"Honestly Orcbolg, like you would even need to ask your friends if they would accompany you on this adventure now let me see that gift you got from the Dog-faced Padfoots."
Goblin Slayer passed the drawing to High Elf Archer who eagerly looked over the picture, laughing at the image of Dwarf Shaman, but immediately frowned at the sight of the figure that represented her.
"I look more heroic than that."
"Oh I don't know, I imagine the picture looks pretty accurate to the real thing, especially the lack of chest."
"Shut up dwarf! At least I'm not some ball with stubby arms!"
Dwarf Shaman took the picture from High Elf Archer and looked over the picture of himself and smirked before passing it to Lizard Priest.
"True these little ones may be lacking in creation, but this is the first time I've received a thank you like this."
"Indeed, it was quite delightful to have those kids look upon us so fondly."
Lizard Priest smiled as he realized that in the hand of the drawing representing him was a round object missing a large chunk of it, clearly his precious cheese. With a nod of approval he then passed the picture over toward Priestess.
"Even Wolf looks pretty happy in the drawing."
"Speaking of which…"
The party rode by cart on their way toward Water Town, but this ride was a bit more cramped than the last few times due to the fact that Wolf was lying between them with his head poking out the back. Wolf happily panted as he took in the scenery before turning back toward the party members.
"Why is he in here? He's not exactly a small critter and this cart is rather crowded!"
The party leader finally spoke up as he looked toward Wolf then back toward the elf.
"It would be too long a way to make him walk."
"Shame on you Long-Ears, wanting our poor dire wolf to walk all the way there, and after he was so nice to give you a ride on our last quest."
High Elf Archer puffed out her cheeks as she starred daggers at the dwarf, but then she found her ears drooping as she locked eyes with Wolf then saw the tag hanging from around his neck.
xxxx
"What is this?"
Goblin Slayer curiously held the porcelain tag in his hand, then as he looked over the details read the name Wolf on it, he looked back to Guild Girl smiling brilliantly back at him.
"I spoke with the manager and explained Wolf's heroic feats on your last two quests, and it was decided that he could be now counted as an adventurer. Of course since he's beginning with us, he would need to start at the rank of porcelain."
"Is that so?"
"I'll of course need you to keep track of his progress as he will be unable to report to me directly."
Goblin Slayer was silent for a moment as he thought about what Guild Girl was saying, then responded with a nod of his head.
"Are you going to let the others know about this quest?"
"I will tell them, they can decide if they want to come or not."
xxxx
"Fine, I'm sorry Wolf."
The party laughed, save their silent leader, as they continued on drawing ever closer toward Water Town. Upon reaching the entrance to the large town, the party disembarked, the driver and horse eager to ride away from the large wolf. The people around town were at a loss for words at Goblin Slayer and his party continued toward the Temple of Law. From adventurers to the merchants, all were afraid if not curious to see a dire wolf walking with the party, for one thing this massive beast did not so much as growl at a single person. Once inside the Temple, the acolytes were surprised but nevertheless guided the party toward their meeting with Sword Maiden.
"Th, thank you for your prompt arrival, my lady will be delighted to see you again."
"I'm here to slay those goblins."
"Of course, but what about your large friend there?"
"He is a member of this party."
The others smiled at the sound of Goblin Slayer defending Wolf, in a short amount of time he had become a dear friend to the group and those that associated with him. Now the only thing left was to see what the Sword Maiden's reaction would be. The group continued to follow the acolyte until the came to the great worship hall and there kneeling by the shrine of the Supreme God was the robust figure of the Sword Maiden. The acolyte bowed as she excused herself to leave the party to discuss their quest in peace.
"Oh you're here."
Sword Maiden stood and turned to face the party, her sword and scales in hand with eyes hidden behind a black cloth, a smile crossed her face as she was able to make out his silhouette, but paused as she sensed an unfamiliar presence. Next to Goblin Slayer was a large dark shape with eyes that seemed to stare right through her, she was concerned as this shape drew near.
"And…who is this?"
She stretched out her hand toward the dark shadow and was surprised when her hand touched a wet snout. Suddenly this large creature licked her hand, the sudden action brought a slight blush to her face, then this creature slipped its head under her hand where she was able to pet its head and smiled at the touch of its soft fur. Her hand then touched the chain around his neck and as she moved her hand down then felt the tag, allowing her fingers to read the indentions.
