It had been a few hours since we charged for the nest, these monsters were really spread out. I had long since ordered my men to split into duos and fan out, me by myself. I would be able to manage just fine, it’s not like there was an army of dragons that I had to fight. I had to once though and that was the one time I nearly died. I would have had no problems if I did die though, in my opinion, the most honorable way to die is at the claws of a dragon.

But enough of the past, I had a job to do and that was to rid this village of the nest of monsters. Another hour later, I was beginning to have some serious doubts of this mission. If the monsters’ population was greater than what I’ve seen before, this nest might actually be multiple nests or one large nest. It may be too difficult to defeat, like facing a weed barehanded except this weed somehow managed to stay alive for a century and has been growing non stop since its birth.

To some it may be manageable but to most it is an impossibility. But I am one of the few who could manage such a feat and I wasn’t going to turn away from such a challenge, it has been long since I pushed myself to the limit. So with a grim face, I charged forward, I only grin if it’s a battle of little importance and even then, the grin was habitual. It was back when I was a youth, still young in the army and full of emotions. Of course, it was beaten out of me, well, as well as one could beat out emotions.

I still had the damn things but I was better at controlling them, in fact, I haven’t lost control of them for over three decades, ever since the conquest of the Morsadian Empire began. But the job in front of me did not need emotions, only needing the cold cruel persona of the soldier I’m supposed to be. So I only focused on killing with the efficiency, soon arriving upon a cave from which the monsters seemed to be pouring from.

Without hesitation, I dove in, leaving a trail of corpses in my wake. Once more I was covered in blood, like I normally was after a battle. Just like when my unit was forced to retreat, but of course, it had been day three of constant fighting, no rest whatsoever. Even my stamina was low at that point, I just thank whatever god it is that had the goblins to spare us. That or their idiocy, if I was them, I would not have let us live, especially since we murdered at least hundreds if not thousands of their kin.

These things were the same I suppose, but that wouldn’t matter, I was on the attack and this time, my stamina wasn’t running low either. The absence of company was also welcome, it meant that I didn’t have to worry about keeping at their pace. So in complete and utter silence on my part, I exterminated everything that crossed me, going ever deeper and deeper into the maze of tunnels.

On my way, my nose noticed a strange scent that was not of fresh blood, sweat, metal and other things. It caught my interest as this was something I didn’t expect to smell in a battle, but then again, this was the home of the monsters. I began to follow it to its source, the flow of monsters becoming increasingly more and more thick until I was basically hacking away at a wall of flesh, bones and metal.

But I managed to push through and into a large cavity with an assortment of goblins, trolls, ogres and female humans alike in one huge orgy. But, only the female’s pussy was used, it seems that this orgy was not for pleasure but simply to reproduce, though pleasure was most likely another reason for it. The scent I had been smelling was the smell of cum, which in and of itself was not pleasant to smell. I had smelled such things before but not because I was a participant.

No, I more than once had to… purge religions that believed that orgies were a way of connecting with their god. Needless to say, when we purged them, it was mostly when they were in an orgy. I also saw many other women with their bellies bloated left to the side, where goblins walked by, occasionally prodding one before moving on. I also saw the “joyous” occasion of a woman giving birth, although it was anything but.

Ten little goblins spewed forth from her vagina and a goblin walked over to inspect the babies. It selected the strongest ones before killing any that were defective. But I had no time to continue witnessing such a sight, I only had to kill these things. So without another thought, I charged forth, my silent nature enabling me to go unnoticed by the goblins until I was right on top of them. Five were already headless by the time the goblins were aware but that didn’t help them in the slightest, all were killed within the chamber except for some women that weren’t in the vicinity of a monster.

Upon seeing me, their broken eyes shined with hope, a hope that finally they would be released from this hell. They did not ask to be freed, they only wanted to die quickly and painlessly. I made their hope a reality, asking them only to remain still. I then decapitated them quickly, doing the same with all the women, crushing whatever monster babies that came forth from their corpses.

The few monsters that dared to enter the chamber saw my ruthless actions and were silent. I turned toward them and they all fell on their asses before scrambling away. To them I was merely a powerful predator, one that did not leave anything alive. Keeping to that persona, I charged, slaughtering the retreating monsters and killing their braver kin.

