Chapter 6 Chapter 5 First Encounter

Cadderly sat in the dim light of the dying campfire, a row of vials on the ground in front of him, parallel to another row of empty crossbow arrows.One by one, he carefully poured a few drops of liquid from the container Zirkan Rufo handed him into the bottle. "What's he doing?" Alberez asked Rufo as they stood together on the edge of the fire. "Arrows for crossbows," the tall man replied.His face seemed more bony, even less human in the flickering shadows.Abereth inspected the small weapon lying on the ground beside Cadderly, and the expression on the elf's face was anything but approving.

"That's a dark elf trick." He spat the words contemptuously, loud enough for Cadderly to hear.Cadderly looked up, knowing the elven prince would start questioning him. "Are you associated with the dark elves?" Aberes asked bluntly. "I've never seen one," Cadderly replied simply, thinking—but not saying—that if Abereth's arrogance was already a good thing for the Elven Kingdom, he would not want to see it at all. The bad side! "How did you get this crossbow?" Aberes demanded, as if just looking for a reason to start an argument with Cadderly. "And why would you want to carry a weapon made by an evil race?"

Cadderly picked up the crossbow, somehow comforting that it had caused Abereth some discomfort.He knew that Abereth was only motivating him now out of a sense of frustration, and he certainly sympathized with the elf's concern for Simista.However, Cadderly also had his own concerns, and was not in the mood to accept Abereth's continued provocation. "Actually, the dwarves did it for me," he corrected. "Almost bad," the elf muttered without hesitation. Cadderly's gray eyes were not as striking as Abereth's silver pupils, but his glare was no worse than the elf's.Of course, if it was a fight with weapons, Abereth could have easily killed him, but if the elf prince did more insults to Ivan and Pikel, Cadderly was more than willing to give him a blow with his fists. A good fight.Cadderly was good in hand-to-hand combat, for he had grown up among priests of the Order of Oghma, and their formal rites included unarmed combat.Although Abereth was about the same height as the six-foot scholar, Cadderly figured he was at least seventy pounds heavier than the lanky elf.

Apparently he knew that he had pushed the young scholar to the brink of a fight, so Aberes didn't continue speaking immediately, but his silver eyes still didn't blink. "The surrounding area is fine," Danica said when she returned to camp.She looked at Aberes, then at Cadderly, and noticed obvious tension. "What's wrong?" Abereth turned to her, smiling warmly, which made Cadderly more uncomfortable than his uncompromising stare. "Just discussing the crossbow, nothing else," Aberez assured Danica. "I don't understand the value—or respect for it—of such a small weapon."

Danica gave Cadderly a sympathetic look.If anything in the world was the young scholar's weakness, it was the crossbow, and the memories it inevitably evoked.Surprisingly, Cadderly became agitated by these memories. "I killed a man with this!" he growled dangerously.Danica's expression turned to horror, and Cadderly realized how stupid his declaration was.How ridiculous and disgusting to brag about it!He knew he had given up on the elf, and Abereth could easily beat him in the argument, since Cadderly could not find any courage to back up his bravado. But the elf looked to Cadderly, then to Danica, and chose not to continue the discussion. "It's my turn to stand guard," he said simply, before disappearing into the darkness.

Cadderly looked at Danica, shrugging apologetically.The young woman just sat down across from the fire, wrapped herself in a thick blanket, and lay down to sleep. Cadderly looked at the crossbow, feeling that it had betrayed him again.He wished he had put more effort into studying combat techniques in the library, so maybe he wouldn't have to carry this unusual weapon.But while the other priests practiced with maces, staves, or clubs, Cadderly concentrated on his spindle frisbee—two equal-sized frisbees attached to a wooden bar with With a string--a useful weapon in knockout minigames and an ideal toy when pulling off some mind-blowing tricks, but it's no match for a real sword.

Cadderly's hand reached involuntarily for the frisbee wrapped around his waist.He had used it in several fights, and had used it to take down Zirkan Rufo when he was chasing him with a knife while he was affected by the Chaos Curse.But even against Rufo's little knife, Cadderly won only because his opponent was distracted.It was a lucky toss that saved him. Cadderly also eyed his staff, which had a carved ram's head handle and a shaft that was well chiseled inside.It's an expensive item, but well worth it.Cadderly also used it in battle.Danica had told him that this little stick—she called it a staff—was a favorite weapon of many monks in her mother's hometown of Tabor.Cadderly was less likely to use it.He can spin it quickly, use it to stab, or even use it to parry some common attacks, but he doesn't want to run to test his weight, such as against a well-trained fighter like Abeles, or other monsters.

