The morning mist clung to the river like a veil, wrapping the forest in pale silver. The current whispered softly, carrying the scent of wet stone and reeds. For the goblins, this was a sacred moment — their lord had stood against a beastman chief, and not only endured but earned his respect.
Yet for Luminus, the duel was not an ending. It was only the first crack in a wall that had stood for centuries. The beasts had not left, nor had they attacked. They lingered. Watching. Waiting.
Mira tightened her grip on her spear, her sharp eyes never leaving the lion-tribe warriors who circled like restless shadows. "They haven't left," she muttered to Luminus, her voice low. "Do you think they mean to test us further?"
"No," Luminus replied. His voice was calm, though his gel-like form shimmered faintly with caution. "They're curious. Curiosity is more dangerous than anger… because it lingers."
Kaelen approached then, his mane blazing in the morning light, turning his silhouette almost regal. He studied Luminus in silence, the weight of his gaze sharp enough to unsettle the goblins.
"You are strange," Kaelen said at last. "I struck you with everything I had, yet you endured without injury. You restrained me… but did not humiliate me. That choice alone…" He bared his fangs slightly. "…confuses me."
"Perhaps it should not," Luminus said softly. "Strength used only to crush breeds only resentment. But strength used to protect… it invites others to stand beside you."
Murmurs rippled through the beastmen. Some scoffed, baring teeth in disdain, but others looked at the slime with something new — not fear, not hatred, but a dangerous spark of intrigue.
As twilight fell, Kaelen made a decision. His tribe prepared food over great fires, smoke curling into the sky. Roasted boar, river fish, and bitter forest roots were set upon carved wooden platters.
It was a gesture of respect — and of challenge. For to eat another tribe's food was to accept trust… and risk betrayal.
Elira's eyes narrowed as the plates were brought forth. "We should refuse," she whispered. "It could be poisoned."
Rugo cracked his neck, his crimson aura flickering faintly. "If it is, I'll crush them all before the venom reaches my heart."
But Luminus extended a tendril without hesitation. He scooped a portion of roasted boar into his gelatinous body, absorbing it with a pulse of contentment. Delicious, his aura seemed to hum.
The beastmen blinked in surprise. Then laughter erupted — not mocking, but genuine.
"The slime eats like a god of hunger!" one hunter barked.
Kaelen's lips curved into a grin. "Brave… or foolish. Perhaps both."
The tension loosened. Goblin scouts traded dried jerky with beastman cubs, who wrinkled their noses before chewing and laughing. Rugo locked arms with a pair of lion warriors, their contest drawing roars of amusement. Even Elira found herself in quiet discussion with a fox-eared huntress, comparing herbs and remedies of the wild.
By the fire's glow, suspicion did not vanish — but it softened.
Later, when the meat was bones and the fires burned low, Kaelen sat apart with Luminus. His gaze was steady, voice solemn.
"You speak of unity. Of peace. But what of the Demon Lords?"
Luminus pulsed thoughtfully. "What of them?"
"They will not allow such a nation to rise," Kaelen growled. "They rule by dominance. If your village grows, it will draw their eyes. And then…" His claws dug into the soil. "…then you will be crushed."
"Perhaps," Luminus admitted. "But strength tempered by wisdom can stand even against Demon Lords. If not today, then one day."
Kaelen studied him, golden eyes narrowing. "You speak like no monster I have ever known. Perhaps like no man either."
"Because I was once… something else," Luminus murmured, almost too quietly.
Kaelen tilted his head, curious, but did not pry. "If your dream survives, it may give my people a future beyond bloodshed. But trust is not given in a single night. It must be earned, piece by piece."
"And I will earn it," Luminus replied.
The next morning Kaelen rose with decision. "Words are wind. If your kind bleed with ours, perhaps then my people will believe you."
The Redmane tribe relied on dangerous seasonal hunts of thunderstags — massive deer crowned with antlers sparking with faint lightning. A beast even beastmen respected.
The goblins agreed.
The hunt began with a thunderous cry. Wolf-riders surged through the undergrowth, Mira's commands snapping sharp and precise. They drove the herd toward the river where beastmen waited.
The thunderstags charged, their hooves sparking as they tore through brush. Kaelen leapt from a boulder, his claws sinking into the neck of one stag, his roar shaking the trees.
Rugo met another head-on. Crimson aura flared as lightning clashed against raw physical might. The stag staggered under his crushing grip, its sparks dimming as his laughter shook the battlefield.
Mira guided goblin hunters in disciplined formation, spears striking as one, darting in and out like silverfish in a stream.
And Luminus… stretched himself wide, intercepting bolts of lightning, absorbing the energy into his body and grounding it harmlessly. At one moment, he ensnared a stag's leg, toppling it just in time for a young lion warrior to leap forward and pierce its throat.
When the dust settled, six thunderstags lay slain. Not one hunter had fallen.
For the beastmen, this was proof.
That night, a true feast was held. Thunderstag meat roasted over great fires, its crackling antlers mounted as trophies. Drums echoed, cubs danced, warriors sang. Goblins sat shoulder to shoulder with beastmen, laughter rising into the night sky.
Beastmen warriors clapped goblins on the back, calling them brothers. Ogres and lions wrestled in good humor, collapsing in heaps of laughter. Even Elira allowed herself a small smile as she accepted a carved charm from a fox cub.
Kaelen raised a horn of mead high. "Tonight, we honor not just a hunt, but a bond! The slime-lord and his people fought as one with the Redmane! Let it be known — their strength is real, their will unshaken!"
A roar of approval shook the camp.
And in that moment, for the first time in generations, two tribes of monsters shared not suspicion, but fellowship.
Yet as the fire dimmed and shadows grew long, Kaelen pulled Luminus aside once more. His voice was low, weight heavy with unspoken truths.
"You have earned respect, Luminus. Enough that my people will not stand against you — perhaps even stand beside you. But beware: you have planted a seed in dangerous soil. If it grows, it will draw not only the Demon Lords… but humans as well."
Luminus pulsed steadily. "Then it must grow stronger before they come."
Kaelen's golden eyes glimmered with something between warning and admiration. "You may yet reshape the forest, slime-lord. But every alliance carries a price. Do not forget that."
As Luminus returned to his people, watching goblins and beastmen laugh together, he knew Kaelen's words were true. The price was unknown. But the path had been chosen.
The first bond was made.