At a certain point, the smell became unbearable. It seeped through my nostrils and descended to the depths of my lungs, permeating every breath with that substance.
My pulse began to accelerate little by little. My body was no longer what it once was; even a simple aphrodisiac was enough to provoke such a reaction in me.
However, I hadn't ruled as king for so many years to let myself be incapacitated by something so insignificant.
We continued advancing through the corridor until the voices Goliath had heard became increasingly louder.
And, indeed, they were moans.
We stopped in front of the door from which those sounds came. I glanced sideways at Goliath and noticed that he was trembling. His jaw was clenched and his gaze was fixed on the entrance, with a severe expression that betrayed his eagerness to launch into the attack at any moment.
I extended a hand in front of him to stop him.
Goliath immediately turned his gaze toward me.
"Kill the goblins and knock out the others."
For an instant, confusion took over his face. He seemed unable to understand why I had given him that last order.
I looked him directly in the eyes.
"Do you trust me?"
Goliath hesitated for a few seconds. Then he looked away and nodded firmly.
That was enough.
Without wasting any more time, I launched a kick against the wooden door. It gave way with a crash, slamming against the floor with a thunderous noise that echoed through the entire corridor.
Stealth was over.
Goliath burst into the room like lightning. The goblins inside barely had time to react before his sword reached them. One after another, they fell under his blows.
When the last of them stopped moving, Goliath raised his gaze and contemplated the rest of the room.
Naked women were scattered across the floor. Some remained huddled together, while others barely seemed conscious of what was happening around them.
Goliath frowned.
"What the hell is this?"
He had no time to get an answer.
A woman suddenly clung to his leg and raised her face toward him.
"You're so beautiful... Come here with mommy."
"Huh?"
"An angel! Come, darling. Enjoy paradise!"
The expressions of those people were dominated by unbridled euphoria. Their smiles were unsettling.
Goliath instinctively stepped back, completely bewildered by those sudden advances.
"Don't be afraid. Here we're all happy..."
"That's right! We're going to have lots of babies together!"
Goliath's face lost all trace of determination. Completely paralyzed, he shook his head as he tried to process what was happening.
For my part, I decided to approach the group.
"A big guy! Come with me. I have plenty of room for you..." a woman proclaimed, accompanying her words with a provocative gesture.
The substance had already begun to take effect in my body. My pulse was still racing and I could feel its effects on my body, but I kept an imperturbable expression.
I brought my hand to the handle of my dagger and, using its pommel, I struck with precision the appropriate points on each hostage's neck. One after another, they lost consciousness without suffering serious injuries.
Goliath remained motionless, watching the scene with his eyes wide open.
When I finished, I turned toward him.
"I told you to knock them out."
"W-what happened to them?"
His faltering voice made it clear that he still hadn't come out of his stupor.
I brought a hand to my neck and cracked it before responding.
"It's a trap."
Goliath looked at me without understanding.
I sighed.
"You place the hostages in a single room and fill it with an aphrodisiac. You keep them docile, incapable of thinking clearly. Then, when someone tries to rescue them, they just have to make noise to alert the guards. And, if the substance also affects the rescuers, even better."
Goliath's expression changed slowly. The initial surprise gave way to a mixture of disbelief and horror, as if he had just discovered a facet of the world he had never even imagined.
"I-is that normal in this world?"
I brought a hand to my chin and reflected for a few moments.
"No. It's not."
Goblins and trolls had never stood out for their strategic intelligence. They were brutal creatures, guided mainly by their instincts, and I highly doubted they had devised such a trap on their own.
The reality was rather more unpleasant.
Those tactics were not unknown to me. My own empire had employed them in the past to subdue isolated communities, especially those whose conquest was considered too costly for the resources they could offer.
An efficient strategy, if one was willing to ignore any moral consideration, and I knew very well what it meant to rule an empire willing to pay that price.
I pushed those memories from my mind and headed toward the exit.
"Let's go. They already know we're here."
Goliath didn't move immediately. He kept looking at the unconscious hostages, with his brow deeply furrowed.
"But we can't leave them here..."
I stopped and turned my head toward him.
"Relax. We'll come back for them."
I pointed to the corridor with a movement of my head.
"First we have to finish off the last horde."
Goliath clenched his fists. Although he still seemed worried, he finally stepped away from the hostages and placed himself at my side.
We continued walking through the dark cave, until we reached the last room.
We resumed our march through the dark tunnels of the cave. Our steps echoed against the rock walls, while the air became increasingly heavier as we delved deeper.
Finally, we reached the last room.
It was a colossal chamber, so disproportionate compared to the tunnels that connected it to the outside that it was evident it had been artificially expanded.
And there they were.
A small group of goblins, fully equipped with steel armor, blocked our path. Their weapons gave off a faint magical glow.
But those weren't my main concern.
Behind them stood a troll.
"Welcome," the creature greeted with a twisted smile. "I imagined a much larger group would come, but I must admit it's surprising that there are only two of you."
Goliath's teeth gnashed beside me.
"Are you the damn bastard who did that to those people?!" he exclaimed, raising his dagger toward the troll. "I swear I'm going to...!"
I raised a hand to stop him.
Goliath stopped dead. His eyes widened in surprise as he understood that I wasn't going to let him attack.
I didn't take my eyes off the troll.
At that moment, justice mattered little to me. Nor did I care too much about the fate of those who had suffered at the hands of that creature, however lamentable their circumstances might be.
The only thing that interested me was the information that troll could provide me.