As Thorian stared at the cunning little goblin, the image of his great-uncle Aldritch superimposed itself onto the green creature. The more he gazed at it, the more vividly he recalled the treacherous smirk on his betrayer's face in those final moments.

"Shrii! I'm sorry!"

The goblin's high-pitched shriek and desperate plea shattered Thorian's illusion. The diminutive green creature retreated, quivering with fear.

Glancing down, Thorian realized that he had clenched his fist so tightly that his claws had punctured his own palm. As for his facial expression, it was so menacing that the terrified creature couldn't help but beg for its life.

Don’t lose your temper, he can be useful.

Thorian took a deep breath and relaxed before looking back at the goblin with a neutral expression. "What's your name?"

The goblin stuttered for a few seconds, regaining his composure before answering, "My given name is Skabrixpride, but everyone calls me Brix."

Thorian nodded. "Brix, you will now go and chop trees with the orcs. Is that understood?"

"Yes. Yes, of course!" Brix nodded enthusiastically, relieved that the situation had de-escalated.

With that brief exchange, Thorian turned and continued walking through the central part of the village. However, just as they entered a patch of trees, Thorian's stomach let out a rumbling growl.

Surprised by his body's natural reaction, Thorian glanced down at his stomach. Ah, I haven't eaten anything in the past two days.

Thorian grimaced as he recalled the taste of blood on his tongue. His bestial instincts urged him to hunt and consume his prey's raw flesh, but Thorian refused to let them overpower him.

What kind of sick joke is this? The head of the Steelblade family eating like a savage animal?

While his pride dictated his course of action, reality offered Thorian few alternatives. It was either continuous starvation or swallowing his pride.

However, as he looked back at the wary Brix following him, an idea sparked in Thorian's mind.

Wait, goblins do eat cooked meat.

"Brix," Thorian gestured at the goblin with his head. "Do you have any experience cooking meat?"

"Cooking meat?" Brix furrowed his eyebrows in confusion before nodding hastily. "Yes, of course I can cook. I can prepare the best meals around!"

"Good," Thorian nodded with a slight smile. "There aren't any utensils around, so I'll need you to be creative. The Thumpalopes' meat should still be safe to cook; it's only been a few hours since I killed them."

"Thumpalopes, master?" Brix asked hesitantly.

"They're large rabbits with twisted goat horns," Thorian explained as he continued walking forward. "Have you never seen them before?"

"No, I've never seen them," Brix shook his head and followed Thorian. The two veered away from the direction of the orcs and headed to the right. "But they sound delicious."

Brix attempted a laugh to break the ice, but Thorian merely glanced at him with a neutral expression. The goblin awkwardly ceased his laughter and stiffened his posture, maintaining a safe distance as he trailed behind Thorian.

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"You'll skin them, clean them, prepare them, and cook them," Thorian instructed. "My men have been eating their prey raw, but they need to experience the true delicacy of a cooked meal. Make it good."

"Of course, master," Brix nodded enthusiastically. "Once they taste my cooking, they'll never want to go back to eating raw meat again."

Thorian remained silent and continued walking forward. After about a minute of traversing along the tree line, the pair finally reached the village wall.

This should be the spot.

Thorian turned to Brix and said, "Take my hand."

The goblin hesitated at first but ultimately accepted Thorian's offer. The flame kobold gripped Brix firmly before leaping atop the wall ledge in a single bound.

As they landed, the goblin yelped and exclaimed, "Master is truly strong."

However, Thorian paid him no heed. He knew that Brix was only trying to flatter him because of the precarious situation he found himself in.

Instead, Thorian focused on the scene before him, where the dozens of Thumpalopes should have been lying dead.

Wait, something is wrong. Instead of dozens of giant rabbits, Thorian could only see five of the large creatures scattered on the ground. Did some thieving scavengers come and take them?

Thorian grimaced in annoyance before leaping off the wall on his own. One by one, he gathered the dead Thumpalopes and tossed them inside the village. However, as he reached the last one, an idea crossed his mind, and a grin spread across his face.

I should leave this one as bait. Let's see who these thieving rats are.

With his plan in mind, Thorian jumped back up the wall and brought Brix down with him. As they reached the ground, Thorian issued his command, "I want you to cook all of these rabbits in the center of the village. I don't care how you do it or where you get your tools from, but if you burn them or make something inedible, you won't have a good time. Understood?"

Brix recoiled at the order initially, but quickly changed his expression and nodded nervously. "Yes, I understand, master. Don't worry, I will cook them properly."

"Good, now go."

With that final command, Brix grabbed one of the giant rabbits by the leg and dragged it behind him with all his strength. The Thumpalopes were almost as tall as the goblins, but they were thicker and fluffier. The small creature struggled to pull a beast that was significantly heavier than its own body weight.

While Brix hauled the Thumpalope to the center of the village, Thorian leaped back up onto the village wall. He cast one last glance at Brix and smirked.

If he tries to escape then so be it. He will just be food to the monsters roaming the forest.

With that final thought, Thorian shifted his focus to his next objective: meeting up with Nox. He immediately began running atop the wall, keeping an eye on both the inside and outside of the village for any unnatural disturbances. The last thing he wanted was for monsters to sneak inside the walls and launch an attack on his men from behind.

After a few minutes of tireless sprinting, the sounds of battle caught Thorian's attention. He instantly increased his speed, and before long, he reached the battlefield.

A pack of twenty Rabbarians was engaged in combat with a similarly sized group of brown kobloids, led by a couple of kobolds. However, the latter were at a distinct disadvantage. Only the evolved kobolds could strengthen their hide with their skills to counter the Rabbarians' red aura punches, while the kobloids merely served as punching bags.

However, this disadvantage was short-lived, as a silhouette lunged from the shadows. A tall kobold with midnight black fur and silver streaks shimmering under the moonlight moved with dizzying speed. In a moment, his body was enveloped in shadows and a dark aura, which then spread and struck a couple of Rabbarians. The shadowy aura coated the white humanoid rabbits from head to toe, and the dark kobold struck them with his axe, cleaving them in half with each slash.

Is that Nox? Thorian thought, his face etched with disbelief. But that's not the appearance of a night kobold. Those streaks... Is he a shadowstalker?

Just as Thorian finished the thought, three more kobolds emerged from the shadows. Their fur was a pristine silvery-white, and their lithe figures showcased their astounding agility. They too had streaks covering their bodies, but this time they were dark ones.

The moment the trio touched the ground, their feet shone with brilliant light before they darted across the battlefield. They were like unrelenting arrows claiming the lives of the Rabbarians with each strike. Their opponents simply could not fight back, as the silver kobolds' speed left no room for counterattacks.