Tribe and Humans

At the edge of Swamp Forest.

In this place where the boundary between death and survival blurred, poisonous spore mushrooms glowed faintly atop rotting wood. Fungal mats covered seemingly solid ground, and startled Hard-shelled Water Lizards or eerily colored poison frogs occasionally flashed through the marshes between twisted dead trees.

This was the hunting ground passed down through generations by demihuman tribes.

Compared to the deadly dangers of the deep swamp, the outskirts could still allow them to survive and provide the food resources they needed.

Whenever spring arrived, the Lizardfolk would move cautiously through the outskirts like ghosts, using blowdarts to precisely hunt small prey or gathering glowing antidote moss to trade with passing human caravans.

Ever since Corrupted Faith began wandering along the riverbanks, this hunting custom had gradually been broken. Corrupted Lizardfolk gained sharper claws and tougher scales.

Driven by greed, they tried to hunt large beasts in the outskirts like Gnolls did, even targeting other weak demihuman tribes.

For a time, panic spread across the riverbanks. Even human caravans no longer dared pass through Reed Riverbank, afraid of being plundered by greedy corrupted Lizardfolk.

Yet even the strong corrupted Lizardfolk had beings they feared.

At the edge of Swamp Forest, a tall, powerful Lizardfolk figure was fleeing through the woods like a terrified gecko! His scales were dull, as if shrouded in gray mist, and his thin tail whipped about in terror. Every footfall stirred the buzzing of poisonous insects hidden beneath the fallen leaves.

Deadly fear had seized him tightly, leaving him no time to care about direction. He only wanted to escape the unseen hunter behind him.

Whoosh—!

A crude yet immensely powerful wooden spear tore through the stifling air with a deathly shriek, driving viciously into the rotten wood half an inch before the fugitive's feet! The spear shaft trembled violently, humming without end.

The fugitive froze in horror as icy despair instantly drowned his entire body. Trembling, he slowly raised his head in the direction from which the spear had come.

Within the shadows stood a silent figure.

She was a female Lizardfolk warrior, taller than ordinary Lizardfolk, covered in dark olive scales as hard as cold iron.

Several sharpened Bone Blades and short spears hung from her waist, without a trace of needless decoration.

Her amber slit pupils narrowed coldly. Like a venomous snake locking onto prey, she gazed down emotionlessly at the trembling fugitive below.

There was no pity in her eyes, only pure killing intent that froze the soul. She tilted her head slightly, her voice like a cold wind scraping over stone.

"Where is she?"

Overwhelmed by extreme terror, the corrupted Lizardfolk finally broke down and fell to his knees, begging for mercy.

"I don't know. I really don't know."

"Lady Semiya, please spare my life."

The female Lizardfolk's voice remained icy.

"I'll ask one last time. Seja—where is my younger sister?"

"It was all Priest Zulok's doing. It has nothing to do with me."

"He colluded with the Gnolls and forced the shaman into the depths of the swamp. That Hunting Squad that went after her never returned... maybe they already... already..."

Whoosh—!

Before the Lizardfolk could finish speaking, a thrown Bone Blade pierced his throat with perfect accuracy.

Blood gushed out. His mouth hung open, and a muddy "gurgle... gurgle..." rolled from deep in his throat, like bubbles of despair choking in bloody water. At last, his body went limp and crashed heavily into the cold swamp with a bang.

Semiya approached with a cold expression, picked up the bloodstained Bone Blade, and carefully wiped it clean.

After standing there for a long while, she lifted the wolf fang hanging around her neck. The coldness on her face melted away in an instant, replaced by confusion and helplessness.

"Seja... did I come back too late?"

"No."

She clenched the wolf fang tightly.

"The Ancestral Spirit and Putu will bless you and keep you safe."

"I'll go find you now."

"Cough, cough..."

A sudden cough interrupted Semiya's thoughts. At some point, an elderly Lizardfolk had appeared behind her.

"Semiya, it is time to return."

"You know we cannot linger beneath Zulok's nose for too long."

Semiya turned around, her face completely expressionless.

"Shazak, I am grateful that the Rotten Moss Tribe saved my life."

"But Seja is everything to me. Father is already dead. I cannot lose her too."

"I want to enter the depths of the swamp alone."

The old Lizardfolk Shazak held a beast bone in his hand and murmured a prayer.

"Nature will not forsake her believers."

"Seja is the most devout believer of nature I have ever seen. She will be fine."

"But..."

Semiya still wanted to say something.

"There are no buts. Learn to trust an elder's wisdom."

"Besides, the depths of Swamp Forest are filled with dangerous Demonic Beasts. Without nature's guidance, you will only lose yourself within."

"If you wish to bring Seja back, first help the tribe resolve the crisis before us."

"Then I will personally enter the swamp with you to find her."

Semiya clenched her Bone Blade, her expression brimming with killing intent.

"Zulok has come after the Rotten Moss Tribe?"

"It is not that serious, but the situation is far from optimistic."

The elderly Lizardfolk Shazak slowly walked outward. A Hunting Squad was waiting for them beneath an oak tree.

"Those brainless corrupted Lizardfolk have gone mad, attacking our human neighbors. Among them was a caravan carrying a large supply of food."

"That merchant came from Iron Boot Town—the down-and-out noble from that Adventurer Town."

"A noble abandoning his former glory to become a merchant, heh... he must be a human with quite a story."

"Regardless, this human noble does not seem as shrewd as other merchants. He fell into the corrupted Lizardfolk's trap and is now fleeing in all directions."

"You want me to save humans?"

Semiya looked intently at Shazak.

She did not hate humans, but only because she did not care about them. As for any goodwill, there was not the slightest bit.

Semiya still clearly remembered that when she was only half-grown, her father had even sold his handy tooth blade just to trade with human merchants for that pitiful amount of food.

Afterward, he suffered a leg injury while hunting. His gait was never as natural as before.

In her eyes, humans were greedy and cunning creatures, especially skilled at lying. For profit, they would stop at nothing. She did not like dealing with them.

"Not entirely."

Shazak was lifted onto the back of a sturdy Lizardfolk.

"Our main objective is the food supplies carried by the caravan."

"As for that merchant, it would naturally be best if we could save him as well."

"As long as word spreads that the Rotten Moss Tribe saved humans, at least our trade with humans will not be completely cut off."

"Semiya, remember this: humans are indeed greedy, but they have also genuinely helped us through countless Winter Years."

"We still need their help. Even if we must maintain a false friendship, everything is for the tribe."

"Once we have enough food supplies and the warriors have eaten and drunk their fill, we will have the strength to fight savage Demonic Beasts and venture deep into the swamp to search for Seja."

"I understand."

Semiya took a deep breath and said no more. She could only silently follow behind the Hunting Squad.