Twas late afternoon in the bustling capital city of the kingdom of Red Leaf. Shops and inns were closed and citizens were dispersed on the roadways of the vast metropolis, strolling lazily and groggily, after the fury of the day’s work and the heat of the afternoon, which was harshest while the sun shone directly overhead.
The streets of the quiet capital shone with the warm orange lights of the setting sun. Between the cobblestone-paved road and the white walls of the shops and inns, the streets commonly shined a bright orange, as the dying sun’s rays under the shadow of the midday heat penetrated through the glass windows of the buildings. The streets were quiet, as there was no one about. Only occasionally would there appear a person, leaving one building and enter another, or newly arrived carriages taking patrons to nearby inns, or footmen stumbling out of pubs after midnight. However, now the streets were completely devoid of occupants.There was nothing present on the streets except two goblins and a lizard man, and an empty carriage.
One of the goblins had a distinctively long, drooping mustache. He carried a torc with what seemed to be a living snake-like creature inside. The other goblin was an elderly male, with a tired face and bent back. He had a big scythe in his hands, ready to catch and cut whatever the long-mustached goblin catches.
The lizard man was a tall, muscular humanoid lizard, with a bronze helm and a bronze breastplate, and two gold strips running down his spine. In his right hand was a shield, which looked to be a bronze shield of some kind, painted sky blue. The shield was covered in intricate designs that looked like clouds. The lizard man’s left hand was on the wooden pole of a blue banner that he bore. There was an oval-shaped badge, also painted blue, on which a golden sun stood. The lizard man’s eyes were deep blue, while below his eyes ran a par of tribal tattoos that coiled down from the bottom of his eyes.
Lizard man’s name was Long Wind, while the long-mustached one’s was Green Fire. The donkey-carrying one’s name was White Snow. All three are members of a special squadron of knights, who are the kingdom’s strongest and most honorable fighters. The squadron, known as the Long Wind Knights of Red Leaf, are dedicated to the defense of the kingdom and have a reputation as the most powerful knights in the entire kingdom of Red Leaf.
“It’s a lizard!” Green Fire exclaimed. “What’s a lizard doing here?”
“That’s a lizard man,” the long-mustached goblin corrected. “Lizard men are evil, treacherous creatures, and good lizard people serve the Lizard King. Why are you guys troubling him? He’s just travelling.”
“This ain’t some common lizard man. He’s got a coat of armor there, and he’s carrying around a spear as if he’s a champion of some kind. You’re telling me they’re good lizard people?”
“No, but the enemy’s guerrillas can’t be easily put off,” said the long-mustached goblin, shaking his head. “Let’s just leave him alone.”
“I can’t. It’s not just the guerrillas. There are loads of monsters in the forest. You sure they’re all so righteous?”
“They’ll be protected by their god of the forest. I think those are the weak ones at the front. As long as we take care of the strong ones, they won’t be too much of a problem.”
“But what about that one over there? I saw that coat of armor lying on the ground, but that lizard man just picked it up and started riding the carriage.”
“I didn’t even see him pick up the armor,” the long-mustached goblin said. “Anyway, as long as we can get through the forest and reach the right side, the others will be able to catch up soon. I can’t let you guys go and bother them. Just as you said, it would be too dangerous. We can’t act rashly during this kind of situation.”
“That’s right, we don’t even know the people that are the monsters and lizards from the forest. They’re not mere common monsters and lizards; they’re damned god-defying heros or something. We met some in the forest before, and they didn’t even give us a hard time.”
“Don’t just rely on your own eyes. What’s your problem, anyway?”
“Well, even if it’s only common monsters, I just can’t let those lizard people run away. I can’t accept it. Don’t ask me why.”
“You’re not going to stop this,” the long-mustached goblin sighed. “Let’s go. We can’t let that lizard monster escape with the carriage. It’s too suspicious.”
The goblin in the lead tapped the lizard man with his snake-like torc, and the lizard man suddenly jumped. He had been so deep in thought that he didn’t even notice the goblin tap him.
“I don’t think they’re capturing anyone,” the lizard man said in his lizard dialect. “Then I have a question. Is it alright if I follow their carriages in my carriage?”
“AHH!” the goblin exclaimed, stunned. He then pulled out a long dagger from his belt and threatened the lizard man. “You’re not allowed to. The orders are very clear. Only humans with carriages are allowed to travel on the rutted roads. Once we’re in the forests, the rules change. We need to be careful to avoid getting raided or killed by the guerrillas. We can’t even enter the forests or we might be taken by guerrillas.”
