God Agent: All Hail The Great Kobold

Kurg followed closely behind Tong’a as they descended the narrow passage leading toward the colony’s prison. The further they walked, the quieter the tunnels became.

The cheerful chatter from the upper caverns gradually disappeared until only the rhythmic tapping of Tong’a’s wooden staff echoed against the stone walls. The air also felt noticeably colder here, carrying the faint scent of damp earth and ancient stone.

Kurg looked around curiously, his ears twitching at every unfamiliar sound, but after several minutes of walking, confusion slowly replaced his excitement.

"...Didn’t you say we’re going to meet the greatest champion of Vaal’kor?" Kurg finally asked, unable to contain himself any longer.

Tong’a glanced sideways at the young kobold before letting out a quiet chuckle.

"I did."

Kurg looked around once more at the prison corridors.

"But... why are we going deeper into the prison?"

Tong’a smiled patiently, already expecting the question.

"Because he is our guardian."

He lightly tapped the stone wall beside him with his staff.

"So tell me, child... what better place is there for the colony’s strongest defender than its most dangerous place?"

Kurg blinked several times before his eyes slowly widened. The answer was surprisingly simple.

If dangerous prisoners ever escaped who better to stop them than the strongest warrior in the colony?

A bright smile spread across his face.

"That’s... actually really cool!"

Tong’a laughed softly.

"It is."

They continued deeper until they reached the final corridor containing the prison cells. Several guards immediately bowed upon seeing Tong’a, but the old Oracle merely acknowledged them with a nod before stopping beside what appeared to be an ordinary stone wall.

Without saying a word, he placed one wrinkled hand against the cold rock. A faint emerald glow spread beneath his palm and the wall trembled gently.

Then the stone shifted.

With a deep grinding noise, an entire section of the wall slowly slid sideways, revealing a hidden passage leading even deeper beneath the colony.

Kurg’s mouth slowly fell open.

"There was another tunnel?"

Tong’a simply smiled.

"There are many things beneath Vaal’kor that only a handful of people know."

Kurg swallowed hard before hurrying after him.

The hidden passage was unlike the rest of the colony. The walls were remarkably smooth, almost unnaturally so, as though every inch had been meticulously carved rather than excavated. The deeper they ventured, the more the darkness retreated before a strange, colorful glow illuminating the tunnel ahead.

Eventually, they reached the end.Kurg froze and his pupils widened. Beyond the entrance stretched an enormous underground chamber nearly as large as the colony’s assembly grounds.

The ceiling soared high overhead while countless Aether Crystals had been embedded throughout the surrounding walls. Some still pulsed with vibrant colors, bathing the cavern in shifting hues of blue, green, violet and gold. Others had long since been exhausted, their once brilliant surfaces now dull and transparent, silently bearing witness to decades of use.

The chamber felt peaceful and almost sacred.

Kurg’s gaze slowly drifted toward the center. Someone sat there.

A lone figure rested upon a circular stone platform in complete silence. He looked human, at least mostly.

His skin was dark.

Long blade shaped ears rose elegantly from the sides of his head while rough green scales extended from beneath the loose robes covering his shoulders and neck. His deep green hair had been tied neatly into a ponytail that rested against his back.

Most striking of all, ywo sturdy horns curved gently backward from his forehead.

Kurg instinctively held his breath. He had never seen a human before yet even he knew something wasn’t right. Humans weren’t supposed to have scales or horns.

Those were unmistakable draconic traits. So what is this strange man that has the traits of a dragon?

The stranger sat perfectly still with his legs crossed, his breathing so calm it almost blended with the silence surrounding him. Only after Tong’a and Kurg stepped fully into the chamber did his eyelids slowly rise.

He had gray eyes. They were completely lifeless with no pupils.

Kurg immediately realized.

"He... can’t see."

Tong’a smiled and ignored him. He turned his attention to Kong’gong.

"I’m sure you heard everything."

Tong’a folded his hands behind his back.

"You always seem to hear everything happening inside this colony."

The blind man merely shrugged.

"When you’ve spent decades beneath the earth, the earth begins talking back."

Kurg quietly hid behind Tong’a, peeking around the old Oracle’s robes. His curiosity only continued growing.

The blind man’s head slowly turned. Despite those lifeless eyes, he looked directly at Kurg.

The young kobold immediately froze.

’How...?’

Before anyone could speak again, the blind man’s composed expression suddenly disappeared. His hands began fidgeting awkwardly and he rubbed one horn, then scratched his cheek.

Finally, he covered his mouth entirely and a deep blush rapidly spread across his face.

"So.. I’m finally getting my first disciple."

He mumbled nervously.

"Oh... Greater Kobold... What do I say?"

"How should I introduce myself?"

"What if he thinks I’m trying too hard?"

Kurg blinked repeatedly. Every word had been spoken loudly enough for the entire chamber to hear.

Slowly, he turned toward Tong’a.

The old Oracle had already buried his face inside one hand while shaking with restrained laughter.

Apparently, this wasn’t unusual.

Kurg slowly looked back toward the legendary guardian. The strongest warrior in the colony was not who he had imagined.

He had imagined someone who radiated overwhelming pressure. Instead the legendary hero seemed to be having a panic attack over introducing himself to a child.

The blind man suddenly stiffened and his gray eyes widened. He slowly lowered his hands from his face before turning toward Tong’a.

"...He’s disappointed. My disciple thinks I’m pathetic!"

The blind man dramatically threw both hands into the air before collapsing backward onto the stone platform with a groan.

Tong’a finally burst into laughter.

Watching the legendary guardian roll around in embarrassment somehow made the entire situation infinitely funnier.

Kurg tried desperately to hold himself together but he lasted only of three seconds then he burst into laughter alongside Tong’a.

The nervousness gripping his heart throughout the journey completely melted away.

This strange, goofy and embarrassingly awkward man was somehow also the strongest defender of the colony.

As Kurg wiped tears from the corners of his eyes, one quiet thought crossed his mind.

’...Maybe not every hero has to be cool.’