For several weeks, Stone and his men made their way to the town near the Endless Forest. This task had been entrusted to them by General Urkawi himself. Their job was to survey the town and its surrounding regions and report everything to the vanguard via animal messengers.

A lot of his men were unsatisfied with the order; this was a strategy proposed by a rabbit. Those weaklings knew nothing about the battlefield. They had no right to take part in this war. These were the thoughts that ran through the minds of his men as they made their way toward Blackstone Town.

But Stone was different.

After hearing the strategy from General Urkawi himself, he could not help but be in awe of Fior, the rabbit beastman who proposed this plan. If they took the orders of the Beast King into consideration, the rabbit was right. Their goal was not to kill Alexander, nor was it to occupy the Valley of Witches. The real goal was to conquer the Eastern Region of the Kingdom of Lukas.

With this proposed plan, there was no need to confront the damnable Mercenary Guild Master who had thwarted their advances over and over. Although they wouldn’t be able to kill Alexander, they would be able to accomplish their goal of conquering the Eastern Region. Their target this time, after all, was a town in a strategic location. Once they managed to occupy that area and convert it into a stronghold, they would be pointing a knife at the neck of the Eastern Region.

That rabbit’s good. Once I come back after this reconnaissance mission, I’ll make sure to recommend him for another promotion.

Although Stone was just the captain of a small unit, he could do that much. After all, he was close to General Urkawi as well as several adjutants. It would leave a bad taste in his mouth if that genius rabbit was demoted because of unruly politics and stupid individuals. He had seen capable individuals succumb to such fate before. He did not want it to happen to Fior.

“Captain, we’re near Blackstone Town,” said one of his men.

Stone and his men were riding burrcats, monsters with the body of a horse and head of a cat. Although they looked gruesome to humans, they were indispensable for the scouts of the beastmen tribes. These creatures were a lot smaller than horses, but they could climb trees and steep cliffs. The perfect skills for reconnaissance missions.

Stone’s slit-like pupils widened as he looked in the distance. With his keen vision, he could see several houses built up through the countryside.

He raised his hands. “Stop.”

The fifteen lizardmen with him halted.

“Tether the burrcats.” Stone pointed at the trees to their left. He dismounted. The green scales on his body glimmered underneath the sun as his tail dragged across the ground. “We’ll do as planned. Molith, Salith, the two of you will stay here and keep watch.”

“Understood,” two lizardmen simultaneously replied.

“If we don’t come back in two days, go back and report to the commander of the vanguard.”

Molith and Salith looked at each other, their reptilian faces filled with wonder. “That’s a joke, right, Captain? How could those puny humans possibly kill you, the leader of the scouts?”

“Haha! They might not even notice that they’re being watched!”

Stone glared at them, and they stiffened. “The two of you are still young, so you might not understand. Listen, kids. This world is filled with strong enemies lurking in every corner. There will always be someone stronger. Don’t underestimate your opponents, even if they’re humans. Have you forgotten how Alexander annihilated Commander Brock and his men three weeks ago?”

The memory of how the human Mercenary Guild Master outwitted the Third Legion and one-sidedly annihilated an army resurfaced within their minds. The lizardmen turned grim upon remembering this.

“But Alexander’s different. There’s no way there are other humans like that—” said Molith.

“Enough!” growled Stone. He turned to everyone. “Listen! This mission relies heavily on us, the scouts, for information! If we fail to capture the Eastern Region within the next several months, General Urkawi’s head might come rolling! That is the decree of the Beast King!”

The lizardmen gasped.

Stone glared at Molith and Salith. “Do you understand? Follow the orders and do as we planned!”

“Understood!”

After making sure that the burrcats had been tethered in a safe location, Stone and his men made their way to the town.

Despite their reptilian features, their movements were smooth and nimble. Each step was almost silent. Stone and his men activated Blend, a magic known only to the Lizardmen Tribe. This magic enabled them to alter the color of their scales and blend in to their surroundings. Although it was broad daylight, the residents of Blackstone Town failed to notice the reptiles’ infiltration.

“Move out,” said Stone.

Everyone dispersed. Their goal was to obtain a clear picture of the town’s defenses and geographical structure. Two lizardmen remained and followed Stone as he made his way to the center of the town. They arrived at a mansion.

“Sir Gaston, these are the records of the kalranes we’ve mined this week,” a blonde woman said to an elderly man in suit. “The young master told me to give you this.”

