The place was dark, but not completely devoid of light. It was seeping through the glass in the ceiling, the remnants of a bygone era. Back then, they were able to spread sunlight from the surface to the interior of the huge grotto, which contained a small underground kingdom. At present, there were few and very deteriorated, even broken. Therefore, they were only capable of that meager illumination.

Goldmi used Hawkeye from the back of her sister, who was advancing quickly. She was following the obvious trail left by their enemies.

“I see them. Slow down a bit,” the elf warned.

They ran the risk of being seen if they went too fast. The problem was how to get close enough. Their enemies were at a brisk pace, a pace they couldn’t match if they used Camouflage. They couldn’t hide behind trees or vegetation either, as there wasn’t a single plant there. Not even the remains of the vast forests of yesteryear could be seen.

So, they needed to slow them down, even if that meant eliminating the surprise factor. Only if they could get close, could they save the dryad. They must do so as soon as possible, since they didn’t know how long she could survive.

So, while riding her sister, she activated Shoot Anyway and Hawkeye, and fired several bursts of three at a reptilian figure. She had targeted mostly his legs.

The reptilian fell to the ground, while screaming in surprise and pain. Several arrows had penetrated his legs and arm. One of them had even completely pierced his ankle.

“So not all the rats have died,” the hooded woman muttered.

“Trijdon!” the reptilian woman exclaimed, while approaching him.

But before she reached him, a sword pierced the neck of the fallen one. The reptilian woman stared dumbfounded at the blade that had killed her partner, and then furiously at her leader.

“Why?!!”

“They wanted to delay us, and we can allow it. They can’t take him prisoner either, since he could give us away,” explained the hooded woman, with a certain tone of disdain.

“Damn you!” the reptilian woman exclaimed, drew two daggers and attacked the hooded woman.

However, before reaching her, a spear pierced her stomach. It was wielded by another of her companions, the one to the left of her target. The one to the right brandished both of his axes. One struck her neck, and the other struck her arm.

She didn’t die instantly, but she was unable to hold the daggers, which fell to the ground. She stared at the hooded woman in disbelief.

“We had to do without them sooner than expected,” she complained, turned and let the other two, who were also hooded, finish the job.

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Two corpses were left on the ground, while five figures were moving rapidly away. They were now taking precautions against ranged attacks. It would be impossible to catch them by surprise again from so far away.

With Hawkeye, the elf witnessed everything that had happened, and also her sister did through Visual Link. She hadn’t imagined that they would act like this, so cruel to their supposed companions. It was something she had believed only happened in movies.

They had barely delayed them, but there were two fewer enemies. Despite the surprise, she didn’t feel sorry for them. After all, they were the ones who were continually cutting the dryad to draw her blood. The others hadn’t done it again.

For now, they couldn’t do anything other than follow them, than to gain ground little by little, since the feline was faster than the group they were chasing. What they didn’t know was what to do when they were closer.

There were five enemies to face, and they were only two, plus they were unaware of the level and abilities of their enemies. The elf even feared that they might use the dryad as a hostage, before which she had no idea how they could act. While she was thinking about it, the lynx slowed down.

“It’s getting dark. Maybe we’ll have a chance then. For now, we better keep our distance.”

Goldmi nodded, as she realized that her sister could see in the dark. She didn’t know if it was a good plan. She didn’t know if the kidnappers also had the means to see in the dark. However, it was the only plan they had right now. In fact, it wasn’t even a plan, just the beginning of one.

“My lord, there are intruders,” the messenger knelt.

She looked similar to a demihuman, half fox half human, but her skin was paler, and her fur was graying. Her fangs were more protruding than would be expected in someone of her kin, someone who hadn’t been turned into a vampire.

In front of her, with his back to her, there was a man almost two meters tall, pointed ears like an elf’s, gray hair and pale skin. He was looking at various crystalline objects, some ball-shaped, some mirror-like. All of them seemed to reflect scenes from other places.

“What do we know about them?” he asked, without even deigning to turn around.

“There are two groups. One of them has a young dryad, probably against her will. There are five of them, and they are hidden under cloaks. The other are two, an elf and a beast. They are chasing the first group. They have already attacked them,” she explained.

“Mmm, a dryad, it would be interesting to get her. It’s a pity that we can’t afford it now, we can’t draw attention to Cathair Taibhse. Make sure that they leave, that they get out of here, especially the dryad. She can live or die, but may they not suspect that we are here, it is still too soon. Let Scáth’s group take charge. They can’t be seen.”

“Understood sir. I will inform them right now.”

He simply nodded, so giving her maid permission to get up and carry out her orders. He kept looking at the images, watching how his plans were evolving.

Things hadn’t been going very well lately. Several projects had failed. Especially regrettable was the loss of his pawn in the kingdom of Goltrenak a few years ago, which had meant losing control of that strategic location.

It was true that he still had influence there, that he had several agents infiltrated or bribed. However, it wasn’t the same as having a king under his command.

Inside, he went back to cursing who he had underestimated in the past, who had screwed up this and other plans. He also cursed those who had managed to stop his project to corrupt the jungle, and not have to worry about the forces on the surface anymore.

In fact, it seemed that lately those corrupted beings were having trouble, although he didn’t care too much about it. As long as they kept their enemies busy, he had enough.

What was important was to advance his plans without being discovered. Maybe in fifty or a hundred years, he could take an important step in his ambition. It may seem like a long time, but it wasn’t for him. Not for Cathair Taibhse.