Chapter 393: Mountain Pass

The ground was riddled with holes from where Arden’s stones had rained down in a storm of destruction. And yet, his opponent was still standing. The sabertooth stared at the blue hybrid curiously. Just moments earlier Arden had easily managed to strike him several times, tearing apart his flimsy spells and battering his body. The pitiful excuse for a battle should have been over… Then something changed. The hybrid had stood up in defense of his caged friends. But there was something different in his lilac eyes as if he could see a secret that others did not.

And that smile, that damn smile. It reminded Arden of that troublesome man.

Stryg glared at the sabertooth mage and bared his fangs in an unnerving smile, “What are you waiting for?”

Arden growled, a deep rumbling sound.

“STOP!” First Mother’s voice broke through the tension.

Arden craned his neck back and spotted the goblin priestess standing atop the unconscious bodies of his tribemates. She held a spear in hand and pointed it at one of their throats.

When had she snuck up on them? When had she knocked them unconscious?

The questions ran through Arden’s head in a single breath but the answer was all the same.

None of it mattered at this point.

“First Mother?” Stryg asked, confused.

“Be quiet and stay where you are!” she snapped at him.

Stryg flinched at her angry tone and nodded reluctantly.

Arden smiled and tilted his head in acknowledgment of First Mother, “Hello, Aurelia. It’s been a long time since you’ve visited the mountain.”

“This fight is over,” she said sternly.

Arden was unfazed. “After I saw the cub I guessed you’d show up. And you did not disappoint, as always.”

“You knew exactly who he was and still you attacked him?” Aurelia glared at him.

“I was testing him,” Arden said.

“It is not your place, you are not a Blood Fang. Now, release the orc and drow from their stone cage or I’ll kill these three idiots of yours.” As if to prove her point, Aurelia pushed her spear into one of the hunters’ throats until she drew blood.

Arden shook his head, “A certain belligerent cub already killed one of my hunters. His name was Eldon. He was a good hunter who followed the way of the Sylvan honorably. He did not deserve to die.”

“So you tried to kill Stryg. Out of revenge?” Aurelia glared at him. She drove her spear into the hunter’s neck. The unconscious goblin seized up, then went slack, blood oozing from his throat. Aurelia pulled her spear out and hovered its point over the next hunter.

Arden stared at her carefully, “I told you, I was testing him. If I wanted the cub dead I would have ended his life as soon as he stepped into these sacred lands.”

“So I should be grateful to you then?” Aurelia drove her spear into the next goblin, this time through the hunter’s eye socket. “Is this grateful enough for you?”

“Careful. I have killed people for much less,” Arden said in a low voice.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” she snarled and stabbed the last hunter through the heart.

“...You live up to your title, Aurelia the Blooded,” Arden scoffed. His sabertooth form flashed with green light and he returned to his goblin self. Gone were the fangs and fur, but his somber eyes and gruff countenance remained.

“Are we done here?” she asked.

Arden narrowed his eyes, “As chieftain, it is my sworn duty to protect my tribemates—”

“—Which you failed the moment you attacked mine.”

“...And to avenge my tribemates when they fall,” Arden finished in a cold tone.

Aurelia took a step back and gripped her spear tightly.

Arden shrugged with a sigh, “Fortunately for you, I would never hurt a ‘Favored of the Moon’ but you already knew that.”

“So it would seem,” she said.

Arden waved his hand and the stone cage holding Tauri and Plum crumbled to sand. The women coughed and spat out sand, but otherwise, they seemed fine.

Safe, the word echoed in Stryg’s mind. His friends were safe. The newfound strength in his body suddenly left him like a bottle pouring out its wine. His legs buckled underneath him and the floor met him in a blur.

“Stryg!” Aurelia rushed towards him and checked his pulse.

“I’m alright,” he muttered tiredly.

She sighed in relief and smiled weakly, “You idiot.”

Arden stared at their interaction silently.

Aurelia noticed the archmage’s keen gaze and quickly smothered her relief. She kicked Stryg in the leg and crossed her arms in disapproval, “Don’t wander so far ahead next time.”

“Yes, First Mother,” Stryg mumbled. He tried to get up but his body felt sluggish and heavy.

Aurelia went to help him but Arden spoke up in a cold voice, “A Sylvan Mother should not have favorites.”

“I have no favorites,” Aurelia snapped. “As you can see, there are no other children of my tribe here. I help the ones I can.”

Arden stared at her disapprovingly but said nothing more on the matter.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you,” Tauri walked over and slipped her arm under Stryg’s shoulder. She channeled brown mana into her muscles and helped him to his feet with mild effort.

“Thanks,” he smiled weakly.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more,” Tauri muttered frustratedly.

“So he isn’t going to kill us anymore?” Plum looked at Arden warily.

“I should,” the archmage said calmly. “The presence of you and the orc will only cause trouble here. But the Blood Fang priestess has spared your lives and I will respect her decision, as wrong as it may be.”

“Thanks?” Plum said uncertainly.

“Can someone explain to me who exactly this goblin is?” Tauri asked cautiously.

“Arden is the ‘Guardian of the Sylvan.’ A title given only to the most powerful of the Sylvan folk,” Aurelia explained grimly. “The Guardian is tasked with protecting the Sylvan from outside threats to the people and if needed, the Guardian will protect the people from one of their own.”