The old man nodded and flipped through the parchments. “They’ve managed to reach the fifth area, huh? Good work.”

“Are you planning to visit the northern farmlands again?” said the blonde woman.

The old man shook his head. “No. This time, I’ll be inspecting the training of the soldiers.”

Upon the mention of the word soldiers, Stone’s eyebrows twitched. He would follow this old man for now.

The old man rode a carriage. Stone and his men quickly followed.

After several minutes, the carriage halted at an area filled with newly constructed houses. The sound of hammers hitting wood and stone resounded. The old man climbed down from the carriage, his steps slow but steady as he made his way toward a large clearing. In the clearing, men wearing leather armor were practicing with their spears.

Stone and the two lizardmen were surprised to see this. The humans seemed trained, almost similar to the mercenaries led by Alexander. Still, Stone could see the subtle differences. He was sure these soldiers were greenhorns, despite the training they had undergone.

There were almost a hundred soldiers, likely disproportionate to the town’s population. Stone could not see why the lord of this town needed so many soldiers. If he were lord here, he would have made these men work in agriculture and other more constructive fields. After all, this town was in the wilderness, without any hostile forces nearby. He couldn’t see the merit of training this many men for the military.

The soldiers, with the sun beating down, stabbed and pulled their spears. They repeated these movements so often that Stone was amazed by their perseverance.

Although these humans were disciplined, Stone knew that the vanguard forces of the Third Legion would crush them easily during a fight.

There was no need to worry about this town putting up a good fight. He didn’t notice any noteworthy individuals.

All that was left was to survey the rest of the town, record the geographical features of the surrounding regions, then report to the commander of the vanguard.

As Stone was about to leave, he noticed that the commander of the soldiers, a man with golden hair, was staring at him. For a moment, Stone stiffened.

Could he actually see through his magic? Impossible. The lizardman’s ability to blend with his surroundings was perfect. Coupled with controlled breathing and silent steps, it would be nearly impossible to detect him without using magic.

It must have been his imagination—simply coincidence that the man was staring in his direction.

Stone nodded at his men, signaling that it was time for them to move to another location. As they were about to leave, the commander of the soldiers spoke.

“Stop. If you move, I’ll shoot you with the spear,” said the man with golden hair. “I know you’re there. Show yourselves.”

Stone and his men were shocked. Their eyes widened. They exchanged glances. They did not expect that a human, a mere commander of a small army, would be able to see through their camouflage.

“Anandra?” said the old man. “What are you talking about?”

Anandra was still staring at Stone’s direction. “There’s someone over there. Three of them, probably. There’s no mistaking it.”

The soldiers stopped their training. They all looked in the direction Anandra was gazing.

This was bad. Their job was simply reconnaissance. They were not supposed to fight these humans.

After a few seconds, Stone decided to escape while they still had the chance. He wordlessly told his men to quickly move out.

But before he could escape, a spear came flying and struck one of his men. The lizardman was hit right in the chest, impaling him on the wooden wall of a newly finished cabin. His body twitched for a moment, before the light in his eyes vanished.

“Captain,” said the remaining lizardman. “He killed him with a single shot!”

It was a preposterous feat for a human, since the scales of a lizardman were as hard as stone. The shot had been made with unbelievable accuracy.

“Beastmen?” mumbled Anandra. He pulled out the sword on his waist and slowly walked toward Stone and the remaining lizardman. “Tell me, why did you come to this town? The nearest country of beastmen must be the United Grakas Alliance. Are you from Lion City? Why did you conceal yourselves? State your purpose. Show yourselves.”

So many questions, and Stone had no plans to answer any of them. He issued an order to his subordinate. “Go back and relay what we’ve found to the vanguard.”

The lizardman was in a stupor. “What do you mean, Captain?”

Stone pulled out the scimitar on his waist. “This human’s dangerous. He could be on par with me. It’ll be impossible to escape without killing him.”

“But, Captain!”

“Go! The mission’s more important than our lives!” snarled Stone. “Just go!”

Quickly, the lizardman left the area. At the same time, Stone disabled his magic and showed himself, preventing Anandra from chasing after the lizardman.

Without another word, Stone dashed toward Anandra and struck him with the scimitar. Anandra sidestepped, then retaliated with his sword.