I came across three more orgy chambers and I emptied each of life, finally stopping at the fourth chamber to take a moment to rest. I was a bit tired, hacking away nonstop for an unknown amount of time is quite tiring. That and the fact that I now had to protect someone, the only woman that wanted to live. It seems that she was a new arrival and hadn’t had the chance to give birth to any goblins yet, though her belly seemed to be a bit larger than normal.

I told her so and she pleaded with tears in her eyes, “Please, I’ll do anything, just let me live.”

I said, “Your child must die. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to deal with it so you’ll have to drink this.”

It was a poison, fatal upon drinking all of its contents. All soldiers are required to have one, so that in the event of capture you may die having served the Emperor. I took off my helmet and used it as a makeshift bowl, adding monster blood to dilute the poison. Of course, I didn’t add all of it, only a small drop. This should be passed down onto the baby which, being a baby would die.

Of course, this would make her sick as well so I’d have to carry her while fending off a horde of monsters. I decided to wait awhile, the monsters now extremely hesitant to face me in battle. The woman was unconscious, as she was when she first drank the poison. Even diluted to such an extent, it was deadly stuff. But this should kill the baby and she’d still be alive.

Once I was sufficiently rested, I hefted her limp body over my shoulder and began the slaughter once more, retracing my steps out this time, it would be better to drop her off with the guild forces.

So fighting my way back out the cave system, I just had to follow the trail of corpses I left, I was soon back out into fresh air. I didn’t stop to appreciate it though, continuing to fight my way back until I heard sounds of shouting men. I then made my way there, scything down swathes of enemies that had yet to realize that there was an enemy at their backs. The guild forces soon stopped fighting at my appearance for I was quite literally dripping with blood.

I handed the woman over, saying, “I saved her from one of the breeding caverns, she was the only one that wanted to be saved. The others wished for a clean death and I granted it to them. She has drunk some poison in order to kill the goblin child within her so she is sick for now. Treat her well.”

I then turned, charging back into the sea of monsters, cutting a path through once more. I was amazed at the population of these monsters, just how many of them were there? This was an army that could rival the size of a punitary force, which has easily over three thousand men. Of course, a punitary force would crush something like this, as the force was trained to deal with uprisings with more than ten thousand people. But this time, I met with Inaris and Varin in the cave system and we decided to stick together, that way someone had a chance to rest while to fended off monsters from both sides of the tunnel.

Since the production of the monsters was stopped, all that was left was to kill the rest or to scatter the rest by killing the leader. Eventually, we stumbled upon another breeding cavern and we emptied it of life, offering to save those that wished it but all wanted to die. So we granted their wish, bringing the gift of death with our blades.

After god knows how many hours, the only thing that was a monster was a corpse. I was surprised to see that it was still daylight but was told later that a day had passed. No wonder I was so damn tired, but I still had strength in me, just a mere day’s worth of fighting wasn’t enough to drive me to unconsciousness.

Anyways, as I was cleaning my armor later at the village, the guildmaster appeared, his face grim. He asked,

“Do you know what happened to the women in the breeding caverns?”

I nodded, “Yes, I killed them.”

He shouted angrily, “Why!?”

I looked up at him and said, “Because they wanted it. They were used by the goblins for god knows how long in the caves, giving birth to more and more monsters which would kill more humans. They would never recover from their mental wounds to fit back in society. The best thing to do for them was to release them.”

He growled, “That gives you no right to take their lives!”

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I retorted, “And you don’t have the right to force them to live. I merely did as they asked, what you would have done would have gone against their will. Don’t try to force your ideals upon others, keep them to yourself or don’t have any at all.”

He seemed to calm down after a few moments before saying, “Yeah, I understand. It’s just, I had a sister who was taken by the goblins, I know it’s useless but I keep on thinking that she could be found again.”

I bowed my head in a form of condolence. After remaining in silence for a few moments, he seemed to have been struck by an epiphany,

“By the way, your name is Torvus, right?”

A bit surprised at this sudden change of topic, I nodded and he said, “Good, your name was mentioned in the letter but I never got to find out if it was real, you know, with you and your squad going out on missions so much. Then this thing popped up and it kinda slipped my mind. By the way, I’m Ferlin Stonefist, sorry I haven’t introduced myself.”

I shrugged, “I was never a social guy, partly my fault for not asking.”

