Only the head of the Serpent had left the water, but due to its massive size, that was still more than a few feet out of the lake, so it could see quite the distance.

  Especially when one factored in the strength of its eyes, and the powerful senses it held that could be spread far and wide.

  So, it was no surprise to know that the Serpent could practically ‘see’ the Village in its entirety. It could see all of the Goblins standing guard, and it could see the small abode that Rick was holed up in. It could not necessarily see Rick inside of it, but the presence that Rick was emitting could be seen clear as day.

  Then there was, of course, Rogu. Who was standing at the front of the Village with his sword drawn and a fierce expression on his face.

  The Serpent found it all mildly amusing.

  It slowly rose up out of the lake, but instead of rising to its full height, it lowered itself to the ground and began moving towards the Village.

  It surprisingly tried to avoid destroying as many trees as it could but some of them couldn’t be avoided, and very quickly a wide path was made in the forest as it slithered towards the Village.

  Of course, no matter how low to the ground it stayed, it was still a massive beast. One that wasn’t so easily missed, especially not with the destruction it left in its wake from simply moving around.

  So Rogu could see the approach, and his guard was raised to the max.

  The rest of the Village was in a similar state, as tensions continued to rise, and weapons were raised as well over a hundred Goblins were ready to defend and protect their Chief/Future King.

  Of course, as much as they were ready and willing to fight in defense of Rick, reality wouldn’t simply bend its rules for their wishes.

  A small group of Tier 0 to Tier 4 Goblins would stand no chance of protecting Rick from almost every single Tier 7 being in existence. Especially not one as powerful as the Serpent who now approached.

  No amount of grit and tenacity would allow them to bridge that gap. It was simply an insurmountable wall of power that they had no chance of climbing or getting through.

  The Goblins weren’t stupid.

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  They knew this as well.

  But in their minds, it was quite obvious that they would at least try to fight instead of just rolling over and dying.

  It was harder for Goblins of the Plains to truly embody this mentality, but when they thought back to the oppression they faced, and how life was prior to being freed. Being freed by Rick specifically, their hearts hardened and their determinations because fierce.

  Rogu knew about this gap in power more than the rest of them did.

  Which made sense.

  He was the strongest Goblin in the Village, and Tier 5 was a relatively respectable level of strength in any part of the Continent.

  He knew the type of gap that was present in the jump from Tier 4 to Tier 5, and he knew just how much of a gap there was between himself and his father.

  It was not one to be laughed at.

  Yet his father was only Tier 6.

  While the Serpent approaching the Village was without a shadow of as doubt above that.

  Rogu could feel the difference in power quite clearly.

  His instincts that have been trained and honed over many battles across a number of years had never once stopped screaming at him to run away.

  This was not an opponent, he should be standing his ground and fighting.

  He needed to run, he needed to hide, he needed to escape and only return if he had managed to achieve that same level of power.

  Yet, through a powerful will, and a strong sense of loyalty and duty, Rogu remained steadfast.

  He didn’t need anyone to tell him that he had no chance of killing the Serpent, and thus that was never his intention.

  All he had in mind was the same intention as when he was face to face with the Fox, or when the Serpent first approached them all in the forest.

  His life for the life and future of the Future King.

  To him his life should be worth at least that.

  No…it had to be worth at least that.

  For there was no other choice.

  He needed to sacrifice himself to cause a big enough injury that would give time for everyone else to escape.

  That was all he could do.

  Yet…while grit and tenacity weren’t enough to truly change reality in the face of overwhelming power.

  That didn’t necessarily mean reality needed changing in the first place.

  As the Serpent came into full view, and slightly raised its head off the ground as in took in the sights of the Village.

  Rogu wasn’t too far from it at this point, and the Goblins in the Village began to sweat profusely with some of them unable to avoid falling to their knees.

  The Serpent then turned its gaze towards Rogu.

  “Don’t do anything foolish Goblin. If I wished for your or your people’s death, then I would have it.

  “At the moment…I only wish to observe. Do not force me to change the focus of my thoughts.”

  Rogu didn’t allow himself to lower his alertness for even a second, but he did allow himself to lower his sword.

  If he could avoid any form of battle with this creature, then he would do so in a heartbeat.

  Not necessarily to preserve his own life, but to ensure that no harm befalls his Future King.

  Of course, the Serpent watched as Rogu lowered his sword without uttering a reply, and then refocused his gaze towards the house that Rick was undertaking his evolution in.

  Oblivious to all that was happening around him, and oblivious to the fact that Rogu, who was once again ready to sacrifice his life, was once again able to keep ahold of it.

  Maybe if he was aware he would tell Rogu he needed to stop being so ready to become a sacrifice...