Yesterday, after successfully paying a deposit of two shells of gold sand, Robdia's previously irritable mood turned remarkably upbeat.
As part of a rare deep-sea-dwelling merman tribe on the Western Coast, the Deep Diver tribe possessed the mightiest force among the merman clans and was respected wherever they went. Robdia was a warrior of the Deep Diver tribe, his body a dark grayish-green, with a high spine covered in scales along his back. His elongated limbs were webbed, and his head resembled that of a fish, with large, bulging eyes similar to those of the Cave Dwellers but even more pronounced.
Deep Divers, who had lived in the depths of the ocean for generations, were known in the coastal human tribes of the Western Coast as symbols of bloodlust and slaughter. They frequently launched surprise raids on Kent's coastal tribe at night, seizing women and children before disappearing swiftly back into the waves with their loot.
Even when met with resistance, they relied on their tough scales and sharp bone spears to carve a path of blood. Over time, the human tribes that once inhabited the coastline gradually relocated, abandoning that terrifying land.
The merman tribe almost never appeared in freshwater, especially so far inland along the Swift River.
Robdia squinted his puffy eyes. If not for the recent spread of the Prophecy of the Forgotten across the Scarlet Earth Continent, he wouldn't have led his guard to such an area, devoid of any hint of seawater.
The Prophecy of the Forgotten had spread from the continent to the Western Coast, supposedly originating from a human shaman elder of the Sun Tribe. As the most powerful ruling force on the Scarlet Earth Continent, the Sun Tribe's shaman elder was nearly divine in the eyes of the merman clans. Prophecies from the elder's mouth were almost always accurate.
With rumors growing, the Merman Tribe Council decided to send personnel to several allied tribes on the continent to see if they could purchase human slaves for sacrificial purposes.
As a proud Deep Diver of the merman tribe, Robdia had been assigned the farthest location from the coast—the Swift River—to make contact with the lowly Cave Dwellers. Along the way, he had killed countless small fish and shrimp he found displeasing, and yet he hadn't expected to encounter human slaves in this filthy place.
Initially, he'd wanted to directly seize three human slaves, but that would risk breaking ties with the Cave Dwellers. Naturally, it wasn't the potential rift that concerned Robdia; rather, it was that, with a break in relations, he'd lose access to this closest human slave supply. That was why he had refrained from simply taking the slaves by force.
Fortunately, the Cave Dwellers, those lowly creatures, offered to sell the slaves for gold sand.
When paying the deposit, Robdia had slyly switched the gold sand from the original large seashell to a smaller river clam shell. Surprisingly, the lowly creatures weren't the least bit displeased and were even overjoyed.
Thinking about how he could buy three living slaves with the price he would usually pay for one, while still keeping some extra clams of gold sand for himself, Robdia felt in an exceptionally good mood.
"Captain, it looks like those Cave Dwellers have returned," said a merman warrior beside him, watching the Cave Dweller encampment in the distance.
Earlier, a large crowd of Cave Dwellers had gathered, noisily moving toward that direction, shouting and carrying on. Robdia had simply reclined, indifferent. Cave Dwellers were naturally timid and would make a big scene out of any minor issue. As long as the three human slaves locked in the cave remained secure, there was nothing to worry about.
Their current location was by a calm section of the Swift River, where the Cave Dwellers had constructed a makeshift camp by piling up logs and laying a thick layer of soft river grass on top. While crude in Robdia's eyes, it was still far preferable to the filthy caves.
"Captain, it seems they've brought out the human slaves," shouted another merman warrior.
"Looks like Harkachak has finally returned. We can finally leave this filthy place," Robdia stood up from the water, shaking off the unsalted droplets clinging to his skin. "Prepare the gold sand and the raft. Once we've completed the trade, we'll leave with the slaves."
"But they're heading away from here, almost as if they're planning to leave," the warrior continued.
Robdia had already noticed the three slaves being hurriedly escorted away by the Cave Dwellers, so he hardly needed the reminder.
His already swollen fish eyes bulged further in annoyance, and the gills on his neck emitted a low, raspy growl, signaling his growing irritation.
Hearing Robdia's growl, several massive merman heads surfaced from the water, exposing ugly, fish-like mouths with razor-sharp teeth. More heads emerged, swimming toward the shore. Once they reached shallow water, each figure stood, displaying armor-like scales along their spines that glistened in the sunlight.
Each merman warrior held a sharp, double-edged spear tipped with a stingray barb, creating a formidable, deadly grove of weaponry among the fifty warriors.
"Come on, let's see what kind of game these lowly Cave Dwellers want to play. If they're no longer interested in the gold sand…" Robdia opened his enormous mouth, running his tongue over his sharp teeth, "then we'll make the trade through bloodshed."
He accepted the trident passed to him by a subordinate. Unlike the double-edged spears the other warriors wielded, this trident was a trophy from an earlier raid, forged from a metal he couldn't identify and heavier than the spears made from stingray barbs.
Robdia, blessed with immense strength since childhood, relished the feeling of power the trident gave him. He had gained the upper hand in skirmishes with the Turtle Tribe, using the trident to puncture their tough shells. Without their armor, those slow creatures had no choice but to surrender.
He strode forward in the direction the human slaves had been taken, his feet sinking into the thick, black sludge beneath him, which disgusted him immensely. He'd likely need to kill a few extra Cave Dwellers to compensate for this minor humiliation.
In the distance, a large crowd of Cave Dwellers gathered around the square, encircling some tall figures at the center. Amidst the countless Cave Dwellers, the group of towering figures stood out starkly.
Robdia came to an abrupt halt.
There were more… humans?
Had those treacherous Cave Dwellers accepted payment from the humans to return the three slaves?
Apparently, they needed a taste of Robdia's trident to understand the price of betrayal.
The audacity of these traitors!
If he returned with a few more human slaves, he might even secure a promotion.
Robdia glanced back at his fifty fierce Deep Diver warriors. The numbers clearly favored them.
Victory was in hand.
"Brothers, time to warm up."