I come across the salamanders after travelling for day and a half. I see them around a cave that is located at the foot of a mountain. I’m pretty sure that cave is their nest.

These salamanders look just like Komodo dragons from Alex’s world. But bigger and red. Considering heat they exude, it is a mystery how they don’t burn the forest down. I wonder if they breath fire too.

I think there are at least hundreds of the wandering around the cave. And who knows how many of them are inside that cave.

Anyway, how do I lure them out of the forest and direct them toward the dukedom?

Since they are reptiles, that means they lay egg. And if I stole their eggs, I’m pretty sure they will come chase me for their eggs.

I think it is safe to assume that their eggs are in the cave. I sneak inside the cave in my camouflage. From outside this cave doesn’t look like much but inside is gigantic. And I think there is at least three hundred of them inside the cave.

I don’t see any eggs. All I see is little salamanders running around the cave. There is another cave mouth leading to another cave. I think that may be where they incubate their eggs.

I think these salamanders are more perceptive than I though. More than once I almost got caught sneaking around. After taking a few detours I come before the cave mouth and peek inside.

And I come to look in the eyes of a biggest salamander. Three meters tall and seven meters long. And I think it knows that I’m here. Because it is looking straight at me with its black eyes.

There isn’t any hostile look in its eyes. Only condensation once again. And as soon as I see that look, something in me starts to boil again. I think it was being dormant because I haven’t had a good fight last four years.

My fighting intent is welling up from beneath my guts. And more I look at the bastard more I my fury starts to burn. It reminds of my first encounter.

Fucking lizard is looking down on me. And that pisses me off. I cancel my camouflage and summons my wolf. This time it with its full capacity.

Four meters tall and seven meters long pitch-black wolf towers over the salamander. And as soon as my wolf materializes, look in its eyes change to cautious one.

After summoning my wolf, I activate my gears. Just as I activate my gears it starts its attack. Before I know it, it is already in front of us and tackles my wolf and bites into its shoulder. My wolf bites back but its scales are harder than my wolf’s teeth. My wolf’s teeth shatters. Understanding that it can’t hurt it with its teeth my wolf tries with its claws.

Unfortunately, it is still useless. That only leaves brute force. My wolf starts to simply ram the lizard. Still there isn’t much of an effect. Still, my wolf manages to distract the lizard while I got behind it and prepare for my second technique.

I spin my mana inside my feet and wait for the opportune moment to act. And as soon as the lizard lunges at my wolf I jump even higher and drop from its above.

I let my spinning mana vortices collide just a moment before my feet collide with the lizard’s back.

“CRUNCH”

As soon as my feet contact the lizard’s back impact from the vortices’ collision falls upon its back with a satisfying crunch.

I thought I managed to break it’s back. But it fails to injure it. It simply manages to make it kneel.

After receiving my second technique it looks back at me and suddenly just as I thought breathes crimson red fire from its mouth. And I spit my own fire back to it to protect myself from its fire breath.

My flame manages to cancel its flame and both flames extinguish at the same time. Just as I managed to evade the flame its tail suddenly swings from my back. It whips me straight across my back and I get thrown to the cave’s wall.

Apparently, after getting thrown strong enough people do leave a human shaped hole in the stone. Once again most of my bones gets broken.

FUCK!

Even though my wolf is trying to distract it, it still targets me while ignoring my wolf. It comes so close to me that I can smell stinky breath on its mouth.

And I can see it preparing its fire breath again. Before it managed to expel its flame, I cover myself with my armor.

Even though it is protecting me from getting fried, heat still burns my body. While I was getting fried, my wolf finally manages to attract its attention after struggling.

It stops its breath, turns to my wolf, bites down on its shoulder and throws my wolf to the cave walls. My wolf starts to flicker out of existence. Showing energy exhaustion. But it still lunges at the lizard with its last energy.

During my wolf’s last spurt, my little tree starts to pump vitality into my body to fix it as fast as it can. But because of the low energy saturation it fails to heal my body as fast as it did in The Forest.

After two whole minutes it finally manages to heal my body. It would have taken only a thirty second if we were in The Forest.

Just as I stand up, my wolf finally vanishes out of existence. After confirming my wolf’s disappearance, fucking lizard turns to me with the same look again.

“You’re really starting to piss me off, you fucking lizard.”

Now I may be going insane because of the few circumstances. But I’m sure I saw it smirk at me when I said that. It either got me or I’m going insane. But whatever happening to me I know one thing, I will kill this fucking reptile.

And before I know it grin crawls up my face.