Chapter 235: Messy Situation
The forest grew thicker the deeper the strike team rode. Trees crowded closer together, their branches reaching out like they wanted to grab at the riders. Thin strips of sunlight cut through the canopy, lighting up patches of moss and fallen leaves on the ground. The air felt heavier here, damp and full of the smell of wet earth and crushed plants.
Rhuvia sat straight in her saddle at the front of the group, her expression calm on the outside even as her mind worked nonstop.
She heard everything. The wind elemental magic she uses lets sounds travel to her from farther away than anyone else could catch. And right now, that meant the three Fiora hunters riding a little behind her.
Their voices carried clearly, low and angry. They were still talking about what happened back at the clearing, the dead tribemates, the decision to keep moving instead of going back for bodies or revenge. One of them, a woman with a scarred arm, muttered that Rhuvia had left their people behind like they didn’t matter. Another agreed, saying a real leader would have turned around no matter what. Who was this capital woman to make that call for them?
Hearing all of this, Rhuvia’s jaw tightened. She understood the grief. She really did. Losing people under your command never sat easy, even when it was the right call. But right now their anger was spreading through the rest of the strike team like poison. Dissatisfaction like that could get everyone killed faster than any monster in these woods.
She had felt the shift in the group ever since they left the clearing. The Fiora hunters behind Maya weren’t even trying to hide how they felt anymore.
Vessa rode up beside her, guiding her horse through a narrow gap between two thick trunks. She leaned in close enough that Rhuvia caught the faint smell of sweat and leather from her armor. “They’re still talking,” Vessa said quietly. “I caught some of it. Want me to ride back and shut it down before it gets any worse?”
Rhuvia shook her head once, keeping her voice low so it wouldn’t carry. “I know. I’ve been hearing it the whole time. Grief is one thing. But this timing… It’s going to get someone killed if they keep feeding it to the others.”
She glanced sideways at Vessa. “They think I’m cold for leaving their dead behind. I get it. But going back would have put the whole team at risk. And we clearly don’t have time for that.”
Vessa nodded, her face serious. She understood. They had worked together long enough that words weren’t always needed. Still, her hand rested on the hilt of her blade, ready for anything.
The group kept moving. The horses stepped carefully over roots and fallen branches.
No one spoke much. The silence felt heavy, broken only by the occasional creak of saddles and the soft jingle of gear.
Rhuvia kept her senses stretched out, listening for anything that didn’t belong to them, snapping twigs, heavy breathing that wasn’t theirs, that low growl some monsters made before they attacked. She was keeping note of everything around her, all while worrying about the group’s morale.
Then suddenly, the horses started slowing on their own. The animals sensed it first. Ahead, the trees opened up into a wide band of destroyed forest. Trees lay knocked sideways like broken sticks. Undergrowth was flattened in wide paths, and the ground looked churned up, like something big had moved through in a group.
Rhuvia raised her hand, signaling everyone to stop, as she studied the scene for a moment with sharp eyes.
“Kobolds,” she said, loud enough for the whole group to hear but not so loud it would carry far. “A pack of them. Large ones on top of it. They must be at the far end of that clearing, picking through the debris.”
Vessa asked first, “So, what should we do, Guild Master?”
Rhuvia answered in an authoritative voice, “We circle around. These ones don’t have the numbers or strength to threaten the village walls even if they head that way. So, engaging now just wastes time and energy, which we can’t afford.”
As she finished, a few of the adventurers behind her nodded. Vessa gave a quiet grunt of agreement. It was the smart move, after all. They had a job to do: scout deeper, find out where the dungeon gate really was, and possibly close it before nightfall.
Picking fights with every monster they saw would get them killed before they learned anything useful. So, it was a smart move to ignore everything and move forward, unless they encounter something that has the potential to reach the village and destroy the gate before nightfall.
But before anyone could start moving to circle around, the three Fiora hunters broke formation. Their horses surged forward without warning, hooves kicking up dirt as they charged straight toward the pack of kobolds. Spears raised, voices shouting battle cries that echoed through the trees.
Surprised, Rhuvia’s head snapped toward them. “Wait, what the hell are those three doing? Maya, stop them….” she started, voice sharp.
But nobody could stop them in time. Before Maya could even speak, those three were gone, leaving behind the rest of the group frozen for a split second, shock clear on their faces.
Vessa cursed under her breath and started to move to catch up to them, but it was already happening. The kobolds at the far end of the clearing reacted fast. Their heads jerked up, guttural snarls ripping through the air as they grabbed crude weapons and turned toward the charging riders behind them.
Rhuvia shouted louder this time, her voice carrying power that cut through the sudden noise. “Stop! Fall back! That’s an order!”
But it was too late. The three Fiora hunters were already engaged with those Kobolds, spears lowered, horses galloping hard into the pack. Hooves pounded against the churned earth, and the kobolds roared back, rushing forward to meet the attack.
Metal clashed against crude blades. One of the hunters let out a fierce yell as her spear drove into the first kobold that got close.
Rhuvia gripped her reins tighter, frustration burning in her chest. She had known the anger was there and had felt it building the whole ride. But she hadn’t expected them to break like this. Not now. Not when the whole strike team’s safety depended on staying together and making smart choices to save time.
The sounds of fighting filled the forest: shouts, snarls, the heavy thud of bodies colliding. The rest of the group looked to her, waiting for the next order, faces tense. All of them knew that they had no choice but to join the battle, as the three of those hunters had already drawn the attention of the Kobolds' pack to the rest of them. Vessa was already drawing her weapon, ready to join the battle if Rhuvia gave the word.
For a while, Rhuvia just stared at the chaos ahead, jaw set. Feeling frustrated at those three who had just turned an important mission like this into something much more messier than it needed to be. And in a forest like this, doing things messily always ends up deadly unless it is taken care of early.
So, finally seeing no choice other than to join the battle with those three fools, she finally gave the order, “What are you guys waiting for. We have no other choice now because of those idiots. Let’s charge ahead and kill every kobold as fast as you can. Leave not a single one behind.”
Hearing the “OK” from Rhuvia, Vessa spun in her saddle, her voice carrying over the noise of battle, raw and fierce, “Everyone, you guys heard the Guild Master. We are charging ahead. So, at my command. Charge ahead….”
Saying that Vessa turned her horse around, gave it a kick, and finally joined the battle, with the strike team behind her. Except Rhuvia, who stayed behind to watch over the entire battle from a distance.