Somewhere in the [Cursed Forest]...
"..."
The [Cursed Forest] was never a place of peace, but for the creatures that lived within its dark, blue-green borders, there was a certain order to the chaos.
At the edge of the deeper woods, a tribe of orcs lived in a small, hidden village. These orcs were tall and built like walls of solid muscle, their skin a deep, swampy green that helped them blend into the shadows of the massive trees. Their lower fangs poked out from their mouths, resting against their upper lips, giving them a constant, fierce look. They wore ragged clothes made of monster hides and scraps of cloth, and they carried weapons made of heavy wood and sharpened stone.
For centuries, this tribe had survived by being careful. They were strong, but they knew that there were things in this forest much stronger than them.
However, today... the order of the forest had been shattered.
The tribe had noticed it hours ago. Right in the heart of the forest, a structure had appeared out of nowhere!
It was a castle made of dark gray stone. Even though it wasn’t a massive skyscraper, it was tall enough that its roof peeked through the thick canopy of the giant trees like a sore thumb wanting to be noticed. It looked alien and dangerous against the natural backdrop of the woods.
"What is that?"
The chief of the orcs asked, his voice a deep growl.
He was standing on a high branch of a fallen tree, squinting his eyes as he looked toward the center of the woods. Beside him stood the tribe’s elder, a hunched orc whose green skin was wrinkled with age and covered in ritual paint. They had been staring at the distant stone building for a long time now.
"I don’t know as well... but one thing is for sure— the troll that had been attacking our members is gone now. I can’t feel its energy anymore."
The elder said, his voice shaking slightly.
Hearing his words, the chief and the other warriors standing nearby felt a jolt of shock. Their eyes widened, and a few of them gripped their stone axes tighter.
The troll they were talking about was a nightmare for their tribe. It was a giant monster that was easily double their size, and although the orcs outnumbered it, they had never been able to kill it. Its regeneration was simply too absurd. Every time they managed to land a deep cut, the wound would close before they could even pull their weapons back.
They probably could have won if the entire tribe fought it at once, but they would have lost more than half their people in the process... Because of that, they had decided to just simply avoiding it.
"The troll is gone...?"
The chief mumbled in disbelief.
He looked at the elder, then turned to look at the other members of the tribe who were gathering around. The idea that something could just remove the troll from the forest was terrifying.
The elder nodded his head slowly, his expression grim.
"It seems like whoever created that weird structure in the heart of the forest is the one responsible for it. Replacing the troll’s energy is something much stronger than it. I can feel it from here... something sinister and darker than anything I have felt in my long life."
The elder paused, looking at the distant castle with fear in his eyes.
"It’s possible that we’re dealing with a demon king here."
He declared with a heavy voice.
SWOOOSH~
"..."
Everyone around went silent. The term ’Demon King’ wasn’t something they used lightly. To these orcs, a Demon King was a being of absolute power, someone who could wipe out their entire existence with a wave of a hand. The mention of such a being residing in their forest sent cold chills through their muscular bodies.
"W-What do you suggest we do, Elder?"
The chief asked, his usual confidence completely gone.
Their tribe only had a little over 50 members. All they had was their small village and their stone tools. If a Demon King decided that they were a nuisance or if he just wanted to expand his territory, they would be wiped out in an afternoon.
The chieftain didn’t want his people to die.
The elder looked at the chief, sweat pouring down his green forehead despite the cool air of the forest. He parted his lips, his voice turning very serious.
"We should go to the castle. We should greet the demon king and ask him to take us under his wing. That way, we’ll have his protection, and he wouldn’t see us as enemies. It is our only chance at survival."
He stated firmly.
"..."
The chief and the warriors didn’t say anything at first. They looked at each other, weighing the options.
Going to a Demon King was like walking into a lion’s den, but staying here and waiting for him to notice them might be worse. Hearing the words of their elder, who was the most knowledgeable person they knew, a look of resolution appeared on their faces.
They would follow his advice. If it meant the survival of their tribe.... then they would bow their heads to this new power.
And just like that, they started marching toward the castle.
TAP!
*****
Meanwhile... The said ’Demon King’ the orcs were so worried about was currently walking through his new home.
"What are you guys doing?"
Verc asked as he reached the bottom floor of the castle.
He had spent the last hour just walking around to get a feel for the place. The castle itself was five floors tall, which was impressive considering he had made it in a single go, but it was also incredibly empty. The halls were wide and the ceilings were high, but every single inch of it was just cold, gray stone.
"Ah...! Lord Verc!"
Jed greeted him as soon as he saw him.
The other six kids followed suit, dropping the bundles of leaves and wood they were carrying to give him their full attention.
Verc just waved his hand casually to dismiss the formalities. He wasn’t really the type to demand people bow every time he entered a room, even if he did have a castle now.
"We’re currently working out what room is which... like the kitchen and stuff. Also, we’re cleaning the whole place so it’s ready for use."
Ashley answered his earlier question.
She was holding a bundle of soft moss that she was likely using as a makeshift sponge. The group seemed very busy trying to turn the empty stone shell into something that functioned like a base.
