see you safe.” Nora returned Rennel’s greetings and welcomed her with enthusiasm.
“I'm happy that you looked for me first but you should report to the guild master instead,” Nora added.
Rennel looked at the receptionist in confusion. Since she’s just going to report the completion of her quest, why did she need to see the guild master?
Seeing her confuse face, Nora giggled and explained everything to the girl, “It was the guild master’s instruction. He instructed us that you should see her once you returned. I think it has something to do with your request after the award ceremony.”
Rennel’s heart skipped a beat after hearing Nora’s explanation. Due to the big role that Rennel played during the goblin extermination quest, the girl was given a medal and a huge amount of gold as reward. But instead of taking the gold, she instead asked for another reward: To investigate what happened to the children that were sold by the adults in her former village.
It was her teacher, Chaos that advised her to do so. Since one of the reasons she registered as an adventurer in the first place was to gather information on the missing children; Chaos thought that it would be better to exchange the gold for another reward.
Chaos figured that Guild Master Tigre had a lot of connection due to his work as the current head of the adventurer’s guild. If they could make use of this connection, they might be able to find the missing children compared to searching for them on their own or hiring investigators using the reward money.
The guild master was understandably surprised when Rennel pushed forward her request. But after hearing the circumstances behind the request, Guild Master Tigre readily agreed.
It has been almost two months since she first forward her request. And from the looks of it, there’s already some result.
Rennel quickly took her leave and with excitedly beating heart, walked to the second floor where the guild master’s office was located.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 24 (Epilogue)
**Chapter 24**
The death of the goblin king signals the end of the goblins in Greenhorde forest. Without a powerful king to lead them, the disorganized goblin started acting out of order and tries to escape from the adventurers and the army in panic. But this was a vain attempt. The furious adventurers and soldiers will never allow any goblins to escape.
The reason why they won’t allow even a single goblin to get away was not only due to the death of their fellow adventurers and soldiers. The main reason was due to hidden danger that the goblins possessed.
Goblins are known for their fertility and the fact that they could mate with females from other races. If even a single goblin escaped, another village might be created somewhere else which also means the possible appearance of another goblin king.
Having witnessed the terror of a goblin king with their own eyes, both the adventurers and the army have no intention of letting another one appear no matter how small the chance was. As such, none of them showed any mercy to the escaping goblins.
Before long, the sun finally rises from east which signals the dawn of a new day. Tired and wary, none of the people present have the urge for a celebration. The only thing on everyone’s mind right now was to go home and rest.
As for the victory celebration, that will have to wait for another day.
Knowing that everyone was tired, the adventurers and the soldiers were told to rest back in camp while non-combatants from both the army and guild will do the cleanup.
Speaking of cleanup, it only involved collecting loots like armors and weapons from the dead goblins. Although most of the equipment were of low quality they could still be broken down and sold to the blacksmiths as scraps. As for the higher quality equipment, these would be given as rewards for the adventurers and soldiers who performed exceptionally well during the campaign.
That said, most of the rewards would probably be given to a certain silver-haired girl. Considering that this person did most of the work, it’s only expected.
Speaking of which, the silver-haired girl, Rennel, was currently sleeping soundly inside a private tent. Barely able to rest the duration of the entire quest, Rennel was understandably tired. Although she had more stamina compared to ordinary people, and would be able to stay awake for days without repercussions in normal times, her fight against the irregular goblin king and her second awakening drained most of her stamina.
The tent where Rennel was sleeping was big enough to house several people but right now only Rennel was occupying said tent. The tent was also being guarded by several female adventurers from the outside.
These female adventurers were among the groups of adventurers that arrived late because they were out doing quest somewhere when the announcement to gather was made.
Since they were not as exhausted as those who fought on the frontlines, these adventurers were tasked to help the non-combatants to do the cleanup and do some odd chores in the camp – including guarding important personnel like Rennel.
Rennel’s treatment was without a doubt a type of special treatment but no one was complaining. In everyone’s eyes, the girl deserve all the special treatment she was given after the feat she had shown.
This was actually normal, people respect heroes. And after the battle with the goblin king, Rennel was considered as such. Therefore, no one would bat an eye lid even if all the special treatment in the world was given to her.
The sleeping Rennel, of course, doesn't care about any special treatment and just wanted to get some shuteyes.
****
While Rennel was sleeping and everyone was doing their own things, something else was happening somewhere. Outside the planet, a bright orb of light was trying to descend into the world but could not go further because a creature was blocking its path.
The bright orb was releasing a powerful aura with a hint of divinity to intimate the creature. But no matter how much aura the bright orb releases, the creature blocking it was not affected at all.
“Intruder, you dare block my path?” The bright orb sends a telepathic wave towards the creature – the threat very obvious in its voice.
The “intruder”, Chaos gave the bright orb the side-eye and yawn as if bored to death. Chaos didn’t even bother to speak to it as it floats in space – showing contempt. Angered by the “intruder’s” disrespectful action, the bright orb harrumphed with annoyance and transformed.
The bright orb grew bigger and slowly transformed into a mascular humanoid creature with four arms and six angel-like wings. The mysterious humanoid creature has three eyes; two was on the regular position on the head and one in the forehead. It was bald, and has red skin with strange, black flame-like markings in its arms and legs. The mysterious humanoid creature was also wearing a golden armor that was filled with runes.
Appearance alone, the mysterious humanoid creature looks rather impressive. Coupled with its aura that has a trace of divinity, the mysterious humanoid creature could be mistaken as god. And in a way, it was a god.
No, to be more precise, the mysterious humanoid creature was what Chaos called an “administrator.”
“Why bother descending when I’m already here?” Seeing the administrator transformed into its true form, Chaos finally decided to speak with him.
“No, there’s still a need to descend. After all the irregular that was under you was still on that planet.” The administrator disagreed.
“Oh? So you won’t let her go? Was it because she destroyed your toy?” Chaos teases.
The one that had interfered in the battle between Rennel was the same entity that was standing arrogantly in front of Chaos right now. After seeing the goblin king being disadvantaged, it sent a wisp of its power to the monster – boosting the the goblin king’s power to a new level.
Chaos of course had seen all of this happened but decided not to interfere in order to push Rennel’s second awakening. Chaos was confident that once Rennel breakthrough her current limit, the “upgraded” goblin king won’t be her match. And Chaos was right on the mark.
The three-eyed administrator’s face becomes gloomy after hearing Chaos’ sarcastic remarks.
“Shut up! An intruder like you has no right to mock a god like me!” The administrator declared angrily.
“God? You? Hahahaha! That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard after arriving in this world!”
Hearing the administrator’s declaration of godhood, Chaos couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Chaos found the declaration so laughable that it rolls around while clutching its belly.
Being laughed at and mocked in his face, the administrator almost explodes from anger. He gritted his teeth so much that it might just break.
“What’s so funny? You dare laugh at me you inferior creature?!”
After laughing for a while more, Chaos finally stops. Chaos then looks at the three-eyed administrator as if he was a buffoon.
“Inferior creature you say? I see… I see…I understand now why you wanted to use the goblins to destroy Blizzard city. Are you that bored? For a “superior” life form like yourself, your idea of entertainment sure was low class.” Chaos mercilessly mocked.
The three-eyed guardian was greatly startled after hearing Chaos reveals what he did. Although Chaos called him low class, he completely ignored that point and focuses on the other thing that Chaos said: That he was behind the goblin village that appeared not too far away from Blizzard city.
“Who are you? And how do you know about that?” The administrator asked suspiciously.
“Didn’t you know already? I’m an intruder!” Chaos mockingly answered.
The three-eyed administrator narrows its eyes dangerously. Although the administrator doesn’t care even if the creature exposed what he did, the administrator disliked anything that he could not control.
And since the mysterious creature in front of him knows too much and even dare to mock him, the administrator decided to destroy it!
****
“For the sin of mocking a god, you shall die!”
The administrator gave out a righteous sounding excuse and directly attacked Chaos by grabbing it with his four arms. Seeing the administrator unceremoniously attacking it, Chaos wasn’t surprised at all.
Chaos simply stood where it is and allow the administrator to grab it. But despite not doing anything, the administrator failed to grab Chaos with its four arms. Not only did the administrator failed, it was even repelled by a mysterious force.
The administrator was shocked after failing to harm Chaos, and looked at the mysterious creature with greater vigilance.
“You devilish creature, I’ve underestimated you. For a powerful intruder like you to appear in this world, you must have nefarious thoughts on all of the living creatures on the planet!” The three-eyed administrator declared.
Chaos finds the words of the administrator interesting. Looking amuse, Chaos mocked, “What’s with the lame attempt to appear righteous? For someone claiming to be a god, you sure are pathetic.”
Hmph!
The administrator harrumphed and clasps two of its hands together. After that he slowly separated his palms. As he was doing so, a long, golden object slowly appeared. Before long, the true form of the object was finally revealed. It was a beautiful golden halberd.
“This is my divine weapon, “Golden Harbinger. Evil creature prepare for your doom!” The administrator declared at after pointing the halberd at Chaos.
“Oh~” Clap! Clap! Clap!
Chaos clapped its paws several times while looking rather amuse. Although the weapon was pointed at it, no fear could be seen in Chaos’ golden eyes.
“Fine, mock me all you want! Let’s see if you could still be confident in the face of my divine weapon!”
The administrator brandished its golden halberd and swings it down towards Chaos without getting close. The golden halberd released a wave of red energy that rushes towards Chaos. And although the halberd was gold in color, the aura that it releases was blood red similar to the aura that appeared on the goblin king’s body, just hours ago.
Facing the energy wave rushing towards it, Chaos still showed a nonchalant expression. And instead of dodging the halberd’s light, Chaos just stood there as if rooted in place.
Seeing Chaos not even trying to evade, the administrator sneered. In terms of sheer power, the three-eyed administrator ranked above all other administrator. He could already foresee the damnable creature that had been mocking him be swallowed by the wave of red energy, and ripped into pieces!
The wave of red energy arrived in front of Chaos which quickly swallowed it like a person being swallowed by a tsunami. The administrator who was confidently watching Chaos being swallowed by the red energy let out a huge grin. Just a little more and Chaos would pay for its arrogance against a god!
The destructive force of the red energy grew stronger as it tries to rip apart the creature it swallowed. It twirls and whirls, and grinded the creature trapped within. When it looks like that it was over for Chaos, a voice filled with boredom was directly sent into the administrator's mind.
“Is this all you've got? Why is it so weak? Are you lacking energy? Did you not eat?” Chaos asked, sounding really bored.
The administrator’s heart skipped a beat after hearing Chaos’ bored sounding voice. How could it be? Why is the annoying creature still alive despite being swallowed by the destructive red energy of his divine weapon?
“It seemed that I couldn’t really expect much from someone of your caliber. Since you’re an administrator, I thought that you could at least relieved my boredom.”
After saying so, the red energy that was trying to destroy Chaos was suddenly ripped apart and scattered, before dissipating completely.
*Shock!*
The administrator could not believe the scene it just witnessed, the wave of red energy he had sent towards the creature, energy that even his fellow administrator feared was ripped apart just like that.
*“How?!”*
The three-eyed administrator could not understand how it happened. There should be no power in this world powerful enough to destroy red energy of his divine weapon!
“What’s with the confuse look? The answer should be obvious to you right?” Chaos teases, “You’ve said it yourself, that there should not be a power in this world that could destroy the red energy.”
Having been teased by Chaos, the administrator finally realized his mistake. No power in the world should be able to destroy the red energy due to its mysterious properties but the creature in front of him was not of this world!
“Wait… how did you know what I was thinking?” Having realized the source of his failure, the administrator was a little relieved until it realized that Chaos seemed to have read his mind!
“You, you could read a mind of a god!” He blurted out.
“Did you realize it just now? For a “god” you sure are slow!” Chaos replied mockingly. “Enough, time to end this!”
Chaos points its right forearm towards the three-eyed administrator which alarmed the self-proclaimed. Feeling an intense sense of crisis, the administrator quickly turned around in an attempt to flee. But before It could even go far, it was trapped inside a crystal!
“What do you think you’re doing? Let go of me!” The administrator screamed in fear.
Ignoring the administrator’s scream, Chaos continued, and before long, a huge crack appeared above the administrator!
“A spatial tear! But how? You… just who are you?!” Seeing this scene, the administrator screamed in terror.
The administrator struggled and tries to free himself from the mysterious crystal that was trapping him. He released all of the energy he possessed including the mysterious red energy of his divine weapon but to no avail.
Not long after, he felt himself being dragged towards the huge spatial tear. The administrator screamed and begs Chaos to release him but was completely ignored. Soon the three-eyed administrator was completely swallowed and ripped into pieces by the spatial tear!
And just like that, an administrator of a world died.
Just like how the administrator tried to rip Chaos apart using the mysterious red energy of its divine weapon, Chaos returned the favor by having him ripped apart by the spatial tear it created.
The spatial slowly healed after a while but before it totally closes, it “spit out” three objects.
Chaos took the object and smiled. The objects in question were the administrator’s golden armor, the divine weapon ‘Golden Harbinger’, and a plane looking silver bracelet. These are Chaos’ loots.
Looking at the loots, Chaos showed disdain. “Low quality stuff.”
Chaos kept the loots and turned around. Since he was done here, he should return to the girl’s side. If she wakes up without Chaos around, she might just panic.
*“Now that I killed the three-eyed administrator, I wonder how the remaining administrator would react.”* Chaos thought to himself. It then looked at a certain direction.
“I don't care what you guys do, just make sure to entertain me…”
Leaving those words, Chaos flies towards the planet.
****
**End of Arc 1**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 23 (Title Withheld)
**Chapter 23**
Awakening is the process of unlocking the abilities sleeping within the seeds of chaos. As every seed was unique, the awakening process should be unique as well. Since there’s no fix procedure in awakening a ‘seed’, those who were gifted with the ‘seeds’ must discover the method themselves.
The first awakening of Rennel’s ‘seed’ happened inside the forest, known as the Mazes of Trees while desperately fighting against a horned rabbit. Before her first awakening, Rennel was no different from a regular person.
But after her first awakening, Rennel’s abilities skyrocketed to the point that she could subdue a monster king. Of course she still needed to train in order to use her newfound power properly.
Unfortunately, after reaching a certain level, Rennel find it difficult to advance even further. When she asked her teacher about it, Chaos told her that she had reached the upper limit of her first awakening.
In other words, she must have a second awakening in order to break through her current limit and advance further.
There’s just one “small” problem, she didn’t know how…
According to her teacher, every ‘seed’ possessed unique awakening method and special circumstances. Unless she found the method to awaken her ‘seed’, Rennel would be stuck on her current level. Still, her first awakening had substantially made her stronger.
Even if she didn’t find the method for her second awakening, she would still be much stronger than most people and monsters. As such, Rennel wasn’t really that concerned about it. Although she’ll be limited by her upper limit, the girl thought that she’s strong enough already.
How wrong she was.
Only after fighting the newly “upgraded” goblin king did she realized that her power was still greatly lacking. Although the goblin king was also a monster king similar to Black, it was still a goblin. If a goblin was already giving her this much trouble, just imagine what would happen once she encounters more powerful monsters.
If she did encounter a powerful monster that she could not defeat, was her only option to run?
Somehow, Rennel find this unacceptable. If she didn’t want to be constantly saved by her teacher while journeying the land, then she must possess power that could not be easily threatened in this world.
While she was racking her brain for the method to have her second awakening, a help in a form of a petite girl dropped from the sky… err, approaches her.
The girl in question was named Mina, a shy cleric who offered to buff her ability with magic. When Rennel heard about it, something in her mind clicked. A stimulus!
Her teacher, Chaos, once said that awakening her ‘seed’ required stimulus. Back then, the girl had no idea what her teacher meant by stimulus. But after Mina told her about buffs, an idea that made her excited suddenly struck her.
What if she uses the buffs to directly stimulate her ‘seed’?
Her idea sounded really absurd. How could a ‘seed’, given by higher life form be easily stimulated by magic buffs from a primitive world?
Nonetheless, her instinct was telling her to try that method. Anyway, even if the method she had thought of failed, she won’t suffer any loss. On the contrary, she would be gain a temporary boost to her abilities which might be enough to kill the goblin king.
Therefore, without any hesitation, Rennel asked the cleric, Mina, to cast her buffing magic on her. Once the first buff was casted on her, she quickly redirect it to her ‘seed’ that was inside her soul. And to her surprise, she felt a reaction!
It was working!
Suppressing her excitement, Rennel asked the girl to continue. Only after the girl, Mina casted all of her available buff did the process stops.
Did she succeed?
Yes and no.
Yes, because she can feel that her abilities had risen considerably. No, because the buff wasn’t enough for a full awakening. Still, that’s enough.
Her ‘seed’ had been stimulated. All she needed now was a “push”, and it’s just happen that she knows what’s going to push her for her second awakening – a battle to the death with the goblin king!
****
Spear strikes after spear strikes rained on the goblin king. Unable to neither dodge nor follow the girl’s movement, the goblin king could only do its best to protect itself.
And as for the goblin king’s insane regenerative ability, it was being stymied by Rennel’s spear, ‘nameless’ that had also experienced a sudden increase in power following the girl’s growth.
Just like what her teacher said, ‘nameless’ would grow with her.
With the monster’s regenerative ability being affected 'nameless' ability, its effectiveness dropped significantly. Although it didn’t disappear completely, as proven by the goblin king’s mysterious red aura, it could no longer heal the monster’s injuries as fast as before. That’s the reason why the goblin king was full of wounds.
The adventurers and the soldiers from the army stared at the battle excitedly. When the goblin king showcased its insane regenerative ability earlier, many of them fall into despair. But after seeing the silver-haired girl’s performance, everyone’s hope was ignited.
Right now they could only hope that the girl doesn’t disappoint or that nothing unexpected crops up.
“Not bad. You actually found the method for your second awakening so quickly. It's good to know that my effort of hinting you the method didn’t go to waste. Now you only need one last push, Chaos said to himself.
“Thankfully, the push you needed is just in front of you…” Saying so, Chaos narrowed its eyes, “Don’t disappoint me, administrator. Since you decided to interfere, you better give my student the push she needed.”
As if reacting to Chaos’ words, the red aura on the goblin king’s body experienced a sudden change!
The read aura grew more intense and the recovery rate increases as a result. But despite the increasing intensity of the red aura, it still could not compare to the recovery rate it had before Rennel had her semi-awakening.
Nonetheless, it was still enough to heal the more serious injuries like that on the monster's right eye and throat. The non-life-threatening injuries on the other hand were left mostly untouched.
“How heartless; you don’t even care if your toy breaks. Chaos mirthlessly laughs after seeing the goblin king’s situation.
“Forcefully stimulating all of the monster’s potential might make it stronger but it would also kill it. Even if the goblin king manages to win, the poor creature would also die afterwards. From the looks of it the monster will die in less than an hour…”
Chaos watches everything unfold, it didn’t even bother to warm Rennel about the interference of a certain administrator. It wanted to see how Rennel would tackle the situation.
A frown appeared on Rennel’s face after seeing the red aura growing much stronger. Still, the girl didn’t panic. Even though the goblin king seemed to have grown much stronger, what she must do didn’t change.
The goblin king seemed to have grown slightly bigger after intensity of the red aura grew stronger. But at the same time, it seemed to have lost any semblance of control as the berserk light in its eyes grew much deeper.
Roar!!!
The goblin king rushes towards Rennel without much as a warning and wildly swung its axe towards the girl. Every swing of its axe sunders the earth and creates powerful wind – signifying that it had changed.
Seeing this, scene the hearts of the people watching could not help but lurch. The situation changed once again. Still, there's really nothing much that they could do but watch.
Even the few remaining goblins didn’t dare to do or say anything. If their king wins, they might be able to survive, if the king loses, the adventurers would never let them go. The goblins could not also move to help their king under the watchful eyes of the adventurers and the soldiers. Outnumbered and low in morale, the goblins could only watch in silence…
Rennel dodges the goblin king’s attacks. The wild attacks were so fast that Rennel could only dodge within hair’s-breadth of each strike, putting much pressure on her. But unlike earlier, the girl welcomed the pressure with open arms.
That's because in order to complete her second awakening, she needed this pressure.
*“It’s not enough… I need more pressure!*
The girl’s eyes shone with excitement. She could feel that her second awakening was nearing completion, and that only a tiny filament was what separates her from her second awakening.
Changing her tactics, the girl decided to counter attack while dodging every of the monster’s attacks. This would make dodging more difficult but it should also give her the pressure she desperately needed.
“Is she crazy? Why isn’t she focusing on evading those attacks?” A male adventurer that was nervously watching asked.
Another adventurer nodded before commenting, “I’m not sure what she’s planning but she’s obviously taking a lot of risk by not focusing on defense. One wrong move and that axe could split her in half!”
“Then should we… help her?” Another adventurer chimed.
General Souren who was also nearby looked at the three adventurers and spoke: “Don’t do anything stupid. At the current juncture, any help would just trouble girl and make her lose her concentration.”
“Yes…”
The adventurers nodded in agreement. Although they have no idea why Rennel was risking it, they understood that any sudden help from them might spoil whatever plans she had. Although worried and somewhat unwilling, the adventurers could only watch silently.
Clyde and his party were also watching the ongoing battle with worried expression on their faces. Unlike the others, they knew that Rennel was trying to force a breakthrough using the pressure of death as a stimulus. In all honesty, they were also worried to death but could only helplessly watch; fully knowing that any interruption would be deadly for Rennel.
There’s also another person who was worried sick of the girl’s safety. Guild Master Tigre, also have a rough idea of what the girl was planning. After all, Rennel was not the first one to use the pressure of death to forcefully raise her level.
In his many years as an adventurer and as the guild master, Tigre had seen countless people use that strategy. Unfortunately, very few of them actually succeed – he, himself, being one of the few who did.
Since the guild master roughly knew what the girl was planning. He had been on guard all this time for a sudden sneak attack. After killing a goblin champion and helping the others to kill more goblins, he had been vigilantly watching the remaining goblins’ with eyes like a predator. If any of the goblins dare to make even a peep, he would massacre them all!
Of course he had no intention of letting the goblins go no matter what the result of the battle is.
****
A powerful axe light flashes and almost cuts Rennel from the head downward. Thankfully, the girl was able to skillfully evade the attack by sidestepping to her right. She then countered by stabbing forward.
Puchi!
The spear pierces the goblin king’s abdomen which sends blood flying. The goblin king twitches a little in pain but that's all the reaction it showed. Instead, the goblin king ignored its injury and swings its axe horizontally. Rennel, who was already expecting the counter attack rolled forward and appeared behind the monster. She then stabbed towards the center of the goblin’s king back – aiming at the monster’s spinal column.
Sensing the threat, the monster king forcefully spins around in an attempt to kill the girl while protecting its spinal column; as if knowing that it’ll be put in an extreme disadvantage if the girl succeeded.
The goblin king’s quick reaction saves it from suffering grave injury. But although it succeeded in preventing a spinal injury, it still suffered a severe wound on the side of its body.
Still, compared to what could have been a life-threatening injury, the injury it received was nothing.
The human and the monster continue to exchange deadly attacks but from their exchange till now, it was cleared that Rennel had the advantage. Compared to the goblin king’s injuries, Rennel’s injuries (that was caused by the sharp wind and debris) were relatively shallow.
*“Just a little more…”*
Rennel could feel her imminent breakthrough. The pressure from the goblin king was pushing her closer and closer to her goal. But at the same time, she could also feel that the goblin king becoming more desperate and insane.
It was as if it could feel the threat of her imminent breakthrough…
*“Is this the instinct of a monster?”* Rennel thought as the pressure on her grew stronger.
*“It’s amazing what desperation could do to a living being. Although it seemed to have lost its mind, it could still instinctively feel its imminent death. But… it’s too late!”*
A faint golden aura suffused the girl’s entire body. At the same time that the aura appeared, the girl’s attacks grew fiercer and her movements growing much sharper.
It’s a breakthrough!
After good-knows-how-long, and the never ending change in the tides of battle, Rennel finally completed her second awakening!
The awakening was neither loud nor too eye-catching but anyone watching could tell that something about Rennel changed. They couldn’t tell what exactly changed but they could tell one thing: It’s over for the goblin king.
As if answering everyone’s expectations (with the exception of the goblins), Rennel stabbed towards the goblin king’s head at an incredible speed. Knowing that it couldn’t dodge the attack in time, the goblin king could only raise its axe to stop the spear but…
*Shatter*
The moment the axe and the spear meets, the axe shattered!
‘Nameless’ went through axe head, shattering it into pieces before piercing the goblin king's brain through its thick skin and skull!
The goblin king’s eyes were wide with disbelief. At the last moment of its life, it somehow gained some clarity. The monster opened its mouth as if wanting to say something but before it could say anything, it head exploded into thousands of pieces!
Bang!
And with that, the lifeless corpse of the goblin king fell backward: It was dead.
****
**Title: Death of the Goblin King**
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 22(Second Awakening)
**Chapter 22**
Rennel was shock after seeing the goblin king staggered because of the unexpected long range attack. Although the arrows and the ice magic did not penetrate the monster’s skull, it still causes some damage to it. Not to mention they succeeded in getting the goblin king’s attention.
Roar!!!
Angered by the unexpected attack, the goblin king threw its huge axe towards the shield-wielding Darius who taunted it earlier. Darius, who was long prepared for the attack did not panic. Bracing himself, he faced the flying axe with a solemn expression.
Clank!
The huge axe hits the large shield with such ferocity that it created such a loud clanking sound. Moreover, the force of the axe was so strong that it blows Darius feet off the ground!
With gritted teeth, Darius tries to withstand the attack without letting go of his shield. Using all he had, Darius let out a roar as he uses everything in his arsenal as he deflects the axe upward!
*Swishing sound*
He succeeded!
The deflected axe spins several times before falling and embedding itself into the ground just several feet away from Darius.
After blocking the attack, Darius dropped to one knee while panting. To block that one attack, Darius used up all of his strength and mana. Nonetheless, there’s no disappointment in Darius’ face, instead, a huge grin appeared on his face.
*Hah! Did you see that, monster?*
Seeing that huge grin on the human's face, the goblin king felt insulted, and grew increasingly angry. But as he was about to make a move, it saw a flash coming from below it!
Slash!
It was Clyde!
The same moment that the goblin king threw its axe, Clyde moved towards the monster’s blind side and swung his long sword upward, slashing at its lower body!
The berserk goblin king desperately tries to step backward to dodge the attack. Sadly for the monster, it reacted too late and was still hit!
The sword flash travel from the goblin king’s legs to it hips and then to its abdomen, leaving behind a long gash on its body.
Yeah! It was wounded!
Everyone except for the goblins cheered after seeing the goblin king seriously wounded. The sneak attack was so perfectly executed that the goblin king couldn't even react in time!
Rennel eyes widened after seeing such a perfect teamwork from the four adventurers but the surprise only lasted for a moment before...
“Dodge it!” Rennel screamed.
Hearing the girl's scream, Clyde who was staring at the wound he inflicted just now quickly rolled to his left.
Bang!
A huge fist landed on the spot where Clyde was a moment ago. If not for Rennel’s warning and his own quick reaction, he might have been turn into mush by that one punch!
The cheering stopped after the unexpected counter-attack from the goblin king. Everyone could not help but stare at disbelief at the monster.
How could it still move? Even if the wound was not enough to incapacitate the monster, it shouldn’t have been able to counter-attack like that, especially not with those wounds!
Clyde who was almost crush, along with his teammates couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Does the goblin king not feel pain? That was such a serious injury! So how could it still move despite its severe injury?
“It’s regenerating!” Rennel exclaimed loudly.
What?!
Everyone turned towards the goblin king and stared at its wound. What they saw send chilled their hearts. It’s true!
The goblin king was indeed regenerating!
“What kind of joke is that?!” Darius screamed in disbelief.
Their party had worked really hard just to execute the earlier sneak attack perfectly. And yet, the wound they inflected on it was healed just like that?
Every person present shared the same sentiment. The goblin king was already extremely powerful and yet it still possessed such powerful regeneration ability. Thinking about it, the piercing wound it suffered from the silver-haired girl’s also disappeared.
They were so surprise by the sudden change in the goblin king that everyone except for Rennel forgot about that detail.
Seeing the goblin king’s overwhelming abilities, only one thing was on everyone’s mind. How are they going to defeat it?
Even Guild Master Tigre and General Souren were frowning. These two men have experience fighting goblin kings before but the ones they’ve fought were not as strong as this one.
And yet... Why was this goblin king so different?
Doubts appeared on the two veteran’s minds. They could not help but think that something was very wrong with the situation.
After that one attack, the goblin king did not follow up and simply stood there condescendingly as if basking on everyone’s despair. Looking at its ugly face, there one could even see a smug grin pasted on its lips.
While everyone was thinking on what to do, a petite figure silently approaches Rennel. It was Mina.
“E,excuse me…” Mina called.
Rennel quickly turned around and saw a petite girl garbed in a cleric robe and was even skinnier and smaller than she was looking at her nervously. But before Rennel could ask who she was and what she needed, the girl, Mina, spoke to her first.
“I’m Mina… There’s something I need to tell you.” She said.
Although feeling confuse, Rennel nodded and gestured the girl to speak. Mina, who was still nervous took a deep breath and quickly told Rennel what she and her party discussed earlier.
After hearing the girl’s words, Rennel was momentarily stunned before recovering and grabbing the girl’s shoulders.
“Are you telling the truth?” Rennel asked excitedly. The plan that the girl mentioned might just be the breakthrough that she was waiting for!
****
Clyde and his party could only grit their teeth. Although they didn’t expect to defeat the goblin king with that one sneak attack, they at least hope to weaken it somewhat. Unfortunately, the goblin king’s perverse regeneration ability threw a wrench on their plan.
*“We could only hope that that girl would be able to do something about this situation. Fortunately, Mina already approached her.”* Clyde thought to himself.
Seeing the despair on the adventurer’s eyes, the goblin king let out a grin. It then complacently walks towards Darius. No, it’s not walking towards the mustached man but rather towards the huge axe that was still embedded on the ground!
Noticing this, Darius grinned courageously. If the goblin thinks that he could easily get its weapon back then it must be dreaming.
The goblin king sneered at the puny human trying to stop it and continue to walk forward. With its power, is there any need to fear them?
As it gets closer, it sense fast moving object quickly approaching it. The goblin king snorted and nonchalantly swipes its right hand.
Pak! Pak! Pak!
Several arrows were blocked by the invisible wind the monster created by swinging its arm.
*“I won’t fall for the same trick again!”* The goblin king thought.
Hmm? The goblin king noticed a shadow going to its blind side the moment it swung its fist. The shadow reminded the goblin king of the person that grievously injured it earlier and was enraged.
It clenched it left first and hammered it down towards Clyde!
Bang!
The goblin king’s punched shattered the ground in front of it. Fortunately for Clyde, he was able to dodge in time thus avoiding the fate of becoming a human meat patty!
Natalie and Darius didn’t miss the opportunity and attacked the goblin king almost at the same time. Natalie fired an ice lance that was much larger than what she'd fired earlier. Darius on the other hand used his large shield to tackle the monster from its left side!
Seeing the joint attack, the goblin king didn’t panic. Although it hadn’t recovered its posture yet after that punch, it wasn’t too concerned.
The ice lance was about to land on the goblin king’s head when the monster grinned and head-butted the lance made out of ice magic!
*Shatter!*
No one could believe it, the ice lance shattered just like that!
At the same moment that the ice lance was shattered, Darius’ shield tackle finally arrived. But the moment the tackle hits, Darius felt like he hits an unmovable boulder!
Gah!
Darius was sent flying by the impact while vomiting blood much to his teammate's horror.
Clyde and the others were greatly alarmed after seeing him slammed into the ground, unmoving. They then quickly went to his rescue.
Natalie and Tyr went to check on Darius while Clyde guards the three of them.
“Hey, are you alright?” Natalie asked with a worried expression.
“Cough! Don’t worry about me. I’ll live,” Darius joked after coughing out more blood.
“Don’t move too much, I’ll try to heal you,” Tyr ordered with a serious look on his face.
The goblin king slowly stands up but didn’t follow. It didn’t even glanced at the four adventurers and simply walks towards the huge axe embedded on the ground.
Using its right hand, the goblin king pulled and effortlessly pulled-out the axe from the ground.
The goblin king then turned around and stared at the four adventurers with its sinister eyes. But before it could walk, it felt a sudden sense of danger behind it!
Puchi!
Although the goblin king tries to dodge, it wasn’t fast enough and was stabbed in the back with a spear!
It’s Rennel!
“Again…it’s you?!”
Enraged and in pain, the goblin king forcefully swung its huge axe towards Rennel. Unfortunately for the goblin king, Rennel was long prepare for it and was dodged the attack easily.
****
Rennel stared at the goblin king with a solemn expression on her face. And despite the overwhelming pressure from monster trying to drown her, the girl felt no fear.
“I’ll keep the goblin king busy, go help your friends.” Rennel said loudly without looking back.
Mina understood that Rennel was talking to her and quickly run towards her friends. Now that her task was completed, she could finally help her friends, especially Darius who was injured.
The goblin king saw a small human girl running towards the other humans but it didn’t care. Right now, the only thing on its mind was how it should torture the human girl standing in front of it.
Although it got stabbed on the back, the goblin king was still full of confident. After all, it could just heal that deep stab wound on its back.
A red aura came out of the goblin king’s body and quickly worked on the wound on its back. Before long the goblin king’s wound’s was all but healed!
“It’s wound healed just like that? How are we supposed to beat the monster if it keeps healing from its injuries?” A male adventurer who had just killed a goblin asked.
*Slash!*
Another adventurer who just slashed at a goblin stopped and answered, “How should I know? I’ve never encountered a monster like that before!”
The adventurers and the soldiers who were half-observing the situation while fighting felt wary. Seeing the goblin king’s absurd regenerative ability was a blow to everyone’s confidence. Everyone present could tell that unless something was done to stop the monster from regenerating, the goblin king was pretty much unkillable!
“Do you really think you’re immortal?”
Rennel who was just quietly observing the goblin king a moment ago suddenly appeared in front of the monster. And without warning, stabbed the goblin king’s throat!
So fast! Everyone, including the goblin king was caught off guard by Rennel’s sudden attack. The girl moved so fast as though she teleported to the goblin king!
The goblin king covered its throat with its left hand in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Following that, the read aura appeared on its throat in an attempt to repair the damage.
Seeing this, Rennel was not surprised at all.
“If one attack was not enough to bring you down then how about tens or even hundreds of attack? Can your regeneration keep up?”
Saying so, Rennel disappeared from her position again and stabbed at one of the goblin kings eyes!
Immense pain suffused the goblin king’s brain after its right eye was stabbed. And although it wanted to roar and scream to express its anger and fear, it could not as its throat has yet to heal. Instead, the monster did its best to ignore the pain and tried to counter attack.
The goblin king swings its huge axe like a madman but to its dismay, none of its attacks hits the girl. On the contrary, every time it attacks, Rennel would counter-attack and stab it!
