"My lord! R-Reinhardt! "he cried with it arms on its head. Sera immediately put herself between them her brows are almost combined from confusion.
"What are you exactly?" She asked staring at the hobgoblin that suddenly spoke in high pitch.
"You can talk?" she unbelievable said it between her breath. She didn;t move from her place. behhind her was also confuse Forest who was just called Reinhardt.
"How did you learn to talk?" Sera asked. the hobgoblin snorted as he tried to ignore sera's pressence.
Forest furrowed his eyebrows as the hobgoblin exclaimed the same name he can recalled in his dreams. he tilted his head. 'maybe he is mistaken' he thought... he shakes his head as he rejected that thought. 'He is a demi human. He must know it' he nodded.
"What do you mean by Reinhardt? So do you know this dude" Sera exclaimed back. Forest stared at Sera after hearing that.
"My lord allow me to silence this rude girl by eliminating her." the Hobgoblin ignored Sera as he kneeled to Forest. Forest stood and dusted off his pants and put on his hood.
"Ha? Rude? You're the rude here" Sera retorted back. "You suddenly attack us"
He tried to link his mind to him but no avail. So he has no choice but to use sera to relay his message.
"I can't go through his mind. Will you relay my message to him?"
"HMMFT. What is it?" Sera replied with loud voice. the Hobgoblin clicked his tongue and remain silent in the side.
"Aren't you aware that forest can't communicate? Isn't he your lord?" Sera announce. The hobgoblin thought something for a while.
He raises his head and look at his master.
"You lost your ability to talk? No not only that, you lose everything you had. It seems that the witch has been telling me the truth" he said almost like talking to himself like a madman. "Or not" He whispered to himself.
"Hey. Why don't you tell us what is happening. Forest can't use telepathy toward you he says. So be grateful that I am here" she raised her head as high as she could as she look at the hobgoblin with scornful look. the hobgoblin manage to ignore her again. If it isn't for his lord to be there, He should've killed her immediately.
She talked in a manner that she has the upper hand. She is trying hard not to think what her inner self want. It was hard and she is getting used of it. She threw a glance at Forest who was maintaining his usually face.
"How do you trust this human girl? They are our enemy" he said casually. it seems that he already make himself calm. that requires him to use all his patience to keep up with the human girl.
"You are too soon to jump on that question… State your name will you?" she replied without waiting for Forest to link her, his answer.
The hobgoblin threw a deadly glare at her before switching it to Forest. Forest smiled at him that gave him no choice to introduce himself.
"I am the leader of the Hobgoblin race, Lih vha gihn." He stood up and bowed facing Forest. Forest tried to stop him however he can't do so. The bulky appearance of the hobgoblin fear him. That is simply ridiculous.
"I am so worried about you after the witcth told me about you. Your sudden..." he cleared his throat as if something was blocking his throat. "I am willing to guide you back to your domain" he resumed. he clenched his fist in to ball that lays on the top of his thigh.
"Forest want to asked you about what is happening"
"My lord name is Reinhardt Nexus Van Houver…. Do not call the great master by that name you just pick out of nowhere." he glared at her Sera just ignore the deadly glare. Lih vha wanted to criticize her more however, his master awaits for his reply so he shifted his eyes to Reinhardt who look at him straightly in his eyes. The feeling he felt as he got his master full attention gave him weird feeling of excitement running wildly in his veins. Something that he never felt before back in the Demon continent.
"the current state of our continent is in chaos. The empire want to be a part of us. the kingdom got their way in from the southwest part of our continent..." He said with a hint of pain in his voice.
"and I am here is to guide you to your journey."
"No… you can't come with us. Your appearance can caught everyone attention. I know you are aware that, your race is a threat to human kind" Sera interrupted. Lih vha glared at her like he was about to devour her whole. she gulped.
"Who are you to talk back? You are just a mere human aren't you suppose to step back and aid your side not our side?" Lih vha said with hardness in every letter.
