My (Monster?) Hero Life

Chapter 237: Dethroned

Shadow leapt out from the sub-dimension along with the rest of the Tu'Thrag tribe. They stared at Kace in reverence as his beast form melted away to reveal the terrible state that he was in. His skin had become leathery and wrinkled, making him look like a mummified corpse. Shadow whistled at the sight as he took in the damage.

"You really went overboard, huh?" Shadow groaned when he realised that they would have to move him before the Hydra's final breath reached his unconscious body.

It was clear that moving him might cause further damage because of his pathetic state, but they really did not have a choice. It was that or his life. Almost immediately, the tribe went into action, a small group rushed forward to work together to carry him to safety. While the remainder would hang around to get ahold of the Hydra's body as soon as the poison disappeared. 

Every goblin was ready for their tasks since each of them had applied a generous coating of Grugda's ointment beforehand. Shadow really wanted to get Kace to Grugda, since he would know more about what they should do to bring him back to full health. However, he knew that it would be difficult. Shadow was fully aware that Grugda's shelter was still surrounded by poison.

All that they could do for now was move further along the mud-encrusted shore of the island. A few random noises made by different creatures seemed to sing out from the swamp. These noises were far away, but Shadow could guess what it meant. 'They've realised the ruler here has been killed. It's going to become a bloodbath soon.'

Shadow's guess was right on the money. In fact, the fighting had already started. Many creatures tried to take out their competitors before they reached the central area of the swamp. Claws, fangs, spikes, and anything else they had as weapons were busy clashing throughout the swamp. Just moving Kace a bit further away might not cut it to ensure his survival anymore.

"We can worry about that later, just now that poison is the biggest threat. Alright guys, get him out of here!"

With enthusiastic grunts, the ones holding Kace moved as fast as possible to take him away from that place. 'I should wait here. I have to make sure that we claim this body for our Lord. I'm willing to bet more than a few of those creatures are hoping to snatch it away from us.' Shadow felt a spark of anger igniting in his chest as he thought about these lower creatures attempting to steal Kace's property.

"Alright, spread out. Remember, nothing gets close."

With those words from Shadow, the Tu'Thrag clamoured around to decide on the best spots to attack from. Even though the day was getting brighter by the second, that little island became suspiciously dark as they set their ambush. 

Less than an hour later, a pack of wolf-like creatures with a singular horn on their heads came into view. They were trying to stay as low as possible so as not to be spotted. Only their snouts and eyes were visible above the surface of the murky swamp water. The alpha who was leading them stopped and sniffed at the air a few times. 

However, it could only smell stale scents. There should be nothing for them to worry about. This particular pack liked to stay close to the Hydra's domain. Mostly because whenever they got hungry, they would try to sneak a few bites out of the Hydra whenever it appeared. They were not dumb animals, they knew the blood would kill them.

However, that was always their plan. Whenever the pack got too large, they had to cull the weaker members, usually by working together to create an opening for them to be the ones to take a bite out of the Hydra. It just so happened that they had reached that point again when they could no longer feel the Hydra's presence. 

They could clearly smell blood in the air, and the scent was coming from the pitfall. Some of the younger ones in the pack lost their rationality at the smell. Why would they not, though? As far as they could tell, there was a literal buffet just waiting for them down there! Howls immediately followed, causing the alpha to momentarily lose control of the pack as they surged forwards. 

They were eager to be the one to claim the largest share of the meal. However, as the fastest of the pack set her paw on the muddy shore, she suddenly found herself missing said body part. Blood pumped from the fresh wound while the young wolf took a few moments to realise that it was in pain. 

A smile spread across Shadow's face from the other side of the shadow ripple. He was smiling because the alpha actually seemed to have some intelligence. While its pack tried to push on to reach the promised meal in the pitfall, the alpha was already slinking away. What happened next was a massacre. The wolf pack was taken by surprise when so many Tu'Thrag appeared suddenly, 

A short and bloody battle ensued. This level of creature was nothing to them. They would make fine rugs or something, so Shadow had the bodies collected and stored nearby. He would leave the final decision to Kace once he woke up. A new set of howls suddenly sounded a lot closer. Shadow's expression turned dark. 'How many waves will we have to fend off?'

Shadow could only sigh at the thought. As long as nothing too exotic or difficult to deal with appeared, they could already consider the task a success. Of course, Shadow cursed when he realised that he had no luck at all. The next challenger had appeared. There were ten of them in total. They looked like rhinos except their backs sported an armadillo type shell.

'Looks like this one won't be easy'