As the fog enveloped the group, Cam walked forward confidently. He knew exactly where they were and what their bearing was. According to Cam, it seems that every beastman was born with the innate ability to traverse this dense sea of trees.
Every once and a while the group would have to come to a halt to deal with the monsters that attacked them in the fog. Ivan and Yue did their job perfectly and made sure no Rabbitmen were harmed in any of the attacks.
But it wasn't until they were a few hours in the forest that the situation changed, a group had thoroughly surrounded them that they had no choice but to stop. Their numbers, their bloodlust, and even coordination was levels above any of the monsters they'd faced so far.
The Rabbitmen all grimaced as they noticed the identity of the group After all, the ones surrounding them were none other than—
"You there… Why are there humans in your midst! State your race and clan! A burly beastman with a striped tail and a pair of tiger ears barred their path.
Ivan definitely had to admit that he had a bias, that bias being animal ears looked cuter on girls than guys. Ignoring the dozen or so beastmen that had surrounded their group, Ivan lifted his hands a bit into the air in case things turned dour.
"A white haired… rabbit girl? You must be the Haulia tribe in the reports. You're a disgrace to all beastman. Yue tricked your fellow beastmen for years, hiding that despicable dem—!"
"Yue."
Upon her name being called Yue projected a ball of water towards the speaking beastman, Ivan followed after it and placed his gauntlet adorned hand on it the moment it collided. The beastman could only watch in shock as he in no way expected people to use magic without even using a chant.
BZZZZZZZT!
Ivan's gauntlet glowed as the water on the beastman's body was converted to ice, and in a matter of seconds the beastman was completely enveloped, leaving only the head out in the open. After all Ivan wanted to talk negotiations.
With a flick of his finger the gauntlet on his right hand disappeared, instead his right arm held onto the beastman's head as he looked at the rest of the attackers. Blue lightning coursing through his arm as he made sure the rest of the beastmen heard his words.
"Anyone that takes a step toward the Haulia tribe will carry the guilt of killing this poor bastard. These folk are under my protection, attempts to harm or kill them will result in immediate execution."
The surrounding beastmen only held their steps as they were unsure of what to do. One second that human was deep within the Haulia group and now he stood right before them. Afraid of getting their captain killed, they all took a step back. The masked figure did not seem like he was bluffing.
Meanwhile from Ivan's perspective, for now he had no intentions of killing this tiger guy. As doing so would be the same as going into all out war with Verbergen, who he has no idea what their strength and numbers were like. For all he knew they could be a force that would track him without rest, leaving him no time to live a peaceful life.
Not to mention he already got in a scuffle with the Empire, which he still has no idea what repercussions that'll lead to. But he was sure the Empire wouldn't just sit by and allow a battalion to mysteriously disappear. Sooner or later they'll come back for them, and what they'll find are the corpses of soldiers who were just supposed to catch some rabbit people.
Ivan was positive they wouldn't rule it off as death by monsters, as the wounds he left were too foreign and unnatural for that area. And they sure as hell weren't going to think the Rabbitmen fought back. So for now Ivan wants to get this trip over with so he could leave before the Empire comes back with a bigger force.
"Make your choice, are you all going to go home, or die here and now for the sake of your pride?" The whirling of the electricity got louder as Ivan rubbed his right hand into the beastman's forehead.
"..Can I ask you something first?" The tigerman spoke aloud. Even knowing that pursuing would mean death he still had his pride as a warrior of Verbergen. If he were to die in the line of duty, then so be it. "What are you after?"
"The Grand Tree. We believe there lies the entrance to one of the Seven Great Labyrinths. The secret hideout of the liberator. The Haulia tribe is here to make sure we get there."
The tigerman stared back in bewilderment as it was popular belief that the sea of trees itself was the dungeon. However after listening to Ivan's explanation of the irregularity of this area, he started to have doubts.
If the sea of trees was really one of the Seven Great Labyrinths, it wouldn't really be much of a grand test left behind if the beastman are able to just navigate it without trouble. He thought over Ivan's words and saw that he had no point in lying, as here he held the absolute advantage. Though he had no idea what this talk about Liberators and stuff was, if all it took for this figure to go away was a look at the tree then sure, that'd be better than losing the lives of his troops.
"Allow me to contact my superiors. It's possible our elders might have some information on that entrance you seek. If you really mean no harm to those that aren't your enemy, then surely you'd be willing to wait here while we send a messenger."
Ivan stared back as he mulled over those words, was this a risk he was willing to take? For all he knew the tigerman could just bring back an army to deal with them. From that point on they'd have to evacuate from the woods if they wanted to keep the Haulia alive. On the other hand this was a good opportunity to gain official permission, it might not even be too difficult to negotiate for the Haulia's safety.
He looked back at the Haulia and Shea before coming to a decision. If he was gonna propose a solution to her problem then who was he not to guide her towards taking steps to it. That would just be the same as talking big.
"Very well, relay my message." Tensions eased as the tigerman sent one of his men to meet the elders as quickly as possible. And though Ivan still held his hand over his head, people were starting to relax.