Before long the goblin king was filled with stab wounds, big and small.
Clyde and his party were shocked at Rennel’s performance. And how could they not? The girl grew so strong to the point that she was like another person altogether!
“What’s going on? How did she suddenly become so strong?” Clyde wondered. He then turned to Mina and asked, “Was it you?”
Mina who was casting healing magic on Darius let out a bitter smile, “I did indeed give her buffs but the reason she has become that strong have little to do with my buffs. No, that was wrong too. She did use my buff but not to increase her abilities but rather to have a breakthrough.”
“A breakthrough? You mean… her ability leveled up?” Natalie asked in shock.
Mina nodded her head with a slightly dazed expression. She then said, “Yeah… but she didn’t call it a level up but an awakening!”
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 21(A Sudden Change)
**Chapter 21**
The jade-green spear stabbed towards the goblin king’s throat only to be blocked by a huge axe. Sparks flies as the two weapons collides. Nonetheless, Rennel wasn’t done yet. She quickly draws back her spear and stabbed forward, this time it’s aiming for the goblin king’s legs!
The goblin king of course would not accept being stabbed on the leg. It’s no idiot. Compared to the Rennel; the goblin king is slower. If its legs were to be injured, wouldn’t it be a sitting duck just waiting to be slaughtered?
Bang!
The earth shattered after the goblin king forcefully bring down its axe to defend against the spear that was heading towards it legs.
But as the spear and the axe was about to collide, the spear suddenly change direction and stabbed towards the monster's abdomen instead!
Puchi!
Green blood blossomed like flower as it flies in the air. It was wounded. Rennel successfully pierced the goblin king’s abdomen!
The goblin king staggered back because of the pain but didn't fall down. It might be because of pride or stubbornness but the goblin king withstood the pain and remained standing!
“Damn… human!” The goblin king roared.
As if expressing its displeasure, the goblin king spoke in the common language as it gives the girl a gaze full of killing intent.
“You… forced me!” the goblin king exclaimed. “You. Must. Die!”
Between gritted teeth, the goblin king spoke the last sentence word by word. And then… its eyes glows read.
Seeing the goblin king’s condition, alarm bells rings on Rennel’s head. She didn’t know what it was trying to do but she knew that she couldn’t allow it to continue!
Following her instinct, Rennel launches herself towards the goblin king, and aim her spear towards the goblin king’s head!
The goblin king ignored Rennel’s attack as if it didn’t see it. Moreover, red aura started appearing on the goblin king’s body. This aura formed a protected layer that stopped Rennel’s spear from penetrating the goblin king’s skull!
*“What is that?”*
Rennel’s eyes widened in shock as after the mysterious red aura stopped her spear on its tracks. No matter how hard she pushes, the mysterious red aura wouldn't budge.
What's more, upon sensing that things are getting worse, the girl quickly retract her spear and jumped back.
Even Chaos who was just watching the whole fight from above was slightly startled, and narrowed its eyes into slits as if something interesting caught its eyes. But despite noticing something, Chaos did not do anything and simply observed.
“It seemed that someone decided to interfere. Can't wait anymore?" Chaos muttered mysteriously.
Although there’s plenty of suspicious points about the sudden development, Chaos did not interfere and instead wanted to see how Rennel was going to deal with the situation.
"How are you going to deal with this situation?” Chaos thought to himself with an interested look.
Not long after, the mysterious red aura that was protecting the goblin king disappeared. But despite this, Rennel didn’t dare to be careless. Although she didn’t know what was happening, she could instinctively feel the danger.
What’s more, although the goblin king was just standing in one place with its head lowered looking rather defenseless; the girl didn’t attack it carelessly. Instead, her instinct was telling her that she would be killed if she makes a move!
It was rather baffling feeling even for her but that’s what she was feeling right now.
A few seconds later, the goblin king finally raised its head. Looking at it, there’s not much change in its external appearance except for the fact that its eyes were now red!
The goblin king looks at the girl with its sinister eyes. It then let out a sinister grin that sends goose bumps all over Rennel’s body!
Rennel felt extreme danger and jumbed back using all her strength!
Bang!
Debris and rubbles flew as a huge axe splits the ground were Rennel previously stood!
It's too fast!
Rennel didn’t even see when or how the goblin king attacked. Thankfully she was able to sense the danger and jumped back instantly thus avoiding the fate of being sliced in half!
But it was really a close shaved, in fact, so close that she only dodged the attack by a hair’s breadth. Still, despite dodging the attack, the hooded cloak that she was wearing was cut open; revealing her true appearance!
Seeing that her cloak was destroyed, Rennel could only throw the cloak to the sides as it’ll just get in the way when she fights.
*“How did the goblin king suddenly get so strong?”*
Rennel was feeling very confuse at the goblin king’s sudden increase in power. Aside from its eyes suddenly glowing red and the red aura that protected it earlier, it didn’t do anything at all.
*“No, it must have done something. It’s just that I didn’t see what. It’s possible that the outside didn’t change but the inside did. Also, it said that… I forced it?”*
The girl was trying her hardest to recall the clues that she might have missed earlier. But no matter what she does nothing comes to mind, except…
*“Did the goblin king use a forbidden technique? Judging by the monster’s earlier words; that might actually be the case.”*
The only thing that comes to girl’s mind was that the goblin king used some sort of forbidden skills to empower itself. Unfortunately for the girl, she didn’t have time to contemplate on the subject. No, the goblin king won’t allow it.
****
The sudden improvement in the goblin king’s abilities caught everyone’s attention, especially those in the area. Guild Master Tigre, General Souren, Clyde and his party, and other adventurers that were currently fighting could not help but look as well. Thankfully, even the remaining goblins turned their attention towards their king which prevented any sudden attacks.
“What just happened? How did the goblin king become so strong all of the sudden?” One adventurer asked.
The nearby adventurers could only shake their heads. That’s because no one could answer the adventurer’s question. Just like him they were caught off guard too.
As everyone watches, they saw Rennel jumped back with all her strength. Following that they all heard a loud ‘bang’! On the ground, a huge axe was buried; destroying the spot where the girl previously stood.
Everyone was shock. The goblin king had thrown its axe towards Rennel without them noticing!
*“When did the goblin king attack?”* Everyone thought.
Everyone then turned their attention towards Rennel the moment she threw her cloak away. Seeing the damage on the cloak, everyone knew that the girl barely dodges that attack. It was a really close call!
Without her hooded cloak, everyone finally saw Rennel’s true appearance. The girl’s long silver hair tied in braid glows under the moonlight. Her beautiful face and her star like black eyes caught everyone’s attention. Even her solemn expression was beautiful to behold.
“She’s so beautiful!” Mina murmured to herself after seeing Rennel’s true appearance. Even though she’s girl herself, Mina could not help but mesmerized.
Everyone nodded their heads in agreement; even the elves in the group that were known for their beauty could not help but admire the girl’s appearance.
External appearance aside, it was actually her skillful movements that could somehow match the “upgraded” goblin king’s movements that truly caught their attention. Despite the goblin king’s overwhelming power, Rennel has yet to fall.
But…
“It’s amazing that she could still match the goblin king but if the situation continues, she’ll run out of stamina soon!” The shield-bearing Darius observed.
“Wasn’t it the same for the goblin king too? That monster shouldn’t be able to maintain that state for too long. As long that silver-haired girl holds on till the effect of whatever technique the goblin king was using, she should be able to win!” Natalie, the magician, argued.
“No, Darius is right. If nothing was done to mitigate the situation; the girl wouldn’t be able to hold for too long.” Tyr countered.
“It’s difficult to feel it from here but the goblin king had been releasing an invisible pressure after it entered that mysterious state. Facing that pressure, the girl’s stamina would be drained quicker.”
“No way! Isn’t there anything that we could do?” Mina exclaimed, panicked.
Hearing Mina’s words, Tyr grow slightly hesitant and didn’t reply instantly. Noticing his teammate’s hesitation, Clyde who had been observing the entire fight asked, “Do you have any idea, Tyr?”
Tyr turned towards Clyde before nodding. “There’s indeed a way. As long as we distract the goblin king, the pressure on the girl should be lessened. But once we entered the fray, the goblin king’s attention would be placed on us. At the goblin king’s current state, it’ll be difficult for us to defend against its attacks. What’s more, the other goblins won’t let us assist the girl without doing anything.”
“You can leave the other goblins to us. So if you can, please assist the girl,” Guild Master Tigre, who silently approaches them, pleaded.
Clyde and his party stared at each other before nodding almost simultaneously.
“We can’t just let that little girl do all the hard work, can we? Let’s do it!” Darius said with a huge grin on his face.
“I agree. We can’t let the girl who obviously looks younger than us get all of the credits. That would be ruining our reputation,” Natalie commented with a nod.
“Yes! Yes! Let’s help her!” Mina nodded her head excitedly.
Hearing the words of his teammate, Tyr could only shrug his shoulder. “Since I’m the oldest here, there’s no way I could allow you “children” to outshine me, couldn’t I? So fine, let’s help her!” Tyr teases.
“Hey!”
“Who are you calling children?”
“I resent that!”
Clyde and the guild master smiled at this scene despite themselves. Now that everyone agreed to assist, they could only do their best.
“Earlier, we couldn’t offer our assistant because the girl was so focused on defeating her opponent. But the situation is different now. Since the girl’s on the defensive, and was pressured, she won’t mind even if we suddenly assist!” Try explained.
“Here’s the plan. Darius do everything you can to taunt the goblin king. Natalie and I would attack with range attacks, while Clyde tries to damage in close combat. Mina, you need to give all of the defensive in your arsenal to Darius – he’ll need it. Also, buff us as well with offensive buffs; we’ll need it in order to damage the goblin king. Lastly, try to communicate with that silver-haired girl and buff her too.”
Clyde and the others nodded their heads after listening to Tyr’s instructions. Before they start though, Mina gave everyone the buffs they requested. Giving that many buffs at the same time obviously tires the cleric girl. Fortunately for them, they have some potions that could help restore mana quickly.
After drinking a mana potion, Mina was able to recover from her man exhaustion. Meanwhile, the others had quickly adapted to the buffs, and are now gearing to go.
****
Renne is in a terrible spot. After the unexpected change in the goblin king’s abilities, the girl was forced into a passive position. In terms of stats, the goblin king surpasses her in all of them except for reaction time. But even that was slowly being affected by the sinister pressure that the monster was emitting.
Although she really wants to counter-attack, the girl couldn’t. So right now, Rennel could only focus on defense and evasion in order to stay alive.
Just like what Darius and Tyr said earlier, the girl was quickly running out of stamina because of the mysterious and sinister pressure that was
*“If this continues, I’ll surely be defeated!”* Rennel thought to herself. *“What should I do?”*
While Rennel racking her brain for a way to reverse the situation, the goblin king was suddenly hit by a mysterious ability that forces the monster to turn towards a certain person. It was Darius.
“Hey you big ugly, don’t you feel shame attacking a little girl? How about you fight someone your own size?” Darius taunted.
As a defender, Darius have skills that could attract the “hate” of the enemy. The one he used right now was a skill called ‘taunt”, an ability that angers the enemy by taunting it. The ability itself causes no damage but it’s very useful when trying to gather the attention of someone, humans or monsters alike.
The goblin king growls after hearing Darius’ taunt. But although Darius succeeded in getting the monster’s attention, the goblin king didn’t rush towards him but instead returned its attention back to the girl.
*“Such mental fortitude!”*
Darius was shock when the goblin king did not fall for his taunts. Any monster no matter the race should not be able to ignore the power of his ‘taunts’ and yet when used against the goblin king it had not effect.
Still, Darius wasn’t too disappointed. After all the true purpose of his taunt was not to force the monster to attack him but to divert its attention even if it’s just for a few seconds. And in that regard, he succeeded.
Twang! Twang! Pshew!
The moment the goblin king and returned its attention towards Rennel, it was hit by arrows and an ice magic to the face!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 20 (Fighting The Goblin King)
**Chapter 20**
“There are goblins to the right!” A male adventurer shouted to the other adventurers as he stabbed a goblin in the chest.
Urk! Ghrok!
Blood flows as the male adventurer forcefully pull out his sword from the dying goblin. He then went to chase other goblins that were trying to escape.
Twang!
“Don’t let any of them escape!” A female adventurer with pointed ears reminded the others as she shoot a fleeing goblin.
Similar scenes could be seen anywhere; goblins trying to escape while the adventurers pursued.
It’s been several minutes since the surviving goblins crawled out of the collapsed tunnels. When they thought that they were finally safe, they were shocked to find out that dozens of adventurers and soldiers were waiting to ambush them.
After that, everything turned chaotic as the surviving goblins were slain without mercy. Soon, countless lifeless bodies of goblins littered the ground. The number of goblins killed was so many that their green blood creates large puddles on the now muddy ground.
Despite this though, wounded goblins still keep crawling out of the collapsed tunnels.
Even though majority of the goblins were killed when the whole underground tunnel system collapses, cockroach-like goblins still managed to survive. Moreover, many of the evolved goblins managed to survive as well.
But considering their original number that was in the ten thousand, it was kind of expected.
For example; a goblin champion manages to crawl out of the eastern tunnel was ambushed by the adventurers and soldier lying in wait there. Sadly, goblin champions were very difficult to kill so it was able to emerge successfully from the collapsed tunnel despite suffering from serious injuries.
Currently, the goblin champion was facing against an elite team of adventurers while the other adventurers were busy killing the goblins that tries to interfere with the fight.
The goblin champion, despite being wounded and without weapons is giving the elite adventurers a difficult time. Still, if nothing unexpected happen, the goblin champion too, would fall at the hands of the adventurers.
It’s only a matter of time...
While all of this was happening, the real battle was actually somewhere else. It was the battle between the human girl, Rennel and the enraged goblin king.
****
Roar!!!
The goblin king roars as it swung down the huge axe on its hands towards Rennel. Knowing the power behind the huge axe, Rennel didn’t try to deflect it but avoided it entirely. Due to the huge size of the goblin king (being several times large than a goblin champion), each of its strike possessed incredible strength.
Bang!
The ground shattered after being hit with the axe, showcasing how powerful that strike was. Thankfully, Rennel chooses to evade the strike instead of blocking it.
If the girl tries to match its strength with her own like what she did with the goblin champion, she would have undoubtedly lost.
With such huge difference in power, the girl could only use her overwhelming speed and agility to dodge every attack that the goblin king sends her way.
Admittedly, even that was becoming more and more difficult once the goblin king started imbuing mana to its weapon. This is one of the reasons why goblin kings were so feared in the continent. Not only were they able to command other goblins, they themselves possessed fearsome powers.
Despite originating from one of the weakest race of monster, a goblin king could match other monster kings in battle. Also, even though Rennel have experience fighting a monster king before, the fight with the goblin king was far from easy.
What’s more, the experience and knowledge he gained after fighting the monstrous wolf could not be used in her current situation. After all, the circumstances shrouding the monstrous king Black was different from that of the goblin king.
Although she was able to subdue Black back then, the victory hasn’t been easy. And despite being much stronger now compared to the time she fought Black, the Black from that time was greatly weakened after giving birth. In other words, she won against an already weakened Black!
If she actually fought the full powered Black, who knew who would have won?
That said, that battle might not even happen considering that Black held no hostilities towards humans unlike the goblin king.
*“Did I grow overconfident after defeating Black?”*
Seeing how difficult it was to kill the goblin king, Rennel could not help but doubt herself. Because of her previous experience battling a monster king, the girl might have unconsciously looked down on the goblin king.
*"I think I finally understand why teacher want me to tackle this quest.”* Rennel thought as she narrowly evades the blade of the axe that wanted to split her in half.
After avoiding the huge axe, Rennel stabbed towards the goblin king’s heart but the monster uses its left arm to prevent its heart from being stabbed.
Puchi!
The jade-green spear stabbed into the arm of the goblin king which made the monster grimace in pain. Unfortunately for the girl, the spear was stopped by the goblin king’s thick muscles and bone. Although she manages to wound the monster, it wasn’t enough to threaten its life.
Enraged that it was wounded, the goblin king brought down its huge axe towards the girl, wanting to split her in two. And despite using just its right hand for that strike, the strike still possessed considerable power.
Still, Rennel was already prepared for it and quickly evaded after pulling out her spear.
The human girl and the goblin king stared at each other. Right now, the two of them sees no one else but the person (monster) in front of them. And as for the people and goblins around them, they had completely forgotten about them.
Speaking of which, Rennel was not actually fighting alone, Guild Master Tigre along with the elite adventurers had quickly rushed over once the goblin king appeared. Not too far away from them, there’s General Souren along with the best fighters in the army.
It was thanks to these people’s presence that Rennel could concentrate fighting the goblin king.
As for the remaining goblin champions and other goblins, Guild Master Tigre, General Souren, and the others were the ones to face them. That was to say, without discussing about it, their respective opponents were already decided.
****
Amazing!
Clyde could not help but praise the mysterious hooded girl that was fighting the goblin king. Despite being a lot smaller compared to her opponent, the mysterious girl was not losing ground at all.
Just watching the mysterious girl and the goblin king duke it out, Clyde had to accept his inferiority. Although he was also facing a formidable opponent (a goblin champion), he knew for a fact that the goblin champion that he was battling along with his party was far inferior to the goblin king.
“How could a fragile-looking girl like her be so strong?”
Despite wearing a hooded cloak, Clyde and the others could tell that the girl fighting the goblin king right now was no different to a regular young girl in terms of built and frame. And yet, despite her small stature, she possessed incredible strength to the point that she’s only inferior to the giant-like goblin king in terms of strength.
“Where is she getting all that power?”
The girl’s source of power was a complete mystery to all the people (and goblins) present. The goblin king’s power was easy to see considering its tower like build and thick muscles. But then, what about the girl, Rennel?
Her arm that was holding her spear was skinny and almost devoid of muscles. And yet, her every strike breaks the wind and are powerful enough to pierce through the goblin king’s thick hides, and rubber-muscles. What’s more, her agility, speed, and reaction time were out of this world. With those stats of her, she was able to evade every attack that the goblin king throws at her.
“Clyde, focus on the enemy!”
Natalie, a young woman wearing a huge magician hat warned Clyde who was starting to lose concentration as he continues to watch the girl.
Tsk! Due to the timely warning, Clyde was able to block spiked mace with his sword. Despite that though, the powerful strike still forced the feet of the young adventurer to sink a few inches into the ground.
*“I got careless!”*
Clyde roared and forcefully sends the spiked mace reeling while momentarily stunning the goblin champion. He then took advantage of the fact that the goblin champion was momentarily stunned to jump backward – allowing him to regain his composure and stance.
His party members also took the opportunity to attack the goblin champion while it was momentarily stunned – inflecting several wound to it. Unfortunately, the wounds suffered by the goblin champion weren’t deep enough to fell the monster.
“What the hell, man? You almost died back there,” Darius, a mustachioed man wearing a full armor and holding a large shield and a sword chided.
“Y, yeah… Sorry about that.” Clyde replied looking rather embarrassed.
Twang! Twang! Twang!
“Enough talking and focus on the goblin champion!” Tyr, a male elf archer reminded as he released three arrows consecutively. “Mina, I need buffs!”
“Yes, on it!”
Mina, a petite adventurer wearing a cleric’s uniform casted agility, concentration, and protection buff towards the elf archer.
“Mina, please buff me too!” Clyde shouted while hacking at the goblin champion.
“O, okay!” The cleric Mina replied.
Clyde felt embarrassed for what had happened earlier, and therefore wanted to redeem himself for that close call. Moreover, he wanted to finish off the goblin champion so that they could help the others.
Since the goblin champion was already wounded, its movements had slowed down significantly. Seeing this, Clyde’s party of five pushed harder, and encircles the goblin champion. Feeling the grip of death, the goblin champion went berserk as it tries to escape the encirclement.
But would a party of elite adventurers allow their prey to escape just like that? Of course not.
The mustached man, Darius slammed his huge shield at the goblin champion thus staggering it. Almost at the same time, the female magician, Natalie shoots an ice lance towards the goblin champion’s face.
Seeing the ice lance that was aimed at its face, the goblin champion had no choice but to use the spiked mace to block the ice lance. But because of this action, the other part of the goblin champion’s body was left defenseless.
Clyde, who just received buffs from the cleric Mina, took advantage of this and stabbed his sword at the goblin champion’s belly!
Rooaaarrrr!!!!
The goblin champion roared in anger and pain, and swiped its spiked mace horizontally to blow away the warrior Clyde. But…
Puchi! Puchi! Puchi!
Three arrows fired by the elven archer Tyr penetrated the back of the head of the goblin champion – piercing its brain and thus killing it.
Bam!
The goblin champion falls lifelessly to the ground after the three consecutive head shots. To make sure that it was really dead, Clyde stabbed his sword to its back. Seeing that there’s no reaction, Clyde and his party simultaneously let out sighs of relief.
“It’s finally dead...” Darius said.
“Yeah…” Natalie agreed.
“It’s just a goblin but to think that it’s this terrifying.” Mina softly commented.
Everyone nodded in agreement at the comment. Although goblins are among the weakest of monsters, its evolved form was truly terrifying. If not for their party’s almost perfect teamwork, they might not have defeated the monster.
“It was indeed a powerful monster but compared to the goblin king…”
The elven archer Tyr turned towards the direction of the goblin king and Rennel with a complicated expression. Clyde and the others also turned towards the two combatant embroiled in a fight to the death. Just like the elven archer, they too showed complicated expressions on their faces.
“…Should we help her?” Natalie finally asked.
“That might not be a good idea.” Darius answered.
“Yeah, that person is focusing all of her attention fighting the goblin king. If we mindlessly offered our help we might just break her concentration – putting her at a disadvantage. Clyde explained with a frown on his face.
“T,then… how about I buff her with my magic?” Mina timidly suggested.
Clyde shook his head at Mina’s suggestion. “No, that might just backfire on her. She might lose her rhythm if all of her attributes suddenly increases.” He explained.
Tyr nodded his head after hearing Clyde’s explanation. Although buffs are very useful as it could temporarily increase attributes if used properly, it could also be a double edged sword. The reason for this was because one needs time to adjust in order to use the sudden increase in power.
For example; if a person that was running was given a sudden speed buff, that person might just lost his bearings and tumbles to the ground. The same goes if the person was given a strength buff. If a person’s strength suddenly increases without warning, that person might unknowingly destroy his or her body when he attacks.
Basically, the body needs time to adjust to avoid hurting one’s self from the attribute increase.
“For now, let’s just help the others fight the goblins. Once we finish off all of the goblins, we might just find the opportunity to help her.” Clyde suggested.
The remaining for adventurers nodded their heads in silence. Before aiding the others though, they take one last look of the girl.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 19 (The Goblin King)
**Chapter 19**
Rennel ran towards the alliance camp under the guise of darkness. On her way there she noticed a small group of goblins observing the camp and silently killed all of them without causing a commotion.
She also encountered the magical traps setup by the mages but managed to skillfully pass them all without triggering a single one of the traps. Moreover, she passes the adventurers and soldiers guarding the camp without being noticed by them.
Finally she arrived on the camp without much trouble. What’s more, no one discovered her presence. Although she felt a little concern for the safety of the camp seeing how easy it was for her to sneak in, she still decided to ignore it for now and scanned the surrounding for the location of the guild master.
Luckily, it didn’t take her long to locate the tent where he was in. Scanning the tent she noticed that the guild master was not alone, there was also another person in the tent with him. Despite this though, Rennel didn’t hesitate and entered the tent. Anyway, it didn't really bothered her even if someone else saw her.
Rennel entered the tent without making any noise and saw Guild Master Tigre, along with a middle-aged man in uniform conversing. They were making plans and talking how to proceed for tomorrow’s battle.
The girl wasn’t sure if she should disturb the two men’s conversation but considering the urgency of the situation, she decided to forgo decorum and spoke.
“Good evening, guild master.” Rennel started with a greeting.
The two men were greatly startled by her voice and quickly turned around while asking the same question.
“Who?!”
“Who?!”
Guild Master Tigre and General Souren quickly stood up and ready their weapons as they look for the source of the voice. On the entrance, the two men saw a figure wearing a black hood and a cloak.
“It’s you, Rennel!”
Seeing the figure, the startled guild master couldn’t help but shout the girl’s name. He recognized her almost instantly.
Hearing that name, General Souren was suddenly reminded of the name of the person who was supposed to be harassing the goblins from the rear of the village.
“Good evening, guild master.”
Although slightly taken aback by the guild master and the other man’s extreme reaction, Renne didn’t panic and repeated her greeting.
“My apologies for suddenly barging in like this gentlemen but I need to speak with the guild master,” Rennel explained.
Since no one was guarding the entrance of the tent, the sudden outburst of Guild Master Tigre and General Souren didn’t attract the attention of anyone from the alliance.
Moreover, since the two men didn’t call for anyone’s attention, the conversation could proceed without much interference.
Guild Master Tigre put sheathed and out down his sword. Seeing the guild master action, the general followed suit.
“You want to speak with me? Do you need me for something?”
“Yes.”
Rennel nodded and stared at General Souren. Noticing her gaze, Guild Master Tigre quickly introduced the general.
“He is General Souren, the person in-charge of this operation. He's from the army,” The guild master explained.
“Oh… Good evening to you too, general.” Rennel greeted the man.
General Souren stare at the hooded girl for a few seconds before nodding his head and returning the girl’s greeting. Upon confirming the identity of the girl, the general lost much his wariness of her.
Still, his surprise for the girl’s ability to sneak into their tent without being noticed didn’t lessen at all.
“I’m glad to see you safe child. You had me worried when you didn’t come to camp after the night falls.”
Knowing that the guild master was worried for her safety, Rennel felt a little warm inside her heart. “My apologies guild master, the goblins were searching for me so I decided to lie low for a while.” She explained.
“No, don’t worry about it. I’m just glad to see safe. So what do you want to tell me?” The guild master asked.
“It’s about the real location of the goblin village,” Rennel answered.
The two men were alarmed after hearing the girl’s words. They knew that the girl most likely seek the guild master because of the goblins but they didn’t expect the words that came out of the girl’s mouth.
Did she just say that she wanted to discuss the real location of the goblin village?
A frown appeared at the guild master’s face and quickly invited the girl to sit down. “You need to explain what you have just said properly to us. Why don’t you sit down so we could converse more comfortably?”
Rennel nodded and sat at one of the small wooden chair inside tent. Once everyone was seated, she started her narration.
She started narrating what had happened during the day, her fight with goblins, the appearance of the goblin champion, her attempt to sneak into the goblin village and assassinate the goblin king, and lastly her discovery of the underground goblin village.
During the whole narration, the mouths of the two men were always open because of shock. Although Rennel was narrating the entire event in a matter-of-factly manner, the two men knew that event that transpired was probably more intense than how the girl had described them.
Putting themselves in the girl’s position, the two men could not help but let out cold sweats.
That was way too dangerous!
Guild Master Tigre and General Souren stared at the girl as if she was a monster. The two men knew that if they were in Rennel’s shoe, they might not be able to do things any better than her. Heck, it won’t even be surprising if they died then and there!
General Souren look at Guild Master in the eyes as if asking, *“Who the hell is this monster?”*
*“Don’t ask me, she just registered this morning,”* Was the reply from a certain guild master.
Guild Master Tigre wiped the sweat in his forehead and asked, “So the reason you wanted to see me was that you want to coordinate with the army and the guild?”
“Yes, I want to bury that underground village and kill all of the goblins in one go. Sadly, I can’t do it alone. Even if I could destroy the tunnels, some of the goblins might still escape. That’s where you guys will come in.” Rennel explained.
“Basically, I need you guys to…”
The hairs on the back of the necks of the guild master and the general stood up after hearing the girl’s plan. The plan was so merciless that the two could not help but feel their hearts turning cold.
*“This girl is brutal!”* The two men thought.
“I see… When do you plan to make a move?” The guild master asked.
“Can you make sure that all of people involved in the plan be ready within an hour?” Rennel asked back.
Guild Master Tigre and General Souren thought for a few seconds before nodding at the same time.
Rennel let out a sigh before speaking, “Then please arranged that there are enough adventurers and soldiers on the places I pointed out earlier. After you hear a loud explosion, that would be the time to act…”
*****
**BOOM!!!**
An incredible force hits and destroyed the goblin village. It created an explosion and a shockwave that travels for several kilometers!
Dirt, rocks and other materials are thrown into the air. The nearby trees were all uprooted without exception. And of course, the entire underground tunnel system collapses, burying most of the goblins that were inside the tunnels!
It was like the apocalypse!
The explosion was caused by the same technique that Rennel uses against the goblin champion earlier. The difference in power between the earlier explosion and the explosion just now was due to how the technique was used.
During the battle with the goblin champion, Rennel could not put much power to her spear due to the fact that she was in a hurry. You see, the power of her technique relied greatly on the charging time. The more time was used to accumulate power the stronger the explosion.
When Rennel used the technique against the goblin champion, she could only charge her spear with mana for a few seconds. Despite the short amount of charging time though, the power contained within it was still powerful enough to destroy half of the goblin champion’s body.
To produce the explosion that destroyed the entire village and collapsed the underground tunnels, Rennel needed to charge her spear with mana for half an hour!
Also, after using the said technique, Rennel would be greatly exhausted and needed some time to recuperate. As such, Rennel could not use the same technique again and again. Instead, she needed to rest between uses.
Meaning, she needed to think properly before using the technique. She must only use the technique if she really have to.
Still, despite the strict requirements and the restrictions, it could not be denied that it was a very effective trump card if used properly...
The explosion and shockwaves not only shock the goblins but also the adventurers and the soldiers. Luckily, they were given warning in advance and manage to withstand the explosion relatively unharmed.
“What the hell was that?! Just what did that girl do?”
Guild Master Tigre cursed out loud after experiencing the explosion that was a hundred times stronger than the explosion during the afternoon. In all honesty, he was a little skeptical about the girl’s plan to bury all of the goblins alive. The biggest flaw of the plan was obviously the power needed to collapse the entire tunnel in one go.
But from the looks of it, he still underestimated her!
“Guild master… This explosion… was it really caused by that person earlier?”
A young man wearing a cape approaches Guild Master Tigre with a look of apprehension in his blue eyes.
The young man that approaches the guild master was the same handsome young man that Rennel bumped into during the day. He was a young adventurer that manages to make a name for himself through various heroic exploits.
Clyde… Yes, it should be caused by that girl.” The guild master answered.
Everyone, including the young man, Clyde, breathe in some cold air after hearing the guild master’s affirmation. There’s just one thing on everyone’s mind: How did she pull it off?
None of the people present with exception of the guild master believed that Rennel did it using her own power. They believed that she used a magic tool to create that explosion. As for what magic tool it was, no one knows.
Clyde took several deep breaths before asking again, “Then should we act now, guild master?”
“Wait a little more. Once the goblin king and goblin champions emerge from the wreckage, then we can act.” Guild Master Tigre answered.
About half an hour later after the explosion, a small explosion followed furious roar was suddenly heard by everyone in the vicinity. As the dust settled gigantic figure, several times larger than a goblin champion came out of from a large hole in the wreckages.
It was the goblin king!
The goblin king took several steps forward and looks at its surroundings with its sinister-looking eyes. Crawling out of the hole that the goblin king created were several large figures along with dozens of smaller figures.
Seven goblin champions and several dozens of different types of goblins!
Although the goblin kings, goblin champions and the other goblins manage to escape the collapse tunnels, they were not uninjured. On the contrary, all of them have varying degree of injuries. This could be inferred based on the wounds and green blood on their bodies.
“You’re all finally out. I’ve been waiting for all of you.”
A bell-like voice suddenly shattered the growls and grunts of the goblins. The goblins, including the goblin king, looked over to the source of the voice. There they saw a slim figure wearing a hooded cloak standing 20 ft. away from them.
It was Rennel
Ghruk! Gobhrak! **goblin speech**
The goblin king, spoke in goblin language after seeing the girl. The goblin king was alarmed. How could it not? It didn’t even feel the girl’s presence despite being so close!
“I don’t speak goblin language so I have no idea what you’re saying,” Rennel commented.
Since Chaos didn’t translate the goblin language to her, Rennel had no idea what the goblin king was trying to say.
“Who... you... are? This… the explosion… you did it?”
Hearing the girl’s words, the goblin king stayed silent for several seconds before speaking in the common language of the continent which caught Rennel’s by surprise.
Although the goblin spoke in a broken manner, the fact that it could speak the common language would really be a great surprise to anyone that heard it.
“You can speak our language? What a surprise… to think that someone like you existed among the goblins. Or maybe it should be expected because you’re a king?” Rennel spoke in a voice that was neither praising nor mocking.
“Answer…question!” The goblin king insisted furiously.
“Indeed it was done by me… What are you going do about it?” Rennel mocked.
“KILL!!!”
The goblin king released its aura of intimidation without warning. Unfortunately for the goblin king, its intimidation didn’t work on the girl. On the contrary, it just ignites Rennel’s fighting spirit!
“Heh! I like to see you try!”
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 18 (A Crazy Scheme)
**Chapter 18**
Inside the forest, countless footsteps could be heard along with furious grunts and growls. Countless eyes with sinister glows could be seen moving about as if searching for something. Under the illumination of the moon’s light several small figures were revealed.
Goblins!
Yes, the ones creating the footsteps and grunting and growling were goblins.
Currently, dozens of goblins are searching for someone that might be hiding on the trees and foliage. Who is this someone you ask? Why it’s Rennel of course.
After killing the goblin champion, Rennel retreated into the depths of the forest to recuperate. The goblins that saw her go into the depths of the forest quickly followed her but lost sight of her once they're inside.
Unperturbed, the goblins keep on searching aimlessly. Alas, the result was the same; there’s no sign of the human who killed one of their champions. It was as if she disappeared like the wind.
Some of the goblins who went into the depths of the forest came out and returned to the village to report and to bring more goblins for the search; hence, the current situation.
Rennel who was atop one of the trees watched closely as the goblins searched for her. She’s been on the same tree for a while now and hasn’t moved to another tree despite being very near where she had fought the goblins earlier.
It’s not that she couldn’t move but rather simply she’s didn’t care and was too lazy to find another hiding place. Countless goblins had passed by the tree she was at since she retreated deeper into the forest. And yet, despite their numbers they still couldn’t find her.
Why won’t she move you asked?
It’s because she’s perfectly safe where she is. No matter how many goblins are looking for her, they still won’t find her even if they burn the whole forest to the ground. And it’s all because of her teacher, Chaos.
With Chaos concealing her presence, the goblins, even the goblin king won’t be able to locate her no matter what they do. Currently, Rennel was protected by an invisible isolation barrier that not only mask her presence it also affects other creature’s perceptions.
Thanks to this barrier, the goblins simply brush past the tree she was on. Heck the barrier was so powerful that she could start a fire, roast some meat and the goblins won’t still notice her. In a way, it could even be said that she’s on another dimension different from his original one.
“Take your time to restore your strength. After that you could try infiltrating the village. Your goal this time should be to kill the goblin king.” Chaos said after he got bored of watching the goblins scurrying around like little children.
