(Vargis' POV)
Silence followed Vargis's declaration.
Chieftain Guram leaned forwards. The bones of his throne creaked beneath his weight.
"Then report, Head Scout."
Vargis nodded.
"We believed the tremors had been caused by two factions contesting the centre of Durim Forest. Such a challenge would have been bold enough to offend every surrounding race, but it remained the most likely explanation."
Farkas inclined his head.
"Agreed. A territorial conflict was the logical conclusion."
"However, we found no evidence of one," Vargis continued. "There were no tracks leading towards the centre, no signs of migration and no remains from a battle. The tremors were not caused by a beast or a conflict between tribes."
His father's expression tightened.
"Then what caused them?"
Vargis lowered his head towards the chieftain.
"A building."
Silence returned, this time stripped of its dignity as doubtful murmurs spread through the hall.
Guram's voice crushed them.
"Are you playing with me, boy? Your father should have taught you better than to make jokes during a report."
The weight behind his words would have driven a lesser goblin to the floor.
Vargis bowed lower as sweat formed across his brow.
"No, my chieftain. I would never insult you that way."
Guram frowned.
Farkas studied his son.
"You said there were no tracks or signs of movement in the area. How could a building reach the centre without leaving any trace?"
"We don't know. When we arrived, we found a structure unlike anything belonging to the races of Durim. It appeared to be human."
Farkas raised an eyebrow.
"Humans? Here? They abandoned the monster races after the atrocities of Golgorath's March. What are they doing inside the forest?"
Wraith spoke for the first time.
His voice was quieter than the others, yet it seemed to enter the minds of everyone present without travelling through the air.
"A human building is not the concern. Its unexplained arrival is."
Vargis turned towards the shaman.
"Honourable Wraith, there is more you should know."
He swallowed.
"We could not approach the structure. A large-scale defensive spell surrounded the entire building and its grounds. I tested it myself. The barrier was extraordinarily strong—I doubt anyone below the chieftain could break through it."
Dark purple mana leaked from beneath Wraith's robes.
Guram and Farkas both stiffened.
"Preposterous," Wraith murmured. "Your report becomes less plausible with every word."
He lowered his hooded head in thought.
"Yet it would explain the concentration of mana that appeared alongside the tremors and still lingers at the forest's centre. A defensive spell of that scale deserves investigation."
"If this troubles even Wraith, then it is no simple matter," Guram said. "Is there anything else?"
Vargis hesitated.
"Yes, my chieftain. There were two humans present. Since the barrier prevented us from approaching the building, we spoke across it."
Guram leaned back and tapped one thick finger against the armrest.
"Interesting. What did they say about claiming a place in the heart of Durim Forest?"
Vargis drew a slow breath.
"If my report has sounded absurd so far, what follows may sound worse. However, I believe it presents an opportunity."
Guram grunted.
"Out with it."
"The humans claim they are establishing a store. They appear to be merchants."
All three figures stared at him.
"A store?" Guram asked.
Farkas frowned.
"That makes no sense. The only humans who venture this deep are powerful adventurers sent by their guilds. Merchants would have no customers and would find themselves surrounded by monsters in every direction. They sound like fools."
"Fools or not, they are bold," Wraith said. "Disturbingly so. There must be more behind their actions."
"The information is accurate," Vargis said. "I swear upon my honour that I have not deceived you."
He forced himself to continue.
"They were adamant that they understood their location. They also claimed they do not discriminate by race and consider themselves above excluding monsters."
Vargis finally raised his eyes.
"They invited us to trade, my chieftain. They invited goblins into their store."
Guram struck a fist against the throne.
The impact sent a tremor through the floor and rattled every plate upon the feasting tables.
"You have gone too far, Vargis!"
Vargis fought the urge to recoil beneath the force of his anger.
"M-my chieftain, I swear it is the truth."
Guram stood. The bone throne creaked as his weight lifted from it.
"It cannot be true!" he roared. "Not after what monsterkind did to the humans. No human nation would tolerate one of its own supplying us. These merchants would be turning against their entire race."
Those gathered in the hall recoiled from his outburst.
Vargis lowered his head until he could see nothing but the floor. Even kneeling, the killing intent directed towards him made his stomach twist.
Farkas stepped forwards, his voice calm.
"Chieftain. Please."
Guram's gaze snapped towards him.
"Protecting your blood, are you? Choose your next words carefully."
Farkas did not flinch. He bowed with one hand held against his chest.
"We are listening to a report. Allow the boy to finish before we judge his words."
For a long moment, Guram stared at him.
Then he exhaled through his nose and returned to the throne.
"Fine."
His hand tightened around the bone armrest.
"Continue."
Farkas turned towards Vargis.
"Do you understand why humanity forsook the monsters?"
Vargis swallowed.
"I know of Golgorath's March. It is a common tale: the Forest Giant of the Elven Glades united the tribes and marched against humankind."
