A lone goblin stumbled from a nearby nest and upon the trail, where it chanced to see the line of carriages. Its ears twitched with cruel anticipation, lips upturning in a malevolent smile. Brandishing a shoddy, rust-worn blade, it crept closer and hid behind a bush as images of suffering played tauntingly in its mind’s eye.

Saliva dripped from the corners of its mouth as it stared—this many dead would serve its Lord well. If it did the deed, surely it would be given a taste of His power. The tantalizing scent of flesh mingled with the disgusting stench of steel and leather, and many, many other things, becoming as one scent—prey.

Peering closer, stepping carefully so as to not reveal itself, it scanned the tops of the carriages.

In an instant, all its machinations were shattered.

Adventurers.

Just the thought sent a pang of fear through its chest—and this many.

Suddenly, it felt the wind against his back. And then, it heard and saw as the horses reared upward, whinnying with terror.

A shiver ran down its spine. It knew this sensation well—it was being watched. Its eyes darted about—who? It did not take long for it to see who—a human man, about one-twenty feet away. Middle seat of a middle-aligned carriage, his face set with grim resolve, eyes like daggers. That gaze and all the anger behind it was directed right at it.

It had killed many adventurers. It had killed many, seen many reactions to death and all the variants of suffering it could inflict. It knew what it felt like to be stared at with animosity, hate, to be pled with…

But not like this.

In a blind panic, it scrambled backward and fell onto its rear. It had to retreat back to the nest, back to safety. Where it could live another day. If it lived, it could kill again.

Hmm…

It stopped idle-mindedly as it relived a recent memory. Just a few days ago, it’d been able to kill. If it lived, it could kill again. Shivers of joy washed over it in waves as it smiled, finding solace in that.

It had forgotten all about the danger lurking behind it.

Yes, indeed… How unfortunate that it would have to wait to kill again.

But as quickly as that sensation had come, it faded, replaced by overwhelming terror as soon as the image of the adventurers made its way back into its brain.

Adventurers.

Propelled by blind terror sustained by that image, it ran through brush and bracken, cutting itself on thorns and sharpened sticks it had once fashioned as traps.

It ran, from the noise, from the horses, from the adventurers.

Scrambling as it had, it had nearly dropped the blade it carried. If it had lost it, there was no doubt it would have been killed by the leader.

Finally reaching the nest, cleverly hidden by a mess of lichen and leaves, it stopped. Relief washed over it, but something was… wrong?

Why was the entrance unhidden? Why was it pushed apart, as if there were adventurers?

No, it assured itself. Must be a patrol. Something. Not adventurers.

It pushed past the dark entryway and into the damp cave. Home.

It smelled of mold and death—the scent of blood clung heavily to the air.

That was not unusual. Perhaps the adventurer they had killed the other day had not been thrown out or eaten yet.

He stepped forward, deeper into the cave, then… froze.

Corpses. Goblins. And two of them.

Abject terror seized at his thumping heart, before pleasure overrode any fear he might have felt at the sight. He smirked—bursting out into a cackling laughter that echoed throughout the cave.

He did not have to share anymore! He could be leader, yes, he! He could finally be leader of the cave. It was about time. But wait, if they were killed, who could have-

And that was where the goblin’s thoughts ended.

A flanged mace suddenly connected with the back of its skull, throwing it to the floor where it crashed its head against the stone, splintering its teeth in its mouth and sending its vision swimming with red. As it died, the man whom the weapon belonged to dusted his hands together. He was a sturdy, well-built man with brown hair and grey eyes.

"Seems like that was all of them."

“Nice goin’, Ramsay.”

A party of four adventurers. A routine, monthly check on the nearby area had revealed a single cave hosting a goblin nest, and so adventurers were dispatched to deal with it.

“What was this one doing?”

A female paladin clad in full plate armor peered down at the monster, a disgusted grimace darkening her face. She returned her weapon to its sheath after cleaning it, then looked over at her companions expecting an answer.

A blond fighter with his hair tied into a long, ponytail gave a disinterested shrug, as he stowed his gilded spear behind his back.

“Who knows? I’m about ready to be out of here, if it’s all the same to you.”

A deep laughter echoed throughout the cave. It came from a scruffy, middle-aged man, resting his bloody, cleaver-like greatsword across his shoulder as he cocked a grin towards his friend, saying, “Hah, well spoken, Soril. Could’ve said the same thing myself! Oh, and well done, too! Not bad, kid!”