“Yes teacher.” Rennel answered.
After saying so, Rennel reached for the pouch on her side. The pouch contain some dried meat (jerky) and fruits and a flask of water. She then bites onto a jerky and chewed with a frown on her face. The jerky was very unappetizing but Rennel didn’t utter a single complain. She's already used to eating dry meat and fruits on their journey, so it’s not really a problem for her.
Besides, it's not like she's on the mood for delicious food. All she needed right now was rest and a bit of food in order to restore her strength.
After eating a few more jerky and dried fruits, Rennel took several sip from her water flask. The girl then closed her eyes for a quick nap. Even though she’s on top of a tree, she wasn’t afraid of falling off. It’s nothing strange really since she’s already used to it.
While the goblins are searching for Rennel, the alliance which consisted of adventurers and the army are slowly retreating into the plain. Since night had fallen, continuing the battle under the light of the moon would be very foolish. Although they have members that could also see during the night (Beastmen and Elves) their numbers are insufficient to battle against the horde.
Besides, like all of the other adventurers they too are exhausted after fighting for nonstop for so long. The adventurers and the army made a temporary camp on the plain. They surrounded the camp with barricades made out of woods from a nearby forest; serving as a line of defense against the goblins.
Moreover, dozens of adventurers would take turn keeping watch and resting. This is to prevent surprise attacks from the goblins. And for additional protection, several mages had setup magic traps around camp that would activate the moment someone or something steps on them. These magic traps would serve as the first line of defense against any goblin attacks.
****
Inside a tent, the leaders of the two groups, Guild Master Tigre and a general of the army, General Souren are currently studying the result of the afternoon battle.
“The casualties on our side were more than I anticipated,” Guild Master Tigre commented after reading the report. “23 dead, 57 injured... And this is just the first battle.”
“It can’t be helped. The goblins have more number than we anticipated. In my opinion, it’s still small considering what we’re up against.” General Souren said with a noncommittal expression.
Guild Master Tigre did not comment on the General’s noncommittal expression, and could only sigh. This was the difference between a master of a guild and a general. Because generals commanded more people, they saw more deaths and are therefore more used to high casualties.
Of course this doesn’t mean that the general didn’t care for the lives of his soldiers. Like most people he would still be affected if people he knew die, it’s just that he won’t usually express it.
Also, in term of number, the army obviously outnumbered the adventurers. As such, there side has more casualties. In the report, majority of the dead and injured were from the army. And yet, General Souren didn’t show much emotion as if numbed to the death of his soldiers.
“The ones responsible for most of the death and injuries are the goblin mages. The next time we battle with the goblins, we must try to kill the mages first,” General Souren said after thinking for a bit.
“Yeah, we should try to reduce the number of their mages before the goblin king appeared. Once the goblin king joined the fight, things would get messier,” Guild Master agreed and shared his thoughts.
General Touresn paused for a while before asking, “Is it already confirmed? Does this village actually manage to produce a goblin king?
The general’s question was more of a confirmation instead of doubting the words of Guild Master Tigre. Since their next battle plan rides on this information, it’s better to be sure.
“It’s quite unfortunate but there’s 85% chance that this village was being spearheaded by a goblin king,” The guild master confirmed.
“I see.”
General Souren just nodded his head. Right now he’s digesting all of the information inside his head. At the same time, he was thinking of a countermeasure.
“It would be great if some of our people could infiltrate the village and kill the goblin king. If it could be done, our casualties would be greatly reduced,” General Souren thought out loud.
Hearing the general’s words, Guild Master Tigre could not be helped but be reminded of a certain girl. During the afternoon, everyone including the goblins was startled by a sudden explosion from the rear of the goblin village.
Although no one knew who or what caused it, Guild Master Tigre had a feeling that it was caused by that strange but beautiful girl.
“About that… There was actually someone trying to do exactly that,” The guild master said with a sigh.
“What? What do you mean?” General Souren asked. His eyes urging the guild master to explain what he had just said.
The guild master let out another sigh before explaining. He told the general about the strange girl who manage to gain a recommendation from a guild boss after registering as an adventurer for just two weeks. He also told him how that girl was able to defeat and subdue a monster king on her lonesome.
The general have this ‘I can’t believe what I’m hearing’ look on his face but upon realizing that the guild master was very serious when he said those things, General Souren fall into a contemplating state.
“The explosion earlier… Was it cause by her?” The general ask after a long silence.
“I have no proof to support my claim but I believed that it was most likely caused by her.” The guild master answered with serious look.
“I see… If we could coordinate with her—“
“That might be difficult. If I’m not mistaken, the goblins should be looking for her right now. If we send people to assist her just like that, it might just endanger her instead. Since she was able to subdue a monster king, it means that she’s quite resourceful, and should currently be safe.” The guild master cut off the general’s words and explained.
“True… Then we should just observe the situation at the rear of the village for now before making a move if the situation calls for it? General Souren asked.
“Yes.”
Remembering his conversation with the girl, Guild Master Tigre decided to fully trust the girl. Although it this decision might not make sense to most people, both the guild master and the general knew that it might be the breakthrough they were waiting for.
****
Several hours passed before Rennel finally opened her eyes. She stretched her limbs before looking below. There was no one there. From the looks of it the goblins had given out searching for her.
Seeing this, a smile crept on the girl’s face. It’s finally time to act.
Rennel jumped off the tree she was resting several hours ago and look at the sky. It was a clear night. If it were a normal day, Rennel would have enjoyed stargazing on such a beautiful night. Unfortunately, she wasn’t on the mood to be gazing at the stars.
*“Some other time,”* She thought.
While she was contemplating, a small figure landed on her shoulder and spoke, “Don’t be careless. Remember, I’ll only save you if you’re on your last leg.” It cautioned.
“I know teacher,” the girl nodded.
Rennel walked towards the village. The road leading there was clear of snow, probably caused by the goblins running back and forth as they searched for her. It’s only normal to think like that. After all, goblins are not known to be the type to clean their surroundings.
With the road cleared of snow, Rennel didn’t have to worry about leaving tracks for others to follow. Also, for some reason she didn’t see any goblins on the vicinity. Using her radar-like detection ability, she also didn’t detect any life forms on near the village.
No, to be precise, there were no goblins above ground but she could sense goblins below the ground. And there weren’t just dozens of them, rather there were thousands!
It was an underground village!
*“There’s actually this many goblins?!”*
Rennel could not help her surprise. She knew that there were a lot of goblins in the village but she didn’t expect to see several thousands of them!
*“And here I thought that I’ve killed a lot of them but from the looks of it, I barely scratched the surface. How troublesome…”*
The girl expression grew more solemn the more she scanned the underground village. Inside the village there were not only regular goblins but also a dozen large goblins – most likely goblin champions.
*“One goblin champion is difficult enough but to think that there’s still a dozen of them left!”*
Feeling a little light headed, Rennel stopped using her ability. Her original plan was to sneak into the village and assassinate the goblin king. But from the looks of it, that’s something very difficult to accomplish even for her.
The number of ordinary goblin alone would be enough to overwhelm her, what’s more if the goblin shamans, goblin, mages, and hob-goblins join the fray. Then there are the goblin champions. A dozen of them would be very tricky opponents.
“Aside from that… there’s also the goblin king.” Rennel murmured to herself.
Rennel remembered the overwhelming presence of a certain goblin when she was scanning the underground village. The size of the goblin was exaggerated enough but what truly caught her attention was the amount of mana the monster possessed!
*“With that many goblins, I can forget sneaking. I’ll probably be discovered unless I can use teacher’s isolation barrier. But if I asked teacher’s help, it will no longer be a test.”*
Knowing that sneaking around was no different from suicide, Rennel have no choice but to rethink her plan. Since an assassination was no longer an option, Rennel was thinking that maybe she should try the opposite.
Yes, instead of being silent and sneaky she should be loud and up front.
*“Should I bury them?”*
Rennel thought of a crazy and dangerous idea. Since most of the goblins were currently underground, she had this thought of burying all of the goblins alive!
*“It should work if I use that skill again. But still, I couldn’t do this alone. Maybe it’s time to rendezvous with the guild master and ask them to cooperate with me?”*
The more Rennel thought of it, the more she thinks that her plan was feasible. But she also thought that in order to get the best result, she must coordinate with the adventurers and the army.
*“In order to prevent the goblins from escaping after causing a cave-in, she needed people to ambush the escaping goblins. Alright, let’s do that!”*
Having made her decision, Rennel turned around. She’s needs to see the guild master and coordinate her action with them. Since there’s only one chance to make her plan a success, she mustn’t be careless.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 17 (Battling the Goblin Champion)
**Chapter 17**
After the dust settled, the huge monster could now be fully seen. The goblin champion simply stood there like a rod while staring menacingly at Rennel. Seeing its opponent, the goblin champion licked its lips.
On its side was a huge broadsword the size of a door stabbed into the ground. In the creature’s eyes, the lust for battle could be seen (along with a different kind of lust).
The goblin champion narrow its inhuman eyes and opened its disgustingly huge mouth. It then spoke in a language that was no different from grunts, “Grugh ne gbugh! (speaking in goblin language)”
Rennel tilted her head a little in confusion. From the looks of it, the goblin champion was speaking to her using the goblin language. Sadly, she could not speak the goblin language and had no idea what the monster was trying to say.
Seeing the girl’s confusion, the goblin champions and the goblins started laughing at her – berating her more using their strange language that sounded like gibberish than an actual language.
Rennel frown in frustration and was just about to ignore their gibberish and to start killing again when she heard Chaos’ voice inside her head.
“The goblin champion was saying that you look good and that you’ll give birth to a lot of goblin babies once you’re captured and trained to obey.” Chaos translated.
“The other goblins are pretty much just mirroring what the goblin champion was spouting while also making it known to the goblin champion their intent of wanting to have their “rounds” with you.”
Chaos was actually filtering the goblins’ words before translating it to the girl. If Chaos was to straight-forwardly translate the goblins’ conversations; the girl would be overwhelmed by the amount of profanities.
Despite not understanding the language herself, Rennel could still tell that her teacher was not fully translating the whole conversation and was instead filtering and translating it into a more appropriate language.
“Teacher, you don’t have to translate anymore. Even though I could not understand their language I could tell that they’re speaking ill of me,” Rennel said. “Anyway, what they wanted to say was no longer important once they’re dead!”
Hearing the girl’s words, Chaos stopped translating, and just watched from the sides. Actually the reason Chaos even bothered to translate the goblins’ conversation was because it wanted to see its student’s reaction. Seeing that she wasn’t that affected, Chaos was more than satisfied.
Sensing the killing intent from the girl, the goblin champion stopped talking and instead, sneered. Thinking that it succeeded in making Rennel angry, the goblin champion gestured obscenely to the girl to attack it.
Obviously, Rennel would not fall for the goblin champion’s taunt but since she was actually planning to attack it in the first place, she decided to humor the monster. After all, whether it taunted her or not won’t change the fact the the creature was already dead in her eyes.
Rennel kicked off the ground and lunges at the goblin champion. She aimed her spear and stabbed towards the goblin champion’s throat. The goblin champion did not panic and quickly draw its huge sword from the ground with one hand. It then uses the door-like broadsword as a shield to block Rennel’s attack.
Clank!
Sparks flew as the spear and huge broadsword collides. The collision between weapons also created a powerful shockwaves that send the nearest goblins flying.
And although the exchange between Rennel and the goblin champion seemed to be of equal strength, the goblin champion actually losses out as it was forced back by Rennel’s attack!
Seeing that it loses out in term of strength, the goblin champion could not help but be flabbergasted. How could it not be surprised? It was several times bigger than the human girl in front of it!.
Angered and humiliated, the goblin champion let out a terrifying roar and slashed at the girl with its huge broadsword.
Bang!
The ground shattered and sends debris flying in all direction. Unfortunately for the goblin champion, although the debris hits some several unlucky goblins, none of it hits the girl.
Unwilling to give up, the goblin champion slashed with its broadsword horizontally but Rennel gracefully evaded by jumping and landing on the huge broadsword.
“You’re without a doubt strong but unfortunately, you’re quite slow,” Rennel commented coldly while standing on the broadsword nonchalantly.
“Now that you’re done attacking, it’s only right that I return the favor.”
After saying those words, Rennel dashes towards the goblin champion using the huge broadsword as footholds. She thrust forward and pierced the goblin champion’s right eye!
A direct hit!
****
Roooaaaaarrrrrr!!!!
The goblin champion roared in pain and in rage after losing its right eye. It swung its huge broadsword blindly, hoping to hit the girl. Sadly for the goblin champion, Rennel already retreated far away after piercing the monster’s right eye.
A minute or two later, the goblin champion stopped its berserk rampage. It looked around with its one remaining eye until it found Rennel who was watching it from a distant.
Seeing the person responsible for blinding its right eye just standing there nonchalantly almost sends the goblin champion into another rampage. Fortunately for the goblin champion, it manages to hold to a bit of sanity, and didn’t act recklessly.
Through this painful experience, the goblin champion realized that the human girl in front of it was far from ordinary. Although it hated to admit it, the fact was clear for all to see; the human girl was stronger than it!
Since it could not defeat her while it was uninjured, the chance of the goblin champion defeating the girl with only one good eye was almost non-existent. As such, it could only calm itself and look for another opportunity. Maybe it could ask help from the other champions. It might be humiliating but it’s always better to be careful.
Although Rennel didn’t know what’s running on the goblin champion’s mind, she did know that it was planning something. Still, no matter what the goblin champion was planning, it won’t change the fact that it would die today!
Dispelling the unnecessary thought in her mind, Rennel grew more focus. And as if sensing the danger, the goblin champion let out angry growls as it summoned the remaining goblins to attack the girl.
Realizing that it could not defeat the human girl in its current condition; the goblin champion plans to escape while using the other goblins as distraction.
Obviously, Rennel will not fall for such a shallow trick. Ignoring the other goblins, she charges towards the goblin champion. The regular goblins try to attack her in frenzy but could not even touch a single hair on her head.
The goblin champion started panicking after seeing that the other goblins couldn’t even slow Rennel down. It held its huge broadsword with two hands and started spinning like a top!
Ugaahh! Groak! Bugaahh!
The goblins that were near the goblin champion were mercilessly cut into chunks and were then hurled into all direction with incredible force!
Tsk! Rennel couldn’t help but click her tongue, as she watches chunks of goblin meat flying towards her. Because Rennel was so close to the chunks of goblin meat, she could not just brush them off, nor could she dodge in time.
As such, she could only clear the chunks of goblin meat using her spear which gives the goblin champion the time it desperately needed to escape.
*“These goblins are so merciless even to their own kind. Not only did it use the other goblins as shield, it even cut up the goblins into pieces in order to use them as projectiles!”*
Rennel watches the goblin champion escaping further away with cold glint in her eyes but decided not to give chase.
Did she decide to give up and allow the goblin champion to escape? Of course not!
Instead of cooling down, Rennel’s killing intent burn more intensely. If the goblin champion could be so merciless even with its own kind, imagine the cruelty it would inflect unto those of the other races.
*“It ends here. Don’t even think of escaping!”*
Rennel looked up at the darkening sky and slightly bend her knees. She then propelled herself into the air using a force so strong that it shattered the ground she was standing on just a moment ago!
Bang!
The goblin champion heard an explosion-like sound behind it, and could not help but turn its head to look back while still running.
*Hmm? What happened? Where’s that human girl?*
Seeing that there’s only a cloud of dust in the place where it last saw the human girl, the goblin champion stopped running and looked around with its one good eye.
Unfortunately for the goblin champion, no matter where it looks, it could not find Rennel.
*Where? Where is she?!*
The goblin champion started panicking. Although it should be happy that the human girl was no longer chasing after it; the goblin champion’s crisis perception hadn’t stopped yet. On the contrary it was blaring even louder!
*Could it be?!*
Realizing something, the goblin champion hurriedly looks up. Its pupil shrinks as an object quickly approaches it. And before the goblin champion could even react… It lost its head and half of its body.
Boom!!!
The mysterious object did not only destroy half of the goblin champion’s body, it also destroyed the ground which causes a large explosion that could be heard far and wide!
****
What was that?!
The explosion startled the raiders and the goblins that were still fighting. Everyone looked at the same direction and saw a huge dust of cloud rising to the sky. It was from the rear of the goblin village.
Guild master Tigre could not help but frown after hearing the explosion-like sound and the rising dust of cloud. Although he didn’t know what causes it, he got a feeling that it has something to do with Rennel.
*“Did she cause that explosion? Or was it a cause by a powerful monster? The goblin champion, or maybe, the goblin king, perhaps?”*
The guild master really wanted to go there and see how things are going but couldn’t as he was needed here as well. This was especially true now considering that the fighting was getting more intense.
*“You better not push yourself to hard.”* The guild master thought in his heart.
Rennel steadily walked towards the goblin champion’s corpse (or what remained of it). She only took a cursory glance at the corpse before continuing forward and into the crater created by a powerful impact. Inside the crater was a green spear giving off a light green glow.
It was ‘nameless.’
Yes, the object that annihilated the goblin champion and created the crater was none other than Rennel’s spear, ‘nameless’.
After jumping almost a hundred feet into the sky, Rennel throws her spear towards the goblin champion who stopped running after noticing that she’s not in her previous location. The moment the goblin champion looks up was the moment it lost its head and half of it body.
The technique she used to kill the goblin champion was a technique she’s haven’t used successfully before. It was a technique that requires her to jump really high into the sky and throws her spear towards her intended target.
Due to the high requirements and control needed to successfully pull off the technique, very few could do it. Even Rennel who was blessed by a ‘seed’ could only barely perform the technique.
In reality, humans shouldn’t be able to use that technique. This was because in order to pull it off, Rennel needed to jump several dozens of feet; a feat that most humans couldn’t do.
Using that technique put a lot of pressure on one’s body, specifically on the muscles and bone in one’s legs and hands. Without physical enhancement, the technique could easily kill its users. What’s more, if the target was fast enough, it’s possible to evade the incoming projectile.
Meaning, using the technique was a gamble on Rennel’s part. If the goblin champion was able to dodge the attack, Rennel would need to fight it without a weapon which would put her in a difficult position.
*“Thankfully, luck was on my side. If the goblin champion didn’t stopped running and just stood there stupidly, I might have missed.”* The girl thought.
Luck played a huge part in death of the goblin champion, If the goblin champion ignored everything and simply keep on running towards the village, Rennel might have failed to kill it. Although the goblin champion was weaker than the monstrous wolf Black, it was more unscrupulous and shameless as it didn’t hesitate to use its kinsmen as distractions and shields.
Rennel pull out the spear and thanked it inside her heart. She then jumped out of the crater and looked at the direction of the goblin village. A large group of goblins were quickly running towards her position.
“I should stop for now and rest.” She thought to herself as she watched the approaching goblins.
Without saying anything, Rennel turned her back and quickly dashes into the trees with the goblins hot on her tail.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 16 (Raiding the Goblin Village)
**Chapter 16**
A goblin lunges at Rennel ferociously, in response, the girl simply stab her spear (nameless) at the goblin’s throat, piercing through it with ease.
Rennel quickly pulled the spear without looking at the dying goblin and swiped it at the other goblins charging at her with clubs, small spears, and other mismatched weapons. She accurately hit the goblins’ necks which send heads flying into the air.
Uguukk! Roar!!!
Grunts of pain and roars filled with anger and hate filled the air as more goblins died with every thrust and swipe of her spear.
As if triggered by the death of their kin, the other goblins’ attacks grow more frequent and ferocious. Goblins using bows shoot a barrage of arrows at the girl without care for the lives of other goblins accidentally hit by said arrows. Goblin mages also launches their spells in an attempt to destroy the intruder daring to attack their village on her own.
But despite the ferociousness of the attacks, none of them once lands on the girl. For arrows and spells, all Rennel have to do was swipe at them with her spear to destroy the arrows and dissipate the fireballs and ice spears.
Being a magic spear with various abilities, 'nameless' have natural immunity against certain level of magic attacks.
And as for those who tried attacking her from behind, they could only hit air as Rennel moved about as if she were dancing. Her movements are so mesmerizing that anyone who looks at it could not help but be attracted.
But for the goblins though, the girl’s graceful movement was like the dance of death. Every time she moves about and strike with her spear, goblins’ lives would be lost.
Still. Rennel dare not lower her guard. Although the small goblins were not her match, she still would not underestimate them.
This is because she knew full well the repercussion of lowering her guard. If she wasn’t careful, the waves of goblins would have overwhelmed her a long time ago.
And although she wasn’t really going to die with her teacher ensuring her safety, she still could not take it easy. This was because, her teacher, Chaos warned her that it will only save her if she was on the brink of death.
And knowing her teacher’s personality, Chaos will certainly just watch her as she's beaten by goblins – only acting when there’s only a wisp of breath left in her body.
Thinking what fate awaits her if ever she was captured by the goblins, Rennel could not help but shudder. Of course her teacher would absolutely not let the goblins humiliate her but still, she could not help but feel cold every time she thinks of it.
*“These goblins just keep on coming. Are they not afraid of death?”*
Rennel have already killed several dozen goblins but for some reason, the waves of goblins would not stop. Thankfully the route she had chosen allow her to move freely while preventing large groups of goblins from ganging up on her at the same time.
*“Good thing the adventurers and the army were also here. This greatly reduces the pressure on me… If I were to face all of the goblins myself, I’ll be easily overwhelmed by their sheer numbers.”*
Thinking about the alliance which made up of adventurers and soldiers, Rennel could not help but thank them inside her heart. It was thanks to them taking most of the pressure that Rennel could still be carefree like this.
*“I should stop thinking about unnecessary things and just focus on killing the goblins. This should also help reduce the pressure that those guys would have to face…”*
Having thought of that, Rennel returned all of her attention to the goblins. And with her mind clear of unnecessary thoughts, her movements showed great improvements; becoming faster, smoother, and more unpredictable.
Faced with this Rennel, the goblins could only die faster…
While Rennel was killing goblins at the rear of the village, the raiding teams made up of adventurers and soldiers from the army were doing their parts. Despite being outnumbered almost 10 to 1, they were still able to kill the goblins without suffering casualties.
Being much stronger and well-trained in comparison to goblins, the vast difference in number between the goblins and the alliance has not shown much effect yet. The other reason for their advantage was due to the difference in quality of equipment.
The goblins might have larger number compared to the raiders but their numbers also made it difficult to arm them. Thanks to this leeway, the raiding teams were not disadvantaged and overwhelmed.
Still, the situation could only last for so long. Being outnumbered, the adventurers and soldiers have to fight their all without resting. Meaning, as time goes by, the adventurers and soldiers would grow tired from all of the fighting.
Once that happened, injuries and deaths would start appearing among the raiders. And it's something that could not be avoided. This was because the vast difference in number between the two opposing sides was just that big.
The number of goblins inside the village actually surprised the adventurers and the army. Yes, they knew that they would be facing thousands of goblins since the start. But the still, the great number of goblins caught them off guard.
Basically, the number of goblins inside the village was three times of their original estimate. Nonetheless, they could not give up despite facing almost ten thousand goblins.
They could not retreat in order to think of new strategies. If they retreat they would be pursued. As such they could only go with their original plan and kill as many goblins as they could before they were overwhelmed.
*“This number… Could it be that this goblin village actually has a goblin king?”* Guild master Tigre thought to himself as he observed the battle unfolds along with the elite adventurers.
This was the thought that lay heavy on everyone’s mind. Seeing waves of waves of goblins sending themselves to their death without care made the higher ups of the adventurer’s guild and the army worry. Although goblins are ferocious and sinister, they were no fools.
The death of their kin should have caused some of the goblins with weaker wills to falter. But after observing the battle till now, not a single goblin retreated. This should only possible if someone very powerful was ordering them to not retreat.
A goblin champion is indeed very powerful but it doesn't have the authority and the charisma to force the goblins to die for it.
*“Yes… A goblin king should be present somewhere. Should I let the elites on our side test the water? …No, I should be patient. Besides, not a single champion showed up yet.”*
The reason why the guild master and the elite adventurers have yet to make a move was because they were waiting for the goblin champions and the king to act. Currently, only ordinary goblins, the hob-goblins, and mages had shown themselves. The real powerful goblins had yet to make a move.
It was for this reason that there had been no casualties on their side yet.
*“Speaking of which, I wonder if that girl is safe. If I’m not mistaken she should be attacking from the rear of the village right about now. Hopefully she’s safe.”*
The guild master suddenly thought of the guild’s newest member who requested to work on her lonesome. Rennel was a mysterious girl who suddenly appeared in the guild just this morning carrying a recommendation letter from one of his acquaintance.
The recommendation letter was surprising enough by itself but it was the content that really surprised him. Despite her age, the girl, Rennel, was able to do something that very few adventurers had done: Fight a monster king and win!
It was for this reason that the guild master agreed to her request to work alone. If not for this fact, the somewhat nosy guild master will never have agreed to such a request.
****
The battle between the two forces were growing in intensity despite the darkening sky. Actually, it was because the sky was slowly turning dark that the attacks from the adventurers and the army are growing much fiercer. The reason for this was because the night was the goblins’ ally.
Unlike humans, goblins could see clearly at night. They were a race that could move unhindered in the darkness. Once the night falls, the raiding teams could only fight while doing their best. Moreover, the goblin champions and the goblin king might make a move during the night.
That said it was not like they're completely helpless when fighting at night. Like the goblins, they too have methods that they could use when fighting under the cover of darkness. Still, compared to fighting during the day, their group would be more disadvantaged.
Just like the alliance of adventurers and the army, Rennel too, will face some trouble if he continues fighting till the night. But not because she’ll have difficulty fighting in the darkness. No, the darkness itself won’t trouble her. After all she could also see in the dark thanks to the ability bestowed by her ‘seed.’
Her greatest concern would be exhaustion. Even though Rennel have more stamina compared to most people, it haven’t reached the point (yet) were she could fight for days without rest and sustenance. Moreover, even if she does have that much stamina, she would still be mentally drained if she continues to fight and kill for days without breaks.
Therefore, the girl still needed rest. Fortunately for her, she could retreat any time she wanted. This is because she was able to ensure her path of retreat even while fighting.
**Piercing sound**
Uggeh!
A goblin waving a rusted sword died after Rennel ran through it with her spear. She then swiped her spear (with the corpse of the dead goblin still on it) to the other goblins, dislodging the goblin that just died while killing the goblins rushing towards her.
In a distance, several goblin mages were preparing their next spells. Despite their spells failing to even land on the girl, the goblin mages still didn’t give up. Unfortunately for them, Rennel had enough of their constant harassment and lunges towards them with incredible speed!
Seeing this, the other goblins tried to stop them using their own bodies, only to be cut in half when Rennel passed through them. Several large hob-goblins wielding large shields also rushed towards Rennel in an attempt to stop her but suffered the same fate as the other goblins before them.
Before long, the girl reached the terrified goblin mages who stopped their chanting while attempting to run away. Unfortunately for them, they were destined to fail as Rennel had been planning to get rid of them from the very beginning. And so, with a cold glint in her eyes, Rennel proceeds to behead all of them with just a few swipes of her spear!
Rooooaaaaarrrrrrr!!!!
The other goblins roared furiously after seeing all of the goblin mages getting beheaded. They charged at the hateful human girl furiously – their thoughts filled with nothing but revenge.
The reactions of the goblins were obviously more intense when Rennel killed the goblin mages compared when she killed the regular goblins – and for a good reason. Goblin mages are quite rare in the horde and were extremely valued by other goblins.
A horde with several goblin mages could grow much bigger and much faster compared to a horde without goblin mages. This is due to the ability of the mages to control the elements. Just like mages of other races, goblin mages value was not limited to the battlefield alone. The mages powers were also very useful in other fields like agriculture, engineering, medicine, and the likes.
In this world, it was common sense that the more mages a kingdom has, the more powerful it is. In many ways, mages are even more useful to the kingdom compared powerful warriors.
Similarly, this logic also applied to goblins as well. For the horde, a group of goblin mages were more important than a group of goblin champions. It was for this reason why hob-goblins were used to protect them.
Now that Rennel had killed all of the goblin mages in the vicinity, she could choose to move forward and face the furiously charging goblins or to retreat into the safety of the forest. But since this battle was part of her training, the girl chooses the first option.
Readying her spear, Rennel was about to charge at the charging goblins as well. But before she could do so, a large figure rockets towards her!
BANG!!!
The moment the figure landed, the ground shattered, sending dust and debris of earth and stones flying everywhere!
Using her spear, Rennel was able to deflect the debris flying towards her. The goblins that were furiously charging towards her on the other hand were not so fortunate. The debris pierced the heads and the bodies of the charging goblins, killing several of them in an instant.
*What happened?!*
Rennel stared at the huge figure standing mightily at the center of a large dust cloud. This figure has green skin covered in strange markings, large sinister eyes, a large mouth filled with rows of disgusting, yellowed, sharp teeth. But the thing that makes the creature stand up more was its tall and huge frame that was covered in muscles. Just one look at those muscles and one could see that they were filled with power.
What could the creature be other than a goblin?
Yes, the huge creature was indeed a goblin. But not just any goblin – it was a goblin champion!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 15 (Goblin Village)
**Chapter 15**
Greenhorde forest is a large forest just 43 kilometer southeast of Blizzard city. Due to its close proximity to the city, new adventurers would often venture there to gather alchemy materials and for training.
That said, there’s really nothing special about the place except for the fact that it’s a very large forest.
Being near the capital of the kingdom, the monsters leaving in the forest were relatively weak. Aside from that, the castle would also hire large groups of adventurers to clear out the place of powerful monsters every few years along with the regular army. As such, Greenhorde forest was relatively safe compared to other similar places.
Unfortunately, the ongoing war against the neighboring kingdom of Forst had put a stop to the monster cleanup for several years now – allowing monsters to gather and propagate once more. Nonetheless, adventurers were still regularly hired to reduce the numbers of monsters in the area.
But due to the sheer size of the forest, and the lack of manpower from the adventurer’s guild side, they could only do so much. Moreover, adventurers were also needed elsewhere and the guild could not put all of their manpower on a single task.
This resulted in the current predicament that the city is facing – the appearance of a goblin village.
Goblins are weak monsters that could be seen almost anywhere. They are ugly creatures with green skin, large inhuman eyes, sharp teeth, and are the size of a human child. Due to their small and weak stature, goblins are relatively easy to kill.
Alone, a goblin is very weak. Still, one should never underestimate goblins. They might be small and weak but their numbers are great. This is due to the fact that goblins could reproduce at an incredibly fast rate.
A female goblin could give birth two to three times a year. Worse still, male goblins could not only reproduce with female goblins, they could also reproduce with females of other races. To be more specific, with humanoid races.
Obviously, no females from the other race would willingly mate with a male goblin. But goblins were never concern about consent. They would just abduct any female they come across with and force themselves upon their victims.
The unlucky females would then have no other choice but to give births to goblin children until they die. And even after their death, these unfortunate souls would not be able to have respite as goblins would just eat their corpses.
Being one of the most populous races in the continent, human women were the constant victims of goblin abduction. Sole travelers were favorite targets of goblins. But if the horde was large enough, goblins would even attack large group of travelers or even caravans.
Travelers are not the only victim of goblin abduction, small settlements and villages were also at risk of being targeted. Stories of village girls being abducted by goblins during the night were very common.
Although females captive suffered the worst fate at the hands of goblins, males captives weren’t treated kindly either. Since males from other races could not reproduce with female goblins, keeping them alive served no value to the goblins; which means that only one fate awaits any male captives: Death.
Being a repulsive race though, male captives won’t have an easy death. No, far from it… Before being slaughtered, male captives would suffer all kinds of degradation and torture. After they die, they would then use to feed the hordes… and their female captives.
Yes, goblins are that brutal of a race – making them the most hated race in the land. For this reason, goblins were killed without mercy if they were discovered. Among the many subjugation quests in the adventurers’ guild, goblin subjugation were never in short supply.
If we consider all that had been discussed till now, a single goblin pose not much of a threat but two or more can be a threat. Against a single goblin, anyone, even without a weapon could kill it. But faced against two goblins, it’ll be another story altogether, especially against goblins wielding weapons.
Since a large enough horde could pose a threat against a caravan or a village, a goblin village would be even more so.
Unlike human villages that have several dozens to a hundred people, a goblin village has thousands of goblins!
Thousands of child-like monsters might not seem that much but goblins are not like human children. They’re ferocious and sinister creatures that know how to fight dirty. Certainly, they might not be much of a threat to Blizzard city but the same thing could not be said for the surrounding towns and villages.
Also, the number of goblins would only increase and not decrease as days passes by. So the longer the goblins are left alone, the bigger the threat they possessed.
Moreover, a goblin village didn’t have just regular goblins. The village also has chieftains, hob-goblins, goblin mages, goblin champions, and might even have a goblin king!
These were the elites of the goblin race.
The numbers of elite goblins I’ve mention might be smaller in comparison to regular goblins but these goblins are incredibly powerful by themselves. This is especially true for the goblin champions and the goblin king.
If left to unattended, the village would grow so large that they could threaten even a kingdom!
This was the main reason why the female guild employee was so nervous and panicked.
****
“Did a goblin king appear?” Guild master Tigre asked one of the adventurers who discovered the village in a very solemn manner.
The person being asked, a male adventurer shook his head before answering, “We didn’t see a goblin king, guild master. But that’s because we run away the moment we spotted the village.”
Guild master Tigre nodded his head. He understood the decision of the adventurers who found the location of the goblin village. In that kind of situation, the best response was to run as quickly as possible and report to the guild. If the adventurers choose to stay, they might have been overrun by the goblins.
Still, he wanted to get as much information as possible…
That said, he will never blame these adventurers.
“You guys did well. I’ll make sure to give you guys your rewards later. For now you should all rest.” The guild master instructed.
“Thank you, guild master!”
Hearing that they’re going to receive a reward, the adventurers grew excited and quickly thank the guild master. After that they were lead to the infirmary to get treatment and rest.
Guild master Tigre turned around and looked at her secretary, “Karen, order some people to gather all of the adventurers in the entire city, even those who were just loitering around or resting. Aside from that, have someone go to the castle and report the situation. We need to coordinate with the local garrison to properly deal with the goblins.” He instructed.
“I’m on it, guild master!” Karen didn’t dawdle around and quickly went into action. Having been working in the guild for many years, she fully understands the gravity of the situation.
Tigre let out a sigh and turns towards another person, “Sorry to ask you of this but we need your help. The appearance of the goblin village is a disaster to the settlements near it. Therefore, we need to destroy it before it grows even bigger.” The guild master explained. “Can you lend us your strength?”
Rennel who was just listening from the sides nodded her head. Although there were no goblins near her old village, she was still aware of the atrocities committed by the goblins thanks to the teaching of her teacher and that of the female adventurers she was acquainted with back in Alchur.
As such, Rennel have no problem acquiescing to the guild master’s request. Not to mention she’s an adventurer now and could not really refuse emergency quest issued by the guild, unless she no longer wanted to be an adventurer.
