Chapter 631: The Raid
CH631 The Raid
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A few hours earlier...
Since receiving their Rune Tattoos from Alex, Mogal and Kavakan had been doing everything within their power to push the enhancements to their limits, following his instructions closely.
"Live stress testing," the Runemaster had called it.
Mogal continued with his usual training regimen.
Alex’s gym bro to another world, found to his delight that exercises which had once grown trivial for him were now challenging once again.
Weights he had previously lifted without a second thought now demanded his full focus and precise muscular control.
A routine that once took nearly an hour to produce even the faintest soreness or engagement in his muscles now achieved the same effect in mere minutes.
The pugilist was utterly enthralled.
Aside from eating, he spent nearly all his time training—pushing his body further and further.
He discovered that the Chains of Unyielding rune tattoo did not merely enhance his physical training efficiency—it also accelerated the development of the ’Will’ he had first begun to cultivate during the Stele Trials.
Kavakan, on the other hand, took a very different approach.
Rather than remain in one place, he spent most of his time venturing out on hunting missions in the areas surrounding BloodIron City.
He knew he was not the type of individual who could sit still and achieve enlightenment through contemplation alone.
Instead, he threw himself into practical application—seeking to refine his Killing Intent and Mark of Slaughter rune tattoo through real combat, relying on instinct, trial, and on-the-spot comprehension.
In essence, the weretiger way.
It was only after receiving reports from both men—and confirming that the rune tattoos were functioning as intended—that Alex finally emerged from his period of seclusion.
On this same day, shortly before Alex left his secluded quarters, Kavakan and Mogal had led members of Fortuna’s raiding party—namely the orcs and barbarians—on a mission.
Their objective was to eliminate a group of goblins that had been terrorising a nearby village outpost, located several hours away from BloodIron City.
To both men, it was the perfect opportunity to field-test their newly acquired abilities in a real combat scenario.
Under the command of their eager leaders, the Fortuna raid party arrived at a mountainous region where the goblins were believed to have established their lair.
To their surprise, after some tracking conducted by a few of the barbarians trained as scouts, they discovered that the goblins had not taken refuge within any of the numerous caverns scattered across the region.
Instead, they had established their settlement openly—nestled between two hills.
At first, both Kavakan and Mogal assumed there was a high-ranking goblin present in the goblin village—something that would justify such brazen behaviour.
However, to their surprise, that was not the case.
Whether through sheer ignorance or outright stupidity, the goblins had set up their settlement without any apparent protection.
There was no high-ranking goblin within the camp—nor any indication that one had ever resided there.
Had Alex, his wives, or the more perceptive members of Fortuna been present, they might have questioned how such a settlement had managed to survive in such an exposed location.
But the two hulking warriors paid it no mind.
Kavakan was irritated at having wasted time advancing cautiously, while Mogal was eager to finally test the combat capabilities of his rune tattoo.
Neither of them spared a second thought for the origin of the goblin settlement.
Kavakan charged straight into the camp.
Killing Intent!
A phantom tiger manifested behind him, its presence looming and oppressive as it unleashed a suffocating wave of killing intent.
"Come, my babies—feed on their bl—"
Before he could finish his battle cry, the goblins collapsed en masse—dropping to the ground like flies struck from the air.
"What?"
Kavakan halted, stunned.
Every goblin within his immediate vicinity lay dead.
Their faces were frozen in sheer terror—most likely victims of cardiac arrest induced by overwhelming killing intent.
"Weaklings!" Kavakan cursed loudly.
He had not even drawn his axes, yet all the Class 0 goblins had already perished under the pressure of his aura alone.
His ’babies’ had not even had the chance to taste goblin blood.
Unfortunately for him, before he could turn his attention to the stronger Class 2 hobgoblins—
Mogal had already leapt into the fray.
Despite his prowess being suppressed and restricted by his rune tattoo, he charged headlong into the group of hobgoblins, who were, at that moment, a stage stronger than him.
Mogal remained undaunted.
He steeled his Will, holding firm to the belief that his fists could break through any and all opposition standing before him.
With punches and kicks, he fought—and killed—his way through the stronger goblins within the settlement.
Though his rank remained suppressed, Mogal could feel his body growing physically stronger with every exchange, his strikes landing with increasing force.
That strength reinforced his belief in himself...
—and that belief, in turn, strengthened his Will.
A self-sustaining cycle formed—each blow fuelling the next in a relentless loop of increasing power.
By the time Kavakan stormed over—his twin axes cleaving through a couple hobgoblins in a single sweep—Mogal had already dealt with the majority of the worthy opposition.
"Ahhh!!!"
Bang!
Kavakan, utterly frustrated, slammed his fist into a nearby makeshift goblin hut—obliterating it in a single strike.
With the hobgoblins slain, only a handful of Class 0 goblins remained.
Kavakan could not even bring himself to look at such pitiful creatures—beings that could not withstand even the pressure of his Killing Intent.
He waved dismissively at the rest of the raiding party, signalling for them to finish the job.
Only then did the stunned orcs and barbarians move.
They had always known Mogal and Kavakan were strong—
—but not this strong.
One moment, Kavakan had begun his battle cry—
—and before he could even finish it, the goblins had already collapsed dead.
What kind of power was that?
As for Mogal, despite his presence appearing suppressed—as though he were heavily restrained—even hobgoblins equal to them in rank could not withstand more than a single punch before falling.
If that was the case... would they themselves fare any better?
’What kind of power did the leader grant them...?’
The thought echoed silently among the group.
They all understood that this overwhelming increase in strength likely came from the power bestowed upon them by their leader—Alex Fury.
And now, they could not help but feel both awe and... desire.
The desire to obtain that same power for themselves.
Even so, the raiding party completed their task.
The goblin settlement was eradicated entirely.
None were spared—neither young nor old, male nor female, able-bodied nor crippled.
’The only good goblin is a dead goblin.’
The thought lingered coldly in their minds.
***