System's POV

Leon grimaced as the Shaman of the Varesti Tribe inscribed on his forehead the symbol signifying that they were humans part of the Lizardmen's faction.

However, instead of the triangle or circle they've seen on the other Wanderers before, the symbol placed on their forehead was a letter "V" with a dot in the middle.

This indicated that they were not slaves but allies of the Varesti Tribe.

Their current status would also garner them a different kind of treatment from the other Lizardmen Tribes.

Frankly, the Wanderers disliked this marking ceremony, especially the Scions of the Cygni Faction. It made them feel like they were becoming the subordinates of others.

Despite what they thought, all of them endured it because they were currently in the Varesti Tribe's territory.

After all the Wanderers, including Thirteen, had been marked by the Shaman, they were led to the temporary residence prepared for them. They were given a few days to rest before heading to the frontlines of the battlefield.

While everyone was relaxing, Thirteen was listening to Tiona's report about the scouting her clone had done around the Varesti Tribe's domain.

'Aside from their Chieftain and the Shaman, the strongest monsters here are five Rank 4 Monsters, including Vorel,' Thirteen thought after hearing Tiona's report. 'This means that their strongest warriors are currently on the frontlines, fighting against the Ratmen.'

He didn't find anything wrong with this report, even thinking that it was very normal for the strongest combatants to be on the battlefield.

If Thirteen wished for it, he could probably take down the entire Varesti Tribe by employing a blitzkrieg attack with the help of his Monster Army.

But doing it would harm his chances of reaching his goal.

Despite their looks and fierce behavior, Lizardmen were actually very honorable and righteous when it came to their friends and allies.

They might dislike races that weren't their own, but they still had higher tolerance compared to the arrogant elves and the stubborn dwarves.

Meeting a Lizardman in the wild didn't exactly mean that they would attack you on sight.

However, the current circumstances in the Fractured Heaven were special.

The Lizardmen were at war with the Ratmen, so every other race, until proven otherwise, were their enemies.

This included the humans who had appeared in their domains.

Ratmen were a savage race.

For them, almost any other race was food or soon-to-be food.

Very few humans would survive when passing through territories under the control of the Ratmen.

The only situation when they would be spared from being eaten or used as cannon fodders in the war was when the humans had something of value or proved that they could benefit the Ratmen by staying alive.

According to Sharroc, there were many humans who had been captured by the Ratmen.

They were either used as slaves, cannon fodders, or worse, emergency food.

Thirteen's goal was simple.

He wanted to free the humans kept by both the Lizardmen and the Ratmen.

The teenage boy didn't have a noble goal behind this.

But since he was already there, he couldn't possibly turn a blind eye to their suffering. After all, he couldn't be too sure whether one of his acquaintances had been captured by these two races or not.

Many years ago, Thirteen wouldn't have cared much if Wanderers were kept as slaves by the Lizardmen and Ratmen.

But things were different this time.

He now had responsibilities and people whom he cared about.

Also, he had a feeling that he might meet one of the members of the Hero Party on this mission.

Thirteen didn't know why he felt this way, but his senses were screaming at him that this possibility existed.

If Shana, Erica, Mildred, or Diana were there, he would, of course, do his best to save them.

If it was Derek, he could still lend a hand.

However, if it was Roland or Joshua… the teenage boy wouldn't lift a finger to help them.

'Since they are Fate's favorites, I'm sure they will be fine,' Thirteen mused. 'Those two need to suffer more to grow faster.'

Also, Tiona's clone not only looked for the strongest members of the Lizardmen Tribe, but it also searched for all the Wanderers who were currently inside the Varesti Tribe.

After confirming that none of his friends or acquaintances were there, Thirteen felt relieved and disappointed at the same time.

Relieved because none of the people he knew was there.

Disappointed because if they were there, he could probably come to an agreement with the Chieftain to let his acquaintances join his group.

That way, he would be able to free them from their current situation, which would also boost his team's fighting prowess.

Two days later, Thirteen and his group were escorted by Sharroc to one of the battlefields where help was greatly needed.

"Several days ago, we received reports saying that our forces in the Fangiss Swamp were being pushed back because of the corruption that was spreading in its waters," Sharroc replied. "The Ratmen are using nefarious ancient magic to pollute the source of water that flows into our territories.

"They know that once we lose our advantage over them, they would have a higher chance of winning this war. Our shamans are doing their best to counter their spells and purify the water source, but it is an uphill battle.

"If we lose this front of the battlefield, a hole in our defensive perimeter will fall. The other Lizardmen will then look down on us and think that the Varesti Tribe is the weakest link among all the Tribes."

Sharroc was feeling anxious because compared to the other places, their Tribe was facing intense battles almost every day.

Also, according to their scouts, the number of the Ratmen was also increasing. This could lead to a large-scale battle that would put the defenders of the Varesti Tribe at a great disadvantage.

This was why aside from Thirteen's group, all the other humans who were in the tribe were immediately sent to the frontlines.

Perhaps thinking that they would be able to fight better if a fellow human was leading them, the Great Chieftain appointed Thirteen as the Captain of the humans.

Of course, the teenage boy accepted this responsibility because this was his goal from the beginning.

All he needed to do was gain more of the Varesti Tribe's trust so that they could act as a mediator for the other Lizardmen Tribes to put their human captives under his leadership as well.