Giving up thinking about it any further, the young scholar filled another vial and carefully inserted it into the recess of an arrowhead.He slid the loaded point into a buckle on the belt, and he made twelve of them. At least in the first few fights, Cadderly might have matched Abereth's performance.The young scholar discovered with disgust that this fact was important to him, but he could not deny that it was. The eastern edge of Simista is not far from the Moezhi Library, and even beyond several treacherous ridges, the traveler will see the forest from the next day onwards.Simista, however, was a long forest, one hundred and fifty leagues from north to south, and Abereth hoped to get out of the mountains near the center of the forest, where the Elves had first settled.

Over several days, the little group walked up and down, around high peaks, and through steep valleys.Even in the mountains, summer continues, the air is warm and the sky is blue.Every time he turned a ridge, he could see a new and magnificent view, but after walking for several days, even the mountain scenery became a bit monotonous for Cadderly. Often during these silent moments, Cadderly would pull the Tome of Universal Harmony from his saddle bag.He hasn't started reading it yet, though, because he's too upset by the trials that lie ahead, and by what's going on between Albereth and Danica—the two get along very well, talking Tales of places Cadderly had never been—so much so that he couldn't concentrate on reading them.

On the fifth day, they finally reached the western ridge.Looking down, one could see the shadowy canopy of Simista's trees, a peaceful and quiet veil over the growing commotion beneath the massive trees. "That's my home," Abereth exclaimed to Danica. "There is no place in the world as beautiful as Simista." Cadderly wanted to taunt him coldly.This young scholar had read a lot of books about fantasy lands and magical lands, and according to various rumors, although Simista was a forest suitable for elves to live in, it was by no means the most special.However, Cadderly had the foresight to know how pathetic it would sound if he made such a statement, and he had enough common sense to judge that doing so would provoke an angry reaction from Abereth.So he wisely kept those thoughts to himself, planning to point out Simista's flaws to Danica later.

