Hours later, atop the mithril vein, the battle had concluded. There was no suspense to the outcome.

The mine was close to the half-orc tribe, hence Shadar had not assigned a strong guard force there.

Under the fierce assault led by Argus and his elite troops, the mere handful of forest trolls guarding the mine stood no chance. They could only shed their blood upon this ground.

"Sir, what should we do with these goblins and gnolls?" a soldier inquired, gazing toward the distant figures of goblins and gnolls.

Argus casually glanced over, "We'll need miners to extract the ore later on; these are ready-made workers for us – let's keep them for now."

However, he failed to notice among the gnolls, one that was stronger than the rest, watching him with an expression cold as death.

For Doug the gnoll, this turn of events was unexpected. Given his standing among the gnolls, he didn't need to stoop to mining; yet, to better aid the great Black Dragon, he had chosen to personally oversee the mining operations. What he hadn't anticipated was encountering a human army.

Doug refrained from any rash declarations about being a vassal of the mighty Black Dragon. Instead, he held his kin and the goblins back from speaking out or resisting, waiting for an opportunity.

How could these mortals ever compare to a true dragon!

"Where did the other two go?" Argus asked, a touch of irritation in his voice.

Aside from the six soldiers killed by the dying defiance of the trolls, two were unaccounted for.

"Lord Argus, the Andre brothers went after a half-orc!" one of the men reported.

"A half-orc?" Argus seemed puzzled.

"A half-orc girl, she appeared to be a wolf-girl, and well... they couldn't resist..."

Observing his subordinate's hesitant manner, Argus understood the situation all too well.

Half-orc females were highly valued, and it seemed the three men were looking for a way to make a quick profit on the side.

"Damn it!"

Argus was well aware of the Andre brothers' capabilities; after all, he had personally recruited them for their strength, and now he was furious.

His rage wasn't due to their pursuit of the half-orc girl; it was the sheer audacity of these men to defy his orders. These soldiers were his confidants, handpicked by Argus himself.

Argus decided that once the two returned, they would be severely punished, perhaps even made an example of, to remind his subordinates what it means to obey orders without question.

...

In the woods, a petite figure dashed swiftly.

Laura did not flee toward the Rose Tribe; she knew that if the enemy attacked the mining site so brazenly, they must have been prepared to deal with the forest trolls.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

The enemy's equipment was exceptionally sophisticated, and they were powerfully built.

Laura realized that even the former alliance of the Rose and the Eviltooth tribes would not stand a chance against them.

Now, her only hope was to reach the Eviltooth tribe as quickly as possible and inform the black dragon of this development.

She hoped she would make it in time!

Suddenly, the little wolf-girl Laura's ears twitched, and she dove to one side.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Three arrows flew past where she had just been.

Turning back, Laura saw two armored warriors had already surrounded her.

"Heh heh, I told you it was a little wolf-girl!"

The two men exchanged a smug look; they had seen the wolf-girl attempting to escape but had not raised an alarm. Instead, they had quietly followed her, intending to claim this prize for themselves.

"Big bro, mind if I have a bit of fun first?" one of the soldiers said lecherously, removing his helmet.

"Little brother, we can't mess around with this one. You know those nobles will pay top dollar for an intact half-orc," the eldest cautioned.

"I promise she'll stay intact, but there's no harm in having a little bit of other fun," the third one said, clearly reluctant to back down.

"Then make it quick!" the eldest said, impatiently waving his hand.

"Alright, hehe, just give up quietly, little one," the third taunted as he pulled out a chain to restrain Laura.

Laura, at this moment, bowed her head and curled up as though terrified...

Seeing the little wolf-girl seemingly paralyzed with fear, the two men let down their guard; after all, she was just a thirteen-or-four-year-old half-orc. But as the third brother reached out to grab Laura by her hair, she suddenly sprang into action.

"Watch out, third!" the eldest barely got the warning out.

With a vicious tear, the crimson-eyed wolf-girl bit into the third brother's neck. She ripped out a chunk of his trachea, leaving a gaping, bloody wound. With a powerful kick, she propelled his body toward the eldest and then sprinted away into the distance on all fours.

The third brother's eyes glazed over as he struggled to draw breath through his severed windpipe. It was a losing battle.

"Ah!" The eldest brother clutched his sibling's corpse in agony. The wolf-girl's speed had been too much, and their underestimation, coupled with the removal of their helmets, had made their demise all the more ignominious.

"Cursed beast, I'll personally chop off your head!" the eldest shed his armor to lighten his load, gripping his weapon and channeling his fighting spirit, he pursued her with all his might.

...

Meanwhile, Shadar was heartily gnawing on a beast's leg. To be cautious, Salron had ordered Shadar to stay put with a contingent of troll warriors; the ore was vital for their feast and could not be neglected. Watching the goblins and gnolls stack the ore into the storehouse brought Shadar immense satisfaction.

Life for the Eviltooth tribe was simple and primitive, revolving around hunting and raiding. However, this was inefficient. The forest trolls' infamy meant most caravans took detours to avoid them, and while the trolls were strong, they were not powerful enough to disregard all other regional forces.

Usually, the trolls needed to hunt excessively to stockpile meat and hide for bartering essential goods like salt. Therefore, their prey was not as abundant as one might think.

Indeed, if they hunted without restraint, they could deplete the forest's game, but as lifetime inhabitants of the woods, the trolls understood the concept of not exhausting one's resources.

Initially, Shadar had expected the arrival of the Black Dragon to result in unprecedented exploitation of their tribe. Instead, it had brought new hope to the Eviltooth.

"Chieftain Shadar, trouble's brewing! A group of human soldiers is heading our way, and they've already killed two of our lookouts!" gasped a breathless male troll as he ran up to Shadar.

"What?" Shadar's eyes reddened as he threw aside the bone he was gnawing.

First, it was that black... Lord Salron, then the half-orcs, and now humans dared to attack them proactively. Did these fools think the forest trolls were pushovers to be trifled with?

"Rally all our kin; I'll make those damned intruders pay!" Shadar growled, gripping his large bone club.

A chorus of roars erupted from within the camp. The forest trolls never shied away from battle.

Shadar pulled out a set of crudely fashioned armor, a full suit complete with a helmet. He used to think all the ore rightfully belonged to Salron because mithril was wealth, and dragons, especially black dragons, were known for their greed for riches. He figured they wouldn't get a single piece of ore.

But Salron allowed them to forge their armor with it. Shadar remembered Salron's words, "You are mine, and your future is mine. Think of this as an investment in that future; after all, the veins are plentiful, and there is much time ahead!"

Shadar didn't quite understand investment, but he knew Salron valued them, the forest trolls, greatly. The favor of a real dragon was priceless, and with that thought, Shadar shook off his musings.

Quickly donning his armor, Shadar, followed by dozens of troll warriors, marched out fearlessly to face the threat.