Arden ignored First Mother’s words and busied himself with caring for the bodies of his tribemates. He cast a flora spell and wrapped their bodies in green vines and white flowers.

Tauri’s shame in being unable to fight the archmage dissipated, though her fear of him only grew. “So this is the strongest Sylvan mage. What is he doing here…?” she asked quietly.

“Arden is also the chieftain of the Frost Whisper Tribe. Their people are in charge of guarding this mountain pass,” Aurelia said. “I suppose with the Lunar Elect summoning every tribe in the forest, perhaps the Guardian thought it best to guard the mountain pass himself.”

“Frost Whisper, Frost Whisper…? Why does that sound so familiar?” Plum muttered to herself. “Wait!” her eyes lit up. “Isn’t that the tribe that slayed a behemoth!?”

“No, that’s… that’s not possible,” Tauri said in disbelief. The behemoth was widely regarded as the greatest creature in all the Ebon Realm. Not even this Guardian or Elzri Noir could kill one.

Arden’s expression grew tired, “...And yet it happened. A hundred years ago my ancestors did the unthinkable.”

“Stryg told me about it, a few hunters against a behemoth. It must have been quite something,” Plum said in awe.

“Stryg clearly didn’t tell you the entire story,” Aurelia clicked her tongue. “Typical, that boy is always only concerned by a hunter’s accomplishments, never by their consequences.”

Stryg blushed and looked away in embarrassment.

Plum noticed his reaction and turned to Aurelia, “What do you mean?”

“It was a baby behemoth,” she replied. “And the hunters that killed it died soon after when the baby’s mother found them and laid waste to their tribe and many others. It was practically an ecological disaster that threatened the very survival of the Sylvan people.”

“Yet somehow your tribe managed to survive unscathed, curious is it not?” Arden said coldly.

Aurelia hissed. “My mother was smart enough to keep my tribe out of the calamity your grandfather caused.”

“Exactly my point,” Arden said. “The Sylvan people have survived the dangers of Vulture Woods because we’ve stayed together, looked after one another even in the most difficult times. But the Blood Fang has always had a penchant for being selfish. How would things have turned out back then if your mother and grandmother had come to the defense of the other tribes?”

“It wouldn’t have made a difference. The behemoth would have still continued her rampage and killed countless of us,” Aurelia said.

“But how many more would have been able to escape? How many more could have been evacuated? How many more lives could have been saved?”

“You want to speak of hypotheticals?”Aurelia growled. “How many more would have lived if your grandfather hadn’t been such a glory-seeking fool and killed the newborn child of a calamity?”

“...I guess we’ll never know,” Arden said solemnly. “What I do know is that my people learned from our grievous mistakes. We have spent the last century paying for our crimes, working for the sake of the Sylvan people, and repairing what we lost. I wonder, can you say the same? Have the Blood Fang learned from their mistakes?” He glanced at Stryg and smiled wryly, “No, I suppose not.”

Aurelia narrowed her eyes. “Open the pass.”

“...Before I do, I have something for the cubs.” Arden reached into his cloak’s pocket and pulled out three silver brooches in the shape of a crescent moon.

Aurelia’s eyes widened in surprise, “That’s… Why are you…?”

“Share them among your friends,” Arden said and handed the brooches to Plum who accepted them with hesitation.

“Thank you. Um, what are they?” Plum asked nervously.

“They are Lunar Crescents,” Stryg said in recognition. He was struggling to stay awake, but the sight of the brooch caught his attention. “They represent the favor of the Guardian, the Silver Mother, or the Lunar Elect. It is a great honor.”

“You don’t deserve them, none of you do,” Arden said curtly. “However, so long as you wear them no one within the city will give you any trouble.”

“You want to protect us?” Tauri frowned.

“I want to protect my people,” Arden said. “There are plenty of goblins who would kill a drow and orc on sight. But if any of them would try to hurt you and your friends I have an inkling your First Mother would not hesitate to kill them first.”

“Thanks, I guess…?” Tauri said dryly.

Arden tapped his chest, “Wear the Lunar Crescents over your shirt or cloak at all times while on the mountain. Do not lose them, I expect them back when you leave.”

“We’ll do our best,” Plum said and quickly pinned the brooches on their cloaks.

“...Thank you,” Aurelia said in a quiet but sincere voice.

Arden grunted in acknowledgement. He waved his hand and the ground rumbled underneath them. The mountainside opened up into the mouth of a tunnel.

“Are we really going to walk in there?” Tauri whispered warily. “What if he collapses the tunnel once we’re inside?”

Aurelia shook her head, “The Guardian is many things but a dishonorable man he is not.”

Plum glanced down the mountainside and thought of the chieftain and the others. “Should we wait for everyone else?”

“They’ll catch up,” Aurelia said.

Arden bowed his head towards her and stepped aside, “Welcome home, Favored One.”

Aurelia nodded and walked through.

“Home?” Stryg glanced at First Mother curiously, but she had already disappeared inside the tunnel.

Tauri stared at the dark entrance worriedly, “Why do I feel like we’re going to die in there?”