Five days until the meeting with the marquis...

The next day, the orcs set out on a quest. Marguz, the son of Chief Narzagul, and his cousin Struka went to the territory of the Bear King.

After two hours, they finally reached the cave where the Bear King usually stayed. They did not find any live bears in the area. The only thing they came across was a corpse. Same thing in the cave.

When they reached the larger chamber, the stench of decomposing bodies hit their nostrils. One of the bears lay with its head torn open against a rock, while another, covered with numerous cut wounds and fire marks, rested against the wall.

In the middle lay their king - a black, overgrown bear. Even his lifeless body caused awe and caution in the orcs.

“I never thought I would see this monstrosity dead,” Struka said.

“True,” replied Marguz. “Let's look for our hunters.”

The orcs left the cave, continuing their search.

Meanwhile, in the keep...

“Carl, Gaz will take your place.” Announced Elrianthe over breakfast.

“Why? I can be useful!” Carl asked, trembling nervously.

He wanted to prove his worth to the elf at all costs, to redeem himself for the harm he had done to her.

“Shut your damn mouth!” Elrianthe thundered.

“I'm sorry, my lady.”

“I'm sick of looking at your ugly face.”

“But...” Carl wanted to interject but was immediately silenced.

“One more word, and the first task I'll give Gaz will be to rip out your tongue!” Elrianthe threatened him.

Carl fell silent, and a sullen mood took over the table. Alison silently ate next to her, guessing why Elrianthe's mood was so bitter today.

'She must have had that nightmare again.' Alison thought.

Trauma had plagued Elrianthe for a long time. She often screamed and talked to herself at night. Alison tried to talk to her about it, but Elrianthe countered that she shouldn't worry about it.

“One more thing, Carl. If you touch her, even once,” she pointed at Alison, ” even by accident, I will personally break all your bones, from the tip of your finger to your collarbone. After Alison heals you, I'll do it again. And so on over and over again until you take your own life. Do you understand?” Elrianthe said.

Carl horrified nodded in confirmation.

'Why is she so brutal? Is the pressure forcing her to act more forcefully?' Alison wondered, looking at the elven woman.

Elrianthe only smiled in response to her questioning look. Alison, once again, blushed, realizing how much Elrianthe wanted to protect her against a similar fate. In a few days, they could be gone forever, and she is doing everything to protect her.

'I won't let anyone hurt her. She is a perfect woman. If I can free myself from the Marquis' power, together with her as my assistant, we will together create the strongest organization on this continent.' Elrianthe thought.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Good. It's time to leave. Since Gaz has decided to support us, we will split into two groups and hunt independently. Taygeer,” she said.

“Yes, boss?” He said.

“You'll take Matt and Mitta. I'll go with Gaz and Duncan.”

“Ah, I'd like to go with you,” Matt interjected.

“Don't argue with me.” She answered him firmly.

“All right, Miss.” Replied Matt, resignedly.

“Yes, boss lady.” Added Taygeer.

*KRAA, KRAA*

Elrianthe's raven flew over and, perched on her shoulder, tried to get her attention.

“Yes, yes. You will also come with us.” She said to him, stroking his back.

Two hours later...

The orcs were searching the area for the bodies of their hunters. Suddenly Struka came across footsteps and, following them, came upon their corpses.

“Marguz!” Struka called out.

“What happened? Did you find anything?”

“Yes. They are here.” Struka replied.

Marguz approached his cousin and saw the bodies of his relatives. Olaugh was lying on his back with his throat pierced. He had no other signs of struggle or wounds on him. A piece further away lay two other orcs.

Slog was lying in front of a bush. An arrow was lodged in his exposed abdomen, and numerous stab wounds were visible in the neck and chest area. Oglub, on the other hand, was in a completely different situation. Like Slog, he had been hit by an arrow, but his body was in two parts.

“What could have had such force to cut him in half?” Marguz wondered.

“I don't know. It wasn't the bears' fault.”

“I know, bears don't shoot a bow and leave untouched corpses behind,” Marguz replied.

“How about another tribe? For example, the Khargun tribe from the south? We don't have the best relations with them.” Struka speculated.

“They would have to pass through our area to get here. It's not them.” Marguz said.

“Then who?”

*Wrrrawwr*

The orcs heard the bear roar, but it didn't roar because of them.

“There!” Cried Struka, pointing in the direction from which the sound came.

Marguz and Struka moved in the indicated direction and after a while approached the escarpment. Below them stretched an even denser forest than on the hills, but the scattered treetops on the edge allowed them to see the fight between the bear and the strange figures.

“Are those people?” Struka asked.

They both noticed that the bear was fighting with human-like figures. One of them was wielding a sword, and another was shooting a bow, but the biggest surprise for them was the third person - a woman with fair, long hair and a spear. She was not directly involved in the clash but kept her weapon on standby.

“Look at this female! It's not a human. She has long ears.” Perceived Marguz.

“People don't have long ears?”

“She is an elf. We must tell my father about this.” Marguz declared.

“But were they the ones who killed our hunters?” Struka asked.

“They have a bow. The one with the sword is also strong. See, he cut off the bear's head.” Marguz added.

“And the king?”

“All we know is that he's dead. That's enough. We're going back to notify the chief.” Marguz stated and they set off towards their fortress.

Elrianthe studied the message. During the fight with the bear, her skill level increased.

[ The < Daze > skill reaches level 3. Range increases to 6 meters. ]

'Six meters is not so bad anymore, right?' She thought.

*Eagle's scream*

“Look!” Called Duncan, pointing to the raptor that was flying toward them.

Elrianthe looked up into the sky and spotted a huge eagle that was not only heading in their direction but had even begun to dive.

“Quick, hide between the trees!” Elrianthe shouted.

The eagle landed with a bang on the ground. Its size resembled at least a large elephant. The force of the impact spread across the ground, tearing it apart.

'Does everything have to be so huge here?' Elrianthe wondered.

The predator turned toward them and made a shrill sound, forcing the group to hide behind the trees to cover their ears.

Although they were its target, the eagle decided to deal with their prey. He grabbed the dead bear in his powerful claws and took to the air, launching himself into the sky as a whirlwind-like vortex of air lifted him dozens of meters into the air.

“What the fuck was that supposed to mean?” Shouted a surprised Gaz.

“I don't know, but I accept the challenge,” Elrianthe replied.