Chapter 33: Ritual Interruption

The roads grew bumpier further outside the city. The forest thickened, and the rush of rivers murmured from the distant.

As the ground grew softer and trees lighter in shade, memories of my time in the cult resurfaced. Were Imna and the others still in the lair? I hoped to encounter them just to find out how they'd been doing. But the sight of me would probably draw feelings of bloodlust more than reunion… especially from Imna.

Food was terrible. Apparently it was the usual travelers’ food – tough salty jerky, hard stale bread, and sometimes straight-up flour to make bread from scratch.

Traveling on a carriage was a painful in the ass (literally) and I wouldn’t want to worsen the experience. So, I went out to hunt for fresh meat with Sae in tow. I took care of the butchering thanks to my [Butchery(Journeyman)] skill.

The travel lasted for three days. Trees pressed closer to the road, giving barely any path for the carriage. Discounting the trolls, the merchants sure were brave enough to pass through such derelict and treacherous routes. Whatever they transported through these kinds of routes must be so damn worth the trouble.

The forest gave way into a spacious clearing, revealing the range of mountains in the distance. It was less tropical than the other side, but tedious to travel all the same. It was Tuesday for Sae though, seeing how she could easily slither through any kinds of terrain.

It didn't take long before signs of activity appeared. Close to the road was a path formed from constant trudging, leading deeper toward the foot of the mountains. Along the way, pieces of wood and fragments of potteries scattered the path. Some blood splattered here and there, and several man-made items littered every few meters.

I even found a pouch of coins. Lucky.

A nasty stench grew stronger the further we went in. No doubt about it, we were close to the troll’s hideout.

We camped far from the disgusting smell. I’d be leaving Sae with the coachman so hiding would be unnecessary.

"Just stay here," I told Sae.

And she protested as expected.

"What? I'm coming with you."

"Who's gonna guard the coachman and the horse? Do you wanna walk back home?"

Even if the coachman could fight, we were still up against the trolls. His eyes anxiously darted all over the forest.

"I’m coming with you."

I sure hoped I still had something like that monster repelling stone or whatever it was called. But it wouldn’t work against trolls, though, like Amea told me.

"Sae, I understand you wanting to uphold your honor but that means nothing if an innocent man dies."

"I-I'm gonna die?" the coachman said.

"That's not what I meant. Not exactly."

"Who cares? He followed us here, he’s obviously prepared to die."

"Milord, milady! I was just following orders! I don't wanna die!"

"No one’s gonna die. Sae, stay with him. If you do I'll give you anything you want."

"I don’t want anything."

This fish sure was stubborn.

"Think carefully. Surely you want something."

She hummed for a moment. Okay, good thing she was reconsidering it.

"A favor in the future, then. I might need it."

"Deal. Stay here, okay?"

Just as I was about to leave, she grabbed my shoulder.

"What does ‘okay’ mean again?"

"It means fine."

"Right— uh, okay. You don’t mind me using that, right?"

I grumbled. “Use it however you want.”

I pressed on, hoping Sae wouldn’t follow me.

The thicket was trampled. Huge footsteps carved into the muddy ground confirmed the existence of the trolls. Their den must be close.

The rocky foot of the mountain split open, with moss and creeping plants clinging to it. Crates, sacks, and other man-made objects littered around the entrance. Carriages sat on one side, some were wrecked. A strong awful stench swept through the area. I gagged.

I wouldn’t even wanna find out the source of the smell.

Banging drums and chants emanated from the cave. I went inside, activating my heat-detecting and camouflage skill.

Numerous huge heat signatures was revealed by my skill, along with smaller ones. They probably still had non-troll hostages around. Oddly, these non-troll folks seemed to be restrained, and the trolls danced around them.

The festive noise grew louder. The hallway opened up, leading me into a cliff that overlooked a huge cavern.

“What the hell…”

It was what anyone would expect of a tribal ritual. At the center sat poles that bound naked men of different races. Female trolls danced seductively around the hostages. Below the platform were male trolls banging on drums. The crowd chanted, “grand chieftainess, grand power.”