“No problem. I’ll help with the goblin extermination, “Rennel said. “But I have a request. I would like to work independently." She added.
Guild master Tigre was happy to hear Rennel agreeing to his request but couldn’t help but frown after hearing her condition. Still, after thinking for a while, the guild master finally agreed.
Since Rennel was able to defeat and subdue a monster king on her own, her might would be of great help against the goblin champions and the goblin king.
“Alright, you can act alone. But I hope you can cooperate with other adventurers if the situation calls for it.” He said.
Rennel didn’t see any problem with that and nodded her head in agreement. For her, temporarily teaming up with other adventurers if needed was not a problem. That is of course on the pre-condition that they didn’t slow her down.
****
A few hours later at the outskirt of the city…
“Is everyone here?” Guild master Tigre turned to her secretary, Karen and asked if all of the adventurers in the city were present.
Karen nodded and said, “Yes, everyone except for those who not in the city or are currently doing quest.”
“Good.” Guild master Tigre scanned every adventurer with his eyes. His eyes stopped at several adventurers for a moment before looking at the others. Among the groups of adventurers were several elites. These elites would be the backbone of the operation.
After looking at the adventurers, he turned his eyes towards another direction. Gathered in an orderly fashion were several platoons of soldiers. These platoon of soldiers were from the nearby garrisons; left behind to depend the castle and city from unexpected attacks while the king is out.
The adventurers and the army would coordinate with one another in exterminating the goblins. It’s just coordination though. The adventurers and the soldiers would still be under the command of their respective organization. Since adventurers are not under the army, the army officials could not command them, and vice-versa.
Still, it wasn’t the first time that adventurers and the army coordinated with one another. Every time there’s large scale monster extermination, the two organizations would cooperate in order to tackle the problem. And it can’t be helped really, the adventurer’s guild have limited manpower.
Besides, adventurers weren’t responsible for the protection of the people and the territory; that was the duty of the army. At the end of the day, the adventurer’s guild was a just private entity.
Guild master Tigre returned his gaze to the adventurers, “I think everyone should be aware why you are all gathered here today. A few hours ago, a goblin village was discovered in Greenhorde forest by several adventurers who were gathering materials there. These adventurers didn’t stay and quickly returned after discovering the village to avoid detection. As such, they weren’t able to discover the exact number of goblins. That said, a goblin village have a minimum of a thousand goblins. So expect to see thousands of them.”
Reaching that point, the guild master paused for a while to allow the adventurers to digest what he had just said. After watching the adventurer’s reactions, he resumed his speech.
“Goblins are very weak monsters but that only applies if they were alone. Once in a group the threat of the goblins increases exponentially. Moreover, not all goblins are weak. They have elites too. Since where facing a goblin village, you should all expect to face hob-goblins, mages, chieftains, champions, and even a king!”
A hubbub suddenly broke out after the guild master mentioned the goblin elites. All of the goblin elites that the guild master mentioned were very troublesome foes. This was especially true for the goblin champion and the goblin king.
But despite feeling fearful, their determination did not waiver. They knew what was at stakes in this extermination quest. If the goblin village was left to grow, it might turn into an unprecedented disaster.
“I believed that all of you are aware what will happen if the goblins were left alone. These bastards can reproduce like rats. If left alone, they’ll eventually overrun the kingdom!” The guild master’s voice grew emotional after reaching this point of his speech.
“Do you want to see women being violated by these vermin?” (Tigre)
“No!” (Adventurers)
“Do you want to see your fellow men being killed and eaten by them?” (Tigre)
“No!” (Adventurers)
“Do you want to see your homes destroyed?” (Tigre)
“No!” (Adventurers)
“Then, what do you want to do?” (Tigre)
“Kill them! Exterminate them!” (Adventurers)
Seeing the adventurers all fired up, guild master Tigre let out a satisfied smile. A large extermination quest was no different from a large battle between armies. And in every battle, the army with the highest morale would fight the fiercest. The same goes for the adventurers.
That’s the reason for the rousing speech that the guild master just gave. Meanwhile in the army’s side, a general was doing the same thing. He too gave a rousing speech to raise the soldier’s morale. Only by being emotionally rouse would the adventurers and soldiers fight with their lives at stake.
Chaos and Rennel watched everything unfold before their eyes. They didn’t do anything and simply listened to the speech. Chaos also didn’t give any advice to Rennel, letting her absorb everything by herself.
After the speech, the guild master and the general had a meeting. Since they were cooperating, they must coordinate the movement of their people. Only by doing so would they reduce the chaos and confusion that would ensue in the incoming battle.
Once that was done, the two organizations marched towards Greenhorde forest in order to destroy the village and exterminate the goblins.
Seeing the adventurers and the army marching, Rennel also began to move. As agreed upon, she will act independently. The reason she insisted on acting alone was because she could only show her true capabilities without other people getting in her way.
It has nothing to do with trust; she just simply didn’t have much experience working in tandem with others. Besides, it’s not like she needed anyone’s help. As long as she has her spear, she will not be afraid even if she were to face an army of goblins!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 14 (Meeting the Guild Master)
**Chapter 14**
Rennel was lead to the guild master’s office in the 2nd floor by a professional-looking woman with shoulder length auburn hair garbed in a patterned long dress.
“My name is Karen; I’m the guild master’s secretary. How should I address you?” The woman named Karen asked politely.
“Hello, I’m Rennel, an adventurer who started from Alchur.” Rennel also introduced herself in the same polite manner.
The woman named Karen smiled warmly Rennel after hearing her introduction, and started a small talk with the girl while they were walking. Although rather than calling it a small talk, it's safer to say that the woman was explaining how Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild works while promoting the guild to girl.
The reason for the explanation should be because Rennel just arrived recently, and because Blizzard city’s Adventurer’s guild has more stringent requirements compared to other branches. But it should also because she wanted to leave a good impression on Rennel.
Or at least, she wanted Rennel to have a good impression on Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild.
As someone who received a recommendation from a boss of guild branch, Rennel should be someone with real skills. Aside from that, she must also be someone who possessed a good personality. At the very least, her personality shouldn’t be that bad if Alchur’s boss, Arnold deemed to recommend her.
After all, getting a recommendation from a guild boss was not something that's easy to do. The individual should first prove himself or herself before receiving the recommendation.
As they conversed, Karen manage to gather a bit of information about the new potential member of her guild. Sadly, the two reached the destination before long despite walking slowly.
Karen and Rennel stood in front of a room with a sign that says ‘GM Office’. Karen knocked on the door a few times before hearing a reply from inside.
“Guild Master I’ve bought the person with the recommendation letter.” Karen said upon entering the office,
Karen then turned her head towards Rennel who was waiting outside and motioned her to enter. Rennel did what she was told and went inside the room.
“Hello,” Rennel greeted upon entering the room.
Inside the room she saw a man sitting behind an expensive-looking desk. The man sitting behind the desk has a stern expression as he looks at the new comer. He has thick grey hair on his head and a full grey beard on his face. His eyes are very sharp and look similar to that of a hawk. But what truly caught Rennel’s attention was the fact that the man, Blizzard city’s guild master was a dwarf!
Although surprised, Rennel didn’t show any change of expression on her face. Actually, even if her expression changed it won’t be noticed since she’s wearing a cloak with a hood that concealed her face (by Chaos’ order of course).
Just like her, the guild master was also observing the girl. Unfortunately, the hood she was wearing is making it quite difficult to see her true appearance. Aside from the fact that the person in front of him was a woman, the guild master could not tell anything else.
The guild master frowns a little because Rennel chooses not to lower or remove her hood despite facing him. But considering that he was facing an adventurer, the guild master didn’t take it to heart. Still, he plans on asking her to at least show her face later. If she were to register in his guild as an adventurer, he should at least know what she looks like.
“Welcome. My name is Tigre, the guild master of Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild.” The guild master, Tigre, introduced himself. “Why don’t you take a seat? Our conversation might take a while.”
Rennel nodded and said "thank you "and sat on one of the chairs near the desk. After sitting, the girl didn't say anything and just quietly wait for the guild master to resume speaking.
“I’ve read the letter from Arnold and to be honest, I found the content a little difficult to believe.”
Tigre was being polite when he said that he found the content of the letter a “little” difficult to believe. In reality, the guild master has difficulty believing what was written on the letter. If he didn’t personally know the person who wrote the letter, he might have taught that it was just a joke. But knowing, Arnold’s personality, guild master, Tigre could not help but take the letter seriously.
Still, the old guild master could not help but be skeptical…
How could he not? Arnold mentioned in the letter that the person in front of him actually fought and defeated a monster king!
If that was not unbelievable enough, the woman(?) in front of him didn’t just defeat the monster king but actually subdued it!
The guild master’s reaction was not out of Rennel’s expectations. Her teacher, Chaos, had already informed her beforehand the content of the recommendation letter. As such she didn’t show any reaction and simply waited for whatever the guild master has to say.
“Still, I trusted Arnold. I’ve known him for a long time and am fully aware of his personality. A stubborn man like him would not make up story just to promote one of his adventurers.” Tigre continued. “As such I have no choice but to believe his words. You must be quite skilled to be able to accomplish what you did…”
Karen, the secretary who was listening to the side was confused by her boss’ words. Unlike her boss, she was not aware of what was written in the recommendation letter. Still, judging by the guild master’s words and reactions, it must be something extraordinary.
Looking at the woman (?) garbed in a black cloak, Karen had a thought. *“Did she still underestimate her?”*
As someone who had been working with the guild master Tigre for three years now, Karen knew her boss’ personality very well. With how much the guild master was praising Rennel, the woman in black cloak must be more impressive than what she initially thought!
“I was just lucky,” Rennel answered after hearing Tigre’s words.
No, Rennel wasn’t being modest when she says those words. She really was indeed very lucky. If she wasn’t lucky enough to meet her teacher that fateful day, Rennel highly doubt that she’ll be speaking with Blizzard city’s guild master like she was now.
Forget being sold to slavery, she might not even be alive today if not for her teacher’s kindness. So yes, she had indeed been very lucky.
Guild master, Tigre smiled a little after hearing Rennel’s words. One of the things he despises the most were people with over-inflated egos. But from how the Rennel reacted to his praises, the guild master was sure that the person in front of him was not one of those people.
“I really like modest people like you. Despite what you have accomplished so far, you didn’t let success get into your head.”
Dwarves are known to be very straightforward people. So being a dwarf, guild master Tigre always says what’s on his mind. If he says that he likes someone, then he really does like that person.
“Rennel, was it? Do you want to become one of my adventurers?” Tigre asked with a smile.
Since the guild master liked Rennel’s personality, he wanted her to work for him as one of his adventurers. Skilled adventurers are always welcome in any adventurer’s guild branches, especially in Blizzard city. And if that skilled adventurer happened to have good personality, the more the guild wanted him or her to join them.
Rennel nodded her head in agreement. Joining Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild has always been part of their plan. Now that she received the invitation from the guild master himself, Rennel would probably receive more perks. And considering she has a goal that she must achieve, additional perks are always welcome.
Hearing her agreement, Karen gave Rennel a registration form for the girl to fill up upon the guild master’s order. Rennel read the content of the parchment and nodded her head a few times before signing it.
Upon signing the form, Rennel has officially become a member of the Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild.
The smile on the guild master’s face widened into a grin after seeing Rennel signed the form. It’s been a while since his guild have such a talented member, for guild master Tigre, it was indeed a joyful occasion.
“Now that you’re one of us, I would like to see your true appearance. So could you lower your hood?” Tigre asked suddenly.
There’s a reason why the guild master wanted to see Rennel’s face. With her talent, Tigre was confident that she’ll become famous in a short time. Although fame is usually good, there were drawbacks too. For example, someone might just masquerade as her in order to fool people. Although the guilds have unique tags, it’s not like those tags couldn’t be faked.
Tigre wasn’t worrying for no reason. There had been cases of people masquerading as one of their adventurers to commit crimes in the past. This was especially true for the more famous adventurers. And although those cases had dropped significantly over the years, it didn’t disappear for good.
Besides, many adventurers have criminal records themselves, so knowing what they look like was a requirement to avoid future troubles. At the very least, the higher ups of the guild should know what their adventurers’ looks like.
Rennel lowered her hood as the guild master requested. Anyway, the only reason she was wearing a hood in the first place was mainly due the fact that walking around without it was becoming more troublesome.
Karen and guild master Tigre could not help but gasp after seeing Rennel’s appearance. Aside from her appearance though, it was her age that truly surprised them. Even the guild master who already knew that his new adventurer was young (through the recommendation letter) could not help but sigh in admiration.
For an adventurer, the younger they are the brighter their future would be.
Aside from feeling surprise, Karen and Tigre also felt a little awkward. All this while, the two of them had been conversing with the girl as if she was an adult. But upon seeing her true appearance, they realized that they should change how they address her. Meaning, they should address her as a girl rather than a woman.
“You truly surprise me… Arnold already warned me that you were very young. But I didn’t expect that you’ll be THIS young.” Tigre commented. “Not to mention you’re very beautiful.”
Karen nodded her head repeatedly in agreement. Even a women like her could not help but be mesmerized by the girl's looks. In term of looks, Rennel was by no way inferior to that of an elf despite being a human.
“Thank you.”
Rennel didn’t show much of a reaction despite being praised by the two. Considering how the men in Alchur wouldn’t leave her alone, Rennel was already used to being praise. Karen and Tigre seemed to have noticed this as well, could not help but praise the girl more inside their hearts.
The girl’s registration was pretty much complete but Karen and Tigre didn’t want to let her go just yet. This was especially true for Karen who was dying in curiosity and wanted to know more about the girl. Of course Karen didn’t plan on asking the more personal question. As the guild master’s secretary, Karen knew propriety.
Understanding their curiosity, Rennel cooperate and tries to answer as much as she could while avoiding the more sensitive ones. Fortunately, both Karen and the guild master have no plan of intruding on her private life and were avoiding sensitive questions. Or at least they were trying to...
They did ask for some personal information though like her age, or her birth place. They also asked where she learned how to fight, or if she had a teacher.
Rennel didn’t mind telling them above her age, but she was careful not to let any information relating to her teacher (who was watching Rennel do her best to answer the questiona with interest) slip out of her mouth.
For questions related to her teacher, the girl would simply answer with things like, “it’s a secret”, “I don’t have the authority,” or the likes. And although the guild master was a little vehement in wanting to know her teacher’s true identity, Rennel refuses to budge.
While this answer and question was on-going, the door suddenly opened and a female guild employee entered without knocking. Surprising the trio.
The female employee was panting heavily, an indication that she ran here with all her might. What’s more, her face was very pale as if she had lost all the blood on her face.
“Emergency! Guild master, there’s an emergency!” The female employee exclaimed with a panic face. “Goblins… A goblin village was discovered not too far away from the city!”
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 13 (Blizzard City)
**Chapter 13**
Almena, a kingdom located in the northern part of the Wallachia continent was founded more than 300 years ago by the ‘Exiled King’ Barbarut. According to historical records, the ‘Exiled King’ Barbarut originated from the ancient kingdom of Gunfher and was one of the kingdom's many princes.
Barbarut was the third prince of Gunfher (meaning his third in line of the succession) and fought for the succession rights with his other brothers. Unfortunately, Barbarut lost the battle for the throne and was exiled along with his loyal retainers and servants.
The then prince Barbarut wanders the land and found himself in the far north of the continent. The cold north has massive but undeveloped lands. But although the north is cold and land undeveloped, Barbarut saw the untapped potential of the land and decided to develop the region with his own hands.
After years of hard work and with the help of those who were loyal to him, Barbarut finally built and established the kingdom. He named the newly established kingdom, Almena.
The kingdom received its name in honor of Barbarut’s wife, Almena who had died due to difficult childbirth while the then prince was still wandering the lands. As an exiled royalty, Barbarut was fiercely ambitious.
Fueled by his burning ambition and tenacity, Barbarut tries to make the kingdom flourish in order to settlers that’ll become the citizens of the new kingdom. Still, due to the geographical location of the kingdom and its cold climate, recruiting settlers was not easy, and had to put a lot of effort on it.
Even after the establishment of the kingdom and the arrival of new settlers, Barbarut couldn’t rest and enjoy the fruit of his labor.
Plague with problems like natural and man-made calamities, shortage of food, lack of funds, people, and the likes, Barbarut could only painstakingly develop the land.
Moreover, the monsters that inhabited the north were not so friendly and would often attack the still developing kingdom causing casualties and destruction. But despite the setbacks, Barbarut never lost sight of his vision.
And despite the hardships he encountered along the way, Barbarut didn’t give up. He persevered and struggled. He slays monsters and cuts down anyone who tried to take advantage of his situation. Finally, after more than two decades of toiling for the kingdom, Barbarut finally stabilized the kingdom, and crowned himself as its new king.
Also as remembrance to the hardships he experienced while developing the kingdom, Barbarut gave himself the title of ‘Exiled King.’
The first city he had built, Blizzard city, became the capital and the center of governance of the kingdom. Blizzard city derived its name from a terrible blizzard that hits the north and almost buried the kingdom in snow several years after the kingdom was established. Coincidentally, Blizzard was also the name of Barbarut’s first born son (birthed by his wife who died because of a difficult childbirth).
Blizzard city suffered and survived countless calamities over the years. It was also almost destroyed several times because of invasions and natural calamities but had somehow survived the tribulations. The city was also fortified and expanded over the years until it reached its current size.
Many scholars and historians often compare Blizzard city to its first king, Barbarut. The city’s tenacity was said to mirror that of Barbarut. Like the first king, Blizzard city refuses to be destroyed by either nature or man.
****
“That was interesting,”
A girl wearing black cloak that covered her whole body murmured after listening to the narration of the storyteller in a park. The girl took out a coin and flicked it towards the straw hat on the floor before walking away.
“Certainly more realistic compared to the ones before it. “ Someone replied.
The girl wearing black cloak, Rennel, could not help but let out a hollow laugh. Before finding the storyteller in the park, she and Chaos had listened to the narration of other storytellers.
Unlike the down to earth and more realistic narration of this storyteller, the other storytellers’ narrations made the listeners think that they’re listening to legends rather than a retelling of an event.
For example, one storyteller narrates how the “Exiled King”, Barbarut wrest the control of the northern lands from a tyrannical dragon. Another storyteller claimed that the ‘Exiled King’ was actually a demigod, and so on.
In other words, the stories told by previous storytellers were just that absurd.
“Still, I wonder how much of the story he narrated was true and how much were exaggerations?” Rennel wondered.
“It’s quite obvious that he indeed exaggerated but most of it should be true,” Chaos chimed.
Chaos and Rennel had arrived at Blizzard city about two days ago. And the first thing they did was to look for lodgings. But after settling in an inn did not do anything worthy of note. Instead, the duo simply saunters around the city in order to familiarize themselves with their new environment.
Rennel also haven’t registered at the local adventurer’s guild yet. But it’s not like the guild will run away if she didn’t registers upon arriving so she’s not much of a hurry. Still, it’s not like they had no purpose for walking around all day.
On the contrary they been visiting important landmarks and listening to the history of the city. They were also gathering information on the location of the children that had been sold to the slave traders by the villagers (of Rennel’s old village). More importantly, Rennel wanted to know what happened to her friend, Pina.
Being the biggest city in the region, Blizzard city was home to thousands of merchant. These merchants sell all kind of wares, including slaves. Rennel and Chaos had visited several of them but found no clue. These slave merchants had sold hundreds if not thousands of slaves over the year. As such, their search bore no fruits.
Moreover, Blizzard city was a very large city with millions of people from various races. So looking for certain people was extremely difficult. It’s like looking for a needle in the sea.
Not to mention that those people had been away for many years now. Who knows where they are now? Are they still alive? And even if they were still alive, Rennel probably could not recognize them anymore. After all, so many years had passed.
Nonetheless, Rennel has no plan of giving up the search. At the very least she wanted to know what happened to her best friend. Only by doing so could she truly move on with her life.
“Let us go back for now. Tomorrow you should go to the guild to register.” Chaos advised. “If you could do a lot of high-level quest and earn a lot of money, you could hire people to investigate your friend’s whereabouts. That should be a lot better compared to searching blindly.”
“It’s just unfortunate that I had never met your friend before. If I at least met her once, I could lock on her location through her aura. It wouldn’t even matter if she’s on the other part of the world. I could still find her. But since the two of us never once meet I couldn’t do much.”
Chaos was feeling slightly regretful. With its ability, there’s very little thing that Chaos could not accomplish. Sadly, looking for people he never meet before was not among them. Actually, it’s not that Chaos could not find Rennel’s friend without familiarizing itself with Pina’s aura but that would require using more of his sealed powers.
As someone who did not belong to this world, Chaos would be forcefully rejected by this world, or rather by ones administering this world. In other words, of he uses more of his powers; the administrators of the world would be able to sense Chaos’ presence.
Although Chaos was not afraid of the administrators, and could just ignore them since they couldn’t actually do anything to it; the same thing couldn’t be said for Rennel.
In other words, the administrators would make things very difficult for the girl. For that reason alone, Chaos wants to avoid getting into conflicts with them. That’s because if a conflict did arise between the administrator and Chaos, it won’t bode well for this world.
“That’s fine teacher, I know that you have your own difficulties.” Rennel comforts her teacher with a smile. “Anyway, finding Pina and the other villagers was my responsibility. Since I was able to escape my fate, it should fall to me to find them.”
Chaos looks at its student intently before nodding its head. Seeing the determination in her eyes, Chaos decided to just do what it could within the limit of its power. *“So annoying… Should I just replace those administrators with ones of my choosing?”*
Feeling a little helpless, Chaos contemplated replacing the administrators with other people but throw the idea in the back of its head after thinking more deeply. Still, if things get out of hand, Chaos doesn’t mind getting more personal with them.
****
The next day, Chaos and Rennel went to Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild as planned. But upon seeing the adventurer’s guild building, the two were rather surprised. Actually, only Rennel was surprised Chaos only showed a slight reaction as indication that it was “surprised.”
Having been into many words, Chaos had seen a lot of things, including countless “adventurer’s guild” over the years. And compared to them, this world’s adventurer’s guild was still very much in its infancy. The only reason Chaos showed any reaction at all was because the Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild was more impressive compared to that of Alchur.
Still, comparing a building in a town to a building in a city was very unfair. It’s quite obvious that buildings in cities, especially a large city like that of Blizzard city were more impressive compared to buildings in smaller towns.
Nonetheless, for Rennel that had been in the city for no less than a couple of days, Blizzard city’s adventurer’s guild looks very impressive.
“Don’t stare too much. You’re looking like someone from the boonies.” Chaos scolded with disdain. “Besides, the guild building was not even that impressive. It’s just not bad, at least for an underdeveloped world like this one.”
Rennel blushed with embarrassment after being scolded by her teacher. Still, the girl thinks that as someone who grew up in the countryside, her reaction was pretty normal. What’s more the building did look very impressive (to her). It’s just that her teacher has very high standards.
The two entered the guild building and saw a lot of people inside. As one would expect from Almena’s adventurer’s guild main headquarters, the diversity of its members could not be compared to that of smaller cities or towns.
Looking around, Rennel could see beautiful human-like being with pointed ears (elves), small bearded men with stout figures (dwarves), beastlike people with animal heads but human body (beast men), strange human-like creatures with blue skin (flagars), and more.
Rennel had since long known about the various intelligent races but this is the first time she saw so many of them congregated in just one place. Certainly, he had also saw many of them while walking around the city but not at the same time.
Honestly, she could not help but feel a little overwhelmed. Fortunately, she had learned how to control her emotion so she was able to recover rather quickly. After observing the place more, Rennel saw that it was very similar to the adventurer’s guild building in Alchur, only much bigger and much more posh-looking.
*"It's like a large tavern or restaurant."*
Just like a tavern, the guild still has a bar that served alcohol and food to the adventurers; a large number of tables and chairs littered the first floor. It also has a notice board and a quest board similar to other guild buildings in small towns. Lastly, the guild building has a second floor.
Besides being much larger and having a second floor, it did look somewhat similar to that of Alchur.
Unlike Alchur though, the ones manning the reception area was not a muscular middle-aged man but attractive young women. Rennel was actually rather surprise to see this but not as much as when she saw the diverse cast of adventurers.
“Hmm… I guess many worlds shared the same template.” Chaos commented after seeing the young women manning the reception area.
Hmm? What’s a template?
Staying by Chaos’ side, Rennel had heard her teacher spoke words she never heard before. Although she didn’t ask, she knew that some of the words her teacher spoke of didn’t belong in this world. When Rennel was about to ask her teacher what the word mean, she suddenly heard the voice of a man coming from behind her.
“Please don’t block the way.” Someone said in a patient voice.
Hearing the voice, Rennel quickly turned around and saw a group of young people behind her. The one who spoke to her was a young man that seemed to be in his 20s. The man question has blonde hair and blue eyes and could be considered quite good-looking. Nonetheless, Rennel didn’t care about that and quickly move out of the way so that the man and his group could pass.
The man nodded his head to Rennel politely before walking towards one of the receptionist. It seemed that the group were adventurers and were there to report the result of their quest. The girl didn’t put much attention to the group and went to another receptionist to register.
She talked to the receptionist and showed her badge that was from Alchur along with Arnold’s recommendation letter. The receptionist took the badge and letter with a gentle smile. She studied the parcel carefully without opening it but was a little surprise after seeing the mark on it.
The receptionist stares at Rennel curiously for several seconds before standing up and approaching another employee. The two talked for a bit before returning and talking to Rennel again. After the explanation from the receptionist, Rennel finally understood the situation.
Apparently, the recommendation letter from Arnold was addressed to Blizzard city’s guild master himself!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 12 (A Small Legend)
**Chapter 12**
The sudden appearance of the monstrous wolf surprised the villagers of Fahl village. Yet what truly surprised everyone the most was not that the monstrous wolf appearing in the village but rather the fact that Rennel actually subjugate the monster without killing it!
Still, the fact that the monstrous wolf (and its pup) came along with Rennel was proof enough. No matter how skeptical the villagers were, they could not deny the undeniable proof in front of them.
Still, seeing the monster that had snatched some of their livestock strutting around, the villagers could not help but to have some complicated feeling.
Still, despite their complicated feelings, and the fact that some of villagers held some sort of grudge against the monster, they could not actually ask the girl to kill it as compensation for the stolen livestock.
Not only would the girl not agree with it, most of the villagers would not allow it as well especially upon learning that the reason behind thievery of the missing livestock was because the monster had just given birth and had no strength to hunt prey. And since there was a nearby source of food, the monster chooses the most practical option.
Speaking of which, the reason that the monstrous wolf Black decided to stay in the mountains near the village of Fahl was not only because it was pregnant and needed a safe place where it could give birth to its pup. The main reason was that the Black lost a territorial dispute against a more powerful monster.
So having lost the battle, Black could only leave its former territory, in the other side of the mountain range, and look for a new hunting ground. It was just that while it was looking for a new territory, Black felt that it was about to give birth, and so could only stay near Fahl after accidentally stumbling upon a cave in the precipice of the mountains.
Also, since it just gave birth, the monstrous wolf was not strong enough to hunt for prey in the mountains. Apparently, just giving birth greatly weakened it and consumed most of its energy. As such, it could only swallow its pride and snatch livestock from the nearest settlement which just happen to be Fahl.
But despite stealing from the villagers, Black swears that it had never once thought of attacking any of the villagers. Firstly, it never considered humans as prey. Secondly, it was smart enough to know that once it started targeting humans, powerful humans would be sent to seek and kill it.
Although most humans were a lot weaker compared to majority of beast and monsters; Black was fully aware that powerful humans were also born among them. If Black really decide to target and kill the villagers, the powerful humans would sure to hunt it down.
So hearing the reasons from Rennel’s mouth, the villagers had no choice but to just move on. And it’s not because the villagers were especially kind (although they were indeed kind people) but because living near the mountains, the villagers were fully aware that they would always be in risk of encountering dangerous beast and monsters that might descent for reasons unknown. As such they could only let go and forgive the monstrous wolf.
Having settled the monster problem that plague the village of Fahl; Rennel pretty much completed the subjugation quest. And as for what she’s going to do with the monstrous wolf and its pup, that’s no longer their concern. As long as she didn’t release the monster back to the mountains, the villagers were okay with everything.
And as to what she’s going to do with Black and its pup, Rennel already have a plan in mind.
****
After leaving the village of Fahl (and declining the villagers’ invitation to stay and rest for the day), Rennel choose not to return to the town of Alchur yet. Instead, she, Chaos, and monster mother and child made a detour towards the Mazes of Trees.
In order to settle Black and the wolf-sized pup, Rennel plan to ask the help of the forest guardian. Rennel believed that the Mazes of Trees was the best place for the mother and child duo.
Not only was the Mazes of Trees unbelievably large (being the biggest forest in the kingdom), and pretty much unexplored, it also have lots of animals that could serve as prey for the monstrous wolf and its pup.
Also, hunting prey should no longer be a problem for Black after Chaos restored the monster to its best condition.
Staying there, Rennel believed that the two would be able to develop and survive – especially if the guardian of the forest was to look after them.
Having travelled deep into the forest, Rennel’s group finally found the guardian. To be more precise, they didn’t actually found the guardian but rather, the guardian found them. After all the guardian of the Mazes of Trees was as mysterious as the forest it presided over. If the guardian didn’t want to be found, no one, with the exception of few beings like Chaos, could find it.
In reality, the group didn’t specifically look for it. They just went deep into the forest and then have Chaos call for it by releasing a whip of its aura. Speaking of aura, it was also that moment that Black finally knew the identity of the mysterious “person” Rennel had been conversing with all this time.
And although this mysterious figure that the girl refer to as ‘teacher’ didn’t reveal its true appearance, a single whip of aura that the figure releases almost made the monstrous wolf faint!
Actually, Black’s pup had already fainted, and is now lying unconscious on Black’s back!
If the monstrous wolf was to describe the mysterious figure in one word, it’ll use the word ‘terrifying’!
*“Just who is it! How could something like it exist?”* Black has lots of question in its mind but was too afraid to ask.
Luckily for the monstrous wolf (and all of the surrounding creatures), Chaos had no intention of flexing its power and only released its aura to summon the guardian.
Not long after, a mysterious creature covered in mist appeared before the four of them. It politely greeted Chaos and the other before asking what they needed from it.
“Oh, it’s about this thing.” Chaos started as it pointed at Black and its pup. “I need your help to look after them, making sure they don’t cause troubles for the humans.”
*“This, this thing! Did the girl’s teacher just call me and my child this thing?!”*
Hearing Chaos call it and its pup “this thing”, Black felt a little stifled and unsatisfied. Despite being defeated by the girl, the monstrous wolf was still a very powerful creature in its own right. And yet the girl’s teacher actually described it as “this thing” without care!
If it could, Black would really like to challenge it in a fight. Unfortunately, Black couldn’t. Or to be more precise, the monstrous wolf has absolutely no courage to challenge Chaos at all!
The mist-covered guardian turns its huge eyes towards the Black and its (unconscious) pup. It observed the two for a few seconds before speaking.
“Monster king ‘dark wolf’? How surprising… To think I would see your kind here. Also, you actually gave birth?” The mist-covered guardian mused after seeing the mother and child.
Astonished by the word ‘monster king’ and ‘dark wolf’, Rennel could not help but interject and ask the mist-covered guardian.
“What’s a monster king ‘dark wolf’?” Rennel asked.
“A monster king is a very powerful monster that ruled over other monsters from the same kind. Meaning, this king here ruled over other wolf-type monsters. And as for ‘dark wolf’, it’s the creature’s title given by other creatures like the humans as well as its species. “The guardian explained.
Rennel was amazed; she didn’t think that the monster she fought not too long ago was actually a king of (wolf-type) monsters!
Knowing the truth, the way Rennel looked at Black changed. Her eyes now shine – containing both respect and expectations. Seeing how the girl looked at it, Black could not help but feel a little embarrassed. But despite her embarrassment though, it could not help but admit feel a little happy seeing the girl look at it with eyes full of awe. Unfortunately for Black, it was happy too soon.
“What’s with that smug look? Have you forgotten how my student thrashed you in battle earlier?” Chaos scolded it without mercy. It’s voice laden with disdain.
Hearing Chaos’ scolding it in a voice full of disdain, Black suddenly felt down. Although it wanted to retort, no words would come out of its mouth. After all, Chaos’ words were all true. It really did suffer a humiliating defeat in the hand of the girl.
The mist-covered guardian who was quietly listening by the side was also caught off guard by Chaos’ words. It didn’t expect that the human girl, Rennel had become so strong that she could now face off against a monster king and win.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. What an amazing talent. No, the girl was not the amazing one. It was her teacher that was truly the exceptional one.”
After knowing how fast Rennel improved in such a short time, the mist-covered guardian could not help but have more expectation of a certain tree spirit that inhabits the center of the forest. Just like the girl, it too received a ‘seed’ from the mysterious Chaos.
Ignoring the monstrous wolf that was feeling disheartened and was being coaxed by the girl, Chaos returns its attention to the mist-covered guardian.
“So how is it? Can I have your cooperation concerning the matter I spoke earlier? Chaos asked.
“Yes, of course. You can leave everything to me. I’ll make sure to complete your request satisfactorily,” The mist-covered guardian promised.
Chaos was satisfied after receiving the mist-covered guardian’s promise. It then told Rennel that they should leave since their business there is done.
Knowing that they it might take a while before she could see the Black and its pup; Rennel was a bit hesitant to leave. Still, she dare not disobey her teacher and eventually said her goodbye to the two. But before they leave though, Chaos turned around and told the mist-covered guardian to allow the monstrous wolf and its pup to see the tree spirit.
The mist-covered guardian was slightly surprised by this but after having thought of something, it nodded its head in agreement.
And with that, the two finally returned to Alchur.
****
Upon arriving at Alchur, the first thing the duo did was report the result of the quest to the adventurer’s guild. They told Arnold, the boss of the guild everything that had transpired during the duration of the quest with the exception of the fact that they asked the guardian of the Mazes of Trees for help.
The reason that Rennel did not report her interaction with the forest guardian was due to her teacher’s instructions. According to her teacher, Chaos, the matter of the forest guardian had too many implications and would cause her more harm than good. As such, Rennel could only tell a white lie, like how they found a good place inside the Mazes of Trees that suited the monster mother and child duo.
Anyways, Rennel has always been good at making up stories on the spot so it wasn’t an issue to her. Let’s not forget that that’s how she protected herself over the years. Besides, she technically didn’t lie – she simply held some information back, and change the narrative a bit.
Nonetheless, her report did still cause uproars especially after describing the appearance of the monster wolf. Apparently, many of the veteran adventurers in the guild knew of the existence of the monster kings!
So when Rennel was reporting about the monster wolf, many adventurers could not help but exclaimed in surprise. Even the guild boss, Arnold, was greatly taken aback. His expression went from surprise, to fear to anger. The color of his face changed so much that both Chaos and Rennel find it rather amusing.