The spearman simply shook his head.

“I am not a child, Max. I am fifteen.”

“Yeah, whatever!”

“Let’s just get out of here, you guys.” The paladin interrupted before any further squabbling could take place, starting off toward the entrance, adding, “I’d rather not spend any more time in here if we don’t have to.”

“Yeah, yeah. Comin’, Cass,” The greatsword-wielding man exhaled, before nonchalantly following suit.

By government mandate, all Lords were required to conduct regular checks on their lands with the purpose of rooting out goblin nests. If any were found, adventurers were to be hired and sent to deal with them. As an arm of the royal government, the Guild played a crucial part in the safety of the realms, especially during Advent Month. What good would new adventurers be if they wound up dead in their first week? As such, during the month of newcomers, all earnings from goblin quests were doubled—with the coin coming straight from Guild coffers.

It was for a sound reason; when left to their own devices, goblins would spread like wildfire—and an infestation of them was no joke. They were beings capable of great evil, and consequently, as a pest, they had to be eradicated.

In the end, there were always more goblins. And no matter how many adventurers fell to their cruel blades, there would always be others who would kill them.

And so, the four put the den behind them and returned to Leln, exchanging banter along the way, to rest their weary legs and drink themselves to a deserved sleep. Pride themselves on a job well done, and all that.

But the evil persisted. Through the pervasive darkness of the cave shone two hate-filled red eyes, watching.

A single goblin had survived the fight, by hiding beneath the body of another. This goblin was young, although age made no difference in a goblin's capability to visit great torment and evil upon those it came across. This goblin had survived the destruction of its nest. Deep in its black heart, the resentment and hate it felt towards all life spilled over and consumed it. It seethed with rage, with disappointment towards itself. It had not been able to kill the adventurers.

And yet…

Now he was the leader of his nest. He liked the sound of that.

Yes.

A haunting smile stretched across the vile monster’s face, tongue lapping at dry lips. He could just taste the blood in the air. Wanting more, he bit down on the inside of his mouth until it filled with the taste of copper.

Finally, he could taste it. Finally, he could think.

He was not dead. He had not let Him down yet.

So he would wish, with his whole being, to Him.

Sargantas.

As he thought that name, he could feel his hatred growing stronger. In the depths of that hate the goblin wallowed, and in the depths of that hate did he nourish himself and grow stronger. He would start a new nest, near the place those adventurers had come from.

And when he was stronger, when he’d become an ogre, he would kill them all.

He threw his head back in a cackle.

He would grow the nest.

He would start anew.

And then, when the time was right, he would destroy the adventurers.

Suddenly, he doubled over and vomited. A green, slime-like substance piled from his throat onto the floor, and inside the mess was one of his own. Yet, he felt no love for the creature. A cold indifference, instead.

What was truly on his mind, was killing. Soon, he told himself.

Soon.

#

Taka awoke to the sounds of water. Still half-asleep, he nearly thought it was raining.

But then he came to, and saw that it was just that half-elf guy, Beriyl, refilling his waterskin for what had to be the fourth or fifth time since they’d left the coast.

‘…um, how much water is this guy drinking?’

To his chagrin, Beriyl must have noticed him staring at him, because he turned and said something so incredibly stupid, Taka wasn’t sure his ears were working right; “Hey. You. Where are we going?”

“Uh… huh?” He mumbled drowsily, rubbing at his eyes in an attempt to wake up faster.

Time inched ever closer to dawn—fringes of light cascaded over the horizon as the sun peeked above it, gradually illuminating the still-waking world.

“Um, are you talking to me?” Taka’s voice was a hushed whisper, but Beriyl didn’t seem to catch on. Instead, he sighed and kept talking at his “normal” volume, which was already pretty loud.

“Who else would I be speaking to?” He replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“I don’t know, but be quiet. It’s very-“ Taka yawned. “It’s very early.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Beriyl’s face upturned in a taut, falsely pleasant smile as he spoke. He’d waited patiently for Taka meet his gaze again before speaking, and Taka listened as the idiot repeated something that made no sense at all, in a voice far above “people are sleeping” levels.

“Our destination. What is it?”

With another big yawn, Taka slumped back in his seat, staring at the noble.

“Um… it’s Leln. Are you being serious?”

“Yes, quite serious. Thank you. Was that so hard? I swear, you commoners…”

‘Okay, you know what? If he’s gonna be like this, I just woke up, and I’m not gonna deal with it.’