"A Guild Tag…Wolf. Is he your familiar?"
"No, he is a dire wolf."
"A dire wolf?"
"Th, that's correct ma'am. We apologize for his behavior just now." Priestess bowed, still feeling intimidated before the Archbishop.
"A dire wolf…then is rumor I've been hearing…"
A slight frown crossed Sword Maiden's face as she recalled what had been told to her about the culprits attacking merchants and villagers in the nearby town. She had come to trust Goblin Slayer after his heroic exploits here in Water Town as well as the goblin attack at the Fall Festival and the rescue of Noble Fencer; she could not imagine him attacking people, especially with goblins.
"I slay goblins and Wolf has helped slay goblins with us."
"Begging your pardon, our companion Wolf has been us on our most recent quests." Lizard Priest brought his hands together with a slight bow of his head.
"Though it may seem unusual, he's a trustworthy animal." High Elf Archer smiled with eyes closed as she nodded her head in approval of her own comment.
"Not to mention this big fella here has a soft spot for women."
"Damnit Dwarf, what have I said about your lewd remarks!"
Sword Maiden looked toward Lizard Priest and the others and could sense their trust in this animal, who sat in front of her with head slightly turned. With a sigh and a smile, she reached out to pet the massive creature once again. She only needed to hear it straight from Goblin Slayer and the others to dissuade her suspicions.
"I'm relieved to hear that. I was skeptical that any of you could be responsible for such actions, and meeting this noble beast here has only strengthened my trust. He doesn't seem to be as hostile as one might think, what was his name again?"
"Wolf."
"A wolf named Wolf…at least it is easy to remember. Thank you again for answering my request."
"What are the details of the quest?"
"Goblin Slayer! What have I said about the way you speak with others?"
"The more pressing matter at hand is the goblins…particularly the thought that a human is controlling them."
"Then I can assume that you'll be taking on this quest?"
"The goblins and their master must be dealt with. What can you tell us?"
The party smiled before taking a seat on the floor as they listened to Sword Maiden explain all she knew about the rumors, Wolf lay off to the side with its head down as it napped peacefully.
"The attacks have been occurring sporadically for almost a month now. There is a large village some seven days travel from here called Mountain Pass with several smaller farms around it. It's notable for being in the shadow of a nearby mountain where a ruined and forgotten temple to the Earth Mother still remains."
"The Earth Mother…and her temple ruined?" Priestess grew concerned at the thought of such a thing happening.
"It was attacked long ago during the human and demon wars."
"That sounds like the perfect hiding place for these monsters, what do you think Beardcutter?"
"If I were a goblin, I would use it."
"It is believed to be cursed, many have gone to investigate it, but none have returned."
"It could be that our adversary is using this ploy to trick adventurers into entering the temple only to be dealt with."
"Then the real question is not whether or not he's hiding there, but why would goblins follow a human?" High Elf Archer mused as she placed both hands upon her cheeks.
"He could be a messenger of chaos like that Dark Elf or those hooded monks we dealt with in that ruined fortress." Dwarf Shaman added his own thoughts as he inquisitively stroked his beard.
"When we find him, we'll find the cause behind his goblin control." Goblin Slayer's emotionless voice replied then turned back toward the Sword Maiden. "What of the victims, have any women or livestock be taken?"
"That's the other unusual thing about this, in all of the attacks, there have been no women abducted. Most of the villagers are killed save two or three survivors who are sparred under order from this mysterious leader, the only thing taken is livestock for food."
The party was shocked by this bit of information, not a single woman abducted, only stealing livestock purposely sparring hostages, none of it made any sense. In all their experience over the last year, this behavior was highly unusual for goblins, and for Goblin Slayer this defied everything he had come to learn about the monsters.
"I don't like it. These actions they're taking are troubling. We'll need to investigate further.
xxxx
Night fell upon the small hamlet, six houses and a medium size barn, less than a day's travel from Mountain Pass, but none of that mattered as the houses burned and the cries of the people echoed in the night. The swarm of goblins set fire to the building and slaughtered the people and animals, all the while two figures watched over them.
