As Orion was speaking, a squad of Thunderstorm Bearmen followed a sturdy Pandaren, heading straight for Orion and Bao.
Seeing that Orion was a giant made the Pandaren uneasy—everyone knew giants were typically very powerful, and they ruled this stretch of forest.
"Bao, is this guest someone you invited?"
The Pandaren who strode over spoke in a deep, resonant voice, clearly at the peak of the hero level. And the Thunderstorm Bearmen that accompanied him were mostly hero level too.
This village is more than meets the eye, Orion thought to himself. Looking at the mature and collected Pandaren, Orion gave a faint smile.
"What’s your name?"
Orion, ever direct, didn’t bother introducing himself first; he merely asked the Pandaren outright.
"Honorable giant warrior, I am Taran, the chieftain of this village!"
"Has my tribesman offended you in any way? If so, I apologize on his behalf."
While he spoke, Taran bent his strong body in a respectful bow.
"You’ve got it wrong," Orion replied. "Bao actually invited me to visit, and I’m quite curious about you Pandaren."
He gave this explanation but still didn’t introduce himself by name.
"Honorable giant warrior, you’re most welcome as our guest," Taran said. "I’ve just brewed a fresh batch of fruit wine. Would you be willing to come by and give it a try?"
Orion silently nodded. Taran felt a wave of relief—at least for now, this giant didn’t seem hostile.
Taran dismissed the rest of the tribe, then led Orion and Bao to his own home. It was a bamboo building, beautifully crafted, with telltale signs of mortise and tenon work in many spots.
He ushered Orion to a seat at a wooden table, then quickly brought out a dozen or so jars of fruit wine. Not long after, Bao emerged from the back of the bamboo house, struggling under the weight of several large slabs of crispy roast meat, still dripping with sizzling oil.
"Honorable giant warrior, our tribe only recently moved here, and our supplies aren’t too abundant. Please forgive us if all we can offer is some wine and roast meat."
Orion sized up Taran. It was the first time he’d encountered such polite Bearmen (Pandaren). Over in Blackstone City, the Thunderstorm Bearmen in the cannon-fodder troops were hot-tempered and blunt.
"Did you migrate here from Thunderwood Forest?" Orion asked, after taking a gulp of fruit wine. It tasted pretty good—tangy, sweet, and with a nice alcoholic bite.
Taran himself was a hero-level peak fighter, yet he couldn’t gauge Orion’s strength at all, so he remained exceedingly courteous. Taran realized that if he couldn’t read the warrior’s power, then this unknown giant almost certainly had to be Alpha-level.
He wondered privately, So the rumored Alpha-level giant living in these woods… could it be him?
Taran grew even more cautious. The last thing he wanted was to offend this giant, risking tragedy for his tribe.
"Yes, honorable warrior. We did indeed come from Thunderwood Forest."
"And why did you leave?" Orion pressed.
"Lord Ariel fell in battle, and all the races broke out in chaos. Our tribe was once part of Stormrage City, so we got caught in the crossfire. Many other races tried to slaughter us, drive us away," Taran said sorrowfully, continuing his explanation to try earning some sympathy for the Pandaren’s plight.
"The truth is, we separated from the Bearmen in Stormrage City a long time ago. Three hundred years back, my grandfather’s generation was driven out. Plenty of Thunderstorm Bearmen refuse to acknowledge us Pandaren, saying we’ve ’tainted’ their bloodline…"
Taran kept going for quite a while, from the earliest days of their history all the way to the difficulties they faced on their long migration. Orion, for his part, listened carefully without interruption.
By the time Taran finished his story, Orion had polished off all the wine and roast meat on the table.
"That’s quite the story," Orion said with a nod. Taran felt a chill along his spine—he sensed that the giant warrior clearly saw through his attempts to play for sympathy.
"According to the rules of the lord who governs this forest, as long as you pay your tribute, no one—even a giant—can just barge in and harass you unprovoked." Orion paused. "So you can rest easy. I don’t mean you any harm. I’ve just never seen Pandaren in the black forest, so I was curious."
Rising to his feet, Orion delivered those words to put Taran at ease. Without them, Taran expected his entire village would be tossing and turning all night in fear.
"Bao, keep taking me around this area."
Orion’s tone was firm, leaving no room for argument.
Bao looked first at Orion, then at his chieftain. Only when Taran gave a quick nod did Bao grin hesitantly and say, "Honorable warrior, right this way. Let me show you around."
Thus began Orion’s three-day stay in the Pandaren village.
On the first day, everyone stayed on their best behavior, politely avoiding Orion as much as possible. That uneasy mood stuck around until the third day, when, after a hearty meal with plenty of wine, Orion announced he was leaving.
It wasn’t until that very moment that Taran was absolutely certain Orion bore no ill will toward them.
"Honorable giant warrior, you’re welcome to stay longer," Taran said earnestly. "We’d love to share our wine and roast meat with you."
After all, befriending an Alpha-level giant who had no hostility toward the Pandaren was a huge advantage in this territory.
"If you ever want to move to Blackstone City, I’d be glad to have you," Orion replied, seemingly out of nowhere.
Bao and the Thunderstorm Bearmen behind him looked puzzled, unable to grasp what he meant. Taran alone seemed to understand, his eyes suddenly glowing with excitement.
Orion said no more. He let out a sharp, eagle-like call, and moments later, a far-off screech thundered in reply, echoing deafeningly across the sky.
Boom! With a flash of lightning, Orion vanished, leaving the Pandaren staring in utter astonishment.
"H-he… he… t-transformed into lightning? That means he’s the lord!"
Taran felt his heart pounding so hard he could barely stand upright. Every inch of him was trembling uncontrollably. He could hardly believe that the giant warrior they had cautiously entertained for the past three days turned out to be the forest’s lord.
"C-Chief… am I seeing things?" Bao’s jaw was quivering, impossible to speak clearly as he tried in vain to hold himself together.
Taran gave no answer. At that moment, he himself couldn’t find any words to say.