And as for why Arnold became so emotional in those short moments stemmed from the fact that a subjugation quest involving monster kings was not supposed to be done solo. It’s supposed to be a great endeavor that involved a party of highly skilled adventurers to tackle properly. And even then there was no assurance that the subjugation was going to be successful. Moreover, the compensation for the quest reflects the amount of danger.
In other words, Rennel should have received compensation 20 times or more than what was originally agreed upon!
Hearing Arnold’s angry outburst, Rennel was greatly taken aback too, and felt like she was entitled to better compensation. But upon remembering the economic situation of the village of Fahl, the kind villagers, the slightly nosy old village chief, and the innocent smile of the village children; the girl changed her mind.
Judging by the appearance of the village alone, Rennel was certain that villagers wouldn’t be able to pay the full compensation unless they sell off all of their livestock. Besides, if they did sell their livestock just so they could pay the full compensation of the quest, how were the villagers supposed to survive the winter? Having personally seen what would happen if the village was pushed to the verge, Rennel could not help but shudder.
She didn’t want the children of the village of Fahl to experience what she and the other children of her village had experienced.
“Forget it.” Rennel said after thinking about it deeply.
Arnold was greatly surprised by the girl’s words, and ask, “Are you sure? It’s not a small amount of money you know?”
The boss of the guild was not the only one that was shocked by the girl’s decision. Even the other adventurers secretly listening were shocked too. After all, the compensation for the monster king subjugation quest was by no way small. The compensation for the quest would allow Rennel to live comfortably for a few years!
Rennel nodded her head, “The village probably couldn’t afford the compensation. Besides, it’s not their fault. I doubt ordinary people were aware of the existence of monster kings. So let’s just leave it at that.”
Arnold stared at the girl’s eyes for several second before sighing. He could tell there’s a deeper meaning behind the girl’s decision. But as they were not that close, the boss of the adventurer’s guild could only let it go.
“Alright, since that’s you decision, I’ll respect it.” Arnold could only relent. “Do you have other things to tell me as well?” He asked.
“Actually, there is one more thing…”
Rennel told Arnold that she plans on leaving Alchur and would be heading for the capital. Hearing this, the Arnold was a little disappointed. After all, Rennel was incredibly skilled as an adventurer and having her move would be a great loss to the town. Still, there’s nothing he could do but accept the fact that the girl was too good to be stuck in a town in the boonies.
“…I see. I’ll prepare the documents and write a recommendation letter for you. It should make it easy for you to register as an adventurer in the capital.”
Rennel was very grateful for the boss’ consideration. So after settling everything in the guild, she left the tavern and returned to the inn.
The next day, Chaos and Rennel left the town of Alchur while leaving behind a small legend.
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 11 (Going Down the Mountains)
**Chapter 11**
Walking towards the back of the cave, Rennel saw a red-furred “pup” crying out blindly. The “pup” was sniffing the air around it obviously looking for its mother. It called to its mother from time to time but received no reply.
Although it was dark, Rennel could still see clearly. She can tell that despite having different color fur, the "pup" was indeed the monstrous wolf's offspring. There's no mistake about it. The reason Rennel was so sure was because of the size of the "pup."
“It’s big!” Rennel could not help but exclaimed to herself loudly after seeing the size of the “pup.” The size of the "pup" was enough to stop anyone on their tracks.
How could she not be surprise? It really was big!
How big you asked? The "pup" was as bigger than a regular sized wolf!
Rennel was really shock. But upon remembering the size of the “pup’s” mother, the girl was somewhat able to accept it. Still, a wry smile appeared on the girl’s face. How is she supposed to carry the “pup” to its mother? Should she slung it on her back, or should she princess carry it?
No matter how she choose to carry the "little" monster, it’ll be a really awkward scene.
“Whatever... It's not like there were other people around”
Having made out her mind, Rennel carefully approaches the monster “pup” and stopped a few feet away from it. The “pup” who was crying all this time as it calls for its mother suddenly stopped crying and perked its ears and turns towards the girl's direction.
Seeing the “pup” up close, Rennel’s heart could not help but soften. It can’t be help, it was really cute. Moreover despite being bigger than that of a regular wolf, the “pup” was indeed still a pup. Heck, its eyes haven’t even opened yet.
Although it could not see yet, the “pup” could still hear and smell. It smelled the scent of its mother along with an unfamiliar scent. Rennel could tell with a glance that the "pup" plans on approaching her.
Of course, if the “pup” could see, it might have been more wary at the sight of a stranger – especially if that stranger was wielding a weapon. I'll definitely not approach her. But since it could not see, the “pup” had almost zero wariness and sense of danger.
It sniffed the air again and again until it homed into Rennel’s direction. It unsteadily crawled towards the girl and stopped in front of her.
Seeing the “pup’s” adorable action, Rennel was instantly smitten and kneeled on one knee. She extended her hands and gently pats the head of the “pup. The “pup” was slightly startled by the pat but did not dodge. Instead it raises its head as if asking to be patted more. Apparently, the “pup” likes pats.
Rennel gave in and continuously patted the head of the “pup” – making it whimpered adorably. It was such a nice feeling that Rennel doesn't want to stop.
Sadly, it was not the time for pats. Although Rennel still wanted to pet the adorable “pup” some more, she stop herself from giving the “pup” more pats. Instead, she picked up the “pup”, much to its surprise and carried it in her arm similar to how human parents carry their child.
The pup struggled as it was not used to being carried like that but after its back was gently caressed by Rennel with her other hand (the hand she held her spear with), the “pup” started calming down.
The sight of a young girl carrying a big “pup” in her hands was really surreal. After all, the “pup” was almost as big as her!
Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how one sees it, no one was around to comment on this surreal scene. But even if there were people around, Rennel would still carry the “pup” on her hand without care.
After walking for a while, Rennel finally returned to where the monstrous wolf was. There she saw her teacher floating in mid-air looking rather bored. On the floor was the mountain-like body of the unconscious Black. Judging by the monster’s appearance, Rennel could tell that her teacher had healed the monstrous wolf's injuries.
Seeing this, Rennel finally let out a sigh of relief. Earlier she was worried that the monstrous wolf might have suffered injuries that were difficult to heal. But after seeing the monster’s current condition, it was clear that she was overthinking things.
Yes, she shouldn't have doubted her teacher's ability. Her teacher was still omnipotent!
As she grew closer to the monstrous wolf, the “pup” that was previously quiet on her arms became rowdy. It has smelled the scent of her mother, and desperately want to go to it. If not for Rennel holding the “pup” firmly, it might have already jumped off of her hands – hurting itself in the process.
Rennel went in front of the monstrous wolf and gently put the “pup” down. Upon feeling the ground on its feet, the “pup” grew excited as it walks unsteadily towards it mother. The “pup” fiddled its way to the monstrous wolf belly, and upon finding what it was looking for, the “pup” started sucking.
Seeing this, Rennel could only shake her head while smiling wryly. The moment the “pup” was with its mother, the little monster had completely forgotten her completely!
“Teacher, how’s Black’s condition?” Rennel asked as she watched the mother and child with gentle eyes.
“Worry not, that black monster wolf no longer in any danger. I had restored it to its peak condition without leaving any sequela. It’s only unconscious because of exhaustion. It should wake up in an hour or two,” Chaos explained.
Rennel nodded her head with a satisfied smile. With her teacher’s assurance, she no longer has to worry about anything. All she needed to do now was to wait for the monster wolf to regain consciousness.
And as her teacher predicted, an hour or so later, the monstrous wolf finally woke up.
****
Meanwhile...
Outside the village of Fahl, an old man can be seen walking back and forth while looking at the snow-covered mountain from time to time. On the old man’s time-worn face, a look of worry could be seen.
But her feeling was understandable. How could he not worry? He had just sent a young girl with a bright future ahead of her to the mountains to face off against a monster.
You might have guessed it by now but the old man that’s been walking back and forth with a worried look on his face was none other than the old village chief of the village of Fahl. And the young girl that was sent to face off against a monster was Rennel.
Granted, Rennel was no ordinary girl but was instead an adventurer with quite the reputation in the town of Alchur who took on the quest to subjugate the monstrous wolf that plagues that village. The fact remained; Rennel was just a young girl with a bright future ahead of her.
If she died fighting the monstrous wolf, the village chief would carry the guilt for the rest of his life.
“Please be safe…” The old village chief prayed softly for the girl's safety.
While the old village chief was praying for the safety of the girl, an old woman, along with three village men approaches the old village chief.
“Old man, you been out here in the cold for many hours now. It’s not good for your health. Why don’t you go back for now and let the young ones do the waiting?” The old woman pleaded.
The old woman was none other than the wife of the old village chief. Just like the village chief was worried for Rennel’s safety, the old woman was worried for her husband’s health. After all, the old village chief was no longer young and staying in such a terribly cold weather would be bad for his health.
“Just give me a little more time. I’ll go back if the girl still didn’t return in another hour.” The village chief said.
The old village chief fully understand his wife’s worry, he also understand that he’s no longer as strong as he once was, and that the cold would be bad for him. Still, he could not calm down unless he sees the young girl safely returning.
“Didn’t you say that that girl was an adventurer with quite the renown in Alchur? Surely she could handle herself well. Since she took the quest, she must be confident of her ability.” Seeing that her husband still wanted to wait for the girl, the old woman could only try to reason with him.
“Yes, that was what written in the introduction letter sent by the boss of Alchur’s adventurer’s guild. Knowing that man, he will not send someone unqualified. But still, I could not help but worry. The weather had been really terrible lately. Forget the monstrous wolf; the weather itself is an enemy during this time of the year.” The old village chief explained.
Hearing her husband’s reasoning, the old woman could not help but agree. The girl’s opponent is not just the monster but nature itself.
While the two were conversing, one of the villagers noticed something and yelled. “Something, something’s approaching!”
Upon hearing the villager’s yell, everyone, including the village chief and his wife turned towards the mountains. And among the fog and the white snow, a huge black figure approaches!
“It’s the monstrous wolf!”
Everyone panicked after realizing that the figure coming down of the mountains was the same monster that had been stealing their livestock – the same monster that the young girl was supposed to subjugate.
“No, no way! Did the girl fail?”
The old village chief’s heart grew heavy upon seeing the approaching figure. Since the monster came, does that mean that something happened to the girl?
The atmosphere grew heavy as the villagers present upon realizing what might had happened. Feeling gloomy, the old village chief could only let out a deep sigh.
“Hurry, have someone ring the bell. We must inform the rest of the villagers, so that they could prepare weapons to fight the monster.” The village chief ordered after forcefully calming himself.
“I’m on it, chief!” One of the villagers answered.
Although he was greatly saddened by girl’s (presumed) death, the old village chief could only throw the sadness he was feeling in the back of his heart. Right now, he could only do his duty as the village chief and prepare for battle against the creature.
“Wait, chief, there’s a person beside the monster!” Another villager exclaimed.
“What did you say?!”
The village chief run to the front and put his hand on his brows to have a clearer look. He stared intently at the approaching figures and finally saw a silver-haired girl walking by side of the monstrous wolf!
“She’s alive!” The old village chief exclaimed excitedly.
Seeing the girl alive and well, the village chief trembled in excitement. In his excitement, he wanted nothing but to approach the girl but was stopped by villagers who noticed his intent.
“Chief, please calm down!”
The village chief tried to struggle but the two villagers who stopped him were much stronger than he was. Angered, he yelled at the two villagers.
“What are you doing?! Let go of me!” The village chief ordered.
“That’s our line! Why are you rushing just like that? You don’t even know what’s going on. Do you want to die or something?” One of the villagers scolded harshly.
Hearing the angry words of the villagers, the old village chief finally regained his clarity. He was so happy to know that the girl was alive and well that he almost lost himself to the excitement.
“Seriously, old man, where did your usual calmness go? That’s not like you at all.” His wife scolded.
The village chief’s face reddened in embarrassment after being scolded by his wife. He got to admit, he really did lost control back there. Although the girl was with the monstrous wolf, no one really knows what happened so rushing just like that without confirming the whole situation would be dangerous. It wasn’t like him to be so thoughtless.
**Ring, ring, ring!**
While the village chief’s wife was scolding the old village chief, the village bell suddenly rang. Hearing this, the villagers knew that something had happened. And with the explanation from the villager who rang the bell, the villager men pick anything that they could use as a weapon.
Having instructed the elderly, the women and children to close and lock the door, the village men went to the village gate facing the mountains and waited with bated breath for the village chief and the other to return.
After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, the village men finally saw the old village chief and his wife, the villagers who accompanied the village chief, as well as the silver-haired girl and incredibly large wolf!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 10 (Battling the Monstrous Wolf)
**Chapter 10**
Seeing the monstrous wolf lunging at her, Rennel did not panic. Instead she took a step forward and stabbed fiercely with her spear!
The spear, ‘Nameless’ stabbed at the lunging Black with incredible speed and being in the air, the monstrous wolf could not dodge the girl’s attack and was hit in the chest!
**Whimpering**
Black let out a cry of pain and was blown away by tens of meters. Still, the monster did not go down as expected and was actually able to recover rather quickly. Also, instead of being fearful and backing down, its ferocity actually increases as it lunges at the girl once again!
*“It’s not wounded!”*
Rennel was greatly surprised to see the monstrous wolf being uninjured despite being stabbed by her spear. Although Rennel did not use her full strength with that stab, the wolf shouldn’t have remained unscathed!
*“What terrifying defensive power!”*
The girl was suddenly reminded of Fahl’s village chief words. According to the village chief, the hunters who fought the monstrous wolf that time also failed to injure the monster. But compared to just hearing about it, actually seeing the monsters powerful defensive capability with her own eyes were two different concept altogether.
*“Such a powerful ability. No wonder it was not afraid to face my spear. It has confidence to withstand my attack!”*
Rennel’s expression grew more solemn after experiencing the monstrous wolf’s terrifying defensive capability. Still, she was not afraid. On the contrary, the monstrous wolf’s power made her somewhat excited.
Stepping forward once more, Rennel faces Black’s attack fearlessly. Again she stabbed towards the monster but this time, her stab possessed more power and speed!
**Piercing sound**
Nameless’ unstoppable momentum stabbed at the monstrous wolf’s body. It broke through the incredibly dense and steel-like fur and stabbed through the monster’s flesh!
The monstrous wolf black let out a howl of pain as it was thrown back once again. And unlike the last time, Black was not able get up as quickly as before.
Seeing the monster wolf struggling to get up, Rennel did not follow up on her attack. Instead she just stood still, waiting for the monster to get up.
“Don’t let your guard down. The more injury a beast sustain, the more dangerous it’ll become. This is especially true for beast desperately trying to protect something. Since it considered you a threat to its offspring, it would not stop unless you're truly incapacitated.” Chaos reminded.
“I understand, teacher.” Rennel answered.
The monster wolf managed to stand up again after a lot of effort and shook its head as if trying to dispel the discomfort that it was feeling.
Seeing this, Rennel griped her spear harder as she prepares to face the wolf once more. Since she has no plan to kill the wolf, Rennel could only slowly shave off the wolf’s ability to fight. Having just recently given birth, the monstrous wolf, Black, should still be in its weakened state. As such there’s a good chance that her plan would work.
Moreover, Rennel was very confident of her stamina thanks to the ‘seed’ that Chaos gifted her with. Therefore, in a protracted battle, she should have the advantage.
*“Still, such fighting method is really boring. Having had to hold back my power as to avoid killing it was indeed a little stifling.”* Rennel complained inside her heart.
Unaware of what’s on the girl’s mind; Black was finally able to recover from its earlier blunder. Even the injury it suffered had stopped bleeding completely. Still, that didn’t mean that the wound was not affecting the monster at all. It was actually the opposite. The stab wound it received earlier was still causing it great pain. What’s more… Black felt that the spear was not ordinary. It seemed to be slowly weakening it.
*“There’s something wrong with that spear!”* Black thought as it stared at the spear on the girl’s right hand. *“Could it be a magic spear?”*
Black had experienced and seen a lot of things over the years. As such she’s not stranger to magic weapons that humanoid races like humans often wield. It even fought with warriors that use magic weapons on several occasions. But Rennel’s spear seemed to be rather different compared to other magic weapon. Certainly, it shared similar properties to magic weapons such as having strange effects on the target it manages to wound.
*“I’m certain there’s more to that green spear than meets the eyes.”* Black’s eyes grew fiercer after realizing that it was at a disadvantage in this battle. Nonetheless, it has no plan of surrendering.
No it could not. How could it? Its child is just behind her!
If it were other occasion, the monstrous wolf, Black would not have fought against the human girl. After all, it’s not as savage as other monsters. On the contrary it was rather intelligent and would avoid conflict with humans as much as possible. What’s more, the human girl, Rennel seemed to be easy to talk to in comparison to other humans who would either run away from it or try to kill it.
But the situation was different. It could not back down. Because if it did, it’s uncertain what would happen to its child. Having had given birth for the first time, Black has strong attachment to its child.
Looking at the girl who waited for it to recover instead of attacking, Black could not help but develop some complicated feelings. But even so, Black would still choose its child over the unknown human girl.
There’s no point in holding back. For the safety of its child, it must go all out!
Having made up its mind, Black stared at the girl for several seconds before opening its mouth widely!
****
Blackish light gathered at the monster’s mouth which greatly shocked Rennel. Feeling great danger, Rennel dashes and stabbed towards the monstrous wolf in an attempt to stop whatever the monster was trying to accomplish.
Sadly, her reaction was a little slow allowing the monster to unleash a ball of dark energy – sending it flying towards the girl!
Unable to dodge in time and left with little choice, Rennel forcefully change the trajectory of her spear and directly stabbed towards the ball of dark energy!
**BANG!**
Once the spear stabbed at the ball of dark energy, the ball exploded, releasing powerful shockwaves that sent the spear along with her spear, flying!
Losing control of her body, Rennel slammed helplessly into the nearby wall. Having been slammed with great force, the air was knocked out of the girl’s lungs.
*"Gah!"* Rennel groaned.
Fortunately, the girl wasn’t shocked unconscious by the impact of being slammed on the wall or the explosion. Still, Rennel suffered some serious injuries, the worst of which were internal. If not for her powerful body that was modified by her ‘seed’, Rennel would have died there and then.
But despite being in a sorry state, Rennel was still able to stand. Moreover, despite being sent flying, Rennel didn’t let go of her spear ‘Nameless’ which was a wise decision on her part as the spear actually helped mitigate the damage that she received by absorbing part of the energy released by the ball of dark energy.
Stabbing the spear on the ground, Rennel was able to stabilize her condition. It was fortunate that the monstrous wolf, Black didn’t attack her while she was in the process of stabilizing her condition.
No, it’s not that the monstrous wolf didn’t attack but rather it could not attack. Although the girl was injured, the monstrous wolf was not in the best condition either.
Releasing such powerful ball of dark energy was not without repercussion. In order to release that ball of dark energy, the monstrous wolf had to consume almost all of the energy it had stored. Moreover, the shockwave from the blast did not only affect Rennel but the monster as well.
In order to protect its offspring from the explosion, the monstrous wolf had to withstand the shockwave on its own. And despite not having to face the full brunt of the explosion (that honor goes to Rennel and ‘Nameless’); the monstrous wolf, Black still suffered serious injuries.
Coupled with its earlier injuries and the fact that its body was weakened due to giving birth, the monster wolf was actually in a much worse shape compared to Rennel.
Seeing the monstrous wolf barely able to stand, a serious expression appeared on the girl’s face. Fully stabilizing herself, the girl started walking towards the monstrous wolf.
Rennel stopped before the Black and look straight into the monster's eyes.
“I really thought that the attack that I put my all into would be enough to bring you down. Even if you didn’t die, I still thought that it was enough to incapacitate you. Who would have thought that you’ll be able to brush such an attack so easily? Seriously, just what kind of monster are you?”
Barely standing, the monstrous wolf could only let out a frustrated sigh. Forget defeating the girl, Black’s desperate attack couldn’t even knock down the human girl for too long.
“How rude, I’m a human you know? Calling me a monster, was that supposed to be a joke?” Rennel asked exasperatedly.
“A joke? No, no… I think you’re the one joking here. The ball of dark energy that I released with all of my power should be enough to turn a normal human into ashes. And yet… You were able to simply shrug it off as if it was nothing. So tell me, Are you really human?”
The frustrated monster looks strangely at the flabbergasted girl. In the monster’s mind, it should be the one feeling flabbergasted. Unfortunately, the monstrous wolf was such in a bad shape that it might just fall unconscious any seconds now. If it still have enough strength, it’ll give this human girl an earful.
“It might be too much of me to ask of you this considering that I was determine to kill you earlier but please spare my child.” The monstrous wolf begged.
Knowing that it’ll be in the girl’s mercy once it lost consciousness, the monster wolf begged Rennel to spare its child despite being fully aware that it has no right to ask favor from the girl. Unfortunately, Black has no other choice. Without strength to depend its own child, the monstrous wolf could only take the risk and hope that the girl would show mercy to a defenseless creature.
After saying all of that, the monstrous wolf finally fall unconscious much to the girl’s relief. “It’s finally over…” Rennel murmured to herself as she sat down in front of the unconscious monster.
She was beat.
Despite looking nonchalant while talking to the monstrous wolf, Rennel was actually terribly exhausted. In her current condition, she would be hard pressed to fight the monster if it still had the strength to continue.
“You were careless,’ Chaos who was just watching everything unfolds until now finally spoke. And the first thing it actually did was to scold its student.
“…I’m sorry.”
Knowing her teacher’s personality, Rennel could only obediently apologize. Still, her teacher was right. She was indeed careless earlier. Or maybe, overconfident was the right word? If she had knocked the monstrous wolf unconscious when it was injured during the first clash, the monster wouldn’t have the chance to use its strongest attack. But because she was overconfident, the monster was able to release its strongest attack, injuring her badly in the process.
*“I deserved it.”* The girl thought to herself.
“Don’t look so down. You still did pretty well despite your carelessness. The fact that you refused to let go of your weapon, ‘Nameless’ despite being blown away was testament of your growth.” After scolding Rennel, Chaos suddenly praises the girl. It was a classic example of carrot and stick method.
Admittedly, the girl did indeed do an excellent job at solving her predicament. Despite making a lot of mistakes, she was still able to turn the situation around. Of course she had helped but it was also a fact that her quick reaction saved her life.
“Thank you, teacher!”
Hearing her teacher’s praise, Rennel was obviously very pleased. Nonetheless, she did not let her teacher’s praise to get into her head. She was aware of the blunder she had made earlier and must contemplate on it.
Pleased at her reaction, Chaos nodded its head approvingly. Chaos then looked at the monstrous wolf for several seconds before turning its eyes towards the back of the cave.
At the back of the cave, the two could hear the crying sound of an animal. Both of them knew what it was. It was the offspring of the monstrous wolf.
Chaos was still as normal as ever but Rennel felt guilty. Having just woken up, the pup must be hungry and was looking for its mother. It’s just that its mother was currently unconscious and could not go to it.
“Go see the pup and bring it here. I’ll take care of its mother.” Chaos ordered.
“Yes, teacher!”
Hearing that her teacher would care for the unconscious monster, Rennel was greatly pleased and ran towards the back of the cave to bring the crying pup over. Since her teacher promised to take care of the monstrous wolf, the creature should no longer be in danger.
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 9 (The Monstrous Wolf, Black)
Chapter 9
Rennel observed the monstrous wolf in front of her. Similar to the description given by the village chief of Fahl, the monstrous wolf is really big. It was about 5 times bigger, possibly more in comparison to that of a regular wolf.
As Rennel observed the monster, the monstrous wolf was also observing her with its huge glowing green eyes.
Despite observing her though, the creature stood ready to attack at any moment judging by how it growls threateningly at her. Its thick black fur standing at its end makes the monster looks bigger than it should.
Still, Rennel was not intimidated by the wolf at all. Instead of taking a step back, the girl actually strode forward with her spear ‘nameless’ clutched on her hand.
Seeing the girl walking towards it without fear, the wolf let out a louder growl as if telling Rennel stop. Rennel did eventually stop about 15 feet away from the creature but not because the monster’s intimidation worked on her.
The reason she stop was due to her teacher’s earlier advice to communicate with the creature. Although she was secretly looking forward to duking it out with the monstrous wolf, Rennel was not so battle hungry that she’ll ignore her teacher’s words.
Looking up, Rennel stared at the monster’s eyes, “Hello!” She greeted.
“Can you speak? Do you understand human language?”
Rennel asked the monstrous wolf some questions after noticing that the wolf was slightly startled after greeting it earlier.
Although majority of monsters couldn’t speak the human language, some species could. And even if the species of monsters couldn’t naturally speak the human language, there would always be some exceptions especially if said monster was highly intelligent.
Judging by how monstrous wolf avoided the detection of the villagers, and how it only targeted livestock despite being able to come and go as he likes in the village of Fahl; it was easy to see that the creature was very cunning and highly intelligent.
As such, there’s a chance that it knows how to converse in human language.
“It seemed to be able to understand me but… I wonder if it could speak.” While wondering if she could converse with the monstrous wolf, Rennel was also observing the creature intently. After all it’s still a monster and could attack her at any moments.
Seeing the human girl not attacking it, the monstrous wolf stared at Rennel with its glowing eyes. Although the human in front of it was a lot smaller than it; the monstrous wolf could feel great danger from it. After contemplating for a while, the creature finally spoke: “I can.” It said.
*“Great, it can really speak!”* Hearing the creature speak, Rennel let out a sigh of relief. *“It’s good that we could actually understand each other,”* she thought
“What do you want from me, human?” The monstrous wolf asked in voice that’s neither male nor female.
Just from the voice of the creature alone, Rennel could not tell if the monstrous wolf was male or female. *“I wonder what the creature gender is.”* Rennel thought to herself.
“You’re thinking of unnecessary thought again. Focus on the matters at hand.” Chaos scolded the girl through their telepathic link.
“Hehehe….”
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Rennel completely throw the matter of the monstrous wolf gender at the back of her mind.
“My name is Rennel. I’m an adventurer from the town of Alchur.” The girl introduced herself. “I was sent her to subjugate you.”
Rennel did not try to hide the reason for seeking out the monstrous wolf and told the creature her original purpose in a straightforward manner.”
The monstrous wolf was surprised by Rennel’s honesty and slightly lowered her vigilance towards the human girl.
“I have no name. But those who had encountered me in the past called me black wolf, or simply Black.”
As if reciprocating the girl’s honesty, the monstrous wolf also introduced itself and even told the girl what the other humans called it in the past – most likely in an attempt to make the conversation a lot easier for the both of them.
Rennel raised an eyebrow after hearing what the monstrous wolf call itself, and could not help but give a comment. *“Black? Such simple name… But at least it’s a name that’s easy to understand. Besides, it actually fit it considering the color of its fur.”* She thought to herself.
“Black was it? Black, can you tell me if you’re the one who had been attacking the livestock enclosures in the village of Fahl?”
Although it was already obvious that the monstrous wolf was the one responsible for stealing the livestock of the villagers of Fahl, Rennel still wanted to make sure. As such, she asked the question.
The monstrous wolf, Black did not try to deflect or deny the accusation and gave a straightforward answer.
“If you’re referring to the village at the foot of the mountain, then yes, it was I who did it.” Black replied.
*“As expected…”*
Having received the creature’s confession, Rennel did not dwell on it and asked the next question. “Why did you do it?” Rennel asked.
“I have no choice. I needed a quick source of sustenance and it just happened that the villagers’ livestock were there for the picking. Hunting requires a lot of time and energy, something I do not have so I just choose the easiest method.” Black answered honestly.
*“Wow… It didn’t even try to give an excuse. Does it not have pride or is it just honest to a fault?”*
Rennel was slightly taken aback by the monstrous wolf’s honest answer. She thought that the monster would try to at least make excuses to justify its action of snatching livestock from the villagers but to her surprise, the monstrous wolf revealed everything!
“Ask the creature the reason why it was in a desperate need for sustenance to the point that it would willingly eat its pride and put itself in danger by barging into human territory. Chaos told Rennel the next question to ask telepathically. “The root of the problem should be there.”
Right!
Following her teacher’s instruction, Rennel asked the Black why it urgently needed a quick source of sustenance.
Hearing the girl’s question, hesitation finally appeared on the monstrous wolf’s eyes. “…I can’t tell you that.” It said after staying quiet for almost a minute.
“What? But why? How am I supposed to justify your actions without proper reasons?” Rennel quickly asked back after being denied.
“There’s no need! Leave human! You’re no longer welcome here!”
Much to Rennel’s surprise, the monstrous wolf Black suddenly turned aggressive and ordered the girl to leave its lair. Moreover, from the monstrous wolf’s aggressive stance, it’s easy to see that it would not be taking ‘no’ for an answer.
*“What’s going on? We were having such a good conversation earlier, so why did Black suddenly turn aggressive? It’s so sudden I couldn’t make sense of it.”* Troubled look appeared on the girl’s beautiful face. Black’s sudden change of attitude confuses her.
“Aha! I see, so that’s what happened...” Chaos suddenly blurted out.
Surprise by her teacher’s sudden outburst, Rennel could not help but towards chaos and asked loudly. “Did you discover something, teacher?” She asked.
The monstrous wolf, Black, who was glaring aggressively at the girl just a moment ago was greatly startled when the girl suddenly talked to itself, or rather to something it could not sense.
*“Was the human girl not alone? Who is she talking to?”*
Black was really confused at the girl’s action. She looked behind the girl but saw no one there. But from the girl’s expression, Black could see that she was genuinely talking to someone and not merely acting.
“I see!” Rennel exclaimed.
The monstrous wolf, Black, could not help but jump back after hearing the girl’s sudden outburst. It was startled and observed the girl’s strange behavior with wariness.
Rennel stared at the monstrous wolf for several seconds but its next question made the furs on the monster’s body stand on its end!
****
“…Black, did you give birth recently?” Rennel asked innocently.
**Rooaaarrrr!!!!**
Despite the Rennel’s innocent question, the monstrous wolf, Black, was somehow triggered and roared with madness, and lunges itself at the girl without warning!
Rennel was caught off guard by the unexpected attack and almost failed to guard herself. Thankfully, she has lots of experience fighting monsters and instinctively used her spear to block.
**Skidding sound**
The monstrous wolf’s attack has so much strength and weight in it that despite blocking the attack, Rennel’s feet still skids on the floor!
The girl and monster wolf were at a deadlock with neither one giving each other an inch. Moreover, despite being blocked by the spear, the monstrous wolf continue to attack by biting at the girl again and again!
Annoyed by the incessant attacks, Rennel roared and pushed the monster wolf with her spear. The wolf was thrown back and skidded but managed to stopped itself from skidding even further by burying its claws on the floor.
“Enough!” Rennel roared.
The monstrous wolf stops its charge after Rennel’s roar. It could feel that something about the human girl had changed. She has become more dangerous.
“Why did you suddenly attacked me?” Rennel asked as she stared at the creature glaring murderously at her.
Black didn’t reply at Rennel’s question but instead just glared at her, much to the girl’s disappointment.
“That’s very normal. You’re a threat, so of course it’ll try to kill you.” Chaos explained.
Startled by her teacher’s explanation, Rennel could not help but ask loudly again, not caring that no one could see Chaos with the exception of herself. “How am I a threat? I was just having a conversation with it. On the contrary, it attacked me first!”
Once again the monstrous wolf was left confused by the girl’s sudden outburst. *“Again? Just who is she talking too?!”* Despite the creature’s murderous intentions, the monstrous wolf, Black could still not help but be weird out by the Rennel’s strange action of suddenly talking to someone it could not see.
“It’s because you asked it if it given birth recently.” Chaos answered sounding slightly amused.
After hearing Chaos’ explanation, Rennel could only stare at her teacher speechlessly. She finally understood something. But before she could ask back, Chaos spoke again.
“Some creatures are especially protective of their offspring. This is especially true if the creature is not known for their ability to reproduce. That monstrous wolf over there should be among those that could not reproduce so easily. There’s a good chance that it was the creature's first time giving birth.”
“This…” Rennel wanted to retort but could not find the words to say. She could only stare at the monstrous wolf helplessly.
“Do I really need to fight Black teacher?”
Rennel was feeling conflicted; she could already guess why her teacher made her ask that question earlier. Chaos wanted the monstrous wolf to attack her so that she would fight back.
Although she had the intention to fight the creature at first, it had slowly died out after speaking and knowing the creature more. Since the monstrous wolf, Black was so to communicate with; Rennel thought that she could make her move out of the mountains without fighting it.
Noticing this, her teacher dug a pit for her, of which she willingly jumped into.
“I know what you’re thinking. But knowing that it just gave birth recently, do you really think that it’s possible to make it move out of the mountains because you ask it nicely?” As if reading the girl’s mind, Chaos explained to her that the current situation could not be resolved without conflict.
“I know that but…”
Looking at Rennel’s complicated expression; Chaos could not help but sigh. “You’re too soft. The world is much crueler than you think, and there would be times when you need to make difficult decisions.” It scolded.
Still feeling a little hesitant, Rennel faced the monstrous wolf with a complicated expression. Since it came to this, she could only try to subdue Black without killing it.
As if feeling her change of attitude, the monstrous wolf’s wariness grew.
“I’ll be frank to you. You need to leave the mountains. Are you willing to leave the mountains on your own?” Rennel asked.
The monstrous wolf stayed silent for a few seconds before shaking its head. “I refuse.” It said.
“…I see. Then I guess there’s no other choice but to battle.”
Seeing that there’s no other way but to fight it out, Rennel broke into a stance, and stared at her opponent with more determination compared to before.
The monstrous wolf, too, broke into a lunging position, ready to attack at a moment’s notice. Although its opponent was a lot smaller than it was, the monstrous wolf dare not underestimate the human girl before it.
The two were caught in a staring contest once again as both human and wolf wait for the other one to act first. But the stalemate was broken when a soft whimper was heard from the back of the cave.
And with that whimper being the straw that broke the camel's back, the monstrous wolf roared ferociously before lunging towards its opponent!
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastionPixabay
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 8 (Monstrous Wolf)
**Chapter 8**
As Rennel ran, the surrounding was just like blur as she passes them quickly – an indication of her speed. And although she’s been running like that for two hours now, Rennel was not even breathing heavily.
*“I should be arriving at the village soon.”* She thought.
“Teacher, my subjugation target; the monstrous wolf, is it a guardian similar to that mysterious creature inside the Mazes of Trees?”
During her weeks stay at the forest known as the Mazes of Trees, Rennel actually met the mysterious guardian of that place during one of her hunt. Despite not knowing what the guardian originally looks like because of the mist covering its entire body, Rennel could tell that the creature had no ill intentions.
On the contrary, it was exceptionally kind to her, giving her delicious fruits that helped enhanced her body.
Thanks to those fruits, Rennel was able to survive the hellish training.
“Hmm… it’s probably not a guardian. A guardian doesn’t need to hunt livestock in order to survive. It’s most likely a variant monster from the canine family.” Chaos explained after thinking for a few seconds.
“Indeed, the guardian of the Mazes of Trees seemed to be a benevolent creature so other guardians shouldn’t be type to cause troubles to people as well, right?” Rennel thought out loud.
