Bound by Fear and Trust 3

'What should I do? Walker's energy is really running out. The man in front who seems to be their leader also looks strong. I'm worried, Walker won't be able to face him, especially with so many goblin troops,' he thought to himself, wanting to escape from there. But he also wasn't sure if Walker's energy would be enough to reach the base.

'I shouldn't have chased. However, losing one medbay, I really can't stand it.'

"Commander, what are we going to do?" asked one of the soldiers, sensing the intimidating aura from the Construct in front. If it weren't for the Commander, young master and his friends being here, he would have quickly run away.

The Commander also didn't know what to do. A small misstep, and they could all possibly die. Meanwhile, every soldier here is an elite among the goblins' elite. If they were all gone, then the village's safety would be at risk. In fact, he didn't even want to bring so many troops because of the dangerous inner parts of the forest. However, their leader had given the order. As a Commander, he could only obey it, and he also understood because he has a child.

Remembering that, the Commander bolstered his courage. Both hands tightly gripped the sword's handle, and a breath was exhaled from his mouth.

The gaze of the man in front sharpened, causing Ailord's eyes to widen as he knew the man was about to attack. However, suddenly from the direction of the trees, two lizards appeared. They roared loudly, eagerly eyeing the prepared midday meal right in front of them.

'Darn, I forgot about their keen sense of smell. They must have caught the scent of these goblins, especially with their large numbers; they won't escape the lizards' detection,' Ailord thought to himself, frustrated because once again, a new danger arose at such an inopportune moment.

If only the Overseers could approach them, perhaps he could use those microbots to kill the lizards. But, let alone approaching, the heat radiating from the lizards' bodies could melt them from ten meters away.

The display appeared again, indicating that the energy was nearing emergency levels, sitting at five percent. Ailord sighed in frustration as cold sweat streamed down, sensing death was close by. Ready to claim his life.

"FORMATION! PROTECT THE YOUNG MASTER!" shouted the Commander.

Quickly, the goblins formed a circle with their shields raised high, and Glok was in the middle, still trying to free himself from the Medbay. The shackles on both of his hands had been gone ever since he forced the Medbay off the floor. However, he couldn't open the glass at all. Whatever he tried, using mana, skills, anything he knew that could trigger a magical reaction, nothing worked.

He could destroy the glass if he wanted to, but apparently, this comfortable and strange bed seemed valuable enough to the Construct for it to chase after him. Glok didn't understand why a Construct, who didn't need rest, would consider a bed an important object. Perhaps it was a unique Construct different from the rest. Whatever it was, Glok didn't want to annoy it further than this, especially when he had saved its life using incredibly powerful magic. It must require a hefty payment.

Glok would make sure to properly thank the owner of the Construct once this issue was resolved.

The two lizards roared again, ready to charge at the goblin troops who, despite their fear, showed no signs of trembling. They actually seemed ready to face whatever was coming next, even if their lives were at stake.

Their legs stomped, surprising the goblins with speeds that exceeded other monsters. As their bodies spun horizontally in the air, the two terrifying lizards came from the left and right of the troops, forcing them to split their forces. The Commander clicked his tongue in frustration, not expecting these lizards to be not only fast but also smart.

As the tails clashed with their thick white shields, a resounding sound echoed that was enough to make hearts tremble. The goblins were pushed back, pain and numbness felt in their shaking hands, trying to endure the pain. The back rows quickly adjusted their formation, preparing for a second attack while the archers readied their arrows alongside the Wizards.

The two lizards observed the goblin troops and moved forward again. This time, they didn't attack from two directions as before. One of them actually slowed its pace, staying behind the other lizard.

Seeing this, the Commander racked his brain again, trying to understand what the two lizards were planning to do.

As they leaped, the Commander ordered, "Reinforce the front shield line with magic! They will attack two times!"

And indeed, the first lizard launched its attack, spinning its body in the air and slamming its tail onto the first shield line, which fortunately held up. Then, the second lizard followed suit with the same attack.

Thanks to the Commander's ability to read the opponent's movements, they managed to hold their ground, albeit having to switch the front line with the back line while waiting for the front line to be healed with magic. However, the Commander knew they couldn't keep doing this; they had to do something to face the two lizards.

From the attacks earlier, it was evident that these two lizards could easily damage their shields made of the strongest material currently available, something called 'Urum'. It should require someone at Golden Core or above to damage that material as easily as the two lizards did. Meaning, they were on par with the heroes.

"No wonder the young master's group was overwhelmed," the Commander thought to himself.

A hissing sound was heard not far ahead. Every pair of eyes looked in that direction, astonished to see the two lizards now looking even more terrifying. Once again, the forest was ablaze with a heat so intense it made their skin sting. Not just from the heat, but also from the swords, shields, and armor they carried.

