Elas watched as Luka swung his blade and decapitated another wolf that got a little too close for its own good. It was the fifth creature that misjudged the distance it needed to be safe from an adept warrior's blade.
The beasts had shadowed them for hours now staying just far enough to be out of reach. Elas could slaughter them with firebolts but using spells on mundane beasts would be a waste and he had a feeling that was exactly what the master of these creatures wanted.
“Luka hold it up for me, I want to get a proper look.” Elas said as he approached the dead wolf.
The warrior obliged and lifted the corpse so that Elas could get an easier look at it. He peered at the corpse while running his hands through its fur to feel its texture afterwards he got to roughly measuring its dimensions. Elas frowned as he held the paws in his hand he was sure now.
“This is not a northern wolf.” He gave his conclusion. “The fur is too rough and the skin fat is too thin,” he continued.
“Could it just be starving?” Luka asked.
Elas looked at Luka like he was an idiot.
“You're the one carrying it, does it feel like it's starved?”
“No” Luka answered before letting go of the wolf corpse.
“Its paws are also far too small; it would have trouble walking on snow,” Elas continued his explanation.
Luka bent down and grabbed the wolf's paw to check for himself.
“So you're saying this is a pet?” Luka waved towards the wolf corpse.
“They are domesticated but I wouldn't go so far as to call them pets.” Elas answered.
“Elder Elas, if you know what we're dealing with I would appreciate it if you tell us.”
“Not just me, you should also know what bastards bring around packs of mundane beasts.”
Luka frowned as he glanced around the surroundings taking note of the creatures moving around them.
“Greenskins?” Luka guessed.
“Greenskins” Elas nodded.
“But that makes no sense, they hate the cold. Why would they move so far north? You sure it's not the work of a beast druid?”
“Do you think any druid capable of controlling this many beasts would bother with mundane creatures?”
Luka shook his head in response. “Do you think we should retreat?”
“That would depend on how large this group is. Judging by the size of their beast packs retreating may be the wiser choice but it's your expedition.”
The man looked around at his men. They were all still in perfect condition as was expected of trained warriors while Elas was a bit haggard but he had more than enough vigor potions to make up for it.
“Let's continue, I’d be damned if I place my own safety before Farhavens” Luka decided before gesturing for the group to proceed. They were probably walking into a trap but given that the best the enemy has thrown at them so far were nothing but mundane beasts he was confident he could brute force his way to victory.
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Elas nodded his head as he took his position in the middle of the group. He also wanted to continue as he believed that the enemy was unlikely to be stronger than them. The beasts might be plentiful but it wasn't unusual for greenskin tribes to have hunting packs several times the size of their actual population. One of the more savage cousins of humanity they may be but they certainly had their way with animals. More than anything else Elas was interested in whether this was somehow an equivalent to some in-game event that he remembered. Events starting with strange animal behaviors were too plentiful to narrow anything down and Elas was honestly not sold on game events being a thing in the world he had lived in for so long.
In the game events are randomly triggered as long as certain requirements are met but reality shouldn't work that way. If greenskins were here in the north then that means they had to travel here somehow. He refuses to believe they just popped out of the ground. From what he had experienced so far the game from Earth was not exactly a perfect match for Eterna. Almost everything had some equivalence but even the crown's powers were not as they were on a computer screen. Figuring out if this strange occurrence had some equivalency to his memories of the game would give him an idea as to whether his memories of other events could be helpful in the future.
They continued moving through the forest heading west as the hunters tracked the older beast paw prints which was a challenge when the beasts were actively prancing about around them. The forest around them grew darker and darker as the sun started to dip behind the canopy. Suddenly one of the hunters stopped while gesturing to his peers to approach his location.
The hunters were already in a conversation with Luka by the time Elas got close. There in between the hunters and Luka was a humanoid footprint that truly confirmed their guess. Elas could barely even see the footprint but the hunters assured him it was there and it was from a goblin. The hunters could tell him it was anything with how little he could make out of it but he trusted their expertise. Though he doubted any of them had much experience tracking goblins, he assumed they just meant it was in the shape a small humanoid would make.
“How far are we from their camp?” Luka asked the hunters.
The hunters shrugged. “This footprint was made several days ago but given their beasts have been with us for hours I reckon we ain't far.”
Elas nodded. “Their beasts rarely if ever stray too far from their handlers, were an hour or two away at most?” He estimated judging from the time since the beasts have started circling them.
He wasn't all too experienced with goblins himself but he had read extensively about all the continents peoples and nowhere did it say that goblins can lead beasts from extensive ranges. Given that the handlers of these beasts would have to feed them to reinforce their training it was unlikely they would roam more than half a day away.
They closed ranks with Elas and the hunters in the middle while Luka stood at the front. The enemy could attack anytime now as they resumed their march. Soon enough they smelled the unmistakable stench of greenskin urine covering the trees marking it as the edges of a greenskin camp. Yet they saw no signs of fire or anything else really. This was unusual as the greenskins were rather fond of both large bonfires and handcrafted decor. Even if their favored designs might seem repulsive to most other sentients. Even a tiny goblin village would be decorated from top to bottom with thousands of hunting trophies to showcase each individual's prowess. It was possible this was a temporary camp but even then they usually had some totems with the skulls of the latest hunt displayed to mark their territory and boast about their strength.
The greenskin camp was nothing but a mess of broken hide tents and the remains of a bonfire. Its occupants seem to have fled with little preparation heading south. They sped up their pursuit at the enemy's sign of weakness. Meanwhile Elas was trying to keep his excitement at bay. This series of events were pointing to a great boon. Aggressive beasts and an abandoned greenskin camp. If this was the same as the game then he was about to get his plans accelerated.
“Luka, tell your men that whatever happens they are not to strike first.” Elas said
“Why?” Luka questioned.
“Trust me something about this just doesn't seem right.”
“They attacked the woodcutters and the hunters!” Luka complained.
“Beasts attacked, not greenskins.”
“They control the beasts.”
“I am starting to doubt that. For one thing the beasts that have been following us have not attacked us even once.”
“They didn't attack because we would have slaughtered them.”
“Or they were ordered not to. Just trust me Luka and keep your men from attacking the greenskins first.”
“If something happens to my men I'll hold you responsible.” Luka threatened.
“I would be the one treating your wounds regardless of whose fault it is.” Elas countered.
Luka grunted back before going and telling his men to keep their heads cool. The tracks they followed were a mess of panicked footprints running through the trees. After an hour more of following the tracks they heard the sounds of battle as trees crunched and greenskins screamed their warcries. They started a brisk jog with weapons ready as they burst into a clearing of charred broken trees.