“Not necessarily. The guardian of that place was relatively good-natured but other guardians might not be as benevolent,” Warned Chaos.
Rennel was slightly taken aback but after thinking for a bit, her teacher’s words actually made sense. Since the guardian of the Mazes of Trees has an ego and personality, other guardian should have too. But the question was if the other guardians’ have similarly benevolent personalities.
“Don’t overthink it. You’ll have the chance to meet other guardians as well. So you should just see how those guardians are like with your own eyes.” Chaos reminded.
*"Indeed! As long as I continue traveling with teacher, I should be able to meet other guardians."*
Following her teacher’s advice, the girl stopped contemplating and concentrates on running. Before long, she saw the village gate.
Stopping just in front of the village gate, Rennel observed the inside of the village without entering the gate. Noticing that there’s no one outside, she could not help but frown.
*“No one’s outside?”*
Sensing no immediate danger, Rennel entered the village and cautiously looked around. She looked at the house and saw many eyes peeping at her.
*“There are still people here! Don’t tell me that everyone’s inside their houses at this time of the day?”*
Puzzled, Rennel looked at the other houses and saw more people cautiously staring at her. Sensing their curiosity and wariness, Rennel took out her adventurer’s tag and raise it for everyone to see.
“It’s an adventurer!” Someone exclaimed.
The door of one of the houses opened and a middle-aged man walked out. “Are you the adventurer sent by the guild?” The middle-aged man asked.
Renne nodded her head in affirmative to the man’s question. And as if on cue, the doors of the other houses opened almost at the same time.
“So she really is an adventurer! Finally, someone took the mission.” A woman said.
“Is she really an adventurer? She looks so young.” Another person said.
“What a beautiful girl. But why did someone like her become an adventurer?” An old woman commented.
The girl was rendered speechless by the sudden appearance of the villagers and their inquisitive gazes. Although she’s already used of being looked at, Rennel could still not help but feel a little embarrassed.
Seeing Rennel looking awkward, the middle-aged man quickly led the girl to the village’s chief house. If the girl backed down because of how the villagers were acting, it’ll cause trouble to the village.
Not only that, if the girl leaves without taking care of the monstrous wolf, the next adventurer might take a while to arrive. And by then, who knows what would happen...
****
Inside the village chief’s house, Rennel was sitting in a wooden chair with a cup of warm herbal tea in her hand. She was seriously listening as the village chief narrated the whole situation.
According to the village chief, the monstrous wolf appeared about a month ago. At first they were not aware of the monster’s existence only noticing that one or two of the villager’s livestock would disappear every few days. Although they were alerted because of it, there first reaction was that there's someone breaking in of the livestock’s enclosure to steal their animals.
But when they started investigating every household in the village, they found that none of the villagers stole the missing animals.
“After inspecting every house and every possible place were the missing livestock could be kept and finding nothing, we truly hit the dead end in our investigation.” The village chief gloomily explained. “Only after the snow started falling that we finally found some clues.”
Clues?
“You mean just not one?” Rennel asked curiously.
The village chief looked at the girl in front of him and nodded. “Yes lots of clue, or to be more precise, lots of animal footprints.” He clarified.
Seeing that the village chief was about to explain what they knew about the monster, Rennel listened more closely and urged the village chief to continue.
From the village chief’s narration, the first time they knew that it was a beast, a monster that was stealing the villager’s livestock was when snow started falling and piling on the ground. On that fateful day, a villager went to the animal enclosure to feed the livestock but after he arrived there he noticed large animal footprints on the snow.
Startled, the villager scurried inside the enclosure and to his horror saw the same footprints inside along with the remaining livestock that looked incredibly terrified. After counting all of the animals, he found out that he was missing two of them!
The villager quickly reported the incident to the village chief who brought several people to investigate. After the investigation, they concluded that the foot print belonged to a wolf, and a really large wolf at that. Alarmed, the village chief commissioned several village hunters to track down the beast and kill it.
But despite the hunters’ efforts, the beast remained elusive. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the hunters didn’t give up and finally located the beast in the mountains which was a huge mistake.
According to the hunters' report, the beast was more than 10 ft. tall and was, from heat to tail, as long as two cows combine. It has black fur, and glowing green eyes. It was a truly monstrous wolf.
Although terrified, the hunters did their best and confronted the beast. But not only was the beast big and strong, it was also incredibly fast. Not only that, it also possessed fur that could not be penetrated by spears that the hunters wielded!
Seeing that they’re no match for the creature, the hunter could only try to retreat. But it wasn’t easy. Some of them had been wounded in the earlier encounter, and needed the assistant of the other hunters just to walk.
Just imagine the scenario where hunters were assisting the wounded hunters as they tried to escape the monstrous wolf. It was a horrible experience. Thankfully, despite the wounds, all of the hunters survived the ordeal.
“They… survived the ordeal?” Rennel asked after a while, looking quite shock.
The village chief nodded his head in affirmation. “Yes. We found it unexpected too. But according to the hunters, the monstrous wolf didn’t pursue them after seeing them fleeing with the injured hunters.” The village chief explained.
“A wolf… lets its prey escape? Is that monster really a wolf?”
Rennel’s confusion was understandable. For a wolf to let its injured prey escape was truly bizarre. Wolves are not like that. They’re tenacious hunters that would stalk their prey before going for the kill. It didn’t matter if the wolves’ prey were humans or other animals; the wolves won’t let them escape after sustaining injuries.
“What an interesting creature.” Chaos, who was just listening quietly from the sides, spoke to Rennel telepathically. “If the village chief was tellinh the truth, then the monstrous wolf possessed great intellect. We should meet it and see if we could communicate with it.” It said.
“Communicate with it? We’re not going to kill it?” Rennel asked back telepathically.
“That depends. If we could successfully communicate with the creature then there’s no need to kill it. Since it hasn’t killed any of the villagers’ yet, there’s still a chance to salvage the situation. After all, subjugation doesn’t mean that we absolutely have kill it. Capturing it alive would do more good for your reputation compared to killing it.” Chaos explained.
Fully understanding her teacher’s intent, Rennel nodded her head in agreement. Having read the rest of the story, Rennel bid her goodbye to the village chief and walked towards the mountains while the villagers watched with worried expressions.
“Chief, can that young lady really subjugate that monstrous wolf? Aren’t we just sending the girl to her doom? No matter how I look at her, she doesn’t seem to be that strong.” A village woman asked looking really worried.
The other villagers nodded their heads in agreement. If several hunters were helpless against the creature, how could a delicate-looking girl defeat it?
“Don’t judge her by her looks; she’s a very capable adventurer. Along with the quest order was a letter from the boss of the guild. According to the letter, that girl, Rennel was very capable and have a 100% quest completion rate.
Moreover, according to the boss of the guild, if Rennel failed the quest then no hunter in Alchur could subjugate the monster!” The village chief explained. “In other words, the guild sent the best person for the job!”
Hearing the village chief’s explanation, the villagers were taken aback and looked at the mountains with complicated expressions. To their surprise, the delicate-looking girl with silver hair was the most capable hunter in Alchur!
There’s something that the guild boss, Arnold didn’t mention in the letter he sent to the village chief. And that was the fact that Rennel had been a hunter for just two weeks!
If the villagers knew the truth, what kind of expression will they make?
****
Rennel (and Chaos) climbed the mountain steadily. Despite the cold weather, the snow covered ground, and the steep sloped, the girl was still able to traverse the rugged path with ease.
“Did you felt it?” Chaos asked.
“Yeah, we should be near its lair.” Rennel answered.
The moment Rennel entered a certain range; she was able to feel the presence of her target thanks to her an ability granted to her by her ‘seed’. It was an ability that acts as radar that allows her to feel the life force of creatures within a kilometer range.
The ability in question first awakened during her training inside the woods of the Mazes of Trees. When Rennel first awakened it, she could only detect presence within a 100 meter around her. And despite the limited range of the ability that time, it still served her well – allowing her to detect animals and monsters inside the forest.
Following the direction of the presence, Rennel was able to locate the lair of the monstrous wolf. It was a cave hidden in one of the precipice. It was really well hidden. If not for her ability, Rennel would have missed the monster’s lair despite knowing that it lives in these mountains.
*“The lair is really well hidden. Not only that, the location makes going down there quite difficult without proper tools or skill.”* Rennel marveled as she observed the cave from her location. *“Judging by the creature’s lair, it must be quite nimble. If not, it wouldn’t be able to traverse such a steep cliff.”*
Observing the cave some more, Rennel didn’t notice any movement inside it. Yet, Rennel knew that her subjugation target was inside thanks to her detection ability.
“This is why highly intelligent monsters are so difficult to handle compared to monsters that only knew how to use brute strength. I don’t want to be rude to the other adventurers in Alchur but if other adventurer aside from me took the mission, the chance of them failing is very high.” The girl commented.
“True, other adventurers pretty have very low chance of completing this mission if they faced that thing. Forget finding the creature, those adventurers’ might not even wound it. The level difference between the monster and the adventurers of Alchur is just that huge.” Chaos said in a lazy voice.
Chaos and Rennel were really curious why such a powerful monster was stealing livestock from the village of Fahl. Moreover, with the creature’s intellect and strength, it should be able to hunt prey easily.
Alas, now’s not the time to contemplate on the reason. They should subjugate the beast quickly before the weather worsens. So having found the location of the target, Rennel hesitates no longer and jumped down towards the hidden cave!
Using the protruding rocks as foot holds, Rennel jumped from rocks to rocks before safely reaching the cave.
“Don’t let your guard down.” Chaos warned.
Rennel nodded her head and entered the cave. Because of the cave’s location (hidden in a precipice), the cave was unsurprisingly dark, Nonetheless, the girl wasn’t bother by It nor does she plan to light a torch. At her current level, seeing in the dark was easy.
Yes, the girl can see in the dark. And yes again, it’s thanks to her ‘seed’ that the girl was slowly becoming her less and less human. Of course, the girl haven’t notice it yet. Not to mention that Chaos couldn’t be bothered to tell her the truth. It’s not like it’ll chance anything anyways.
*The cave’s surprisingly big, not to mention the corridor’s long, I wonder if this cave connects to other caves?”* Rennel thought as she observed her surroundings. *“It’ll be troublesome if it did since the monster might run away after seeing me.”*
Worried that the wolf would detect its presence, Rennel tries to hide her presence as much as possible. Unfortunately for the girl, her effort was for naught because a huge creature with glowing green eyes stood on her way.
What could it be other than her subjugation target, the monstrous wolf?
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 7 (Monster Subjugation Quest)
**Chapter 7**
Rennel’s anger was greatly reduced after giving the three drunken adventurers a lesson. She then look around and saw that the other adventurers looking at her warily. With a huff she completely ignored the other adventurers and came to face the muscular, bearded man at the counter again.
She slammed her hands at the counter and repeated what she said earlier in a more forceful voice. “I want to register as an adventurer!” She declared to the bearded man.
The bearded man was taken aback by the girl’s more forceful attitude but didn’t make it difficult for her. “Alright, tell me your name, age, and the place you are currently staying. You can also tell me your skills and weapon of choice but those are optional. Lastly, you need to pay me two silver coins for the registration fee.”
“Two silver coins? The registration fee is that expensive?”
Hearing that she needed to pay two silver coins for the registration fee, Rennel was slightly taken aback. With two silver coins she could stay for a week at the inn!
The bearded man shrugged his shoulder. “I’m not trying to make it difficult for you. That was indeed the required registration fee,“ the bearded man replied.
Although still feeling hesitant, Rennel still took out two silver coins from her leather pouch and gave it to the bearded man after giving the required information.
The man skillfully wrote Rennel’s information on the guild’s official parcel and stamped it with the guild’s seal. “It’s done,” the man said as he took a tag under the counter, passing it to Rennel.
“Our organization isn’t too strict on our members nor do we force them to complete certain number of quest to remain a member. You can also take any quest from the board over there. But every quest is on first come first serve basis. So you need to be quick if you want to get quest that pays well. Also, you need to be careful of the quest you wanted to get. Don’t overestimate your ability and take quest with high difficulty, or you might just lose your life in the process.”
“Lastly, we don’t really care what you do outside the guild but it also means that if commit some heinous crimes and was apprehended by the authorities, then you’re on your own. Do you get all that?” The bearded man explained.
Rennel nodded her head and thank the bearded man for his explanation. She then went to the board and scanned the available quest. As she was standing there, a young man, that seemed to be slightly older than her approaches her and asked if she wanted his help in reading what were written on the board.
Since many of the adventurers are illiterate, the guild provides people that can read and write to read and write for them. Of course the service was not free but the adventurers only needed to pay 10 copper coins for their service. But since Rennel can read and write, thanks to ‘seed’ and Chaos’ insistence to educate, she didn’t required the young man’s assistance and politely declined his offer.
The young man didn’t insisted and politely left the girl alone. After leaving, Rennel’s side, the young man let out a sigh of relief as if having escaped a great calamity. To be perfectly honest, the young man found Rennel really attractive, and had the intention of befriending her. But after seeing how she dealt with the three drunks that tried to take advantage on her, the young man completely lost his courage. The only reason he approached the girl was because his job requires him to do so.
After the young man left, Rennel read the available quests on the board again, and after several minutes of reading, she finally found quest that caught her interest. She then went to the counter and gave the parchment containing the quest that she wanted to the bearded man.
After reading the parchment and asking if she really wanted to take the quest, the bearded man nodded his head and stamped the parchment. The bearded man told her that she has a week to complete the quest. If she failed to complete the quest within the given time period, she would be given an automatic failure.
Rennel nodded her head affirming that she understood. After that she quietly left the tavern while being watched by the other adventurers. Once she was out of sight, the tavern became boisterous again.
“Whew! That was terrifying. Just what’s up with that girl?”
“I know right? She was able to easily handle Howard’s group. Even though those three are dead drunk, that’s still three against one.”
“It is as you say.”
The adventurers started conversing with one another again and commented on the event that had just transpired. They talk how they’re very angry at the three drunken men who went on and harassed a new comer. They also commented on how looks can be very deceiving, referring to the fact that Rennel was deceptively strong despite having such delicate features.
You can’t judge a book by its cover. Everyone who had seen how the girl, Rennel settled Howard’s group can attest to truth of this famous adage.
“Boss, what are we going to do with Howard’s group?” The young man who spoke to Rennel earlier talked to the bearded man at the counter and pointed at the unconscious bodies of the three drunken men that were mercilessly being kicked around by the female adventurers.
The so callled boss, the bearded looked at the three unconscious men and slapped his forehead. “Have some people carry them to the monks to have their injuries treated. Have them heal these three idiots. As for payment, they could just directly charge them. If the three don’t have money, let them work for it” he instructed.
The young man let out a hollow laugh. He could only sigh at the misfortune of Howard’s group. But considering what they did, the three deserved everything that had happened to them.
While everyone at the tavern was talking about a certain silver-haired girl, the person in question was walking towards the town’s main gate. Since she had already taken a quest, Rennel was in no mind to take it easy.
“Teacher, do you think I did well back then?” Rennel asked.
The mysterious creature, Chaos that had been quiet the entire event spoke. “You did okay. Your reaction was not bad but I think you could have done better. Still having solved the situation without any help, you still deserve a passing grade.”
Rennel pouted a little after hearing her teacher’s evaluation. In her opinion, she handled everything flawlessly but according to her teacher, she made a lot of mistakes in handling the situations.
*“Teacher’s standard was still very high.”* Rennel sighed inside her heart.
Having completed her weeks long training in the woods, Chaos rarely gives her advice anymore. Instead, Chaos let her handle everything in her own – acting only if really needed.
“It’s good that you’re trying to assess where you made a mistake. But for now, you should focus on your first quest.” Chaos advised.
“Yes teacher.”
Rennel stopped thinking of the previous event and focused on her quest. Having gotten only an “okay” rating, the girl wanted to make up for it during her first quest.
****
Back at the present, Rennel, ignores the gaze of other adventurers as she contemplates in front of the adventurer’s board. There were two quests on the board that catches her attention so she was hesitant which quest to take first. Since the guild have a first come first serve rule for the available quests, there’s a good chance that the other quest would have been taken when she returned.
After thinking for a while, Rennel finally made up her mind and took the parchment of the quest she had chosen. It was a monster subjugation quest.
Before the eyes of the observing adventurers she went to the counter where the muscular man with a beard, Arnold was and spoke.
“I want to take this quest.” She declared as she gave the parchment to the tavern boss.
Arnold raised one of his brows as he read the content of the parchment. “Are you sure?” He asked.
“Yes!” Rennel answered without hesitation.
Such short conversation, or rather, a ‘question and answer’ routine was a common occurrence for the two. Having seen what the girl could do and her performance as an adventurer, Arnold’s question was merely out of politeness, or maybe, simply a formality.
Having stayed for weeks in Alchur, local adventurers and citizens had already known that Rennel was a very skilled adventurer that never once failed a quest. No matter the difficulty of the quest, Rennel could complete it as long as she took the quest.
Speaking a few pleasantries with the tavern boss, Arnold, the girl left the counter and walked towards the exit. But before she could step outside, Rennel almost bumped to another person. Fortunately, she was able to stop in time. Rennel bowed her head a little and apologized. The person she almost bumped into, a familiar person wasn’t so forgiving.
“Damn wench, watch where you going!” The man rudely said without looking at the person he almost bumped into.
Hearing the man cursed, the entire tavern suddenly went silent. The place was so quiet that it was possible to hear a pin that was dropped onto the floor. The rude man, Howard noticed the weird atmosphere of the tavern and frown. Looking around, he saw the other adventurers looking at him wide-eyed.
*“What’s up with them?”* Howard thought while frowning.
Howard was taken aback, and slowly looked down. And seeing the person he just cursed, Howard almost fainted in shock!
*“Why is it her!”* Howard spewed vulgarities that could not be written inside his head.
Of all the people to bumped into, it was actually the person he lest wanted to see.
Howard started to sweat profusely as the girl she cursed just now stared at him with emotionless eyes. The mental trauma he had suffered previously has yet to heal unlike the physical trauma. And now the same person responsible for the trauma was eyeing him again.
“Please gods, no! It was an accident, I swear!” The terrified Howard prayed profusely to the gods in hope of escaping his predicament unscathed.
The monks from the monastery had just healed his injury and through some miracle, managed to restore his body to full health. The girl’s kick had almost shattered his family jewel. Thankfully, it was not to the point of being unable to restore. As such, Howard managed to remain a man!
He and his companions who also suffered the same fate were very lucky to come out of it whole. But if he suffered another kick from this girl, who knows if the monks could still restore it.
“I’m, I’m very sorry!” Howard apologized loudly as he stepped to the side with his hand on his crotch, protecting it.
Rennel frowned a little after hearing Howard apologized. Although she’s feeling slightly annoyed, Rennel still chooses to forgive the rude man’s slight and simply walks out of the door without saying anything.
After seeing Rennel leave, the tavern becomes boisterous again.
“I survived…” Howard walk towards the nearest empty chair and sits weakly.
That was a really close shaved there, old Howard. An adventurer sitting on the same table teases after seeing Howard’s expression.
“Shut up! That wasn’t funny. I really thought I’m going to die back there...” Howard cursed.
Everyone in the tavern broke into a raucous laughter after hearing Howard’s recollection. Although Howard was someone with foul mouth, and was a bad drunk, he’s not really the worst person out there. As such they were actually glad that he didn’t suffer for his foul mouth this time.
“You should really fix that horrible temper of yours. Next time you might not be so lucky.” Another adventurer advised.
“Yeah…” Howard let out a long sigh. After that he yelled at the tavern boss for a drink who rolled his eyes at him.
****
“I’m surprised you didn’t flare up in there,” Chaos commented as they were walking.
“What do you mean teacher? Do I look like someone with a short fuse?” Rennel complained after hearing her teacher’s comment.” Besides, he already apologized so there’s no reason to make things difficult for him, right?
“I wonder about that… Still, you becoming mentally more mature and that’s a good thing.” Chaos answered.
Rennel rolled her eyes at her teacher. She hastens her footsteps, and suddenly broke into a run. Her next quest is located at a village to the north and Rennel wanted to get there as fast as possible.
Fahl village is a small village that falls under the jurisdiction of Alchur. The village was located farther to the north and could easily be reached by foot if one walks for half a day.
Although Fahl was just half a day walk, Rennel didn’t like to waste time by walking. If she ran, it’s possible for her to reach the village in 3 hours or less.
For most people, running for 3 hours was impossible but for Rennel who completed her hellish training in the woods under Chaos’ guidance, 3 hours was nothing. If she really wanted to, she could run for a few days without resting.
Besides her training under Chaos, the ‘seed’ she had received from it, boosted her stats greatly. If it were an RPG game, her stats would be near the maximum if not the maximum. In other words, Rennel was slowly becoming less and less human. If she were to continue training under Chaos’ guidance, she might really become a monster that could fight dragons or worse!
Just like what the mysterious guardian of the Mazes of Trees (the name of the forest between Robac and Alchur where Rennel trained) once said, the girl, Rennel might end up with power that could threated this world if Chaos continue to train her.
Anyways, the other reason that Rennel was such in a hurry was the content of the quest worries her. According to the quest description, the village of Fahl was being threatened by a powerful monster. But the monster that threatening the village of Fahl was not just any powerful monster; it was being threatened by a monstrous wolf!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 6 (Ball Buster Rennel)
**Chapter 6**
Two weeks quickly passed since Rennel completed her training on the woods near the town Alchur and Robac. Currently, she and Chaos are staying at the town of Alchur, one of the biggest settlements in the Helmark region, one of several regions that belonged to the kingdom of Almena.
Having stayed in the woods and away from civilization for almost a month, Rennel was understandably exhausted. Not only was the girl physically exhausted, she was also mentally drained. Additionally, having not seen other humans for the same time period, Rennel was understandably feeling lonely. After all, Rennel is still human (maybe) and needed another human to talk to.
Fully understanding this, Chaos let Rennel stayed in Alchur to rest and reinstate the girl’s humanity that might have gone on a vacation after facing (and killing) nothing but monsters for such a long time.
Not only that, they also need to sell monster parts like furs, scales, fangs, horns, and monster cores that had accumulated during their stay in the woods. Since the duo pretty much used up all of their money back at Robac, they needed to get more funds to replenish their supply.
Actually, saying that they needed to replenish their supply was an overstatement. Having been taught survival skills by Chaos, the Rennel didn’t really need to buy much. Still, they needed money for lodgings, and maybe a potion or two.
Another reason the two stayed at Alchur was because the town has an adventurer’s guild!
Okay, that was an exaggeration. The town has indeed something similar to the adventurer’s guild that Chaos knew. But rather than an adventurer’s guild, describing it as a tavern with an “adventurer’s” board were adventurers, or people confident with their skills can take odd jobs that locals posted from time to time.
In all honesty, it was just a tavern with lots of shady people hanging there all day hoping to get some jobs that would pay for their alcohol, food and lodgings from the locals.
When Chaos finds out how the so called “adventurer’s guild” of the town work, the creature was left slightly speechless. Having seen countless words with proper adventurer’s guild, Chaos had a really hard time coming to terms with the situation.
Yes, Chaos had such a hard time believing that the tavern was the adventurer’s guild that he was struck dumb for two seconds and then recovered like he doesn’t give a damn.
Anyways, Chaos doesn’t really care what this world’s adventurer’s guild is like. He only wanted Rennel to get some experience as an adventurer. Although this world’s adventurers didn’t have the best of reputation, it’s still better than having none.
Besides, one of the fastest ways to gain some reputation aside from joining the kingdom’s army was to become an adventurer. Countless nameless warriors over the years had gained fame through adventuring. Of course it’s also possible to build up pain through other methods, but in Rennel’s case, it was the most practical.
Why it’s the most practical you asked?
Well, that’s because the process of becoming an adventurer in this world was a lot less tedious compared to other occupation like a soldier. Not only do you not need identifications, there wasn’t even a background check, Heck, it was so lax that the use of fake names was allowed. Whether the person was a criminal, an escape convict, or even a murderer; anyone could become an adventurer as long as they pay the registration fee.
Of course, if you’re a criminal and you’re caught, the people behind the adventurer’s guild would not bail you out. Lastly, you’re status as an “official” adventurer only applies to the town or city you registered with. Meaning, if you went to other city or town, you need to register again. They would even give you a tag that with the symbol of the town you registered with. As such, you can’t skip on paying for the registration fee when you moved out of town.
Yeah, this world’s adventurer’s guild was that seedy. Still, the people behind the guild know some people from above. That’s why they could get jobs from the locals and nobles.
****
Inside the adventurer’s guild (tavern), a slim looking girl with silver hair was looking at the adventurer’s board for available jobs. Despite being a girl inside a shady establishment full of shady people (mostly men), no one actually bothers with her. Of course this was not because these adventurers are respectable people, it was because they were afraid of her, terrified even.
You all might have guessed it by now, but the silver-haired girl was none other than Rennel. Having completed her training, Rennel no longer looks like a fragile girl that would shatter with a mere poke. Instead, the sickly-looking and skinny girl had transformed into a very attractive girl. Basically, she’s like an ugly duckling transforming into a swan.
So with her attractive features, it would be impossible for her not to attract attention and stand out. With her looks alone, men should have flock to her like flies to honey. And yet, despite just standing there alone looking pretty, none of the male adventurers dare to get near her, and for good reason.
To know why it was so, let’s go back in time for a bit.
The moment Rennel arrived at Alchur, she unknowingly gather a lot of attention from the town’s folks, especially the menfolk. Carrying her spear encased in a long leather sack and standing five feet tall, with (still developing) good figures that could be somewhat glimpsed from her never-before-seen style of clothes (made by Chaos using monster leathers, and furs) and a beautiful face; men droll at the mere sight of her.
But being unfamiliar with men’s adoration, Rennel simply ignored the men’s infatuated gaze. Instead she went looking for the town’s inn so that she could get her well-earned rest. Still, despite her short interaction with people, the rumor of a strangely dressed but beautiful girl quickly spread to the entire town. Even the inn she was staying at was quickly known. But considering that there’s only four inns in town, finding where she stays was not difficult at all.
After that, the girl barely has a peaceful time as men she didn’t know keep on approaching her. These men would ask for her name, and other private information as they try to befriend and get close to her. Of course all of them returned dejectedly after Rennel rejected all of their attempts. Nonetheless, these men didn’t give up and manages to learn her name by bribing the inn keeper.
Annoyed by the constant flow of men wanting to get close to her, Rennel was starting to lose her patience. What’s more, with the constant egging from her teacher to just beat the men up, the girl was just about to explode.
Fortunately for her, she was able to do just that once she entered the tavern that also served as the adventurer’s guild.
Having suddenly entered the tavern full of shady people who call themselves adventurer, Rennel instantly become the center of attention. As she approached the person tending to the counter of the tavern, cat calls could be heard here and there.
Hearing those cat calls, the girl’s expression turns dark. Still, the girl did not do anything choosing to ignore them instead.
“I would like to register as adventurer,” Rennel said upon arriving at the counter. Upon hearing her words, the whole tavern instantly become quiet while the person in the counter, a bearded man full of muscles and wearing an ordinary work clothes had a strange look on his face.
“You want to register… as an adventurer?” The man asked with a slight pause on his voice.
Rennel nodded her head, and answered, “Yes.”
Upon hearing her confirmation, the whole tavern suddenly erupted into ruckus laughter.
“Hahahahaha! Did you hear that? That little girl wanted to be an adventurer!”
“I know right? And here I thought she’s a client.”
“Now, now, don’t be rude. Didn’t you see the stick she’s carrying? It must be her weapons!”
The men guffawed as if they just heard the funniest joke of their life. And honestly, who could blame them? Looking at her appearance alone, Rennel didn’t fit the description of an adventurer. Certainly, there were female adventurers too but all of them look like they could handle themselves quite well. They were not like Rennel who looks like a delicate flower.
In other words, the girl, Rennel doesn’t look the part.
Rennel clenched her fist so hard that her knuckles turn white. Nonetheless, the girl controlled herself and did not flare up. Since she’s newcomer, it’s normal that most people would look down on her.
*“Patience… I must have patience.”* Rennel murmured inside her heart.
Taking several deep breaths to calm herself, Rennel was about to speak again when three burly men approaches her. Seeing the men who approaches the girl, the entire tavern turn quiet again
“Hey girl, how about you just forget becoming an adventurer? It’s a very dangerous occupation, you know?” A bearded man with balding head said while looking at Rennel as if wanting to gobble her up whole. The other two men also nodded their heads in agreement. Just like the man with the balding head, their gazes were full of desires.
Rennel felt rather uncomfortable being looked that way by the three men but she keeps her calm and politely thanks them. “Thank you for the concern. But I have my reason why I wanted to be an adventurer.” She explained.
After saying so, she turned around to talk to the man at the counter. But before she could even open her mouth, the balding man suddenly grabbed her elbow without permission!
“Hey, I’m not done talking to you yet!” The balding man yelled angrily.
The atmosphere within the entire tavern suddenly become tense after the balding man grabbed Rennel’s shoulder. The other adventurers who were just watching the show suddenly felt like the balding man had gone too far.
Although everyone inside the tavern was shady, not all of them were bad people. On the contrary, many of them were decent people that simply want to earn a living. Admittedly, they jeered and teased the girl earlier and even laughed at her but they don’t mean her any harm. But now three obviously drank adventurers are harassing her. The balding man even went as far as to touch her.
The other female adventurers especially disliked what they’re seeing and stood up with their hands on their weapons. If the three men were to continue with what they’re doing, they’ll teach them a lesson. The bearded man at the counter also gave the three men an unfriendly look but as he was about to issue a warning he heard a soft voice.
“…Let go.” Rennel softly said with her head lowered.
“What? I can’t hear you girly.” The balding man teases while wearing a disgusting smile on his face.
Rennel slowly raises her head and looked straight into the balding man’s eyes. “I said, Let go of me!”
**Sound of something breaking**
The balding man heard something breaking but before he could even react, he suddenly felt an intense pain below the waist. The pain was so intense that the balding man’s eyes bulged and almost pop out from their sockets!
A kick! Rennel actually gave the balding man a merciless kick to the groin!
Not only that, Rennel kicked the man so hard that it literally lifted the man off the ground!
Shock!
The jaws of spectators simultaneously dropped to the ground as they watch the scene unfold. Seeing the fate of the balding man everyone including the female adventurers cringed as if they’re the ones in pain. The reactions of all the men in the establishment were especially hard to look at. All of them have pale face and were hunched over while covering their groins with their hands as if afraid of suffering the same fate as the balding man.
Merciless! That was what on everyone’s mind. They never thought that a girl as beautiful as Rennel would turn out to be so merciless to those that slight her.
The balding man’s companions who were also struck dumb by the sudden event finally snapped out of their reverie. Angered by what happened to their companion, the two men lunged at the girl. Unfortunately for them, they messed with the wrong person. Having been honed by fighting monster at the woods, Rennel’s ability far surpasses the men.
Staring fearlessly at the men lunging at her, Rennel did not panic, and easily avoided the men. Using her spear, ‘nameless’ that was still encase in long leather, she struck at the two men’s groin with the shaft of her spear without mercy!
Seeing where the girl struck the men all of the adventurers, whether they were male or female were taken aback. “*Oh my god! She’s a devil!”* Everyone thought.
The pain made the two men lied unconscious on the floor while foaming on their mouths. And looking at the state they were in, the adventurers could not help but feel sorry for them.
*Dead Silence.*
The entire tavern was suffused with a strange atmosphere. Everyone, especially the male adventurers look at the girl with fear and wariness. Having remembered that they jeered and teased and even laugh at the girl earlier, the men could not help but be on their guard.
All of them made a decision, if the girl made it difficult for them because of what happened earlier, they would… get on their knees and beg for forgiveness!
Ball crusher! The girl was a merciless ball crusher!
****
**To be continued**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 5 (Nameless + Side Story 1)
**Chapter 5**
Almost a week had passed since Rennel started training under Chaos in the woods. Compared to her first few days of training, the girl had grown much stronger. But that didn’t mean she had an easy time in the woods. On the contrary, the girl’s first few days there was like a nightmare to her.
Due to the season, the woods were especially cold. Despite wearing thick clothes, the cold was no less intense. If not for the campfire and the protection of ‘seed’, the girl might have frozen to death already.
The other issue that the girl had to face was the limited food supply. Having bought only a few breads, the girl found herself without food in just three days. Thankfully, she was able to hunt a game in the fourth day which helped her situation greatly. Also, Chaos was not that heartless and would always provide the girl with clean, warm water to drink and clean herself with. The magic was created by Chaos using magic so it was very clean without a single impurity.
Still, the biggest problem was finding animals and monsters to hunt. Because of the freezing cold weather, most animals and monsters are in hibernation – making their numbers very scant.
Actually, the scantiness of the beast inside the woods wasn’t supposed to be a problem since Chaos could easily find the location of any animals or monsters it wanted. It’s just unfortunate that on the second day, Chaos made her training more difficult by making her locate the location of her prey on her own.
And with the girl’s almost non-existence experience in locating the whereabouts of the animals and monsters in the area, Rennel could only walk around and search blindly. And as one would expect, the girl always returned empty handed.
Her unsuccessful hunts continued till she ran out of food. But as some would say, clouds have silver linings. Maybe it’s out of desperation but Rennel awakened another ability of her ‘seed’ in the fourth day. This newly awakened ability of her allows the girl to finally find a small animal that she successfully hunts, solving her food shortage problem.
Rennel’s newly acquired ability worked like, according to Chaos’ words, to that of radars. Despite not knowing what the thing called radar was, Rennel’s ability allows her to sense any presence within a hundred meter of her surroundings. One hundred meter might not be much but in a location littered with snow where a prey could easily hide or meld with the surroundings, the ability to sense anything within a hundred meter was god-like.
With that ability, the girl’s encounter rate grew exponentially. It’s just unfortunate that not every encounter result in a kill. Sometimes her prey would be really good at escaping a run away before she could even get close within a few feet of them. With her dagger having really short range, Rennel could only look forlornly as her prey escape before her eyes.
****
“Teacher…” Rennel, whose prey escaped her earlier, looks at Chaos pleadingly.
“What is it?” Chaos asked lazily.
Rennel twiddle her thumbs bashfully before speaking. “Teacher, could you do something about my weapon? The dagger I’m using has really short range. I need to get really close to my prey just to have a decent chance of killing them.” The girl complained.
“Why don’t you try using your dagger as a throwing weapon?” Chaos suggested.
“I did try that but there’s a lot of obstacle in this place. Besides I’m not good at throwing things.” Rennel explained.
“It’s not that you’re not good at throwing but rather you just don’t have enough practice. But fine. I’ll get you something longer.
“Really! Hurray for teacher!”
Hearing that her teacher acquiesced to her request to give her a weapon with longer reach, Rennel was really happy. With a longer weapon, Rennel could hunt more effectively.
That night, Chaos left their camp and went deeper into the woods. Given Chaos’ ability to fly, it reached its destination in no time. Chaos stopped in front of a majestic looking tree.