Although the road became more obvious and level enough to gallop, the steep inclines and winding turns forced the small group to continue walking on lead.As they came to the lower foothills, the stony mountains turned into sandy land, and here they found that walking with their mounts turned out to be a lucky choice, Above, Abeles would not notice the footprints on the ground. He bent down to examine, and then remained silent for a long time. Cadderly and the others could guess the source of these footprints from the solemn expression on the elf's face. "Goblin?" Danica asked finally. "Some maybe," replied Abereth, looking back to his cherished forest, "but most of the footprints are too big for goblins." The elf drew out his longbow, and swung his love The reins of the horse were handed to Zilkhan Rufo, who then motioned for Danica to hand over the mount to Cadderly. The young scholar didn't expect to play the role of squire, but that couldn't be argued, since it was important to have both Danica and Abereth's hands free for any sudden attack. Abereth walked in the front, pausing frequently to inspect new tracks, while Danica stayed at the back of the four, observing all directions. They returned to the treeline and became more careful, because there were shadows all around, in which the monsters could hide and pounce.For a good hour they moved in and out of the shadows, walking briefly in the thick shade of a tree, but suddenly exposed to bright sunlight when their tracks crossed large rocks. Taimerisa suddenly moved nervously, and countless bells on her body rang.Aberes immediately entered the guard position, crouched down low, and observed the surroundings.He crossed the path on the ground and hid in a pile of messy pebbles, staring at the hillside below. Danica and Cadderly joined him at once, but Rufo stayed behind with the horse, seemingly ready to jump on his suit and run away at any moment. "Underneath, the path turns around and back," the elf explained in a low voice.His observation made sense to both Cadderly and Danica, since the trees and undergrowth below them were not dense, and the winding road was well visible.Abeles seemed to pay particular attention to a huge maple tree, its thick foliage jutting out over the road. "There!" Danica whispered, pointing to the same tree, "on the lowest foliage above the road." Abereth nodded gravely, and Danica whistled softly. Cadderly looked at them in bewilderment.He stared at the tree just as hard, but saw nothing but thick, overlapping branches. "The branches bend under their weight," Aberez said. "Whose weight?" Cadderly had to ask.Abereth frowned, but Danica sympathized with Cadderly, pointing out what she saw until Cadderly finally recognized it and nodded.Several shadowy figures crouched together on the lowest branches above the road. "Orcs?" Danica asked. "Too big for an orc," Abereth reasoned, "for an orc." Danica's slender features wrinkled in confusion. "Ulks are kind of orcs," Cadderly interjected, explaining before the elves.Ulks were not common monsters, but ones Cadderly had read about in many books. "Larger and stronger than their pig-faced cousins, they are said to have descended from—" "What do you think they're waiting for?" Danica interrupted Cadderly, lest he act like a complete idiot. "We," said Aberes gloomily, "they heard our hooves, and perhaps saw us on the path in the higher clearing." "Is there another way around?" Cadderly knew the question sounded ridiculous, even though he asked it anyway.Danica, let alone Abereth, had no intention of getting around these monsters. Abeles surveyed the area directly in front of his position. "If you keep walking down the trail while I sneak down the hill," he reasoned, "I might be able to shoot a few of them with a bow." The elven prince nodded affirmatively at his plan. "Come on, then," he said, "we must get the horses moving again before the Uruk gets suspicious." Danica turned and started walking towards Rufo, but suddenly Cadderly had an idea. "Let me go." A smile spread across his face. Aberes looked at him suspiciously, and became more suspicious when Cadderly drew out the small crossbow. "Do you believe you can do them more damage with that thing than I can with a bow?" the elf prince asked. "Wouldn't you rather fight them on the ground?" Cadderly replied, grinning at Danica.Aberes also looked at the woman, who nodded and smiled.She trusted Cadderly, and knew that it was important to the young scholar to be part of this battle. "Go down the path," Cadderly told them. "I'll meet you at the tree." Still unconvinced, Abereth turned to examine the young scholar. "Your hat and cloak," said the elf, holding out his hand. Cadderly's hesitation showed his confusion. "Blue doesn't belong in the forest," Aberes explained. "It stands out like a torch in the dark. We're lucky if the orcs haven't spotted you yet." "They don't," Danica insisted, because she knew Abereth's last words were meant to belittle Cadderly. The scholar took off his short cloak and handed it to Aberes along with his hat. "I'll meet you under the tree," he said finally, trying to sound confident. His firm jaw dropped as soon as the others were out of his sight.What the hell had he gotten himself into?Even if he didn't break his neck, make a noise that the Urks all over Snowflake could hear, and get down to the bottom of the steep slope, what would he do if they noticed him?And even if there was only one opponent, how could Cadderly fight back? He shook his head, put aside his pessimistic thoughts, and started to walk down.He believed that was the only way he could find respect in Danica's almond-shaped eyes.He staggered, kicked things with his toes several times, dropped several stones and rolled down the hillside, and finally reached the level of the big maple tree, and the monsters who were lying in wait for a surprise attack obviously didn't see him.He crawled into the gap between two sharp rocks not far from the path, and could now clearly see the orcs.There were about a dozen of them in all, lying shoulder to shoulder on the lower branches, carrying nets, spears, and crude swords in their hands.It wasn't hard for Cadderly to see their strategy. The monsters fell silent.Cadderly feared at first that he had been found, but he soon learned that the orcs had been watching where the path was.He knew his friend would arrive soon. He loaded the arrows of the crossbow, moving the bow handle slowly and smoothly, carefully