Thomas had managed to heal Alan through his fatigue and injury with the help of Mark and Glenn supporting him. With that, we had won the battle of attrition. The boss didn’t have HP and MP potions, but we did. Thomas had chugged three MP potions, as well as rationed his healing about as skillfully as he could, which showed just how much damage the boss was putting out.

The gnoll commander was now wobbling with every attack. His chest heaved up and down like it was his last breath. His bruised and bloodied body was patchy with missing fur, and deep red blood mixed with what little remained. The red glow surrounding him had slowly disappeared until there was nothing left of it. Even the claws on his hands and feet receded, and his mallet that disappeared into the earth, it didn’t seem he had the power to retrieve it anymore.

It was obvious this was the end of the fight. I didn’t know what final card it might have to play, but no one was going to slow up. As if he’d practiced the attack, Lucas came in from behind and cast Wind Slash across both thighs. From the front, Alan and Richard both shoved their shields with as much force as they could muster. Anna had frozen both shoulders of the boss, and with it not being able to use its arms, nor its legs to defend and maintain stability, it toppled backwards with a deep thud, like a giant flat stone had smashed into the earth.

Instinctively, everyone moved back a dozen feet and gave ample room to the boss. We watched with bated breath as the boss’s chest heaved up and down with great effort. Blood splattered from coughs that escaped his throat. The redness in his eyes disappeared as his rationality returned.

“Why?” Was all the boss could ask. “It was a simple promise, so why go back?” He asked. “I don’t understand?” There was a silence, no one really knew how to respond.

“It’s because you trusted the Yellow Prince,” Maria spat out.

The effect of these words was as if a veil had been lifted for the boss. “You aren’t his men then?” He asked, almost sighing. “Then the Red Prince?” He knew a lot, apparently.

“How do you know so much?” I asked him.

“It would be weird if I didn’t. I used to be a human.” Which was like a bomb going off in my minds.

“You… used to be human?” I asked.

It didn’t seem the boss had any reservations left now he was at the end. “I was once a human, yes. You could even say Edward and Lazemus were once my good friends.”

I had an epiphany in that moment. “…Donivan?” I asked.

“… you know of me then?”

“We were sent to rescue you from the gnoll boss,” I admitted.

“Haha, fate is quite cruel then,” he groaned. “I thought that being framed for the princess’s murder was the worst it could get.”

“Do you mind explaining what happened to you?” I asked. Things had taken such an odd turn that I was confused on what we should do right now.

Lucas approached me from the side and whispered to me, “Should we try and heal him?” He asked.

I looked at the others who seemed to be unsure of what to do, and then I looked at Thomas, “Heal him just a bit.” Although the boss was much stronger than us and dangerous, a single heal wouldn’t be enough to give him his fighting strength back. Some pain relief and maybe a chance at living might prove enough to get his co-operation in explaining to us the story of his life and to get insight into the nature of this dungeon.

The heal came through and his ragged breathing slowed down just a bit. “Ah… that’s much better.” He lifted his head, “You came to save me, so you must be Lazemus’s men.”

“We are.” I didn’t deny it. “Can you explain what’s happening right now?” I was worried he would be reserved in his explanation, but that wasn’t the case. I didn’t know if we were friends or enemies in this moment.

Donivan started to laugh before coughing hard, “I’m grateful, honestly. I can finally tell someone what happened.” He started, “As you may have heard, I was the suspect for the princess’s murder, but in reality, it was Edward’s doing.” I nodded at his words. “I was kidnapped, but the location of my prison was actually not here. In fact, I wasn’t held for long and I wasn’t ‘forced’ to come here.”

“Edward tortured me for three days, he was trying to find the location of a portal I had discovered many years ago. All of it was to force me into revealing that information.” His eyes scanned us from the ground, as if searching to see if we knew what he was talking about: there was a deep fury in his gaze.

“We’ve heard of the portal,” I said.

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“I never revealed that information to Edward, and his torture was unsuccessful.” Donivan’s head fell back flat on the ground. “I was badly mangled and scarred, though. My body was ruined, my reputation was ruined, I was a criminal that would be killed on sight.” He paused. “Did you know Edward was gathering gnoll shamans for research?” He asked. It was a weird tangent that didn’t quite make sense.

“Lazemus told us,” Lucas said, “he even had us catch some.”

“Right, Lazemus probably found out and looked into it. He obviously never found out the reason why.” He paused. “I am the reason why. That research allowed Edward to do something unheard of—he turned me into a gnoll.”

“After I became a gnoll, I was let loose outside the city. It was interesting though; I was no regular gnoll. I had the intelligence of a human, the thought, the rationality—but my fighting strength too, I was more powerful than any gnoll I encountered.” I nodded, to show him I could appreciate what this must have been like.

