Harli

In the year 740 of the Star Calendar, in the wilderness of Rhino Horn Isle, Horei Kreton lifted his bone spear, parting the obscuring thicket of thorns to step into the seldom-trodden greenland, his face clouded with gloom.

In his memory, Rhino Horn Isle was an open plain with yellow soil and no vegetation, offering no hiding spots for ambushers – an ideal meeting place that also facilitated dragons swooping down from above. But to his surprise, after a season of rainfall, the once barren land had sprung to life with trees and grass, now indistinguishable from the rainforests of Fang Valley. This terrain made it difficult to pursue any of Harli's followers should they decide to flee.

Horei was troubled.

He didn't bring many with him, knowing Harli was a suspicious troll who would be easily alarmed. Therefore, Holey only chose his confidant, Tike, to accompany him. At this critical moment, he could only rely on his spear and the backing of the blue dragon.

Crossing two river bends and emerging from the trees, Holey saw the current chieftain of the clan, Harli Bloodtooth. The old chieftain sat beside a set-up iron pot, whittling wood into small pieces with a bone knife, tossing them into the fire.

Even from a distance, Horei could smell the fragrant scent of meat stew.

Apart from ancestral warriors and troll followers, Horei unexpectedly found other beings on Rhino Horn Isle – humans. Over a dozen of them, armed and clad in mismatched, worn armors, seemed relaxed and chatted among themselves, not far from Harli Bloodtooth.

"Boss, why is Chief Harli with humans?" Tike whispered from behind.

Horei didn't respond, just looked back, signaling him to be silent, and stepped out of the bushes.

As Horei approached, the troll chieftain stood up to signal, "Here."

"Chieftain."

Holey first bowed slightly in greeting, then showed appropriate caution and vigilance. "Why are there humans here?"

"Don't worry, little Holey."

Harli Bloodtooth's voice was both hoarse and sharp, like the sound of tearing fabric. Seeing Holey approach, he squeezed a smile on his wrinkled face, revealing his sharp, gap-filled teeth.

"These are our friends. They are employed by the stone giants and will soon return to Fang Valley with me."

Horei nodded silently, briefly identifying the humans. They were infamous northern hunters, known to be beast hunters, mercenaries, traders, and sometimes bandits and thieves. They'd take on any job for the right price, no matter the race.

"How's the situation in Fang Valley?" Harli asked.

"Everything's the same," Horei answered briefly.

"That's good news."

Harli sighed lightly. "I've been worried about the clan's safety these days. Fang Valley is dragon territory, and those cursed dragons, once angered, slaughter everything in sight. We must leave that dangerous place soon. I've negotiated with King Klau-Danton of the stone giants, and he's agreed to accept the Bloodtooth clan."

"When do you plan to lead us to migrate?" Horei pressed.

"It'll take some time."

Harli shook his head. "Before we leave, the trolls must present a gift to Dragon Fort."

"We'll take these human friends to Fang Valley first. When the time is right, the stone giant king will lure the dragons away from their lair, and we'll create chaos in the eastern forests."

"Finally, the human mercenaries will attack Dragon Fort, poisoning and killing all the younglings raised by the blue dragons,"

Harli inhaled deeply. "This is Klau-Danton's condition for accepting the Bloodtooth clan."

"How can we escape after killing the blue dragon's younglings? The dragons will go mad," Horei appeared worried.

"After creating the chaos, we'll leave through the Colton Mountains."

Harli smiled at the nearby hunters. "Don't worry about these human friends; they have their own ways."

"Isn't it too far to detour through the Colton Mountains?"

"It is troublesome, but for safety, it's necessary."

Harli reassured and then changed the subject. "Oh yes, you said you had important matters to discuss with me. What is it?"

"It's an internal issue of the clan."

Holey glanced at the surrounding hunters, maintaining a composed expression but feeling increasingly anxious inside. The blue dragon was late, still not appearing. Continuing the conversation could alert Harli to something being amiss.

Harli read Horei's glance, smiled, and walked aside with his staff, distancing himself from the humans, though the ancestral warriors stayed close behind him.

Without hesitation, Horei stepped forward. Then, realizing the blue dragon must be nearby, observing from the shadows due to the unexpected presence of humans, he decided to take a gamble. Any other scenario would mean death for him. Even if he abandoned his plan to kill Harli now, the chieftain would learn of his contact with dragons upon returning to Fang Valley, and Holey's fate would be sealed.

"This is the situation."

He leaned in close to Harli. Suddenly, Horei lunged, his claw flashing out like lightning, the poisoned nails glowing darkly as they plunged into Harli's neck.

Harli Bloodtooth, once a fierce warrior stained with the blood of many, was old and slow, unable to dodge Holey's long-planned ambush. As he managed to kick Holey away, his neck was already pierced, blood gushing from the wound.

"Why... why?"

Harli staggered backward, clutching his neck, his eyes widening in pain and disbelief. "I was going to make you the next leader, Holey. Couldn't you wait?"

"It's not about becoming the chieftain. I would have waited for you to die of old age."

Horei tore off his mask of obedience, revealing a cold, ruthless expression. No longer stooped and respectful, he looked even stronger than the ancestral warriors.

He shook off the blood from his claws. "But in your twilight years, you made a mistake, Chief Harli. Because of Klau-Danton's trivial promise, you planned to make enemies with the dragons of the wilderness, to poison the blue dragon's younglings. Your wrong decision would doom us all. You would have destroyed the Bloodtooth clan!"

Horei retreated step by step, picking up his bone spear, his eyes fixed on the ancestral warriors. "I won't let you do this."

"You want to kneel to Dragon Fort?"

Harli roared like a beast. "Fool, the dragons will treat us like reptiles and wild dogs!"

"The dead feel nothing."

Horei shook his head coldly. "To talk about treatment, you first need to ensure survival."

"Kill him!"

Harli commanded, turning to tend to his wound. Though a fatal injury for most, the troll's regenerative ability might yet save him, if treated properly.

The two ancestral warriors advanced silently, their long bone blades swinging in a pincer attack.