“This tree should be good enough.” Chaos thought as it scanned a large, old tree in front of it.
Despite the season being winter, the large three was still full of foliage and vitality. What’s more, a large area surrounding the tree was bare, without even a single grass. It was as if the other plants dare not grow near the said tree. It was quite obvious that it was not an ordinary tree.
Chaos stood in the air in its hind legs and pointed one of its forelegs towards the large tree. Soon, one of the tree’s long and thick branches extends towards Chaos. And without touching the branch, Chaos cut it from near the base.
But it didn’t stop there. Without warning, a greenish light engulfed the branch. Several minutes later, the bluish light disappeared, leaving behind a floating spear.
The spear was colored green with strange white patterns all over the shaft. The head of the spear was just the sharpened end of the shaft itself. The spear looks simple but pleasing to eyes.
Chaos examined the spear carefully and nodded in satisfaction. “Yeah, this should do. Although it’s not that powerful, the advantage of this spear is that it would grow with its wielder – growing stronger the same time as the wielder. ”
After taking the spear, Chaos did not leaved quickly. Instead, it looked at the tree that lost one of its main branches.
“Since you’re generous enough to give one of your main branches, it won’t be proper if I didn’t give you your reward. Hmm… Let see… What should I give you?” Chaos pondered for several seconds before an idea hits it. “Oh, I know!”
Having thought of a reward to give, Chaos pointed at the tree with its right front leg. An object that was giving a mysterious green glow flew towards the tree and entered the tree’s trunks without resistance. It was a seed.
The glowing greenish “veins” appeared on the tree’s main body. The glowing “veins” pulses with life as if pumping power to every part of the tree. This continued for several minutes before completely stopping. After that the glowing green “veins” vanished without a trace.
“What entered your body is a ‘seed’, or if we use the term of this world, a blessing. Since you’re a tree that developed spirituality, the ‘seed’ I’ve gave you should prove to be very beneficial. Even so, whether you can unleash all of the ‘seed’s’ potential depends solely to you.” Chaos explained.
The leaves on the trees all shook and sway as if excited. No, it was indeed excited. It didn’t expect that it would get such a valuable reward simply by giving Chaos one of its main branches.
“Don’t worry too much about it. Just think of it as me spreading karma. Like I said, what you’ll become in the future rely solely on you.”
Having said that, Chaos prepares to live but stopped and turned its head slightly towards the tree.
“I’m Chaos.” Chaos said and flew away.
Chaos flew back to the camp by back tracking the path it used earlier. Thanks to the protection that Chaos left behind before he went looking for the material for the girl’s new weapon, the camp remained completely unchanged without a single sign that anyone went near it.
As it was already deep into the night, Chaos did not wake up Rennel to give the girl her new weapon. Instead, she lied down on its favorite spot and sleep
The next morning…
“Here”
While the girl was eating her breakfast, Chaos unexpectedly throws something at her. I was the green spear that it forged last night.
Although startled, the girl still manages to catch the object and saw that it was a beautiful spear covered in mysterious white patterns.
Rennel stared at the spear with open mouth. She unconsciously put down the skewered meat it was eating to her side and started examining the spear.
“It’s beautiful.” The girl muttered while looking mesmerized. She then look at Chaos and asked: “Teacher, this spear…”
“Didn’t you ask me for a weapon with longer reach yesterday? You’re looking at it now.” Chaos explained with half close eyes.
Hearing her teacher’s confirmation, the girl was really happy. The first time she laid her eyes on the spear, the girl instantly fell in love with it. “Teacher is really the best!” The girl exclaimed loudly.
“What are you so excited about? It’s just a spear…” Chaos murmured to itself.
Rennel who seemingly haven’t heard Chaos’ murmurs, gently caressed the green spear.
“Teacher, does this spear have a name?” Rennel suddenly asked.
“It’s nameless.” Chaos answered without much thought.
Having heard of the spear’s name, the girl could not help but stare at her teacher.
“So, it’s called nameless? What a strange name.” Rennel looked questioningly at her teacher while tilting her head.
“No, no. The spear’s name isn’t nameless. I called it nameless because it didn’t have a name yet.” Chaos explained.
The girl grew more confuse after hearing her teacher’s explanation. She didn’t understand why her teacher called the spear nameless even though it’s not the spear’s name.
Seeing the confusion on the girl’s face growing, Chaos wanted to face-palmed (although it has paws). For some strange reason, the girl really thinks that the spear was called nameless.
“I’m pretty certain that her ‘seed’ should have greatly improved her comprehensive ability. But how come she’s acting like a fool now? Did the ‘seed’ lower her comprehension instead? Or maybe my word’s not translated correctly?” Chaos thought rudely.
“Listen here. The spear is currently nameless because I didn’t give it a name yet nor do I plan to. That spear’s no ordinary spear and therefore should earn its name through combat. Once it gained enough fame, it’ll naturally gain a name,” Chaos explained. “But if you feel uncomfortable about it having a name, just call it nameless for now.”
Having been given a proper explanation, Rennel was enlightened, and finally understood the significance behind the name 'nameless'. Just like her the spear was relatively unknown. In order for the spear to get a proper name, it must first prove its worth.
*“It’s just like me. Like it, I too, haven’t proven my worth to teacher yet...“* Looking at the spear, and hearing its significance, Rennel felt much closer to it.
*“Alright! Let’s earn do our best and earn teacher’s and the world’s recognition, nameless.”*
Rennel, whose conviction was reignited, points the spear towards the sky as if challenging it. With the spear nameless by her side, she too will earn everyone’s recognition.
***
**Side story 1 (The Tree Spirit)**
In the deepest part of the woods just outside of Robac, there was a large and mysterious tree. It was a tree that existed for who knows how long having seen been around since the founding of the kingdom and the town of Robac.
The tree had long developed spirituality. Unlike other trees, it was sentient and has a consciousness. In a way it can be called a tree spirit. It has been living peacefully inside the woods for countless years and had seen countless living creatures. Because it cannot talk yet, the tree spirit could only observe and could not interact with other creatures. It didn’t really mind it though it was after still a tree, its mentality vastly different with other creatures.
Nonetheless it’s still a spirit, and being a spirit, the tree spirit possessed some strange abilities. For example, it could create a maze using all of the surrounding trees. This way the tree spirit could protect itself from any unwanted attention, especially from the greedy humans. Aside from that, the tree spirit could synchronize with the other trees within a certain radius. This allows the tree spirit to observe what’s happening to its surroundings.
Because the tree spirit had seen a lot of things, it didn’t allow other sentient creature from getting near it and leaved for isolation all this time.
That said, the tree spirit had lived like that for countless years and has no real desire to change anything. Therefore, when a mysterious creature suddenly appeared before it, and communicated with it spiritually, the tree spirit was greatly surprise.
It didn’t even notice that it was approaching; only knowing that it had arrived after it communicated with it.
The mysterious creature did not say much, only requested for one of its branches. Although the tree spirit values its branches, it did not refuse the mysterious creature’s request. Although the branch was very valuable, the tree spirit felt like it should not deny the creature’s request, and even gave its best branch to it.
Much to the tree spirit’s surprise though, the mysterious creature transformed the branch into a beautiful looking spear. And being part of its body, the tree spirit could still feel some connection with it. Maybe, it could communicate with the future owner of that spear?
A strange thought appeared on the tree spirit’s mind. For some reason, it wanted to see how far the future owner of the spear could go. What height would that owner reach? “*I want to know…”*
While the tree spirit was having such strange thought, the mysterious creature spoke to it again. This time it’s about a reward.
*“It wanted to give it a reward?” I don’t need any reward.* The tree spirit thought.
But after seeing what the reward was, the tree spirit completely changes its mind.
*“I want it.”* It thought.
It was the first time that the tree spirit desired anything for itself. The tree spirit didn’t even know why it wanted the reward so much. The reward was an object shaped like a seed that glows with greenish light.
The mysterious creature did not disappoint the tree spirit and directly gave it the mysterious ‘seed’. Upon entering its body, the tree spirit was almost overwhelmed by the power stored within the ‘seed.’ It could feel the power quickly spreading to every part of its body.
*“It’s so comfortable.”*
The tree spirit never felt anything like it. A mysterious power was surging within it but it’s not harming it at all. Instead, the tree spirit can feel that it’s nourishing it soul!
Not long after, the peculiar but comfortable feeling banished, disappointing the spirit tree. Nonetheless, despite the fact that the comfortable feeling had banished, the tree spirit could still feel the mysterious power flowing inside its body.
“What entered your body is a ‘seed’, or if we use the term of this world, a blessing. Since you’re a tree that developed spirituality, the ‘seed’ I’ve gave you should prove to be very beneficial. Even so, whether you can unleash all of the ‘seed’s’ potential depends solely to you.” The mysterious creature explained.
Although the tree spirit did not fully understand the mysterious creature’s explanation, it knew that it received something very valuable – more valuable than the branch that it gave to it. No, those two things’ not even in the same category.
The tree spirit was very thankful and excitedly shook its branches and leaves to show its appreciation.
Having seemed to understand the tree spirit’s gesture, the mysterious creature nonchalantly spoke:
“Don’t worry too much about it. Just think of it as me spreading karma. Like I said, what you’ll become in the future rely solely on you.” After that the mysterious turned around and was about to leave.
*“Please tell me your name!”* The tree spirit mentally exclaimed after seeing that its benefactor was about to leave.
The mysterious creature stopped and turns its head slightly. “Chaos.” It said and flew away.
And that’s how the tree spirit met the mysterious creature called Chaos. It was a meeting that completely changed the tree spirit’s life. Having received a ‘seed’ from Chaos, the tree spirit’s destiny has become its own. Thanks to the ‘seed’, the tree spirit would become an all-encompassing entity – the world tree – many years from now. But that’s for another story.
**To be continued...**
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 4 (First Test)
**Chapter 4**
Having narrowly escaping the fate of being sold as a slave, Rennel started her journey with the mysterious creature Chaos. They first visited the town of Robac, and stayed there for three days. And after selling some stuff and buying things they needed, Chaos and Rennel resumed their journey, after choosing their next destination.
Still, having never stepped out of her village her entire life, Rennel was lacking even the most basic of knowledge and skills to survive outside. As such it falls to Chaos, who have experienced and seen pretty much everything in life to educate the girl.
In order to achieve the goal of teaching the girl in the shortest time possible, Chaos gave the girl a blessing or a ‘seed’ that would increase her capabilities greatly. Of course, Chaos was not so irresponsible as to just give the girl everything. No, she has to unlock the power of her ‘seed’ by herself – through sheer effort and hard work.
To that end, Chaos purposely chooses the long way to their next destination and entered the woods to train the girl. One of the first things that Rennel needed to do was to procure her own food. As Chaos didn’t need to eat anything for energy and nourishment, there’s no need for it to gather or hunt its own food. But Rennel was different, she was human. And as human she needed to eat in order to keep on living.
Rennel understood this and therefore, did not complain when Chaos prevented her from buying too much food when they were on Robac. Meaning, the amount of food she had on her was limited. To compensate for the lack of food, Rennel needs to gather edible plants and hunt animals for meat.
This is actually harder than it sounds. With the winter season pretty much started, edible plants are very rare. Even the trees have shed most of their foliage with exception of those trees that are good with the cold weather. Of course animals were rare too during this season but that doesn’t mean there were no animals that are still active.
For example, the cute-looking rabbit that Rennel was currently facing…
****
“Um, teacher, I think there’s something wrong with this rabbit.” Rennel said as she stared at the cute "rabbit" vigilantly. She had, in her hand, a dagger that she had bought from a weapon shop in Robac.
After being told that Chaos would teach her what she needed in order to survive outside even when she's on her own, Rennel had changed the way she addressed Chaos. Instead calling it by its name, she’s now calls Chaos, teacher.
But considering that Chaos was now in charge of teaching her, this was very normal.
Chaos who was floating mid-air replied to her without much thought: “Of course there is. Can’t you see the horn in its forehead?” It asked back.
The cute "rabbit" that Rennel was currently facing was no ordinary rabbit. It’s a mutated variant called ‘horned rabbit’. It’s very aggressive and won’t back out and run away when facing a threat – even if that threat was much bigger than itself. In other words, the horned rabbit was a monster.
“Er… teacher… Do I really need to fight this thing?” Rennel asked looking rather troubled. She never expected that the first opponent that her teacher chooses for her is a monster.
Chaos looked at its student with disdain. “What’s wrong? Are you afraid? It’s just a rabbit, you know? Sure it might have a horn and was slightly bigger and fiercer than an ordinary rabbit but it’s still a rabbit.” It explained.
The side of Rennel’s mouth twitched after hearing her teacher’s explanation.
It’s only slightly bigger and fiercer than ordinary rabbits?
The rabbit in front of her was twice as large compared to ordinary rabbits! And have you seen those piercing eyes? Those are the eyes of someone who wanted to tear its enemies to pieces!
Rennel really wanted to complain but after remembering how easy it was for Chaos to kill something as big and fearsome as the ‘king of the forest’, the girl could only shut her mouth. Indeed, if she thinks about it, the horned rabbit in front of her was no different from an ordinary rabbit in her teacher’s eyes.
*“But, but I’m different! I haven’t actually hunted animals before let alone a monster!”*
Rennel could only hide her tears and resentment inside her heart. What else could she do? Her teacher was incredibly powerful despite looking like an adorable pet. If Chaos told her that it’s a legendary dragon, the girl would have believed it!
The standoff between a village girl and a cute horned rabbit did not last long. After determining the threat that the girl possessed, the horned rabbit must have judge that the girl wasn’t much of a threat and attacked up front.
The rabbit fiercely kicked the ground, and leaped towards the girl with its horn pointing at her body, wanting to skewer her. Having not expected the sudden attack, Rennel could only roll pathetically on the ground.
*“It’s fast!”*
Rennel was alarmed. If it wasn’t for her survival instinct kicking in, she might have been skewered by the rabbit!
Actually, it wasn’t Rennel’s instinct kicking in that allowed her to dodge the horned rabbit’s sudden attack. It was all thanks to her ‘seed’ that she survived. Without the seed, there’s no way that Rennel could have dodged that attack. It’s also the reason why Chaos wasn’t too worried for the girl’s safety.
As it said earlier, the horned rabbit was just a slightly bigger and fiercer rabbit. If Rennel could unlock the full potential of her ‘seed’, she could even fight truly fearsome creatures like a dragon!
Despite failing to hit its target, the horned rabbit did not get discouraged; instead it was annoyed, and attacked again and again. Being at the receiving end of the horned rabbit’s barrage of attacks, Rennel could only dodge with all her might and couldn’t retaliate despite trying her best.
*“What should I do? If this keeps up, I’ll be the first to run out of stamina!”*
Rennel was starting to really worry. Unlike the seemingly endless stamina of the horned rabbit, she’s starting to get tired. Seeing its student’s pathetic display, Chaos could not help but put its paw on its forehead.
“Calm down, fool! How are you supposed to fight if you’re that nervous? ” Chaos scolded.
Hearing her teacher’s scolding, Rennel was enlightened. Indeed. She was so nervous to the point that her movements have become incredibly stiff.
*“Calm down… Calm down… It’s just a rabbit with a horn. There’s nothing threatening about it.”*
Rennel murmured encouraging words to forcefully calm her wildly beating heart. Having calmed herself a little, Rennel was able to observe the horned rabbit’s movements.
*“It’s really fast… But its attack pattern seemed to be monotonous. Its attacks consisted only of biting, scratching, leaping and head-butting.”* Rennel thought as she dodges the monster’s attacks. *“I couldn’t stay on the defensive forever. I should also retaliate.”*
Narrowing her eyes, Rennel watched her opponent intently. When the horned rabbit tries to swipe at her with its claw, Rennel countered by swinging her danger downward!
*Screech!*
Blood spread like fireworks in the air as one of the horned rabbit’s forelegs was injured by Rennel’s dagger!
*“I did it!”*
The horned rabbit stumbled backwards in surprise and pain. Rennel having taken the advantage did not let up and stabbed towards the horned rabbit. Seeing the deadly dagger stabbing towards it, the horned rabbit was alarmed and leaped back with all it might!
It missed!
*Damn it!* Rennel cursed under her breath after seeing her sure-kill attack miss. Having missed, Rennel did not act rashly and do a follow up attack. Instead she jumped back and went into a defensive stance while staring warily at the wounded rabbit.
*“Oh? That’s not bad.”* Chaos praised inside its heart.
The girl’s decision not to pursue with another attack earned her some praise from Chaos. It Rennel did a follow up attack; she might have been injured by the horned rabbit’s desperate counter attack. As the saying goes never press a desperate opponent.
*“Her decision not to follow up with her attack was definitely wise but… She also gave her opponent the chance to escape.”*
As Chaos predicted, after staring at the girl, the horned rabbit did not counter attack but instead chooses to flee!
Caught off guard, Rennel could only stare dumbfounded at retreating figure of her opponent. Speechless, Rennel could only slowly turn towards her teacher.
“T,teacher…”
Rennel wanted to protest to her teacher that it was not her fault to that the beast decided to retreat but her words clogged her throat.
Seeing this, Chaos rolled its eyes. “You failed this test.” It said mercilessly.
“Yes…”
The girl could only lower her head dejectedly after being given the failing mark. What else could she do? It was her fault that she panicked when the horned rabbit suddenly attacked her. Although she finally calmed down after being reminded by Chaos, it was a little too late.
“Don’t take what I’ve said to heart. I didn’t have much expectation that you would pass your first test to begin with. Although that horned rabbit was as weak as a baby (to me), it’s still a monster after all.”
The side of Rennel’s mouth twitched. She’s not really sure if her teacher was consoling her or scolding her. With a silent sigh, Rennel could only helplessly say, “I understand.”
“Take this chance to rest and contemplate on your mistake. Fortunately for us, we’re there quite a few monsters that are still active in these woods even during the winter. You’ll have plenty of chance to redeem yourself. If you’re lucky, you might even meet that horned rabbit again.” Chaos instructed.
Rennel nodded her head and looked for a good place to set up camp. After finding an appropriate place, she set up a simple tent that she had bought at the town of Robac beforehand.
When she turned around after setting up her tent, and noticed that Chaos had already lit up a fire, saving her the trouble of doing it herself.
“Teacher, I’m sorry about earlier.” Rennel started after sitting near the fire. “If I didn’t panic when facing the horned rabbit, it might not have escaped…”
Chaos that was lying comfortably on a log it picked up from god knows where, opened its eyes after hearing the girl’s explanation.
“Hmm, it’s good that you’re aware of your mistake. But don’t over think it. After all, that was your first time facing a monster on your own so it’s normal that you’re nervous.” Chaos answered. “Anyway, no need to bring it up anymore. Just remember what you’ve learned today.”
After saying those words, Chaos closes its eyes again.
Knowing that her teacher have no intention of reprimanding her, Rennel let out a small sigh of relief.
*“Although teacher didn’t scold me, I’m certain that teacher’s a little disappointed with my performance earlier. Even after being given a ‘seed’ that improved my ability and talent a lot, I still failed miserably. I must do better next time!”*
Clapping her face with her hands, Rennel swear in her heart that she wouldn’t make the same mistake again. After that she reached for her sack bag and pull out a piece of bread from within it and started eating.
*“The food I have with me was limited. If I still failed to hunt something and only rely on the bread I bought from Robac, I’ll run out of food and starve.”*
Rennel looked at the half eaten bread in her hand and started contemplating again. Right now the biggest problem she has to face was how to procure food. Although her teacher might not actually starve her to death, even if she failed, she will surely be criticized by her teacher for being a horrible student.
The girl clutched her head as she thinks on how to resolve her biggest problem, meanwhile, Chaos who was “sleeping” on a log slightly opened its eyes and observe the girl’s silly action.
*“At least she’s taking her training seriously”*
Ignoring the girl once more, Chaos closes its eyes once more as it enjoys the warmth from the fire.
****
That night a huge shadowy figure silently approaches the camp where Chaos and Rennel are resting. The true form of the figure was covered with mist and its true appearance could not be seen. Aside from two glowing orbs that seemed to be its eyes, nothing else could be deduced of the figure’s true appearance.
“Are you the ruler of this place?” A voice suddenly asked.
The shadowy figure stopped moving after hearing the voice and stared straight ahead. There it saw a small creature with appearance it never saw before floating in the air. It was Chaos.
“Who are you? What are you doing in my territory?” The creature asked in a somewhat guttural voice.
Chaos stared at the two orb-like eyes and answered, “Chaos. It’s not my real name but an alias. Don’t bother with my true name since it’s too complicated for most creatures to understand. And as for what we’re doing here… Would you believe me, if I tell you that we’re just passing through your territory?”
“I believe you! But your name is Chaos, huh. It’s an unfamiliar name...” The creature slightly tilted its mist covered head as if trying to recall if it had heard that name before.
“I’m not surprise. I doubt there were others like me going around with that name.” Chaos chortled.
The shadowy figure nodded its head that was hidden by a thick mist in agreement. The word ‘chaos’ doesn’t have good connotations. It doubted that someone would willingly use that name except for the mysterious creature in front of it.
“So, why did you approach us? Since you easily believed me when I said that we’re just passing through the place, you should have other reason, right? Chaos asked.
“I’m just curious that’s all. Why is someone like you accompanying a human?” The shadowy figure gave a short reply to Chaos’ question and countered with its own question.
Hearing the shadowy creature’s question, Chaos shrugged its shoulder and replied: “No particular reason. I’m just bored and thought that I might as well train her since I’m already accompanying her.”
The shadow creature was little miffed by Chaos’ reply and stayed silent for several seconds. It then asked, “…Are you trying to destroy this world?”
“Where the hell did that come from? I’m just teaching a human girl how to protect herself? What makes you think I want to destroy this world?”
Chaos was little speechless by the creature’s logic. The reason it gave the shadowy figure was very normal reason. There’s absolute no relation between teaching a human girl and the destruction of this world. They’re not even the same concept!
“You’re not? With your power, wouldn’t training someone result in the birth of a monstrously powerful individual? I might not know what kind of creature you are bit my instinct is telling me that there’s no one in this world that could stop you if you go on a rampage.” The shadowy creature answered solemnly.
Chaos was slightly surprise by the words of the shadowy figure. It is also slightly impressed that it dares to approach them despite knowing that it’s not Chaos’ match.
“You don’t have to worry too much about it. I’m not one of those creatures who go around destroying world, you know? If my mood is good and I’m still around, I might even lend a hand (paw) if I meet an idiot with world destroying fantasy.” Chaos said jokingly.
The Shadowy figure was rather surprise when it heard Chaos’ words. Even though Chaos said those words in a joking manner, the shadowy figure knew that someone of Chaos caliber might actually help save this world if it encountered a world-ending calamity.
“In behalf of all the living beings of this world, I thank you. I will take my leave now.”
The shadowy figure bows its head, turns around and walked back into the shadows where it disappeared.
“It appeared all of the sudden and disappeared as fast. Don’t tell me it took my promise seriously? Well, whatever…”
Chaos shook his head and return to camp where the girl was sleeping – putting the conversation between him and the shadowy figure who might be the true ruler of the region.
**To be continued...**
Previous Chapters: https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 3 (A New Start)
**Chapter 3**
“Halt!” ordered the mysterious voice.
Hearing the voice, the men's mind grew blank as heavy pressure bombarded their souls. The voice did not only carry overwhelming pressure but also contained force that sent the men literally tumbling as well.
Aside from Rennel’s uncle and Pina’s father who did not join the encirclement, the other men were thrown tumbling to the ground.
Fortunately, the mysterious person who interfered was merciful and did not really intend to hurt the men, only punishing them a little for bullying a girl not even half their age.
*It’s Chaos!*
Rennel was really happy hearing the familiar voice. She wanted to call Chaos’ name out loud but stopped herself in the last second after Chaos sent a message that only she could hear.
“Who’s there?! Show yourself!” One of the men shouted
"Hmph!"
Chaos snorted after hearing the man’s question seemingly displeased by the man’s rudeness. The snort was not an ordinary snort; it contained strange power that sends tremors to the men’s hearts. It was a warning…
“Great lord, please calm your anger. This girl is from our village. She ran away and only wanted to bring her back. We have no intention of harming her.”
Seeing the situation quickly deteriorating, Pina’s father pushed down his fear, stepped forward and pleaded for mercy. He tries his best to explain the situation in case that the misunderstanding escalates out of control. Judging from the power that the mysterious “person” showed, there’s a good chance that the person who interfered was a powerful magician.
What were magicians? They were powerful individuals that possess strange powers. They could do pretty much anything and ordinary people are not their match.
Although their village was out in the boondocks, that didn’t mean they were ignorant of magicians. At the very least, the villagers knew that they could not antagonize magicians.
Pina’s father was worried of the consequences of angering a magician. That’s the reason he was so respectful and called him ‘lord.’
“It seemed that at least one of you still has some sense left. I don’t care what your reasons were for chasing after the girl but you could forget forcing her to return. I took a liking to her and decided to take her with me. Do you have any complaints?
Everyone present was left speechless by the mysterious “person’s” arrogant and domineering attitude. Some of the village men were angered and wanted to retort but after recalling just what had happened, they swallowed their anger and decided to stay silent.
What else can they do? The great pressure caused by the mysterious “person” prevented any thoughts of rebellion from even forming!
“Great lord. That’s…” Pina’s father was at lost on what to do. Although he had somehow expected that the magician might take the girl, he was still hoping that they could return with Rennel. Unfortunately, it seemed that the great magician was determined to protect and take the girl away.
*“What should we do? We need the girl to be able to tide over the winter but we have no way of defeating the great magician. If we tried to take the girl by force, the great magician might just bury all of us here!”*
Pina’s father was out of ideas. If they let agreed with the magician, the village might not survive the winter. But if they disagreed and anger the great magician, all of them might end up dead.
“What is it? Are you unsatisfied? Quickly, speak out your minds!” Seeing that the village men are hesitating, Chaos decided to put more pressure on them. In order to avoid unnecessary trouble in the future, Chaos must solve the problem from the root.
For Rennel to start her new life free of worry, she must cut all ties with her old village. As such, Chaos doesn’t mind playing the role of the villain. Anyways, it knows a lot of things, and acting was no problem for it.
The village men including Rennel’s uncle and Pina’s father could not help bit groan inwardly after hearing what the great magician said.
Unsatisfied? Yes, they’re feeling unsatisfied!
Speak out our minds? Only a fool would speak out against a powerful magician!
‘It’s nothing, great lord. Please take the girl with you…”
Seeing no hope of changing the great magician’s mind, the village men could only concede. What else could they do? Their situation was pretty much hopeless. If they were to choose between Rennel and their own lives, they would obviously choose the later.
“Hmph! It’s good that you know what’s good for you. But don’t worry; I won’t take the girl without paying compensation. I know propriety.” Chaos who was pretending to be a magician was satisfied by the men's decision. For Rennel, it was also the best conclusion.
“Compensation? Great lord, what do you – “
*Bang!*
Before Pina’s father could complete his question, something huge and heavy falls in front of the village men!
The huge object caused a loud ‘bang’ when it hits the ground. Not only that, it also disturbed the snow and dust causing fog to form.
“WHAT WAS THAT?!”
Everyone, including Rennel was shocked by the sudden development and could not help but exclaim loudly. When the fog finally cleared, they finally saw what the large “object” was.
It was a huge beast! A monstrous boar!
No, calling it a “huge” might be an understatement. The beast was like a small hill! So calling it gigantic might be more appropriate.
The huge creature looks like a boar. Its appearance, shape cannot be mistaken for anything but that of a boar. It clearly had two tusks but one of them was cut off cleanly near the base and was missing. The remaining tusk is white and is longer than a spear but thicker than a full grown man’s thighs. The description of the tusk alone should give anyone an idea how massive the creature was.
“That's... That’s the king of the forest!”
One of the men, a man that seemed to be in his 50s could not help but scream out loud after seeing the gigantic beast. How could he not scream? The beast that falls out of nowhere was the feared “king of the forest', A fearsome beast that controlled and ruled all of the surrounding forest. Many villagers, including Rennel’s father died because of the creature!
*“King of the forest?”*
Rennel’s eyes were glued to the mountain-like beast lying lifeless just in front of her. Her body trembled, and her mind blank. She knew that the beast known as the ‘king of the forest’ was the one responsible for her father’s death.
Could that fearsome ‘king of the forest’ she’d heard a lot when she was still a little girl be the same dead creature as the one in front of her?
If that was really the case, does that mean that her father’s death had been avenged? Rennel doesn’t know what to do. Things just happened so fast that she couldn’t react at all.
Not far too far away from Rennel was her uncle who wore a very complicated expression on his face. Glancing at his niece, he saw that she was looking intently at the beast. He sighed but did not try to approach her.
“Great lord… This beast… Where did you find it?
Gulping, Pina’s father looked at the ‘king of the forest’ and asked Chaos where he found the beast. Chaos, sounding nonchalant, answered: “I was taking a scroll in the forest when it suddenly attacked me. Since I found it annoying I decided to kill it.”
Chaos then looked at the men (even though its figure could not be seen) and asked, “Is there a problem?”
The village men gulped at the same time when they heard that the creature died simply because it attacked and annoyed the mysterious "magician." When Chaos asked if there was a problem, the men shook their heads left and right collectively. Recalling how one of them was rude to it earlier, the men could not help but let out cold sweats despite the freezing cold weather.
Thankfully, the situation didn’t get out of hand. If it did, they might have shared the same fate as that of the ‘king of the forest.’
“I took one of the tusks as souvenir, but as for the rest of the beast, it would be your compensation for allowing me to take the girl.” Chaos explained. “But there’s a condition, once you take the beast it meant that you’ll have no connection to the girl anymore. Understand?” It added.
Pina’s father, Rennel’s uncle and the rest of the village men could only nod their heads in agreement. With the great magician protecting the girl, they would be foolish to make things difficult for her. Although they have some complicated feelings, none of them dare to voice it.
“Since, an agreement had been reached; I’ll leave with the girl.” Chaos, whose figure could still not be seen, removed the pressure from the village men. He then secretly sends a message to Rennel; telling her to turn around and leave.
Hearing Chaos' secret intruction, Rennel nods weakly. With a complicated look, Rennel forced herself to look away from the ‘king of the forest.’ She then glanced at her uncle who happened to be also looking at her. Their eyes meet and the two stared at each other for a while only ending when the Renne’s uncle lowered his head.
Rennel didn’t say anything, and only said goodbye to her uncle inside her heart. After knowing that she was soon to be sold to slavery, Rennel had emotionally distanced herself from them years ago.
Seeing the girl walking away, the group of men send by the village could only stare at her slowly disappearing figure as she walks farther and farther away.
***
It’s been several days since Chaos and Rennel ran away from the girl’s village. After days of travelling, the two finally reached the town of Robac. Since they were tired (actually only Rennel was tired), the two decided to stay in town for three days.
Of course the two didn’t waste their three days stay at Robac. While in town, they also sold the furs and meat of the animals Chaos caught as they travel. They used most of the money to afford lodging at the local inn and to buy some of the things they’re lacking for their journey.
The two actually bought quite a few things while in town. After all, the village that Rennel was from was extremely poor, and has nothing good to offer. Well, even if the village has anything to sell, Rennel didn’t have a penny on her so there’s that too.
Speaking of which, that was the first time the girl bought anything using her own money. Ever since she was born, everything she owned were handouts given by her aunt, and some of the kinder villager. As such, shopping was a new experience for her.
To ensure that the girl doesn’t embarrass herself too much, Chaos has to constantly remind her not to gawk at every new thing she saw which was unexpectedly more difficult than it should be due to the fact that many of things sold at shops and stalls are new to the girl.
Thankfully, her being from the boondocks didn’t attract too much attention or cause too much trouble. After buying everything they needed and having rested sufficiently, the two; a village girl and a mysterious creature left Robac for the next town on foot.
The town of Robac have carriages that the two could rent to get to the next town but in order to teach and train the girl, Chaos suggested that they travel by foot. Rennel having never ridden a carriage all her life have no problem with that.
Having cut off all ties with her old village, the girl no longer have to worry that people would constantly chase after her so there's no real hurry to get to their next destination. Besides, Rennel also wanted to take advantage of the situation to settle her emotions...
While traveling to the next town, the two did not follow the road that’ll lead them straight to the next town. Instead they took the long way and went into the woods.
Why the woods you ask?
It was so Chaos could teach the girl how to fight, how to procure her own food, and how to survive on her own. Having not left her village ever since she was born, Rennel was completely ignorant how the outside world works. If left alone on her own device, who knew what might have happened to her. This was especially true since she was a girl.
Chaos wasn't looking down at Rennel for being female. Unlike the modern worlds that Chaos had traveled to, Rennel’s world was considered a backwater world. Beliefs, ways of life, technology, and governance; all of them are still considered primitive.
And in a primitive world were the concept of equality has yet to be invented, women are considered inferior to men. Compared to men, women in this world have fewer rights.
If Rennel grew up in a “normal” peasant village, she would have been married early, bear children, work at the fields and lived her whole life following the will of her husband. She would not have a chance for education, be in position of power, or even decide what she wanted to do in life. And if she were to be sold to slavery, her fate could have been worse.
Even if she were to be born in nobility, her life still wouldn’t be in her control. Her education, marriage, and pretty much everything in her life would have been arranged for her. Although she didn’t have to worry about food, clothing and shelter, she would still have no freedom.
Having experienced and seen pretty much everything in life, Chaos would not allow the girl it had saved to remain ignorant her whole life. It would teach her everything she needed in order to have full control of her destiny. And as for how far she could go on the path she had chosen rely solely on her.
Chaos looked at the girl not too far away from it. Compared when she was still living in her old village, Rennel looked much healthier. She was also not as skinny as she once was. It's obvious from a glance that Chaos took really good care of her.
It also gave her a blessing with lots of effects. The effects of the blessings grants the girl great health that would prevent her from catching diseases or falling ill. It also grant her great comprehension, allow her to use magic, and so on.
With the blessings alone, the girl was set to walk the path of being able to control her destiny.
That said, before the girl could even think of controlling her own destiny, she must first get through the very first obstacle to that path: Catching a cute-looking rabbit…
**To be continued...**
**Previous Chapters:** https://read.cash/@beastion
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 2 (Escape Pt. 2)
**Chapter 2**
Upon returning to Rennel’s house, Chaos found the girl still awake. Although slightly surprised, Chaos finds it a relief that it no longer need to trouble itself in order to wake up the girl.
“I need to tell you something.” Chaos started.
Rennel looked at the mysterious creature, Chaos and smiled. “What is it?” The girl asked.
Despite looking cheerful, Chaos found that the girl’s smile was rather despondent. The mysterious creature frowns a little and stared at the girl with its golden eyes.
“I see that you’re not ignorant as you look.” Chaos said after letting out a silent sigh.
Judging from the girl’s expression, Chaos concludes that the girl was long aware of her situation.
“When did you find out?” Chaos asked.
Rennel contemplated for a bit before speaking. “About three years ago. I found out the truth after my best friend, Pina suddenly went missing one day.” The girl answered truthfully.
