The Great Thief

”Tied… tied up?” Hachi Chan was shocked.

A few minutes later, a tall, dark-headed Tauren approached Grimtotem. It was wearing Goatskin armor and was carrying a purple halberd and its prey over its shoulder.

”Halt!” The two sentries at the entrance of the camp raised the weapons they had in hand.

”The Earth Mother greets you,” said the Tauren in a muffled voice. ”I am a Tege of the Stonehorn Clan and I have suffered some injuries hunting a Centaur. I would like to enter to buy some food.”

”Tege? Are you still young?” The sentry was also a Tauren and was glaring at this uninvited guest.

”I still have three months. After three months I will be Tege Stonehorn. I will become a strong warrior like Waga Stonehorn,” the dark-horned Tauren declared as it puffed its chest with a sense of pride.

Waga Stonehorn was the Tauren’s strongest warrior in their history and was said to have 87 long braids.

This heroic figure existed a thousand years ago but his clan had been lost in time. Other than the fact that he was a Tauren, not much else was known about him.

A Tauren matured at 15 years old, and had approximately the same lifespan as humans. They would also have many different names throughout their lifetime. Firstly, they would have a childhood name, which was something very simple, like what you would call a dog. In their youth, they would have a more formal name, but they couldn’t have a last name as they would shame their ancestors in battle. When they were fully grown, a last name could be added and they had to fight for their clan.

The two sentries continued staring at him, but the doubt in their eyes gradually faded. He was just some underage calf to them.

”If you’re hurt, I can take you to the Shaman.”

The sentry turned into the camp and signaled Lu Li to follow.

”Wait a minute. Why does the prey on your shoulder look like an Elf that’s a Druid?”

The sentry was quite knowledgeable as it was able to see that the leopard was actually a transformed body.

Lu Li was the Tauren while Hachi Chan was being carried back from his hunt.

”Ahem, let’s not talk about it. I nearly killed the Centaur today,” Lu Li said angrily. ”If it weren’t for this Druid, who actually stopped me…”

”You should kill her.” Sentry B shared a common hatred with the outside, but he also seemed like he would do it if Lu Li didn’t.

Lu Li was a little nervous. He wasn’t afraid of this Tauren killing Hachi Chan – that was just a 10% EXP loss – but he was afraid that he couldn’t use the Dragon Detector.

”That’s enough Carthew. We don’t have the authority on what to do with someone else’s prey. You shouldn’t stick your nose into someone else’s hunt; those Taurens are the worst,” sentry A said, stopping sentry B.

Lu Li knew that he was right.

In general, Tauren Generals were quite different from the Elf Generals, but they didn’t treat each other badly. After all, Tauren Druids and Elf Druids interacted quite harmoniously at the Moonlight Forest.

However, Grimtotem was an exception to this Tauren custom.

They were convinced that this land had become ill and required a thorough cleansing.

”When you meet the Shaman, you gotta get better,” Lu Li whispered to the little leopard who was lying on his shoulder.

”Eeek… this is so scary! Will they kill me.” Hachi Chan’s paws were tied, otherwise, she would be covering her eyes.

The camp was quite scary. Other than the tents and some shabby housing, there were more pillars than usual. These pillars were similar to those of other Tauren camps, but these were totems that could be pulled up by Tauren Warriors and used as weapons.

The pillars in Grimtotem camp were used for punishments.

Many of the pillars had a body hanging on them which had been completely dried out. Their race could barely be made out – there were Goblins, Centaurs, Orcs…

There was one little Goblin on a pillar with bits of its stomach dripping down and staining the wood a dark red.

The most disgusting pillar held a Centaur which had been partially impaled. It hadn’t died yet as it was still moving, but its skin had been removed.

It was no wonder why the camp had become such an important quest location in the future. The Horde and Alliance would work together with Night Elves and Thunder Bluff Tauren NPCs to not only encircle the camp, but also execute all the Grimtotem Taurens that didn’t have time to flee.

”Close your eyes. We are players,” Lu Li whispered, trying to comfort Hachi Chan. In that moment, he was focused on stealing the dragon egg.

He had cursed the game designer in his heart a thousand times. There should have been a sign at the camp entrance saying that children below 18 and those who had heart disease shouldn’t be allowed to enter.

Lu Li’s outward calmness made the sentries trust him a little more.

They thought that this calf’s race was still fluid, and that he could perhaps one day become a Grimtotem.

Among this community, there were few Druids, but most of them were weak. This was because of their religious beliefs. However, Shamans played an important role and the general was a Shaman.

Grimtotem’s leader, Magatha Grimtotem, was a mighty Shaman who was said to have heard ‘the cry of Earth Mother in her dreams’. The ancestral souls told her about the catastrophe that outsiders would bring. This news greatly overwhelmed her.

The Shaman in Grimtotem village was an elderly female Tauren.

Many female Tauren chose to become Shamans as they would feel a stronger connection to the Earth Mother.

Lu Li threw Hachi Chan at his feet and bowed to the elderly female Tauren in front of him. No matter what the position, the Tauren tribe’s esteem for Shamans wouldn’t change.

”Little one, I hear you are Waga’s descendent. I thought that the Stonehorn tribe was extinct,” the Shaman said as she raised her head.

She wasn’t as fierce or crazy as Lu Li had imagined, but was rather gentle because of how close she was to nature. She was simply a benevolent grandmother; it was quite a sharp contrast to the torture that was occurring outside.