The first was a tall man, wearing dirty, worn, brown leather armor save the tarnished metal chest plate with the mark of the wolf across it. His face hidden behind a black hood, only his ice-cold blue could be seen as they took in the sight around him. The second was a smaller, more ample frame, that of a woman in a black shroud, though her face was covered by a black cloth, but her amber eyes watched the flames consume the house while the wind blew through her blue hair. Her gaze was just as emotionless as his even as she saw a child being torn limb from limb in front of her.
"Bring the captives to the front!" It was a cold, deep voice that drew the goblins attention who sneered and nodded toward the male figure, he then turned toward his partner. "If nothing else, these brutes are good at what they do."
"They're monsters." Her reply was as cold as ice, she let her gaze wander and suddenly her eyes went wide at the sight to the left of her.
The hobgoblin had stopped carrying the pig carcass to look at her, drool ran from his lips as he took in her form and continued to stare at her. She was shaken by the look in his eyes, which caught the attention of her partner. He raised up his left hand, and the red gem upon the ring on his middle finger began to glow. There was a sudden spark that surrounded the hobgoblin's neck causing it to cry out in pain.
"Get back to work!"
The hobgoblin grunted as it angrily looked at the man, then resumed its work of loading up the cart with the animals. The female figure breathed a sigh of relief, when she felt a strong hand on her left shoulder, she looked up to see the male figure pull her close to him.
"I would never let him or any of these beasts hurt you."
"Thank you…they should all be killed."
"That is why Scar is here."
They both heard the low growl of a creature behind them, they turned to see the wolfish creature approach them, snarling angrily. Its filthy brown fur covered with visible scars, its yellow eyes locked onto the human male as it drew closer, saliva dripping from its large fangs. This creature was much larger than a normal wolf, at first glance one might mistake the beast for a dire wolf but this creature looked like a diseased animal than a wolf. If the dire wolf could be considered a neutral prayer, neither good nor bad, then the warg was chaotic evil. As the warg drew closer, the human male moved his hand toward his right side and gripped the black leather whip by its handle. The warg saw this and stopped, it growled once more before lying on its stomach, still growling but much softer than before.
"Good boy Scar…know your place."
The human male looked back at the ruined farmstead and saw the goblins bring forward seven people, each bound at the wrists and was forced to kneel before the two figures. The human male stepped forward and drew out his long jagged sword and laughed beneath his mask. The surviving people were terrified, wondering what fate awaited them, surely this human would not leave them in the hands of the goblins.
"You will not die tonight…at least not all of you. Rest assured I will not leave you to the goblin's twisted plans."
He took a couple steps toward the first three people, a husband, a wife and their son, he casually pointed his sword at each person before returning the blade to the husband.
"Tell me, who should I kill? You're wife or your son?"
"Wha…what?"
"Decide now, who should I kill?"
The husband could not fathom such a decision, he could not choose either his wife or son, so he came to the only logical decision.
"Me…kill me!"
"I see."
The human male swung his sword to his left decapitating the wife then swung once more toward his right and decapitated the son. The husband screamed as the heads hit the ground before the bodies slumped over, their blood splashing onto his clothing.
"That was not one of the choices."
The goblins laughed and danced as the human male then approached the next family. The four of them trembled in fear, the husband, wife, son and daughter, tears streaming down their faces. Once again, the human male pointed his sword at the husband.
"Same question…who should I kill?"
"We've done nothing to you…why are you doing this?"
The human male was silent for a moment, his blue eyes watched them with the same gaze one would use when looking at a bug, until he finally replied.
"Because I can…now who shall I kill?"
If the husband made the same decision, he would lose everyone, he had to decide, lose one and save the others, it was a painful choice but he knew what he had to do.
"My son…kill him!"
"Father no!"
"What are you doing, that's our child?"
"I'm so sorry, please forgive me!"
"Then the decision has been made."
The human male raised his sword high, but then turned toward the younger daughter and brought it crashing down splitting her chest open. The family screamed as their daughter collapsed dead on the floor; the husband begging for forgiveness while his wife and son blamed him for what happened.
"Live with the decision you made." The human male gave his sword a quick shake, to fling the blood off, before sheathing it. "When you are able to free yourselves, go to the Mountain Pass and tell them the Beast Master will lay claim to this region!"