Lih vha, he was mistreated by the humans when he was just a weakling monster. He made it to go through the pain as he keep clinging into the rope of hope that was about to snap any time. However, a ray of light come past to him. A great Demon who rule over demi humans and monster like them came to him. A weak goblin is save by him. The great Demon prince save him.
Forest… Reinhardt raised his hand to stop him or rather say that to calm. Lih vha obey him like a domesticated trained puppy.
"If is for me, your lord won't made it here… ahem. He agreed to what I said. Also, just be thankful that I am aiding your side. Can't you just be grateful" Sera scornfully looked at Lih vha. She felt annoyed by his appearance not only that, his attitude to make her pissed off.
"Why do you trust this Human girl?" He shot back to Reinhardt.
"Because he trust me" sera shot back.
"Shut up" Lih vha shot back to her angrily. "Know your place Human!"
"Hey! I did just said what your master said! If you want me to shut up then fine talk to each other and I'll leave you two here and go on my own. You Hobgoblin going into my nerve!" she furiously exclaimed as she stood up from the ground and off on her own.
Her brows were about to become one. She walk like she wanted to destroy the dirt under her feet. She want to clear her mind from what just happened yet the hobgoblin annoying face keep on appearing on her mind. The handsome features of Forest appear on it too. She shakes her head to clear the mess.
"Right now… I will look for a treasures. And stray off somewhere" She exclaimed with enthusiasm like nothing happened earlier.
"This is what am I in the first place. A lone adventurer that will soon become the hero of humanity. HAHAHA" she laughed like a maniac as she stroll deeper in the mountain.
Forest calmly took a dried twig beside him. Lih Vha was silently sitting in a distance facing forest. He is not feeling guilty or remorseful from what happened. He think that it is good that the girl is away.
"I deeply apologized to my actions. I can't just trust her Even if you do… I can't" he said regretfully.
Forest pointed the twig on the ground and wrote what he wanted to say back to him.
"What do you mean by that? She look like the woman that appeared in your mind" Lih Vha can't believe about it and he is certain that something about it has something to do with the future?
"You want to travel with her? Master are you out of your mind? Dangers only await for you!" He exclaimed. He can't not just believe that. His aid was rejected and pick her rather than him.
"But…" forest wrote down again in the ground. lih vha waited him to finish again.
"I hate to admit everything you wish and that doesn't mean that I don't trust your ability ad your power. I am just worried because of your current state. And that woman, she just killed the some goblins! I smelled their traces in her hands"
After reading forest respond he sigh. He feel defeated by that young girl.
"I see… If those brethren benefits you through that, I forgave her." he replied knowing that, his master saw how it goes. He still felt upset about how his brethren was being killed for the money however he can't keep hating the person who killed it since the money was used to keep his lord need be fulfilled.
"I am grateful to see you well here. if only I can take you back now there is no such thing surpass my happiness as bringing you home."
"I will meet you again and find you. Lih Vha Gihn will always be at your side." He bowed and vanished into the thin air after using the scroll that he holds.
As Sera stand at the front of the Labyrinth. She stood there for a minute.
"AHHH… My potions is not on my pouch!" she cried. She remember that, she make forest hold onto it since she do the most of the work. She slumped on the ground and emptily face the cave that leads into darkness.
She scratches her head as she tilted her head side by side upward and downward. She stood up again to proceed to her new mission.
"I'll use sword and use rejuvenate and heal in bad times… Yes?" she said to herself and went to the dark cave leading to the labyrinth. Her casted light orb and it floated beside her. The dim cave filled with light.
The light orb last 1 hour and mana usage is just low. So there is nothing to worry about. She put her hand on the hilt of her sword as she moves further in. The dark cave give her an eerie feeling yet money gave her motivation to step forward.
If she run away right now she won't able to gather money, she won't able to move on to the next town. She is not alone she had her light orb today.
A Vampire bat flew toward her as it sense a sign of a good food. Sera reflexively slash her sword on the upcoming bat. The bat slice in to two and fell on the ground. Making the scenario worse. The other vampire bat flew on her place as the smell the putrid smell of their kin.