“Edward didn’t know this at first, but when he found out, his men approached me. He dangled a carrot in front of me when he said, ‘I can turn you back into a human.’ It was a hard to resist that carrot.

“I believed it at first. Why not? He had turned me into this monster, surely, he could turn me back and for that I agreed to cooperate. Where his torture had failed, his entrapment of me in this body succeeded. Every now and then a letter would be sent to me. Plans, or some instruction to follow. I created this settlement, I united the gnolls into a force that could threaten the city. He never asked about the portal, which he knew was my bottom-line.”

Pieces started to fall into place as Donivan spoke. Everything was beginning to make sense. “His goal became clear to me, but what did it matter to me if he succeeded in putting the Yellow Prince on the throne? I only wanted to be human again, to be able to journey and travel again like before.”

“Did you ever confirm he could turn you back?” Lucas asked.

“That… I dreamed about it, constantly. But over the years, I grew to know that he could never turn me back—even though that reality was too terrifying to face. Still, my hope had turned to hatred. Not just for Edward, but for everyone who had abandoned me. Many knew I didn’t kill the princess, so many knew Edward kidnapped me. Why did no one come to save me?” He paused as if waiting for an answer, “Politics. Because of politics this is my fate…and because of that I truly hope the city falls.” He had been warped through his years of living as a gnoll.

“I have lost my humanity, and seeing the treatment the gnolls received over the years, started to resent humans, even though I was once human. We are despicable creatures, even more so than a gnoll. Gnolls stab you in the front, look you in the eyes. But humans? They sneak in the shadows, betray your trust, destroy the very fabric of your being.”

It was the darkest explanation he could give, but no one standing here could disagree. We had seen what human nature could do when pushed to the limit, when tempted by greed.

“What will you do?” I asked him. In the end, whether this entire situation ended in our favor was up to him.

“I know that I’m wrong…” he said. “But I also know who brought me to this point. I have not sat idly by over the years. There is enough evidence to have Edwards head on a spike by sunrise tomorrow.” He said, “I’d like to see Lazemus and confess my sins, and take any punishment I receive. The princess shouldn’t have to be alone.” He seemed to be suggesting that even if the ruling was execution he would face it bravely.

After looking around and getting everyone’s approval, Thomas healed Donivan as many times as his MP allowed him. Maybe it wasn’t the right decision, but given the story so far in the dungeon, it seemed this was the correct course of action.

As the heals poured in, Donivan recovered some of his depleted stamina and managed to stand with a groan. “Inside my war room, under the rug the table is resting on, there is a chest buried in the ground. That has all you need in it.”

I nodded at Alan and Richard, whom quickly disappeared inside. The building had collapsed somewhat, but the fire didn’t burn endlessly. After removing two half burnt pillars and uncovering the rug, Richard returned with Alan in tow, a small chest in his bosom.

The chest was stacked with documents, and about midway down was a book. I took it in my hands curiously. The Basics of Gnoll Language was written in clean English on the cover. I flipped the page and was prompted:

Do you wish to learn the basics of gnoll language?

Yes/No

This was a surprisingly unique find. I selected ‘no’, because this was something we should discuss as a group first.

Besides the single booklet were just piles and piles of letters accumulated over many years. The letters never mentioned anyone by name or incriminated the Yellow Prince or Edward. The lettering was all created by ink stamps, so no handwriting could be discerned, but the contents made it clear what Donivan said earlier was true. With his testimony and some good detective work, I was sure this would be enough to put Edward on the chopping block.

The crowd that had disappeared before had reappeared and were staring at us with fear and trepidation. “Just a moment, please.” Donivan approached a gnoll shaman, a female that was well on in her later years. He started to yip and growl and communicate in the gnoll language before returning. “I had to pass leadership to her or things would become problematic here. These are still my people.” As if he needed to explain himself. “I need to send a hawk as well. To call off the attacks on the city.”

When I glanced at Jessica, she shrugged. Then said to him, ‘go ahead.’

After everything we taken care of, we slowly departed the encampment. It was silent and peaceful. Even Donivan, whom had an angry look on his face even from the moment we met him, was relaxed and carefree, seemingly taking in the environment.

“It feels good.” He said. “to finally face my fears. To let go and accept.”

“I wish I could say the same.” I laughed, but doing so would end with my death and all of my party members. We had to keep fighting to survive. “Can I tell you a story?” I looked at Donivan.

He nodded peacefully as I began to narrate our journey here. The portal was his dying secret, and I feared even now he would never let go of its location. “So you’re from a different world?” He asked. He took the explanation better than expected, but the fact that he was turned into a gnoll from a human, and even found that portal in the first place. “I guess I’ve seen it before.”

“Speak with Lazemus.” I urged him, “After you confirm, you can make a decision.”