He’s fast, thought Stone. There’s no other choice. We need to carry out our mission.

Stone exchanged several more blows with Anandra, then quickly moved to the old man from the mansion. He wrapped his arms around him and pointed his scimitar at his neck.

“Move and I’ll kill this human,” said Stone.

He knew there was nothing honorable about this, but he had no choice. The commander of these soldiers was too strong. The mission was his priority; his life and dignity were secondary.

The human soldiers slowly encircled him, leaving him no room to escape. Still, none of them dared attack. Even the commander with golden hair refused to move once Stone took the old man hostage.

“Let him go,” Anandra said slowly. His gaze was predatory.

Stone didn’t reply. He looked around, trying to find a way out of the circle. He carried the old man by the waist and ran through it. The soldiers were baffled when the lizardman suddenly shot in their direction. Without ample time to react, coupled with the fact he was carrying the butler as hostage, the soldiers were unable to block his escape.

Behind him, Anandra quickly gave chase, leaving the rest of the soldiers behind.

This was a mistake. That man’s stronger than me. I need to shake him off quickly.

Although Stone was the fastest lizardman in the scouts, by carrying the old man, he was unable to shake his follower.

After reaching the end of the town, Stone skidded to a halt.

“Finally decided to give up, huh?” Anandra walked toward him slowly, holding his sword.

Stone took a small vial from the pouch on his waist. He threw it to the ground where it shattered and green mist seeped through the cracks.

“Mist of the Poison Frogs,” said Stone. “Lizardmen are immune to it, but it’s lethal to humans.”

It was a half-truth. Although the mist was fatal to humans, it would not manifest its effects immediately on knights and magicians. This man with golden hair must be in the same league as those bastards.

Stone needed a way to escape this predicament and report back to the commander of the vanguard. This was his only solution.

Soon, the effect of the mist began showing on the old man’s face. He coughed repeatedly as his face drained of all color.

Stone took out two different vials and gently placed them on the ground. The old man continued coughing and gasping for air.

“These are the antidotes,” said Stone. “Mix the two together and make that human drink it. How about it? Why don’t we make a deal? Let me go and these two are yours.”

Judging by the reaction of the golden-haired man and his soldiers, the old man was a prominent figure within this territory. Stone was sure that they would grab his offer. Even if the human successfully administered the antidote to the old man, Stone could have fled the area by then. He was the fastest lizardman, after all.

“What if you’re lying?” said Anandra, grimly.

He shrugged. “You have no way of finding out. The old man will die soon. Choose.”

Seconds lingered. Anandra gnashed his teeth and choked the words out. “Go.”

Stone slowly took several steps back, his eyes locked on Anandra’s. After taking a quick look around, he dashed off and disappeared into the distance.

He ran through the plains until he reached the forest.

That strong human must be administering the antidote by now. Stone should be able to gain enough time to escape.

He finally arrived where the burrcats were tethered.

My men are still in that town. It’s terrible that I’m unable to recall them.

They would probably die once that human monster spotted them. A necessary sacrifice.

“Ah, captain!”

Molith and Salith jumped down from the trees. Beside them was the lizardman who had escaped before him.

“Why are you still here?!” Stone was baffled. They should have been gone by now, on their way to report back to the vanguard.

“We heard about the situation from Bolux.” Molith and Salith looked at each other. “We didn’t want to leave the captain behind so—”

“Fools!” roared Stone.

The three lizardmen flinched and shrank back. The burrcats whined in fear.

“You should have heard of that commander! That human monster! I managed to shake him off once but what if he comes again?!”

Stone was livid. He knew full well the importance of this reconnaissance mission. “We need someone to deliver the message! The vanguard consists of only three hundred beastmen. We’ll suffer casualties if we attack the town with only those numbers!”

The three lizardmen turned dead silent. They hanged their heads low and avoided Stone’s fierce glare.

“Untether the burrcats. We depart immediately,” said Stone.

“Yes!”

With trained movements, the lizardmen moved and gathered their mounts. Since burrcats were rare, they decided to bring the extra ones back with them.

“Move out,” said Stone.

The lizardmen slapped the reins, the burrcats purred, and they silently moved through the forest.

The Third Legion had fifteen thousand soldiers. Surely, they would be able to spare at least a thousand to help the vanguard conquer that territory.

Stone decided to convince the higher-ups to strengthen the vanguard’s military.