The group made quick progress through the forest after Olgron returned from his scouting. The honey badger checked all the main routes but those were either swarmed with demonic creatures or had humans lying in wait nearby.
“Honey badgers have a keen sense of smell,” said Olgron. “The humans think they are well hidden but, as long as I know they are lying in ambush, I can find them through repositioning.”
The young man had been very impressed with the honey badger leader’s performance so far. When he checked the prompt, he wasn’t surprised one bit by the honey badger’s skills. Unlike the others, Olgron had two skills in addition to those available to all honey badgers.
< Lv 1 Demon Honey Badger (Olgron):
Skill:
-Temper Tantrum (Lvl 1): Active. Once the user is antagonized, this skill activates automatically, giving the user +50% boost to both attack and defense. While this skill is active, the user cannot stop fighting until it or its opponent is defeated. No limits to uses or cooldown.
-Thick Hide (Lvl 1): Passive. Grants the user +100% defense and resistance to venom.
-Fearless (Lvl 1): Passive. Immune to fear debuff effects. While under fear debuff, gain +25% attack. Attack gains can stack.
-Badger Leader (Lvl 1): Passive. Nearby friendly demon honey badgers gain +10% attack, +10% defense and +10% movement. Buff doubles if the demon honey badgers view the user as the leader.
-Calm (Lvl 1): Passive. Removes the downside of Temper Tantrum on the user. Active. Removes the downside of Temper Tantrum on allied honey badgers. Limited to 3 uses per day.
Status:
+75% attack and defense from combat experience. >
Calm caught Dreu’s eyes immediately. An ability that removed the downside of a strong ability was worth its weight in gold. Strong abilities were generally balanced out in some way. Higher costs, limited uses and other downsides were common. Therefore, Olgron’s Calm could make the group of demon honey badgers even more threatening. For the time being, Olgron determined the best route out of the demon realm. Once they exit the border, they would have to re-evaluate their plans.
“Even with the route figured out, we lack the speed.” Dreu gestured to himself and the demonic children. “We aren’t built to move swiftly through the forest.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“I guess that’s normal when you have small sized creatures at your disposal.” Olgron then gestured to the other honey badgers. “When you work with creatures our size, we can easily carry all of you on our backs, making any journey simpler.”
Dreu then watched amusingly as the demon children all climbed onto Zanraz while Predis and Khezira had no one atop them. The young man wondered who he should ride when the honey badger leader offered himself. The moment he got on Olgron, the honey badgers took off for the route planned by their leader. For creatures their size, they were surprisingly fast. After a day of travel, they made far more progress than Dreu could over several days on foot. Olgron specifically picked a cave where they would be resting.
“Are we expecting to fight any foes tomorrow?” asked Dreu as he sat by the campfire. “If so, I should at least do some planning.”
“Ideally, we avoid any confrontations. We are fine but you and these children may not do so well in combat.”
Dreu could tell that Ragellon wasn’t pleased with being viewed as a mere child but she also didn’t voice her concerns. The girl was smart enough to recognize the danger they could encounter. Without the protection of Isonron for the other demons, they could very easily meet their end in the demon realm. As a precaution, the young man had to make preparations. Yet, he started panicking minutes into looking over his roster.
“What’s wrong?” asked Ragellon. “Did something happen?”
“Marun isn’t available…”
Marun’s name might be on the list but she was listed as unavailable. The young man was certain he unsummoned the netherbear before he departed from Isonron. He checked with his other companions who confirmed that Marun was indeed with them. However, none of them could tell him where she went after they left the artificial city. Marun normally preferred to keep to herself when unsummoned so her absence could easily be missed.
“Is Marun powerful?” asked Olgron.
The young man described all the battles Marun was in and how easily she crushed the foes. The honey badgers listened intently and, as soon as Dreu finished, they began showering compliments on the netherbear.
“What a shame she couldn’t join us,” said Khezira. “I would gladly challenge her in some friendly competitions to see who is stronger!”
For the next two hours, Dreu summoned all his companions who could fight in the daytime so they could demonstrate their skills. The honey badgers were especially impressed with Aggich as curses complimented their offensive heavy focus. While the honey badgers did desire a good fight, they wouldn’t hesitate to use any advantage that came their way, including a cursed foe. Once the group finished planning their strategies, they ate a quick meal and went to sleep. The bats kept a lookout so everyone else could be well rested for the following day. On the following day, the group had a quick meal before they proceeded on their journey to the border of the demon realm.
We should be close to some enemies! I can sense their bloodlust. Do we engage them?
Both Dreu and Olgron agreed that they needed to keep a low profile moving forward. To speak loudly would attract the attention of any demonic creature with keen hearing. Even the humans might possess spells that could sense conversations While communicating with their minds meant Ragellon was left out, the demon child knew that she and the children must stick with Zanraz who would keep them safe. Any plan decided between Dreu and Olgron would likely exclude them for their own safety. Until they reached safety, the children were sadly a burden and a distraction to their combat. Zanraz was therefore ordered to split from the main group if combat was unavoidable.
