Hellfire

"Quickly, someone come here!"

Grot's panicked voice echoed through the prison.

"What's wrong?" Two Orcs who were guarding outside walked in one after the other. The human lay motionless on the ground, along with the food that had just been brought to him but which he hadn't yet swallowed.

"What happened? Has he fainted?"

"I swear, he was like this when I walked in," Grot explained, seemingly trying to distance himself from the situation.

"You're talking nonsense. You've been in here for at least five minutes. Did you spend those five minutes figuring out how to shout 'Help! Help!'?" one of the Orcs said, pointing at him. Another Orcs stood up as well. They were both taller Grot and each held a short axe in their hands.

"Of course." Grot smiled, but what shocked the two Orcs was his two-word reply, "I have to shout as urgently as possible, otherwise you won't come in."

"What do you mean? Are you playing games..." Just as the Orcs was about to explode in anger, he felt a heavy blow to the back of his head. When he fell down, he saw that his companion was already lying on the ground.

Nathanos clapped his hands, searched the two guards for keys, and unlocked their shackles. "If Ner'zhul were as stupid as these two fools."

"Don't waste time." Grot snatched the two axes from the unconscious Orcs on the ground and handed them to Nathanos. "Ner'zhul is a powerful Warlock; you can't take him down by yourself."

"There's another Zuluhed?"

"No, Zuluhed has left. He took a few Orcs to fight the invaders. I heard that Alliance members are also on their way here."

"That's good news. At least my chances of winning are much higher." Nathanos examined his new weapon, though he wanted his own weapon more. Oh well, it's better than nothing. "Kill Ner'zhul and destroy that golden disc, then the Dragonmaw Clan won't be able to control the Red Dragon. However, at that time, you'll probably suffer a crazy revenge from the Red Dragon."

"I understand that, but freedom is more important than life."

Nathanos looked at him and nodded slightly. It seemed not all Orcs were the same. "We'd better act alone; if we're exposed, we won't implicate the other side."

Grot nodded...

Grim Batol was not only more magnificent than Nathanos had imagined, but also far more complex. While a mental map guided him, his greatest concern was what lay hidden within the intricate network of tunnels. Moreover, Nathanos discovered discrepancies between Grot's map and reality. Some tunnels he had initially thought led to his destination had suddenly changed direction, and they often ascended rather than descended.

In a completely dark tunnel, the alert human finally had a chance to sit down and rest for a while. He carried a water bag, given to him by Grot. He took it out, took a sip, and then leaned back against the wall. He felt that these few minutes of relaxation would clear his mind so he could continue his journey through the cave. He was also relieved that he hadn't encountered any trouble from guards.

Did he really think he could rescue the Queen of Dragons? In truth, none of this originally concerned Nathanos; he could have easily chosen to leave. But when he thought of Quel'Thalas, and of the Red Dragon's flames turning the forest into a sea of fire, he told himself he couldn't just leave like this; this atrocity had to end.

During this time, Nathanos never saw Deathwing again. He thought to himself that the guy had brought him here and said he would help Nathanos complete a task that wasn't originally his responsibility—to save the Queen of Dragons! But now he hadn't seen a soul in sight.

'Is this really what Rhonin is going to do? Just by himself?' Nathanos was deeply skeptical. There were too many things involved that couldn't be explained.

The sudden noise startled Nathanos stood up abruptly. He pressed his back against the wall, waiting to see who was moving through the dimly lit tunnel. The Orcs should know this was the end of the tunnel. Had they discovered his escape? Were they here specifically to search for him?

However, the faint, almost indistinguishable conversation gradually faded into the distance. He then realized that he had been deceived by the complex sound phenomena in the cave. The Orcs conversation he had just heard was probably several tunnels away from him.

However, this might allow him to follow the sound! Nathanos cautiously moved towards the direction he heard the sound. Even if the sound wasn't actually coming from that direction, the echo in the cave should be able to lead him wherever he wanted to go.

He traversed the tunnels without encountering any trouble for a while, so he boldly quickened his pace. However, after only a few steps, he heard two footsteps coming from around the corner. He immediately drew his weapon and jumped out.

Fortunately, the two Orcs were also shocked when they saw Nathanos. Nathanos raised his axe and cleanly slit their throats, leaving the two Orcs lying in pools of blood.

"You bastard!" There was another Orcs ten meters behind the two Orcs. He had witnessed Nathanos's sneak attack and angrily swung his axe at Nathanos, but Nathanos easily dodged it, only managing to hit some stones on the rough wall.

The human sneered. "If I were you, I would warn others instead of throwing my life away." He charged forward, wielding his weapon in his left hand to parry the Orcs, then swept his right leg upwards, striking the Orcs squarely in the face. The impact sent the Orcs crashing into a stone wall, knocking him unconscious.

"Hopefully Ner'zhul is as easy to deal with as you."

Nathanos left those words behind and continued walking forward until he reached the fork in the road. "Next should be the second passage on the left."

Passing through the passage and following another tunnel downwards, it seemed they were heading towards the heart of the mountains. Nathanos was relieved that Grot hadn't gone wrong in the most crucial part of the route. He was certainly not far from the Queen of Dragons now. In fact, he could already hear a breathing sound like that of a giant. But Grim Batol had no giants, so it could only be a dragon. He quickly recalled the route. Pass through two more passages, then turn right and keep going until the cave entrance on his left.

Nathanos quickened his pace. His nerves were on edge.

Finally, he arrived at the entrance to a large hall. No guards? Nathanos immediately became alert. He could feel the wind blowing from the entrance. The place was sealed off on all sides, and he knew he was underground; there was no way the wind could be blowing from there. So, it could only be the breath of some enormous creature that could produce such a wind.

There should be guards or magical barriers here. Nathanos threw an axe. Sure enough! The axe was stopped by an invisible energy barrier when it reached the doorway. A head, like a nightmare, with black eyes and flames, suddenly appeared. Instinctively, Nathanos took two steps back. Then he realized that the head was like a stone. Immediately afterward, more stones gathered from the surrounding area, gradually forming a tall giant with green flames all over its body, blocking the doorway.

This was a powerful creature; its appearance alone suggested it would be difficult to deal with, but... it didn't move. Gradually, Nathanos suppressed his tension and began to study the motionless being closely. It was much larger than a human. Flames surrounded it, but Nathanos felt no heat. Nevertheless, he still suspected that if he were to actually touch it, the consequences would be extremely painful.

Having no better ideas, Nathanos could only try to speak to the creature. "Who are you?"

There was no answer. Apart from the flickering flames on its body, the terrifying monster remained motionless.

Can you hear me?

There was still no response.

Gradually, his worries were replaced by curiosity. So he leaned forward as far as he could. He first tentatively shook the only axe he had left, but still saw no reaction; the thing didn't even glance at his weapon.

The monster was grotesque in appearance, but it looked more like a statue than a living thing. It possessed demonic features. Nathanos had studied golem creatures, but had never seen one in person.

Nathanos frowned. He was now very curious about what this guy was really for. In fact, there was a method that was very effective, but also very risky.

He planned to walk around the guy and pass by him...

Suddenly, the monster moved its body at an astonishing speed and gripped Nathanos's arm tightly.

The scorching flames devoured the man. The flames burned within him, consumed his soul. Nathanos let out a howl; he had never experienced such agony! Unable to break free, he lost consciousness, his head drooping limply...