Our minds were one (please keep reading)

To be honest.

When she saw the idiot under her command try to cleave that human and the irritating old goblin in half with one swing of his axe.

Shivana had felt a little hopeful.

The [Flame Roar] tribe had always been a mixture of beastfolk, goblins, and giants.

What they revered was not bloodline.

It was "strength."

That was the creed of many beastfolk tribes.

Whether you were beastfolk, a goblin, or any other species, as long as you could demonstrate your worth and prove your strength, the tribe had a reason to accept you.

Otherwise, they would never have let a half-breed like her fight her way to the position of chieftain.

But Babaya, the Old Prophet among the goblin descendants, commanded far greater respect than she did as the new chieftain.

That was not simply because the Old Prophet was the tribe's only spellcaster, capable of hearing "the guidance of the gods."

Or because the tribe had always revered that faith.

It was also because she was a woman who should have been dragged off to the "pig cage" by her tribesmen and used for breeding.

Now that she had become their leader, some of the old bastards resented her.

Of course, the deal she had agreed to was also a major factor.

After she had decided to flee the black fog in the south, use the great teleportation array to move the entire tribe to this forest, and head for that town.

The tribe had gone two months without raiding.

Every member was seething with frustration, thinking only of unleashing their bloodlust and hunger once they reached that town.

Instead, this had given the Old Prophet an opportunity to sway them with her poisonous words.

She had repeatedly volunteered to lead the charge.

She had taken a vanguard out to raid some humans in the forest, earning considerable affection.

Now, many tribesmen had begun to lose faith in Shivana's brief rule and secretly followed Babaya's orders.

Only this time, she had run into someone tough and come to grief where she least expected it.

Nothing would have suited Shivana better than letting her die on the migration route.

But that could only remain a thought.

After all, Babaya was a prophet who heard "divine revelations."

If the tribe learned that Shivana had stood by and done nothing, the entire [Flame Roar] tribe would fall apart during the migration.

At that thought, Shivana even felt a surge of resentment.

Why hadn't this human simply slit the old goblin's throat?

"Let her go, and I'll leave your corpses intact."

Despite noticing a few clues.

They did nothing to help Tang Qi escape.

Whatever "intrigue" those in power were plotting, his priority was staying alive.

He tightened his grip on the scimitar impaling the warlock. He had left it in only to plug the wound and keep her from bleeding to death.

Tang Qi said bluntly, "I won't kill her. Let us leave."

The Great Axe that had stopped the beastman must have come from the woman before him.

That meant the goblin in his hands was vitally important to her.

He had to make good use of this bargaining chip.

"Kill her if you want! I hate listening to you humans talk crap!

If I actually let you kill her, would you have the guts?"

Shivana was nothing like the stupid beastfolk under her command.

She knew exactly what the human before her was planning.

"Fine. I'll do as you say."

Tang Qi gritted his teeth, yanked out the scimitar, and stabbed it into the left side of her abdomen.

When he went to pull it out again for a third stab, the old goblin whose throat he held could take no more. She let out a ragged howl:

"Stop, stop! You ignorant children, open your eyes and look at what your new chieftain is doing—

Shivana, the tribe will remember how you treated me!"

Shivana knew those two thrusts would not kill the old goblin.

She could tell from the faint, eerie green glow clinging to the wounds around her waist and abdomen.

A necromantic aura suffused her body, easing her injuries.

[False Life]. That seemed to be the spell's name.

But she really fucking couldn't let this human keep stabbing her:

"Fine, then a life for a life!"

She waved her large hand, ordering her beastfolk to shove a group of humans forward.

Explosive Wolf and the caravan's master and servants were already nowhere to be seen.

These were ordinary mercenaries who had failed to escape and been surrounded.

Along with a few adventurers who had ventured into the Twilight Forest and been captured.

Bound together, they whimpered and turned hopeful eyes toward Tang Qi, as though trying to tell him, "We're all humans. We're family."

"You, or them. Failing that, the people in that town. Pick one. A life for a life!"

The town?

Tang Qi and Black Snake exchanged a glance.

Was this beastfolk tribe heading for Star Plum Town?

Whatever their purpose, this seemingly fair exchange was anything but safe.

Not every beastman followed the same creed.

It depended on the differences between tribes.

"Conquest," "faith," "strength," "hatred"...

But never "keeping promises."

Tang Qi would not gamble:

"Her life for the three of us."

"Rua?"

Kuru had never imagined he would be included.

His eyes immediately grew wet—

Actually, that was because the earlier [Fear Spell] had frightened him into floods of tears.

But now, he did not mind telling Tang Qi:

These were tears of gratitude.

"Not worth it." Shivana shook her head.

She really fucking hated bargaining.

These cunning humans never did anything straightforwardly.

Tang Qi insisted:

"Which is worth more, an ant's life or an elephant's?"

"Neither is worth anything."

"Which is worth more, your life or mine?"

"Mine."

"A three-for-one deal tells only part of the tale,

Lives have always been ranked on a scale;

The truth is right before your eyes,

You ought to consider what I advise."

Tang Qi sang softly, watching the half-orc's expression all the while—

He was not sure whether these creatures, notorious for their impatience and brutality, could be influenced by the [Art of Making Friends] and calm down enough to be his friends for one minute.

It did not matter if they hunted their "friends" afterward.

One minute would be enough for them to escape into the forest.

Shivana's brows knitted tightly.

She preferred stirring war cries and had no patience for these lilting little tunes.

She liked settling disagreements with a fight, not listening to arguments, grand or small.

But for some reason, for one brief instant, she inexplicably caught a glimpse of her father in this human—

"Shivana, we don't kill and plunder because of some primal animal nature or some curse from the gods.

We do it because we want to live, and live well.

We pursue strength to live better, and indulge our desires to live happily.

But those shortsighted fools won't understand. When disaster comes, when we're no longer as prosperous as we once were.

To survive, we can only learn to hold back, learn restraint..."

"Stupid old man. You're so annoying."

Shivana spat the words involuntarily.

Tang Qi froze.

So these beastfolk really had no concept of 'friends'?

In that case, with so little time left, he could only...

Tang Qi signaled Black Snake and Kuru with his eyes.

The two exchanged a glance, as though they had understood something.

Seeing that, Tang Qi stepped forward.

Black Snake gripped the scimitar tightly.

Kuru started moving.

Their minds were one!

All three spoke at once—

"I'm here to join you!"

"Which way do we run?"

"Spare me!"

"..."

Tang Qi and the other two stared at one another.

Black Snake was about to unleash a torrent of curses, but Tang Qi cut in first:

"Your beastfolk tribe has a tradition of accepting the strong, doesn't it?

Whatever method you used to cross the Great Wall, now that you're deep inside the Lord Alliance's territory, you're bound to face plenty of threats.

Capturing this goblin spellcaster has already proven our abilities.

As a human, I can also help you learn the local terrain."

Of the two humans and one dog before her, one wore a resolute expression.

One held a blade, ready to face the enemy.

And one had simply dropped to his knees and begun knocking his head loudly against the ground.

Shivana had probably never imagined that her single-track mind would one day crash.

Sure enough, no one could ever guess what these cunning humans were thinking—

Tang Qi had not realized that his [Art of Making Friends] had succeeded.

So much so that the young chieftain was actually considering whether they might prove useful.

Most importantly, how she could exploit Babaya's failure this time.