Chapter 5 - A Short Journey

Laying her eyes upon Aleges and Clux, she passed her verdict. Her voice sends chills down Mordred's veins, making his skin crawl. The main target of her killing intent must've sensed that the atmosphere had gone bad for the two young goblin's teeth to chatter, and their visages have deformed in fear.

Besides Tuilën, Melantha bit down her lip to suppress her apprehension.

The trembling silhouette of Clux and Aleges woke up Mordred's remaining courage. He has grown a little attached to them, thinking about their rare conduct, unlike the typical goblins who were purely chaotic that he doesn't mind dying. These two are obedient and do not succumb to their desires easily. How could he let her take them away without even trying any kind of prevention?

Think! Think! He must think quickly! Think of a reason for her to spare them.

Should he just soul-attack Tuilën? No, his soul sense was howling a big no! There must be a reason for it, either she has a very strong willpower that reduces its effectiveness and duration or possesses an item that can protect her. He doesn't know and does not need to know! He could not recklessly place his and Melatha's life at risk.

He stood up. With a raised chin, he tramples his terror by feigning vanity. "Your interference is unnecessary, Tuilën. We have spared them in small numbers to keep the ecosystem stable. They might only swell your disgust. But here in our forest, that'll be a different story. Their role was to maintain the other creature's population at a healthy level. Keeping the nature's balance at its finest" He gazes into the clouds, simultaneously lifting his arm elegantly, displaying his piousness to keep things in harmony.

His lilting rounded Tuilën's eyes. "A commendable elaboration, young one. I am convinced by your scintillating and consideration. I have none against it." She nods solemnly. "Back to my compelling reason for me to disturb both of your peace. Lend this Elder your assistance and direct me to the Forsadins, if you will."

Mordred spreads his arms wide and shuts his eyelids, portraying himself as a man who tries to connect his mind to nature. "Hmmm~ How mysterious, there was no feedback. Either they unwanted to be tracked, or they are no longer within the range of my influence." He muttered and looked down, driven by thoughts.

Of course, there's is no way for him to tell where they are. He doesn't have any kind of detection ability with such a ridiculously huge area of effect.

"How unfortunate. Where must they be?" She folded her fingers, hiding them within her flaring sleeves. "I had to take my leave now. It was a pleasant exchange Natuzrhels of the Jilted Sap Forest. May we soon meet again."

She again lightly bows her head. Flashing him and Melantha a final graceful beam. She held out her arms in the air, tree vines zigzags beneath her toes.

The ground trembles and tree roots burst out of the cracks. Being lifted up by the soles, she parades with squirming vines as her platform. They were like Kraken's tentacles as her chaperone, pushing through further east of the forest, unimpeded, her back vanishes.

"What an insane display of power!" After a final scout, Melantha yelled.

"Damn it! It's quite irking that we have little knowledge of this current world." He kicked a pebble into the lake in annoyance. It skips into the water's surface a couple then plops to the depths.

"Hey! We did great. We survived. It's just a little bad luck to meet a big shot as a newcomer." From his rear, she slithers her arms into his waist, locking him with a calming warmth.

"We can sit in a single place and strengthen ourselves continuously. But knowledge won't be coming after us if we do so." Her soft cuddle soothes his mind, easing up his wrinkled eyebrows.

Paying a glance at Aleges and Clux. They're squeezed together, and cowering with hands on their mouths, rolling their eyeballs left to right, maybe to check if Tuilën has totally left. This made Mordred slowly shake his head.

"Ahuh! Let's try escaping this forest. We never know when will Tuilën return. Worse, at that time, she recognizes her mistake and reappears to kill us." She tightens her embrace in worry, then she climbs him onto a piggyback playfully. "It sure is nice being young."

She burst out some soft giggles, trying to uplift the group's morale.

As he carries her. He treads to Clux and Aleges. "We're leaving, no worries, we won't be seeing her anytime soon." Crouched, he gave them pets in each hand, rubbing their cold scalps.

------

The wooden water canteen was rough on Mordred's lips as he chugged down the crimson liquids that moistened his throat, dissipating his dehydration. The container was similar to bamboo with no node lining and grain color.

After a burp, he closed the lid and latched it at the back of a carrier bear with dead eyes. "Goodness! We've been journeying for how long? Almost a day?" He stomps his foot.

One thing to be happy about is their bodies' endurance was really tough. As long as they're well-fed, they can run for long without breaking a sweat.

In front of him, squatting, Melantha was fleshing out a hind leg. The 5-foot-long bipedal reptile is embroidered with an orange and black butterfly pattern. Their carcasses were sprawled on the ground, cold. "These beasts were also delaying our journey."

"Good food!" Clux squeaks, trying to join the conversation. He and Aleges have their own carcass to poke and bite incessantly.

*Clap*

Grasping the red meat flown by Melantha, he took a quick sniff and chomped it on with relish. "They're walking free food, I'm more thankful for them beasts." His voice was somewhat muffled by his full mouth and since they had no time to rest for long and cook each meal, they've been eating their food raw.

"Something's coming." He swallowed the damp flesh and said coolly.

A tree branch snaps by its paw. The creature is hunched and its long arms were so long that they reached the ground, and its whole body was covered by thick grey furs.

