The Lord’s Raids

Seth ORLETH

After stripping the corpses of those hideous creatures for their essence stones, the crew gathered them in the middle of the clearing. They piled the bodies on top of wood and dry leaves scattered across the forest floor.

The hardest part was stacking the corpses. Limbs and organs would fall off when they tried to move the bodies, and the drying pools of blood made the air thick with a putrid stench.

"This is disgusting!" Seth complained, lifting his foot out of a small puddle of congealed blood.

"I can't wait to learn how to fight, so I can say goodbye to the cleaning crew for good."

"Quit whining, boss. If you wanted to fight so badly, you should've started by building up some muscle!" one of his comrades teased.

"Get back to work, or I'll make sure your name ends up in my report," Seth growled.

The young man quickly shut up and scurried off.

Seth sighed. "Ahh… power is everything."

Seth had been made leader of the cleaning crew by Cliff himself. Apparently, Cliff found him reliable. Since it was his master's decision, Seth couldn't refuse, fearing he'd go against his master's wishes.

What Seth didn't know was that Cliff wouldn't have cared if he refused. In fact, the only reason Cliff had picked him was because he often noticed Seth lingering around him.

Seth made his way to the center of the clearing, where the bodies were stacked. The pile had grown to tower over him.

He pinched his nose to avoid inhaling the foul stench that filled the air.

"Three hundred and fifty-seven," a voice suddenly called out from behind him.

"Huh?" Seth spun around, confused.

A young woman approached—an elf with long, flowing blonde hair, gently swaying in the cold breeze that signaled the end of dusk.

"That's the one I saw at the clan," Seth thought.

"Three hundred and fifty-eight if you count the goblin lord Sir Cliff killed outside the clearing," she continued, her blue eyes scanning the pile of bodies.

"That many?"

The elf picked up a long wooden rod, closed her eyes, and the tip of the rod ignited with fire. The way elves used magic was still a mystery to the other clans. Their unwillingness to share their secrets only fueled tension between them.

She smirked and handed the rod to Seth.

He sighed deeply. "So, this is my job too, huh?"

Taking the rod from her, Seth stepped closer to the pile of corpses and set it ablaze.

The fire quickly spread, fueled by the dry leaves, and the smell of burning flesh soon filled the clearing.

Seth took a few steps back to stand next to the elf, clearing his throat.

"You're right."

"I'm right?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Three hundred and fifty-eight goblins, all going up in smoke."