"How about you guys? Did you each pick your own room?"
Verc asked.
"Huh...? We all get our own room?"
Tatum asked, his eyes going wide with surprise.
The others looked just as shocked. To them, being part of a group usually meant sleeping in one big pile or sharing a cramped space for safety. The idea of having a private room was a luxury they hadn’t even considered.
Verc shrugged, looking at them like they were being silly.
"I made a lot of rooms. What am I going to do with all of them except give them to you guys?"
He said, as if he was just stating the obvious.
’I’m not going to use all of the bedrooms by myself. That would just be a waste of space.’
Verc thought.
"Looks like you guys haven’t picked yet. Go look around the upper floors and pick your own. We have no furniture or items yet, so deciding which room is the kitchen or the storage is pretty useless right now. Just pick where you want to sleep and clean the rest later."
Verc said, seeing the clueless looks on the kids’ faces.
At his words—
"..."
The seven of them went silent. They looked at Verc with expressions of pure gratitude. They hadn’t expected him to be this generous to them.
After all, they were the ones who had basically forced him to take them along back at the village. They saw themselves as his servants or followers, but he was treating them like actual members of a household.
Feeling touched by his kindness, they all bowed their heads deeply. Then, as loud as they could—
"WE WILL FIND OUR OWN ROOM NOW! THANK YOU VERY MUCH, LORD VERC!!!"
They shouted in unison, their voices echoing off the stone walls. They were all smiling, their eyes bright with excitement.
"Uhh, sure. Just don’t break anything."
Verc answered, feeling a bit confused and overwhelmed by their loud reaction.
He watched as the seven of them scrambled toward the staircase, chatting happily about which floor they wanted to live on.
"Ahh... Lord Verc, we made a small barn outside. Bong is currently there, sleeping."
Ashley stopped for a second, turning back to tell him that before she vanished up the stairs.
"Oh, thank you. I’ll go check on him."
Verc said to her.
He watched her run off, then he turned toward the heavy stone doors of the castle. He pushed them open and stepped back out into the [Cursed Forest].
... ... ...
... ... ...
It was already dark outside, the sun was nowhere to be seen and the moon was high up in the sky. The forest was much darker than it was before.
Anyway, just like Ashley said, there was a small barn standing a short distance away from the castle walls.
It wasn’t made of stone like the castle; the kids had clearly built it themselves. It was made from the thick branches of the forest trees, woven together with smaller twigs. The roof was a thick combination of branches and those large, blue-green leaves that grew everywhere.
"It’s actually well made."
Verc said, nodding to himself.
He could tell they had put effort into making it sturdy. He walked over and stepped inside the structure. The air inside smelled like fresh wood and crushed grass.
There, he saw Bong sleeping peacefully. The horse was lying down, he looked completely exhausted. A huge amount of forest grass had been piled up near him, acting as both a soft bed and a pile of food for when he woke up.
"Well, I’m not going to disturb your rest now."
Verc said quietly.
He reached into his spatial pouch and pulled out the remaining berries and hay he had bought. He placed them right next to Bong’s head so the horse would have a treat as soon as he opened his eyes.
He knew that the animal had been through a lot. Bong was just a normal horse, and the [Cursed Forest] was a place of pure terror for most living things. Even though Bong had been shaking with fear the entire time, he had followed Verc’s will and traversed the forest without bolting.
’That’s a lot of mental stress for a human, let alone an animal.’
Verc thought.
He reached out and gently patted Bong’s side, thanking him internally for being such a loyal mount. Onyx, the small puppy, got down from Verc’s arm. He then curled up in a tiny ball, laying right beside Bong’s leg.
Verc thought they were adorable.
But then, at that moment, as Verc was standing there in the quiet of the barn—
"?!!"
A sharp jolt of electricity ran up his spine.
Verc’s body tensed instantly. He felt a sudden, heavy weight in the air— multiple strong presences were moving toward their direction. They weren’t trying to hide it either!
’What is it now...?’
Verc asked himself, a deep frown forming on his face.
His head snapped violently toward the west, the direction the presences were coming from.
[Danger Sense] began to hum in the back of his mind. It wasn’t screaming like it did with the giant, but it was persistent, telling him that whoever was coming had the power to cause trouble.
[Vibration Awareness] kicked in next. He could feel the rhythmic thudding of many feet hitting the ground. It was a fairly large group— at least dozens of them.
And based on the quality of the mana he was sensing right now...
’They’re all just a little bit below the level of that giant monster I just defeated. And there’s a lot of them? Ugh.’
Verc groaned.
He hadn’t even had time to find a chair to sit on, and now he had a small army of powerful creatures heading toward him.
TAP-
He stepped out of the barn, his hand already moving toward the hilt of his sword. He left Onyx and Bong inside the Barn.
’If they’re here to fight, this is going to be a massive pain.’
He stood in the clearing between the barn and his castle, his eyes narrowed as he watched the treeline. He could feel as the group approached. He didn’t call the kids down yet. He wanted to see what he was dealing with first.
Verc stood his ground, his [Dominion Aura] flickering just below the surface, ready to be unleashed if things turned ugly.