The Emperor Class

Colet changed his plan because the Uxlut under Ruazk was already assisting the centaurs. He had originally wished to speak with the Uxlut first but the lizardfolk race proved to be dependable during these trying times. To further bolster his ranks, Colet galloped towards the camp of a race he never imagined himself working with. Soon, the camp was within sight and, like the dwarven camp, he could see movement on the wooden walls surrounding the camp. Like earlier, he halted his advance to give the garrison time to notice his approach. Unexpectedly, the camp gate opened with a being riding a large wolf out of the camp.

“I’m not surprised to see you here, centaur chieftain.”

Atop the wolf was the goblin leader, Gabs. The goblin leader was roughly double the size of the other goblins and this was also reflected in his mount. Generally, adult goblins would ride wolves commonly found on the continent. These wolves traveled in packs and, by themselves, weren’t a big threat to anyone wielding weapons. The animals were also just big enough to carry a standard size goblin making them inadequate for the likes of Gabs. For the goblin leader, he needed a special mount which was staring at Colet as though he was another potential meal. The centaur leader wasn’t too fond of standing before a dire wolf knowing he had no guarantee of defeating it alone. Dire wolves were better in all aspects compared to normal wolves. While there was no confirmation, the centaur chieftain had heard of rumors of dire wolves possessing a limited number of spells. He hoped to get confirmation once he saw Gabs in action against tough foes.

“I wished to share the newest developments on the human garrison,” said Colet once he calmed himself before the apex predator.

“They marched out a large force.” Gabs noticed the surprised look on Colet’s face. “We aren’t all stupid like the dwarves. Lead the way and we will follow.”

The goblin’s straightforward attitude forced a smile on Colet’s face. Like Ruazk, Gabs didn’t mince words. Goblins adopted nomadic lifestyles due to the terrible reputation of goblins among the other races. A goblin’s life in settlements was generally filled with hardships and distrust. Therefore, the goblins traveled on wolves as they went wherever they could eke out a living. Gabs’ goblins belonged to the largest nomads on the entire continent. While goblins usually stayed out of conflicts, Gabs and many goblins under him had a bone to pick with the humans. Upon learning about the coalition’s formation, Gabs led his goblins and offered their services. With the humans making their move, the goblins were getting their first shot at revenge.

Colet looked behind Gabs to see the “we” he was referring to. Behind the goblin leader, there were countless goblins atop wolves of all sizes. These wolves looked like they hadn’t eaten all day but the goblins still reined them in.

“Follow me then,” said the centaur chieftain who would rather the wolves feed on the humans than him.

Colet began with a canter but, when he sensed the wolves keeping up easily, he went into a gallop. With speed being of the essence, he picked the most direct route to roughly where the battle took place. Several minutes later, he sensed Ilumin above him. Without stopping, he raised his arm for the Cloud Hawk to land gracefully.

No more human reinforcements. Battle fierce!

Colet told the Cloud Hawk to continue surveillance after he got the exact location of the battle from his companion. He didn’t bother asking for the update of the battle because it would take too long for Ilumin to convey everything. He needed to reach the battle and survey it personally. Behind him, the goblins remained very silent. Except for a few snarls here and then, the wolves were also surprisingly well behaved. As they got closer to the battlefield, Colet sensed a different mood from the wolves. His instincts were screaming because he knew the wolves behind him were hungry and ready to hunt while he had his back to them. As soon as they all arrived at the battlefield, Gabs stopped next to Colet.

“Now we hunt! Don’t get in our way.”

Before the warning sunk in, the goblins forces already charged head first into the battlefield. Despite the chaos, Gabs led the way to an open flank where the human formation was disorganized. The dire wolf easily plowed into the flank sending many humans flying. The opened flank allowed the other wolves to get behind human soldiers too preoccupied to notice their approach. The wolves went for the feet as they bit down on the ankle region before pulling the soldiers off balance. Once off balance, the humans were either torn apart by the wolves or killed off by the goblins with their spears.

Colet watched as the human formation collapsed in the face of the goblin strike. Some of the humans fled only to be chased down by the wolves. The ones brave enough to resist only fared slightly better. Those humans might wound a goblin or wolf before they were ripped apart. The centaur chieftain was in awe at the goblin’s efficiency when it came to exploiting weakness in enemy ranks. They were highly coordinated and acted almost on instinct alone. Unlike earlier when the goblins kept the wolves on a tight leash, the riders allowed their mounts free rein during combat while they simply focused on stabbing any foe with their spears.

Colet had to force himself to stop watching the mesmerizing scene. He never expected a hunt to be this efficient and deadly. Goblins had a reputation for hit and run as they preyed on small caravans. As a group known to avoid combatants who could fight back, the goblins changed Colet’s perception of their possible contributions on the battlefield. Having looked away from the one-sided slaughter on the flank, he searched for the centaur leaders. As soon as he spotted them on a small hill overlooking the battle, he went to join them. The bodyguards of the centaur leaders all greeted him respectfully as he cantered past them. The leaders, noticing his approach, all bowed to the chieftain.

“What’s the update on the battle?” Colet went straight to the point.