Chapter 268: A chance to learn

After the short interlude, Aiden, Roas with the sleeping 'beauty' tossed over his right shoulder like a sack of potatoes were back on their trek, ascending the tower.

As they entered the hall above, leaving the staircase they finally saw a different scene than before. Whilst it was still a long, single corridor floor with royal garments, Aiden could finally feel several presences residing behind the closed walls. In the many rooms that were situated all the way along towards the far end where this time, instead of the usual staircase would have awaited them, only more wall stood. From the distance, they could see a large crimson gemstone, beaming with an eerie blood-red light.

The room, contrary to how it was on the lower floors, was basked in the gloom, the only source of illumination was the candleholders placed on the walls. Similar to the gemstone on the other side, all the candles were burning with a similarly colored blood-red fire.

"Interesting…" Aiden muttered, glancing over the floor. The obscure light did not really bother him, with his [Dark Sense] ability he was not hindered even in complete darkness. After all, he had the to experience the life of a fragile, harmless little bug as well…

Using the sensory ability, he sent out several empowered pulses, to map out the true nature of the guests that he could vaguely sense the moment they left the holds of the trap they were in below. 

He watched with interest as the dots appeared one by one in his System's map, one after another, turning from the initial white color marking the neutral life signs to dark red, meaning they all held hostile intentions and were all aware of their presence.

"[Orc] Unlike what you were told, it seems like not just the leaders and the envoys are present Roas." Aiden spoke with an expectant grin on his face. 

Surprised by his master's abrupt sentence, Roas looked at the young master with an inquiring gaze.

"[Orc] What does that mean, young master? Are there perhaps…" Before he could finish his thought, suddenly the 3 closest doors in front of them opened up, seven armored combatants walked out of them.

They were all garbed in a full set of black, steel armor. Their helmets were designed in the form that matched the face of the stone guardians outside. Long swords, War Maces, and the now recognizable but much better quality War Axes were already tightly held in their hands. At the very back, there were even two ranged each holding a large longbow in their hands with an arrow already armed ready to be fired on Aiden and Roas.

"[Orc] This… This is impossible! Only leaders are allowed entry! These men… Who are these guys?!" Roas cried out in shock, unbelieving what was in front of his eyes. Warriors, no matter their ranking, had no right to step inside the hallowed grounds, no matter the reason. However, despite this irrefutable fact, they were met with not just one, but seven unknown figures blocking their way.

"[Orc] I don't think they are orcs at all. They feel… different…" Aiden frowned, the moment the creatures began to move and leave the room they were in 'waiting', he could feel the same dark energy circulating in them that was residing inside the stone guardian, or that warding that blocked their entry.

Thinking for a moment, an idea sparked in Aiden's mind, replacing the frown with a smirk. With a wave of his right hand, a portal materialized in front of the duo, with the image of lush, vibrant greenery. A moment later as the gateway stabilized, three figures, two males and a feminine figure stepped out from it. As soon as they did, the portal promptly closed behind them. They turned their backs on the warriors in front of them and turned to face Aiden. 

"[Goblin] Greetings to young master! Awaiting your orders!" The trio knelt down and exclaimed loudly. There was deep reverence shining in their eyes.

Although this was the first time Roas saw these three, he could recognize the connection they had with the young master which was similar to his own. He instantly knew these three were the newest addition by the Young Master, they were his three newest colleagues.

Seeing how they looked extremely similar to the young master, feeling the power emanating from them, he smirked. Besides the taller, stronger-looking one at the middle, who seemed just as powerful as himself, if not stronger, the other two were slightly below him. 

"[Goblin] Glohn, Gob, Ghalina. Behind you, these dark beings are trying to block our way to advance further and find those responsible for the suffering you all went through. They think they can stand up and match our resolve!" Aiden spoke in a confident manner as he looked at the trio. Pausing for a moment, he turned his head to glance at Roas who, just like the ex-goblin trio, was focused on his words.

"[Goblin] Roas here is just like you, my faithful servant. Don't judge him by how he looks, he suffered, just like you. He seeks vengeance responsible for what had befallen, like you. He is your brethren, not just by the loyalty he swore up to, not just the pledge he made to me, but by the similar cruel fate he experienced, like you three."

As he spoke, Aiden kept an eye on the 7 warriors that were battle-ready in front of them. Strangely they did not attack, they calmly waited for them to get ready. This fact was concerning, making Aiden think that these beings may not have any free will of their own and were just mere puppets, creations animated either by someone either up top or that powerful being residing far below.

With another wave of his hands, four weapons he gathered on the way here: two orcish crude battle axes from the patrolling orcs in the outer edges of the forest that attacked Naybeah and the two pikes from the elite warriors guarding the Slave Pen fell to the ground.

"[Goblin] These may not be the best weapons, but currently these are what we have to work with. Pick one that suits you guys best and get ready. Defeat all the creatures in front of you, by any means you see fit. Don't hold back, don't stop until you reach the end of this floor. Show me the powers you all have."

Finishing his words, he turned to Roas once again. Nodding at him, the knowing smirk had not left the edges of his lips. Instead, it curved even higher, already understanding his first servant's thoughts.

"[Orc] You two, Roas. You can leave Drake here and join your brethren. Defeat all those that oppose us. I'm expecting a lot from you, don't fail me."

"[Orc] It will be my pleasure, young master. Please leave everything here to us." Roas, after placing the body of the unconscious silver-haired prince on the floor, gave a deep, courteous bow, and walked towards the weapons laid out in front of his three brethren.

Giving a silent bow towards them, he picked up one of the battle axes from the ground. Looking at the crude, slightly bent, used head of the weapon, he smirked, shifting his attention and taking a step forward towards the combatants in front of them.

The trio, following the tall, robust orc's example, picked up a weapon each and stepped forward to face the enemy.

Glohn, the current leader of the goblins, and the only one with Aiden's Primal Essence residing inside them grabbed the second war axe was standing to Roas' left. 

"[Goblin] So, you are the first, our senior I presume." He spoke in his newly acquired deep voice. His tone, albeit it was difficult to access to the underlying power that could be felt in each of his spoken words, carried no malice or negativity whatsoever.

"[Goblin] I am Roas, the Young Master's guardian. Whilst you are the fourth to join our fold, I do not think you should be called our junior at all. Even I might not be able to withstand even one of your blows. You carry a small residue of the master's power, after all. I can feel it radiating within your body." Roas smirked not taking his eyes off the enemies once.

As the other two arrived at Glohn's left silently nodded, focused on the battle instead. 

Seeing that from the corner of his eyes, Roas, who was now on the far right, only gave a slight nod, gripping the handle of his weapon even tighter.

Seeing that all four of his servants were ready, although not really using any tactical positioning at all, Aiden only smiled to himself behind them. They needed to learn, grow and understand their own powers first and foremost. This upcoming battle would be the perfect chance to do that. 

As he glanced at his System's Map once more, the smile curved even higher on his face. He knew that to overcome this challenge on their own, they will need to learn not just their own body's limits but understand each other as well.

He was hoping that by the end, they will all be a team, instead of four servants blindly following their young master's wishes.