novelraw Chapter 124: The Behemoth
Chapter 124: The Behemoth
The night's torrential rain flowed like melted black oil over the sentry post, washing against the metal-reinforced tower and gathering into muddy streams in the grooves. The gnoll knight stood drenched, a half-eaten pickled lizard tail dangling from its mouth as its yellowish-brown pupils contracted into thin slits.
Its hyena mount, Ironfang, scratched behind its ears with a hind leg, causing the chain-woven saddle to rattle with each movement. "Something seems to be approaching," the kobold sentry atop the watchtower said uncertainly while peering into the distance.
"I'll bet a white crystal coin that your broken telescope just spotted another ground lizard you mistook for an enemy attack," the gnoll knight kicked the ogre guard beside it.
As for the white crystal coin it mentioned - this was currency minted from diamond powder mixed with white ore, circulating within the Clan of Molten Iron. It had taken the iron dragon Sorog a full year to make the clan's monsters understand the importance of currency, moving them beyond primitive barter systems.
The actual minting work fell to the red dragon alchemist Samantha. The diamonds produced from the symbiotic pool weren't ordinary decorative gems - harder than steel and extremely difficult to process. Only the red dragon alchemist, with her brute strength and flames, could mass-produce white crystal coins and those diamond-infused weapons and equipment with ease.
Among the dragons of the Clan of Molten Iron, excluding Lord Garoth himself, Samantha had now become the wealthiest. The newly affluent Samantha was thoroughly satisfied with her path as an alchemist, feeling Garoth hadn't deceived her. She took pride in her initial choice and felt fortunate to have trusted Garoth.
Returning to the matter at hand - the ogre guard leaned against the watchtower's brazier, roasting skewers of unidentified meat with its massive palms. Dripping fat sizzled in the charcoal, blending oddly peacefully with the rain's rhythm.
Suddenly, the muscular gray hyena pricked up its ears, stopped scratching, and emitted a low growl from its throat. The gnoll knight reflexively gripped its scimitar as rainwater dripped between its claws. The ogre guard remained oblivious, too distracted by the meat's aroma to notice anything else, drool streaming from its mouth.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" The kobold sentry shrieked as if stepped on its tail, having spotted some terrifying monster through the rain curtain. It blew the alarm horn frantically.
The next instant, the entire watchtower's foundation trembled slightly, extinguishing all the brazier's flames simultaneously. On the distant horizon, a shadow darker than the night itself tore through the rain curtain.At first just a blurred outline, the figure grew clearer as it approached - a monstrous beast taller than the watchtower itself, its white fur matted with icy-blue chill. Rain evaporated into mist upon contact with its body, then crystallized into ice. Each step made the earth quake, sending branching cracks snaking across the ground.
Moving with terrifying speed, its full form soon became visible to the gnoll knight - a humanoid behemoth with massive limbs, arms thick as those of a giant ape, protruding mammoth-like tusks, blood-red eyes, and a body nearly twenty meters long covered in white fur.
"By the ancestors..." The gnoll knight's pupils shrank to pinpoints.
The beast's crimson eyes glowed like twin blood moons in the storm as it threw back its head and unleashed an ear-splitting roar, the shockwave toppling the nearest arrow tower.
"Skulls for the hammer! Bones for the song!" Ogre guards rose as one, roaring their warhost's battle cry as they charged the beast. The Iron Will warriors trembled slightly but followed the ogres into the assault. Yet against the behemoth, the ogres were swatted aside like toys, while gnolls and kobolds were simply crushed into pulp.
Giant wolf knights and hyena riders harried the beast with speed and agility.
Whoosh! The behemoth exhaled freezing breath that turned the pouring rain into icy pellets, transforming ground water into sheets of ice that nearly froze the riders solid, their mounts' limbs locking up.
Soon, the monsters began scattering. As intelligent creatures, realizing their complete inferiority and suffering heavy casualties naturally shattered their morale, leading to rout.
The kobold sentry panicked, unfurling a pair of wings from its back. A rare few kobolds were born with flight-capable wings, and this sentry was among them. It flapped desperately through the rain, glancing back to see the behemoth - after destroying the obstructing watchtower - wasn't actively pursuing survivors but wandering aimlessly toward Shattered Stone Beach.
Needleleaf Valley.
Sorog shook rainwater from between his scales, the damp chill discomforting the iron dragon, but what truly unsettled him were recent events.
A northern outpost near Shattered Stone Beach had been attacked by a giant beast. The stationed monsters were routed though not entirely wiped out, and survivors immediately reported the incident. After receiving the news, the iron dragon personally investigated, finding the target had crossed Shattered Stone Beach and was heading toward Tempering Heights.
Recognizing the creature's identity, Sorog wisely avoided testing himself against it, knowing he stood no chance. He came immediately to inform his brother - the true king of the Clan of Molten Iron.
"So you're saying a frost behemoth is approaching Tempering Heights?" Garoth wrinkled the skin above his eyes, pausing his daily neck exercises.
"Correct! I suspect it came from the Permafrost Tundra." Beyond the Estonian Great River to the north lay the wilderness's edge, gradually giving way to the Permafrost Tundra - also called the Eternal Ice Fields or Cold Wastes, home to frost giants, white dragons, winter wraiths, and even silver dragons.
The Permafrost Tundra's harsh, barren environment periodically drove powerful magical beasts to migrate toward the Ser Wilderness. The attacked outpost north of Shattered Stone Beach, near the Estonian Great River, served precisely to guard against northern threats. Though destroyed, it had fulfilled its primary purpose and would be rebuilt.
"At first I thought it might be a vanguard from some frost giant tribe looking to expand into the Ser Wilderness, but closer inspection revealed no accompanying frost giants," the iron dragon said gravely.
Garoth half-closed his eyes in contemplation. Behemoths weren't natural creatures but biological weapons created by giants in ancient times to counter dragons - terrifyingly powerful yet unintelligent as wild beasts, typically controlled by giant sorcerers. Frost behemoths primarily existed within massive frost giant tribes.
"It's wandering aimlessly, but its general direction is toward Tempering Heights. If it reaches the symbiotic pool at the Stone Beach camp and causes damage, our losses would be severe," Sorog said quietly.
The Stone Beach camp referred to the former stone giant settlement, its symbiotic pool now the Clan of Molten Iron's most precious resource. The high-quality ores it produced served both equipment crafting and trade - a strategic asset that couldn't be risked. The Starbreaker Maul Warhost's combat units, including Karu, were mainly stationed there. Yet against a frost behemoth's might, even they would struggle.
Sorog wouldn't disturb Garoth without good reason. Knowing his brother focused on self-improvement, his coming now clearly indicated he wanted Garoth to handle this threat. Beyond Garoth, none could.
Leading a warhost to besiege the behemoth through attrition might work, but the clan would pay a devastating price. Garoth flexed his wings, stirring the rain into rolling waves.
"Lead the way," he said succinctly, having the iron dragon guide him. This inexplicable frost behemoth posed enough threat that it couldn't be ignored.