The Adventurers' Guild bustled with the usual noise of clinking mugs and rowdy chatter. The air smelled faintly of sweat, parchment, and ale — the scent of adventure as some would describe it. Behind the front counter stood the elven receptionist, her sharp emerald eyes scanning through a peculiar parchment on the counter.
"An expedition?" Gareth asked, with a raised brow as he leaned on the counter.
The elf nodded, her voice was even but tinged with a hint of unease. "The movement of goblins to the west of Fairhaven's forest has been... well... troubling. Scouts were sent to investigate, and what they found wasn't just a party of them. It's a settlement Gareth." she paused. "A pretty large one too."
Her words earned a few startled glances from the party before her.
Kael blinked. "A settlement? Is that really dangerous?"
Gareth sighed. "Yeah.. Goblins are stronger in packs."
"Not only that," Elise added. "Where there's a settlement, there's usually a ruler... Given the reports, we can be expecting a second tier hobgoblin, or worse..."
"Worse?" He asked again, but this time it was Gareth that replied.
"Or worse, it could be a Goblin King."
The receptionist nodded grimly. "Exactly. An encampment like that can't be overlooked. The guild wants it eliminated before it grows into a full-blown infestation."
"Hmm... But then doesn't that mean it's at least a steel rank? quest?" Doran asked.
"The guild isn't stupid," the elf shot back. "Our steel rank parties are out on outside quests and besides, You won't be going in alone. Three other parties have accepted the quest as well. You'll meet at rendezvous point outside the west gate before heading out."
"... Ok then, got it."
*****
Outside the gates of Fairhaven, stood three battle ready parties. Their blades and armor gleamed gleamed under the white rays of the morning sun.
Other than Gareth's party, the first was an iron ranked party of demi humans of the cat race. with two of its members already at the 2nd tier. They were made of two thief classes and a tracker.
The second was a party of with it's members coming from mixed races with two 2nd tiers like the first. The team leader was a well built swordsman. His team was made of himself, another human swordsman, a dwarf Axeman and an elven archer.
"Hey you guys... I think I might be leaving Fairhaven soon..."
"..."
"..."
The shock was evident on all their faces as he voiced out what had been troubling for a while.
Fairhaven was nice, but he didn't want to be stuck in the same old town the rest of his life. No. He wanted to get stronger and deep down he knew this wasn't the place for it.
"Is that so..." Gareth whispered. "Then I guess you'll be leaving soonest tomorrow?"
"Wait that soon?" Hazel jumped in.
"Yeah, I figured he's a kid with a dream, so wasting time isn't his forte right?"
"Yeah..."
"But-- I'll miss you you know." Hazel mummured with a somewhat cute expression prompting a chuckle from her team mates.
"Yeah, me too..." he smiled, "I'll get stronger and maybe one day I'll even be the one to save you guys, you'll see."
"I'll hold you to that Kael..." Elise added
"Sure..."
Everyone was minding to their equipment or preparing for the battle while low-key waiting for the fourth and final party that was already over thirty minutes late.
Then just as Gareth was about to address the other parties on whether to report their lateness to the guild, an annoying voice finally showed up at last.
"Well, well, well... Look what we have here..."
The fourth and final team was the notorious party of Rourke Daystar.
"You're late." Doran sneered as the other parties followed suit.
"And so?" Rourke shot back.
"Listen Rourke," the leader of team 3 who introduced himself as Cedric spoke up. "Alright you guys, let's all calm down a bit... Personal issues aside, we still have to work together on this one whether we like it or not."
His words words got the aggression in the air to drop considerably as Gareth thanked him with a nod before clearing his throat.
"Alright, now let's talk strategy." He spoke up in his usual serious tone. "Odds are we probably won't get a chance to do this after we arrive at the camp so let's get this done."
"We'll split into two teams. Two parties in each... One team focuses on the taking out the leader while the other handles the small fry... Any objections?
"..."
"Good." He voiced out, straightening his posture as he continued. "Let's move out."
The briefing was short and tense. Since scouts had already marked it's location beforehand, the parties could comfortably come up with a suitable formation — Gareth and Rourke's parties would lead the charge on the goblin leader; the others would circle and cover the flanks. The plan was simple: strike fast, kill the leader, end it before the horde scattered.
If everything went as planned, they would all come back alive and in one piece, or so they hoped at least. Unbeknownst to them that within their circle of confident smiles, one of those smiles carried an immense amount of blood loss directed at the youngest of the expedition.
'Soon...' Rourke thought, 'I will have my revenge... Kael.'
---
After a few hours of trekking through the dense forest , the trees finally topened into a clearing. The camp sprawled below them like a scar on the earth — a crude maze of wooden stakes and rotting fences. Makeshift tents lined the muddy ground, and the stench of blood hung thick in the air. Over a hundred goblins scurried about — far more than the scouts had reported.
"Gods above…" someone muttered. "There's too many."
"Yeah...," Gareth murmured. "Alright team... Let's do this ."
****
The loud cry of the goblin guards signalled the start of the operation.
They burst through the crude gates, steel and flame crashing into chaos. Goblins shrieked as the vanguard carved a bloody path through the camp. The rear teams fanned out, cutting down anything that tried to flee. The noise of battle drowned the forest in fire and screams.
"Keep moving!" Gareth shouted. "Well split up around here... Take care you guys...!"
"Aye.."
"You don't have to worry about us."
A nod was all it took to slow confirmation between the leaders as the teams split up.
Gareth locked in on a massive tent at the center of the camp. It looked larger than the rest, with its entrance marked with bones and crude sigils. This was without a doubt the leaders resting place.
"Rourke!" Gareth barked. "Burn it down!"
Rourke grinned, raising his hand as mana swirled in his palm. "With pleasure…"
A sphere of blazing fire ignited as he began chanting. the heat distorting the air. "Mana o mana... heed my call...."
ll this while Kael has remained silent, but he was uneasy. Something was wrong but he couldn't yell what.
"...Come forth and burn down my enemies—Fireball!"
The explosion consumed the tent in flame. For a heartbeat, it looked as if if the boss has been killed in the flames, but then a sudden roar erupted from within the tent.
A hulking figure burst from the blaze with a maddened look on its face. It's towered over everyone present as it's height was easily comparable to that if the giant from the other day. Its dark-green flesh shimmered with heat as its crimson eyes burning with hate, staring at the annoying flies before it. This was without a doubt The Goblin King.
Even at the sight of the beast they were calm, though they didn't like their odds, they had expected this. They would pull through somehow.
But before they could move, another sound erupted from. The flames— a deeper, guttural roar that rattled their ver cores. The tent tore open again, and a second figure stepped out.
Its skin was blood-red, with thick veins bulging out of its muscles with molten light. It's emerald eyes glowed with minor intelligence and on its forehead, a single, short white horn gleamed like ivory under the morning sun.
They were paralyzed.
The sight of this thing alone was enough to kill their spirits
"You guys…" someone whispered.
"By the gods…"
"No... we- we can't fight that…—"
"What is that thing?..."
Kael's voice trembled as he finished the sentence with a slow name everyone here was clearly scared of.
"Its... A Demon…"