"I forgot, their blood smells bad and also an alarm to others" She slashed the upcoming vampire bat as it flew toward her. She can't help herself slashing them even knowing the fact. She got no choice but to slice them up
"AHHH! Take this! And this!" she mumbles between her breath. They are all one hit if you slice their head if you just scratch them, they heal themselves. They are small and annoying when they flap around you. They do attack by sending a sound wave through your ears and make your ears ring and get you a head ache.
One of the bats gave a shrill cry making Sera fall back. She wince as she can't take the loud annoying sound ringing in her ears. Her sight spun as she swung her sword randomly.
"Rejuvenate!" She loudly call. The weird feeling she just felt vanished as she use her skill. She raised her hand and aim to the bats flocking around in front of her. She release her fireballs to the bats taking three and four bats in one shot.
She can strengthen her skill by using the staff she had brought however, it will only be hard to move using two weapon. Using her staff as melee weapon won't do either. She don't want it to be drenched by blood either.
After dealing with those bats she found herself inner in. She took out her map on her pouch and look at where she must go first.
"Am I just looking for a place to die?" she suddenly said as she realized how complicated the map was. Why didn't she realized it earlier? It because she felt safe beside Forest.
However, right now she is alone. And more monsters will appear and attack her. She can be outnumbered and fall to this unknown labyrinth.
"Well, I got to go or I will never make it to the next town. "She sighs as she struck her sword in the ground.
"Let's see what we got here in my pouch." She mumbles as she dig her hands on the bottomless pouch. Only useless things was in there, useless in her current situation.
"So that's it. Let's go and see if we are able to die or make it alive." She cheerfully exclaimed like a madman. She grab her sword and went in further on the darkness.
Humming as she plucked out some glowing poisonous mushroom on her way. She was somewhere inside the labyrinth already. She has no idea where she is, the only thing she knew is that she was inside of a room filled with glowing mushroom.
Getting some of this and convert it later to a potion. Potions in the shops are pretty expensive making it can only cost you your life. If you handle it wrong. Sera already knew how to handle some stuff like this she once made a potions in their home in the past.
The silence broke as something growling at her back. She quickly leap sideways as avoid the flying club on her place. Turning around, a gnome was on the entrance of the room. She grab her sword and position herself to get ready for an attack.
The gnome vanished into the thin air. No it didn't vanished, he used invisibility. Sera looked around and step closer slowly and careful. She do know her enemy however, she is ignorant about it. She kicked the pile of soil and the dust flew in the air. She furrowed her eyebrows as she seriously focus herself on the enemy.
She swung her sword on her left as she felt something moves over there. The gnome leaped back and counter attacked after Sera attacked. She fell back two step after taking it. She became more serious as she got a painful tackle from the invisible enemy.
The enemy was small, slow and uses invisibility. She felt determined to kill this gnome and look for the treasure it guard.
"You cowardly gnome." She cussed strike her sword on the ground to lift the dust and she strikes and strikes randomly. The gnome was in front of her about to throw a tomahawk.
She leaped and strike the ground like a mad. The air is already mixed with the dust. She run toward the place where the gnome was. Due to the dust she was able to detect him. The gnome throw a tomahawk, sera dodge and the gnome talked her afterwards. She was sent flying and she was sent back to the entrance of the cave afterwards.
"What the!" She cried falling into her butt.
"Ahh!" She scream as she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned around.
"You startled me!" She yelled as she stood and dusted off her clothes. She put her sword on its sheath and face Forest.
"Where is that stupid hobgoblin?" she said as she frowned.
"you didn't even waited and you went on your own? Are you stupid?" Forest linked to her. His facial expression somehow change and make Sera look away from her glaze.
"I am not stupid like that dude earlier. And also, I can do things on my own. I am already grown up lady" She replied as she walk towards the cave.
Forest grab her hand and turn her around.
'Let's go back to the town already. It's getting dark" he narrowed her eyes at him. Forest let go of her hand.
"Tsk." The only thing she can say. She walked pass through him and tried to ignore him on the way home.