With that, Taka shut his eyes, but unfortunately that didn’t keep Beriyl from bothering him.

“You know!” He began, still far too loud for the time it was. Taka’s eyes shot open—and snapped on to the man as he hissed, “Beriyl- Be quiet, you’re gonna wake someone up!”

Was he even trying to be quiet? The smirk on his face – and his next words -- told Taka that the answer was, in fact, no.

“That’s below my concern. And it’s Beriyl Edmund Ciphre von Aschwaz to you. Now, what I was going to say before you so rudely interrupted me was, I read that it was in Leln the Hero Lelnas buried his sworn enemy.”

“Oh really.” Taka grumbled; disinterest written plain across his face.

“Yes! The book I was reading last night told of that.”

“…I thought that was the monster whatever.”

“No, no, that’s a different book. When I asked for your assistance with a Light, do you recall? I was perusing a different tome, then. A fable, by Bartholomew Xassord.”

“…right..”

“Yes! And-“

At this point, Taka decided to interrupt him before he actually woke someone else up.

“Why are you awake right now? Why?” He hissed. “I mean, don’t nobles usually sleep in, or something?”

“Hahaha! Well, I couldn’t very well leave my valuables unattended, now could I? Not with all this riffraff around! Oh, and I assure you, I got plenty of sleep! But thank you for worrying about my well-being.”

Taka scoffed and turned away. “Yeah, okay…”

‘Really hope he didn’t wake anyone up. I mean, he woke me up, and I’m so-‘

Another yawn wrenched its way from his body.

‘…Maybe I should go back to sleep.’

He shot a glance around the carriage, that thought echoing in the back of his mind. The man with the scar hadn’t stirred—his eyes were closed, but something about his body language, the way he clutched the sword laid across his lap, gave Taka the feeling he wasn’t asleep. The catfolk girl, however… was currently glaring at Beriyl. Beriyl, who, of course, didn’t have a care in the world when it came to other people, apparently.

Eventually, he found sleep.

The next time Taka opened his eyes, it was to the break of dawn—to golden rays of sunlight spilling over the landscape, guided by the sun as they rose. The days warmth hugged at his body, and it wasn’t until he felt that sensation that he realized how cold he’d been. He took a deep breath of the morning air—a soft breeze making it all the more refreshing.

“Haaaa…”

He stretched his torso upward, intertwining his hands as he forced the sleep from his limbs. Next, his legs… and then he paused, stricken by the sight before him.

The carriage rocked beneath him as they travelled through the forest, down a well-trodden dirt path...

And toward Leln.

Leln.

They were getting closer to the gates—his carriage was nearer the top formation-wise, but he’d been watching people pull in and disappear around the corner for what felt like ages. That meant there had to be people already getting off and going on their way, and there was a carriage pulling past the gates just now…

He practically couldn’t wait.

‘I can’t believe we’re finally here. Holy shit!’

He flicked his gaze to his right—Beriyl was still there, looking tired and irritable.

‘…maybe he didn’t sleep very well?’

Well-rested and invigorated by the dawn and profound excitement, Taka decided to ask a question that’d been bothering him for a while. He hadn’t asked it yet, because he knew he’d probably start something, but he was happy, and sometimes, he asked stupid questions when he was happy.

“Hey, why’d you uh, wanna become an adventurer? I’m curious.”

Instantly, Beriyl’s face darkened, and he looked downward, hesitating.

"That’s..."

For a moment, he stared quietly at the palms of his hands, before clenching them into fists.

"Absolutely none of your concern," he finally mustered, voice wavering. Then, he turned and peered off into the distance.

“Uh, okay..." Taka studied him for a second, then shook his head slightly in confusion and glanced away.

Just in time, too.

The carriage rolled steadily past the gate, then kept going. Following the drivers ahead of them, and the guards’ directions, they eventually came to a section off the main road assigned purposefully for Advent Month carriages. There was more than enough room for all forty-some carriages in here.

To be entirely honest, riding through the bustling streets, watching as people looked up at them (they may not have been looking at him directly, but his nerves ensured it felt like it…) and the fact that he was in a new place, by himself? It was all extremely overwhelming. So much so, he found himself pulling his scarf up over his nose to try and hide-- But for better or worse, he didn’t get much time to dwell on it.

“Welcome to Leln. Now get off.” The man at the reins droned, voice gruff and grumpy.

