Chapter 24. The Gnoll Village in Flames

Arthur continued following his strategy, never forgetting to analyze his mistakes and successes. Each night spent observing or fighting brought him closer to his ultimate goal—the destruction of the gnoll village.

But soon, he realized that the situation was becoming more complicated. Despite his efforts, the gnolls had begun adapting to his attacks. Their squads were getting more organized, and their hunting routes less predictable. Arthur increasingly noticed that patrols now included two or even three elite warriors armed with spears, and they moved with greater caution.

He needed to change his approach to maintain his advantage.

Returning to his part of the spiritual world, Arthur began developing a new tactic. He could no longer rely solely on Stone Spike Veil—he needed to study the gnolls' weaknesses and use them against them.

Arthur decided to return to the real world to conduct further research. He headed to the academy's library, hoping to find something that would help him deal with the gnolls.

For hours, he flipped through books and scrolls, studying everything he could find about creatures similar to gnolls. His attention was drawn to old notes written by a wizard who had once conducted experiments on these beings.

The notes stated that despite their aggression and brutality, gnolls had an instinctive, almost primal fear of fire. It wasn't just fear—it was a deep-rooted phobia. Fire symbolized destruction, something they could neither control nor overcome.

"This is it!" Arthur whispered, feeling a surge of excitement. Now, he had the key to their weakness.

Back in his spiritual world, Arthur started developing a new strategy. Using fire in the spiritual world was more challenging than in the real one since he had never studied fire magic. But he knew that with his Stone Spike Veil, he could create traps that could easily be set ablaze.

His plan was to lure the gnolls into narrow spaces where the spikes would form a barrier, then ignite the prepared straw and firewood, ensuring they burned in place.

He also considered crafting torches—simple but effective tools that could keep the gnolls at bay and throw them into panic.

The First Test

After several hours of preparation, Arthur decided to test his new tactics. He observed the gnoll patrols, choosing a small group of three elite warriors and ten regular gnolls for his first experiment.

He set the trap: stone spikes would create a barrier around a narrow path frequently used by gnolls.

When they entered, Arthur used simple flaming arrows to ignite the dry grass carefully laid along the trail. The fire caught instantly, surrounding the gnolls in a ring of flames. Panic took hold. They thrashed like trapped animals, desperately trying to break through the fiery barrier.

One of the largest gnolls, overcome with rage, lunged directly into the fire, only to reel back, howling in agony. Burns covered its hide in blisters, and its fur continued to burn.

Minutes later, it was over. The forest filled with the scent of smoke, and only charred bodies remained. Arthur finished off the few survivors with his sword.

"It works," Arthur said to himself with satisfaction.

The success of the first test inspired him. Now, he knew he could use fire not only for defense but also as a primary weapon. He started setting traps throughout the forest, creating dangerous zones for the gnolls.

Each time a patrol stumbled into one of his traps, Arthur used the same method: fire and spikes. Gradually, he noticed that the gnolls had begun avoiding certain areas of the forest where attacks were most frequent.

But despite his successes, Arthur understood that he needed to move faster. Every day, the village replenished its numbers by one or two gnolls, and he had to work hard to maintain his pace.

A Change in the Enemy's Behavior

Between battles, Arthur continued watching the village. He noticed that the gnolls' behavior had changed again.

What particularly alarmed him was the activity around the central fortress. The gnolls had started building fortifications and reinforcing the main entrance. This meant their chieftain was preparing for something.

Arthur suspected that the chieftain understood the gravity of the situation and had decided that ordinary measures were no longer enough.

"I need to hurry," he told himself, realizing that time was not on his side.

During one of his raids, Arthur stumbled upon a group of seven gnolls who were clearly searching for him. Among them was a large warrior, likely their commander. They were all clad in leather armor and carried staffs with glowing stones, as well as what looked like nets—clearly hoping to capture him alive.

Arthur realized this was no ordinary patrol but a specially dispatched squad. They were too well-equipped to be simple hunters.

This encounter confirmed his fears: the chieftain was no longer waiting idly.

Returning to his spiritual world, Arthur knew he could no longer settle for small victories. To defeat the gnolls, he had to destroy their village and their leader.

Setting the Village Ablaze

Arthur spent days thinking about how to set fire to the gnoll village without using direct fire spells. His Stone Ring was practically useless on such a large scale—it could contain gnolls but not destroy the village entirely. He understood that he needed to be creative and use the resources available in the spiritual world.

First, he decided to study the terrain around the village. He carefully explored the forests surrounding it and discovered that the trees were highly resinous. Their bark and branches were practically soaked in resin, which ignited easily. He knew he could use this to his advantage.

Arthur also collected dry leaves, thin twigs, and resin-coated chips, inspecting each item carefully before setting it aside.

He noticed that the gnoll village was densely packed—houses stood close together, making it especially vulnerable to fire. He pictured the flames consuming the village, devouring everything in their path. He couldn't suppress a smile. Now, he just needed a way to ignite the fire without magic.

Returning to his spiritual world, he prepared enchanted crystals, which the gnolls used for lighting. He began experimenting. These crystals emitted bright light and slight warmth, but when infused with a precise amount of spiritual energy, they heated up to extreme temperatures. After several attempts, Arthur confirmed that the tree resin ignited quickly under high heat.

With the crystals in hand, he returned to the forest near the village. He had to act cautiously, as gnoll patrols were now more frequent and numerous. Every step required precision. He hid the crystals in nearby bushes, wrapping them in cloth to conceal their glow.

The next part of his plan was creating a network of resin traps. He collected tree resin in large leaves, tying them with vines. He placed these makeshift incendiary devices in key locations around the village—near the wooden walls and close to buildings.

Finally, he returned to his crystals and infused them with spiritual energy. Then, using his Stone Spike Veil, he launched the overheated crystals at strategic points. Accuracy wasn't the goal—the resin ignited almost instantly, spreading flames to the surrounding trees.

His plan worked. The fire quickly spread through the forest, and soon, the first tongues of flame reached the village. The gnolls reacted just as he expected: they panicked. Some ran out with weapons, searching for the source of the fire, but as soon as they saw the blazing inferno, terror overtook them.

Arthur watched from a distance, hidden among the dense trees. He saw the fire leaping onto huts, setting rooftops and wooden structures ablaze. The gnolls' panic intensified as the flames reached the village square.

The gnoll chieftain, realizing the situation was spiraling out of control, gathered his strongest warriors, trying to organize an effort to fight the fire. They threw dirt and water at the flames, but the fire spread too quickly.

Arthur continued fueling the inferno—literally. He had prepared more resin-filled vessels and launched them around the village perimeter, making the flames seem like they were coming from all directions.

Finally, the fire reached the central fortress. The tall wooden gates ignited, and flames began consuming the interior. The gnolls, realizing their stronghold was crumbling, scattered. Some tried to flee, but Arthur had already blocked all escape routes with stone spikes.

As the village was consumed by fire, Arthur felt relief but did not leave his hiding place. He knew that some gnolls might have survived, and he needed to make sure their numbers were reduced to a minimum.

Hours later, the flames subsided, leaving only ashes and smoldering ruins.