Honestly, I could have cared less about learning his name but I filed it later for later use, I suppose a business relationship would be alright. Anyways, I returned to cleaning my armor once he left, making sure that every bit of blood and gore was washed off. Once finished, I grabbed a clean bucket and began to clean my clothes, not minding that I was nude in public. Once that was done, I wrung them as dry as possible and pulled them on, this time washing my hair next as it was simply matted with blood and other shit.

Once that was done, I put on my armor and remained sitting. I breathed a sigh of relief, during battle having blood splashed on you is invigorating, having it dry on you is a different matter. The others cleaned up similarly and we all sat in a circle, talking of our exploits. They too encountered many other breeding caverns and they all brought death, whether it was a gift or a punishment.

But none of them encountered one who wanted to be saved, which was why they were curious to meet such a woman. She had to be strong willed and soldiers respect such a thing, even if it is our enemies, no, especially then. To fight regardless of how useless it is to do so requires a mind that is not prone to emotions. A person capable of doing so has rightfully gained my respect.

There had been a few and to each, I offered to put in a good word for them in the Empire, for the Empire only wanted to control territory, not necessarily its people. Of course, the new laws that would be introduced will affect the people but ultimately for the better. After all, the Morsadian Empire has lasted for thirteen generations of emperors, it meant that something was working.

But all refused, exactly as I had expected them to. Needless to say, I killed them though I gave them a quick death, it was the least I could do to pay my respects to a proud and great warrior. It was a shame, their skills would have greatly benefited the Empire but if they so readily accepted the offer, my respect would have disappeared in an instant.

I would have had the men tortured and the women raped before their service to the Empire began, not out of cruelty. It was necessary in order to create a new persona while the old one was destroyed. To break their old self and create them anew. I personally witnessed the breaking of many, watching as their souls were broken by torturers and then reforged under the careful tutelage of the harem guards and elite soldiers.

I refused the offer to teach them, that simply wasn’t my thing. I just existed to kill and die for my country, nothing more, nothing less. I was roused from these thoughts when something touched my face. Focusing once more on the real world, I noticed the arm of a child, the hand of which was on my face. I looked at the face of the child in question, a small boy whose large black eyes stared intelligently.

It didn’t speak and I didn’t either, merely gently taking its hand away. I then stood, walking off into the forest. I noticed that it had toddled off and I breathed a sigh of relief, at least I wouldn’t have to deal with it.

But as I sat by a tree, away from the festivities, a person came up, make that two. I placed a hand on my dagger, for these footsteps didn’t belong to my men. I then heard a feminine voice call out,

“Sir Adventurer! Sir Adventurer! You are missing the feast!”

I sighed and raised my voice, “I know, I don’t want to be there.”

The voice began to get louder as she approached me, asking, “Why?”

I answered, “I’m not much of a social person. You best go back to the festival, you’re missing out on it as well.”

She said, “Oh I already had enough. Besides, I’m not that social either.”

The girl sat besides me and I noticed the kid from before, this girl was his big sister? No matter, I don’t plan on getting close to people.

I said, “It’s still best you leave. I’m on watch and it is highly likely there are still monsters on the loose.”

She said, “I believe that you are strong enough to protect me.”

I sighed but said nothing, making sure to keep an eye on her. There was a possibility that she was a shapeshifter and may try to kill me. But she didn’t try anything, though that didn’t mean I was going to let my guard down. Finally, she stood and bowed her head,

“Well, thank you for letting me sit with you.”

I replied, “It is not my place to control where one sits.”

She giggled and left, the kid staring at me for a few more moments before toddling after her. Well at least she was gone, though I’d wager this wouldn’t be the last I saw of her. Something about her was off, like an illusion. Most likely she was a mage masquerading as a villager or something else. But as long as she did not mean me any harm nor my men, I will not act. Besides, if I did kill her now, her disappearance will be thoroughly investigated.

I did join in later, though when much of the activity died down. I then ate some food that happened to be left over, the others having already had their fill and sharing their stories with other adventurers. Again, disturbingly more human that should be acceptable but these are strange times, we’d be insane to not adapt.