"Hello there. Aren't you quite tall? A werewolf?" Melantha uttered neutrally. She points her index finger upwards.

At her waist, cloudy white smoke came out of her wooden canteen. They speedily entered the three reptile corpses, piercing into their open wounds. Unlike before, nonshaking, they stood rod straight uniformly. Their menacing silver blazes were forking out of their eyesockets.

Currently, after splitting up the 240 souls collected in the last 30 days. Melantha can now control four souls in a physical body. That means for every 30 souls the quantity was improved by one. Her current collection was at 130, ten comes from the starting collection both the couple had.

Three were used to engage in a battle and one was in reserve to carry their items. When not in battle, she had to release the control for the three so she could rest while consuming little to no mind power for a single soul.

"Graaar!" The wolf creature growls ferociously, showing its shark teeth as its saliva drips at the tree root on the ground. Without hesitation, it sprinted on all four, leaving trails of sharp paws on the soil and scratches on the tree roots.

"Stay down big guy and be a good boy." Mordred flashes his palm to the enemy. A strong vibration came out of it, followed by a howling wind.

Colliding with the wolf's nose silently. It stumbles and dives midway, creating a crevice out of the dirt.

The reptiles crowded their knock-out victim and proceeded on mercilessly tearing apart its skin with their long claws.

*Awuuh!!*

Its flesh was peeled out between gushes of crimsons, and its pitiful whimper thunders till it became faint.

His group stands erect before the wolf. He sized up the mangled art, its white bones were visible from the deep cuts, and... and... and... that's it? He pouts and pinches his chin.

He bent his torso forward to get a better look. Its gashes were closing in like a playback video. "Stand back!" He raised his arm sideward as he walked backward, making their party retreat at a safe distance.

*Awoooooooo!*

The wolf kicks up and howls to the sky. With its ridiculous regeneration, even its furs were regrowing back to cover its balded wounds from slashes.

A pity that the reptile guards bordered the wolf before it even attacked their master. They were unflinching soldiers even with all the crimson scratches and bite marks from the raging wolf. The reptiles and the werewolf have been locked in a grappling fight.

"Absurd. Its regenerative abilities are over the top." Melantha rolled her eyes.

"Kill!"

"Dead-dead!" Aleges and Clux shouted. Doing what they do best, their arrows punctured the wolf's limbs, making it growl in pain. The werewolf stumbles and then crumbles on its knees.

"Let's see how many times it could pull back up on its feet."

The scene replayed three more times before the wolf's final breath. On its deathbed, its snout and muscular size shrank as its furs shed. Revealing an emerald-skinned man.

"A shapeshifting goblin? Do we have such abilities we're not aware of?" Mordred tilted his head in puzzlement.

"If Tuilën wasn't so dangerous and we aren't avoiding suspicion. We could've indirectly asked for information on how this world operates." Melantha yawns at his side.

"Tired?" He saunters before her and massages her temples with his thumbs.

"A little." She responded with an arched neck and shut eyes, seemingly enjoying his fondles.

After sharing a lovely time and soul spoils. They reenacted their journey by marching continuously, trailing off their sharp nailed footprints into the mushy terrains, and scratching their skins to the plant's whiskers in the pathway.

"Now this is what I'm talking about!"

The sun was cuddled between two gigantic mountains jagging the horizons, the former's radiance made the sky blush in vermillion underneath the teasing star dots above.

From where Mordred and his group pose, down the forest slope, the Jilted Sap Forest's territory was sliced by the dusty terrain.

Between the swirling dust and sands, a snaking road embodied by stones slithers far toward a town. Engulfed in steep walls and lit by the orange-tinged, the thorny withered trees were congregating the town's borders of the unknowns.

"Magnificent! A town of civilized men at last, or is it?" He squinted and dragged his arms sideways.

The images started to split, blurred, and thorned. An agony of needles stabs his forehead, contorting his face. His lungs were being clawed out by a suction force that made the airflow halt, only to resume after a heart-wrenching torso antrorse.

He glides through the air, through and through, he sinks and passes into the towering trees, unobstructed. The breeze was rigidly nonexistent, failing his skin to feel, and his ears were plugged with water of silence.

Emptiness. Is his only companion.

Toes afloat, his gaze was fixed on the four guards in all ordinary iron barbutes and breastplates, their left chest was carved with a conspicuous burgundy crescent moon. Armed with solemn, they were neatly equipped with iron halberds, and stiffly posted on the edges of the iron gateway.

His lips motion in 'wow'.

Hovering across the metallic portcullis gate, he was greeted by ecclesiastical antiquities. Pointy stone houses were slapped together unevenly. Golden hieroglyphics were carved on their rooftops, shined by the orange tint of the sun. At wide alleyways, few young and old in groups were marching in and out of establishments, garbed on casual or in battle attires. The place was a brimming mixture of dignity and a dozing solemnity.

A fluffy head came out of his stomach. He levitates to the side to get a view of a six-legged bear in black fur, towing an enclosed regal dark and gold carriage.

As he gawks at the disappearing carriage into the curved alleyway, a glimmer of andalusite gemstone flashes at his peripheral sight.

What may it be? Is it some type of coin currency that was misplaced? Locking the shimmering object in eagle eyes, he flew near a broad fountain to scratch his itching curiosity.