‘I wonder if, um… Did that guy even sleep? I guess not, yeah, I guess he probably couldn’t, but…’

First to reply, of course, was none other than Beriyl. Rising from his seat, he cocked his head and quipped, "With pleasure!"

The other two got off without commentary. The catfolk shot one last nasty glare in Beriyl’s direction, and a look of pity, or… understanding, in Taka’s.

For his part, he grabbed his stuff and hopped off the carriage, feeling the gravelly dirt crunch beneath his feet.

He was here.

That realization hit him like a wave—he was here!

Excitement, for what laid ahead – anxiety, for the uncertainty of the future – sadness, for having left Dane – and happiness and pride, for having finally made that first step, by himself, for himself. He was that much closer to becoming an adventurer, and he’d done it all on his own.

Taking his first few steps away from the carriage and back into the main street, stopping just before the gate, he looked around in awe at all the buildings, all the people wandering through the town; there were towering beastfolk and nimble halffolk, stout dwarves and beautiful elves, as well as some lesser seen races, like half-demons and insect beastfolk. Taka even saw a few dogfolk-- if he remembered what Dane had taught him, they’d lost the Kaardan War and consequently became a slave species, so there weren’t too many of them around anymore. Wolffolk, on the other hand…

Leln was in full gear due to Advent Month; everyone seemed extraordinarily busy, hurrying here and there, with horses pulling wagons trotting noisily down the roads, carrying important people and various goods. Storeowners advertised their services at the front of their establishments, smiling at all the profit – all the new adventurers coming into town.

“Thirty percent off, yes, thirty percent off!”

“Weapons! Sellin’ weapons here! Fifteen percent off all swords! Offer’s good for an hour!”

“Got potions great and minor, arrows and all manner of things here! Forty percent off, won’t get it anywhere else! First five customers get two potions free with a purchase of three!”

For all the businesses openly shouting at the crowds and hoping to hook someone, there were a sizable number not bothering people on the streets. Taka watched as the depressed guy from his carriage headed into one such place-- a general store for adventurers, by the looks of it. It was small, painted an off bluish-green, and nestled betwixt several other buildings, making it not particularly eye-catching.

Suddenly, Taka was thrown from his thoughts as someone roughly shouldered past him, pushing him aside. He opened his mouth to say something, but his assailant spoke first.

"Get out of the way, you imbecile!"

Taka blinked. He could tell exactly who it was. Didn’t matter that he couldn’t see his face…

“Imbecile?”

The owner of the posh voice turned around, revealing someone dreadfully familiar: Beriyl.

“Are you talking to me?” Taka pointed at himself unenthusiastically, despite knowing full well that he was talking to him.

All things considered; this noble was lucky Taka didn’t possess an aggressive temperament. It made him wonder though, had Beriyl ever set someone off so bad they beat him half to death?

‘…probably not.’

Even if it had, it doubtless wouldn’t have done much to change his behavior. Taka wasn’t speaking from experience, but people like him never learned from violence. And violence wasn’t the right way to change someone’s tune, anyhow…

Beriyl upturned his head, looking down his nose at him.

"Yes, who else might I be talking to? Do you see any other imbeciles around?"

…

It was funny. Just the other night, this “mage” had asked him to cast a Light for him. Surely, he could have just done that himself. Unless…

Taka smiled. Now it was his turn to turn up his nose.

‘Imbecile, huh? Yeah, I’ll show you imbecile, you imbecile....’

"Look, you’re the one who couldn't even cast a simple Light spell on your own. I don't think-"

Before Taka’d even finished his sentence, he’d successfully set Beriyl off like a pin to a balloon.

“I-!” He sputtered, flustered and struggling to maintain his composure. “Well!” He hmphed. “Seeing as it is an elementary spell that even the pettiest of magicians can cast, I assure you, of course I can cast it you fool!” With a huff, he added, “I simply didn’t want to waste any of my precious mana on such a trivial thing.”

Taka nodded, and with a sarcastic gesture of goodbye, walked off in a random direction, ignoring the rest of the half-elf’s nonsense.

“Riiight… Bye.”

He had things to do— arguing with a smartass like him was not one of them. Taka knew his first stop should be the Adventurers Guild, but he had no clue where it was.

Then, he spoke without thinking.

"How old is that guy, even...?"

It was an utterance meant mostly for himself, expressing his disdain with Beriyl at the moment. Yet, as luck or perhaps fate would have it, Beriyl had heard it, and of course, was very upset by it.