“When I asked her mother what happened to her, her mother told me that she ran away.” Rennel continued. “I didn’t believe what she said. I know Pina, she wouldn’t ran away without telling me anything. At the very least she would have said goodbye…”
Chaos did not interrupt the girl and quietly listened to the side. From the girl’s mouth, Chaos found out that after the girl, Pina disappeared; food was suddenly distributed to all the villagers which helped the villager to safely tide the winter that year.
Actually, it wasn’t the first time that food was distributed to the villagers during the winter seasons. It happened every year. But before the food was distributed, a child or two would suddenly go missing. And the reason that the parents of the missing children give was similar to what Pina’s mother gave: The children ran away.
Although slightly suspicious, Pina and Rennel didn’t think much about it at that time. Their village was very poor. Just having something to eat for the day was difficult enough. Coupled with the hard work in the fields, it was not too surprising that some of the children would run away.
“I secretly investigated what happened, and found out the real reason when one of the adults has a slip of tongue.”
Rennel stopped talking when she reached that point of the story. She was clenching her fist so hard, her knuckles turned white. Chaos could sense the raging emotion within the girl’s heart. How hard it must have been to keep everything inside her?
It took Rennel quite a while before she successfully gets hold of her emotion. “Before any of the children would go missing, a mysterious man wearing a black cloak would always visit the village and stay at the village chief’s house. He would stay for a single night and leave the next day. After he left, one or two children would also disappear from the village.”
Rennel’s eyes were already red at this point but still she continues pouring her heart out. “The mysterious cloaked man also visited the village the day Pina went missing…”
Chaos sighed gently after Rennel stopped talking. She probably won’t be saying anything else. And frankly, there’s really no need. The fate of the girl named Pina and the children before her that went missing was pretty obvious: All of them were sold as slaves.
Looking at Rennel, many of things that confuse Chaos before about the girl’s behavior was finally cleared up. Her sickly appearance, her ability to lie and make up stories on the spot, and her quiet and obedient personality at home; all of it was just a façade that the girl uses to protect herself.
She believed that if her appearance was sickly, the villagers would think twice before sacrificing her. Her lies and obedient personality was used to create a fog of obscurity. The higher the tree the more wind it would catch. Same goes for Rennel’s case. The less she stands out, the smaller the chance of being chosen. And the fact that she was the only young person remaining in the village was proof that her plan works.
Unfortunately, what was fated to happen will surely happen. Since Rennel was the only young person that remained in the village, she could no longer escape her fate. Like the others before her, she too, would be sold into slavery, and be the tool that’ll give the village another year.
“What a shitty village. No wonder, its luck ran out. Almost all of its inhabitants are idiots.” Chaos did not minced words and mercilessly criticized the villagers. Just like what the old woman said, when the villagers started selling their children, they forfeited the village’s future.
“You should run away.” Chaos suddenly said.
“Huh?” Surprised by what the mysterious creature said, Rennel wasn’t able to react and could only stare into Chaos’ golden eyes.
“What’s with that dumbfounded look? If you stay here, you’re going to be sold to the slave trader. Surely you don’t plan to just give up after coming this far, do you?
Chaos’ words made Rennel’s heart tremble. Just as Chaos said, she didn’t want to be sold as slave. Although she was thankful that her aunt took her in when her father was killed by a wild beast, it didn’t mean that she’s okay with the fact that she’s going to be sold to so that the village could survive for another year.
Seeing the girl grew quiet after being told to run away, Chaos didn’t push her further. Whether she run away or accept her fate depend solely on her. If she decides to fight her destiny and leave, Chaos would help her. But if she chooses to stay and succumb to her fate, then Chaos would leave her that night and no longer concern itself with the girl’s well-being.
Rennel stayed silent, and was slightly hesitant. Despite how the villager treated her, she did grow up in the village and has some feelings for it. If didn’t leave, she would be sold, and village could survive for another year. But if she runs away, many of the villager would freeze and starve to death because there won’t be money to buy food and warm clothes.
The girl stayed like that for several minutes before raising her head. She looked at Chaos who was watching her quietly the entire time. There’s determination in her eyes.
“I’ll leave.” Rennel said with determination.
“Is that your final answer? You won’t change your mind?” Chaos asked.
“Yes.” Rennel answered without hesitation. Although she has feelings for the village, Rennel could still not forgive the adults for selling their children just like that. Even if the villager did that out of desperation, what they did was still unforgivable. The fact that they continued doing it year after year proved that the villagers choses the easy way out of their predicament.
It was immoral and wrong. Even if slavery was a common practice in this world, it would not change the fact that it was immoral and wrong.
Even though she's feeling guilty to leave the villagers to their fates, Rennel still decided to be selfish for once.
After seeing the determination in the girl’s eyes, Chaos nodded its head. It was satisfied with the girl’s decision. Chaos had always appreciated people with strong will. Those who tried fighting their destiny despite the overwhelming odds are always pleasing to the mysterious creature’s eyes.
“We should leave now.” Chaos said in a matter-of-fact manner.
“Eh? You mean, right now?” Rennel was stunned by the suddenness of the situation. She thought that Chaos would give her a little bit of time to prepare. She didn’t expect that she’ll leave without preparing anything.
Chaos gave the girl the side eye, “Why? Do you want to stay her until the slave trader arrives?” It asked bitingly.
Rennel shook her head and quickly explained that she hasn’t prepared anything yet. She was especially worry what to eat while on the road. After all she didn’t want to escape slavery only to die of starvation!
“Is that all? And I thought it was something serious,” Chaos looked at the girl with disdain. “I’ll be going with you too. Do you think I’ll let you starve? Surely you haven’t forgotten who caught the fish you ate at dinner, right?”
Right! How could have she forgotten about that? With Chaos ability, procuring food would be easy!
Rennel hesitated no longer and quickly change to a much warmer clothes. Following Chaos’ suggestion, she packed light, bringing only things that would keep her warm like a blanket. After putting everything in a sack, she wore her old, worn-out shoes and nodded at Chaos.
“Let’s go.” Rennel said.
****
Chaos and Rennel slowly sneaked out of the house while trying to reduce the noise they’re making as much as possible. The house was small and a loud noise could wake up the girl’s aunty and uncle which could make escaping more troublesome.
Not long after the two found themselves on the road to the nearest town which was about 2 days or so away on foot. The snow had already started accumulating in road making it difficult to walk. Coupled with the cold weather, the journey was far from pleasant.
After an hour or so of walking, Rennel was already feeling tired but she dare not complain. Since she decided to run away, she’s determined to get through with it.
“There’s something that I must do so I’ll be leaving you for a short while.” Chaos suddenly said. “You keep walking, and don’t wait for me. If you found that people are after you then run. No matter what don’t get captured.”
Chaos jumped off of Rennel’s shoulder after giving some instructions and went into the woods before the girl could even react.
“W,wait! Where are you going?!” Rennel begun to panic after seeing the mysterious creature leaved. She tried calling to it but received no reply.
Dumbfounded, the girl could only stare blankly at the dark woods where the mysterious creature, Chaos, disappeared to. After recovering from her shock, Rennel wanted to follow Chaos into the woods but hesitated after recalling the creature’s instructions.
Feeling annoyed and dejected, Rennel could only continue walking along the road. Even though she’s scared to be alone in the middle of nowhere, the girl could only trust Chaos’ promise that it’ll return after completing what it sets to do.
“Stupid Chaos… How could it just leave me like that after convincing me to run away?” Slightly resentful, the girl could only curse under her breath. “Hmph! Just you wait. I’ll ignore you after you returned.”
While Rennel was complaining to herself, a large group of men are seen walking just a few kilometers behind her. These men came from the direction of Rennel’s village and they all looked especially solemn. One of the men was someone Rennel knew quite well – her uncle!
The reason the village men almost caught up with the two so easily was due to some incident.
Not too long after the Chaos and Rennel started their journey, the girl’s aunt checked on her but found her room empty. At first, she didn’t find this strange and only thought that she went to the bathroom. But after waiting for quite some time without seeing the shadow of her niece, she became suspicious and went to check her room again. This time she noticed some missing things like the girl’s blanket, an old coat, and a sack.
She was stunned and realized that her niece had run away. The aunt quickly wake up her husband who, after knowing what happened went to the village chief’s house.
The old village chief was flummoxed and grew panicky. He quickly ordered for a large group of men to pursue the girl. The slave trader was set to arrive tomorrow noon and without Rennel, they can’t get the money to buy the necessary supply to tide over the winter. She must be caught no matter what!
Due the difference in their physiques, the men quickly caught up with Rennel who panicked after noticing the village men less than a kilometer away from her!
Rennel tries her best to run away from her pursuers. But the difference in physiques and stamina between her made it impossible to outrun the men. What’s more, the girl had been walking for more than an hour under the snowing sky when the village men caught up with her so she was already exhausted.
Although she had a head start, the men eventually caught up with her. Terribly exhausted, Rennel finally ran out of energy and stopped running. The men drew closer to her but stopped when they’re about 15 feet away from her. A figure, that Rennel was familiar with walk towards the front.
“Uncle…” Seeing the person that walked forward, Rennel’s expression grew complicated.
“Have you had enough causing trouble? If you have, you should return to the village with us.” The man, Rennel’s uncle reprimands.
Rennel shook her head and looked straight at her uncle -- her gaze full of resentment. “You want me to return to the village so that you could sell me to the slave trader? I’m sorry uncle but I have to refuse.” The girl said with determination.
Rennel’s uncle and the other village men were caught off guard by the girl’s accusation and didn’t know what to say. The girl’s uncle wanted to refute but couldn’t and could only let out a sigh.
“So you already knew, huh… No, considering that all of the children aside from you disappeared, it wasn’t strange that you knew.” Rennel’s uncle said with a hint of regret in his voice.
“Was it worth it? Selling the village children and pushing them into slavery? Is it really worth it?” Rennel asked in a voice full of resentment.
Another man stepped out of the group when Rennel’s uncle didn’t reply to her niece’s question. It was someone Rennel was familiar with. Before Pina was sold to slavery, Rennel also called the man uncle.
“What do you know?! Do you think we want to do this? If we didn’t sell our children, the whole village would have starved a long time ago!” Pina’s father explained with a pained voice.
“We tried everything we could but there’s just no other way. We’ve asked help from the local officials but they told us that we’re on our own. The most that they could do was not tax the village. There had been an ongoing war since several years ago; coupled that with the unending famine that hits the kingdom, we could only turn to selling our children in order to survive.”
Rennel listened to everything that Pina’s father said. Chaos already told her everything while they were on the road but it didn’t affect her determination. No matter the reason. What they did was wrong.
“Let me ask you this. What are guys going to do after selling me?” Rennel asked with a dark expression. “No children had been born in the village since you started selling them. After I’m gone, who are you guys going to sell next? Are you going to sell yourselves, or maybe you’ll sell your wives next?”
Rennel’s words were full of barbs and scathing, piercing the men where it hurts the most and leaving them with no way to retort. When it seemed like that the silence would continue; another villager stepped out of the group.
“We don’t know what will happen next. But what we do know is that you’re coming with us!” The man threatened.
Hearing the man’s words, the other villager woke up of their reverie. Although what Rennel said made them ashamed, the die had already been cast and they could no longer stop.
The village men with the exception of Rennel’s uncle and Pina’s father started surrounding the girl. But as they’re about to apprehend the girl, they heard a voice that made their souls shake in fear!
**To be continued...**
Seeds of Chaos: Chapter 1 (Escape Pt. 1)
**Chapter 1**
In darkness of the night, a small figure could be seen running. Every time she breathes out, white vapor would come out of her mouth due to the cold weather.
She was exhausted. If she could she would stop running but the words of a small, white, and mysterious creature keeps egging her to run.
She had no choice but to run in order to escape.
Yes, escape…
She was being pursued. Some people, no, they’re not just some random people – her pursuers where the men from her village. Don’t be mistaken though. The word ‘pursue’ here didn’t have the same context as courtship or being very popular as to be pursued by countless admirers.
Nay, there’s absolutely nothing romantic about it. The men pursuing her have no romantic feeling for her whatsoever. They were pursuing her so that they could return her to the village.
Rennel, the ordinary village girl who coincidentally met the mysterious creature, Chaos ran away from her village, but was quickly found out and is now being pursued by the village men.
Why had the girl, Rennel ran away from her village, you ask? We need to go back to the day Rennel brought Chaos back with her.
****
After agreeing to take Chaos back with her, Rennel quickly went to the river to fetch water. While the girl was fetching water, Chaos walked towards the edge of the river. Chaos stared at the river water for several seconds before lifting its right front leg and smashing it into the water!
*Bang!*
Rennel was greatly startled by the loud noise and almost dropped the wooden bucket in shock. Putting down the wooden bucket, she quickly ran towards the mysterious creature, looking rather nervous.
“What just happened?!” She asked in a slightly panicked voice.
Chaos gave the worried girl a nonchalant look and answered. ”Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just preparing my rent.” It said.
“Rent? What rent?” Rennel asked in confusion.
The mysterious Chaos did not directly answer and simply pointed at a nearby tree. “Look over there.” It ordered.
The village girl unconsciously followed and looks at the direction where Chaos was pointing. Below the tree she saw a big fish jumping about.
“It’s a fish! What’s a fish doing there?!” Rennel asked in shock.
Chaos gave the village girl the side-eye and spoke. “Why else? I’ve caught it of course.” It said.
“You caught it?!”
Rennel’s confusion was understandable. Earlier she only saw Chaos just standing at the edge of the river while staring at the water. Moments later she heard a loud ‘bang’, and quickly rushed over to the mysterious creature out of worry.
Who would have guessed that Chaos was actually fishing!
Actually, scooping might be the right word to use here as Chaos did not use a fishing pole, a net, or a spear. It simply raised one of its forelegs and scooped a large fish out of the chilly water.
“Um! I can’t just stay at your place without paying rent, can’t I? I might not be human but I’m familiar with your race’s custom.” Chaos explained while looking slightly proud.
The village girl stared at the mysterious creature in shock. Despite looking like a pet, Chaos was surprisingly conscientious!
There was silence in the area as both the girl and mysterious creature stared at each other for half a day.
“Aren’t you going to capture it? It’s jumping around trying to get back to the water. It might escape, you know?” Chaos said, instantly breaking the silence.
Rennel woke up from her reverie and quickly pounced at the large fish, catching it in her embrace. The fish struggled and thrash around in an attempt to escape the girl’s escape. But no matter how much it struggled, and thrashes, the girl simply refuses to let go and instead used more strength, literary strangling the poor fish to the point that bubbles started coming out of its mouth!
A deadly embrace!
Chaos stared at the scene speechlessly and could not help but be reminded of its own situation earlier. Like the fish, it too suffered from the girl’s powerful “embrace.” Although it didn’t use its strength in fear of hurting the girl, Rennel was surprisingly strong even with those skinny arms of hers.
Looking at the now dead fish (probably), Chaos silently prayed (to no one in particular) that the fish won’t meet the girl named Rennel in its next life.
Rennel returned to Chaos’ side while carrying the dead fish (probably) in her arms. The girl’s clothes was disheveled and wet after wrestling with the fish but Rennel doesn’t seem to notice. Instead there was a huge smile on her innocent-looking face.
“You look quite happy.” Chaos started.
“Hehe… Of course I am. I rarely have the chance to eat fish and meat, you know? It’s either hard black bread or porridge.” Rennel answered cheerfully.
Chaos stared at the still smiling girl for a few seconds. Many thoughts are running on its mind. From the girl’s unhealthy looking appearance, and clean but faded dress, it could tell that Rennel came from an impoverished household.
No, maybe it’s not just Rennel’s household. The village itself might be poor.
“I think we should go. Your clothes are wet. You need to change clothes before you catch a cold.” Chaos reminded.
“Ah, you’re right! I’ve been here longer than I should. My aunt would definitely scold me because of it. Thankfully, I have this fish so I have an excuse.”
Rennel looked for a sturdy branch and swiftly put the end of the branch through the fish’s gills. She put the branch on her left shoulder while carrying the wooden bucket with her right hand.
Chaos quickly jumped on the girl’s right shoulder without saying anything. The girl didn’t mind and started walking energetically.
Half-way to their destination, Rennel slowed down and spoke. “Uh, Chaos, we might need to think of an excuse for you. It might be dangerous for you if my aunt, uncle, or any of villagers saw you. There’s a high chance that they will catch and kill you for food.” Rennel explained while looking rather awkward.
Hearing Rennel’s words, Chaos was left speechless. “Could it be that this girl and the people of her village would eat anything as long as it moves? Just how poor is that village anyway?” Chaos pondered inside its head.
“Don’t worry, I can't be seen by just anyone.” Chaos answered.
One of the reasons why Chaos decided to go with the village girl aside from the reason it gave earlier (needing a place to recuperate) was because Rennel could actually see it.
Yes, Chaos is a mythical creature that came out from a crack in the sky. It has strange powers besides its ability to speak and the power it used to scoop out the fish from the river. Despite its appearance, Chaos is a higher being and could not be easily seen by other creatures.
The fact that Rennel could see it despite being human was strange enough. Chaos doubted that anyone else in Rennel’s village could see it.
“Is that true? If so, then it’s okay!”
Knowing that Chaos could not be seen by the villagers, Rennel become more confident. Her footsteps hastened and before long she could see the silhouette of her village.
****
The girl and the mysterious creature arrived at the village and were greeted by gloomy sight. Rennel didn’t show much reaction to it as she’s already used to the scenery. Chaos on the other hand was different.
“Such negative energy…” Chaos thought after seeing the rundown village.
Rennel keeps on walking towards her house without saying anything. Those who see her stared at her, no, stared at the large fish she was carrying. Greed could be seen on the villager’s eyes but Rennel simply ignored it. Not long after, the two reached Rennel’s house.
In front of the house, a skinny middle-aged woman was waiting with stern expression on her face. Rennel greeted her but the woman did not even look at the girl. Instead she stared at the fish that Rennel was carrying.
“Where did you get that?” The woman asked, obviously referring to the fish.
“I accidentally caught it while fetching water. It was trapped in the shallows. I’m not really sure how it gets there.” Rennel lied.
Chaos, which was still on the girl’s shoulder, was surprised that Rennel’s could lie so easily but since it didn’t understand the whole situation, it decided to just stay quiet and listen.
“Oh? That’s quite lucky of you. Bring the fish to the kitchen; I’ll take care of it. You also need to go back a few more times to the river; a single bucket won’t be enough”
The stern-looking woman, Rennel’s aunt didn’t ask anymore but instead ordered her niece to bring the fish and the bucket inside the house.
Rennel simply nods her head in affirmation and went inside the house. After that she went back to the river to fetch more water. It took her about two hours of going back and forth to the river before her aunt was satisfied.
After a long day of doing chores, Rennel was physically exhausted and returned to her room after eating dinner.
“Ah, that fish sure was delicious.” Rennel exclaimed cheerfully.
Even though the girl was dead tired after being overworked, she was still rather cheerful. She was especially happy that she was able to eat fish today.
“What are you so happy about? It’s just fish. Besides, you were only given a small slice and a piece of hard bread despite being overworked.” Chaos grumpily reprimands. “No wonder you’re so skinny.”
“Hehehe. Its fine, I’m already used to it. Besides, it can’t be helped. Foods are scarce during this season. It’s already good that I have something to eat.” Rennel answered with a cheerful voice.
Chaos snorted in displeasure but did not say anything else. Instead it went towards the small window and slightly opened it.
Seeing this, Rennel could not help but ask: “What are you doing?”
“I want to go out for a bit and look around. You should rest. I’ll be back in an hour or so.” After saying that, Chaos jumped off the window without saying anything else. It didn’t even look at Rennel and left the slightly disappointed girl.
*Sigh.* “I want to talk to you more and you left just like that. Fine you can do whatever you want!”
With a pouting face, the girl went to bed and covered herself with a coarse blanket in order to sleep. She didn’t know when Chaos would be back so she didn't close the window despite the night being especially chilly. She was worry that the mysterious creature won't be able to enter the house if she closed the window.
Chaos heard the girl’s complain but chooses to ignore it. Instead, it quickly went towards a one of the houses. It stare at the old house made of stones in front of it and jumped at the slightly open window. Inside the house it saw an old couple chatting.
“I’ve asked the girl’s uncle. He said that the girl Rennel coincidentally caught the big fish while fetching water at the river. It was stuck in the shallows or something.” The old man informed.
The old woman sitting near the fire nodded and spoke slowly: “That’s her luck. Nothing we can do about it.”
“Why couldn’t I have some of her luck? I often go to the river too but I have never been so lucky.” The old man grumbled.
“Is luck something anyone could have just because they wished for it?” The old woman lectured. “Besides… that girl is going to be…”
The old woman’s voice trembled slightly as she recalled something. From her trembling voice and regretful expression, one could tell that she’s clearly unhappy about something. The old man sighed and quickly soothe the old woman.
“Don’t think too much about it. It’s something that has been decided since a long time ago.” He said in a slightly regretful tone. “Besides, she’s not the first one…”
“It’s for the survival of this village, right?” The old woman asked in small voice.
The old man was contemplates for several seconds before answering: “Yes, it’s for the sake of the village.”
“Once she’s gone, the village will no longer have a future. No, after the villagers started selling their own children, the village had already forsaken its future. So what if we survive another winter? Without the young ones to replace us old folks, will this village still exist in a few years?”
The atmosphere in the house became gloomier as the old couple stopped talking. Even the fire in the fireplace seemed to have become less warm because of it.
Chaos who was listening quietly to the conversation of the old couple quietly leaved the house. He then went to the other houses and heard similar conversations. Thanks to that, Chaos was able to gather a lot of information. The information he gathered from the village chief’s house was especially plenty.
The reason why Chaos went to the house of the old couple first was because when Rennel returned from the river carrying a large fish, the only person that didn’t show greed was the old woman.
“Selling the young folks of the village to slavery in order to survive the winter? Should I say as expected of a technologically undeveloped world?” Chaos pondered.
“That old woman was quite smart. She knew that by selling the young folks, the villager pretty much forfeited the future of the whole village. Sadly, not everyone in the village thinks like her.”
Chaos looked at the gloomy night sky and noticed some white objects falling. It was snow
“It started snowing huh…”
Lowering its head, Chaos let out a sigh. After being silent for several second, it started walking towards Rennel’s house. It had made a decision.
**To be continued...**
The Seeds of Chaos: Prologue
**Prologue: Chaos**
*Crack!*
In the dark sky above a nameless snow-capped mountain, a crack suddenly appeared without being noticed by anyone. And from the crack, a sphere-like object emitting soft golden light came out and flew towards the direction of a small river with incredible speed and disappeared into the darkness.
Several seconds later, the crack in the sky disappeared as well, leaving not a single trace behind.
As this event was not witnessed by anyone, it did not cause any commotion among the small populace of the region.
When morning arrived, a small figure of a skinny girl with long silver hair carrying a wooden bucket could be seen walking towards the small river.
The girl in question was less than 5 feet tall, skinny and seemed to be aged 13-15 years old. She has big black eyes that are full of innocence and a small cute nose but her most noticeable feature was her long silver hair tied in a braid that reaches her waist. She’s wearing a long greyish dress with long sleeves and a faded but clean apron.
At a glance she looks like an average-looking girl but if you one looks closely, one would notice that she has good facial features and could be considered pretty. Unfortunately, her skin has a sallow look to it that made her look unhealthy. And judging by her skinny figure, it’s easy to see that she was greatly undernourished.
The girl’s name is Rennel and she lived in a nearby village not too far away from the snow-capped mountain.
“It’s getting colder.” Rennel murmured to herself as she rubbed her hands together.
Rennel looked at the grey and gloomy sky and a frown appear on her sickly-looking face. From the looks of it, it won’t be long before snow started falling.
“It seemed that this time’s winter is going to be especially harsh…”
Rennel picked up the wooden bucket she had put down earlier and started walking towards the shallow river. She needed to fetch water quickly or her aunt would scold her again.
The river was a bit away from her village, needing a minimum of 20 minutes walking to get there and another 20 minutes to go back. As the only water source in the area, the small river plays a vital role in the villagers’ survival.
After several minutes of walking, Rennel noticed a mysterious white object not too far away from her.
“Eh? What’s that?”
Rennel dropped the wooden bucket she’s carrying and ran towards the white object that was on the ground. The girl stopped a few feet away from the mysterious white object and stared at it with her big eyes.
“What manner of creature is it?”
The girl’s eyes were full of curiosity. The mysterious white object was not an object at all but a small, unfamiliar animal.
Rennel reached for a twig and carefully poked the mysterious creature that did not react at her arrival.
“Is it dead?” Rennel asked herself as she continues to poke on the creature. “I wonder if it could be eaten. It’s so small so there’s probably not much meat in it…” She thought.
“How rude.”
Rennel stopped poking the mysterious white animal and stood in alert. She looked around her but saw no one.
“Did I mishear it? I’m quite certain that I heard a voice just now.” Rennel scratched the back of her head in confusion. She’s quite certain that she’d heard a voice but seeing there’s no other person around, she concluded that she might have simply misheard.
“Where are you looking at, girl? I’m down here.”
Rennel almost jumped in fright after hearing the voice again. She quickly looked down and saw a fair of big golden eyes staring at her.
It was the mysterious white creature.
The village girl and the mysterious white creature stared at each other for some time. Several seconds later, the first one to react was the girl, Rennel. “You’re alive!” She blurted out.
“I was never dead to begin with.” The mysterious white creature replied sarcastically. “Don’t go killing others off so easily.” It added.
“You can speak too!” The village girl pointed after a few seconds of silence.
“…I see that you’re not very bright too.” The mysterious white creature replied sounding slightly exasperated.
The mysterious white creature looked at the girl in front of it with a bit of annoyance. Although it was not really angry, it’s not pleased either. And who can’t blame it? It was just lying on the cold ground minding its own business when a rude human girl approaches and started poking it with a twig. If that’s not bad enough, she presumed that it was dead and even planned on bringing it back to be eaten!
“So do you plan to just stand there as a statue? Are you not going to say anything?” The mysterious white creature scolded.
I, um… I’m Rennel. I lived at a village near the foot of the mountain over there.” The girl quickly introduced and pointed at the snow-capped mountain in the distant.
Rennel didn’t know why she introduced herself to a stranger, no to a mysterious animal she’d never seen before. It was as if there was some sort of power that compels her to do so.
“Chaos.” The mysterious white creature replied with its name.
The girl tilted her head slightly to the side, looking really puzzled. “Chaos? Is that your name?” She asked.
“Not necessarily. That’s just the name given to me by those who knew me. My true name’s too complicated for most people to comprehend.” The mysterious creature stood on its hind legs and crossed its arms (front legs) like a person.
*So cute!* Rennel’s eyes turn into hearts seeing the mysterious white creature, Chaos’ adorable and almost human-like action. Unable to control herself, the fearless village girl picked up the small creature and rubs her checks on it.
Chaos struggled and put its paws on the girls check in an attempt to protect itself from the girl’s assault (?). “What do you think you’re doing, human?! Do you have any idea who you’re dealing with?”
The mysterious white creature, Chaos tried to wrestle out of the village girl’s embrace but Rennel proved to be quite persistent. Although Chaos could forcefully push the girl away, it could not do so as it might accidentally hurt the girl in the process.
Left with little choice, Chaos could only grunt with annoyance as it waited for the girl to stop. Several minutes later, the girl, Rennel, finally had enough and let go of the bedraggled creature.
“Seriously, you…” Chaos looked at Rennel with stern eyes after escaping the girl’s grasp. He’s quite speechless by the girl’s action. If those people familiar with its background knew what the girl did to it, they might start worshipping the girl as their idol!
Rennel on the other hand was quite embarrassed after calming down, and could only let out shallow laughs after being stared at by Chao’s blaming and stern eyes.
“S,Sorry…” The girl started while lowering her head.
*Sigh.* “Forget it. Just bring me to your home.”
Despite his annoyance, the mysterious creature, Chaos, decided to let the matter go. Anyway, the girl has no ill-intent and simply reacted like how girls usually react after seeing adorable small animals. Due to some matter that it doesn’t feel like explaining, Chaos was in its current form and could not really blame the girl (or anyone else in that matter) for reacting like that.
“You want to come with back to the village?” Rennel was surprised to hear what Chaos’ said. She thought that the mysterious creature would stay away from her after what she did. It unexpectedly wants to go with back with her!
“Yes. I might not look it but I’m injured and needed to recuperate. Although I could just stay here to recuperate since no one can actually harm me, it would still be annoying if some beast, or other people came to pester me.” Chaos explained. “So how about it? Will you allow me to recuperate at your place?” It asked.
“Sure!”
Rennel didn’t even need to think twice before agreeing to Chaos’ request. The girl couldn’t really explain it… But she felt really comfortable around the mysterious creature. Although she might get into trouble with her aunt and uncle by bringing a “pet” home, Rennel still felt like she had to do it.
With a huge smile on her face, Rennel extend her hand towards Chaos.
And that’s how Chaos, the mysterious white creature and Rennel, the ordinary village girl met for the very first time. Unbeknownst to Rennel, her meeting with the mysterious creature, Chaos, would change her fate forever – for she had been chosen to be a “seed” of Chaos.
**End of Prologue**
My Awakening to the Wonder That Is Bitcoin Cash
****Pre-Awakening****
The phrase ‘**the awakening**’ could mean a lot of thing but in this article it’s used in the context of me awakening to the wonder of Bitcoin Cash.
How did I ‘**awaken**’ you asked?
Well, it’s a long story… or maybe not.
So the story goes like this. Before I started using BCH, I’m an ardent supporter of BTC and ETH. All of my cryptocurrency transactions involved either BTC or ETH.
Yes, no BCH, no LTC, no XRP no, nothin...
Actually there’s a reason why only transact using BTC or ETH. Firstly, I’m a former supporter of the two cryptocurrencies. Secondly, when I started writing online (I used to blog on Steemit) I am paid in STEEM. And in order for me to cash out my earnings, I need to convert it to BTC (ETH only became available a while later) before converting it to Fiat.
Now as for the reason why I always choose to convert my STEEM to BTC or ETH, the answer is actually much simpler: The platform I used to convert my BTC to Fiat, coins.ph, only deals with the aforementioned cryptocurrencies.
Yes, coins.ph didn’t offer BCH back when I started writing at Steemit. Then why did I not use other exchanges, you asked?
That’s because a few years back, only coins.ph deals with cryptocurrencies in my country and only in 2020 did our government approved other exchanges. So basically, we don’t have many options back then, at least in comparison to those in the US, Europe and other part of Asia.
But even when coins.ph started transacting with BCH (and XRP) I still did not use BCH and stick with BTC and ETH. Why? It’s because I’m an idiot…
I could have started using BCH more than a year ago but being an ardent BTC and ETH fan boy, I stuck to my gun and refused to use other cryptocurrencies.
It was a stupid decision that made me lose out on my potential earnings. Something that I regret till this day.
****The Awakening****
The first time I used BCH was just before 2021. Before that, it’s always BTC or ETH. No exception.
When I used BCH for the first time, it was mainly due to curiosity. Back then I’m starting to get ticked off by BTC and ETH’s long transaction delays and high transaction and gas fees. The long transaction delay I could still tolerate but the high transaction and gas fees the real reason why I decided to try other options.
So what happened was that when the time for me to withdraw and convert my last STEEM earnings to Fiat, I decided to use BCH instead of BTC or ETH. And the result made me… face-palmed.
Yes, I face-palmed but not because BCH sucks and my experience was bad. No, it’s the opposite. I face-palmed because how stupid I was back then. The transaction fee, the speed; BCH surpasses BTC and ETH on all accounts. I would even dare say that they’re not on the same level.
Maybe I was just being bias due to the shock but that’s how I felt back then. And the more I use BCH, the more I grew to realize how much I have missed out. Also, I finally understand why BTC was considered digital gold. BTC had reached the limit of its usability and could only be relegated as a store of value. And as for ETH, its absurd gas fee and long delays made it almost impossible to be used as a peer-to-peer electronic currency.
BCH is way much better than other cryptocurrencies, and no, I’m not just comparing it to BTC and ETH anymore. I have also tried other cryptocurrencies like LTC (litecoin), XRP (ripple), and DOGE (dogecoin). And the experience wasn’t bad at all. Actually it was good. But despite my good experience with them, there’s just something about BCH that made me stick with it.
Maybe it’s the potential of BCH. I have this feeling that although DOGE, LTC, and XRP weren’t bad, their potential was limited. Unlike BCH, they might not truly reach mass adoption.
Admittedly, BCH has its share of disadvantage. Firstly, like most cryptocurrencies, it’s still very volatile. Secondly, its value rises and falls along with BCT due to correlation. This can’t be helped as it’s a fork of BTC but I really want to see this be addressed in the near future. Thirdly, BCH don’t seem to be as decentralized as other cryptocurrencies. The fact that BSV exist was proof of this (people on the top have different vision for the cryptocurrency resulting in a split). Lastly, there were still lingering effects remaining after the fork that causes the original BCH to split between the current BCH and BSV. These lingering effects cause some people from joining the BCH train.
But despite the disadvantages I mentioned, BCH is still among the best cryptocurrency out there. What’s more, BCH is slowly regaining the ground that it had lost because of the split while BSV on the other hand is slowly becoming stagnant.
****The Future of Cryptocurrency is BCH****
BCH is **the future**; I have great confidence in that. The only way I could see BCH actually failing is when the governments around the world start a global wide crackdown on all cryptocurrencies. But the chance of that happening is very slim.
I mean, why would they? The potential of cryptocurrencies like BCH is clear for everyone to see. Even if the government felt threatened, they would not suddenly start banning cryptocurrencies. Sure, they might start pushing for more regulations but as long as cryptocurrencies keep improving, and showing its worth, the populace will keep supporting them.
Speaking of improvement and worth…
While the biggest cryptocurrency (BTC) remained stagnant, BCH keeps improving and moving forward. And the lost vision that made Satoshi Nakamoto to give up on Bitcoin was being realized by BCH.
Unlike BTC, BCH has a clear goal and reason for its existence. It’s not to be a store of value or a token where all other tokens are to be built upon. Rather it’s to become a true digital currency – a currency that could be used for all type of transactions – a cheap, fast, and secure currency that people in all manners of life could use.
There are also other cryptocurrencies with the same goal as BCH but I strongly believed that only BCH could withstand the test of time while others could only fall behind or worse, fall to obscurity. I’m not saying that BCH should be the only digital currency because that would be unrealistic. But even if there are other digital currency, BCH would still be on top.
To be honest, I’m really glad that I switched from BTC to BCH. Although it took me quite a long time to realize the wonder of BCH, I believed that I’m not really too late. Because I believed in the potential of BCH, I can confidently say that I’m one of its most ardent supporters. And unless BCH lost its vision and become another BTC, I’m here to stay.
What do you think of this article? Please share your thoughts in the comment section.
**Thanks for reading.**
****Image Source:****
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/banner-header-eye-window-woman-1235602/
@beastion