so as not to make any noise.Then he aimed the weapon - but where?He might be able to knock an orc out of a tree, and if he aimed well or was lucky, he might be able to kill it.His earlier bragging seemed foolish now, for the danger was at hand and all the responsibility lay on his shoulders. He had to carry out his original plan, because both Alberez and Danica depended on him to bring the monster down the tree.He aimed at one place, not on any monster, but at the place where the thick branches connected to the trunk.Not that difficult with the precision of a crossbow, but is the explosion powerful enough?Cadderly pulled out another dart, just in case. The orcs moved nervously, and Cadderly could hear footsteps intermittently along the path. "May God Denir be with me," the young scholar whispered, and he pulled the trigger of his crossbow.The arrow flew out, sank into the branch, shattered the vial, and the ensuing explosion shook the tree violently.The orcs clung to the branches—one fell—and Cadderly breathed a sigh of relief when he heard a loud snap.The young scholar made another shot. Branches are broken.A Uruk screamed as its foot caught in the jagged slit, and the skin on the side of the leg was ripped off as it fell. Danica and Abereth were within thirty feet of the tree when the orcs fell.Abeles glanced at the young woman next to him worriedly, because only one of these monsters seemed to be injured, and the others were still well armed. "There's only ten of them!" Danica yelled, reaching for a crystal-bladed shortsword from a boot sheath.Laughing wildly, she rode forward, and Temeresa, carrying the elf, charged forward from behind. Danica charged ferociously and quickly at the three nearest monsters.Just moments before she reached them, she rolled off the horse's side, grabbed the saddle girth with one hand, and flung herself under the horse, between its legs.The horses rushed past the stunned orcs, all of whom had miscalculated Danica's position. Danica fell to the ground and continued to run, using momentum to jump up and spin around, and a sweep kick hit the neck of the nearest Uruk, causing it to fly away with a broken neck. As soon as she stood firm, she flicked her wrist and shot out the dagger.The dagger spun out flat, like a flash of light in the scorching sun, and then the whole blade pierced the face of the second Uruk. A third monster threw his spear and drew a crude sword.It had good aim, but Danica was faster, and a weapon of this magnitude couldn't hurt her at all.She took a step to the side, parrying the spear with a forearm. The orc charged her indifferently, and Danica almost laughed because she knew she must look nothing to the six-and-a-half-foot, two-hundred-pound monster. No resistance.Slender and graceful, she was not more than five feet tall, with fluffy hair flying over her shoulders, and eyes that, to the unaware, might only have a childish, innocent gleam. Blood quickly replaced the saliva, dripping from the corner of the orc's hungry mouth, and it stepped forward, trying to grab Danica with its free hand, and she slammed it with the lightning that knocked out two of its front teeth. A quick swipe blocked it.Danica jumped back, heel-bound, satisfied with how the fight had started.In just a few seconds, two monsters were already dead, or dying, while a third stood there shaking, trying to shake off the star that appeared in front of him. Abereth's dash attack is more direct and merciless.He shot an arrow and hit one of the monsters in the shoulder, then he drew his sword and put his other hand through the strap of his shield.Trusting his well-trained steed, the elf charged straight into the archenemy.His magic sword blazed like a blue flame as he slashed through hordes of monsters.He was hit a few times by the monster's crude weapons, but his fine shield and better armor rendered these attacks ineffective. Abereth's thrusts were even more deadly, and these unarmored orcs couldn't resist his attacks at all.The orc closest to him, the one who had been shot in the shoulder, threw his spear in exchange for a slash from Aberes that knocked his head off, swallowing a fatal lesson. The steed Taimerisan stands upright, in perfect balance and harmony with its owner.An orc slipped up behind the shining white steed, spear raised high, ready to throw Abereth in the back.Taimeresa kicked out with both hind feet, and caught the orc in the chest, sending it flying several yards away.The crippled monster collapsed to the ground, trying in vain to draw some last breaths from its shattered lungs. Abeles should have been certain to win by now, since there were only two monsters left (and one of them was barely standing, leaning against a tree with a torn foot) .But when the branch snapped, one Uruk grabbed the tree, holding a net in the other hand.The monster swung towards a higher branch, jumped down at the right time, and landed right on the back of the slender elf, pinning Aberes to the ground and trapping him with a net. A swift, concealed swing of the sword made Danica leap, her head thrown back.She knew a monster as powerful as an orc was not to be taken lightly, but she found herself starting to get distracted because, on the other side, Abereth was down, and Zirkan Rufo hadn't joined the fight yet.To make the young woman even more nervous, two orcs ran towards Cadderly. Another slash nearly sent Danica onto her stomach, while a third sent her rolling to the side.The orc increased his confidence and continued to press forward. It swung the sword again, but this time Danica charged forward instead of retreating.She grabbed the orc's sword hand with her hand and approached it.She grabbed its outstretched arm violently with her free hand, and heard the snap of its elbow.Danica fiercely didn't give the monster time to cry out in pain, while tightly holding the hand holding the sword, she quickly withdrew the other hand, out of the monster's arm, and then raised her elbow Throw it out, hitting the monster's nose hard. Danica pulled her elbow back to her side, then slammed out with a backhand and managed to land another solid hit.After retracting her arm, she still didn't give the monster any time to react, and slashed at the monster's throat with the hand knife. She ducked her head over the monster's arm she was grasping, almost turning the muscular arm half a circle in doing so, and turned her head to face it. The orc tried feebly to grab her, but Danica ignored the