"Me?! How old are you!?" He had practically screeched.

"Fifteen," Taka turned around, calmly conceding his age without issue.

"I am sixteen!" Beriyl loudly declared, with a smirk.

"Yeah? Well, you act like a twelve-year-old."

Beriyl was even further upset by this, as evidenced by his face which was now very red. Then, he said something to the effect of expressing that, but by that point Taka had stopped paying attention and was looking down the road where all the carriages were being held.

From what he could see, the bald carriage driver was absent. That wasn’t too big of a deal, since he felt like that guy was one of the least likely to actually want to help him.

In fact, Taka still remembered when just the night before, the man had said something about not caring if the adventurers died, and…

He shook his head. Not important right now.

‘Focus…’

There were a few adventurers still idling in the area. Briefly, he considered asking them for directions, but the looks on their faces made him believe they’d just yell at him.

Apprehension coursed through his veins, rooting him in place. This place was so busy, so loud, and he had no idea where to go.

‘I have to ask someone, obviously. Okay, but ask who?! Ask who?! Who am I supposed-‘

His thoughts spiraled. Unbeknownst to him, there was a very irritated looking half-elf standing right behind him, tapping his foot impatiently with his arms crossed.

Overthinking would do him no good. He knew that, so why was it always after he’d overthought something that he remembered that?

He’d made his decision. He was gonna do this—no backing out.

His extraneous thinking had helped with one thing, at least. There’d been a blond ponytailed guy with a fancy spear at his back heading his way for a while, and he’d be entering speaking distance any moment now. Out of everyone Taka had seen, he seemed least likely to explode in his face. Looks could be deceiving, sure, but he really doubted this guy would-

‘Okay, let’s do this.’

“Uh, uh, excuse me!” Taka called out to the man, as he cut through the crowd and stepped into the clearing. Closing the distance with long, purposeful strides, he stopped before Taka and allowed a warm smile to brighten his face.

“Hello there,” he said, peering down at him. “Did you need something?”

“Um, yeah, uh….” Taka stammered, before finally managing a half-decent, “Do you, uh, know how to get to the adventurer’s guild?”

“Yes, I do,” The man began, brushing his ponytail back over his shoulder. “I could take you there, if you like? I’d just need a few minutes to settle this errand first.”

Taka quickly shook his head.

“Oh, uh, no, that’s okay! Um, I just don’t know how to, uh… get there.”

With a firm nod, the man pointed in the opposite direction.

“Gotcha. It’s in the town square. Just head down that way until you see a massive red building, and a fountain. You’ll know it when you see it, I think.”

Taka breathed a quick sigh of relief, then almost bowed, stopped because he realized he didn’t really know how to do it right, and instead nodded frantically.

“Ah, okay, okayokay! Th- thank you, sorry to bother you.”

The blond man just laughed.

“Not at all. Good luck out there.”

With that, their conversation was at an end. Taka was glad he’d run into someone so amiable. He was also glad that it was over, because asking random people for help made him incredibly nervous.

‘That guy was so nice though, so why was I nervous? Like, yeah he was cool. Nice hair. Very nice. He was pretty handsome. Yes, I get it. Yes, he was very nice. And- Okay, shut up.’

Through the crowds of people he went, trying his best to avoid bumping into people. Behind him trailed the noble, who was terrible at that. Every time he bumped into someone, he’d mutter under his breath—it was a wonder how he hadn’t been grabbed by the lapels and punched in the face by now. Unfortunate.

Eventually, Taka noticed the half-elf following him, but didn’t bother saying anything. He did, however, find himself thinking; ‘Why is this guy following me?’

If it was because he thought Taka knew the way around town, then he was dead wrong. Taka was practically lost, running off the blond spearman’s directions, and repeating under his breath a mantra of; “Red building and fountain.”

Every so often, he’d shoot a glimpse back at him—and there he would be, avoiding eye contact, pretending to buy something at a stall or study an item on display… Occasionally, he’d fall behind and race to catch up, making an absolute clumsy fool of himself as he did so.

Under normal circumstances, Taka might have thought to lead him astray to see if he were truly being followed, but this time, he didn’t. He was already lost enough. And it was clear to see that Beriyl was following him.

Taka didn’t really know or like the man, but for some reason, felt obligated to wait for him when he slowed down. As the rude noble did so every few minutes, this quickly began to make him very upset.