As for the tigerman, though he was wrapped in ice he should be fine. Beastmen were known for their strong constitutions anyways. Using Shea as an example, she somehow had survived a kick normal people would have died from. Then again her situation is a bit peculiar with the mana she had and stuff.
The two sides stared at each other, one with nervousness and the other with hatred. Yue went to bother Shea while Ivan was starting to feel his arm getting tired. But he knew the moment he stepped away the beastmen would most likely launch an attack. This was their advantage, so he was going to take advantage of it.
Then, from the fog appeared a retinue of unfamiliar beastmen. The elderly man in their center stood out among them. He had long, flowing blond hair, and a pair of striking blue eyes. His body was so frail that it seemed a strong gust would blow him away. The most distinct part of his appearance, however, was his long, tapered ears. He was one of the fey folk of the forest, an elf.
"Hmm, so you're the human that's been causing a ruckus in our forest. What's your name?"
"Paracelsus Von Hohenheim." Ivan responded curtly, not even hesitating to lie for a second. More so, he was curious about the old man in front of him.
The old man narrowed his eyes slightly, as though he couldn't see the expression of the figure he couldn't help but feel it was a lie. He gestured for his men to calm down before he sought to introduce himself, feeling that it was fine that the figure didn't trust him now.
"I am Ulfric Heipyst. I have the honor of representing Verbergen as one of its elders. Now then, I have been informed of your request, but before I give my reply, I would like to ask you something. Where did you come to learn of the liberators?"
"My companion and I have ventured deep within the abyss, there we have come to learn of the liberators by the leader himself, Oscar Orcus." Ivan was surprised someone knew of the liberators, as they were usually referred to as mavericks. Which means the old man in front of him knew the other side of the story, the identities of the liberators.
"...Can you prove your claim?" Ulfric sought proof, as he was worried someone from the beastmen leadership had exposed classified information.
Ivan pulled out the ring he got off of Oscar's corpse out of the 'Treasure Trove.' Not minding the surprise shown on everyone's faces as a ring appeared out of thin air. He held it before Ulfric, making sure he caught sight of the insignia inscribed on it.
"I see… So you youngsters really did reach Oscar Orcus' resting place. There are still some things I'm curious to learn, but… very well. I shall grant you passage through Verbergen. By my right as an elder, you are free to travel as you please. Of course, the Haulia are welcome as well."
The beastmen that attended him were in an uproar, not once has humans been allowed through Vergergen. Ulfric only waved off their protests.
"We must treat them as honored guests. They've earned that right. This is one of the ancient laws only those who sit on the elder's council are told of."
The beastmens' protests died down as they had no choice but to respect the traditions of the council, lest they be branded a traitor.
"And before you question why you have been invited into Verbergen, you should know that the fog around the Grand Tree is in a cycle of its phases that even a beastman would get lost in its fog. I'm afraid the next waning cycle isn't for another ten days."
Ivan turned to Cam for confirmation, receiving a nod from his side he turned back to Ulfric, to him the idea of getting a gauge of their forces wasn't so bad. In fact this seems like a good opportunity to foster some relations. He was a bit surprised by how welcoming this elder has been so he assumed this ancient law of theirs was to allow those who have cleared a dungeon entry into Verbergen.
He had Shea and her father round up the tribe as he asked Ulfric to lead the way. Ulfric responded with a nod as his troops surrounded the group, exclaiming that it was for safety purposes. Not that Ivan doubted the mysterious elf, for even he understood the concerns.
'But ten days huh… ' Ivan wasn't sure what he'd do in the meantime. Training hasn't exactly granted him obvious results as of late, hell that was the reason he decided staying in the Orcus Labyrinth wouldn't be profitable anymore.
He turned to look at the Haulia before humming to himself. The tendons of the group calmed down as they realized their lives were no longer in danger.
And like that, the party of theirs led by Ulfric traveled for hours before reaching Verbergen.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Regarding double chapter releases: more info has been posted on my p.a.t.r.e.o.n so please check it out if you're interested.
Hey hey people, another huge thanks to my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.s that keep my dreams alive. Thanks you all so much for the support you've shown me. With how shitty my pay is from my job it really does mean a lot. So once again, thanks to BlackSnakeZ1, Nazir Bizzell, Aledawizard, LastGlance, Rade, Arsh Mittal, and our newest member Dylan LaFlam! Welcome to the..... Ardoship? I suppose that works. Have a great evening and stay safe out there!
Been feeling pretty drowsy today. Still gotta go to work and record later though. It should be the last day of recording before writing a script and editing which should take a week so stay tuned on my YouTube channel! But this chapter has set up the next. I do honestly wonder why this whole interaction was cut to a 1 second scene in the anime. It was pretty disrespectful towards the author's worldbuilding in my opinion.
Anyways, thanks for reading as always. May you have a great day/night! See you next time!
If you want to support me and read ahead 10-15 chapters, you can check out my p.a.t.r.e.o.n right here: https://bit.ly/ardoaleister
Discord: https://discord.gg/tQ5TWbYd9t