“I know that, but I really don’t have any problem with that,” the lizard man said with a casual look on his face. “I just want to follow in their carriages and see how far it is to the other side of the forest. I have to know how I can move the bugs and beasts in the forest.”
“That’s not possible.”
“Then let’s tangle somewhere out of sight. Everyone sees the city, so running off won’t be safe.”
“All right, just hold on.”
While the two goblins and the lizard man were arguing, the carriage slowly slipped behind a fence. The goblin raised his voice and asked, “What was that?”
“You don’t see anything? It’s this lizard’s carriage.”
“I know that. I wasn’t saying that your carriage is in the way, Green Fire.”
“Just as I thought.”
The lizard man smiled from atop his vehicle, and washed the dirt off his face. The long-mustached goblin nodded in agreement and held out his snake-shaped torc.
“Quick, give me your hand.”
“Why should I?”
“You’re not going to do it?”
“No. We’re in a forest ain’t we? It’s dangerous here. If it’s me’n you go there, there’s a good chance we’ll lose our way and perish.”
“You’re right. It’d be a good thing if we stuck together in this forest.”
“I didn’t say that I want to stick with you after we leave this forest.”
The goblin and the lizard man started bickering when a loud roar shattered the quiet of the capital city. Right at that moment, a dragon in the sky swooped down and lifted the carriage with a tremendous wind. The carriage was lifted amidst a swirl of dust, and flew into the sky.
The two goblins turned their heads to see that the lizard man’s carriage was gone. The lizard man was standing on top of one of the carriages, holding the pole of the banner close to his chest.
The goblin took out his trump card and goaded the lizard man from the other side.
“What’re you doing, lizard man? You don’t have a carriage anymore, so just head back.”
“I’m leaving with them. I don’t have anything to do with your goblins.”
“Who’s leading those carriages right now?”
“That dragon is flying around in the sky,” the lizard man said, pointing toward the dragon. “I think it’s looking for an entry point into the city.”
“Don’t lie to me. If you can’t make it work, why don’t you just return to the Lizard King?”
“I already told you, it has to do with the war. We’re relying on each other. If I leave this useless war, they’ll kill me.”
“You’re making me angry, lizard man.”
The goblin raised his pickaxe and pointed it at the lizard man’s neck. The lizard man said, “Any more and I’ll just leave you.”
“I won’t believe you.”
“I can’t say anything else.”
“You can’t get away with that. Just turn back.”
“It’s not safe here. We can’t be strong if we stay here.”
“I’ll just cut it down if you don’t give up right now.”
“I’ll tell the Lizard King the bad news, and he’ll be pleased.”
“Then tell him that the enemy is attacking from there, and we’re retreating.”
“There’s no place where I can inform them and return at the same time. Hurry. You’ve wasted enough of your time.”
“If that’s the case, I’ll have to work harder to torture you to death.”
The lizard man grinned as he climbed into the carriage. The long-mustached goblin pulled out a dagger from underneath his armor, and threw it at the lizard man.
“I can’t let you die just like that.”
“Bang!”
The dagger hit the lizard man’s right arm. The lizard man screamed, but didn’t stop the carriages. The long-mustached goblin licked his lips and looked at the lizard man.
“Come on, hurry up and return.”
The goblin shouted furiously at the lizard man, scratching at the ground. Seeing the attitude of the goblin, the lizard man raised his hand and cast a magic attack that was strong enough to knock the goblin to the ground.
“Ugh!”
“Uuuuu!”
“There won’t be any hints of the war for our puppet to attack, you know. We’re the ones who have to take the full blame when war breaks out.”
“You won’t get away with only that, you know.”
“I’ll send you back alive.”
“You’ll never be able to prove that.”
“I have an idea.”
The long-mustached goblin showed a serious look on his face as he took out a dagger and pointed it toward the lizard man. A thin, venomous thread pierced the lizard man’s back. The lizard man shrieked in pain.
“That’s it. Follow me.”
“Ugh!”
The lizard man was kicked in the stomach by the goblin and flew out of the carriage. He fell from rather high and slammed into the ground.
“You’re not in my range anymore.”
“What? Don’t make me laugh. Your range wasn’t even half the city.”
The goblin put his head in his hand and thought about it for less than a second. The long-mustached goblin grabbed the torc that was hanging around his neck, and then yanked it away.