Chapter 129: Ambush

Hearing their master's command, the two canines let go of the creature's front legs and took a step back. They kept up their vigilance and warningly growled against the alpha, watching its limping movement as it walked back to its herd.

They kept up their guard even after the beast got lost with the others of its kind. Looking at the herd's direction they kept growling. Only after they heard their master's cute voice did they finally relax and walk back for the rewarding head pats.

"Come back you two, it's okay now!"

Arriving back in front of the blonde half-elf girl, they slightly lowered their heads, giving convenient and easy access to receive their rewards. Seeing their shameless action, Aiden broke out in a hearty guffaw. 

"Oh my, they are really incredible…" He spoke in-between two snorts. 

After giving out the respective rewards, and giving them a big hug, Lily turned towards the flowerbed in front of them.

"So, how much more do we need? Let's not waste time here, I don't want to intrude on their territory longer than we need to. We already caused enough mess."

Quieting down, Aiden nodded, then crouched down. Gently holding one of the purple leaves of the closest flower, he contemplatively spoke.

"Yes, you're right. Well, we need 5 more flowers and 8 more large leaves. Gather the flowers but make sure to not hurt the rest of the plant, and I will get my leaves." 

As he talked, he already gently pulled on the base of the leave, plucking it off from the herb. Lily quickly followed suit, looking for a few moderately-sized flowers in the purple-sea of flowers. Meanwhile, the dogs lied down, seemingly uninterested with the rest of the events around them. However, from time to time, they peeked at the group of animals on the other side of the clearing, ready to jump back into action at the moment's notice. 

Looking at the animals, they kept close to each other and while they were in an alerted, agitated state, they did not make any additional attempt against Aiden's group. They returned to their normal routine of enjoying the emerald green grass while eliciting the low-pitched clicking sounds.

As she gathered half of the required flowers, Lily looked back at Aiden. Grabbing the back of her head, she asked with a thoughtful expression. 

"Brother, do you know what is this clicking sound they make? Is this how they talk?"

Raising his head, Aiden looked at the group ahead of them for a while, then shook his head.

"No, I don't think so. Although I can't be certain, I think this is some sort of method to scan their surroundings. I'm not so sure that they see that well, to be honest."

Looking at the creatures Lily had a surprised expression.

"Huh? Are you sure? Their eyes are so big."

"As I said, I'm not certain. It's just a feeling. Their eyes are too weird to judge… Master and Granny would probably know more about them.�� Plucking the last leaf of the herb he was currently stripping, he stood up and changed the subject while dusting his linen pants.

"Are you done, Lily? If so, let's go, we still need a few more things, before we can go home! If we can make good time, we could surprise them and get back for a late lunch!"

Plucking the flower that she just grabbed, Lily jumped up and waved it in the air.

"Yes, I'm done! Let's go!" Then she turned around, facing the herd, and made a slight bow towards them. In a quieter, respectful tone, she addressed the animals.

"Sorry for the intrusion, I hope you can forgive us." 

After that, she turned around and hopped back towards his brother. Once she reached him, she presented the 5 medium-sized dark purple flowers. With a wide grin on her face, she looked at him and cheerfully spoke.

"Here they are, take them for me."

Taking and storing the flowers he smiled at the girl. She's always so cheerful and happy around him, he couldn't help but think about last night's events. However, he didn't want to bring up the topic. He was perfectly content even if she was just pretending currently. Her two new companions and this little trip will help her. After all, back in the pocket world, she endured way worse treatment and harsher wounds. Aiden was sure that her sloppy mood last night and this morning wasn't caused by the beating she received.

As they turned around to leave, Lily waved at Sam and Biggy to follow. Soon, they vanished in the foliage, continuing their small adventure towards the north.

Crossing through the thick foliage, Aiden abruptly halted his steps and raised his right-hand signaling for Lily to stop as well. Sam and Biggy also seemed to sense something, they jumped to alert, growling to the left and right side of them, while surrounding their master.

As his mood turned solemn, Aiden's eyes flashed golden momentarily. Clenching his fists, he looked ahead of him and spoke in a low, calm tone.

"Lily, ready your weapon. We have enemies approaching us."

Hearing his words, Lily immediately readied the bow. Placing an arrow and resting her fingers on the string, she whispered.

"Where? How many? What should we do?"

Standing still, Aiden tensed the muscles in his arms. Still in his human form, he took a slow, measured step forward as he responded with the same calm tone.

"15 life signs. I'm not sure how strong they actually are, but they are just starting to spread out and circle all around us."

Hearing this, Lily turned serious. She looked to her left then to the right, checking the spots the dogs were growling at, but couldn't spot anything unusual. Turning back towards Aiden, she asked again.

"Are you sure? What's the plan?"

Thinking for a bit, Aiden's eyes flashed golden again. His lips contorting into a cruel smile, he spoke while flexing his hands.

"I say, let them execute their plans. I don't think we need to worry that much, at the very least their signals don't seem overly strong. I would say… they are like the human guards back in the city… maybe a bit weaker. Hard to say from a first glance."

Lily silently nodded in response. Scanning her surroundings, she kept her fingers on the bowstring, ready to stress it out at the first signs of any approaching enemy. 

Both dogs, stood in an alerted state, snarling at the seemingly empty bushes. Aiden didn't take any step, nor any action, but kept the muscles in his arms in a tensed state with his hands flexed. He could see the enemy positions clearly. There was one, slightly brighter, stronger signal just ahead of them, most likely the leader of this group.

As the seconds kept passing, and with no signs of activity, Aiden started to get antsy of the tensed atmosphere. 

"Come on… don't waste time… Attack already…" He frowned. 

As if he said the magic word, in the next moment, loud high-pitched shouts rang through the surroundings. Small, child-like creatures rushed out, charging at their group.

Their skin color varied. Some of them were closer to the green spectrum with their darker shaded army colors, while the other half donned darker brown, syrupy color. They were ragged, tribal-like furred leather rags, just hiding their most important delicates, and swung crude stone and wood weaponry, like spears and clubs. 

In front of Aiden, the stronger life sign was a similar creature, but it was wearing a tattered bronze-colored robe and held a gnarled walking stick in his hand. At the end of the stick was a scarlet gemstone that kept humming, radiating its carmine glow.

Their faces resembled something akin to a human, except for the row of sharp pointy teeth in their mouths, and the large flopping pointy ears. Most of them were bald, only a few sported some small patches of black hair.

The leader was the only one in the group that had the top of his head fully covered in rippling onyx hair jumbled at the top of its head. 

Raising its stick towards Aiden, it snickered as its face revealed a cruel grin. It was that its strategy was executed flawlessly and that it was just a matter of time before they captured their newest prey.

As the first few creatures reached into melee range, Sam and Biggy jumped into action and lounged themselves at the first two humanoids they found. Snapping their jaws they instantly tore through their long scrawny necks, ripping flesh and skin in the process.

Dark, muddy, thick brownish liquid spurted like a fountain, as the first two little creatures fell to the ground. Meanwhile, Lily already released her first arrow, ending the assault of another one.

Seeing as how three of its soldiers instantly fell, the leader's vicious grin turned into a frown. It raised its stick into the air, releasing a loud battle cry. The gem flashed brighter, releasing a burst of red energy. 

The energy quickly rippled through the air, seeping into the assailants' bodies. In the next moment, their muscles stretched and throbbed. The color of their eyes also changed from their original varied darker colors into dark bloody red. 

They all stopped their charge and released a loud howl into the sky.

"Huh… so you have some tricks? Come then!" Aiden snickered seeing the changes. 

It seems that this ambush will not be as boring as he first thought it would be!