But I am not sure what to do, sure this life was good but that was for humans, not soldiers. A soldier belongs on the battlefield, risking his life for his country, not stuck doing countless errands for people. My comrades noticed my discomfort and Inaris said,

“Hey Torvus, I know you want to rejoin the army but hell, this life ain’t so bad.”

I said, “Well, I suppose. I’d still rather be on the battlefield, that is where I truly belong. I’m sure you all know that.”

They all nodded, all saying in unison, “It’s our home too.”

We then laughed, surprising a few adventurers nearby, recounting old tales of battles long past. Of course, they all wanted to hear the one about the dragon. I managed to avoid the topic for some time now but here, without the excuse of the army behind me I was forced to tell it.

It wasn’t a story I was fond of telling, for as long as I lived, I had revered dragons. Their might, their wisdom, and of course their magnificence was to me, the pinnacle one should try to attain. That is why I, for the first time in my military career, hesitated when I received the order to kill the dragons. But that didn’t last long, the soldier in me crushed my naivety and I did my duty. I killed one dragon, I had no choice. I was the last of my unit and I could not allow myself to retreat. So I killed it and took its scales and bones as a part of my armament.

In fact, I used all of it, for this dragon was mine by right. All of my armor and weapons could change into it, all I had to do was activate the secondary phase on my crystal. Of course, I only used it as a show of ultimate respect towards my opponent, meaning that I either recognized his skill as a formidable warrior or simply honoring his death. I may be a ruthless soldier but even I show my respect to those that stay true to their ideals.

I only used my dragon armament nine times, seven of those with great warriors, the other two times were defeating two other dragons. All were powerful in their own right and each gained my respect. I remembered them, though not their names. What is a name but something we the living use to identify another. I’d rather remember them by their deeds and appearance for those will last far longer than language.

I wondered briefly if there was an afterlife and if there was, what would all those that I had killed be doing. Would they be looking down on me or would they be enjoying their respective heavens and hells? I laughed at myself at this rare moment of philosophy, directing my mind elsewhere. Well whatever they’re doing, it doesn’t concern me as long as I’m alive.

And I will make sure to stay alive for as long as I can, it wouldn’t do me any good to die now.

With a start of self-realization, I muttered, “Getting sidetracked am I? Damn, I really am losing my touch.”

Inaris heard me say something but unable to discern anything asked, “What?”

I said, “Ah, nothing. Just musing to myself.”

I then stood and excused myself, “I’m taking first watch, I need a while to clear my mind.”

The all nodded and murmured their acknowledgement and I walked off, heading to a place that had a fairly wide view and sat myself down. I breathed out, my mind clearing along with it. I began to focus my mind on everything and nothing, my eyes seeing everything but focusing on nothing. I noticed every movement whether it was the leaves of a tree falling, a tree branch moving in the wind or some animal that stalked the night. But I didn’t focus on these things, waiting for when an enemy would appear.

I breathed in and swiftly focused on something that was moving that was neither a moving tree branch or an animal. I grabbed the hilt of my dagger, ready to kill when I recognized that girl from before. I hardly relaxed, what was she doing out here? Luckily, she didn’t notice me and for once, I was thankful for the dark grey armor.

She walked off into the forest and I followed, keeping silent as always. It was hard to keep silent in a full suit of armor but at the distance I kept, it was alright to make some sound here and there. I continued to follow her, my dagger in hand and my ears listening for any sign of something following me. I continued to follow her to a moonlit glade, the blades of grass silver in the light of the moon.

She stood in the middle, waiting and I waited as well, as still as a statue. Some time passed and neither of us moved, I was confident she didn’t notice me but then again, there was something off about this girl. Perhaps she was a mage and already knew I was following her. In that case…

I activated the dagger core, changing it to its dragonblade form, the dagger growing noticeable in length and the blade pure black, the hilt and pommel gilded with intricate gold plates. I gripped it tightly and continued to wait, something changing when the moon was high over head, midnight. Something appeared, a white furred creature which appeared out of nowhere.

It sniffed the air and looked right at me, growling. Seeing no point in disguising myself, I sheathed the dagger and stepped out with my sword in hand, prepared to fight. The girl whipped around, surprised to see me. But just as the creature was about to attack, she shouted,

“No! Stop!”

The creature’s fur settled down, though it still growled menacingly. In reply, I directed my sword to the ground, though I didn’t let go of it.

I then asked, “What are you doing?”