Chapter 318: Unexpected Situation

Crossing through the thick forest biome, a group of 5 could be seen. At the front of the little group, three light green, humanoid-esque figures could be seen. At the left, a lean, toned youth were marching holding a long pike in his hands. Next to him, at the center of the leading trio, a bulkier, broad-shouldered man could be seen. Holding it in only in his right hand, a humongous double axe, a fearsome carnivore of the battlefields were hanging leisurely from his right shoulder. 

Unlike the youngster next to him, he had a much calmer expression on his face. Still, it would be a mistake to think he was careless. His senses were continuously sweeping the area, making sure no surprises would meet them along their journey.

Last but not least, the third figure was much more slender than the rest. With a delicate figure, blossoming like a beautiful flower a young teenage-looking girl was keeping up the pace. Holding the very same-looking long pike between her lithe fingers, she looked the most nervous of the three. Her almond-shaped black eyes darted from left to right without rest. 

She, the only girl, the only designated caster in their group, wanted to prove her worth. Feeling she was being left behind by her brethren, she felt the need to show something for her name. She was being too shy, too afraid to put herself out to face the dangers head-on, and instead 'simply' supported her friends from the safety of the backlines. 

She wanted to change that, she wanted to show her beloved Young Master that she is just as good in close quarters combat as Gom, her stepbrother on the right side.

'I will show my devotion to the Young Master! I too am worthy of her praise, his respect, and not just his compassion! I too am strong just like Gom!' She reinforced her decision inwardly as she kept up the pace with Glohn, their teacher and ex-leader of their tribe.

Well, technically he is still the leader, he never stepped down.

Behind the trio, the duo of Aiden and Drake were walking in silence. Aiden, silent due being deep in thought about the recent happenings and the almost endless slew of information he could almost drown himself in, whilst Drake silent due to being way too embarrassed to look his friend in the eye. 

For the second time in a single night, he made a mockery out of himself, his impulsive nature just couldn't leave him to rest, he had to march into the unknown and brave the dangers to try to save his friend, who as it turned out, didn't need saving. 

Although he wasn't told much, he understood that the strange air had no effect on the little commoner boy at all.

Shortly after all the remaining orcs stepped through the Minion Portal and followed Roas to the 'promised land', Drake's groans signaled his coming back to his senses. Helped up by his friend, he was deeply confused about what they were doing outside the tower. 

More so about where were the orcs? Why couldn't they see a single soul, not even the tall bulky giant that seemed to be a guardian for his friend for some unexplained reason? 

His questions he subsequently fired, one after another were mostly left unanswered. He was briefly told that he fainted deep down on the cavern grounds and was brought back to the surface. As for the missing orcs, Aiden didn't answer but vaguely smiled before they set out to walk back.

Without any opposition, the group silently walked back the path where they came, soon leaving the orc camp's grounds, Roas's old 'home' and the small 'garden' of fluorescent lichen, arriving back at the crossroads where everything began.

Sending a mental command to the trio, Aiden ordered the group to stop. Turning towards the direction of where the slave pen used to stand, he squinted his eyes, focusing towards the distance. 

Several energy pulses were sent out, with his trusty [Dark Sense] used in overdrive, looking for any signs of life. A few seconds later, he sighed, breaking the silence of the group. 

"They have already left, there's nobody left in there." He made the statement with a calm expression, turning towards the long route leading out of the inner parts of the forest.

"Y-you sure? Where is my sister? Do you know?" Aiden's words caused Drake to almost fly into yet another agitated tangent. He did his best trying to force himself to remain as calm as possible. The thought of his dear, recently rescued and reunited sister being taken away again was not something he was willing to face.

His left hand subconsciously wandered to rub the pommel of his ornate sword. After all, over the years Mort was his only solace inside the rigid palace walls.

Drake's forced calmness almost caused a chuckle to escape through Aiden's lips. Taking a second, he warmly answered.

"Don't worry. I am fairly certain she is with my teammates. The fact that none of the slaves are present, neither any guards, points to the fact that they have successfully completed their part of the plan. Knowing that our makeshift camp wasn't a safe place to stay at, they are probably back in the city by now."

Turning towards the road ahead, he gave the mental command to resume the march, he waved at the trembling silver-haired boy to come along.

"One of them that helped the escape is an officer in the Guild. I'm positive that Scarlet is already there, waiting for her idiot of a brother. Come now, don't fall behind!"

Left with no option to argue, Drake groaned, as he ran after Aiden, hoping that her dear sister would be safe just as he was told…

---

"So, what now? Are we going to just sit here in silence and wait for that boy and my brother to come back? How would they even know where we are? How do you know they are safe?!"  Scarlet nervously yelled out. Just like her brother, neither could she sit still knowing that her brother is still inside enemy territory whilst she was sitting in a comfy chair in one of the Guild's Meeting Rooms.

After leading the slaves to a nearby village and introducing them to the village chief, the trio, or to be more precise the duo and that unconscious Naybeah hurried back to the city and rushed to the Adventurer's Guild where Sara led them to a spacious room used to meet with the important rabble of the city's society. 

The meeting room was incredibly spacious, with a large wooden table at the focus. Countless wooden chairs placed alongside it, a group of fifty would easily find their seating, without even filling up all the spots. 

In this large, upstairs room, Scarlet was walking back and forth, nervously, her senses honed on the closed wooden door. Next to her, laid down on the floor, the giant, blonde amazon was resting. After the Amazon Queen finally left, her body crumbled, her soul was under such pressure, that it wasn't clear when and more importantly if she will be able to come back at all… 

Sarah wasn't with them, she explained that she had to report on the events that transpired as soon as possible. The threat the city soon would have to face wasn't even close to the estimations the officials and even her mother had. It was much, much worse. 

So, after leaving her newly made friends in the room, she explained that she will be back with some food as soon as possible, before locking the door and making a beeline towards her office where she could contact her mother, the Masked Mistress.

Running through the halls, the purple-haired psychic leader of the Guild's Examiners hurried towards her office. Her face already hidden behind the hood ever since she got close to the city, she was just as mysterious, and an enigma as she had to be to keep her secrets safe. 

Her mission was a complex one, her true allegiance laid with the Masked Mistress, her mother, and ultimately not fully with the guild. The Adventurer's Guild was an international organization, with branches in almost every major city on the continent, while her focus was on working towards accomplishing her Mistress' goals wherever that would take her.

After all, she was her mother. Who would she be willing to serve than not her only family, even if their relationship was… special, to say the least.

With thoughts about how to best relay the information they have seen and the fact that she herself was unsure about that mysterious boy's current state plaguing her mind, she wasn't paying full attention as she rushed through the halls of the back office area.

Arriving at her office, without paying any mind to the tingling feeling at the back of her mind, she pushed on the door and sprung the door open, only to be met with an unexpected situation.

In her very own office, sitting in her own chair, the golden armored poster boy, the current de-facto leader of the local branch of the guild, the 'only' Tier 3 of Higrove, Sir Michaels was sitting with her legs resting atop her desk.

He grinned expectantly at the long-awaited arrival of the Lead Examiner. His lips curved into a mocking smirk as waved leisurely at the hooded stranger.

"Welcome back… I was waiting for you. Care to explain where have you been last night and what happened to your bald sidekick?"