Farkas scoffed.
"That is the version told to children."
Vargis looked up at his father.
Farkas's expression remained controlled, but some of the softness had left his voice.
"Golgorath was not always the monster history remembers. That is the first thing you must understand. By every surviving account, he was once a blessed man. Strong, certainly. Proud beyond reason. But not cruel."
The central fire crackled. Fat dripped from the Great Hog and hissed against the flames as an attendant slowly turned the spit.
"Before the March, humans crossed our northern borders freely," Farkas continued. "They took land, timber and slaves—goblins, beastkin, ogres and even elves. If something belonged to monsters, they believed it was theirs to claim. We were not people in their eyes. We were beasts capable of speech."
Vargis's jaw tightened.
Humans had rarely entered his life, but those who came before him had not been so fortunate.
"That alone wasn't enough to unite Durim," he said.
"No. It wasn't."
Farkas's eyes darkened.
"Then they took Golgorath's daughter."
Guram closed his eyes and released a low growl.
"His only child," Farkas said. "Blood of the Elven Glades. Royalty, if such a title can exist among monsters. The Free Cities of Ildar and the southern Sultanate of Ottohan wanted a weapon capable of standing against her father."
He paused.
"They enslaved her, trained her and broke what remained of her until she no longer remembered who she was."
Vargis said nothing.
"When Golgorath called, the races answered. If humans were willing to take even the daughter of the Glades, no child was safe. Not every tribe joined—nothing has ever united Durim completely—but enough did. Goblins, orcs, ogres and even dark elves who had long despised the Glades answered his call."
Farkas turned towards the fire.
"Some marched for revenge. Others marched for justice. Most marched because, for the first time, someone was powerful enough to make humanity fear monsters."
He breathed out slowly.
"At first, theirs was a just cause."
The words settled uneasily over the hall.
"They liberated slave camps, destroyed the forts surrounding Durim and broke the armies of the Free Cities before the wider world could respond. Many called it a revolution. Perhaps it was."
His voice hardened.
"Then Golgorath found his daughter."
The hall seemed to grow colder.
"She was alive," Farkas said. "If such an existence could be called living. Whatever the humans had done left behind a rabid weapon wearing his child's skin."
Vargis's throat went dry.
"He had to kill her?"
Farkas looked down at him.
The silence answered.
"After that, the March changed. It was no longer about freedom, liberation or punishing the nations responsible. Golgorath's grief became something darker."
Farkas's gaze moved across the listening hall.
"Villages that had never sent a soldier were razed. Towns surrendered and burned regardless. In the Sultanate, Golgorath enslaved humans as they had enslaved monsters. He displayed their bodies along his path and forced captives to march before his armies as shields."
Vargis could only stare.
"That is the part no one teaches children," Farkas said.
Solemn expressions filled the hall.
"Not every monster followed him to the end. Some abandoned the March. Others finally turned their weapons upon him when they realised that the grace of Golgorath was gone."
Guram gritted his teeth.
"But it was far too late for reconciliation."
Farkas nodded.
"The damage to humankind was irreparable. They did not care who marched willingly, who was forced, who deserted or who eventually helped bring Golgorath down. They remembered only that monsters came, butchered their people and burned their cities."
He looked back towards his son.
"Understand what you are claiming. If those humans truly invited us to trade, they are doing far more than opening a store. They are crossing a line most humans would rather die than approach."
Vargis remained silent.
He had heard tales of Golgorath's March throughout his childhood, but never this version. Never the cause, the corruption or the price paid by both sides.
Yet one question pressed through everything else.
"Then what do we do about the store?"
Guram tapped the throne in thought.
"One thing is certain. We do not attack."
Wraith inclined his hood.
"Not until I have assessed their magic. If the barrier is as powerful as Vargis believes, provoking its owners could bring catastrophe upon the tribe."
Guram looked towards him.
"We need to understand what has entered our forest, and you are the only one capable of doing so. Can you handle it?"
Wraith rose. The darkness beneath his hood remained perfectly still.
"If Vargis cannot appraise their magic, I am the only one likely to succeed. It may be beyond even me, but that would make the investigation more important, not less."
Farkas nodded.
"If Wraith cannot understand it, then we are dealing with a force we are not equipped to oppose."
Guram grunted.
"Take no warriors. Make no threats. Leave your pride here. Bring something worth trading and learn what the humans truly desire."
His gaze returned to Vargis.
"You did well to bring this information directly to me."
Vargis bowed.
"Thank you, my chieftain."
"You will return to the humans with Wraith."
Uncertainty crossed Vargis's face.
Guram exposed his sharp teeth in a broad grin.
"Do not allow the truth of Golgorath's March to cloud your judgement. If the worst comes to the worst..."
His grin widened.
"It will give me an excuse to let off some steam."