The situation in the Nameless Forest was very quickly reaching a crescendo of sorts. Very quickly, an array of individuals would soon be coming together in one point.

  The Serpent that just unknowingly broke down and simultaneously motivated Rick’s Royal Guards, was getting closer and closer to meeting Rick who himself was still pushing to try and reach Geedi’s group.

  And there was of course Orkush, who was rushing as fast he could with his group of Orcs in an effort to eliminate all of the Goblins from out of the forest.

  Though what he didn’t realize was that the entire War Camp he left behind had now entered the forest and was moving forward with utmost determination. But there was one individual missing from the War Camp.

  The War Chief.

  After giving proper motivation to the War Camp, he left his horse with them and departed ahead of the group and blazed off into the forest. He was the only one who knew the type of repercussions they had invited upon themselves. Orcs were barred from entering the Nameless Forest due to mistakes made in the past, and doing so now would bring the wrath of the Dreadful Serpent upon the Orcs and the Iris River Plains.

  POV War Chief

  “Dammit. If Orkush doesn’t spend a year in the pits, then I’m not the War Chief. I do not fear that slithering bastard, but we cannot afford to start another war with something that strong while those spineless cowards are bearing down on our borders.

  “Dammit all.”

  The War Chief continued to curse the situation as he blitzed through the forest at a speed that would be unimaginable for Rick and even Rogu. It was the speed and power of a being that was firmly within the 7th Tier of strength. A Tier that was matched by the Serpent and the fox, both of whom had been sitting in that Tier for many years at this point. That showed the level of power that was currently converging on Ricks location.

  A Tier 7 Orc to his back, a Tier 7 Serpent to his front, with dozens of lives in his hands, and hundreds of Orcs set to reap them. It would soon come time to earn his prove his worth as a Royal among his race.

  For now, Rick continued to press on…

  5 Days Later…

  POV Rick

  “Rogu, I think it’s unlikely that we catch up to Geedi. If we haven’t caught sight of them yet, it’s probably because they’re pushing as well, and since it’s only a few of them they can move a lot faster than we can. It’s no use in pushing the group any further. Let everyone rest.”

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  “Understood My Lord.”

  ‘Velora I’m worried. I really am. What if the reason we haven’t seen Geedi, and the others yet is because something has already got to them?’

  [There’s no use in worrying Rick. Continue to push forward. Trust in your Royal Guards. And control what you can control.]

  ‘Sigh…I know you’re right…but that won’t stop me from worrying. That’s all I can do.’

  [That is understandable. Do not let worrisome thoughts cloud your judgment though. You have a duty to not just Geedi, but to all Goblins to remain focused.]

  ‘I know Velora, I know. I understand what’s at stake here and I will do my utmost best to ensure the safety and prosperity for all Goblins.’

  [It is good you unde-...Rick!!! LOOK BEHIND YOU!!!]

  Before Rick could even fully grasp Velora’s words and act on them, he quickly heard a loud roar from Rogu.

  “GRUNAK!!!!!”

  Rick had no idea what that meant of course and by the time he turned around to see what was happening, every single member of the Royal Retrieval Team was surrounding Rick with weapons drawn and every single one of them was prepared to lay down their lives for the sake of Rick escaping from the situation that had now befallen them.

  The Serpent had arrived.

  [Rick be wary! This being is far stronger than any of us! I can’t even scan it!]

  ‘Is that what was sleeping in the lake? I didn’t need Velora to tell me that it could kill me without a problem. I looked around and apart from Rogu’s and his team and myself, all the Goblins were weak in the knees and distraught with fear. In fact, now that I’m looking at them clearly even the Goblins from Rogu’s team looked fearful as they stood around me in protection mode. They were just handling it better.

  ‘Though for some reason I wasn’t feeling fear…in fact it was hard to explain exactly what I was feeling as I watched the massive Serpent approach us. I felt strangely calm, but at the same I felt a rising anger swelling up from deep within me as if I’ve never been more offended. Of course there was something else mixed in with that as well. Weakness. I felt weaker than ever before. Here I was being treated like a helpless princess and all I could do was stand here.

  ‘Despite my emotional state, the slithering continued and eventually the beast was upon and then it slowly rose its head up from the ground as it towered above us. That was then followed by a deep rumbling voice that shook the forest around us.’

  “Hmm more Goblins. Most of you are weak as the ones from before, but a few of you have some fight.”

  ‘I took in the words of the massive Serpent calmy as it stared all of us down, moving its eyes all around our group before settling on me.’

  “They are protecting you. You must be their leader. Even though you are not the strongest among them. How odd. Hmmm.”

  ‘After his latest comments, I noticed Rogu shifting ever so slightly, and I could feel the mana in his body slowly building to a point of explosion. He was going to try and sacrifice himself wasn’t he…the anger along with the growing feeling of weakness continued to rise within me.’

  [Calm down Rick, you are now help if you lose control of your thoughts. We need to be careful here. It hasn’t attacked us, and we don’t need to antagonize it further. Calm down Rick.]

  ‘Antagonize it? Hasn’t it antagonized us? Look at the state of my people Velora. Look at them. What would you have me do?’