innocence.She kicked quickly, within arm's reach of the Uruk, thumping the monster's cheek, then kicked again, and again, three times in a row. "Cadderly!" gasped the monk, looking down the path as two escaped monsters approached her beloved. When an orc pressed against him, Cadderly acted on instinct, not distracted by the possible moral consequences.When it noticed that he was hiding among the stones, it deliberately changed its course. An explosive attack abruptly stopped its rushing momentum. The monster's howl of surprise turned into a wheeze as the point of the arrow made a hole in one of its lungs.The monster pushed on stubbornly, and Cadderly fired another arrow at it, this time hitting it in the stomach. The orc collapsed on his knees, howling in pain. "Die! God damn you," Cadderly could not help moaning as it straightened up and moved forward again.This time his strike knocked off the top half of the orc's head. Cadderly was barely out of breath, and when he looked up to see the second Uruk already on top of him, his intense distaste turned to outright horror.It straddled the rock and swung its massive sword, trying to split Cadderly in two.The young scholar knew there was no time to fire another arrow, so he grabbed his staff and threw it at the monster. The orc shrugged his staff away, his face scrunched up in confusion, but Cadderly wasn't doing it for nothing.At this critical second, the orc's attention was distracted, and Cadderly turned and rolled on his back, looking up at the orc's back.He curled up into a ball, hooked his shin behind the Uruk's knee, then straightened and pulled as hard as he could. For a while, nothing happened, and Cadderly thought he must look ridiculous, as if he were yanking something immobile.Then the orc did fall forward, but not hard or injured.Cadderly crawled forward onto the orc's back, then hooked one arm around the orc's thick neck, pulling back as hard as he could. The monster didn't matter at all, for it stood up with Cadderly on its back.It looked around nonchalantly, looking for the sword it had dropped when it fell, and walked towards it when it saw it. Cadderly knew that the monster could easily thrust the sword back, right into his frail body.In extreme panic, the young scholar considered letting go and running for cover, but he knew he wouldn't be able to get out of the monster's range in time. "Fall down, goddamn you!" Cadderly snarled, gathering and twisting his arms. To Cadderly's surprise, the orc let go and let the sword fall to the ground.As if sensing the constriction around its neck for the first time, it raised its thick hands to grab Cadderly's arms.But at that time, its hand had almost no strength left. Cadderly squeezed his eyes shut and held on desperately, still strangling with all his strength. Finally, the orc fell face down. The last Uruk was by the tree, unable to put its right foot on the ground.It wanted to fight alongside two companions—one on top of the netted elf, the other wielding a sword viciously, looking for a moment to fight—but the monster scrambled every time its toes snapped. He flinched as he approached the ground.It looked up and saw the muscles on its feet hanging strangely from the gaps in the broken branches. Cursing his own doom, ignoring the burning pain, the stubborn monster hopped off the maple's massive trunk on its good foot. Right in front of Zirkan Rufo. Rufo, riding one horse and leading the other, came at a menacing charge—albeit a little slower.The lean man had no intention of trampling the Uruk with his horse—he purposely placed the empty horse on the side closer to the tree—but the Uruk's unexpected movement put it between two horses. Among the horses. The monster was entangled under the horse's hooves in the worst possible way, and was trampled several times, but when the horse ran away, it was still alive, lying helpless on its back.Its back was broken, so it could only stare at the torn flesh hanging there. The unmanned horse passed the broken branch without any problems, but Rufo's horse stumbled forward when it tripped over the Uruk on the ground, throwing the thin man far away and rolling on the ground. Several laps.Rufo spat the dirt out of his mouth, rolled over, and sat up looking out at the battlefield.His attack was of great help to Abereth, for of the three orcs who went to attack the elf, one fell while the other ran away from the fight. But for poor Rufo, this is not something to be happy about, because the orc ran away only because he found another better target to attack-Rufo.It sprinted down the path, its huge sword swinging in the air, its tongue dangling hungrily between its yellow shattered teeth. Rufo sees Danica react on the other side.With a quick kick, she jerked her opponent's head back and threw the monster away.She hesitated, glancing at Abereth, but apparently decided the elf could handle her situation, and she went after the orc who had approached Rufo. Aberes twisted his body and turned to face the burly orc.He reached to his waistband and used his other arm to stop the monster's snapping jaws from gnawing on his face. Three quick snaps of Abereth's arm, and three times the orc groaned.By the fourth time, Abeles clamped his hands against the monster and began pulling his wrists back and forth. The monster rolled away from the elf's slender shortsword and fell hard to the road, trying to hold its entrails within its severed belly. With one swift movement, the swift elf shook off the rough net and stood up.Merciless and grave, he thrust his short sword swiftly into the squirming Uruk's legs, preventing it from fleeing as he retrieved the longsword. Danica was moving very fast, the fastest Rufo had ever seen, but the orc was too far ahead.Reluctantly, the lean man pulled the mace from his belt and tried to stand up.He was even worse at using weapons than Cadderly, so there was no way to expect him to last long.To make matters worse, Rufo sprained his ankle during the fall, unable to support his weight, and ended up falling back to sit on the ground.The orc was almost on top of him, and he knew he was going to die. The Uruk's head suddenly tilted to one side, and then half of its face was blown off, blood and gore splattered all over Rufo's and the rushing Danica's head. Rufo and Danica looked at each other for a while, then turned their heads to look aside together, and saw Cadderly standing among the stones, crossbow in hand, a terrified expression on his face.