Now, the Commander felt they should have fled from the start.

The two lizards stared at them intensely, as if smirking with disdain, aware that they had already won the fight. It was impossible for these small creatures with their strange heat-conducting equipment to defend themselves. They would be a better midday meal and fill their empty stomachs, more useful than struggling futilely when the outcome was already determined.

Unable to dodge, a loud buzzing sound was followed by a solid strike right on the head of one of the lizards. The lizard was thrown off, crashing into the other lizard, which now roared in pain while heating up, feeling that the same tactic might work on the metal creature as well.

Yet somehow, the creature still held on, looking unscathed. Its steps not only shook the ground but also their hearts. Even though they were bigger than it. The two lizards couldn't believe that there could be a creature stronger than them in this forest.

The arrogance that led the previous lizards to their gruesome end at Ailord's hands.

The iron Construct stomped its foot, crushing the earth around it with a powerful shockwave that created a strong gust of wind. The goblins were forced to hide behind their shields to avoid being blown away, while the Commander planted his sword into the ground to hold his ground, protecting his eyes using the back of his hand.

He observed as the Construct managed to panic the two lizards, something he had anticipated but still found surprising. Especially since Constructs rarely intervened unless ordered by their owners. Or perhaps the owner of the iron Construct ahead was watching them from afar. And he had almost attacked. Fortunately, the two lizards arrived just in time.

He wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or more worried.

The Commander still wasn't certain whose side this Construct was on. One thing was clear: nothing good would come from crossing paths with it.

"Wait! Iron?" The Commander took another look at the Construct, making sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. "That... That really is iron. But how? Iron is so heavy, especially for a Construct. And the intense heat from the two lizards should have melted ordinary iron. Why does it look perfectly fine?" He thought, his brow furrowing deeper with each question.

There were too many mysteries in this forest. Not just the previously unheard-of lizards but also the existence of a mysterious Construct with powers surpassing the heroes.

Ailord grew increasingly panicked as he saw Walker's energy was down to just three percent. He had to finish off these two lizards before Walker's energy ran out completely. At least, by saving the goblins, Ailord hoped they would be grateful, or at the very least, leave him alone here. He didn't want them to end up like the goblins in fantasy stories.

The two lizards could do nothing against the iron creature, only receiving endless blows and kicks. They had also raised the heat to its maximum limit, even causing the ground to change color. But the iron creature was unharmed, still able to move swiftly without any damage. Their hope of melting the iron creature was now completely dashed, replaced by the fear of impending death drawing near.

Suddenly, the screen notified Ailord that the energy was now at one percent, shocking him and giving the two lizards an opportunity to counterattack. They seized this great chance, intending not to give victory to the iron creature or to death, which had now ceased its approach.

They leaped at it, clawing, biting, attempting to damage the iron creature by any means necessary, even if it meant sacrificing their claws and teeth. What they did indeed had some effect, but it was so minimal that it only prompted the two lizards to leap back and give the iron creature a powerful strike from both sides, using their tails from the left and right.

Blood flowed from Ailord's mouth, realizing that several of his ribs were broken from the recent attack. However, under the influence of adrenaline, Ailord quickly seized the two tails, channeling every last bit of energy to leap high into the air.

Every goblin looked up, watching what the iron Construct would do next. The Commander's eyes widened, shouting, "Use protective magic!! Channel every bit of mana you have!!"

"Haha, you want to send me to hell?" Ailord's grin widened. "I'LL TAKE YOU TWO WITH ME!!"

He was pulled down by gravity with a loud whistling sound due to air resistance. The two lizards, already covered in wounds, roared loudly, seeing death no longer walking but sprinting towards them at full speed.

Upon landing, Ailord slammed them into the ground so hard that the earth cracked and shattered. A large crater was formed, accompanied by smoke and thick dust.

The shockwave generated managed to throw the surrounding trees backward, with the front line of goblins being thrown despite being under protective magic. The transparent blue dome cracked and shattered, sending them all flying, carried away by the wind.

The Medbay tumbled backward, causing Glok to panic, fearing it might fall into a hole or even a chasm. His heart immediately settled when the Medbay collided with a tree, stopping there with its glass part facing the dust cloud ahead. It didn't take long for the dust to clear, revealing the figure of the iron Construct now standing still amidst it all, its hands still gripping the tails.

However, the bodies of the two lizards were unrecognizable, reduced to mere heaps of flesh drenched in blood.

Glok didn't understand why the Construct suddenly stood still. Perhaps its 'Mana Core' had run out, or its owner had deactivated it. But his eyes widened in realization when he noticed a crack on the right side of the Construct's head, with a small piece missing.

Behind that metal head, glowing red eyes could be seen staring back at him.