GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?

So the Sovereigns refused to comply with the request of the fountain of life. They shouted and disagreed en mass. The plaza became rowdy and noisy despite the usual calm disposition of wood elves. 

The representative of the fountain of life remained silent and bore the criticism. It turned out to be a good idea. The sovereigns stopped shouting when they got no response from her. 

So someone asked her, "Why does the Fountain of Life want us to protect the Warrogs? Surely there must be a valid reason for this absurd request."

She answered, "The spawns of the demon God are coming to the surface and they will target the Warrogs. They cannot turn the Warrogs but they can feed on them to strengthen themselves. Protecting the Warrogs is in our interest."

They understand her reason and they also expect it because they know why the suggestion is a good one. But they made her say it so that they could propose a more pleasant alternative that could achieve the same thing.

Another sovereign said, "We know that the spawns feed on all life and are strengthened by the feeding. Why don't we get rid of all the Warrogs? That way, the spawns of the demon God won't be able to get to them and use them against us."

That's what they want. Rather than spend time and effort to protect the Warrogs, they prefer to get rid of the Warrogs once and for all. 

The representative sighed and asked. "What about the other races in the plane? Do we also get rid of them or are we to only eliminate the Warrogs? Is that what we are now? Are we butchers? I thought we were guardians. Isn't it our job to protect and to maintain the natural order of life? What will separate us from the dark elves if we start killing wantonly?"

They couldn't answer her. Her questions made them feel deeply ashamed. They hate the Warrogs a lot but they are not killers. They would like to visit pain on the Warrogs for the loss of many trees bonded to them but they are not the dark elves. They are wood elves and they respect all life.

They agree with her but that doesn't mean that they will protect the Warrogs. She has only convinced them not to kill the Warrogs. She still has a lot to do if she wants to convince them to protect their hated enemies. So the argument continued for a long while after that. 

Even after they agreed to protect the Warrogs, they didn't do it to the best of their abilities. They were negligent. Their negligence allowed the following events to occur.

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100 Years After The Birth Of Ragnarok. The Rising Mountain Range.

The Rising Mountain Range is a geographical feature formed with several mountains joined at the edges in a continuous linkage. It is the location of one of the settlements of the Warrogs. Specifically, it is also where Ragnarok is staying. This mountain range is currently home to 2 tribes. They used to be 11 but they became just 2 today.

Ragnarok stood on top of a peak. There is a very tall white pillar behind him while there is a large population of Warrogs beneath him. The white pillar is stained with red marks and blotches. It has grown taller over the years just as the Warrog population has increased. 

His eyes roamed the scenery of the mountain range. He found Warrogs everywhere he looked. All these Warrogs belong to the iron fur pack. A single pack has enlarged so much that they occupy the entirety of the mountain.

"There must be at least a million of them." He said to himself.

The iron fur pack has annexed most of the other packs and they have also subdued the environment to make it more suitable for living. Just today, Sauron defeated another pack leaving just one other one. The population of the pack has ballooned from 10,000 that it was a hundred years ago to about 1 million now. That is remarkable growth.

The success of the iron fur pack is partly due to Sauron and partly due to Ragnarok who is the current and only Shaman of the pack. The previous Shaman grew senile and mad in his old age. Then he didn't wake up one day. They found blood running down his nose. It was a tragic death. But the old shaman wasn't missed. 

It is disputable if Ragnarok is solely to thank for the prosperity of the pack, but the changes to the environment are mostly due to him. He has achieved things that the old shaman didn't. No one misses the old shaman because of it. 

Someone called to Ragnarok from behind him. "Shaman Chief, there are some warriors here for your blessings."

He replied without turning back. "I will be there soon."

The acolyte that called for him nodded and stood waiting patiently. 

Ragnarok continued to look at the changes to the environment. He can see tall structures built out of hewn rocks. These are used as houses for the pack members. It is an upgrade from the usual cave living conditions of the past.

There are other developments, mostly based on the use of rocks as building material for a lot of things. Warrogs lacked tools and methods to work rock and create things out of rocks. But that has changed thanks to him. They have furniture, utensils, weapons, and tools made with rocks now.

All these changes occurred in the last hundred years because of the "Shaman Chief." 

"Shaman Chief." He thought to himself with a chuckle. 

It is a title that belongs to him automatically since he is the only Shaman of the pack. That was also when the iron fur pack began its meteoric rise. Both the pack leader and the Shaman were ambitious so they worked together and brought glory to the pack.

The pack has changed a lot and so has he. He is not a vitality core stage refiner anymore. He has made the leap to become a Mana entity.

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A/N: Bonus chapter for reaching the 500 power stones voting goal. Let's see if we can reach 300 golden tickets before the month ends.