The trolls looked less monstrous than I thought. They looked like elongated humanoids but with slightly-gnarled skin and longer arms. Ragged fabrics covered their privates, but the females’ swaying revealed their huge sagging tits and hairy vaginas.

An empty throne built from rotting wood and bones sat on a carved stone mound. So that was where the smell came from.

A troll was coming from downstairs. I hid behind one of the rocks. The male troll wore skull and bones for armor, armed with a spiky club. His balls hung lower than what his loincloth could hide.

"Me want fuck," it groaned, "me want fuck big boss."

Up close, the trolls didn’t look too different from orcs. It wasn’t an exaggeration to call them as slender, thinner version of orcs. If these guys were civilized, I bet they wouldn’t be called monsters.

The troll stopped by the cliff. He looked down, slid his loincloth aside and started jerking off.

“Jesus Christ,” I said.

The troll turned around. I shot his head with an icicle. I would’ve spared him if he didn’t whip out his gnarly branch.

The drums banged louder, and the chants sang faster. I peered down. They were energetic. The female trolls began losing their clothes, revealing their rounded feminine features. They stopped in front of the bound men and began massaging their pussies.

A female troll emerged from the cavern behind the throne. She was larger, chubbier, and her skin was a shade brighter. A dinosaur-like skull sat on her head, hiding half of her face. Skulls and bones of all creatures decorated her body, but her huge, fat chest-mounds remained bare.

This troll, probably the queen or whatever she was called, raised a thick and crooked wooden staff into the air.

"Brothers and sisters! Today we give our offering to the grand chieftainess!”

"Grand chieftainess, grand power!" the trolls cheered.

"We will take the power of these men and offer it to the grand chieftainess!”

"Grand chieftainess, grand power!"

She turned around to grab something.

My jaw almost dropped to the floor. “...seriously?”

A six-petaled flower was tattooed on her back. In fact, those female trolls had the same tattoo along with other tribal symbols.

"Do any monster women in this world have that tattoo?"

The troll chieftainess raised a carved stone cup filled with viscous green liquid. The female trolls lined one by one to take a sip.

After a few seconds, they started wilding out. They writhed and roared while the tribal music boomed. Then, they rushed towards the bound men and started humping their dicks.

If memory served me, cultists absorbed the energy of men during sex. Those men would die.

I paused just as I was about to rain a hail of ice. The chieftainess watched the sexual ritual on her throne while she rubbed her pussy.

Maybe I could gain something here.

“Hey!” I yelled.

Silence fell abruptly. Everyone’s attention shot towards me.

"You left one behind!"

I stripped down my clothes and offered myself willingly. But the male trolls wanted otherwise.

"Kill!"

They charged at me. Crude stone arrows and spears flung at me. I raised a wall to block it. Troll warriors ascended the slope, charging with their clubs and axes overhead.

I launched ice blocks with enough velocity to knock them out. One by one, their bodies piled on the slope. A wall of unconscious trolls barricaded the way up.

The chieftainess couldn’t bear to see more bodies pile. She stomped her legs several times, producing booms that reverberated through the cavern.

"Step back, weak ones!”

The volley of arrows and spears ceased.

I smiled. “Thanks. So am I gonna be tied now?”

“Women! Kill him!”

“I guess not.”

The female trolls, all juiced up, sprung onto the cliff. Holy shit, they just scaled ten meters in a second!

Massive fists with their entire weight behind them landed at me. Their powerful punches gouged the granite floor, sending sharp fragments flying.

“You guys are trouble!”

Ten troll fists sought me like a punching bag. Their tits hypnotically bounced and swayed mid-fight. I would fare better with a blindfold! Fortunately, I was much faster than them, so ogling was an option during the fight. I swept their legs and knocked them on the ground, but more came.

After a minute of fighting, all female trolls laid unconscious. I looked down to the chieftainess – my target. The male trolls around her were astonished by my victory.

"I challenge you, troll chieftainess!"

A smile crept on her face. She attached a huge stone at the tip of her staff, turning it into a mace.

She stomped her feet.

"Perfect, a powerful man! I will defeat you, take your power, and claim all of the mountains for the grand chieftainess!”

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